Dragon Monarch System Chapter 1146:- The Rules of the Dragon Monarch - II

A thick killing intent slowly began leaking from Aditya’s body as his cold gaze swept across the thousands gathered before him.

He had absolutely no intention of establishing a precedent where noble houses could gather together and indirectly pressure him whenever they wanted something. If he gave in today simply because he needed their support in the civil war, then what would happen after he became Emperor?

The moment several powerful noble houses disagreed with one of his decisions, they might believe that gathering together and placing enough political pressure on him would force him to compromise again.

That was not the kind of Emperor Aditya intended to become.

At the same time, Aditya’s subordinates started walking out of the Mansion. The first one to walk out was Lou Han carrying a heavy greatsword.

Aditya valued the support of the noble houses, but he did not depend on them to the point where they could dictate his decisions. He had his own forces, powerful subordinates, the support of Boris and the Harrington Family, and most importantly, his own strength.

With enough time and preparation, Aditya was confident that he could find another way to defeat Ren even if several noble houses withdrew their support. Their armies would certainly make the coming war easier, but Aditya would never allow that usefulness to become political leverage against him.

Among the gathered crowd, Mai and Shin quietly observed the future Emperor. The moment they noticed his increasingly cold expression and felt the killing intent beginning to spread from his body, both siblings realized that something had gone terribly wrong.

What they and the other noble houses had viewed as a valuable opportunity had clearly been interpreted very differently by Aditya.

Until now, everyone had been focused on getting their own piece of this miraculous opportunity. They had worried about the Harrington Faction becoming stronger, calculated how many soldiers they should send, and considered how much their households could benefit if those soldiers became Dragonians.

Yet in all of those calculations, almost none of them had seriously considered how Aditya himself might view thousands of soldiers suddenly appearing before him and expecting his Divine Blood.

That had been their mistake.

They had approached the situation using the political habits of the Celestial Dragon Empire. Under the previous Imperial Family, maintaining the support of the major noble houses often required compromise, negotiation, and occasionally giving concessions to preserve harmony between the different factions.

Because of that, many nobles had unconsciously expected Aditya to behave in a similar manner, especially when he was still relying on their military support to fight the coming civil war.

But Aditya was not his father.

He had already ruled his own Empire for years and had developed his own understanding of how an Emperor should govern. If he believed an old tradition was inefficient, he would abolish it.

If an existing political system gave nobles more influence than he believed they should possess, he would not hesitate to change that system. And if maintaining harmony required him to surrender authority that rightfully belonged to the Emperor, then Aditya would rather destroy that harmony and build something new in its place.

To Aditya, the Word Emperor meant that no one in his Domain should dare to disobey him. It meant absolute control.

As Shin stared at Aditya’s cold expression, he slowly understood that the noble houses might have badly miscalculated.

Instead of gaining an opportunity to strengthen their armies, they might have accidentally shown the future Emperor exactly why he needed to reduce the political power that the noble houses currently possessed.

"These nobles certainly have some nerve." Spencer remarked in a mocking tone as he stood near one of the windows of the mansion and looked at the enormous gathering outside.

As Aditya’s best friend and the Prime Minister of the Istarin Empire, Spencer could understand exactly why this situation had angered him. Back in the Istarin Empire, something like this would have been almost unthinkable.

Nobles could submit requests, present proposals, and ask the Imperial Government for certain privileges, but gathering thousands of soldiers outside the Emperor’s residence simply because they wanted the same benefit another group had received would never be tolerated. Even if that had not been the nobles’ intention, their actions had created the appearance that they were collectively pressuring Aditya into giving them the same opportunity.

Spencer’s expression remained calm as he turned toward Nathan. "Nathan, note down the names of every household that sent soldiers here. Once the civil war is over, I will revisit this matter."

Nathan immediately understood what Spencer meant and silently nodded. The Prime Minister was not planning anything extreme against these noble houses, nor did he intend to punish them simply for wanting their soldiers to become stronger.

