I will be crowned king

It has to be said that the New Year's Eve party in the 101st year of the Saint's Calendar was a particularly successful one - at least in the eyes of a certain little clerk.

Almost as soon as Lord Anson's speech ended, Alan Dawn, who was sitting down from the stage, found that he was immediately surrounded by at least a dozen members of the Beluga Harbor Council, asking him excitedly about road construction planning. question, and whether the Stormtroopers had a rough plan.

The reason there were only a dozen people was mainly because the petite clerk could only squeeze so many people around him; there were also several layers of heads surrounding them, wanting to bury him alive.

As for Carl Bain who came with him... the chief of staff, who has always been very alert to the "inexplicable enthusiasm" of others, immediately noticed that something was wrong in the atmosphere, but he still could not escape and was beaten around by at least four or five pairs of congressmen. He surrounded him and asked him very patiently whether the Storm Division needed some "extra" help regarding the large project of land reclamation.

The other officers were not spared either. They were all drunk and dizzy, and were surrounded by people asking questions in the center.

Even the naval officers who came with them were not spared: a congressman who spoke with a Clovis accent swore that his grandmother was a branch of the Cecil family and insisted on giving his daughter to William. Colonel Cecil.

William, who couldn't laugh or cry, could only comfort the little girl who was so aggrieved by being "rejected" that she cried, while firmly stating that the other party must have made a mistake - the side branches of his ancestors were all genuine Imperial people, and there could not be a Clovis city. Rural relatives.

As for Thalia...after seeing her and Anson Bach always inseparable, no one dared to take the initiative to try to talk to her.

Facts have proved that Harold was not lying at all. The 500 members of the White Whale Port Assembly did indeed include all the powerful and wealthy people in the entire colony; and this also brought about another problem, that is, their Interests are not entirely aligned.

Even among the farm representatives, who account for half of the group, their demands are not exactly the same: small farms need to maintain stable growth, while large farms are eager to transform, grow crops with higher economic benefits and need better sales channels.

As for the remaining half, it is even more divided - fishermen, small workshop owners, ocean traders, mercenary development groups, mine owners, forestry owners...

From this perspective, Speaker Harold's method of controlling the Parliament is perfect; he first controlled the largest reclamation farm group, attracted the most powerful ocean-going traders in Beluga Port, and then established an alliance with the religious leader Bishop Ripper. After establishing a good relationship...the remaining stinky fish and shrimps that are falling apart cannot have any impact on the parliament's decision-making no matter how many there are.

Of course, even such superb skills could not prevent the colonies from being highly dependent on the native ocean trade - this was the result that the natives expected and deliberately guided.

That is to treat the colony as a cow that can be continuously exploited, and at the same time actively begging the owner to exploit itself.

The first batch of colonists may have really planned to build a new home in the New World; but all subsequent immigrants who had the idea of ​​​​going to the colonies had a simpler purpose than these people, and they really just wanted to make money.

Regardless of timber, minerals, slaves, seafood...if they cannot be replaced by local industrial products and turned into real wealth, allowing them to live in luxury houses and drink coffee with sugar, no matter how many resources they have, they will not be able to survive. It was worthless to the colonists.

As a loyal minister of the royal family, Anson fully agrees with the local approach; but just letting it go and then exploiting it to the fullest is not only inefficient but also risks triggering riots, and it is more likely to be squeezed and then disappear.

Even if it's leeks, it's better to wait until they are growing vigorously and covering the entire field with greenery before harvesting - after all, healthy cows can ensure stable and abundant milk production.

Although he is not the governor of the colony, theoretically he does not have the power or obligation to interfere in the internal affairs of the colony; but since he is a loyal minister of the kingdom, Anson believes that he should have the courage to take on the responsibility - after all, he has the responsibility, so maybe he will.

As long as I perfectly integrate the entire Ice Dragon Fjord colony and tightly hold the army and tax sources, even if the mainland really wants to send a governor to take office in the future, it will be convenient for me to better assist. (Empty) Well!

As a retaliation for Bishop Riper's "defection", the recruitment and training of colonial religious armed forces must naturally be put on the agenda as soon as possible and start to be formed.

Anson, who has two lifetimes of memory, is mentally prepared for how terrifying and uncontrollable an army that is based on doctrines and creeds and organized and trained according to the modern military template can be.

At best, they help maintain the unity of the colony, at worst, they are a group of completely uncontrollable mad dogs - even without any military training, just organizing them is extremely dangerous.

Fortunately, as a sect branch of the Circle of Order, the Universal Sect has a very negative attitude towards the secular world. It is only full of interest and endless imagination in external exploration and hanging of heretics.

Anson still remembers the history textbook of the Royal Military Academy, which describes them like this: An excellent universal religious priest will beat you to pieces with a mace and a shotgun because of your status as a heretic or heretic; But if you decide to follow Universal Sect in the next second, he will spend all his savings to hire the best doctor for you.

This either-or, black-or-white, and extremely tolerant attitude toward believers’ behavior—as long as they don’t apostatize, they can do anything—coupled with the fact that the cost of joining a religion is infinitely close to zero, Wushizong has Nearly immortal vitality.

Since Bishop Ripper used this as a condition to help himself, it means that it is only a matter of time before the religious arms of the Universalist Church appear in the colonies; instead of waiting until it grows to a completely uncontrollable state and then trying to contain it, it becomes an enemy of the zealous followers of the Universalist Church in the entire colony. , it is better to get involved from the beginning and reduce its destructiveness as much as possible.

It's impossible to control them, but at least you can have a rough idea of ​​their strength and divisions, and try to prevent them from becoming your enemies.

