Chapter 305 After the War
Roughly two weeks had passed since Prince Paul won the civil war of Astley, and the kingdom was currently undergoing a major amount of change, both administratively and legislatively.
Upon seeing the cold body of his eldest son, the king, Richard XV, was terribly shocked and devastated. The death of his heir greatly affected his mind and body, and the king had trouble sleeping.
Even though he wanted to avenge his death, most of his supporters lost in the war, and their powers and influence drastically dwindled as a result. There were a signature number of nobles who backed him out and either joined the other side or became neutral.
With almost no power to uphold it, the king ultimately relinquished the throne. Due to the fact that the crown prince had died, the second prince, Prince Paul, naturally inherited the throne, and he was crowned as the new king of the Kingdom of Astley.
There was almost no one objecting to Paul's coronation, as the majority of the nobles truly believed he was worthy of being their king. Some royalists still could not fully accept the change of regime, but they were overwhelmingly outnumbered, so they kept their grudges for themselves.
The first thing Paul did after becoming king was clean up the kingdom, getting rid of corruption and illegal operations. Upon gathering concrete evidence for their wrongdoing, the corrupted nobles were arrested one after another and sentenced to their own punishments.
Some went behind bars; the duration varied depending on their crimes. Only a few were executed in public for committing gravely heinous crimes, and the rest of the convicted and their families were sold to slavery or forced to do manual labor.
As for the former king and queen, Paul decided, to which Robert and Edward agreed, to sentence them to a house arrest. Both of them were confined to a limited space in the royal palace, guarded by skilled knights 24/7. So they were basically being imprisoned in the palace for the rest of their lives.
For those who wanted to redeem themselves, they usually enlisted in the military, in government offices, or did community service. They were waged properly by the kingdom to showcase that the kingdom truly cares.
Many illegal businesses and establishments were destroyed by the will of the new king. Most of them were related to the Five Headed Hydra. Although his grandfather always told him about the vastness of their operations, Paul was terrified to realize how much their influence in the kingdom was.
Aside from cleaning up, the new king awarded the people who made everything possible. The territories of the accused nobles were given to the nobles who captured the territories as per the agreement to join the revolution.
The foreign states and nations that helped defeat the royalists got their corresponding rewards as well. Though the territory of the kingdom of Astley had decreased in area, Paul thought it was a small price for the bigger reward.
As their territories expanded, many of them were promoted to higher ranks. Marquis Edward Krieg, who had seized control of two territories, had raised his rank to duke and even been granted the position of Grand Marshal, the generalissimo of the kingdom.
Rick, who was a great factor in the war, was given rewards as well. For his bravery and direct and indirect contribution to the war, Rick was later officially knighted by King Paul, and he was granted the title of a baronet, a small piece of land with a manor, and a small group of knights who would work under his banner.
Many citizens of Richtpole were surprised by the reappearance of Rick after almost a month, and they were amazed when the new king conferred him peerage. But in spite of how high he had reached so far, Rick still continued composing music and performing in theaters.
There were mountains of matter that Paul had to endeavor as the new ruler of the Kingdom of Astley. He had been so busy recently that he forgot something that was very important for the future of the kingdom. He realized he had not found his queen yet. But that was his problem, which he needed to solve for another day.
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Morning, the Imperial Capital of Jeffer, Empire of Dixon
The season was about the change from winter to spring. The temperature in the Imperial Capital was low, but not cold enough for the snow to fall; it had been days since the last snowflake fell onto the imperial soil. The deciduous trees on the outskirts of the city seemed to start sprouting their new green.
Everyone in the empire was waiting for spring, the time when the imperial calendar changed from Year 989 to Year 990. After surviving another harsh winter, the population continued to thrive and live on.
Whenever spring came, many occupations and operations rose back from inactivity due to cold weather, such as those related to agriculture. But this year, there was a ceremony that was currently taking place in the Imperial Palace.
Inside the wide, gorgeous throne room of the palace, a number of well-dressed people had gathered. The audience seats were mostly occupied by the lords and ladies of some of the territories of the empire. At that moment, they were witnessing the promotion of a noble family, which rarely took place in the empire.
In front of the platform where the throne was situated, there was a single woman who was kneeling on both knees over a red cushion with her head lowered. The woman was none other than Mylene Raevender, the head of the Viscounty of Raevender, supported by her family, who were in the audience.
Before her was a long, golden-haired, blue-eyed middle-aged man of tall stature and prime physique. Clad with the most splendid garments and a vivid red cape ornamented with white furs, the person to whom Mylene bowed was undoubtedly the most important person in the chamber, the very emperor of the Empire of Dixon himself.
"—As stated in the reports, the Viscounty of Raevender has performed very well in the recent civil war in the Kingdom of Astley."
As the emperor started his speech while standing before Mylene, he put the orichalcum ceremonial longsword over her right shoulder. The statements in the reports of the Raevender family's contribution to the revolution had been clearly delivered to the audience, so it was time for the emperor to execute his part.
"For the deeds that the Viscounty of Raevender has shown as the representative of the empire, I, Emperor Jeffrey Dixon, will grant the Raevender family their rewards. Today, I am officially granting the territory of Raevender the rank of marquisate."
After taking the territories of Baron Geisler and Viscount Gespenst, the total area of the territory of Raevender had increased by more than double. With a territory that was so vast, the empire ultimately decided to grant the family the rank of marquis.
"You may raise your head."
"Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty."
After Mylene raised her head, the emperor turned to his side and took the mithrill dagger from the box that the prime minister had been holding.
"Hereby, I am officially granting the heads of the Raevender family the title of marquis. From this day on, you may call yourself Marchioness Mylene Raevender. By taking this dagger, the Raevender family has fully accepted the responsibility as a marquisate of the Empire of Dixon."
"The family of Raevender will accept the responsibility, Your Imperial Majesty."
Witnessed by the nobles of the empire, the former Viscounty of Raevender had officially been promoted to the rank of Marquisate.
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