Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 258 General
A few seconds of silence fell over the Hall of Heroes as everyone pondered the meaning of those words.

Rumba didn't speak, but he looked at Thales, his face showing undisguised shock.

cost.

Could it be that this boy...?

No, how could he know? How could he possibly understand...?

Even these grand dukes, who have spent their entire lives immersed in power, cannot see this...

The Black Sand Duke's hand tightened unconsciously once again.

"What are you talking about?" Trudida gritted his teeth, his eyes darting back and forth between Rumba and Leko. "What change? What price?"

Thales looked down at the JC dagger that he had thrown away, now lying quietly on the ground.

His gaze drifted into the distance.

His teacher, Gilbert Cassel's, handwritten letters suddenly came to mind.

[The political system of Exter...is completely different...King Nunn, in addition to being the king...is also a grand duke of Dragonsreach...Exter's interests are entirely different from Walton's interests...]

It turned out to be the case.

You're not just talking about King Nunn, but about every grand ducal family.

The interests of the Kingdom of Exter are quite different from the interests of the Grand Dukes themselves.

Thank you, Gilbert.

I understand.

Thales's gaze swept over the family crests on the grand dukes' robes, and he spoke calmly:

"Raiko the Silver Chains..."

"Ronnie of the Knights Code..."

"Olesch of the Chauvinist coat of arms..."

"Trudida, whose sword gleams..."

As he called out names one by one, the dukes all turned their heads and looked solemnly at the foreign prince.

They had completely lost their habit of looking down on the boy, though they didn't know when it started.

“The reason you are willing to join forces with Rumba, and even go so far as to cover up his crimes,” Thales said softly, “is to decisively resolve the nascent threat before the stars become too powerful, and to protect your future.”

The prince sighed, then became serious: "But believe me, until the equally powerful Exter and the Star Kingdom are completely determined to be superior, and the final grudges are settled..."

The dukes stared intently at Thales.

Only Rumba stared intently at the sword in his hand, his attention seemingly completely drawn to it.

"The families you cherish, the bloodlines you are proud of, the noble and prestigious status, the territories you have painstakingly protected, the stable and long-standing rule..." A ripple appeared in Thales' eyes, which then turned into a resolute flame.

He said with an unquestionable tone, "Everything you are enjoying and taking for granted will be completely annihilated and cease to exist."

At that moment, the dukes' breaths caught in their throats, and their eyes widened.

It was as if I had heard the most absurd and ridiculous news.

Thales' voice continued: "From the moment you accepted Rumba, your respective families... had no future."

With a soft sound, another brazier in the hall went out.

A thick chill suddenly descended.

Selma, who was behind her, hugged herself tightly because of the cold.

Aurelius opened his mouth in surprise, exchanged a glance with Trudida, and Lyco slowly sighed, as if he already knew something.

Rumba closed his eyes.

An indescribable emotion welled up from his chest.

"Explain yourself clearly, boy." Grand Duke Ronnie reached out and touched the wound on his neck inflicted by Chloeshi. The wound, doused with strong liquor, still ached. He said solemnly, "What do you mean by 'no longer existing'?"

A family bloodline passed down for hundreds, even thousands of years, and a vast territory powerful enough to rival a nation...

how come……

Thales exhaled and watched as it formed a white mist in front of him.

“Once you follow Lumba south, the co-governance oath will become a mere formality. In the face of war and interests, the balance of power among you will inevitably be unbalanced, making it all too easy for conflict to break out between you,” Thales said through gritted teeth. “The moment you think you have suppressed the stars and begin to fight each other will be the time for him to quietly begin to change things—it’s not just about building an Exter Star Legion.”

He suddenly felt a little dizzy.

It's that familiar feeling.

“I don’t know how much Lumba told you about the wise ruler,” the prince rubbed his hands together, breathing warm air into his chin, “but…”

“Efficient management, granular power, increased taxes, standardized systems,” Thales felt increasingly dizzy and had to press his right hand against his forehead while closing his eyes: “These all come at a price.”

The moment he closed his eyes, it was as if he had left the Hall of Heroes.

Before me was a row of familiar white tables and chairs, with seven or eight laptops on them, each with its owner sitting quietly.

He cleared his throat, lowered his head, and held a neatly printed report in his hand.

Therefore, in his view, the hierarchical state was formed at this time as a transitional phase between old feudal rule and absolutist rule...

Wu Qiren's voice slowly rose, gentle and calm.

A city is an autonomous political entity, an aggregation of powerless individuals united by their desires. They entered the lord-vassal model as a new political force, transforming typical feudal relations from a purely binary power framework—in other words, the rise of cities supported rulers in their struggle against feudal lords…

The next second, Thales opened his eyes and returned to Dragon Sky City in the world of Errol, back to the dim hall illuminated by the brazier.

