A mage's journey begins with a battle mage.

Chapter 500 The Nobles

"The empire may perish, but it will never change its nature."

This was a promise made by Julius Caesar.

However, he is dead, and the words of a dead man are meaningless.

Words can be misinterpreted, and actions can be corrected.

Over time, the empire began to corrupt, and in the end, the dragon slayer became the dragon itself, and the empire became what it once least wanted to be.

A colossal behemoth that exists through oppression.

Those once noble and virtuous aristocrats have now degenerated into beasts in human clothing; they are corrupt, incompetent, and utterly wicked.

This situation has persisted for thousands of years.

As time passed, the original legend faded away, and a new legend rose.

"Your Majesty, I beg you to rescind your order!"

Yaroslav, Rosemary's fourth son, knelt on one knee and addressed Rosemary.

"What, you're also advocating for those nobles?"

Rosemary said coldly.

Now, Rosemary is quite old, and the wrinkles on her body can no longer be hidden, but after many years in power, her imposing aura is even stronger than before.

At this time, Rosemary was much older and her energy could not compare with that of her youth, but her control over the court had reached its peak.

The imperial guards were all under his control, a completely different situation from before.

Even so, she couldn't completely command her nobles.

Fighting against the nobility in the Empire is as difficult as fighting against mages in the Mage Alliance or against gods in the Saints Alliance; it's almost impossible.

After all, the entire empire's political system was one of shared rule between the emperor and the nobility.

After all, this is a world of extraordinary beings; without sufficient personal strength, one simply cannot assume a leadership role.

"Your Majesty, I was merely speaking from the heart. The nobles have rendered great service, and moreover, they are the cornerstone of the empire. We cannot..."

Yaroslav was about to say something, but Rosemary interrupted him.

"Get out! I have nothing more to say to you!"

With a wave of her hand, Rosemary used her legendary power to throw her son away.

"A bunch of idiots!"

Rosemary roared angrily.

Immediately afterwards, she began to smash and destroy various items inside the palace.

Even her most beloved son couldn't understand her, which caused her great pain.

Immediately afterwards, in a fit of rage, Rosemary coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Looks like I need to speed things up."

She murmured to herself.

Rosemary, because of her illegitimate rise to power, always wanted to prove herself, but she had no opportunity.

Now, the opportunity has come; the Dragon Plague has forced the Empire to unite once again to resist the disaster.

Rosemary, through her popularity and imperial shrewdness, stabilized the empire's political situation once again.

However, everyone knew that this was only temporary, and the empire was still on a downward spiral.

Therefore, Rosemary prepared to implement the new policies again.

The new policy was simple: military merit would be rewarded with titles, and all titles would no longer be hereditary.

Of course, Rosemary didn't target the legendary families; her main targets were the weaker nobles.

These nobles usually act arrogantly and domineeringly, relying on the power granted by the alliance, and are of no use to the empire whatsoever.

Besides exploitation, they know nothing else. They don't learn how to develop the economy or improve people's livelihoods. They spend all their time learning how to squeeze their subjects and collect taxes, and they also evade taxes and avoid paying the empire's taxes every day.

It's a complete negative asset.

However, according to custom, although Rosemary could find a reason to kill the other party, the family's land could not be changed, and someone had to inherit it no matter what.

Rosemary's only option was to appoint a more obedient nobleman and then continue watching as these nobles preyed on the common people.

The difference is whether or not enough taxes have been paid.

Want to take away the territory?

That's impossible.

This situation meant that the empire could only appoint new nobles by expanding its territory, while the old nobles remained completely untouched.

Extremely rigid class divisions are also one of the reasons why empires can decline.

Therefore, Rosemary decided to increase social mobility and revitalize the stagnant empire.

However, it is clear that this policy was resisted by many nobles.

Even those legendary holy families opposed the proposal.

The reason is also very simple.

What business is it of theirs whether the empire lives or dies?

As a legend, he receives courtesy wherever he goes.

Besides, isn't the alliance still in effect?

Although this might lead to the gradual decline and eventual demise of the empire, they didn't care.

As long as my family prospers, that's all that matters.

As for empires, it's good to be alive, but it doesn't matter if you're not.

Their philosophy is that family is more important than country.

Unfortunately, compared to semi-democratic countries like the Mage Alliance, the Ovi Empire is the purest feudal lord system, completely divided from top to bottom.

The emperor of the empire was essentially a larger version of the Zhou emperor. Although the emperor had a stronger army and greater control, this did not mean that he could directly confront all the electors.

But this time was an exception. Rosemary had won over a considerable number of legends within the Senate, legends previously nurtured by the royal family, who were willing to fight for the rise and fall of the empire.

"Our struggle has only just begun."

Rosemary said with a cold laugh.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In Caesars City, at the Carlos family estate.

"Won't anyone else know what we're talking about?"

"I'm extremely nervous," Yaroslav said.

"Relax, Your Highness, no one will know."

Selene Carlos, the head of the Carlos family, personally poured a glass of red wine for Yaroslav.

"Try it. This stuff is made from blood grapes that grow by being watered with the blood of countless young girls. It's a real delicacy."

Selene handed the blood wine to Yaroslav and gestured for him to drink it.

Yaroslav fanned himself with his hand, and sure enough, he smelled a refreshing and exotic fragrance, which felt like savoring a young girl.

"It was delicious."

Yaroslav looked completely blissful after drinking the wine.

"Of course, even that so-called terrifying king probably never tasted such a good thing."

"Sigh, it's really pathetic. We have such a big country, but we never enjoy it. Can you imagine how boring this life is?"

As Selene spoke, she sat down on the sofa. Soon, one after another, beautiful women from different races threw themselves into her arms, and Selene herself looked completely intoxicated.

"Think about it carefully, Prince Yaroslav. If you don't fight for it, someone else will. Why can't that person be you?"

"But I cannot... kill my mother..."

As he spoke, Yaroslav's tone softened.

"Why not? Your mother, the Empress, didn't become Empress only after killing her father and brothers, did she?"

"Why can't this work for you?"

"Imagine becoming emperor, enjoying the feeling of being above all others, ascending to the highest position. How does that sound? Does it tempt you?"

As Yaroslav pondered this, his heart began to race.

"I...I want to be the emperor!"

"Speak louder!"

"I want to be emperor! I desperately want to be!"

"Haha, okay, take it. This is all thanks to your mother."

Selene smiled coldly, and then handed Yaroslav a dagger, the same kind of dagger Rosemary used when she killed her brother.

"Use this dagger to end your mother's rule."

"I will."

Yaroslav smiled, and then he and the women in his arms played happily together.

As for whether these women will leak information?

Don't worry, they'll be "dealt with".