Divine Kingship

Chapter 585 Your Majesty Rand, What Allen Saw and Heard

“Your Majesty Rand.” Berlan chuckled, as if he had already forgotten the embarrassing incident that occurred when he accidentally switched back to Ellie’s body.

Today it's Berlan again.

Berlan now controls Ellie's body for much less time.

However, Berlan said that the most troublesome part of the White Kingdom's affairs has been mostly resolved.

I will visit Rand at the resort when I have free time.

It can only be said that Berlan is not the kind of person who is hesitant or indecisive; Berlan does seem to be very good at dealing with problems.

Since things with Rand had to be taken slowly, Berlan didn't intend to delay or run away. She was already preparing to come and meet Rand with her own body.

To be honest, I'm really looking forward to it.

Rand kissed Berlan, who was using Ellie's body, and also kissed Ellie, who was using Berlan's body.

But for Berlan who uses Berlan's body.

Rand has not touched it yet.

Now that things have developed to this point with Berlan, we can look forward to what will happen next.

However, the priority now is to address political issues.

Just as Berland said: "Your Majesty Rand."

The nobles and ministers of the Frostmoon Kingdom, as well as the king, all agreed to support Rand in establishing the kingdom.

So now Rand is already preparing to establish a kingdom.

There aren't many guidelines for establishing a kingdom, but it's definitely something to think about carefully.

In the past, before humans had conquered many unclaimed lands, all it took was leading a group of people to occupy a piece of barren land, and then they could grant fiefdoms and establish kingdoms.

But it's different now.

The vast majority of arable or otherwise valuable land in the world is now owned.

There hasn't been a new kingdom in this world for hundreds of years.

Therefore, we must prepare well in terms of the process.

They might even dredge up some legal claims that are now considered worthless.

For example, what kind of artifacts were unearthed from the ruins in a certain place, and then the long history of the Nicholas family was discovered?
Then, through the interpretation of the artifacts, it was discovered that the large swathes of Bolen Kingdom land now occupied by Rand had been Nicholas family land since ancient times.

The Kingdom of Bolen seized the lands of the Nicholas family, and now Rand has reclaimed them and established his own kingdom.

This was obviously just something made up on the spot.

There wasn't even a Nicholas family before.

Of course, Rand could also choose to declare directly that the Nicholas family had conquered the lands of the Kingdom of Bolen, and that Rand was a great conqueror.

There are pros and cons to both approaches.

The former follows some of the inherent foundations of aristocratic rule.

The latter is also part of the aristocratic spirit, but relatively speaking, it is more arrogant and pioneering.

After careful consideration and discussion, Rand chose the latter.

After establishing the kingdom, Rand planned to do some unconventional things, so the legal basis for establishing the kingdom should not be based on any inheritance.

The history of the Nicholas family begins with Rand.

Winter of the 338th year of the Holy Calendar.

The boots of the great conqueror Rand broke through the bronze gates of the capital city of Bologna.

Starting from this day.

Nearly half of the land in the Kingdom of Bolen will become part of Rand.

Head north to Crescent Moon Ridge.

Southward to the endless ocean.

The Lunar Kingdom was thus established.

The Moon Phase Kingdom will establish the Torch Church's Nascent Soul faction and the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health as the main denominations.

That is, the state religion.

These two churches, as part of the political system, exert a comprehensive influence on the country's politics, economy, and culture.

Simultaneously.

The king of the Lunar Kingdom must also serve as the head of the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health and the head of the Primitive Church of the Torch.

In other words, the king of the Lunar Kingdom must possess supreme and absolute political and religious power.

At the same time, although the Moon Phase Kingdom will still implement the fief system, the nobles of the Moon Phase Kingdom must have church status and be subject to church law.

Regarding the matter of the King of the Moon Phase Kingdom having to assume the position of head of the Primordial faction of the Torch Church, it is necessary to discuss it again with Bishop Kahn and Karin of the Torch Church.

This is quite complicated because the early cult of the Torch Church has now become powerful.

