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I Pioneered Scientific Magic - Chapter 460
🕑 Added 2024-02-25 06:27:22 +0000 UTCChapter 460: Lynn: Hadralata Doesn't Need a King!
In the grand palace of Hadralata, you could hear a pin drop.
Over a hundred prominent ministers of the kingdom stood on either side of the hall, yet each seemed oblivious to the actions of Lynn, Lord, and others, as if deaf and blind to their affront.
Everyone knew that the kingdom no longer balanced power between royalty, divine authority, and nobility; it was now the realm of wizards!
The silence of the crowd sank Hatar's heart to the depths, but he still pretended surprise as he spoke. "I fail to understand your words, Master Lynn. Could there be a misunderstanding... These people are indeed my attendants, but I have not..."
"I thought our cooperation was satisfactory, Your Majesty!" Lynn sighed, cutting off Hatar's attempt at explanation, continuing, "Unfortunately, you have betrayed our alliance and betrayed the entire kingdom and its subjects!"
Although the feudal system of Hadralata did not align with his ideals, and did not match the promotion system he wanted to establish based on 'knowledge' and 'magic', Lynn had not intended to act against the nobles and merchants within the kingdom at such a critical juncture.
After all, a year and a half was too short a time. Though they had gained control of vast territories through various means, even winning the trust and goodwill of the poor through grain distribution, labor recruitment, and holding grievances meetings, there was a severe lack of administrators.
In his plan, the cleansing of the nobles should have been done after the council had cultivated a portion of trustworthy administrators, and after breaking through legendary ranks to gain absolute advantage over the church, only then could it be considered secure enough.
Unfortunately, there were always some ignorant people who tried to break the arm with their own arms...
The food war launched by the nobles this time made Lynn realize that it was time to clear the parasites within the kingdom.
Such an unstable factor, if it suddenly erupted during their decisive battle with the empire, would truly be fatal!
Hatar's exclamation of betrayal, however, only angered Lynn.
Betray the kingdom?! How dare he use such words to describe himself, to describe a legitimate king?
"Enough, this is my kingdom! Formerly, now, and in the future, it will belong to the Bazeel family, and I will never allow anyone to take it away!" Hatar rose from his throne like an enraged lion, staring fiercely at Lynn in front of him, speaking bitterly.
Perhaps realizing that all his explanations were meaningless, Hatar, who had tolerated for so long, completely tore off his disguise, letting out all the anger in his heart.
More than a year ago, when he had just ascended to the throne of Hadralata, Hatar was completely immersed in the excitement of wielding great power. He even thought that without the church's restraint, he would surely be able to realize his ambitions and establish a career no less than his father, King Bazeel!
However, such excitement lasted less than a month. Hatar soon found that as the new king, he had no power at all. Many nobles, merchants, and palace ministers were like loyal dogs, trying their best to please the new master of the kingdom in their eyes - the wizards of the council.
Any decree he made would be secretly sent to the Wizard Council afterward, and the hundred-thousand-strong expansion plan he had carefully planned was directly vetoed by them for various far-fetched reasons!
Due to the church's aggressive attacks and fear of the wizards' magic, Hatar, although humiliated, did not show any signs on the surface.
He even comforted himself that after repelling the church's attacks and recapturing the kingdom's territories, the wizards, lacking in managerial ability, would surely need to rely on his strength as king and the nobles to manage the vast kingdom!
But the reality was completely different from what he had imagined. After the wizards reclaimed the eastern territories of the kingdom, they began to slaughter the local nobles on their own initiative and took over these territories for themselves, and he, the king, only received a so-called report afterwards!
This was simply humiliating!
The other party even tried to brush it off with a light-hearted "happy cooperation"!
What made Hatar even more fearful was that these wizards from overseas seemed to be able to manage each territory perfectly well without their help, and they even created a brand-new management method, different from the feudal system of the past!
This undoubtedly shook the foundation of the kingdom's existence!
Hatar's hysterical roar did not anger Lynn; instead, he looked at the king of Hadralata with disappointment.
No wonder King Bazeel II had not named a successor for so long.
How could someone with such temperament, cunning, and breadth of mind be a good king!
Lynn waited for Hatar's angry rebuke to end, then calmly spoke.
"You're wrong. No territory belongs absolutely to anyone, Hatar!"
"More than a year ago, you just snatched the crown from your father Bazeel's head, and this so-called throne was only taken from the previous king by your ancestors a hundred years ago!"
"Since you are not suitable to bear the heavy responsibility of being a king, there is no need to continue..." Lynn stepped forward, indifferently speaking.
His indifferent words were like a basin of cold water poured down, extinguishing the courage that had risen in Hatar's heart based on anger... The approaching figure carried a kind of indescribable pressure, causing the air around to condense.
How dare you?
I am the king of Hadralata!
Hatar's face showed a look of horror, subconsciously about to speak out, but his body seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, making even opening his mouth a luxury.
A inexplicable chill spread from the depths of his spine, and Hatar sat down on the throne in a disheveled manner, only able to watch as the other party's right hand reached towards his head.
The moment that hand reached him, Hatar's mind flashed with the dying warning of King Bazeel, and a strong sense of regret surged up.
You were right, Father!
Hatar regretted deeply why he had cooperated with these 'evil' wizards in the first place, burying the entire kingdom, but it was too late now. Under the suppression of a grand wizard's domain, even as a bloodline knight, he had no resistance at all, and Lynn smoothly placed his hand on his crowned head.
