Chapter 566: Coronation and Claiming Kingship

After Dragon City was taken, Luoning did not pay deep attention to the subsequent matter of seizing the remaining lands of the Telixiya Kingdom.

Now that the threat of the group led by Yan Yi was gone, there were almost no opponents left who could rival Maiken, Peiteluo, and the others.

What's more, Luoning's reputation was currently at its zenith; some nobles of enemy nations, upon learning that the great army was heading toward them, did not even put up a fight and opened their gates to surrender immediately.

The surrendering nobles were dealt with according to the plan previously set by Luoning and Ruidar; those suitable were selected to serve in various Knight Orders, and some who possessed administrative abilities were selected to serve as officials in various regions.

After all, with more territories now, Luoning lacked talent in all aspects.

These people, coming from noble backgrounds, already possessed knowledge and insight that ordinary people could not access, and in non-core positions, they could still play a very good role.

Time passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, it entered the sweltering summer.

The wars on the Orland Continent, whether it was the western front where the Valjisi Duchy was located, or the central-eastern front for which Yiben and Gushan were responsible, had all ended.

Even the Telixiya Kingdom on the front lines was nearing its end.

For the nobles of the Auduin Kingdom, although this war had losses, the spoils of war—money, supplies, and other aspects gained from the conflict—not only well compensated for their losses but also made them suddenly wealthy.

Managing will never be as fast as plundering for growth.

And as the war drew to a close, the next step was the time to carve up the land.

In their view, no matter who the next king was, they, the nobles who had shed sweat and blood for the kingdom, would surely be rewarded; those due for a promotion in rank would be promoted, and those due for land enfeoffment would receive land.

Soon, the time arrived at September 9th, and invited by Luoning, many nobles came to Miwu Castle to attend the founding ceremony of the Star Kingdom.

Although the time was short, with the willingness to invest money and manpower, Miwu Castle had undergone some changes.

Especially that huge dragon porcelain statue in the center of the square added a sense of high-class quality to Miwu Castle and also elevated the porcelain technology of Wubei Territory to a new level.

The vast hall was now filled with gorgeously dressed nobles. Facing Luoning on the ceremonial platform directly ahead, they appeared very cautious.

If it were just simply becoming a king, it would not have come to this; the key was that this young king had reached an unfathomable realm.

The sight of the ruins of the Dragon City palace left an indelible mark in the minds of this group of nobles.

Under the hosting of Minister of Rites Landeer, the coronation ceremony proceeded unhurriedly according to the planned process.

Landeer loudly extolled Luoning's achievements in the war of conquering enemy nations, writing at great length about the intensity of the final battle.

Following the impassioned declaration, "We invite the Conqueror Duke, His Majesty Luoning, the first king of the Star Kingdom, to enter," thunderous applause, unprecedented in the hall, erupted.

Waiting in the side hall for the ceremony to begin, Luoning stood up, and beside him, Princess Blanche held her son's hand, cheering him on.

He smiled slightly; such an occasion made him somewhat excited, as the dream of becoming a king and hegemon was finally about to be realized.

However, his mental fortitude was now extremely strong, and even though he was excited, he would not suffer from stage fright in the slightest.

Amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, Luoning walked slowly into the hall and arrived upon the ceremonial platform.

"Thank you all for traveling from afar to attend my founding ceremony."

Luoning bowed slightly, without any excessive speech; as he spoke, Landeer, standing to one side, carried a gorgeous wooden box to his side.

Inside the box was the crown crafted by Suofeiya and Ximeng using gold, Mithril, and magic materials, with faint radiance flowing over it at all times.

When discussing the ceremony of wearing the crown, they had had a debate.

Most people believed that it was necessary for the bloodline of Auduin to place the crown on Luoning, meaning Princess Xuelun or Princess Blanche should do this.

In the end, Luoning made the final decision: he would crown himself.

He reached out his hand to pick up the crown, looked at the nobles, and then slowly raised his hand to place the crown upon his own head.

"The Star Kingdom is established!"

"I am also here, crowned as King!"

Instantly, all the nobles in the hall stood up and applauded excitedly.

As Lulansi, who had witnessed Luoning's growth all along, his eyes were full of gratification, while Luoning's subordinates all revealed looks of worship.

