Chapter 500

Protests were acceptable in Country M, as they advocated for democracy and freedom, but inciting riots that threatened national governance certainly was not. The opposition party merely wanted to achieve its political goals through this incident. If the president were to step down early—whether forced to resign mid-term due to various reasons or assassinated—the vice president would temporarily assume presidential duties until new elections could be held at the end of the term. The vice president and the president belonged to different parties, so the party represented by the vice president wanted to seize this opportunity to force the president out and the vice president into power. Regardless of whether it was the opposition or the ruling party, their fundamental interests were the same: as long as this red-leaning political party threatened their interests, they would strike. Neither side wanted yet another political rival, especially one that could fundamentally subvert the nation's existing social and political order. Facing the vice president's gloating and the public outcry outside the presidential palace, the president did indeed feel some regret. Handling the matter that way had been somewhat impulsive... but admitting fault was entirely out of the question.