I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 535 A Chaotic Transition

Xiao Daozai likes war, but he despises wars fought solely for money and desire.

The noisy tavern, the mountains of money, and the faces flushed red with greed filled him with a deep-seated weariness and alienation.

Revenge is noble; it is the flame that unites people.

But plunder is not; it is merely a quagmire of desire that drags people into endless, ugly struggles.

So, after dealing with his shares, Xiao Dao left the tavern without hesitation, turning his back on the light that symbolized success and wealth, and walked into the darkness of the night in Omdour Port without any lingering attachment.

A cool, sea-scented night breeze brushed against his face, dispelling the last trace of heat and stale air he had brought from the tavern, and invigorating him.

"Alright, it's time to go back to Oncandra."

The revenge fleet was rebuilt once again, but this time it had nothing to do with stabbing someone in the butt with a knife.

……

Chris is conducting an audit in Treasure Island City, launching a swift and precise audit storm on the local bureaucracy in the name of King Bagnia.

However, just as the eye of the storm is the calmest area, Chris himself, who was at the center of this audit storm, appeared unusually calm, even somewhat bored.

The reason is simple: Chris has been working on civil service exams day after day, persistently building a modern bureaucratic system, and finally, at this point, his efforts have begun to bear fruit.

Chris no longer needs to do everything personally like he did in the early days of his business, nor does he need to use any iron fist or intuition to distinguish between the loyal and the treacherous, or to purge the parasites.

Because a sophisticated machine consisting of the tax bureau, the courts, and the Ministry of Justice has begun to operate efficiently, acting as gears to each other and checking and balancing each other, turning the will of the monarchy into cold and precise actions.

Basically, Chris's biggest role in the island city was sitting in the study of the temporary palace, reviewing reports submitted by different departments that had been cross-verified.

These reports are well-organized, have a complete chain of evidence, and provide clear recommendations for action.

All Chris had to do was, after understanding the situation, use that heavy royal seal to affix his approval mark to the final judgment document.

"According to the tax bureau's audit, three principal officials of the Port Authority of Taiwan conspired to embezzle berth management fees and cargo detention fines totaling approximately 87,000 silver dollars over the past sixteen months."

The evidence is conclusive; a sentence of twenty years of hard labor and confiscation of property are recommended.

The clerk read the report summary in a flat tone.

Chris grunted in agreement, picked up the seal, and forcefully stamped it onto the thick judgment document. The bright red seal, symbolizing the king's authority, covered the text and determined the fate of the three officials.

"The court's secret agents have confirmed that the former Miniese nobleman, now the deputy civil administrator of the Treasure Island City area, has abused his power to profit his family's shops and has secretly obstructed the implementation of Bagnian commercial law. It is recommended that his title be revoked, his ill-gotten gains obtained through his power be confiscated, and he be exiled to the northern mining area for ten years of service."

Chris picked up the jade seal again and brought it down.

again.

"The Ministry of Justice Circuit Court ruled in its initial trial that a logistics officer of the Taiwan City Defense Force had resold military supplies, including fifty standard-issue muskets and a quantity of gunpowder."

According to the "Wartime Administrative Regulations of the Kingdom of Bagnia," a death sentence, to be carried out immediately, requires His Majesty's approval.

Chris didn't even flinch, and the imperial seal was still stamped on.

It was incredibly efficient, yet breathtakingly calm.

There were no roaring courtroom scenes, no bloodshed, only the sound of papers turning, the clerk's emotionless report, and the dull thud of the imperial seal falling again and again.

At this moment, power is no longer something that needs to be defended with shouts and wails; it has been internalized into this meticulous system, as natural as breathing.

Chris even had time to think about what to eat for dinner or to review routine government documents from other regions.

For him, the audit storm in Taiwan was more like a routine, anticipated cleanup process that didn't stir up much emotion within him.

In addition, there are some other miscellaneous matters, such as the intelligence agency auctioning off a female elf from the players of the Revenge Fleet, and is currently training her in preparation to extract information about the outside world of Greece from her.