And since Bishop Ripper has repeatedly stated that this is only for the purpose of "uniting all believers" and does not really intend to give it combat effectiveness; then Anson will do what he wishes and turn this armed force into a genuine militia group.

………………

"...So, what does this have to do with all believers having to register in church?"

In the dimly lit smoking room, Bishop Ripper asked with a look of confusion and slight disgust.

As the most staunch follower of Universal Religion's teachings - or at least the most steadfast on the surface - Riper has a hard time having any good feelings towards any coercive means. This approach seriously violates the Universal Religion's "non-interference" "the rules.

"I may have misunderstood you. We are not taking any coercive measures. It is just a 'suggestion', not a mandatory requirement for everyone to register their identity as believers."

Anson, who was holding the pipe in his right hand, gently exhaled a wisp of smoke and spoke to the bishop with great sincerity.

Monocle, pocket watch, pipe, pen, diary, tobacco box... Anson is now slowly developing the habit of carrying these things with him.

Although there is no good way to get in touch with a famous contraband dealer yet, this does not prevent Anson from starting to do so now - when these things are turned into magic items one by one, others will not be suspicious.

"In fact, I personally don't like coercive measures. After all, who would want others to interfere with their normal life? It's like no one wants to hurt others, but in order to protect ourselves, we must also take up arms."

Anson's expression suddenly became serious: "Since we want to form an armed force of believers belonging to Beluga Port and even the entire Ice Dragon Fjord, the first thing to do is, of course, to count the number of believers in the entire colony and confirm who can join which ones." People can’t. Whoever desires to fight for their faith is just a false believer who talks about their faith... You think so, right?”

"But..." Bishop Riper obviously still had some doubts.

"Well...Mr. Bishop, let us speak frankly." Anson sighed:

"Your hope is to unite all believers of the Circle of Order regardless of sect; in this case we must... be realistic and admit that not all believers are followers of the Universal Sect."

"If my guess is correct, what you are worried about is that because of the character of universal religious believers, they will not take the initiative to register. In the end, those who come to participate are believers who are used to being ruled by the church...like me, right? "

Bishop Ripper said nothing, apparently acquiescing to Anson's guess.

"If this is the case, then we must encourage the universal religious believers to take the initiative to stand up - if they themselves are not willing to fight for their beliefs, who can be expected to be willing to sweat and bleed for them?" Anson Asked rhetorically:

"What's more, this is not to ask them to recognize the sect they belong to, but just their faith; since it is to bridge conflicts and create unity, shouldn't the Universal Sect be the first to make concessions and show its sincerity?"

"Can it be changed to a recommendation form?"

Riper frowned and said, "I know some young believers who are full of enthusiasm for their faith. As long as I take the initiative to persuade them, they will definitely be willing to join!"

"And I believe this too." Anson shrugged:

"If your purpose is only to form a militia with the Universal Sect as its core, that's no problem, of course, but I remember that your purpose is to bridge the conflicts between believers... isn't it?"

"If that's the case... With all due respect, I don't see any possibility of bridging the contradictions other than creating greater divisions in this way of selection by you rather than the active participation of believers."

Riper's frown deepened.

"Of course, we can also adopt a more...flexible approach." Anson suddenly changed the subject and looked at the bishop with hints in his eyes.

Bishop Ripper raised his eyebrows: "For example..."

"You can persuade the believers you want to join to sign up, and we will let them pass directly." Anson smiled and smoked his pipe:

"Then... we will let these people persuade those believers who are still hesitant to let them understand that doing this will benefit everyone."

"This work will probably last one to two months. After that, we will conduct selective recruitment and training based on the number of believers who apply, their size and the specific branch situation." Anson continued to explain:

"Strive to ensure that all believers have undergone at least four weeks of military training without interfering with their daily work and life, so as to create a ring of order armed force composed of believers for the entire colony."

"In addition, since we want to bridge the differences between the two parties, I suggest that it is best to reduce the content on religion and mention more commonalities between the two parties. At the same time, try to divide them according to the type of work rather than their beliefs or origins."

Well, in this way, not only can a militia be established, but the main young labor force in the entire colony can also be counted, as well as their approximate occupation and living area distribution map.

"Sounds very reasonable." The bishop nodded slightly:

"I must admit that when I first wanted to form this armed force, I didn't think so much."

"This is probably because I am a countryman from Clovis City, and I am more influenced by the Seeking Truth Sect (Ivory Sect) and Saint Isaac, right?" Anson smiled nonchalantly:

"We respect professionalism more, firmly believe that everything can be summarized by objective rules, are keen to make detailed plans for all work, and welcome all novel ideas."

"Well, that is indeed the most successful place of the Qiuzhen Sect." Riper praised softly:

"I guess...this is called professionalism?"

"That's right." Anson nodded: "According to the population size and infrastructure level of the colony, and referring to some places with similar conditions in the mainland, this militia army can be formed as soon as three months to become a force to defend the Ice Dragon Fjord. An important source of protection against infidels.”

"Just pagans?"

"Uh... they could also be from the Empire, but it's still winter right now - no matter how much they hate us, they won't launch an invasion this season, right?"

"Well, yes... I guess I'm overthinking it."

……………………

Early morning, rough sea.

In the cold sea breeze, the girl stood alone on the deck and looked at the sea alone. Everywhere she could see was a faint mist, and she could only occasionally see a few seagulls flashing past her eyes.

The girl was wearing a thick long-sleeved windbreaker, a large scarf and a one-piece hood that tightly wrapped her little head; but even so, she could still be seen from her figure to be very slender.

"What are you looking at?"

Gentle words sounded behind her without any warning.

The girl was shocked. She looked back suddenly, and a pointed elf ear was exposed under the brim of the thick hood:

"New world!"