civilwarnovels Chapter 4692 The Demise of the X Royal Family (3)
Chapter 4692 The Demise of the X Royal Family (3)
Chapter 4692 The X Royal Family: Demise (Thirteen)
"What's going on?" Magneto asked. Schiller noticed that he had taken off his helmet, so Professor X must have woken up. However, although Magneto's face wasn't old, his hair was completely white, which seemed somewhat incongruous with his age. Nevertheless, the white hair paired perfectly with his silver-white armor.
“S.H.I.E.L.D. captured a Stark Industries drone near the Redgate Orchid factory.” Schiller paused, then continued, “They believe Iron Man has already made his move, and in order to take control of the factory from him, they need the help of mutants.”
Magneto looked enlightened. He sat down at the table, tapped his finger lightly on the surface, and said, "It seems that Clarkia will soon be able to establish a nation."
“No,” Schiller suddenly said, startlingly, “make Sebastian abandon the proposal to establish a nation, and no matter how the other ambassadors try to persuade him, do not agree to the establishment of a nation.”
"What?!" Magneto exclaimed in shock, "Don't want to establish a nation?"
Schiller sighed deeply, wishing Professor X could directly read his brainwaves and implant them into Magneto's brain, so he wouldn't have to give him a long, rambling prenatal education. But unfortunately, Professor X wouldn't do that, so he could only say:
“I’ll say it again, ‘establishing a mutant nation’ is not a grand enough goal, it doesn’t even qualify as a goal. If you really consider this the ultimate goal, then this nation won’t last long. What you should be studying is what kind of nation you want to build.”
What kind of country?
"Yes, there are many different kinds of mutants..."
“We accept all mutants,” Magneto said, “including the Epsilon class. The Clarkia Flower can heal their injuries and at least make them less painful.”
“That’s not what I meant. If there’s a mutant who’s obsessed with killing his own kind, just like a murderer among ordinary people, would you accept him?”
Magneto frowned slightly, then said, "I don't believe anyone can kill under the noses of Professor X and me. But if he really wants to do it and keeps doing it, Professor X will teach him a lesson."
"Force him to become a good person?"
“It’s not quite accurate to say coercion,” Magneto said, lowering his eyes. “Professor X made sure he was willing.”
"If his family and friends disagree and call your behavior oppression and control, are you still going to force them to do it voluntarily?"
"Why not?"
"If this matter doesn't get out at all, that's fine. But you should understand that no country will give up on causing trouble in Krakya. Questioning the methods of governance will only be the first step; next, they will demand democracy. Would you support electoral politics?"
“This won’t work among mutants,” Magneto said. “The gap between the best and worst among mutants is too large. We can’t let weak mutants rule over mutants because they can’t bear that responsibility.”
“Very well, then you will be excluded from the democratic sphere. Next comes trade bans and embargoes, diplomatic blockades, verbal attacks, until this place is portrayed as a mutant hell, so that no mutant dares to come here.”
Magneto frowned deeply. Schiller lowered his head slightly and said, "The biggest weakness of mutants is that ordinary people can also have mutant offspring. Your foundation is still among ordinary people. As long as you control the birth rate, you can't cause any trouble, can you?"
"What if we agree with electoral politics..."
"Then you're completely finished. Because the one chosen will definitely be someone who has neither ability nor ambition, an Epsilon-class mutant. Then he'll start pushing for equality, demanding that all government positions have a certain number of Epsilon-class mutants, even the defense system; he'll promote all sorts of so-called 'Epsilon-class inspirational geniuses,' and portray all Alpha-class and Omega-class mutants as powerful, irritable lunatics, until he excludes you all."
“Exclude us?!” Magneto exclaimed incredulously. “But we built Clarkia.”
“The Hellfire Club was founded by Sebastian,” Schiller said, looking at Magneto. “He still got kicked out, didn’t he? Why don’t you ask the White Queen if she used those same tricks?”
Magneto pursed his lips and then said, "So what do you think we should do?"
“The best way is not to establish a nation.” Schiller tapped the table lightly with his finger. “You are not a nation, so there is no way to be chosen. So-called trade bans, embargoes, and media attacks are useless against you.”
Magneto looked puzzled. Schiller sighed softly again, then said, "Could I have a Krakia flower?"
Magneto reached out and took out a flower, handing it to Schiller. He then said, "You're not a mutant, so you can't use teleportation. But this can cure your illness."
Schiller shook his head and said, "For now, we won't consider this a teleportation device, but rather a kind of medicine. You originally intended to use it as medicine and distribute it to ordinary society, didn't you?"
Magneto nodded and said, "We'll be using Hellfire Corporation's sales channels to distribute the Krakia Flower to ordinary people. However, sales haven't officially started yet; some things have delayed things."
“Very good. Since it’s medicine, we can treat it as a commodity. Suppose Clarkia has already become a nation, and now the US president issues an executive order to impose a 1600% tariff on medical supplies and medical devices from Clarkia. What would you do?”
