Of course, Night only provided the data.
The exact phrasing still required Tiberius' oratory skills.
A good speech needs talent, the ability to stir emotions, to truly move the people.
Simply reading data off a script would bore everyone to sleep, but change the delivery, and people suddenly become much more alert.
It's like those sensational news headlines you might see in the future—never failing to grab attention.
For instance, a woman gets three rings stuck on her fingers and calls the fire department for help.
The headline?
'Inserting was smooth! Removing was painful!
Firefighters rush to woman's house late at night—here's the shocking reason!'
Or an electrical appliance caused a fire after not being unplugged, and the neighbor sued for $70,000.
The headline?
'Shocking! He left it in all night and nearly caused a fatal disaster!'
Just an example, of course.
Giving a speech isn't the same as writing stories; some things can't be made up.
Tiberius would certainly never use such sensational tactics in front of so many people.
Otherwise, when he returned, Gaius Gracchus would be so embarrassed and angry that he'd likely strangle him.
As Tiberius walked up to the platform, seeing the crowd fall silent after the previous uproar, he took a deep breath, feeling a bit dazed.
His mind flashed back to the night before, when Night handed him the final draft of the speech, telling him to memorize it in full.
He had also shared this piece of advice:
'The script is dead; the speaker is alive.
Don't stick rigidly to the text.
Speak from your heart. If you want to inspire the people, unite their strength, and bind them together…
You must first push them out of their comfort zone.
They've been comfortable for far too long, just as this sick, decaying Rome has fallen into corruption.
Without strong medicine, they won't realize how serious the problem is.'
It was recalling these words, and thinking about Strabo Pompey's huge lead, that Tiberius made a decision.
He would abandon the mild and gradual approach he had originally prepared, and instead, provoke greater emotions, stirring up conflict from the start.
Destruction before creation—!!
Strabo had tried to satisfy the people's appetite with heavy promises.
In response, Tiberius would counter with something even more fierce—a storm as swift as wind, as shocking as thunder, as overwhelming as a tidal wave.
Neither the people, who had no idea what awaited them, nor Strabo, who was anticipating an easy victory, knew what was coming.
As Tiberius finally spoke, in a calm and steady voice.
"Citizens, before starting my speech today, I thought about how I could win your support.
I won't lie to you—at first, I considered, like Strabo Pompey, making promises to bring victory to Rome."
Hearing this, Strabo thought to himself,
'Ha, as expected,
He's going to take the military route.
But it's too late for you now, Tiberius.'
As he smiled to himself, he had no idea of the disaster awaiting him.
Was Tiberius really going to use war to win votes?
Inevitably, this would make people subconsciously think of imitation.
It would seem as though Tiberius was copying Strabo Pompey.
However—
Tiberius then said,
"You all know my relationship with Lista Night.
We are friends and comrades-in-arms.
I was confident that I could persuade him to join me in the wars in Spain and Sicily.
This was one of the strategies I had considered to win your votes…"
...
Lista Night!
As soon as his name was mentioned, the mood among the crowd shifted drastically.
Hmm?!
You're talking about our Rome's last hero?
Now we're interested.
Even Strabo felt a jolt of concern.
After all, just like him, Tiberius could make empty promises and grand speeches.
But if Tiberius really did follow Strabo's lead, and managed to gain the support of a legendary hero like Night, then the people might very well choose him.
Just as Strabo began to feel uneasy, the man calmly continued, "But I gave up on that decision.
Because I saw a problem far greater and more urgent than winning a short-term war.
If we don't solve this problem, even if we win today's external wars, one day…"
"Uprisings like the slave rebellions will inevitably rise again.
As we move into the next era, even ten years from now, our heroes and soldiers will grow old.
Who will stand up to continue resisting these foreign enemies?
Some may say that Rome will produce new armies, new young men.
But Rome has never lacked strong soldiers; what it lacks is a strong fighting spirit.
Rome once destroyed Carthage.
So, are our soldiers truly inferior to those of the rebels and slaves?
If it's truly a matter of military strength, that the rebels are too powerful, then even recruiting more allied soldiers won't help.
It's just like the tens of thousands of soldiers who were annihilated on the front lines.
Who can guarantee that a group of new recruits will defeat the rebels, who even the powerful Roman legions failed to overcome?"
Tiberius' words made the people start to reflect, while Strabo's expression visibly shifted.
Damn it—!
'Is he overturning everything I proposed earlier?'
But how do you plan to solve this problem?
Strabo wasn't too surprised that Tiberius could point out the flaws in his proposal.
But merely posing problems without offering solutions leaves a bad impression.
That's why Strabo was still able to maintain his composure.
However, what Tiberius said next shocked everyone with its madness.
Yes—madness, or rather, bold and biting criticism.
"I thought long and hard about how Rome emerged victorious in the wars against Etruria, Carthage, Greece, and the battle for dominance in the Mediterranean.
Even the mighty Macedonian Empire, nearly world-conquering under Alexander the Great, fell to the strength of our great nation of Rome.
Macedonia and Syria, two of the three great Eastern empires founded by Alexander the Great, became Roman client states.
We, like the kings of Macedon, came to control everything in the Mediterranean.
But how did we end up like this today?
I pondered this question for a long time with no answer—until I heard a story from my brother, Scipio the Younger.
Our Rome has adopted much of Greek culture.
But along with the brilliance of Greek philosophy and heroism, some negative influences have also seeped into Rome.
My brother—Scipio the Younger—who is passionate about Greek literature and art, once visited a dance school in Rome to observe how the teachers instructed the children in dance.
But what he saw was the school teaching the children vulgar, base dances."
"This shocked him greatly.
Since when were free citizens—Roman children—taught from such a young age to engage in adult behavior, learning how to please others, especially the nobility?
Where has the shame of Roman citizens gone?"
.
.
.