Chapter 2528: Arrival in Seventon

But Niya actually could not fully understand; in her view, lords were naturally superior to their subjects, and Mages were naturally superior to ordinary people, though this only began to change after she came into contact with Xia Duo.

The reason she wanted to promote the Daxia Code throughout Netheril was more because this was what Xia Duo wanted to do, and she knew what Xia Duo wanted, and she also wanted to see what that new world, where everyone could fully develop, would really be like.

But as for why it had to be done this way, she actually did not fully understand yet; she wanted to do it simply because she wanted to, not because of what Xia Duo called "treating every individual equally and respecting their rights."

There is always some gap between ideals and reality, and as his partner, she actually understood that Xia Duo himself might not be able to reach that ideal state, but Xia Duo was consciously and actively working toward it, while she was mostly just following in his footsteps.

Thinking this way, Niya's expression gradually became earnest and even serious; she knew that if she could never figure out why that ideal world had to be achieved, then she and Xia Duo would sooner or later have a falling out in the future.

Thinking of this, she no longer had the heart to consider what new topics to submit to the first meeting of the Seventon Council, but instead stared into Xia Duo's eyes and asked a question very solemnly:

"Why choose this path? Is there really no other way?"

Hearing this question, Xia Duo sighed inwardly; having seen the light, how could one be content with the darkness! Regarding this question, he had actually discussed it with Niya a long time ago.

It was just that his level at that time, and even now, was not enough to answer this question thoroughly, but he still wanted to answer it once more, not only to win over Niya as a fellow traveler but also as a reminder to his own heart.

After thinking for a moment, he told Niya: "Whether there are other paths, there probably are, but I still prefer my current choice. As for the reason, I can explain it from three perspectives.

"In terms of personal selfishness, I do not like the current environment of Netheril and want to change it. This reason is fine for myself, but it is somewhat insufficient to persuade others.

"So I have other perspectives. From the perspective of fairness and justice, if you were an ordinary person, and someone else was a cut above you just because they learned Magic, would you be willing to accept it?

"Or, we are all humans; as a human, would you be willing to accept that an Elf is a cut above us just because they are naturally long-lived?

"Where there is oppression, there is resistance. We cannot ignore the thoughts of the weak, or the fairness, justice, and respect they want to obtain, just because we have become the strong.

"So is it hard to understand choosing a path where everyone is liberated and fully developed? Of course, this reason might persuade you, but it still cannot persuade some people.

"So I have one more perspective, explaining it from the perspective of the development of the era. It's just that I am still trying to understand this aspect myself; if you are willing to listen, then I will tell you."

"I am willing, I am willing." Niya nodded hurriedly.

As Xia Duo said, she could be persuaded from a moral perspective—at least the current her could be persuaded by such a reason—but she could not guarantee how she would feel in the future, so she still wanted to hear Xia Duo's other explanations.

"Before explaining this perspective, let me ask you a question first: do you think the efficiency of slaves working is high?"

"The efficiency of slaves working?" Niya immediately fell into deep thought.

Currently, Daxia Territory did not have any real slaves; even those Mulan people bought from Yimaska in the name of slaves were actually treated as quasi-subjects.

As for Savile Territory, slaves did indeed still exist there. Niya recalled the types of slaves that existed in Savile Territory—Orcs, humans, and the Gnomes who existed in the past and still exist now but are gradually redeeming themselves.

There is no need to mention Orcs; most were captives from the Orc War a few years ago or straggling Orcs caught while clearing the forests. It is very difficult to make Orcs obedient, and they do not work honestly either.

As for humans, most were people who had violated the lord's prohibitions in the past. During the process of popularizing the Daxia Code in Savile Territory, the vast majority of human slaves were liberated, and afterwards, they were sentenced according to the Daxia Code, dealt with as they should be.

Only a very small number of people who committed heinous crimes were not stripped of their slave status; some of them were directly executed according to the new law, and some were sent to the mines to continue doing the work they did before as slaves.

Niya did not know very well what the Orcs were like when they were in their tribes. Their work efficiency was indeed not high after becoming slaves, but without a prior comparison, it was hard to say whether it had increased or decreased.

And for humans, those slaves had not engaged in mining before, so it was also hard to make an intuitive comparison.

Only with Gnomes was the contrast before and after very strong. During their time as slaves, the work efficiency of Gnomes was higher than that of human miners, but since they were all slaves, it could not be much higher just based on racial differences.

The reason Savile Territory used Gnomes to mine in the past was more because Gnomes are long-lived; as slaves and as tools, they were more durable than human miners.

But after the Seventon Council promulgated the decree prohibiting the use of Gnomes as slaves and allowing Gnome slaves to redeem themselves, Savile Territory was unable to refuse, and with Xia Duo's support, it implemented this decree.

Then a drastic change occurred. At first, those Gnomes did not believe in the existence of this decree, but when the first Gnome successfully redeemed himself and received the travel expenses gifted by Savile Territory, all the Gnome slaves went crazy.

The monthly mining output more than doubled compared to the past. If it weren't for Xia Duo requiring a limit on the mining of Iron and silver, the output might have been even higher.

Thinking of this, Niya seemed to have the answer: "If you don't consider the cost, the efficiency of not using slaves is indeed higher."

"It is good that you can think of cost, but the gains brought by efficiency can completely cover this part of the cost, so I believe that even without the law promulgated by the Seventon Council, with the development of the era, all places will eventually gradually abandon the use of slaves."

Seeing Niya reveal a thoughtful expression, Xia Duo continued: "If there were only one country or one territory in this world, then whether it uses slaves would not produce obvious, foreseeable consequences.

"But the reality is that there is more than one country in this world, and even within Netheril, there is more than one territory. Slaves have low work efficiency; can it be understood that territories using slaves have low efficiency in producing various resources and commodities?"

"Yes." Niya nodded.

"This is just producing resources and commodities. What if a war occurs? Can it be understood that a lord who treats their subjects from the perspective of slaves is more likely to lose the war because the slaves' will to fight is not strong?"

"It can, but this world has Magic. What if the lord who uses slaves is a Great Arcanist, while the opposing lord who does not use slaves hasn't even crossed the threshold of Spellcasting?" Niya also put forward her point of view.

Hearing this, Xia Duo couldn't help but shake his head: "You are quibbling. When we conduct a thought experiment to demonstrate the pros and cons of slavery, we naturally have to smooth out other factors as much as possible. The enemy of a Great Arcanist must, of course, also be a Great Arcanist."

"Fine, then I have another question. Even if slaves are not proactive, and normal subjects are proactive, it is still hard to affect a battle between Great Arcanists, right?" Niya continued to argue.

"Why not? Since it is a thought experiment, then anything feasible can serve as evidence. Let me describe a scenario: both sides' subjects each hold a large number of 0 Ring directional Spell Scrolls that can be universally activated. Who do you say will win?"

"Of course it depends on the timing of both sides using the Spell Scrolls! How can you generalize!" Niya said without hesitation.

"Think about it again!"

"Thinking about it again, it's still the same."

"Sigh. Did you forget what I just said? Where there is oppression, there is resistance. Once you let slaves master the weapons that determine the fate of their slave owners, do you still expect them to be willing to continue being slaves?"

"This—"

Niya was suddenly speechless.