58 CHAPTER 58- New Policies

Ray was sitting in the meeting room of the palace with a few others.

There were the Dukes, Isis, Ambrosia, the few guild leaders who were left and the academy directors and finally Ellaine and her guard.

He sat at the head of the massive table on the largest seat with Isis and Ambrosia nearest to him followed by the dukes and duchesses on each side, the leaders and directors and then Ellaine.

After the show of power and the massacre, the broadcast had ended stating that the king would be setting up new policies.

The people were already satisfied and shocked enough for one day and everyone left in good moods.

Ray looked at the leaders of the various guilds and began making decisions.

"The mercenary guild, the adventurer guild, the blacksmith guild and every independent guild except the information and spy guild will keep working as usual without any change…"

Immediately the face of the leaders brightened as they bowed their heads down to declare their agreement.

"However…"

The smile on their faces froze.

'Will we have to pay our profits to the palace?'

'Will we have to compensate or work exclusively for the palace?'

"However, I will visit every guild personally to eradicate every last mole and traitor that exists."

The leaders who were wondering what the new decree would be were more than overjoyed.

If the king visited them personally, it would mean their guild was recognized officially by the palace and it was a sign of prestige.

Even better was that the king would personally eradicate every mole, making their guilds free from the corrupt and traitorous people who harmed them from the insides.

They agreed immediately.

However at this moment, the vice-leader of the information and spy guild didn't know what to do.

His own leader was found out to be a traitor and killed by the southern duke, but he himself didn't know anything about it and was thus extremely scared to find out his outcome.

"The information and spy guild will be integrated as a branch exclusive to the palace and the members will work only as per the palace's instructions."

The mid aged man who was the vice leader trembled when he heard that.

It was the very basic of their guild's nature to collect and gather information. As such, there were indeed instances where people hid their identity and bought or sold information related to the palace or some of the empire's secrets.

He didn't know how much of this the new king had caught on, but after he saw his leader who always paraded around like he knew everything get beheaded in one smooth strike, he was in no mood to argue or debate.

"I accept."

Ray nodded his head.

His palace had all sorts of departments like mercenaries and spies he had set up earlier already, but for him it wasn't enough.

If two of the same things existed, there was bound to be competition.

And the commoners were more comfortable with the independent guilds rather than being affiliated with the palace, and that was because some of them hated the nobles.

At this moment, with this one decree Ray had integrated the spy guild and made it exclusive to the palace. By strictly placing a few people he would enslave and sending someone to monitor it, he would prevent any leak of information.

His target was to integrate every guild in the empire into the palace and make it the only body with immeasurable strength, just like the Twilight Empire.

Why he didn't do it immediately was because he knew this wasn't the optimal time.

Adventurers liked to be free and hunt monsters, mercenaries only worked on requests, blacksmiths loved making weapons and the like.

However the only motive of people selling information was money.

If he tried to forcefully make the adventurers or other guilds exclusive to the palace, there would be dissatisfaction and backlash. People would call it oppression.

However if he did the same with the information guild, whose leader had turned out to be a traitor, people would call it mercy. After all, he had abastained from destroying the guild altogether.

And even better, if people knew that the one they were selling information to was actually the palace and they would be paid directly by them, a legitimate source, they would be even more eager to acquire new information and sell it.

Next, Ray looked at the directors of the academy who were silent.

There were five academies in the empire, all with different names and all having their expertise in a different branch.

However two of the directors were found out to be traitors and killed.

Now Ray was about to decide what would happen to those academies.

"All five academies are to combine into one and be known as the Celestial Royal Academy. Everyone will be allowed to enter the academy free of cost and there shall no discrimination among nobles or commoners. Classes will be separated according to merit and talent and finally, all three directors will have the same presiding power and major decisions will be decided with a vote."

The three people's faces collapsed.

All five academies were a symbol of prestige in the academy and only let nobles or extremely talented commoners enter.

Even then, there was a high fees and additional donations for noble sponsors to pull some strings for their children to stay ahead of others.

