章節 485: More Control
"Is this about the Divination Department?" asked Luna. "You should know things are beyond my ability."
"No," Edward shook his head. "I wouldn't blame you for something like that."
"Oh, then, what did you want?"
Edward paused, his hesitation obvious from his facial expression. Luna looked at him weirdly, "Are you going to ask me to do something morally outrageous again?"
Edward's mouth almost twitched, "It's not as bad as you make it sound."
"What is it this time?" she asked with an exasperated sigh.
"I just had an idea on how to boost the strength of the Divination Department."
"And that would be?"
Edward no longer hesitated and replied, "Take countless variants of yourself from the Multiverse, purify their Seer Bloodline before connecting their minds together, forming an amplifier–allowing them their ability to reach new heights."
"You want to use my variants from the multiverse as some sort of battery or Divination Artifact?"
"When you put it that way, it sounds worse than it sounds."
"And how exactly do you think that sounds?"
"We can erase their memories so they don't feel any pain."
Luna's bloodline was special, making it impossible to clone her. And even the successful clones lost her Seer Abilities, so this plan has to use different versions of herself from the Multiverse.
"That sounds even worse," argued Luna. "They would be nothing but objects once you succeed."
"We will be using the versions from the Dark Multiverse, meaning they would all be evil."
"And that won't make the situation any better. Based on what you said about the Dark Multiverse, these people turned evil because of one or two events that went wrong in our timelines.
"In other words, they are the way they are because of fate and circumstances."
Edward groaned a little, "In that case, think of the long term. If you agree to this project, it can increase your chances of reaching Tier 11. You know what is at stake and what is waiting for us in the future."
"Don't try to guilt-trip me. We don't even have a proper method of reaching Tier 11. So, this project will not affect the general situation."
Edward looked her in the eyes for a few seconds before sighing, "Then, what about a compromise? Instead of using your variants, we use Professor Trelawney.
"Although her divination bloodline is nothing compared to yours, we can make up for the gap using numbers. Plus, we don't have to tell her anything."
Luna frowned for a moment, "I'll think about it." Then, she immediately ended the conversation, leaving Edward alone on his throne.
"Morgana, what do you think the consequences would be if I did it behind her back?"
The little elf appeared before him, "She has great control over the Department, so it's very unlikely to hide it from her. And once she finds the truth, well, the best-case scenario is she ignores you for a few years–possibly hundreds of years–and the worst-case scenario is she divorces you."
Edward groaned softly as he muttered, "So severe, huh?"
"Boss, if I may say something."
"Go ahead. You know there is no need for reservation between us."
"Your current reaction is probably the result of your insecurity that the Empire's defense system was so easily breached. In other words, your paranoia makes you subconsciously fear similar things will happen again.
"So, you want to do whatever necessary to ensure it doesn't–even at the cost of your personal relationship."
Edward paused, "You're…probably right."
"I usually am," said Morgana with a smile, trying to lighten the mood. She knew her best was in a delicate state after experiencing the Illusion Formations. So, his paranoia was at an all-time high, fearing the things that happened in the illusion would come true.
"Well, smartass, I'm glad you're here to keep me in check," said Edward as he rolled his eyes. "Let's get back to work. Did you send the invitations?"
"Yes. Everybody is already waiting."
"Did anyone not show up?"
"No, but a few people seemed deep into important research and sent a representative."
"That's fine," nodded Edward. "Let's begin."
Thousands of screens appeared before him, showing him all types of Arcanists: humans, other races, old, young, women, men, and some people who even looked like children for odd reasons.
All the people present were people who had a private Demi-Plane, so their ranks ranged from Tier 4 to Tier 7.
As soon as these people appeared, they saluted the Emperor as a form of politeness. However, after seeing Edward's nonchalant, almost cold response, they knew something must have happened.
"Less than 30 minutes ago, Arcanists Jame Carter and Edward Wentworth III betrayed the Empire and sold their soul to Guzznad. Wentworth almost succeeded in using a Tier 8 Spell, destroying the entire Solar System."
The faces of these Arcanists changed. Their hearts trembled as they realized how close they were to death. Among these people, few people could survive the sudden destruction of the Solar System.
So, the result of such a terrorist act would be catastrophic.
