The Transport of Interests, a Cruel Proposal
The emergence of law needed an entry point, and that opportunity was the war against the Rune Jinn.
The monarch awakened the legendary Holy Knights, and morale throughout the empire soared. But rising morale could not make the situation any easier. More and more Rune Jinn appeared, and the pressure on the Northlands grew by the day.
The monarch needed more armies, stronger warriors.
And so, law followed as a matter of course.
Gathering armies required capable command, required all the forces from every count's city to be twisted into one rope. And once armies were brought together, the first thing to eliminate was the soldiers' loyalty to their former commanders, so that they would obey only the orders of the people appointed by the monarch.
That was not the most important part. The key lay in all the logistical forces behind this war—the supplies and resources transferred from each count's city, which required large numbers of people to supervise and transport them.
This step was where law was needed most.
Hildegard did not, as Ryan had imagined, directly extend law across the entire empire. Instead, through control over wartime logistics, she first made law cover everyone along that logistical line.
"Within ten days, this batch of grain must be transported to Barnes's count city in the north. For every day past the deadline, ten lashes!"
"The loss of stone materials must not exceed fifteen percent. For every additional one percent, the accompanying baron noble will pay a penalty of three hundred Gold Coins."
"Iron—"
Every mission bore traces of law. Most nobles merely thought this was the monarch placing importance on the war in the north.
However, many of the missions were extremely difficult behind the scenes, and that caused many logistical