"Your Majesty! Thousands of Displaced are heaving towards the Capital, and many more have also arrived!"
As the guard relayed all that was reported to him, he felt the temperature in the room reach freezing point.
Help… so scary. He felt his bones chill underneath his flesh the longer his voice trailed off into a childish winter.
Altec's expression was hard to fathom. Everyone knew what such news meant. For a moment, there was chaos brooding in their hearts. They dared not look at Altec directly.
"Your Majesty, thi-this is not good!"
"Yes, yes… History has taught us that a single grain of rice can topple an entire bowl. Your Majesty, it's too dangerous to have these Displaced move to the Capital."
Well, everyone looked 200 years old and withered the longer they accessed the gravity of the situation. From the dawn of time, conflicts have always risen from a singular act of just a few or one.
They say when 2 or more are gathered, evil temptations are often lurking about.
As the many officials panicked, Julius's eyes flicked with a mischievous light.
Back in his former word, the people they called the Displaced, would more or less be called Refugees of War or disaster. Of people, these Displaced people were still citizens of the Etratis Empire.
One should never forget that not too long ago, there was a great flood in one corner of the Empire that left hundreds and hundreds of villagers, towns and cities destroyed and displaced… Many also died too.
At the same time in another corner, there was severe drought with no water causing the people to look skeletal, bony and sunken. .their crops bore no yield, and they soon turned to savagery under separation, hunger and thirst… And during the time of separation, what do most people do?
They head towards the place many have always believed to be the Promised land… a place filled with food, water, and more importantly, the Royal family who can aid them. They had faith in their Monarch, believing he would never let them down!
So imagine how shattered they would be if they come and don't get the help they desire?
!!!!!!
It's not that Altec wanted to be cruel, but the number of people that was estimated to arrive over the next 4 weeks, was too plentiful to feed in the long run.
Doing so meant opening up the Royal Treasury… a treasury that didn't have a whole lot in the first place. Money was always used because Etratis was a place filled with natural disasters occurring every now and then.
Every time this happens, they will take money out to appease the Displaced and those who were affected. But… never in the history of Etratis, has 2 Major Natural disasters occurred at the same time!!!
To make matters worse, these natural disasters made the disasters in the past look like child's play.
The number of estimated Displaced reported back was so high it almost sent Altec into cardiac arrest.
'The war against the Arkmideans took a toll financially on the Empire… and now, this?' Altec clenched his fists so hard, teardrops of blood began dripping from his palms. 'Is my Etratis Empire destined to be on the doors of defeat no matter how hard I try?'
Altec wouldn't consider himself to be the greatest Monarch of all, but it would be a lie to say he wasn't among the top 3.
In his reign, despite the national disasters and turbulence, the people felt more fairness than in the many previous eras.
Altec tried his best to be a fair and just emperor to his people. Still, there's always a lot he couldn't shake off because of the Aristocratic families and the many hidden strong men holding on to power.
.
This was bad!!!
Altec knew that if the displaced were not satisfied, an uprising might occur.
The enemy can use this to flip the script, making him look like a cruel emperor who doesn't care about his people. And with the hundreds and thousands of people gathered, the enemy would have already gotten an army for themselves just like that.
… The Art of War was a menacing and cunning play that could leave him sitting on the throne for ages, or… getting beheaded before the same people he swore to protect.
Altec scanned his eyes through the masses, seeing that a majority of people lowered their heads avoiding his gaze.
'What a bunch of two-faced ingrates!' Altec sneered. They wanted a solution to the problem, but no one wanted to contribute their private and personal wealth to assist in solving the matter.
He can't recall how many times he has dipped his hands into his own personal wealth to help solve state issues. Yet everyone acts as though deaf whenever it's time to contribute. If it was in the past, Altec might have let them go, but not this time.
"Ministers Clayton, Hoggard, Gin…" Altec began calling out several Ministers who contributed time and time again in the past.
"Except for these Ministers, the rest of you will have 8-months of suspended pay to make up for the matter!"
WHAT?
Some people's eyeballs almost jumped out of their sockets.
It's true that many of them have boarded money and have their own illegal dealings and legal businesses of their own that generate them income…. But do you also know that as a Minister of the Court, their salaries were one of the highest in the empire?
Even if they made money on their personal businesses, why would they want to lose this fat chunk of wealth they receive from the Place monthly?
Several people thinned their lips and wished to protest, but knew there was nothing they could do on this matter.
That's it… it seems they must ALL appease these Displaced bastards.
Hmph! Altec scoffed arrogantly when scabbing through the unwilling crowd. But then, his gaze paused on his unruly son who was now smiling with an expression Altec knew too well.
'This brat…' Altec felt his body jerk unnaturally with hope. "He… he has a solution, doesn't he?'