For example, several murders are taking place on the island of Taiwan. The victims come from all walks of life, including dockworkers, street vendors, and wealthy businessmen.

The only thing they had in common was that the people who killed them were players... Ximen Daguanren and his dozen or so companions.

After winter set in, they went berserk, running rampant and killing people throughout the city.

At first, these ten or so people were a little more careful. They would create an accident-like event to kill their target, making the inexperienced Taiwanese police think that the death was an accident and hastily close the case.

Perhaps it was because they could not find any effective clues about the exact whereabouts of Earl Lawrence, perhaps they had run out of patience in dealing with the Bagnian spies and the Blue Banner Army, or perhaps it was simply the player's irrepressible, destructive nature at play—the way Simon and his remnants acted began to undergo a significant and alarming change.

They no longer bother to fake the scene, nor do they meticulously plan those seemingly flawless "accidents".

Their assassinations became direct and brutal, turning into open killings. They would rush over in broad daylight, like an assassin with a hidden blade, and kill people in full view of everyone, even if there were police officers present.

Such an incident naturally attracted the attention of the Taiwanese police, their game IDs turned red, and other players began to hunt them down.

With the interference of other players, Ximen Daguanren's group's operation did not go so smoothly. Three days ago, three of the group not only failed to cause a massacre in the city, but were also discovered by other players before the operation began, and then cornered in an alley and beaten into Chaoshan beef balls.

Even so, this group did not give up. The dead man was quickly revived and headed back to Taiwan.

In response, Ximen Daguanren had made preparations in advance. Their respawn point was well hidden, and other players who wanted to block the respawn point failed.

Chris did know where their respawn point was... It was in a mountain village fifty kilometers away from Treasure Island City, in a mechanical cult church they had built themselves, where the respawn point was located.

This chapel of the Mechanical God was built by Ximen Daguanren using all his reputation and military merits. Because they hadn't started anything yet when it was being built, and other players hadn't noticed it, no player has discovered the existence of the chapel so far.

Chris knew this, but he didn't think to point it out... Doing so would be tantamount to the referee personally stepping in and beating up the opponent, which is not a good thing.

Aside from the aforementioned events, Chris couldn't find anything else interesting, so he was getting a little bored.

Just as he was about to summon Julie over for a little uniform fetish game, there was a knock on the door.

Chris knew from the distinctive knocking rhythm that the person outside was the clerk.

"Come in."

Chris suppressed the romantic thoughts that had just flashed through his mind and regained his usual composure.

The clerk pushed open the door and entered, his demeanor unchanged as always. But the moment he spoke, Chris straightened up from his languid reclining position. "Your Majesty, an urgent report from the Bureau of Religious Affairs."

"kindness!?"

The Religious Affairs Bureau was a department he established to manage the increasingly complex religious situation within the country. On ordinary days, it mainly dealt with territorial disputes or doctrinal conflicts between churches, and there were very few situations where they could use the word "emergency".

"explain."

"Ten minutes ago, at the same time, the High Priest of the Church of the Goddess of Agriculture, the Apostolic Vicar of the Church of the Earth Mother, and a High Priest of the Church of the Sea God arrived together at the Religious Bureau headquarters in Vortradnoy to deliver the highest level of warning."

Chris leaned forward slightly, realizing the situation might be a bit serious.

The goddess of agriculture and the earth mother are the mainstream beliefs in Bagnnia and receive official support, so it is not surprising that their church leaders have direct audiences with them.

However, the Church of the Sea God... ever since Bagnia annexed Minicia, due to the mistakes of the Church of the Sea God, it has been continuously and subtly suppressing the belief in the Sea God, and the Church of the Sea God has been silent in public for a long time.

Now this church has also stepped forward?
"What did they say?"

Chris was concise and to the point.

"The core message conveyed by the three churches is basically the same."

The clerk remained calm and composed, but the words that came out of his mouth made Chris's eyebrows twitch.

"They claim that through their own oracles, natural signs, and the collective perception of high-ranking clergy, they have confirmed an extremely dire prophecy... that a calamity is imminent beyond the world where the Greek continent is located."

