Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1084: A Frustrated Maximus

The kingdom's posthumous evaluation of him was well underway. Once his will was made public—revealing that the majority of his estate would be donated to the kingdom—the Senators dropped all remaining objections. The proposals to enshrine his statue in the Hall of Sages and to erect another outside the Financial Department both passed.

The opening of the Greek Scholars Conference was even postponed for a few days to accommodate his funeral.

A few days later, the Senate released another important announcement: Haca, the only governor in the Kingdom of Daunia to serve a term longer than four years, was stepping down. Senator Bagulas would take over as the Governor of Southern Iberia. Furthermore, the Senate had created an additional Rotating Chairman position, which Haca would assume upon returning to Thurii.

These significant changes in the political arena failed to attract much attention from the common people. Right now, the most hotly debated topic in streets and alleys across the kingdom was whether Daionian Citizens should pay higher taxes to fund military expenditures and resolve border security issues.

This shift in public opinion took a mere dozen days. It began with fierce debates—registered freemen and preparatory citizens mostly supported a tax hike, while the vast majority of full citizens opposed it. Soon, many citizens conceded that "as long as it spares us the pain of long-term border garrison duty, paying a bit more tax is worth it." Now, the main point of contention had shifted entirely to exactly how much more they should pay.

Such a rapid change was partly the result of the Intelligence Department aggressively driving the narrative. But the primary reason was that most of these people were the first generation of Daionian Citizens. They had participated in the establishment and rise of the kingdom, using their sweat and spears to foster its growth. At the same time, the long-term influence of Daunian Law and the Temple of Hades had rooted a strong sense of ownership in their hearts. When the kingdom encountered genuine difficulties and asked them to sacrifice a little of their own interests to help, they were ultimately capable of making a reasonable choice.

Inside a roadside tavern, patrons were still arguing intensely. "I hope the direct citizen tax gets set at fifteen percent. The people of traditional Greek city-states like Athens, Corinth, and Thebes pay taxes that high for the public good—some even higher. Since Daionian Citizens claim to be the most patriotic and own vast plots of land, they should accept that rate without complaint."

"Fifteen percent is a bit high. It used to be only one percent, and suddenly jumping to fifteen is too drastic. A lot of people won't be able to stomach it. Seven or eight percent is much more reasonable."

"You guys are so happy to debate the tax issue, but have you considered that if the full citizens face an increase, we'll be slapped with the exact same hike?"

"Of course I've considered it. But I believe that the more taxes we pay, the wealthier the kingdom becomes, which benefits us registered freemen and preparatory citizens even more. Once military expenses are covered, the kingdom can use the surplus to build better public facilities, purchase grain to stabilize food prices, and subsidize hospitals to lower medical fees. We get a lot more out of those things than the full citizens do. After all, they're already wealthy enough not to care."

"Makes sense. I've changed my mind—I support the fifteen percent tax."

...

As the group chatted merrily, they heard the cook call out, "Maximus! You're here!"

"Ah..."

"The usual mug of beer?"

"Right."

The tavern patrons immediately looked over. A busybody promptly asked, "Maximus, how did your job hunt go today?"

"Are you an idiot? Do you even need to ask? Look at him—you can tell it didn't pan out."

Maximus squeezed out a bitter smile and forced himself to explain. "Actually, during the interview, the head of the library was willing to hire me as a scribe. But someone nearby chimed in, and once he found out I was a freed Roman slave, he hesitated. He told me if I came back in a few months after this incident died down, he would definitely hire me."

"Look, Maximus, you can't blame the officials in Thurii for not hiring you. The Romans' conspiracy to rebel isn't over yet. They wanted to assassinate our great King Davos—that's a monumental offense! Thurii City Hall is so close to the Senate and the Royal Palace. What if—and I'm just saying what if—they actually hired you, and you caused some sort of trouble? They would all be implicated. For the sake of safety, of course they don't dare risk employing you. That guy made it sound nice by saying 'in a few months'... Heh, I reckon Thurii City Hall won't dare hire any Romans for another year or two!"