"Whether it's a professional official, qualification examinations or national affairs conferences, they all mean..."

“First, in the cities and suburbs, among the lower nobles and commoners,” Thales said, his forehead trembling, “the best among them… will ascend the ladder of the new nobility, bringing with them wealth, skills, knowledge, and aspirations for the future… The king will rejoice at their arrival, wield their power as if it were his own arm, and direct his spearhead at his domineering vassals.”

Trudida lowered his head thoughtfully.

The light and shadow in the hall changed again, and Thales was sitting in the bright classroom again, moving the mouse and talking non-stop.

[The city groups will form new political institutions, exemplified by the council of estates. The monarch intends to collect taxes, while they intend to oversee the use of those taxes, thereby creating a financial check on the power of the feudal nobility...]

Despite the dizziness from switching between the two scenes, Thales continued painfully:
"Take the Starry Sky National Affairs Conference as an example. The new stage for these commoners to participate in politics will cover groups such as handicrafts, commerce, the military, and the new nobility. It will become the king's home ground, greatly weakening the power and prestige of whether it is a local duke or a city count. Whether it is implementing tax laws or declaring war, the king will gain the greatest convenience."

Upon hearing this, Archduke Aurelius couldn't help but glance at Lombard.

European universities were the earliest source of nourishment: German monarchs employed these university graduates as officials to build their bureaucracies, with Prussian military and civil bureaucracy being the most efficient. However, these bureaucracies were not for serving the people, but merely for serving the state, that is, for power...

“More and more new officials will come into the king’s sights. Their qualifications will replace noble bloodlines, using prudence to counter indiscriminateness and professionalism to cover up lineage, gradually taking over the power within the country,” Thales gasped, experiencing the strange feeling of fragments of memory entering his mind, recalling the former Star Tax Collector named Urad: “So the old nobles, including your relatives, will no longer be valued. Their privileges in taxation and the judiciary will be gradually stripped away, and even you will have to admit that they are no longer suitable for their positions.”

Grand Duke Lecco remained seated, listening attentively.

What the citizens demanded was the establishment of conditions for rule and a legal environment to guarantee the development of the city's industry, commerce, and economy, and a peaceful ruling order. These were things that the feudal system based on manor economy and small markets could not satisfy. This required the ruler to expand power and centralize authority to protect the interests of the so-called "bourgeois"...

“Similarly, the king will allocate funds from his ever-expanding treasury to support and expand the standing army, and maintain domestic order and border security on his own,” Thales swayed slightly, and Selma quickly steadied him. “He will no longer rely on the conscripted troops in your territories, no longer rely on the self-sufficient supplies in your manors and fields, and no longer be at the mercy of the grand dukes.”

Ronnie suddenly remembered the Dragon Fortress. He frowned deeply and looked at Thales with a strange expression.

As time progressed, feudal nobles in hierarchical states struggled to make a living, lost their military significance, could no longer maintain political influence, and relinquished their ruling power. Under these circumstances, they were forced to align themselves with the rulers and fulfill their duties according to the latter's terms—in other words, the rise of cities brought a devastating blow to the feudal system…

Finally, those strange fragments subsided in his mind and ceased to cause trouble.

Thales, slightly out of breath, patted Selma's hand.

In that instant, he suddenly realized that Rumba was looking at him with a strange gaze that mixed surprise, doubt, pain, hatred, relief and other emotions.

The prince looked back at his opponent and sighed inwardly.

Compared to the inexplicable magical power, compared to the unreliable Sin of the River of Hell, compared to this strange body, compared to the unstable status of a prince...

This is the real me, this is how I am when I'm playing this game of chess...

That's the biggest cheat code!

Chaman Lumba.

Compared to unparalleled military strength, invincible skills, and superb tactics.

This is our strongest piece!

"Can you feel it?" Thales continued.

“Once this change progresses over time, whether it's you powerful dukes who control your own territories, or the traditional counts of your cities, from taxation to the military, from the judiciary to talent, from privileges to status,” he said with difficulty, turning his head to look at everyone as the dukes' faces grew increasingly grim.

"The very foundation upon which you depend for your livelihood will gradually dissolve, and your advantages will slowly disappear."

"All the means and changes that Rumba envisioned, whatever their initial intentions, would point to one result."

Thales took a deep breath and said solemnly, "And that is you—you gentlemen, the other nine illustrious dukes who jointly ruled the North, the beginning of your loss of power and the decline of your families."