However, Spencer had a very long memory when it came to politics. Once Aditya became Emperor and the Empire began distributing new projects, privileges, government positions, military contracts, resources, and other benefits, Spencer intended to remember which households had tried to use the civil war to place indirect pressure on Aditya.

The punishment would not necessarily be something obvious enough for the nobles to openly complain about. Their requests might simply receive less priority. Certain privileges might go to households that had shown better judgment and greater respect for Imperial authority.

When several equally qualified noble houses competed for the same opportunity, Spencer would naturally remember what had happened today. It was his way of making sure that actions carried consequences without creating unnecessary enemies in the middle of a civil war.

Meanwhile, Aditya slowly rose from the ground. He continued ascending until he was more than fifty meters, or roughly one hundred and sixty-four feet, above everyone. From that height, he could clearly see the thousands of soldiers gathered beneath the banners of their respective noble houses, while everyone below could easily see him as well.

"I did not expect such a large crowd to gather here." Aditya spoke in an ordinary tone, but Mana carried and amplified his voice across the entire area, allowing every soldier and noble present to hear his words clearly.

His expression remained calm as he looked down at the gathering, giving away none of the anger that had been building inside him.

However, those familiar with politics could already sense that what Aditya was about to say would determine far more than whether the soldiers gathered below would become Dragonians. This was also going to establish exactly where the future Emperor intended to draw the line between the authority of the Imperial Throne and the influence of the noble houses.

Aditya crossed his arms over his chest as his cold gaze moved across the thousands of soldiers gathered below. He had no intention of softening his words simply because these people represented noble households that currently supported him in the civil war. If anything, Aditya believed this was the perfect moment to make his position clear before anyone developed the wrong idea about what kind of Emperor he would become.

"Lesson number one that every noble within my domain should remember. This Monarch does not give a fuck about what you desire when you try to force those desires upon me."

The moment those words left his mouth, several terrifying auras suddenly erupted from behind Aditya. The pressure belonging to multiple 7th-order cultivators descended upon the gathering, instantly changing the entire atmosphere.

Aditya had not ordered anyone to attack, nor did any of the powerful figures behind him make a move, but the message their presence sent was impossible to misunderstand. Aditya was not standing before them as a desperate prince who needed to please every noble house in order to secure enough support for the Imperial Throne.

Under Aditya’s cold gaze, the thousands gathered below became completely silent. Some soldiers began sweating while others felt their bodies trembling under the pressure. The passive killing intent leaking from Aditya only made the situation worse, causing several weaker cultivators to feel as though the air around them had suddenly become heavier. Even the representatives of the noble households did not dare to speak.

"If I decide to give someone something, then it will be according to my own judgment and my own will. No noble house has the right to gather its people before me and expect that I will give them something merely because another household received it."

This was the principle Aditya wanted every noble to understand. Their support in the civil war did not purchase the right to influence his personal decisions. He was willing to listen to their opinions, consider their interests, and reward those who contributed to the Empire, but there was a clear difference between advising the Emperor and attempting to politically pressure him.

Aditya had spent years building the Istarin Empire around that distinction, and he had no intention of abandoning it simply because the political structure of the Celestial Dragon Empire was different.

"Return and tell your respective household leaders exactly what happened here today. Let this become a lesson for everyone. Never attempt something this foolish again. If there is something you desire, you may properly present your request to me. Whether I accept or reject that request will be my decision."

Aditya paused briefly as his gaze swept across the different banners below him. He wanted them to understand that he was not threatening them for asking for an opportunity. What angered him was the manner in which they had done it.

Thousands of soldiers appearing together created political pressure whether their household leaders intended it or not, and allowing such behavior once would only encourage it to happen again.

"Today, I will overlook this because many of you may not have understood what kind of ruler I am. But tell your household leaders that there will not be a second warning. If anyone attempts to pressure this Monarch in such a manner again, things will not end this nicely."

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