The nobles and ministers all stared at Roa in unison, wanting to see what else he had to say.
Roa didn't waste any words. Once everyone had quieted down, he spoke directly: "This is only temporary, to avoid some unexpected events. The power is temporarily returned to Her Majesty the Queen."
"It's not about directly stripping you of your fiefdoms. We won't do that. Those who stand here today are descendants of those who have made meritorious contributions. Your current titles were earned by your ancestors through their sweat and blood. I am also a noble; I won't say that I will directly confiscate your titles or anything like that. No, I won't."
The middle-aged man who had spoken earlier asked again: "You've already taken back the power. How do we know if you'll return it to us in the future?"
This was the biggest concern for all the nobles.
After all, the words of rulers can only be half-trusted, and even that half is less than 30% credible.
Anyone can make a written agreement, and this time it was just a verbal promise, without any guarantee. Who knows if the moment the power is taken back, their heads might roll.
So, they didn't really trust Roa's words.
The middle-aged man continued to press: "What if, at that time, you don't fulfill your promise?"
The middle-aged man's eyes were fixed on Roa's pale golden pupils. Although he was somewhat afraid of the young man in front of him, he knew he had to stand up now. If he didn't stand up this time, there might not be another chance.
In response to the middle-aged man's question, Roa remained calm.
Roa simply retorted: "You can't trust me? Then do you have any other choice?"
The middle-aged man's mouth twitched. Even he was finding it hard to contain himself now. Although his voice remained humble, there was a hint of anger in it. He said, "This is not the attitude to solve the problem. We need a common solution now, a plan that can smoothly resolve the issue. You, or rather, Her Majesty the Queen, must give us a suitable plan so that the kingdom won't fall into chaos."
Upon hearing this, Roa fell into thought.
Indeed, what the middle-aged man said had some merit. However, having merit wasn't enough. Given the current behavior of the nobles, if they were given a chance to recover, Roa didn't believe they wouldn't cause trouble.
So, Roa directly refused: "No, you can't trust me, and likewise, I can't trust you."
"But you need us to manage this country! You can't possibly kill us all, can you?"
The middle-aged man looked at Roa in confusion, not understanding why Roa wasn't willing to compromise even a little.
However, in response to this, Roa smiled slightly and said, "No, this country doesn't need you to manage it. Don't you understand? The country doesn't need you nobles anymore. In fact, it might be better without you."
The middle-aged man frowned, wanting to retort.
But Roa directly countered: "Can you farm? Can you herd sheep? Or can you do business? Or perhaps you're so strong that you can hold a region and fight against the demon tides?"
The middle-aged man stared at Roa, and Roa stared back. The middle-aged man now understood Roa's meaning.
Clearly, the young man in front of him looked down on the so-called nobles, and he looked down on them very much.
"No, no, no, you can't say that. We have our own responsibilities. We don't need to do those menial tasks. We need to direct the farmers on how to work, when to go to the fields, and supervise them to pay their taxes on time."
The middle-aged man didn't realize the problem, and even Ariel was frowning. They both didn't understand Roa's point.
Roa sighed. He was born in the 21st century, raised under the influence of socialist core values, and had read many history books. Although he didn't usually talk about it, he could see the flaws of this era at a glance.
The so-called nobles were just a group of leeches, constantly sucking the blood of the common people.
And this situation would only worsen as the dynasty progressed.
At the beginning of the kingdom, those who became nobles were indeed not mediocre.
But the problem was that nobility was hereditary. An outstanding father didn't necessarily mean an outstanding heir.
And the corruption of power and money was quite astonishing. For example, Darius was once a prodigy in his youth, but look at him now—he's a pure villain template, the kind that the protagonist would definitely eliminate upon encountering.
When someone without the ability to match their position takes that position, what happens is self-explanatory.
What else can they do but become parasites?
And now, the Kingdom of Asura was facing this situation. It was time for a large-scale blood change, or perhaps a complete overhaul of the political system.
Of course, these things couldn't be done overnight.
But the middle-aged man could say that the country couldn't function without them, which made Roa find it quite amusing.
Without them, there might indeed be some short-term chaos, but as long as someone took over, it could be quickly resolved. The impact wouldn't be that significant because all they did was collect taxes and exploit the common people. Without them, the common people would live better.
After all, all that was lost was a tax collector.
However, it seemed that only Roa thought this way. Looking at the expressions of these nobles, they all looked incredulous. Even Ariel, whom Roa considered intelligent, was limited by this kind of thinking.
Roa sighed. In the end, they hadn't broken free from the limitations of the era.
But to be honest, people like Ariel, who lived in the palace, had been pampered since childhood, never worrying about food or clothing. How could they consider so much?
Even Roa, to some extent, had benefited from the era.
Not to mention, being exploited by capitalists was really unpleasant, but being a capitalist was really enjoyable.
This was why, often, the change of an era came from the bottom up, not from the top down. Only those who had struggled at the bottom would understand the hardships of the people.
The people in the room didn't understand Roa's meaning, but they all sensed the disdain in his tone. They looked at each other and remained silent, waiting to see how things would develop.
