The noble houses and feudal lords represented by the Executive Council, the divine authority represented by the Temple, and the royal authority of the royal clan formed a balance upon this land, jointly wielding power. Though they struggled against one another, peace prevailed on the surface.
People called it the "Republican Era," but this was undoubtedly a fragile peace. That fragile balance was especially evident in the royal capital—
After more than three months of travel, Ni Lue finally returned to the royal capital. He had set out alone from Rainfall City, carrying one sword and one shield as he embarked upon the journey home.
This was also a tradition among the martial merit nobles of Great Fall.
Just as Great Fall's ruling class was divided into three factions, the nobility, seemingly unified, was in fact divided as well. The simplest division was into Dragon-Following nobles, civil-bestowed nobles, and martial merit nobles.
The Dragon-Following nobles revealed their nature in their very name. They had marched alongside Great Fall's founding ancestor when he raised his forces, earning the merit of following the dragon. A great many of them had been mine slaves together with Great Fall's founding ancestor, Bian Shu, in that mine.
In the end, the founding ancestor achieved his great undertaking. Those mine slaves had suffered heavy losses, but the survivors, along with the descendants of the wounded and dead, were treated generously by the ancestor. They were granted fiefs and became the earliest nobles—this was the Dragon-Following faction. Those original nobles possessed the greatest power. Even after several generations of Great Fall kings had suppressed and divided them, they still retained considerable strength. In theory, they could even raise armies, appoint officials, and levy taxes within their own fiefs.
However, over these three hundred years, several invasions by