If what the king said was implemented, then they would have no source to pay the teachers and even they couldn't earn anything.

As they were about to voice their doubts Ray spoke sooner.

"The palace will be your sponsor and pay for everyone's salary. However it also means the palace can send people to find if the policies of non discrimination are being followed."

That statement finally put some relief in them.

The palace was rich beyond imagination. If they really did pay them, then they would earn far more than before.

But Ray wasn't over yet.

"And furthermore… the palace will be your only sponsor."

All three people's faces stiffened once again.

"What, did you think I was oblivious of those little 'donations' some nobles gave you to ensure their children stayed above others?"

All three started sweating as they didn't know what to say.

"What's done is done. Just ensure that it doesn't happen again. If any noble tries to pressure the academy, you can report them directly to the palace."

They hurriedly nodded their head in agreement as they exhaled a breath of relief.

With this policy Ray would further improve his public image. After all, he directly made education free for everyone and also took a hard stand against discrimination and corruption.

Furthermore, by combining all three academies into one, it would have a far more diverse teacher and student base to enhance social interaction and further learning.

He knew the 'non-discrimination' policy would have slight backlash at first, but he didn't care. He would solve that eventually.

"Alright, further instructions will be handed over later. You people can leave."

"Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty."

And with that the directors of the academy and the leaders of the guilds bowed in respect, silently got up from their seats and left.

Now in the room Ray looked at Ellaine and her guard.

Ellaine had been silent for a long time.

She had seen the massacre happen in front of her eyes and even though she hated people taking other's lives, she knew that was bound to happen when someone dared to kill the king.

She knew that the soul she had seen in the new king was excessively dark and filled with bloodlust. But what if the scene she had witnessed firsthand happened to him before?

'What if he was forced to take other's lives to protect his own?'

She had read about the history of the Celestial Empire slightly before coming here and she knew that his father had died in war.

'What if he took other's lives to avenge his father or calm his anger?'

She didn't know anything about him and had decided to observe his actions.

And from what she had seen, he was someone who appeared cold on the outside but was extremely kind and merciful.

'Just look at how he spared some people with just a warning after knowing what they had done… and he also made decisions that immensely helped the public and common people…'

If Ray knew what she was thinking he would have difficulty controlling his laughter.

But Ellaine was conflicted. She had to report what she had seen to the seniors and if she did they would surely kill him.

But from what she saw, he was innocent and didn't want it to happen.

Thus she decided she would tell her seniors the truth and then ask them to not kill him immediately, but just keep him on observation.

"Yes, your majesty!"

Ray didn't know what this priestess thought of him.

Depending on how she reported him, he would have to choose a different plan.

It was just a matter of time and waiting to see what she would do, but Ray was confident that no matter what she did, he could use her to enter the holy empire and destroy it from the inside.

"Does the Holy Twilight Empire have any message for me?"

Ellaine immediately hid her emotions and went professional mode.

"Your majesty, Ray Celestia, new king of the Celestial Empire, the Holy Twilight Empire sends you their friendship and alliance if any need arises. May your reign be long and peaceful. We hope our relationship stays like it was through the history."

Ray narrowed his eyes at the statement.

The first few lines were fine, but the last line was meant to be a threat and keep him and his empire in check.

'So they mean they'll destroy my empire if I try to break the alliance or go against them?'

"I agree to the Holy Twilight Empire's proposal. Our alliance has been the longest since history and so it shall remain!"

He said with a 'happy and satisfied' smile.

Ellaine was further convinced that he was not like his soul appeared to be.

"Priestess if you may, I need to talk to the Dukes about the empire's private matters now… However you may stay in the palace if you have anything more to speak, our doors will forever be open."

'Putting up an act is such a pain.'

Ellaine was satisfied and knew they needed some privacy. She couldn't intrude in other empire's political matters.

"No, my job here has been done. I shall leave. Farewell."

With a bow she left with her guard in following her.

Now in this room, where all the highest powers of the empire stayed, Ray would give each one instructions that would soon change the empire and make in completely loyal to him and the palace.