Chapter 139: Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (3)

༺ Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (3) ༻

The grandeur of the Imperial Family was unparalleled across the continent.

Even the most revered nobles of the Empire had to lower their heads in the presence of the Emperor. The Lords were just those who had been granted governance over their territories by the Emperor.

This meant that the Emperor could seize all territories at will.

Not merely in name but in actuality.

The Lords could only raise an army at a level that was necessary for maintaining public order. Furthermore, out of the trained soldiers, a third of them had to be incorporated into the central army.

Thus, in some poorer territories, only training camps existed, devoid of a proper army.

Since they lacked the luxury to dispatch their trained soldiers to the central army, they often chose not to complete their training.

Of course, in regions where maintaining public order was impossible, the central army was stationed. However, no Lord welcomed their presence.

That was because the commanders of the dispatched central army held an equal rank as the Lords.

Naturally, they solely followed the Emperor’s orders, thus they weren’t easily swayed by the requests of the Lords.

The foundation of power in any era was authorised violence. One couldn’t be deemed a ruler if they couldn’t freely command an army.

In other words, if a Lord wanted to retain even a modicum of independence, they had to somehow muster a military force.

This was why some Lords resorted to cunning strategies to maintain their troops.

The Imperial Family wasn’t entirely merciless. Depending on the circumstances of the territories, such obvious deceptions were often overlooked.

However, only within certain bounds.

If any action was deemed to threaten the authority of the Imperial Family, retribution was swift and severe.