Grand Duke Lombard's face was ashen, and his gaze toward Thales grew increasingly complex.

The dukes remained motionless, like statues, and it was impossible to tell how much they had heard.

“One day, you will go from being powerful vassals who control a region to nobles who only have glory, then to wealthy people who only have riches, and even to commoners who have nothing left, until the day when your descendants can only dig up your family history from the dust…”

"And the Nekaru Oath, which protected Exter for six hundred years from division and stipulated the rule of the ten Grand Dukes over the North, will become the oldest page of history in the museum," Thales sighed deeply, shaking his head.

"Like your family, it will slowly fade with time and never return."

"This is the price that Rumba has to pay for what he calls 'saving Exter'."

Thales finished speaking and slowly raised his head.

At that moment, the dukes finally snapped out of their stone statue state, but each of their expressions was incredibly subtle.

Rumba lowered his head, staring intently at his old sword.

Incredulous Trudida cast questioning glances at Olech and Ronnie, but the master of the Willan Territory simply shook his head silently, while the lord of Qiyuan City simply turned pale and ignored them.

“Chaman,” Grand Duke Lyco’s gaze seemed to have returned to its cloudiness, and the old man spoke in his deepest and hoarse voice today, “tell me, all you want is an army that can defeat the stars, is that it?”

"Didn't you think about anything else?"

"For example, a co-governance pledge?"

The dukes' eyes all turned to Rumba.

one second.

two seconds.

The Black Sand Duke finally lifted his gaze from his sword.

He forced a smile at first, then a chill ran through him.

“Everything this kid says is based on lies fueled by deep-seated selfishness,” Rumba said with a complicated expression and an unpleasant tone. “If he can stir up even the slightest doubt in your hearts, he will win—by ​​sowing discord between us, undermining our efforts to fight against the stars, and giving the increasingly powerful Star Kingdom a chance to breathe!”

Thales sighed silently to himself.

"Putting aside his long string of seductive rhetoric, putting aside all his absurd and baseless assumptions—don't you find it absurd?" Rumba gritted his teeth, as if he had been insulted. "For the sake of Exter, all of you dukes united as one, marched south to conquer the stars, and yet this is the root of our self-destruction?"

The dukes looked suspicious after hearing Lumba's words and began to ponder them.

Selma was startled by the dukes' reactions.

Just now.

“Not accurate.”

The prince's words came steadily.

Rumba frowned: "What?"

"'We' brought about our own destruction?" Thales exhaled and said seriously, "Only the other nine brought about their own destruction."

“In this game of change initiated by Rumba, Exter is like a dragon with ten heads, devouring each other in the surging waves,” Thales sighed. “If all goes well, only one of the heads, the Grand Duke who is the most powerful, the best prepared, the most adaptable, and the quickest to react, will survive to the end.”

Grand Duke Lyco suddenly looked up and stared intently at Thales.

Grand Duke Ronnie's expression hardened.

"As I said above, he will consolidate power as the final ruler, and with the overwhelming momentum of the reforms, he will devour the other nine duchies as nourishment and food, thereby forging his unprecedented and supreme Exter Crown."

Thales' eyes were clouded with a gloom rarely seen by ordinary people. He said in a deep voice, "Who do you think is the only one, the one closest to the truth, in Rumba's plan?" He looked at the expressions of the dukes, shook his head slightly, walked to the fire pit that had just been knocked over, and slowly squatted down.

The prince reached into the now-cooled firewood and fiddled with it, retrieving the dagger that had been thrown into the fire.

“But regardless of whether Rumba succeeds or not, in the newly formed kingdom of Exter, apart from the last ruler,” his words continued, striking the hearts of the grand dukes like a hammer: “there will be no place for the other nine.”

Thales shook the JC dagger, and without changing his expression, took the sheath that Yodl had given him from his belt and blew on it gently.

"Please remember, everyone, it may be a decade or two, or even several decades, or a hundred years..."

“But if one day your family fades into obscurity, your descendants are displaced, and your status is gone,” Thales slowly rose and turned to the grand dukes:

“That must begin today, from the moment you agree to Lumba’s conditions.”

Thales' eyes lit up, and he shoved the dagger back into its sheath with a clang!

Amidst the crisp metallic scraping sound, the dukes stared at him with grim faces, motionless.

“That’s the answer,” Thales said in a deep voice. “That’s why Rumba didn’t reveal his true motives to you at first. It’s the cruel truth behind his relentless efforts to gather you together to ‘save Exter.’”

"To defeat the stars, Rumba and you have worked together," he said softly, ending his sentence. "But ironically, just before we defeat the stars, you will be reduced to ashes."