The Torch Church has now split into three factions. The Old Holy City was attacked by the Holy Maiden and lost its leader, and is now half-dead. The New Holy City was attacked by Rand in collusion with the First Faction, and its true strength has now been exposed.

The emerging faction, based in the north, has gradually become the strongest faction after it began to reclaim tribute from various countries and established its base in the lunar duchy.

With Rand's support, the destruction or subjugation of other factions and the restoration of the Torch Church's glory may be just around the corner.

From now on, we don't need to call them the Newborn Church anymore; we can call them the Torch Church.

In the future, there may only be one Torch Church.

Therefore, matters related to the Torch Church still need to be discussed in detail.

As for the issue of the aristocratic political system.

Rand was also hesitant.

Directly leaping forward in political development is impossible, and RAND himself did not accept it.

But Rand did hope to initiate a change. In this world where extraordinary powers exist, Rand and the higher-ups of the Sanctuary were still exploring how the political system should develop.

In addition to requiring all nobles to have religious status, Rand can also choose to set religious nobles and secular nobles.

Governing the country by balancing the two.

However, considering that such a situation would inevitably lead to significant conflicts, Rand ultimately decided to unanimously demand that all nobles have religious status.

One can choose not to participate in religious affairs at all, but one must.

Where the secular aristocratic system cannot control the nobility, Rand can influence them through the religious system.

This combination of secular and religious systems constitutes the political system envisioned by Rand.

Actually, this system is quite modern.

Hopefully, this system that combines religion and secularism, this model that can be considered a theocracy, will bring about better results.

Then there's the issue of fiefdoms. The high-ranking members of the Holy Land will likely be considered members of the royal family; Tanl will probably be a duke, and Fenris a count.

After that, Thursserai, Little Tata, Taran, Shasa, and others will all be granted fiefdoms.

And then there's the religious side, Ranta and Chad.

On the elf side, there are herbs and wind chimes, and Nidhogg may even be granted fiefdoms in the future.

As for Marcus's aunt Eleanor, Marcus indicated that he might make her the Queen of Frostmoon Kingdom in the future, so he asked Rand to be careful about the consequences.

As for the scientific research, Ayesha needs to ask her opinion. As for the dwarf prince, he probably can't escape the fate of going back to inherit the throne, so it's fine to use his abilities now. Rand is guaranteed to make a profit.

In terms of institutions, RAND defined the state as an inclusive, multicultural nation.

Under royal rule, multiple races are permitted, such as Naga, Tauren, Centaurs, Elves, Dwarves, and so on.

That's basically the overall architecture.

As for the takeover, construction, and development of the Bolen Kingdom's lands, as well as the issue of local fiefdoms, those all need to be addressed gradually.

In short, RAND will try its best to consider the current situation and future development, striving for stability without resorting to desperate measures.

Therefore, these current plans are still drafts and will be fine-tuned after investigation and discussion.

But that's the general direction.

Acquiring so much land all at once was very difficult for Rand to adapt to, and it was also troublesome. Now that he had established a kingdom, he could no longer exploit Marcus, and he was suddenly back to the difficult situation of having to do all the work by himself.

Rand was even considering reviving the consul system, that is, having Lysa or Ellie serve as consuls, as another core figure to handle national politics.

……

Allen was captured.

Allen's name had appeared on Rand's desk, but Rand only glanced at it before moving on.

After all, Allen was just a trainee knight.

However, the spy did recognize Allen, so Allen was treated a little better, and the spy took him to find Allen's friend's child.

When carrying out missions, the agents suppress all personal emotions, prioritize the mission, and show no mercy.

But now that the war is over, these spies who infiltrated the capital of Bolun can go home and start their normal, safe work. So now they can do some of the things they felt guilty about before.

These spies had promised Allen they would send the child away, but they simply knocked him unconscious and hid him.

Now they took Allen to find the child.

Luckily, the child is still alive.

Upon seeing Allen, the child immediately rushed over and grabbed Allen's trouser leg, refusing to let go.

The child also looked at the spies with a wary gaze.

The agents exchanged smiles and then suggested that Allen take the child to Rand's department to register, as Rand had always had preferential policies for inmates with children.