"Your majesty, is this why there was an anomaly of time stopping recently?" asked an Arcanist.
"Yes."
Everyone quieted down, analyzing the ramifications of this event. A few smart people had already guessed the reason for this meeting and were unhappy.
"I made the use of Demi-planes public to give you personal space to do your research. I basically allow each of you to have your own small country where you have absolute power, including military powers in the forms of Golem Legions.
"But what is the result?"
Many people were against such "loose" control of the Demi-planes, and many others were against allowing private use altogether. But Edward proceeded because, in the future, Arcanists will travel to other planes and, eventually, other universes.
So, they need to be a walking civilization to conquer, visit, or explore these places. So, he allowed them to develop to prepare for the future.
"Anyway, private Demi-planes will be more strictly regulated from now, and the threshold for possessing one will be raised. We will place a Dimensional Wall to separate all Demi-planes from the Empire's territory to prevent the previous situation.
"So, be prepared that it will be more difficult for you to enter the territory from your Demiplane."
These Arcanists secretly cursed in their mind. Although the Emperor used sophisticated words like "more strictly regulated," they knew what these words actually meant.
The Intelligence Department will now secretly infiltrate their Demiplanes and monitor them. After all, they need resources for their experiment or raising their legion, so it's easy to infiltrate.
Even the ones who do not allow people in their space and only use Golems did not think they were safe. With the royal family's capabilities, it's not impossible for them to secretly control many of their Golems without anyone else being aware.
Additionally, that Dimensional Wall will also affect them as it will make traveling to Earth more challenging, limiting their connection to other Arcanists. The exchange of ideas and knowledge is the cornerstone of any powerful Arcanist.
So, most of them will have great connections, friends, or acquaintances with people in many fields.
If this decision was made anytime before today, they could protest, even banding together and using public opinion to protest such a decision. However, these cunning Casters knew it was impossible to do so with the betrayal of these two.
If they tried anything now, they would become pawns for the Emperor to display his power and warn others.
"I have said what I needed to," said Edward. "The meeting is finished, and you're dismissed."
He waved his hand to close all these screens, not giving anyone the chance to ask any more questions.
章節 486: Balance
Edward's meeting with the people with private Demi-planes did not spread to the general public. However, it spread amongst other Arcanists–especially the Tower Masters living in Academy City.
Acquiring a tower in that city is one of the highest honors of the Empire. It is a status of strength, power, and acknowledgment of one's achievements.
And after receiving the tower, most people will stay there and do their research. As such, it's not a problem for them to have one or multiple Demi-planes on the towers.
However, there are political implications behind the towers. With all these talented Arcanists in one place, it is easier to monitor and essentially control them.
Many people do not like such a fact. So, many Tower Masters would leave their towers empty and have their research laboratory in their own residence across Earth or other places in the Empire's territory.
The Empire's tolerance for these people is very high. After all, they are still people who follow the rules but do not like to be under strict management or regulations.
However, there is a group of Tower Masters who prefer to use private Demi-planes. These people do not only want privacy but absolute control and power over a domain–hence the Demi-planes.
Based on a Tower Master's choice, they will be placed on a watch list of different levels. The lowest level is those who stay in Academy City; these people are often supporters of the Empire–or at the very least, support order and not abuse their God-like power.
The second level involved those who stayed in the Empire's territory and had deep connections with many of their peers.
Finally, there are the people with private Demi-planes, the group full of ambitious individuals.
After the news spread, many of these Tower Masters in the third level acted. Some returned to Academy City, while a few also gave up their private Demi-plane.
These people were smart and understood the Emperor's tolerance of them had lowered. As the brightest mind of the Empire, their value also corresponds to a dangerous threat.
As such, despite the Emperor's love for talent, he might begin to secretly liquidate them. The Ghost Squad was not a joke. If those lunatics decided to quietly eliminate them, only a few people might survive.
Well, that was the thought of many people prior to recent events. Now, people knew the Empire had a way to stop time for the entire planet. Although they guessed the price for deploying such technology must be enormous, it would not matter to the Emperor if he truly wanted to eliminate them.
So, as an act of precaution and to send a signal of their obedience or change of mind.
After his chat with Luna and Morgana, Edward spent the next few hours checking the media and Skynet to check people's reactions to recent events.
