Please support the translation by reading the translation and commenting on otakutl official site.
Thank you.
Everyone from Otaku Translation
Leo and Sarah spent a week completing a fifty-page federal grant application report.
The report had one core purpose: to convince Washington bureaucrats to invest federal funds into Pittsburgh’s working-class communities.
The report included historical data compiled by Leo, proving Pittsburgh’s contributions during both World Wars and exposing the alarming unemployment and drug abuse rates in today’s neighborhoods.
It also featured charts and stories created by Sarah. She incorporated the most authentic testimonies from The Heart of Pittsburgh channel, giving cold numbers a human face.
Ultimately, the report proposed a clear urban revival plan. The first step was to use the grant to fully renovate all public facilities in several southern working-class communities, including the Steelworkers Community Center.
Leo printed it out, neatly bound.
He submitted this labor-of-love report through the official electronic system to the federal agency overseeing the fund—the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Then came the long wait.
One day passed—no response.
Three days passed—still nothing.
A week went by, and the report vanished without a trace.
Leo began trying to make calls.
From the Department of Housing and Urban Development's official website, he found a public inquiry number.
The operator who answered sounded emotionless.
After explaining his purpose, the operator transferred him to the "Urban Development and Revival Fund" project office.
A staff member at the project office informed Leo that applications for the Pittsburgh region should be handled by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Office.
They gave him a phone number for the regional office.
Leo called the regional office.
The person there told him that all applications for the "Traditional Industrial Communities" special fund were processed by a dedicated review team.
They transferred him to that so-called review team.
Then, no one answered the phone—just a recorded voicemail message:
"Hello, this is the Special Fund Review Team. We are currently unable to take your call. Please leave a detailed message, and we will get back to you as soon as possible."
Leo left one message, then two, then three.
He never received any reply.
He felt like a ball being kicked around between different offices in this vast bureaucratic system.
Finally, he ended up in a dead-end alley of voicemail boxes.
"Welcome to Washington, child."
Roosevelt’s voice carried a hint of sarcasm.
"Here, those beautiful reports and application forms you write have only one destination—to be stuffed into a shredder tucked away in some office corner."
"You must understand that in Washington, documents don’t walk themselves. You need to find a person—a flesh-and-blood individual with political needs and personal calculations—who will sign off on your report and pave its way."
Leo felt a wave of helplessness.
"But we don’t know anyone in Washington."
"Then we’ll go find someone," Roosevelt said. "Someone who needs us the most right now."
Roosevelt instructed Leo to analyze the profiles of federal congressmen representing the Pittsburgh area.
Pennsylvania had seventeen seats in the House of Representatives, two of which cover Pittsburgh and its surrounding areas.
One is a Republican whose district mainly consists of affluent white suburban communities around Pittsburgh.
"He’s not our target," Roosevelt dismissed outright. "He and his voters hope those poor Rust Belt communities would vanish from the map."
The other is a Democrat.
Leo quickly found his information.
Sixty-two years old, a seasoned politician who has been on Capitol Hill for over twenty years.
A moderate within the Democratic Party, rarely taking stances on radical issues, adept at playing both sides.
His district is a "deep blue" one, primarily composed of Pittsburgh’s working-class and minority communities.
In past decades, he has easily won re-election every time.
But recently, things have changed.
Leo found an analysis article about Murphy’s electoral situation on a local political news website.
The article pointed out that in the upcoming Democratic primary, Representative Murphy faces a strong challenge from a far-left radical candidate.
This young challenger, backed by the "Democratic Socialists of America," enjoys high popularity among young voters and university communities.
Meanwhile, Representative Murphy, having stayed too long in a "deep blue" district, has lost his former edge.
He is severely disconnected from the younger voters and working class in his district.
He hasn’t secured any significant federal investment for Pittsburgh in a long time.
His voting record in Congress increasingly favors big corporations.
The latest polls show his support rate in the primary is only slightly above the young challenger’s by less than five percentage points.
The election situation is precarious.
"A perfect candidate."
"Murphy doesn’t need more campaign funds; he has enough backers."
"What he needs now are votes, achievements to prove to the increasingly disillusioned working-class voters in his district that he’s still working for them."
"And you, Leo, can hand-deliver this much-desired achievement right into his hands."
Inside the mayor’s office in Pittsburgh.
Mayor Martin Cartwright was listening to his chief of staff, Mark Jennings, deliver the weekly report.
At the end of the report, Jennings casually mentioned,
"Mayor, regarding that Wallace from the Urban Revival Commission, my sources say he’s been calling the Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, trying to apply for some federal funds."
Cartwright sneered.
He picked a costly Cuban cigar from his cigar box, cut it, and lit it.
"Let him be," he exhaled a thick cloud of smoke. "A greenhorn who can’t even navigate City Hall wants to storm Capitol Hill? If he gets a penny from those tight-fisted Washington bureaucrats, I’ll drink the fountain in front of City Hall dry."
"You’re right," Jennings chuckled. "Should I keep someone watching him?"
"Of course," Cartwright replied. "Keep an eye on him, ensure he doesn’t stir up trouble in Pittsburgh. As for Washington, it will teach him the true meaning of despair."
Unaware of Cartwright’s arrangements, Leo was brainstorming with Sarah to obtain Representative Murphy’s upcoming schedule.
Eventually, they found the needed information on Murphy’s official campaign website.
Next Monday was Labor Day in the U.S.
Representative Murphy would return to Pittsburgh to attend a large "Labor Day" family barbecue organized by several major local unions.
This would be his most crucial public event to win over blue-collar voters.
"The opportunity has arrived."
Roosevelt’s voice echoed in Leo’s mind.
"Prepare your speech, child."
"We will appear before him at the moment he needs us the most, in a manner he cannot refuse."
Please rate or leave a review for this novel at
If you would like to support this translation, you may choose any one of the options below.
There are advance chapters available now
Access will be granted 24 hours after the donation
Tier 1: 30 Advance chapters
Access fee $3.00 Monthly
 | Link |
How to find a list of chapters
Please find the chapter label next to your favorite translator's name, and click the label.