Another silence fell over the hall.

“Chaman, I have to say, this is really…” Trudida, his face full of disbelief, hesitated before finally sighing, “Never mind, I don’t know how to describe this feeling.”

“This is truly unsettling,” Grand Duke Ronnie added coldly, glancing at the leader, Lyco, who remained silent with a furrowed brow.

Archduke Aurelius, arms crossed and chin in hand, spoke with difficulty: "Chaman..."

But Rumba spoke faster than him.

"It's all baseless nonsense, all things that never happened, all alarmist speculation!"

"And he used that as an excuse? And you actually believed it?" The Black Sand Duke's voice remained cold, but his agitation was palpable: "Don't forget, the threat from the stars is the real one!"

Rumba strode forward, placed his hand on the square table, and said with an icy expression, "Didn't you see everything we saw and heard twelve years ago, and everything King Kessel has done over the past twelve years?"

Why do you prefer to be swayed by empty words rather than act on undeniable facts?

The person who answered him was still Thales.

"An undeniable fact?" the prince said quietly.

This time, Rumba turned his head, his eyes filled with resentment and murderous intent.

Thales ignored his gaze and asked softly, "Gentlemen, if your attack on the stars is successful, what are your plans for Rumba afterward?"

The dukes looked at each other, their emotions unclear.

Rumba's eyes narrowed, and he clenched his fist.

“He wants the Northern Frontier of Stars,” Grand Duke Ronnie said softly.

“He will guard our borders, watch over and suppress the stars,” Ronnie said slowly and coldly, but with great force: “For this, he is willing to give up the throne, or even the Black Sand Territory.”

Thales let out a soft breath.

“That’s simple.” The prince revealed a malicious smile, staring at the ashen-faced Rumba: “Your Excellency, Grand Duke of Black Sand, if you think my words are unreasonable, then prove it with irrefutable facts.”

“I imagine that you must be facing great difficulties, or even making no progress, in your own land, within the borders of Exeter.”

Lombarton stayed.

"But the North is different."

"For Stardust, the North is merely a marginal area where change is incomplete, still overshadowed by traditional power and old customs; but for Exter, the North, being part of the Great North and with more similar customs, has already begun to herald change, from a lowly tax collector like Ulad to a declining noble force. It is the best base for change—and the source of your hope to ignite the fire of change."

Thales said calmly, "Lord Rumba, for the sake of your unity, relinquish this spoils of war in the North—let it go to someone else."

Rumba suddenly looked up and stared intently at him.

The dukes also looked up, their expressions varied.

Thales maintained his nonchalant expression—a trait he'd picked up from Raphael, whose effeminate manner was infuriating.

Shrews complained that among the many conditions Rumba offered him, whether it was tariff preferences or resource contracts, the North was excluded.

Isn't that obvious?
“Of course, you can also make a guarantee,” Thales said with a smirk, “that neither the reforms of the wise ruler nor anything that would endanger the families of the dukes would happen in your hands.”

“In this way, without the soil and opportunity at your disposal, and unable to initiate a change that could bring about annihilation, you will be cleared of suspicion,” Thales said solemnly. “The other dukes can now continue to cooperate with you with peace of mind.”

These words were followed by the longest silence in the hall.

Rumba froze on the spot.

His hand rested unconsciously on the hilt of the sword, motionless.

The dukes exchanged information through their eyes.

No one moved or made a sound.

A gust of cold wind swept into the hall, and the shadows of the people swayed erratically in the flickering firelight.

Selma bit her lower lip, looking nervously at the dukes with their varying expressions.

Finally, as if centuries had passed, a voice broke the silence.

“Actually, we are willing to believe you, Chaman,” Grand Duke Lyco’s deep voice rang out, “but I must admit that the child’s words have made me very worried.”

Trudida shrugged: "That makes some sense."

Rumba gently raised his head, and in the shadows, his stiff face looked even more weathered.

“Tell me, Charman.”

"As our sworn allies, to refute the words of this arrogant prince, to set aside our worries and anxieties, to prove that we remain united," Grand Duke Lyco looked directly at Rumba and sighed softly, "in the impending war, the North..."

"You shouldn't take it."

Rumba didn't speak, he just stared blankly at Leko.

“Of course, we will compensate you with considerable land and benefits to express our apology—Oleshchew, Trudida, or even my lands are all acceptable, you can choose, and there will be more than you need,” the Grand Duke coughed, seemingly somewhat saddened. “You know, the responsibility of standing firm in the North, guarding the frontier, and watching over the stars can be taken on by others as well.”

The words fell.