Natural disasters?

Chris remembered that the snake-man prophet had said something similar.

"Right now?"
Did they explain what a natural disaster is? Will it affect us?

"unknown."

A brief silence fell over the study, with only the faint sounds of city noise coming from outside the window making the room seem even quieter.

Chris's fingers tapped lightly on the smooth tabletop unconsciously.

A natural disaster from outside the world?
This concept is somewhat vague, but its seriousness is undeniable, as it can enable major churches that are in competition or even conflict to put aside their prejudices and unite to issue a warning.

The "boredom" he had felt earlier vanished instantly, replaced by a long-lost focus and composure in the face of immense challenges.

"After these people issued the warning, did they say what they hoped the kingdom would do?"

"No."

So these guys were simply warning the kingdom, hoping the country would prepare a response, without making any additional requests.

Chris was a little suspicious, but he didn't think about it any further.

"Summon cabinet members and have them meet to discuss this matter and come up with a solution."

After saying that, Chris suddenly thought of something else: the player's second expedition fleet seemed to be being formed in Omdur Port, and a couple of days ago, they even seemed to have jointly submitted a document to me.

With that in mind, Chris started rummaging through his desk and quickly found the document.

Upon opening it, it turned out to be an application document for purchasing three battleships using reputation points, military merits, and a large amount of silver dollars.

After glancing at it a few times, Chris gently shook his head.

Chris might proceed unless he receives a warning.

Although they can't offer much in terms of military merit and prestige, Chris might be lenient and let them off the hook, considering the money they've spent that has stimulated the kingdom's economy.

But not now.

Although many ships are currently in the shipyard and will soon be launched, by next spring, the Kingdom's fleet will be able to replenish at least twenty sailing warships of two to three thousand tons.

But at this moment, Chris simply closed the application document gently and casually placed it on top of the pile of processed documents, which meant rejection.

"Inform the Admiralty and the Port of Omdour that the Revenge Fleet's application to purchase battleships will not be approved for the time being."

New ships built for the kingdom's fleet must prioritize the defense of the homeland.

The clerk nodded and made a note of it.

Chris supported the player's first expedition not only because the knife stab had given him a lot of reputation points, and he had to give him face, but also because it was a revenge mission, something that happened after the elves had deliberately humiliated the player.

This expedition, aside from the fleet's guise for revenge, was entirely driven by desire and greed—the aim of capturing elven slaves. Chris disliked it and was unwilling to support it.

This incident easily brings to mind the real-world triangular trade.

If they want to cause trouble, they can just buy a fleet of armed merchant ships and sail out to sea. There are plenty of these kinds of ships in Baghnia, and even in the Macon Union and the Pomeranian Union. As long as they have the money, they can have as many as they want.

Such armed merchant ships generally have a tonnage between 200 and 600 tons, with a maximum of 30 cannons of relatively small caliber. Furthermore, due to their merchant nature, there are compromises in their defense and ship structure.

The clerk left to carry out his orders, and the study returned to silence, leaving Chris alone.

Rejecting the revenge fleet's application to purchase ships did not stir much emotion in him. This was an expedition he did not have high hopes for, one filled with the stench of money and bloodshed. Now, with the "natural disaster" warning as an even more legitimate reason, he felt no psychological burden in refusing it.

He imagined the reactions of the players gathered in the tavern in Omdur Harbor upon learning that their application had been rejected...

It's nothing more than cursing, feeling resentful, and perhaps trying to find other ways out.

But they would eventually discover that within the Bagnia Kingdom's system, the king's will was the ultimate rule. Without the support of the kingdom's navy, they would either risk their lives with those cumbersome and slow armed merchant ships or have to abandon the expedition altogether.

Chris quickly put the matter out of his mind.

Just then, in the night sky of Taiwan outside the window, there was a very slight, almost imperceptible flicker, as if a distant star had suddenly gone out, or as if some invisible ripple had spread across the sky.

The speed was too fast, the change too subtle, not even as fast as the moment the moon was obscured by clouds, so even Chris didn't notice it.

(End of this chapter)