Psychotherapy - Memory Retrieval
Various complex memory fragments surged forth like a tide, displaying the other party's anger, humiliation, and unwillingness to hide anything in front of Lynn. Along with it came a lot of secret information.
"Gustav..." Lynn murmured softly.
He had long suspected that the Church would have a hand in the whole affair, but he never imagined that it would be a high-ranking member of the Church who infiltrated the kingdom, orchestrating everything from behind the scenes.
This also exposed a loophole in the protection system, relying on airship patrols, which could only detect large-scale incursions. If the intruder was solitary and powerful, and adept at disguise, rooting them out would be no easy task.
They couldn't possibly cover the entire border area with magic barriers to detect fluctuations in divine spells.
Of course, the new king had more on his mind than simply following the orders of the commander of the Divine Punishment Legion, Gustav. In his view, both the Church and the wizards stood as obstacles to his authority and needed to be removed!
If he could pit the few wizards against the Church, both sides would be weakened, and he would regain the ability to govern not only the vast kingdom but possibly the entire empire, thus restoring his power to its zenith.
One must admit, the idea was rather ingenious, but unfortunately, the enemy's planning and execution skills were sorely lacking.
Hatar thought he was hiding in the shadows, allowing his most trusted Grand Duke Gade to contact Gustav, using Mortan and others as pawns. Little did he know that several of his close attendants had long been bought off by them!
Lynn slowly withdrew his hand. Such violent memory extraction completely destroyed Hatar's brain. The king of Hadralata drooled at the corners of his mouth, slumping from the throne, soon falling silent.
The palace fell into a deathly silence. No one could have imagined that this young wizard would dare to publicly kill a king, and with such ease, as if squashing an ant.
Lynn looked at the body of the new king and shook his head involuntarily. If only he had been willing to accept reform, he might have ended up like someone else, transitioning from a supreme king or emperor to a mere citizen—or rather, a wealthy merchant with inexhaustible wealth!
But given Hatar's temperament, that probability was pitifully low...
Just as he was contemplating this, an untimely voice suddenly pierced his ears.
"Lynn, Your Majesty!"
It was a shrewd royal minister who, after a brief shock, quickly knelt down, loudly proclaiming, "To the uncrowned king of Hadralata, we offer our sincere respects!"
Following suit, over a hundred royal ministers awakened, kneeling or voicing their celebration for the new king's ascension or expressing their firm stance, even loudly condemning former King Hatar's incompetent rule...
In just over ten seconds, the once silent palace hall became lively.
"You seem to have misunderstood something," Lynn's voice echoed slowly in the hall, suppressing the noisy flattery.
The kneeling ministers looked at each other, not quite understanding the meaning of his words. Could it be that the Wizard Council was planning to support another obedient noble, just like before?
While some were pondering, Lynn's words came again.
"From today on, the Kingdom of Hadralata will no longer need a so-called king!"
With these words, the people present showed expressions of shock, unable to comprehend what a kingdom without a king would be like. Wouldn't everything fall into chaos?
"Wizard, who will manage the kingdom in the future, and who will appoint..." a trembling royal minister asked.
"From now on, all major matters of the kingdom will be decided by the council through voting!" Lynn replied casually. "As for the appointment of local administrators... let's have exams!"
Although the examination system had been criticized in the past, it did provide a relatively fair way for the lower class to advance.
At least in this dark world, the examination system could be considered a beacon of hope!
During the council's conquest of the southern and central regions of the kingdom, Lynn had already begun to establish civilian schools. Although one year was not enough to produce significant results, local administrators didn't need to possess profound knowledge. Being literate, understanding commands, and knowing how to handle daily affairs were sufficient.
Together with those small nobles who were willing to accept reform and embrace the new world, they could barely maintain the operation of the kingdom.
"Handle the rest of the matters from now on, Loude!"
After leaving behind a command through the magical projection erected in the palace hall, Lynn dissipated into thin air.
Seeing the disappearance of this regicidal plague, the royal ministers in the hall breathed a sigh of relief. However, they soon realized they had celebrated too early. Loude waved his hand, and his musketeers, fierce as wolves, immediately rushed forward, dragging them away, bound hand and foot.
According to intelligence from spies, many of these ministers had been involved in the grain crisis.
The few ministers who managed to escape arrest were also terrified, cowering on the ground without daring to speak. They all understood that from now on, the kingdom was going to change!
...
The massive debt collection operation lasted for a whole week before it was considered complete, with countless wealthy nobles and merchants either arrested, killed, or ruined.
The people of the kingdom looked at the confiscated, towering piles of grain, applauding with joy.
The previously soaring grain prices had plunged everyone into the fear of famine. Despite workshops and schools providing them with three meals a day for free, no one knew how long this situation would last. Once the council stopped the food supply, with their savings alone, they probably couldn't even afford a few bags of bread.
In addition, there was another shocking piece of news: King Hatar of Hadralata suddenly died, ending the Bazael family's hundred-year rule, which had spanned three generations. From now on, all affairs of the kingdom would be decided by the council!
As for the sudden death of the king, it was rumored to be related to the fugitive Grand Duke Gade. He allegedly conspired with the Church and some wealthy nobles of the kingdom to provoke the grain crisis and even committed regicide, aiming to disrupt the entire kingdom and return the three million subjects to the rule of the dark Church!
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