However, the matter had already come to an end. The middle-aged man had asked all he needed to ask, and he had said all he needed to say. Now, he didn't know what else to say.
Roa's attitude was decisive and firm, emphasizing his self-will. He had no intention of negotiating with them, and his meaning was clear: either obey and hand over the power, or die.
The country didn't need them to function. The world was still big, and one more or one less of them didn't matter.
His attitude was so strong that everyone was at a loss on how to face it.
Roa didn't give them much time to weigh the pros and cons. They could think about it later; there was no need to stare at each other in the hall.
Roa waved his hand and said his final words.
"Think carefully. Don't let your mistakes lead to the extermination of your entire family."
Roa smiled calmly at the people below as he said this.
The room fell into silence.
Everyone could see that Roa had no intention of having a proper conversation.
Without further delay, Roa told everyone to leave. Even if those below were unwilling, they had no choice but to obey and leave.
Soon, the hall was empty, with only Roa and his group standing at the top. Even the old woman who had stood up to support Roa just gave him a glance before leaving.
On the stage, her granddaughter, Isolte, stood quietly beside Roa, not saying a word.
Although she didn't speak, she was indeed standing there.
Since she had already chosen a side, there was nothing more to say.
Now, Isolte was no longer the little girl she used to be. She needed to grow, and perhaps this change was an opportunity for her.
Roa didn't pay attention to the departing Water God. He turned his gaze back to Ariel. The girl's previously calm expression was now gone. She was frantically scratching her hair, turning her smooth, golden locks into a mess.
Ariel, somewhat collapsed, said, "How did things come to this? Weren't we supposed to have a proper conversation?"
Roa shrugged and said seriously, "I was having a proper conversation."
Ariel speechless, "Were you really having a proper conversation? Did you even listen to what you just said?"
Roa didn't want to dwell on this topic. In his view, even if he had to kill all the nobles, it would only be a minor inconvenience. Dealing with their schemes would be much more troublesome. So, it was better to keep it simple: if you don't obey, I'll kill you.
Anyway, Roa felt quite satisfied now. What he needed to do was suppress these people completely.
Make sure they couldn't cause any trouble. Once this matter was settled, it would be time to fight the Dragon God.
But could he really defeat the Dragon God now?
For some reason, Roa always had doubts.
The Dragon God's strength was undeniable. Although Roa was also strong, facing such a being head-on still made him feel somewhat restrained.
With this concern in mind, Roa began to think about how to deal with the Dragon God.
Roa's magical prowess was still at the Emperor level, with the next level being the Divine level.
But Roa didn't rely on magic as his main means of attack. From his development, it was clear that he preferred close combat. So, now his Sword God style had reached the Divine level, allowing him to use the complete form of the Sword of Light.
Even without using Moment, he could easily kill most people in this world.
Although using Moment didn't allow him to truly wield a Sword of Light at twice the speed of light, he could still deliver a sword strike that surpassed the speed of light.
But the question was, would it be effective against the Dragon God, who had existed since ancient times? He didn't know.
He wasn't prepared to face the Dragon God, meaning he still wasn't confident in dealing with such a terrifying being.
Roa frowned and sighed deeply. Reality was always more troublesome than imagined.
As for the matters of the Kingdom of Asura, he would leave them entirely to Ariel. His role was to intimidate those people.
"Then, I leave all this to you. I hope you can become an excellent queen."
After saying this, Roa left directly.
In the hall, only Ariel and Isolte were left, looking at each other.
"He just left like that? This guy is really casual!" Ariel pouted in dissatisfaction.
Isolte looked in the direction where Roa had disappeared. After hesitating for a moment, she didn't choose to follow him but stayed by Ariel's side.
Ariel looked at Isolte in confusion. The girl smoothed the hair by her ear, her face showing a hint of interest. "Why aren't you leaving?"
"I think you need me more than he does," Isolte replied straightforwardly.
Ariel smiled, a charming smile. She blinked her blue eyes and nodded slightly. "That's true. I do need a strong protector. So, how about you rest in my room tonight?"
…
The days that followed were quite peaceful.
Indeed, some nobles still refused to give up and tried to struggle.
The reputation of the Water God's old woman was still quite useful. Now, the palace's Royal guards were basically under Ariel's command.
Those who could become Royal guards in the capital were somewhat capable, giving Ariel enough manpower to deploy.
Some of the less deeply hidden nobles foolishly collided with this, plotting rebellion in the palace, practically announcing their intentions.
Roa didn't show any mercy, directly killing two of them with thunderous means and sending people to their homes to confiscate their lands and assets.
The assets were naturally confiscated for the state, and some of the power was returned to Ariel.
The old foxes hiding in the shadows saw that Roa killed without hesitation.
Their suspended hearts finally died, and they obediently accepted their fate.
Roa didn't waste any words, directly sending people to take over the various regions' territories.
Of course, some of these people were still unruly. The most notable was a marquis in one region, whose mansion was guarded by a North God style expert at the King level, just one step away from the Emperor level. The private soldiers he kept totaled over a thousand.
When the capital tried to reclaim the territory, he naturally resisted, clashing with the soldiers.