Rumba raised his head and scanned each of the grand dukes with the most incredulous gaze.

Thales pursed his lips and stared intently at Rumba.

Looking at his face, which seemed frozen.

Rumba gritted his teeth, his brows furrowed, and anger burst forth from his eyes.

“I know this is going too far, but,” Aurelius said, his face grim, shaking his head apologetically, “I swear, once you prove yourself, I will personally make this venomous serpent of the stars pay the price.”

The serpent of the stars?
Thales raised an eyebrow slightly.

Rumba's face twitched slightly, in a way that resembled a smile, yet didn't quite look like a laugh.

“You know,” Archduke Ronnie raised his eyes at this moment, his gaze sharp, “this is for Exter.”

Rumba clenched his fist.

Trudida shrugged, avoiding Rumba's gaze, and said nothing.

Only Grand Duke Leco, from beginning to end, met Rumba's gaze without flinching.

“Well, Charman,” the eldest duke’s bald head looked particularly striking, and his voice was soft and slow, yet carried an aggressive air: “your answer?”

Rumba grinned, biting his teeth, like a wild beast pouncing on its prey.

“Chaman,” Trudida said, his tone conflicted and seemingly very nervous, his lips barely moving, “one word is enough.”

Thales frowned: he saw the fist at Rumba's waist begin to tremble.

The Black Sand Duke's face grew increasingly grim—like that of a lion whose territory had been invaded.

Thales' heart followed his expression, rising and falling with it.

Finally, after several seconds, Rumba closed his eyes and let out a long sigh of relief.

The dukes stared intently at him.

It was as if it were the most important moment in the world.

The next second, Rumba opened his eyes and spoke.

But what came through was not a single word.

"Hahaha……"

Rumba tilted his head back, grinned, and let out a sorrowful, barely suppressed laugh.

"Hahahahaha..."

The laughter grew louder.

The dukes' eyes gradually dimmed as they watched his performance.

Thales gently reached out and grasped the flustered Selma's hand.

Rumba's laughter finally stopped.

“Never mind, it’s too late now,” Rumba turned his head, a nonchalant expression on his face. “You all already believe him, don’t you?”

“You’re not just eyeing the North…even if we reach Everstar City,” the Black Sand Duke turned around, looking at his sword, his tone cold, “you will continue to monitor me, watching my every move, fearing that I might threaten your interests.”

Archduke Aurelius gritted his teeth in resentment: "So, your choice..."

“I just find it ironic,” Rumba’s expression changed, and he suddenly raised his voice: “Why can’t you understand?”

“When a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is right before our eyes, when the chance to defeat the stars and change history is within reach,” Rumba gritted his teeth, looking at the somber expressions on the faces of each grand duke, and growled in a suppressed voice, “why are you all behaving like cowards?”

Lumba turned around abruptly to face the four dukes, his face full of disbelief: "The ending hasn't happened yet, things haven't reached the final stage at all. You've all been running around like a flock of frightened antelopes, hiding your heads and tails, just because a child is spouting nonsense."

The dukes looked at each other, speechless.

"A child's nonsense can scare you like this..."

Rumba's face contorted as he abruptly raised his sword sheath: "Co-governance oath, family extinction, bloodline severance, loss of power, decline in status—what kind of fucking ridiculous reasons are these!"

"Extreme, what exactly are you to him?"

"Aren't we Northerners?" Grand Duke Black Sand gritted his teeth, brandishing his sword sheath and flapping his cloak. "We don't ask 'can we,' we only ask 'will we do it'—Northerners who fear failure more than death!"

"Isn't that right!"

His painful and difficult questioning voice echoed in the hall.

"It seems the outcome is already clear." Grand Duke Leco sighed softly and closed his eyes.

Trudida covered his forehead and sighed deeply.

Ronnie gave a faint chuckle.

Aurelius looked sorrowful.

Thales gently closed his mouth, feeling as if the huge rock weighing on his heart had been lifted.

He glanced at Rumba's unusual expression in the arena, let out a sigh of relief, and silently thought to himself:
That round is over.

General.

Wu Jian knew that I was too old to celebrate Children's Day.

All I can do is lament the passing of my childhood with regret.

But...

But Thales hasn't surpassed him yet! (laughs)
Vote, tip, and review the book – let's send out some Children's Day gifts, everyone!
Happy Holidays, Thales!

The theories that appeared in PS Thales' memory were partly based on Gianfranco Poggi's "Development of the Modern State," which should have a Chinese version.

Additionally, for those who want to learn more, Dietrich Rueschemeyer's collection of papers called "States and Development" is also highly recommended and worth checking out.

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(End of this chapter)