I was standing, but I felt like I was at the edge of my seat as I listened to the woman.
"He," The Matriarch looked at me meaningfully because the Kingmaker's name could never be said out loud, "took a gentle approach. You know he never gets his hands dirty. He would rather use money. So, he paid countless people to promote a traditional life for women, where modesty and conservatism were encouraged in a glamorous way."
I gasped. "#tradlife?"
"Well, you will find it in different forms, but yes. Of course, he is not responsible for all the inane stuff that goes on there. However, he played a role in the promotion of a conservative lifestyle for women, and the bashing of any woman who rejected traditional gender roles."
I felt a little guilty for feeling some admiration for the Kingmaker's plan, but it was a great approach. Only women could truly uplift, tear down and change other women. The tradwife movement had a fairly significant effect.
"But what does that have to do with women losing basic rights?" I asked.
"As for the Pawn," The Matriarch did not say the Pawn. "He was a little more cruel. It is his only use to him. He can do the dirty work that would taint his virtue. The Pawn said if women could not have jobs, money, land, and freedom, they would have to fall in line with the original design."
The Pawn, an idiot playing a game he did not understand…
The thought angered me.
However, I did not get to say the few choice words I wanted to say before the matriarch continued.
"There is another one in that group who is even more thorough. You probably do not know his name, but he is affiliated with the Order of the Paragons. He said that women could be turned into simple vessels to carry more children into the world. With a few strategic laws, women would have no choice but to become incubators. And if they failed, a worse fate awaited them."
I was filled with horror. "Can they really do this?"
"You are not ignorant or innocent. You should understand that with each law comes unforeseen consequences. Just think, women could be abused over and over, forced to carry countless children while the Martas of the world continue touting the joys of motherhood and the importance of protecting children. Women will become just carriers that lose value after a time."
The Matriarch sounded genuinely bitter and hateful as if she would wage war.
"But what is the reason? Why are they doing this?" I asked, desperate for an answer I could not begin to guess.
The Matriarch seemed to lose her strength and leaned inelegantly beside me against the sink.
"The new heaven, the new earth, they are the same. You cannot build a new earth when you have rebels from the former one stuck in their old mentalities. They want a fresh world where everyone is under their control."
"But for that, they will need women to create new progeny that they can train, teach the little ones their ways. Of course, it would be better if they could get their own mothers to train the children on their behalf. But it does not matter, for the newest generation will be brought up to embrace the new earth he will create."
I knew once again that she was talking about the Kingmaker.
But for a moment, I wondered whether the Kingmaker was getting his instructions from another being. Perhaps, someone who had made him the most invincible soldier to force the end of the world and the beginning of a new one on its corpse…
Or something…
The Matriarch continued.
"So, my dear girl, this is not a simple thought experiment for him. He has been planning this for a long time. His ways are not simple. Through his mysterious hand, men considered unsuitable will be imprisoned, and women will be put into servitude, and only a few humans will have any level of autonomy."
"He is not only manipulating the world to follow his so-called virtuous paths. He is initiating the Crusades once again. He will stop at nothing until he starts a new world order, which he believes will be the new heaven."
My heart fell into my chest.
I wanted to ask if there was anything that could stop him, them, even though I knew an ant like me could do nothing. After all, I had come to the same conclusion as the matriarch. He intended to end the old world permanently.
However, before I could even open my mouth, there was a tap on the door, soft but firm.
"Catherine, are you alright? The door is locked." It was Eunice.
I looked panicked at the Matriarch.
However, the Matriarch did not look flustered as she straightened her back and regained her demeanour. She was once again elegant and even a little cold. In a sudden move, she held my head down, opened the tap, and splashed water repeatedly over my face.
She then handed me some paper towels as I coughed and tried to catch my breath. Meanwhile, the Matriarch walked to the door and opened it for Eunice.
"You need to be more considerate, Eunice. Introducing a single woman at Catherine's age to Marta? Did you want to punish her by making her think she could never have a family? The poor girl was beside herself in tears when I found her," The Matriarch said in the most condescending and reproachful way yet sounding like she had compassion in a mock low voice.
"I did not think it through," Eunice sounded chastised.
"You did not. I only locked the door to allow her to grieve and speak about her troubles without risking further embarrassment." The Matriarch continued. "Do be considerate next time."
"Of course," Eunice replied.
With that, the Matriarch left the restroom.
Eunice stood at the door while I sniffed a little, rubbing my eyes red. I could not fail the Matriarch's fantastic performance. I turned to Eunice after a moment and forced a smile, which must have looked tragic.
In truth, I probably looked pained because I do not like touching cold water.
"I am sorry for being so…" Eunice started.
"I do not want to talk about it," I said immediately.
Eunice still apologised in a low voice before telling me the reason she was looking for me. The people who brought me to this place were ready to take me back. I did not know where they would take me, but it was not like I had a choice.