A single stone stirred up a thousand waves—this was probably exactly what the Arcane Tower Federation's newly issued decree meant.
Any literate commoner who had lived in one place for more than ten years could go to the government hall and register a surname.
The moment this decree was issued, the entire Federation erupted in uproar.
Unlike the Northwest Republic, the Merchant Faction of the Gold Coin Federation, or the Daka Trade Alliance, the Arcane Tower Federation was a nation with a great many nobles. Though it was known as the Mage Nation, it was essentially ruled by a number of lords; it was simply that most of those lords were mages.
In the Arcane Tower Federation, nobles held very high status as well—at the very least, far higher than commoners.
In fact, because they controlled vast resources, most mid- and high-tier mages now came from noble families. Outstanding mages born to purely commoner families had become fewer and fewer. In other words, the Arcane Tower Federation had more or less transformed from a nation of mages into a nation of noble mages.
And nobles cared deeply about honor. This new decree harmed their honor, so naturally they opposed it fiercely.
But... the legendary mages' stance was extremely firm.
No opposition was permitted!
Judgment mages from the Supreme Tower traveled throughout the land. The moment anyone opposed the decree, they were executed at once, without even being given a chance to appeal.
In a mere five days, they executed nearly two hundred nobles in one sweep, including two esteemed counts!
As for the soldiers, knights, and others killed for resisting, their numbers were even greater. In the worst incident, the judgment mages killed over a hundred people in one go, their blood nearly gathering into a small river.
With such