The patron's words made Maximus's expression instantly turn grim.

"Don't talk nonsense," another patron said comfortingly. "Maximus, don't listen to him. Things aren't that serious. Everyone knows King Davos treats all the races in the kingdom equally and would never allow such a thing to happen. This situation is only temporary. You might not even have to wait a few months. Just watch, things will improve very soon, because the new chief administrator of Thurii is about to take office. Manilius Publius is a true Roman. How could he possibly allow City Hall to discriminate against his compatriots like this?"

"You don't understand!" the previous patron retorted. "Publius taking the post of Thurii's administrator is already highly controversial. To avoid suspicion and ensure safety, it's highly likely that he'll place strict controls on the Romans within Thurii City during his early days in office..."

As Maximus listened, his heart grew increasingly uneasy.

While Maximus agonized over his thoughts, another patron sighed. "These damn Romans! Oh, I don't mean you, Maximus... but they caused such a huge mess that security for this year's Greek Scholars Conference is much stricter than in previous years. With our status, trying to freely enter and exit the academy to listen to the scholars' lectures has become a lot harder."

"What's so great about those lectures anyway? We can't even understand them. Instead of sitting there blankly, we might as well use that time to earn some extra money so we can buy a few more rounds of drinks!"

"Exactly! Exactly!"

"You guys just don't get it. I might not understand most of the lectures, but you get to see famous people at the conference who you'd rarely see otherwise. People like Senator Ansitanos, Senator Mathikles... and so on. And, of course, our great King Davos! Many of you have probably never laid eyes on our king in person, but I get to see him every year. If you're lucky, you can even get into the same hall and listen to his speech up close. It is truly..."

The patron wore such a look of rapture that it made the others itch with curiosity. Someone eagerly asked, "Tell us, what does His Majesty talk about at the scholars' conference?"

"Uh... well... His Majesty is a descendant of the God Hades and has received divine revelations. Privately, some scholars even call him the Omniscient One. His speeches are so profound, how could I possibly remember them? All I remember is that before his speech, he very humbly thanked everyone for coming to listen..."

"Isn't that how every speech in our kingdom starts nowadays? How could our great king sound just like everyone else? I think you're just bragging. You've probably never even heard His Majesty speak at all!" a patron challenged. The others booed as well; having been annoyed by the man's smugness earlier, they eagerly took the opportunity to jeer.

The patron grew frantic. "Of course I've heard His Majesty's speech! I'll tell you... I... let me tell you... a very interesting thing happened at this year's Greek Scholars Conference! Not only did the king give a speech, but Prince Apox also took the stage to speak—"

"Prince Apox? I remember he's His Majesty's second son. He shouldn't even be eighteen yet, right?" one patron asked, clearly skeptical.

"That's what you don't know. Although Apox is not yet of age, he is a descendant of Hades, favored by the gods. He has been incredibly brilliant since he was little. Not only did he graduate early from the Thurii School, but word is that the various academies of Theonia Akademia fought fiercely to get him to enroll. They nearly came to blows over it! In the end, Apox became a formal student of both the Academy of Mathematics and the Institute of Literature at the same time. This is something that hasn't happened since the Daonian College was founded!" The patron spoke with his head held high. "He has already been studying at the academy for several years. What's so strange about him being able to give a speech and share his insights at the scholars' conference now?"

"We were just a bit curious... he is quite young, after all..." the patron who had raised the doubts said sheepishly.

Seeing that the other man had yielded, the patron didn't press his advantage and instead showed understanding. "Actually, you aren't the only ones who thought so. A number of scholars at the venue felt the same way. A few people from the Pythagorean School of Taranto even tried to make things difficult for Prince Apox. But let me tell you, despite the prince's young age, his eloquence is razor-sharp! He quickly argued those Tarentines into stunned silence, and in the end, the entire audience cheered for him! You guys didn't see the dejected looks on those Tarentines' faces. It was incredibly satisfying!"