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n“Approved!” Sylvester abruptly bellowed but corrected himself right after that, “Holy Sovereign sounds brilliant, First Guardian. I shall be holding complete authority over every aspect of Sol and its administration from now on. Every law that is proposed must pass through me, with my signature. As for the kingdoms, there shall be none anymore. Sol will be divided into various districts of varying sizes according to the population.”

nFuriously, almost every single member present started writing down whatever Sylvester said. But some of them still had utterly great memories and didn’t bother with writing it.

n“Your Holiness… I mean Holy So—”

n“My designation is Holy Sovereign, like the Pope. You are still to call me His Holiness.” Sylvester corrected Aurora before she finished.

n“Yes, Your Holiness. I was wondering who will be managing these districts. A Clergyman?” She inquired.

nSylvester shook his head and pointed at the map of Sol behind him on the wall. “Just like the Judge examination, an Administrative Service Examination will be held to pick candidates to work as administrators. At the lowest levels will be the various overseers of departments, and in the middle levels will be the Magistrates who will administer whole districts, with its security forces under their limited control. On the higher levels, there will be Division Chiefs, who will oversee a cluster of districts.

n“All of the previous duchies will be called States from now on, and a senior Clergyman personally appointed and evaluated by me will be at its help. All the Magistrates and Division Chiefs will report to the said Senior Clergymen, who will be called State Councilmen.”

nOne after another, they all narrowed down the list of matters that needed to be solved at the quickest. What sort of structures would the various essential departments, such as Road Construction, Agriculture, Waterways, and Water Supply, have?

n“From now on, a new Tax Department will be created in the Holy Land, which will work under the leadership of the Saint Keymaster. It will be responsible for focusing on District-level Tax Sub-offices, and collecting tax throughout Sol. All that money will gather here, and will then be distributed across the realm as per the need in focus,” Sylvester announced and concluded the short meeting with the clergy, as there was another group desperate to meet him there.

n“I will be here for the next seven days with no break. Come to me at any time if there is any confusion, or if you encounter a problem that requires further expansion of departments.” He dismissed them and called his pretty and bubbly assistant in. “Mother Anya, call the kings and queens waiting outside.”

nSylvester moved the chairs around his table in the meantime, as the major crowd had left.

nThe place had undoubtedly become a playground for Miraj as he jumped around and tried to catch the sunlight’s reflection in the room. He wasn’t dumb, just playful, despite knowing what it was.

nBam!

n“Chonky, stop messing around. You’ll break the portraits.” Sylvester was quick to scold the bored cat. “If you’re so bored, just go home to Mum.”

n“Nyo! I wanna be here and see everything. You’re the Big Pope now, and I’m the Big Chonky protector. I can’t leave your side, Maxy,” Miraj argued and continued his playful chase.

nKnock! Knock!

nJust then, the door opened, and Queen Xylena peeked inside with a huge grin on her face. “There’s my favorite father!”

n“There is my lazy daughter?” Sylvester joked. “Get in here and sit down.”

nOne after another, all of the ex-monarchs entered and took their seats. Despite losing their kingdoms, they didn’t seem annoyed, or depressed. There was a solemn smile on their faces as they silently looked at Sylvester to start.

n“How are you?” Sylvester asked about them before anything else.

nKing Highland, sitting very closely with his beautiful wife, held up his thumb to Sylvester. “Alive and unharmed, Your Holiness. After losing to Leyon, I had lost my dignity. But now, you brought me my honor back, and lifted off my burden at the same time. I have no reason to be wary or hateful anymore. Perhaps… I can focus more on my marriage now.”

n‘That Ginseng did really well, it seems. Or perhaps it was a placebo needed to heal him subconsciously.’ Sylvester pondered, knowing what the ex-King had meant. It appeared Rex was going to have some more siblings soon.

n“I will, however, feel empty without the reports about the kingdom’s various issues to read.” Queen Trinity added.

nSylvester had something for them but waited until other monarchs concluded their words. “And you, Kaecilius? I know Isabella is happy as she can live her newly married life in peace now. The same is true for Xylena, who will surely pester me here every now and then. What do you think about this change?”