The word "traitor" has become a little sensitive during this war. However, the populace was shocked that someone of that caliber betrayed the Empire and became a terrorist.
Luckily, everything was still under control, and the people did not panic. So, Edward created another clone to work on the Dimensional Wall that separated those people with Demi-planes.
Finally, he decided to take a break by taking a long bath and sleeping. It has been years since he slept–if he did not count fun times with any of his wives. So, he chose to relax for the next few hours until his meeting with the Black Clover Squads.
After arriving at the destination, everyone was already there: the Captains, Asta and Yuno, Queen Lolopechka, representatives from the Eastern Continent, and many other people.
As soon as Edward appeared, everyone was either drinking, eating, or chatting. However, he could sense a weird mood or atmosphere in the venue.
"Sir Wizard King. No, I mean, his majesty, the Arcane Emperor," said one of the Vice-Captains who first saw Edward. Everyone finally noticed him and saluted together.
There was disharmony with all these people talking together because some people called [Wizard King] while others called [Arcane Emperor]. A few people started calling him one name before changing midway.
"Be at ease," said Edward with a smile before heading near a bonfire and sitting on a log. He immediately became the center of attention but did not pay attention to such a thing.
After sitting down, his adopted daughter–Charmy–handed him a large piece of meat, followed by a bowl of pasta and rice.
"Thanks," said Edward as he ate ravenously. Edward ate his food, and Charmy kept giving him until he finished the dessert she gave him. Finally, he glanced at the group.
"You guys have become boring," said Edward, and no one knew how to answer these words–except one.
"Can you blame them?" said Yami, who still had his rugged look while smoking his cigarette. He even ignored his sister, who was secretly kicking him as a warning.
"It's good to see you haven't changed," said Edward.
"That's yet to be determined," replied Yami.
Edward nodded, "I'm sure many of you have questions. I will take this time to answer you."
No one immediately spoke. So, after an awkward silence for a few seconds, they looked at Yami. However, he shrugged his shoulders to indicate not to rely on him.
"I will speak," said Fugeoleon, who walked to the front. "Sir, to be honest, I think the majority of us are lost. What is our purpose in this world? Safety? From our observation, the Aurors, Earth Defense Force, and the Imperial Navy are more than enough to protect not only this planet but the territory of the Empire."
As magic knights, they used to protect their kingdoms. But now, they seem to be useless.
"Maybe research?" continued Fugeoleon. "However, most of us are fighters and not good at research. Furthermore, what we can contribute in general to the technology tree of the Empire is very little.
"So, what is our purpose?"
Edward saw a few people nodding their heads, and he could tell the majority of people present agreed with Fugeleon's words. So, he took a moment to organize his words:
"I brought you all here for many reasons. The majority of you are extremely gifted individuals. And after integrating into the Empire and using its resources, you can become some of the strongest Arcanists alive."
Edward squinted his eyes," The Empire is destined to rule over this universe. Our tentacles will stretch to every corner, and many people–the Gods, to be specific–will not allow such a thing. So, I need as many talented individuals as possible for this grand war that's coming.
"And that's not the only reason I brought you back. To be exact, there are two things that only your team can accomplish."
Everyone focused.
"The first one is the Plane Expedition Legion. The Empire has recently discovered the existence of other planes. You can think of them as places like the Underworld and Elysium from your dimension.
"I will create a legion of people to infiltrate certain planes and slowly rise from the ground up. The members of these regions need to be talented, willing to take risks, and flexible enough to succeed in such a dangerous mission.
"Many of your magic fits the requirement for this legion," explained Edward, who suddenly paused as he took a drink from Charmy and caressed her head.
"And the final purpose I brought you here is to bring balance to the Empire."
"Balance? I don't think anything needs balance," said Fugeleon.
"The Empire is divided into Scholar and Battle Arcanist. Because of my desire for more knowledge, Scholar Arcanists have a higher status, are stronger, and are more valued.
"Meanwhile, Battle Arcanists do the most dangerous jobs, receive less compensation, and have lower political and economic status. Unfortunately, the situation has reached a point where the balance is too one-sided.
"And that's where you come in. I will use you guys to raise the status of Battle Arcanists and reinstate the balance."
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