Chapter 2451: Backward Systems and the Trend of the Times

"Rather than waiting until the Seven Towers expands to a point where it is unbearable for everyone, it is better to proactively change it while it is still possible to do so! Perhaps this could avoid unnecessary wars in the future."

Although according to the provisions of the Seville Covenant, local lords possess a high degree of autonomy, just as Xia Duo said, the Seville Covenant lags behind development, and there is too much within it that can be exploited.

To give the simplest example—commercial tax.

In the past, Netheril's commerce was actually not well-developed; at least to Xia Duo, who came from a modern society, the commercial atmosphere of Netheril was simply terrifyingly dull.

Therefore, things like commercial tax were actually negotiated independently by chambers of commerce or merchants with the territories involved in the trade. For example, the Savile Territory would collect a fixed amount, and then re-evaluate it every so often.

The Commercial Director of the Savile Territory, besides managing the territory's chamber of commerce, had the most important task of evaluating the business operations of other chambers of commerce to serve as a reference for tax collection.

However—

The problem arises: when commerce is not developed, having each place handle it themselves might be fine, but as the era develops and commerce flourishes, having each place levy taxes independently becomes very troublesome, and it is a severe hindrance to the development of commerce itself.

The development of commerce is essentially the circulation of resources; it establishes a market, enabling a significant increase in production efficiency across various regions. For example, if a certain place lacks a certain resource, through commercial activity, the automatic circulation of resources can be guided.

The larger the market, the easier the circulation of resources.

Consequently, the practice of each place setting its own rules becomes somewhat out of step with the times; a more widely applicable rule within a larger scope is needed. In this situation, the formulation of rules would, to a large extent, be influenced or even controlled by the Seven Towers.

In such a situation, as long as the rules are even slightly biased toward the Seven Towers, it will form a massive siphon effect over the long term, making the Seven Towers' influence stronger while other regions become weaker.

The so-called economic base determines the superstructure. How the Seven Towers and the Seven Cities Council will arrange things at that time, Xia Duo does not know, but even in a world of Magic, the amount of resources one controls largely determines the war potential of a faction.

The most extreme example: one side can only use Mages to fight in person, while the other side is covered in Artifacts; the strength of the two sides is not even on the same level.

The above is only analyzed from the perspective of commercial development; furthermore, there is the military aspect. In the past, the Seville Covenant did not stipulate anything like a standing army.

To wage war externally, it could only be temporarily convened by the Seven Cities Council, with local lords responding on an ad-hoc basis. For instance, the Drow War a few years ago—to support Dan Zuo in resisting the Drow invasion, Netheril initiated a mobilization within the country.

But the mobilization at that time was more about enticement and intimidation; in layman's terms, it meant giving more money and using the threat of the Drow potentially rushing to the Surface to pressure them.

Generally speaking, in the current era, such a mobilization mechanism was sufficient.

But the development and changes of the era are very fast. Nowadays, the various countries of the Northland Alliance have already begun centralization reforms, while Netheril still maintains a feudal state in various regions.

It might not be very obvious now, but in just a few more years, the war mobilization capabilities of the two sides will not be on the same level at all.

And the Netherese are not fools, especially those in power; they will certainly find ways to keep up. At that time, it is highly likely that a standing army that can be deployed at any time will be formed and maintained, along with a perfected mobilization mechanism.

It is conceivable that if executive power continues to be controlled by the Seven Towers, this standing army will most likely be controlled by the Seven Towers. If there is internal strife in Netheril, who knows if this standing army will turn its blades inward?

Besides commerce and military, there are areas in every other aspect that the past Seville Covenant did not cover. Regarding the means of turning public assets into private ones, although Xia Duo has not operated much of it in practice, he has seen plenty.

When all is said and done, the current feudal system is too backward and finds it hard to keep up with the development of the era.

Of course, in this current world of Magic, it does have a certain significance for existing.

Xia Duo and Yinaole discussed for a long time, mainly analyzing how the controllers of power use the lag of the Seville Covenant to seek profit for themselves and turn public assets into private ones, finally reaching a conclusion—

Only by ensuring that the controllers of power are not monopolized by a specific group can these chaotic futures be changed.

In other words, the executive status of the Seven Towers might have its rationality in terms of historical origins, but for the long-term development of Netheril, please let them give it up!

"And now is the best opportunity to revise the Seville Covenant. The return of the descendants of the sages who pioneered the Other Plane—this is the righteous cause; the local lords and Great Arcanists wanting to gain a higher voice—this is the will of the people; the Seven Towers has not yet formed an absolute monopoly in a factual sense, and others still have the opportunity to resist—this is the power!"

After Xia Duo finished speaking, Yinaole could not help but be moved, but he still cautiously asked: "If the Seven Towers insists on not agreeing? Are we going to start a civil war?"

"There will be no war. It has not reached the worst point yet. Although the Seven Towers has gained many benefits through the executive status stipulated by the Covenant, it has not yet reached a point where it is difficult to part with.

"To a certain extent, controlling Netheril has even delayed their own development speed. It can be said that now is the best opportunity to revise the Seville Covenant; if we miss this, it will be hard to have such an opportunity again in the future."

What Xia Duo is actually saying is that the development of Daxia Territory will soon have a huge impact on the overall development of Netheril, at which point the Seven Towers will realize the importance of their special status.

Power is sticky, especially when this power can also bring actual benefits; the further it goes, the more they will resist handing it over.

But right now, with the righteous cause, the will of the people, and actual usable power, even if the Seven Towers opposes it, it is useless. The result of a civil war might be a direct loss before it even begins; the Seven Towers is not that stupid.

And most crucially, once a civil war occurs, regardless of whether the Seven Towers wins or loses in the end, it will cause a huge shock to the Netherese order based on the Seville Covenant.

This basic foundation of Netheril is not only Xia Duo's, but also every other Netherese lord's and Netherese Mage's. If at all possible, they would prefer to maintain it rather than destroy it.

The only chance for the Seven Towers is to break the pot and smash it, using the threat of breaking the order to force others to make concessions. But the Seven Towers is not an individual that can completely decide for itself; the approach of a few despots wanting to hijack everyone is destined not to succeed.

This is also where Xia Duo's confidence in this event lies; the trend of the times is vast and mighty—those who follow it prosper, those who resist it perish.

If we miss this time, I estimate there won't be such an opportunity in the future, unless Daxia Territory becomes strong enough to suppress everything. But conquest is not Xia Duo's wish; he prefers to use more positive and progressive ideas to influence others.

As long as the majority of people agree, then even if there are a few despots, they are merely a minor irritation that can be easily eradicated.