Chapter 31: Democracy Is Difficult

I’m a pretty famous person. Not just among elves, but across the whole country.

Well, it can’t be helped. My face was plastered all over the news once…

Why am I bringing this up all of a sudden?

Because I saw an article today.

***

The Constituent Assembly of Joseon (tentative name) was in full swing, busy drafting and passing the constitution.

To be honest, there wasn’t much actual work. They were just copy-pasting the South Korean constitution and tweaking it to suit the North.

Of course, those “tweaks” led to shouting matches, so the assembly members had their hands full. In their own way.

“Come on! You think it makes sense to just blindly follow the South Korean constitution?!”

“Then should we keep using the Kim dynasty’s constitution? I don’t think so.”

“I’m telling you, this Joseon should adopt a parliamentary cabinet system.”

“Stop spouting nonsense. Let’s just go with something similar to South Korea.”

Starting with choosing the form of government.

“I take it no one objects to the name ‘Joseon’?”

“Isn’t this the true nation of the people now? Let’s call it the People’s Republic of Joseon.”

“People’s Republic? Come on, socialism’s been dead for ages. Let’s just go with the Republic of Joseon, clean and simple.”

A whole day was wasted arguing over what to name the country—from the Republic of Joseon to the People’s Republic and every ‘Joseon Something’ in between.

Ah, democracy.

“…Therefore, we, the 600 members of the Constituent Assembly, hereby proclaim the constitution of our glorious and proud nation, the Republic of Joseon.”

After a long and painful process, a new country was born.

Sure, it had been built with help from another nation, and sure, it would be under foreign influence for a while.
But the fact that a young republic had emerged in a land once ruled by chaos was an encouraging sign.

And then those Constituent Assembly bastards pulled a ridiculous stunt in the constitution.

First, they dissolved the Territory Reclamation Command.

Well, that was expected. What’s the point of maintaining a command for reclaiming territory when there’s nothing left to reclaim?

I was reassigned as the Chief of Staff of the newly formed Joseon Defense Forces, formerly the Pyongyang Defense Forces.

Not much had changed.

But the constitution, in its effort to mimic a democratic nation, no longer allowed me to remain the military’s undisputed ruler.

What a shame.

To act like a proper 21st-century country, I guess civilian control over the military was necessary. Didn’t mean I had to like it.

Of course, the military still followed my orders. Even if a warhead more terrifying than a flak cannon was staring them in the face, would they dare ignore my command?

And here’s the most absurd part—

They limited the autonomous elf region I requested to just 50 years. After that, whether it would be extended or not was to be decided by a national referendum.

What a joke.

Fifty years is a blink of an eye. For short-lived species, maybe it’s half a lifetime.

I confronted Kim Pyongjin, who still hadn’t stepped down, not having held a presidential election yet.

“Chairman Kim Pyongjin, isn’t this different from what we agreed on? I thought we made a deal—you’d unify Joseon, and I’d get my autonomous region.”

“General, I had no choice. The Democratic Party and the Social Democrats fought tooth and nail. This was the best compromise. That’s democracy for you.”

“Democracy, huh… You’re not wrong.”

“But I promise you this. If my party, the Republican Party, wins the election, we’ll remove the term limit clause from the constitution.”

“Look at you, turning into a real politician.”

“…”

I mocked Kim Pyongjin and left his office.

And then, the first election of the new republic arrived. It was the first time the people of Joseon would choose their leader with their own hands.

Naturally, as with all young republics, principles and order were as reliable as a stop line on the road.

“Hey, comrade, shouldn’t we vote for the Joseon Democratic Party? Why would we pick some hybrid ranting about the Kim dynasty or social democracy?”

“The Democratic Party is a puppet of South Korea! They don’t care about the people of Joseon—they serve the Republic of Korea! Vote for the Social Democratic Party of Joseon!”

There was nasty propaganda, slander, and black campaigns.

“For the Republican Party! Hahaha! Drinks are on the party for our hardworking rural comrades!”

“Vote for the Democratic Party and get free supplies! Toothbrushes, socks, towels—all American-made, take as much as you want!”

It was textbook ‘rubber shoes and rice wine’ politics.

They even hired street thugs to beat rival candidates half to death.

A world of disorder built on the illusion of law and order.

Three main candidates drew attention in the presidential election.

Kim Pyongjin of the Joseon Republican Party—yes, the very same acting president.

Hwang Seonju of the Joseon Democratic Party—an old hand in the party even before the North collapsed. After the fall, she crushed the Workers’ Party leadership to become party head.

And Lee Hoemin of the Joseon Social Democratic Party—not as well-known or popular, but had strong support in southern Pyongyang Province and posed the biggest threat to the Republican Party.

Some political analysts suggested Kim Pyongjin might be struggling because of lingering resentment from his controversial rise to power.

There was no one left to resent him.

More than anything, I was amazed at the power of South Korean media. It wasn’t enough for them to cover their own election—they even broadcasted ours.

Technically, we were one country by law, but we had just emerged from division.