For example, nutritional subsidies for children.

However, there will be oversight, and those who abuse children will be punished.

These systems are not very sound, but RAND is indeed making progress.

Allen is now a convict with a facial injury.

As for why his face was injured, it was naturally because he was pressed to the ground and bruised while stopping the new king of Bolen.

Following the spy's advice, Allen took his child to register and was then assigned housing. Those without children would live in a communal dwelling, while those with children would be given a slightly nicer thatched hut.

It's not that RAND can't provide them with better conditions, but directly providing them would be detrimental to their hard work and unfair to others.

Within the Holy Domain, housing and food require diligent work to obtain; otherwise, one can only achieve a basic level of sustenance, neither starving nor freezing to death.

During parents' working hours, some veterans also offer group childcare services.

This kind of childcare service can actually be considered a form of work and learning to some extent. For example, it could involve taking children on military training, trying out business ventures, or selling newspapers.

Intelligent children may receive early education or go to places with better futures, such as blacksmith shops.

He doesn't treat everyone equally; children of nobles will receive a better education and have better opportunities.

Rand will also give ordinary people a chance, otherwise Rand knows very well what will happen in the future.

After entrusting his child to someone else's care, Allen went to report to the labor camp.

The officer in charge of the labor camp also appeared to be a soldier. He didn't speak any official jargon, and it was clear that he wanted to make some arguments, but he quickly realized that he couldn't come up with anything.

The officer said directly to them, "Work hard. If you're too tired, report it to me. I'll personally check if the workload is unreasonable. If there are no problems, just obey orders. Obeying orders will get you food and clothes."

You can tell that the officer isn't very good at reasoning; his words are very direct, but easy to understand.

Then it was time to assign tasks and get to work.

Their current task is to repair the ruined royal city of Bolun.

These labor camp inmates were simply responsible for moving building materials and assisting with simple construction work. More advanced projects that required construction experience and knowledge were handled by specialized personnel.

Life in the labor camp was quite tough, but the food was decent. Compared to the holiday resorts I'd seen before... compared to the life depicted in the drama, the reality of labor camps was naturally much tougher.

But it wasn't bad at all; it was much better than I had imagined. If I were captured elsewhere, I would never have received such good treatment.

For example, being sent to mines, where the mine tunnels could collapse at any time and the air was extremely polluted, meant that the average lifespan of a mining slave was no more than three years.

I heard that mining is also needed in Rand, but it seems that Lord Rand has some special mining methods that will not cause too many miners to die or be injured. Moreover, those who participate in mining will receive additional subsidies and a reduction in the total time spent in labor reform.

They worked until evening, then distributed food and supplies, and sent them home.

Most of the laborers who were with Allen slept in shacks, but Allen returned to his small thatched hut because he had children to take care of.

The friend's child was already waiting inside.

Upon seeing Allen, who had just returned from labor camp, the boy ran over as fast as he could.

Allen looked at the child, a six-year-old who looked somewhat dirty.

"What did they make you do over there today?" Allen asked.

"I learned a few words, and then they asked us to help clean up some vegetable gardens in the city," the child answered truthfully.

Allen nodded. Of course, he wouldn't say anything about the evil Rand, who even exploited the labor of teenagers.

On the contrary, in a normal family, the labor that children have to do is even more arduous than this.

The learning and work arrangements that Rand made were already very friendly or even kind. After all, Rand would also provide lunch for the children, which would greatly reduce the pressure on both inmates and normal families.

Allen started cooking in the thatched hut, then began steaming soup ingredients. They were all ordinary things, but enough to fill him up.

I heard that a collective canteen will be built in the future, but the establishment of the canteen will require the efforts of these labor camp prisoners.

This gave Allen some hope for his job.

As for life... today, the officer who was bad at talking didn't explain clearly how long he would have to spend in the labor camp, but some of his coworkers told him about it while he was working.

It takes ten years, but if you work hard, you can actually gain freedom in a little over seven years, and you'll even receive some assets as a gift when you're free.

(End of this chapter)