nKaecilius sighed and stood up. Suddenly, he placed his hand in his regal coat and took out a crowd, placing it on the table. “I wish to surrender my kingship, Your Holiness. I was a merchant, then a slave, and finally a King because of your aid. I was never supposed to be a monarch, Your Holiness. Unlike my fellow monarchs here, I do not come from a long line of nobles, nor does my bloodline have thousands of years of enriching history.”

nSylvester picked up the crown and checked it carefully. But then he chuckled and threw it back at Kaecilius. “Don’t be so quick with this decision, my friend. I have abolished royalty as a title of power, but it still remains a title of prestige. You may not have direct control over your kingdoms anymore, but you can still be a special inspector assigned by me.

n“Citizens can still come to you to share their troubles, or you can visit common spaces to see if the people are facing any issues. After that, you have a direct communication priority with me to relay those issues. Be it lack of water, poor harvest, or even corruption in administration.

n“Consider yourselves a King and Queen who still has to honor their title—be the last bastion to save the people’s rights to a decent, respectful life.”

nThe four monarchs silently sat there and thought about the opportunity. It appeared they wouldn’t be so useless after all.

n“Furthermore, as monarchs, you will still be able to knight people ceremoniously for their great contribution in particular fields. Such as a great inventor, someone who saved a lot of people, someone who brought great social change, or perhaps a valiant soldier,” Sylvester added and placed four documents on the table. “And this is the official declaration of the accession of your kingdoms into the union called Sol Theocracy. Please sign it to make it official.”

n“I’ll go first!” Xylena, being the youngest, jumped forward and picked up the pen to sign before the opportunity slipped away from her. Nobody could be sure, after all. “With this, I proclaim freedom from the mountains of paperwork, and snobbery of the nobles—amen!”

n“We just need to find a suitable groom for you now,” Sylvester teased her where it hurt the most.

n“Hmph, as if there’s anyone good enough for I, Xylena Sor Maximilian Blackhart,” she proclaimed proudly, puffing her chest out and flicking her ashen-black hair with one hand.

n“…” Sylvester lacked the words. “When did you add my last name to yours?” .𝘤𝘰

n“Just now, of course. I’m a queen, I can do anything.” Xylena replied, taking a softer and more emotional tone. “If not for you, I wouldn’t be alive, nor would I be a Queen. I owe you a debt of life, and as a daughter in all but blood, I wish to slowly repay it… somehow.”

n‘If you are the key that was foretold, you’ve already repaid the debt and done much more, Xye.’ Sadly, Sylvester couldn’t say it aloud.

n“Then make sure you study hard and work directly under me. Due to its past tragedies, the Blackhart Kingdom requires the most work oversight.” He sternly instructed her and moved on.

nNext, Isabella signed her name on the agreement. “This is the greatest marriage gift I could have hoped for, Your Holiness.”

nSylvester simply smiled and let her sit again, for King Highland and Queen Trinity to come and sign their names. It appeared the two held the rank of monarch equally, instead of just one.

nBut when Kaecilius showed hesitation, King Highland slammed his fatherly palm on the man’s back. “Just go and sign your name, boy. I know what you’ve done in your life. Surviving those slave-fighting pits for so many years was no small deed. You led the uprising, and the people of Riveria unanimously supported you. You still have a duty to them—to ensure they get the best.”

n‘My old Spartacus.’ Sylvester reminisced about the time he plotted to have this man loyal to himself. The schemes he had to play to lure him over. ‘Without any power to oppose me, you will certainly be a decent King.’

n“King Highland is right, Kaecilius.” Sylvester gave the last push.

nWith that, the burly, strong man, now showing signs of age, rose and signed his name on the accession agreement. But he went further and wrote down another clause in it. “After my death, I want my family to return to being commoners, Your Holiness. If my children have enough talents, they will make a name and life for themselves.”

n‘And that’s why I chose you.’ Sylvester nodded, affirming his own choice.

nSylvester picked up the papers again at last and signed on each of them one after another, and as a witness, there was space left for Gabriel to sign later. But unknown to any, a secret witness had already signed.

nA little paw mark was present at the corner of each historical paper—a mystery for historians to ponder for eons to come.

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