Major broadcasters built stations across the North and started transmissions. It was quite the spectacle.

And every election season, the networks loved to run one thing—

Mock candidate matchups. A grown-up version of “who’s stronger,” but now backed by statistics and polling data.

Naturally, the three real candidates were in the lineup.

And sometimes, others got added—bureaucrats, the current mayor of Pyongyang, and finally…

Me.

Honestly, I was puzzled at first. I wasn’t a politician. I’d never even dipped my toe in that world.

But thinking about it, I had made political moves.

I gave speeches often. I was always on TV. In practice, not so different from a politician.

Of course, that didn’t mean I had any intention of running.

The mock poll didn’t show me crushing the other candidates or anything, and more importantly—

Three hundred years in Albheim left me with a lot of experience.

Democratic elections. Civilian control. Basic rights. I could understand them in theory, but emotionally? They didn’t resonate with me.

I had no desire to throw myself into a contest I didn’t even understand.

***

That idiot Kim Pyongjin.

Why? Because he was losing the election.

[News Report] 

“In the first presidential election of the Republic of Joseon, Democratic Party candidate Hwang Seonju is leading with 38.4%. Republican Party candidate Kim Pyongjin is at 27.4%, followed closely by Social Democratic Party candidate Lee Hoemin at 20.5%.”

Even with his bloodline and incumbent power, Kim Pyongjin was trailing the Democratic Party candidate in approval.

All that money spent, all that propaganda, all that power—wasted.

Of course, it wasn’t the end of the world if he didn’t win.

Unless the new president decided to exercise full civilian control and strip the military of power, or worse—replace me…

That would be a problem.

Kim Pyongjin and I were more than allies—we were political partners. We didn’t need long negotiations. We already knew what each other wanted.

He had an insatiable thirst for power.

We needed a new plan.

Election fraud? Not an option. Not because of morals—Korea and the UN had sent election monitors.

More propaganda? More money? He was already doing that. His spending was double the others’. His campaign budget was 50% higher.

Seriously. What a f*cking idiot.

Then again, part of the reason was that the people of the North had started to wake up.

After the collapse, the South Korean government launched democracy education campaigns in major northern cities.

Not American-style bombing democracy. Actual education.

Elderly or young, everyone had access. And many came to realize—how deeply wrong the Kim family dictatorship had been.

That was a huge blow to Kim Pyongjin. Sure, the older generation still supported him for his lineage, but the youth didn’t just reject him—they despised him.

They yearned for a modern Korean future.

***

[News Report]

“We’ve passed 50% of the vote count. As expected, Democratic Party candidate Hwang Seonju is in the lead with 34%. However, Republican candidate Kim Pyongjin is outperforming earlier polls with 30%. It’s still too close to call.”

At the Republican Party headquarters, party members were glued to the broadcast with sweaty palms.

Kim Pyongjin sat in the center. The seat next to him remained empty.

He hadn’t received confirmation, so it might stay that way.

Still, there was hope. It was close enough. Everyone wished—no, prayed—for our victory. My victory.

Then the door opened.

A blonde-haired, green-eyed elf walked in.

Camera flashes exploded. Yes, it was Fride.

“General! You came after all.”

“Well… I was passing by and thought I’d stop in.”

Obviously not true. The Republican Party HQ was nowhere near her house.

Then, a twist.

“Oh! Kim Pyongjin of the Republican Party has just overtaken Hwang Seonju of the Democratic Party!”

The place erupted.

Everyone stood and cheered. Even Kim Pyongjin got up and clapped.

“General, we’re winning!”

Fride raised an eyebrow at the word ‘we’ but didn’t comment.

“Looks like things change when I walk in. Call it the touch of victory.”

Normally, Kim Pyongjin would’ve played it cool, but high on adrenaline from the reversal, he played along.

“Indeed! You truly are our symbol of victory!”

The count continued.

The lead seesawed.

Kim Pyongjin would take the lead, only for Hwang Seonju to close the gap.

‘This is insane. Democracy really does drive people mad.’

Too true. Every election season turns politicians into lunatics.

Fride stepped out to take a call.

“Yeah. I might be a bit late. Got it, I’ll try to hurry. Heh, yeah.”

Kim Pyongjin was stunned.

‘Did… did that elf just speak gently? Did she even laugh?’

No wonder. The caller was her one and only lover—Ion.

Anyway, her seat was empty again.

And once the ‘symbol of victory’ left… the numbers shifted.

The gap that had narrowed and widened repeatedly… now steadily narrowed.

Closer… and closer…

“Democratic Party candidate Hwang Seonju has taken the lead again! Now at 36.5%!”

It felt like a sports match.

‘There’s still a chance to take it back.’

Kim Pyongjin clung to hope.

“Hwang Seonju of the Democratic Party is confirmed as the winner!”

Hope let him go.

A ridiculous coincidence.

The moment Fride walked in, he took the lead. And the moment she left, he lost again.

‘Heh… maybe that elf really is the goddess of victory…’

Defeated, Kim Pyongjin could only laugh bitterly at the thought.