Chapter 196: The Empire’s Crisis (5)
The Emperor pleaded again at Rays words:
Please reconsider, just this once.
When had the leader of a once-mighty nation ever bowed his head like this?
The nobles, undoubtedly, had never seen the Emperor in such a state before.
But Ray was indifferent to whether the Emperors head was bowed or turned aside.
He was known for being capricious like a teenage girl, but once his mind was made up, it wasnt easy to change.
Ray muttered loudly enough for the Emperor to hear.
You only treat me like a saint when you need me. Just moments ago, you were all too eager to tell me to leave.
At these words, the Emperor glared at the central nobles.
None dared meet his fierce gaze.
Was this what it meant to kill with a look?
It seemed as if aura blades might shoot from the Emperors eyes at any moment.
The embarrassed nobles succumbed to the Emperors will.
I misspoke. I sincerely apologize.
No, who dares tell the saint to leave? You are welcome to stay as long as you wish!
Their attitudes changed in an instant.
Indeed, they knew politics well.
If the other party was playing politics, Ray was confident he could play along.
Raising two fingers, Ray said,
When a merchant misses the right time, the price of goods rises. The more you resist, the higher the price goes. Write down your familys military strength in detail on that parchment. And
After a pause, he continued with a smirk,
Hand over one-third of your familys wealth. I intended to help out of loyalty, but since youre reluctant, Ill be motivated by money.
His statement, blurring the line between bandit and saint, left the smiling audience speechless.
Their looks said, What did he just say? but they only shook their heads at each other.
Someone, still smiling, asked,
Could you repeat that, please?
Hand over the money.
Silence fell in just three seconds.
A noble, frowning, suggested,
Asking for money is a bit too direct. How about one-tenth? That still seems like a lot
Despite the attempt at negotiation, Rays expression remained unchanged, not even a flicker.
When you get old and senile, you act like this. I must remember never to become like that.
Though his words were rude, the nobles were the ones in need.
Moreover, they couldnt overpower him with force, which left them feeling frustratingly helpless.
20 percent.
Goodbye.
As Ray turned to leave the hall, the Emperors eyes flickered with a fury that suggested hellfire might erupt.
They couldnt defy the imperial command and become traitors, nor could they label the saint as mad.
Caught in a bind, they looked at each other, feeling aggrieved.
Isnt this too much? If we give up one-third of our wealth, what will we live on!
One noble complained, and Ray glanced at him.
Seeing his corpulent body and greasy face, it was clear how well he had been living.
At this rate, he might just succumb to a heart attack from severe obesity.
If you dont like it, just quit. Ill return to the Holy Kingdom.
If they didnt want to spend money or disclose their military power, well, that was their problem.
Whether the Empire was devoured by wyverns or bandits didnt interest me anymore.
After all, whoever takes over would be better than these cowards.
As Ray walked decisively out of the hall, the nobles were at a loss.
The Emperors eyes seemed to be filled with bloody tears, and Gregory fidgeted with his swords hilt, as if ready to draw it at any moment.
Feeling the overwhelming pressure from all sides, the central nobles finally capitulated.
Ah, alright! We should do as much as a gesture of apology!
I intended to follow your will from the start. Cough.
Such impressive courage!
Their shameless change of tone, as if they had faces of iron, stood in stark contrast to their earlier aggressiveness.
Ray narrowed his eyes but picked up the parchment from the table.
If its decided, we dont have much time, so hurry up. Write down the details of each familys military power, and how much of it can be moved secretly and at once.
Reluctantly, they began to scribble on the parchment, unable to refuse.
Revealing their military power, albeit with tears, was preferable to facing death here.
Their hesitation was apparent in their slow pen movements, but Ray nodded and said,
Take your time. By morning, the Empire will be a sea of fire.
The Emperor seethed within.
As Ray spoke, Gregorys fiddling with his sword intensified.
Swallowing hard, they quickened their writing.
Ray observed them from the side.
The figures being recorded on the parchments indicated substantial military forces, though some might be concealed. However, if the discrepancies were minor, there was no cause for concern.
He was more interested in the surplus military power each family possessed.
Ray glanced at the stone-faced Imperial Family members and thought,
This must be a combined effort of the nobles to gather troops. Otherwise, such secret movements wouldnt be possible.
Had the Imperial Family employed their forces, the Emperor would have been aware, and there would have been limitations to the forces they could mobilize.
What if the nobles had been amassing their private soldiers incrementally?
Assembling a small number of skilled individuals to form an elite force could make an assault on the Wyvern Lair feasible.
When Ray signaled to Gregory, the man standing beside the Emperor retrieved something and handed it over.
This is the annual tally of the nobles private soldiers.
Good work.
Being prepared in advance had its advantages.
Should the numbers on this list differ from those currently being declared, those nobles would warrant further investigation.