The applause lasted for Along time before gradually subsiding.

And next was the segment for the subordinates to swear allegiance.

This segment was led by Ruidar, and Aierlong, Maiken, Suofeiya, Kalada, and even Kaierluosi, who had turned into a mini-dragon, were all present.

Besides these people, there were also Wilson, Chahaer, and Luogena, Lisi, Yousefu, and others who had sworn allegiance to him earlier.

Landeer loudly called out the names of these people, while also specifically reading out their strength.

Legendary Knight, Legendary Dragon, Blazing Sun Knight, Archmage...

These people and Magic Beasts deliberately exuded their auras, making all the nobles in the hall incredibly shocked and incredibly panicked.

They knew Luoning was strong, but they hadn't expected Luoning's subordinates to be this powerful as well.

In fact, this was the effect Luoning wanted.

After the kingdom was established, it was also time for Luoning's rewards.

He turned and sat on the throne, beginning to explain his ennoblement plan.

Ruidar was enfeoffed as Flame Duke, with one hundred thousand mu of arable land, serving as Governor of Dragon City and Commander-in-Chief of the Star Kingdom's three armies;

Aierlong was enfeoffed as Light Earl, with ten thousand mu of arable land, serving as Governor of Wubei City and President of the Star Kingdom's Magic Research Association;

Maiken was enfeoffed as Guardian Earl, with ten thousand mu of arable land, serving as Governor of Oslo, the capital of the former Vila Principality;

Suofeiya was enfeoffed as New Moon Earl, serving as Governor of Moonlight City and Vice President of the Star Kingdom's Magic Research Association;

Kalada was enfeoffed as Viscount, with over ten thousand mu of arable land, serving as Governor of Screaming Island and Commander of the Star Kingdom's Navy;

Subsequently, others were basically all Barons, with some serving as Ministers of Administration, some as Ministers of the Transportation Department, and so on.

Listening to these letters of appointment, Yiben and the others keenly sensed that Luoning had changed the previous form of nobility.

Simply put, previous nobles all had fiefs; for example, Luoning was initially the Mountain Baron, and Shanlin Town was his territory.

But at this founding ceremony, none of the nobles Luoning enfeoffed were actual lords of a territory.

Even though Flame Duke Ruidar possessed one hundred thousand mu of arable land, this was only arable land and did not involve other resources such as mountains, forests, rivers, or mineral deposits.

Yiben could not help but grip the joint letter in his pocket; if they also swore allegiance to Luoning and pushed for him to become the master of the continent, would their noble rights also be re-planned?

Wouldn't this be a disguised weakening of their power?

But if they do not submit to Luoning, what will the outcome be in the future?

After Yiben watched Ruidar and the others all accept such conferment and swear their allegiance, his mood became conflicted; he also did not know whether this joint letter should be handed over or not.

Luoning thought more simply, which was that his Kingdom needed to implement new things, and redrawing the powers of the nobility was one of them.

There might be people discussing this new method in private, but since Ruidar, Maiken, and the others had no objections, the others would not stir up any trouble.

Subsequently, under the witness of many nobles, he threw out the idea of establishing new departments outside of the Six Ministries, such as the Supervisory Department, the Transportation Department, the Education Department, and the Court.

In addition, he also announced the abolition of the Slave system within the Star Kingdom, as well as many policies to ensure that the basic needs and rights of the lower-class populace would not be infringed upon, allowing this new nation to begin operating according to the blueprint he designed.

Although there would certainly be difficulties and resistance encountered in the process, as long as the upper levels remained stable and the lower levels could maintain order, there would basically be no problems.

It has changed; everything has changed; it is no longer the Kingdom system that Yiben and the others were familiar with.

"His Majesty Luoning!"

When the ceremony was nearing its end, Yiben finally could not help but stand up; after all, he was the leader of the joint letter, and at this moment, he also needed to come out to ask about the affairs of the Auduin Kingdom.

"According to the plan decided upon at the noble assembly in the Golden Feather Palace more than two years ago, when we destroyed the Telixiya Kingdom, it was time to discuss the issue of who would inherit the Auduin throne."

Yiben paused for a moment and asked: "I wonder what your plans are next?" (End of this chapter)