PS: A new month has begun-please spare me a monthly vote!
For ancient dynasties, especially traditional feudal kingdoms like Cormyr, persuading the great nobles to part with large sums of hard cash for a cause had always been one of a king's greatest headaches.
The great nobles were unlikely to openly defy the king's orders, but they could certainly stop him from getting anything done!
The same went for bureaucrats.
The bureaucracy worked the same way. Unless the officials appointed by the king intended to simply coast along, they generally had only two things on their minds.
First, how could they achieve something that would catch the king's or their noble superior's attention and earn them a promotion?
Second, how could they break the rules without technically violating them, turning the king's or nobles' property into their own?
This was perfectly normal. The Emperor had repeatedly impressed this upon the Adeptus Custodes Ra-Endymion: selfishness was human nature. Even the Emperor himself was no exception, let alone other humans. Tens of thousands of years spent observing life on Earth had allowed him to see human nature clearly. Though an exceedingly, exceedingly small number of pioneers displayed noble and selfless virtues, most still preferred to leave their influence and wealth to their descendants.
Besides, in a fantasy world, strength reigned supreme.
So how could the nobles be made to pull in the same direction?
Simple: expansion.
This was Aaron's plan as well. He intended to spend a year recuperating and rebuilding. Then, after the autumn harvest, the armies of the Sunset Lands, including the Ninth Shepherd Legion, would formally begin their advance into Hulek Forest. Following in Azoun IV's footsteps, the armies of the Purple Dragon Kingdom would conquer this land once more.
Beyond Hulek Forest, Aaron also planned to continue advancing