The Illusion Brought by an Immature Council

After Blade Tusk's motion was passed, the Witch Doctors, seeing that the council was beginning to get on the right track and wishing to highlight the council chairman's unique status, immediately cast spells to renovate the council hall amid the envious gazes of the other Trolls.

The new council hall was fairly large. Overall, it still revolved around the central podium, arranged in tiers that rose on the outside and dipped toward the center.

But in terms of orderliness, it had undergone major changes;

First, the innermost tier on the left was reserved for the formal Witch Doctors. At present, fewer than ten of them sat there, scattered sparsely about;

Above them were seats for more than thirty apprentice Witch Doctors, seated in twos and threes;

Next came the right side. Its innermost tier was temporarily empty, while above it sat the government executors led by the Chief Executive;

The tiers directly facing the podium were assigned to over forty "apprentice councilors," selected from among the literate Trolls.

In addition, high behind the central podium, a single solitary seat had been set apart. From this day onward, it would be the seat of the "Rune Council Chairman."

Once the renovations were complete and everyone had taken their seats, the council convened once more.

Following the newly established rules, Blade Tusk struck the gavel from the chairman's seat to signal the start of proceedings and asked whether there were any new motions.

Witch Doctor Sharp Tusk raised his hand. After receiving the chairman's permission, he stepped onto the central podium and presented his motion.

Its content was precisely the policy they had previously intended to push through without going through the council: "Encouraging marriage by allocating homes."

Next came the first round of statements.

First, Witch Doctor Sharp Tusk and those who supported him spoke in an orderly fashion under the chairman's moderation;

Afterward, opponents such as Witch Doctor Rough Tusk also laid out their respective reasons for opposition.

Then came the second round of statements, in which supporters from both sides supplemented their arguments and refuted the opposition's remarks.

After that came the third and final round of statements. Both sides would offer their final explanations and additions in response to the opposition's rebuttals from the previous round.

Once all three rounds of debate had concluded, the motion entered the formal voting process.

Previously, though each of the two opposing views had its supporters, when it came to the final vote, the only ones who truly held decision-making power were the fewer than ten formal Witch Doctors.

The other apprentice Witch Doctors, government officials, and literate Trolls attending the meeting possessed only the "right to advise" and the "right to speak";

Whatever views they held, they could only express them during the preceding three rounds of "statements."

Thus, for those who were not formal Witch Doctors, the process was more like a form of learning.

Of course, if their speeches truly had substance and moved several neutral Witch Doctors, turning them into supporters of their own views, that would also indirectly determine the direction of the policy.

At present, apart from Blade Tusk, the tribe had eight formal Witch Doctors.

At the outset, each side of this motion had only two votes, while the remaining four belonged to the neutral camp.

This camp division was only temporary and applied to individual cases. Depending on the issue under discussion, the camps had already reorganized themselves many times before.

However, although Witch Doctors Sharp Tusk and Rough Tusk were not on bad terms in private, their opinions in the council were always diametrically opposed.

Blade Tusk struck the gavel. After sweeping his gaze over the Trolls before him, he finally fixed it upon the eight Witch Doctors in the innermost tier.

"Witch Doctors, the final vote is about to begin. Since the people have entrusted this sacred power to the Rune Council, please cast your votes with the public good at heart."

"Now, those in favor, raise your left hands. Those opposed, raise your right hands."

With that, the gavel came down once more, signaling that the Witch Doctors could vote.

The eight Witch Doctors raised their hands, some resolutely, others hesitantly;

Meiya especially had no idea which side Blade Tusk supported. Only after repeatedly seeking his help with her eyes and receiving nothing did she slowly raise her left hand.

Only after seeing that all the Witch Doctors had voted did Blade Tusk raise his own vote—his left hand.

"Seven votes in favor, two against. Therefore, I declare the motion passed."

"Chief Executive, a temporary committee will be established here specifically to handle this matter. Please organize members to join as soon as possible. The temporary committee will provide guidance for only 120 days, after which the work will be handed over to your cabinet."

"Understood."

"Apprentice Councilor Wood Tusk, select a group of apprentice councilors to join the temporary committee."

"Alright."

Having received acknowledgements from both sides, Blade Tusk turned toward the Witch Doctors and asked whether there were any new motions. After receiving a negative answer, he declared the meeting adjourned.

As for the formation of the temporary committee, it would be handled later during a closed-door meeting of the formal Witch Doctors.

After wrapping up this series of affairs, Blade Tusk felt quite accomplished. He even vaguely felt that it was "pretty interesting" and "pretty simple."

In the still-primitive Troll tribe, that feeling was not actually wrong—but only for the time being.

Without having deeply understood the many flaws of modern parliaments, Blade Tusk, brimming with confidence, wrapped an arm around his wife, who was still sulking. His mind was filled with the imminent housewarming battle in their new home.

He retrieved the new house, chose a location and planted it there, then spent nearly the entire night "coaxing" Meiya into forgiving him.

At seven in the morning, Blade Tusk woke a full four lamp-hours later than when he slept alone. He lay on the vine bed with empty eyes, staring at the blue sky and white clouds above, deeply reflecting on the degradation of indulging in marital pleasures for several days straight.

A soft moan sounded beside his ear. A long leg draped over his waist, while a finger traced absent circles over his chest.

The scent of that tender haven intoxicated him once again.

It was not until 2 p.m. that Blade Tusk fled the bedroom as though escaping, slipping into the new meditation room.

Several days of "busyness" had temporarily come to an end, and he had more or less figured out the patterns behind the side effects of the "Oath."

Calling them "side effects," though, there was actually nothing particularly bad about them upon closer thought.

First, whenever the two parties to the oath were together, they would feel pleasure in both body and mind;

Second—and this was the slightly troublesome part—their desire for each other would be amplified by a whole step, though it was by no means endless or enough to affect their reason.

Now, it was time to resume his research into "energy levels," which had been repeatedly interrupted by unexpected events. Having learned his lesson from the last time he fell unconscious, Blade Tusk decided to make more cautious use of deep meditation.

However, after realizing how widespread "energy conversion" was within cells, he had become much bolder in controlling that aspect.

At the very center of his chest, he marked out a diamond roughly three centimeters on each side, dedicating it specifically to "electron fluctuations."

As the "fluctuations" repeatedly cycled under his control, the diamond began to emit a faint purple glow, mysterious and beautiful.

Time continued to pass. Six or seven lamp-hours later, the afternoon sun shone through one of the meditation room's windows in a straight pillar of light. By sheer coincidence, it fell upon Blade Tusk, striking right at his chest.

In an instant, it was as though waves of thunder boomed through his sea of consciousness, while the "activity" in his chest grew ever more impassioned.

Amid a series of crackles, several fleeting arcs of light burst from the dusky purple region before vanishing.

The change looked fierce, but in the end, only a few atoms had become "baldies" stripped of their electron shells.

To his body as a whole, this "damage" could not even be meaningfully perceived.

Thus, Blade Tusk did not stop meditating. Instead, he observed even more closely.

The council's various procedures are rather immature, because the protagonist does not know much to begin with. They will gradually improve in the future.

But the council's discussion process probably will not be described in such detail again.

Also, why does it feel like I just can't get things going? Have I written too much about all the little corners and edges?

Thinking.

Please vote, please keep reading. There will be two updates steadily.

By the way, is 4,000+ words across two updates suitable for a new book? Is that too much or too little?