Austin had lost the opportunity to do the same. He could only nod his head furiously as if to show his agreement with Olaf’s words.

Disgruntled, Candice’s face scrunched up as if she had seen something utterly unpleasant. She spoke as if she was vomiting her words out of disgust.

“Do you think that I would be interested in this kind of place? You overestimate yourself and this city. It isn’t even worthy of entering my eyes.”

Her words caught the two leaders by surprise. They wondered what she wanted if not that. There was nothing else in the city that could be worthy of her presence if not the wealth the city had to offer.

“We don’t dare insinuate such a thing.” answered Austin cautiously while sneaking glances at the scary old man. Thankfully, the old man seemed like he had not heard a word of what he said.

“You don’t need to concern yourself with what I want. You short-sighted old fogies can’t even begin to understand the things I covet. So, you should be more concerned with what you can do for me?”

Candice’s royal aura made her appear outlandish and supreme in the eyes of Olaf and Austin.

“We are at your disposal your highness. Please give us your orders.”

“No need to act like that since you already know where you stand. Just step down from your position and announce it to the whole city. Your era is over already, and you will only hinder the next generation from developing if you keep on sitting on the throne for the rest of your pathetic lives.”

Candice sounded casual as she decided on their fates so easily. They were wondering what she meant by that. Them stepping down from their position as the top families of the city would hardly change anything because they would still retain their strength as one of the top families.

Seeing their obvious confusion, Candice decided to explain her intentions further.

“I don’t mean that you go into seclusion with your families. I just want you to go back into the shadows and let someone younger take over your positions; someone more capable and more willing to take risks compared to yourselves. Is there someone you have in mind, or should I choose the candidates for myself?”

Their faces brightened as they heard her clarify her intentions. This was far better than what they had expected. She only wanted to replace them with the younger generation.

Although they would have been unwilling if she hadn’t shown them the power gap, this was still somewhat acceptable to them.

They had several suitable candidates in mind who had the will to carry on the legacy of the family and had sufficient latent potential that would enable them to grow with time.

They were not only excellent combat mages but could also be nurtured into good leaders especially when they could guide them throughout the process by staying in the shadows.

It wasn’t a bad deal for them at all, especially when it could bring them into a cooperative relationship with a royal princess.

“I have a son named Joyce. He is a bit young, but he has the makings of a good leader for the new generation. I have been grooming him since he was a child to take over my position.

“Me too. My eldest son, Andrew…he is a good candidate as well. He is excellent even compared to the young geniuses of the city and has the makings of a good leader, unlike those petty and pampered young masters. He is both prudent and daring enough to meet your requirements as well.”

Both Olaf and Austin named their sons as the new masters of the family following Candice’s orders.

They had long since forgotten to show any indignation towards her. They were even excited to name their sons as their successors to fulfill her orders.

“I think those two would be good enough as well. Unlike you two, they still have some guts and good enough ability to comprehend what I have in mind for them. They haven’t been tainted by your cowardly thinking yet.”

Both of them heaved a sigh of relief after getting Candice’s approval because her approval would ensure the continued existence of their respective families in the future.

“Under your leadership, the gap between the top families has only grown wider. Even the newly emerging Smith family has left you far behind in terms of strength. You could barely compete with the Hunter family which was led by Hogan Hunter who was barely capable of reaching the toes of the Smith family. Therefore, you two can’t possibly compete with Zach Smith. Your time of glory is up, and it is time to let go of the command totem to the younger generation of your family. I believe that your sons will be able to do what you couldn’t and bring balance to the city by keeping the Smith family in check.”

The two old men felt shameful after hearing the truth from the Princess’ mouth. They truly couldn’t keep up with the Smith family. They were too afraid. Their hearts leaped into their mouths every time they thought of Zach’s revenge.

They had been equally involved with the Hunter family in scheming against the Smith family and the Windsor family. Although they had been in the background, many of the things the Hunter family did couldn’t have been possible without their involvement.

For example, the embargo on the export of sugar couldn’t have been possible if they had allowed the Windsor family to use their transportation hubs.

After witnessing what happened to the Hunter family, they were afraid that they would end up suffering the same fate as them.

Therefore, for several weeks after the destruction of the Hunter family, the two families had closed off their doors to any outsiders fearing that Zach might come for them.

The mere thought of Zach was akin to an unsettling specter, haunting their minds and keeping them restless through the night. He had become a relentless nightmare, lurking in the shadows of their consciousness, tormenting them regardless of whether their eyes were closed in slumber or wide open in the wakefulness of day.

Candice’s words brought the light of hope in their worlds submerged in darkness. They too began to believe that their sons would be able to confront the Smith family and the terrifying demon Zach under the guidance of the royal princess.

With the old guard backing her up, the two believed that even Zach would have trouble trying to resist the orders of the princess.

So, they unhesitatingly fell in with the group being herded by the princess as they dreamed of being able to oppose the Smith family and the dark mage from their worst nightmares.

“I will make the announcement as soon as I reach back home. It shouldn’t take more than a day. I just need to finish a bit of the paperwork to make it official which might take a day or two before they can be ready. I want to request your patience, your highness.” ｂ𝚍ｎｏｖ𝚕．ｃｏｍ

Austin managed to grab the upper hand this time as Olaf was still structuring his words inside his head and repeating them over and over so he wouldn’t look foolish in the eyes of the princess.

“Andrew and Joyce will be the new governors in your place. Tell them that they will assist me in restoring balance to this city and encourage them to do their best.”

There was a smile on her face but on the inside, she was practically spewing venom thinking, “If they fail to live up to my expectations, I might have to restructure the power balance of the entire city. So don’t blame me later if your sons turn out to be just as disappointing as you two.”

…

Zach had been paying attention to the recent changes in the city. Both Bruce and Andy had been assisting him in gathering information and Zach had managed to discern how active the princess had been during this time.

She was not only taking control of more higher-ups with each passing second, but she was also absorbing their authority step by step as if she wanted to become the only one with power and authority.

She was structuring a highly decentralized system in which she reigned supreme while the rest of them were given just enough authority to give them the false idea that they had power as well.

While this might not have been enough for the top families of the city, it was more than enough for those who struggled at the bottom and mid-tier of the noble families.

Thanks to that, Candice was growing increasingly popular in the city and the low to mid-tier families even wished that she would never leave.

They had entered a prosperous era ever since their arrival. The business policies were lax, and these families could develop in a relatively safe environment compared to before.

Even though their revenues couldn’t be compared with the revenue of a single top family, it was still somewhat effective in restoring the crumbling foundation of the city.

Moreover, the families had potential to grow. They could just as easily become the next top family under the careful nurturing of the Princess. Had they tried to do this when the Hunter family was still reigning, they wouldn’t even have known how they died.

While Zach wasn’t interested in politics much, he could barely discern what the princess was trying to achieve by empowering the low and mid-tier families.