The Tycoon's Odyssey

As evening fell, the news of the Rajput scandal spread like wildfire. The footage, which unveiled the immense influence and manipulation by the Rajput family, flooded every media outlet, social network, and even numerous private forums.

Government agencies scrambled in desperation to contain the information leaks. They issued directives to internet providers to restrict access, coordinated with social media companies to take down posts, and even deployed advanced filtering algorithms to intercept and block videos in real-time.

They pulled out every technical tool at their disposal into the effort: blocking keywords, redirecting search results, and erasing trending tags.

Cybersecurity teams scoured the digital landscape, monitoring new uploads and shutting down servers. Yet, somehow, the footage kept resurfacing, reappearing on obscure platforms and through encrypted networks, as if guided by an unseen force that was determined to expose the truth.

Despite every effort, the content remained omnipresent, circulating faster than they could suppress it. Government officials began to suspect that a powerful entity—one far beyond the reach of their standard tactics—was at play behind the leaks, intent on ensuring that the truth couldn't be silenced.

As the public unrest mounted, Rajesh Patel, the Prime Minister and administration's spokesperson, was tasked with the daunting task of addressing the nation to quell the rising discontent.

As his role as the leader, he was now the figurehead in confronting what could be widely considered as the administration's darkest hour since the one had ever heard of.

Standing before the cameras in a hastily assembled broadcast studio, he delivered a speech brimming with patriotic rhetorics, attempting to dismiss the explosive revelations.

"Citizens of Indra," he began, his tone solemn and heavy with conviction. "I come before you tonight to denounce the vile attack that has been waged upon our beloved nation. These so-called 'revelations' are nothing more than baseless fabrications—cunning lies created by enemies of our state who wish to undermine our prosperity and break our unity. They are weaponizing lies to shatter the unity that we, as a nation, have built together."

Patel's voice grew more fervent as he continued. "The Rajputs are a respected family, but the notion that they control our government is preposterous. They are a small, unrelated family with no influence over our decisions. These videos are all fake—manufactured by digital manipulation and deceitful editing. There is no proof, no credibility, just slander aimed to tear us down."

He paused for effect, his gaze sweeping across the camera, his expression earnest. "We, your elected government, are servants of the people. We were chosen by you, for you, and we exist solely to serve the welfare of Indra. We have worked tirelessly to uplift the middle and lower classes, ushering in a golden age for our great nation."

Patel then launched into a series of grand claims that many felt were as hollow as they were grandiose. "Unemployment is at an all-time low under our leadership, and our economy is growing faster than ever. Every day, we bring jobs, we bring hope and prosperity. This is the most prosperous Indra has ever been. Anyone saying otherwise is simply blind to the truth."

He emphasized, "We are the honest guardians of this nation. No scandal, no corruption, no betrayal can be pinned on us. We are as devoted to you as we were on the first day you elected us."

Yet for the people watching, this speech only poured fuel on the fire. For most, unemployment was far from "low," and economic struggles were a reality that couldn't be erased by mere words of speech.

Many scoffed, enraged by what they saw as a blatant attempt to mask the obvious truth. How could a government representative dare to speak of prosperity when their lives were filled with hardships and they were struggling to even make the ends meet?

However, in this vast country, countless groups of people lived, interwoven by facades.

Indra's population was already divided, with one faction being blindly loyal to the government and the others who saw through its deception and were growing increasingly resentful.

Though this scandal had shaken their faith, for the loyalists, Patel's speech offered them enough reason to cling to their beliefs, if only barely. On the other hand, those who had long opposed the government were livid. Patel's speech felt like an insult, a dismissal of the harsh realities they lived through every day.

Ordinarily, the opposition party would have typically seized the opportunity to capitalize on such a blunder. But, they too, were silenced by the complexity of numerous scandals and accounts of black money deals that were tied to them, the very system they now watched crumble. They found themselves helpless, retreating from the political scene to escape the public's wrath.

As Patel's broadcast concluded, the tension in Indra was palpable.

A few groups even banded together and started using social media, galvanizing support and rallying dissent.

[The people sensed that this was only the beginning of a much larger reckoning. For too long, they had been lied to, manipulated, and controlled. And now, with the truth beginning to unravel, they were on the brink of revolution, determined to reclaim their nation from those who had deceived them.]

[Regroup with us and partake in creating new work.]

_____

"Mr.Handsome, what's your take on this?" Suri asked playfully, draping her slender arms over Evan's shoulder as they watched the unfolding chaos on social media.

Yeah, the war could only happen on social media, if someone dared to appear in public and protest, the police and army were allowed to beat them without mercy, so not many protests occurred. After all, 8 out of 10 protests had always been fueled by opposition, but now that they were conspicuously silent, only a handful of madmen dared to make a stand.

"The situation is chaotic," Evan admitted, his tone calm, "but I am keeping tabs."

Suri raised a brow, silently urging him to elaborate.

"Do you think I am foolish enough to destabilize the entire country for this?" Evan answered, his voice edged with irony as he explained.

"This is cyber war. At most, the people who saw this might amount to 10-15% of the population with the lower classes still largely unaware of anything about this till now. Aurora is making sure to contain the spread of the damaging content and the thought-provoking things are being made invisible."

Evan then shrugged his shoulders, "A few months later, all these 'revelations' will fade into obscurity, dismissed as mere conspiracy theories."

Suri pouted, feigning innocence. "Then why did you stir the pot at all?"

"Don't act naive," Evan teased, nudging her nose.

Looking ahead, his gaze turned calculating. "With this, the government will be busy. By the time they are able to recover, they will come straight for me—and when they do…" Evan paused, a smirk creeping across his lips.

"It will be game over for them."