"Why does he impose such high tariffs?!" Magneto exclaimed. "If this thing were exported to America, he could use it too. Isn't he worried about all sorts of diseases?"
"I said it was an executive order issued by the President of the United States. Does that mean the President of the United States is helpless against various diseases just because he can't buy the Flower of Clarkia? Isn't there Wakanda?"
"But would Wakanda really agree..."
"Why do you think Wakanda has such a high political status? They are just a small country in Africa. Even if they are technologically advanced, the technology of other major countries is not backward. Otherwise, who built the Red Gate Orchid factory?"
“We’ve investigated the situation in Wakanda,” Magneto said. “Their medical system also has significant limitations and is not as simple and effective as the Flower of Clarkia.”
“But these big shots aren’t looking for simple and effective treatments.” Schiller tapped the table and pointed out, “If it’s expensive, they can afford it; if it’s complicated, they can wait; if there are limits, they can use political pressure to cut in line. Only the masses seek simple and effective treatments. But whether the masses can receive good treatment is something these big shots don’t care about at all.”
Schiller looked at the Krakia Flower in his hand and said, "This is a good thing. If everyone could actually buy it, mutants would undoubtedly become saviors of ordinary people, but the problem is that it's impossible. Because only ordinary people, who live only a day and die in a day, are easier to rule."
Magneto's expression darkened. He sighed from the bottom of his heart, "Sometimes, I'm reluctant to admit that I'm human, partly because I'm ashamed to be associated with some of them. The mutants have never given up on the Epsilons, and we consider them our fellow mutants. We've tried everything to save them."
“But you and Professor X,” Schiller said, “do you think the White Queen cares about mutants with disabilities? And Mr. Sinister?”
"But they never opposed our decision to accept Epsilon-class mutants."
“Because you will take responsibility,” Schiller pointed out. “You will spend money and effort to save them, without them having to worry about it, so they are happy to be generous.”
"Back to tariffs," Schiller said. "The best way to restrict the inflow of a certain commodity is through tariffs. If something is too expensive for its own people to afford, even the best product will have no market. That's their goal."
"They don't care whether ordinary people can receive treatment from the Flower of Krakya. But they care a lot about selling this medicine and increasing their influence. That will become their leverage against you. But the premise is that you are truly a nation."
Magneto seemed to understand something. He said, "There are certain methods that can only be used against sovereign states, right?"
“That’s right.” Schiller nodded, somewhat relieved. “You’ve finally figured it out. Perhaps your obsession with establishing your own home is too strong, making you desperately want a legal identity. However, legality also means constraint; joining a certain rule system inevitably means being bound by those rules.”
"For example, the United States can arbitrarily raise tariffs, Russia can enact ethnic laws to restrict the birth of mutants, Europe can use environmental protection and carbon emissions to strangle them, and China can restrict the export of industrial resources and goods. Every major power has its own cards to play. When there aren't enough cards for mutants, the best approach is not to play at all. As long as they don't play at all, they can't be selected, and many methods will become ineffective."
Magneto found it increasingly plausible. He thought it was utterly absurd. All their previous efforts had been for the establishment of a nation, and they were just one step away from achieving it. All they needed was a nod at the UN General Assembly, and the long-awaited legitimacy would be theirs. Yet now he actually thought that not establishing a nation was the better option.
He couldn't resist looking at Schiller again, wanting to know what this doctor was all about; he was the most convincing person he'd encountered besides Professor X. The Central Universe certainly had some tricks up its sleeve.
"The same applies to domestic affairs," Schiller continued. "As long as your current organizational structure remains unchanged, you can maintain the status quo, and no one can say that your rule is illegitimate. But once a country is established, everything will be renewed, and naturally someone will use this as an excuse to seize power. I think it's better to maintain the status quo at this stage."
Magneto sighed; Schiller had completely convinced him. However, he still asked, "But if we don't establish a nation, under what identity will the mutants of Clarkia operate?"
“I do have a proposal for that,” Schiller said, taking out a prepared proposal from a drawer and handing it to Magneto. “You can send it to Sebastian and have him bring it up at the United Nations General Assembly.”
Magneto accepted the proposal.
"The Clarkia Island Nature Reserve and Environmental Foundation Establishment Plan?!"
Sebastian couldn't help but exclaim in surprise. While looking at the transmitted file, he said to Magneto, "Who gave you this idea?! He…"
Sebastian wanted to say, "Is he crazy?" but even more so, "Are you crazy too?" He simply couldn't understand why, with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council already agreeing, they wouldn't establish a nation. But Magneto's tone carried a hidden threat, and Sebastian felt he couldn't persuade him otherwise, so he could only sigh and say, "Fine, I'll try. Not establishing a nation should be possible, but establishing a nature reserve... don't get your hopes up too high."