While they were engrossed in their writing, Ray surreptitiously perused the parchments.
The central nobles are still the most reliable. Since the Emperor holds them tightly, the chance of them plotting a rebellion is low.
Thats why he had asked Gregory to gather the central nobles.
Involving provincial nobles would unnecessarily complicate things.
Though he could handle it, he needed to finish everything by morning, hence the relative limitation.
As time passed and the nobles submitted their parchments, Ray skimmed through them.
Anomalies immediately jumped out.
This is strange, Baron Kloud.
The baron responded quickly.
What seems to be the problem?
The number of private soldiers you reported to His Majesty at the end of the year and the number youve written now dont match. The forces are similar, but the numbers have increased. Why did you increase your private soldiers?
Baron Kloud sneakily glanced at the Emperor.
Then, he saw the Emperor with an endlessly furrowed brow.
Not being a count or a duke, he nervously stuttered his answer.
That, that is There are not enough private soldiers to clear out the monsters in my fief
What if you increase them without saying anything? Do you think other fiefs dont have monsters or dont increase their numbers?
Im sorry, I am sorry.
You dont have to apologize to me. Next, Count Ophel.
Yes.
Ray, who had been guiding him from the royal palace, slightly bowed his head.
The number of knights fluctuates too much. Why is that?
Because of the combat tournament.
The combat tournament?
Yes. Originally, active knights cannot participate in the combat tournament. Therefore, they either return to being junior knights or temporarily leave their knight duties to participate. This is such a case.
Hmm I see. Then theres no issue.
Thank you for understanding.
The profits they had made so far from their private soldiers were enormous.
Having more private soldiers was convenient for operating the familys trading company and for driving out monsters to expand the fief.
Thus, Count Ophel had been reluctant to hire more private soldiers than necessary.
Viewing this favorably was inevitable.
Had it been about an hour? They sorted all the parchments, dividing them into those with significant differences and those without.
The ones with significant differences were substantially thicker, while the others were few.
This proved that many had committed corruption without the Emperors knowledge.
The Emperor, witnessing this, couldnt lift his face out of shame.
How could he not feel ashamed when even the saints of the Holy Kingdom, who were from a different empire, had exposed their disgrace?
Ray tapped on the parchments and said,
What about the rest? Its as if the family wanted to create a state within a state. Why would you need such a force just to govern a family?
.
.
Were you thinking of rebelling?
When he said this with a smirk as if joking, the faces of the nobles, including the royals, went pale.
The crimes of leading a rebellion and fomenting internal strife.
Along with disobeying the imperial command, these were the most severe charges.
If proven true, the instigators would face punishment to the third generation.
From parents to children, the entire family would be destroyed.
Dropping such a heavy joke nonchalantly, it was natural for the atmosphere to freeze instantly.
Ray, who had intended this outcome, exaggeratedly scratched the back of his head and said,
Why are you all like this? Hahaha. Relax your faces. None of you had such intentions, right?
The nobles quickly seized this lifeline from heaven.
Right! How dare they not appreciate His Majestys grace and contemplate a rebellion! Its unforgivable!
How could anyone entertain such a lowly thought! Rebellion is a betrayal of the heart, right? It must be nipped in the bud!
Ray managed to elicit similarly exaggerated reactions from them.
He approached the Emperor and Gregory and discreetly cast a spell.
With his back turned to the nobles, Ray purposefully raised mana, but only a feeble amount was activated to cast the spell.
Silent. Listen carefully to what everyone is saying now. Tonight, we will deliberately provoke a rebellion. The culprit is surely among them.
What do you mean
Your Majesty, please take greater care with your surroundings when you move your lips. It would be detrimental for others to detect the use of magic.
The Emperor slowly nodded, heeding Rays quietly spoken instructions.
Ray paused briefly, then lifted the parchment he was holding and looked at them, as if to ask if they understood, to which they hesitantly nodded again.
Cancel.
Ray quickly dispelled the magic and spoke in a louder voice.
This is troubling. We cant apprehend the culprit without identifying them.
As he cast the bait, the unsuspecting fish began to surface.
What are you implying? Are you saying we cant catch them after all this time?
Didnt you assure us earlier that we would apprehend them?
Faced with their protests, Ray simply shrugged.
The situation is not favorable. There are too many involved in corruption.
Those words likely struck a chord of guilt in dozens.
Ray, who had momentarily paused, retrieved a parchment from his pocket.
It bore a striking resemblance to the mana contract of the Wyvern Lord he had previously given to the Emperor.
Fortunately, we have this. Its the mana contract of the Wyvern Lord. Since I promised to grant one favor last time, lets request clemency with this, shall we?
It was merely a parchment scribbled with doodles and faintly singed by mana.
Yet from a distance, anyone could mistake it for a genuine mana contract.
Deceived by his words, they gulped in apprehension.
Is that really?
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