Chapter 121
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Translator: Xrecker
Chapter: 121
Chapter Title: The Oz Governorate
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It had been over two years since Ozma was inaugurated as the governor-general of Oz.
In the spring of the year before last, Oz, having been downgraded from an autonomous state to a colony, experienced a period of initial conflict.
The country, which had been ruled by humans, had now fallen into the hands of the demons. It was only natural that the ordinary citizens, unaware of the full story, would be discontent.
The history of conflict between humans and demons spanned nearly 800 years.
Since the era of the second Demon Lord, Tiberius, the “Evil Dragon,” who was recorded in human history as the worst of all Demon Lords, humans and demons had always been at odds.
With the rift between the two races so deep, it was a difficult task to win over the hearts of the people of Oz.
So, as soon as the governorate was established, our first task was to redirect their hostility.
Generally, the nobility and the commoners were not on good terms.
So, we pitted them against each other.
First, we raided the storehouses of the nobles throughout the kingdom.
Faced with the overwhelming might of the Demon Lord’s army, the nobles surrendered their wealth without a fight.
And how did the nobles replenish their empty coffers?
By squeezing the blood of the commoners, of course.
This naturally led the people to hate the nobles in their midst more than the distant demons.
Just as tax collectors, who were simply doing their jobs, were despised by the common people.
Of course, some of the more clever nobles tried to blame the governorate, claiming they were forced to raise taxes, but I made an example of them by blowing up their mansions, and they quickly learned to keep their mouths shut.
In a land ruled by demons, might was right. And since I was the Minister of Finance, all the taxes of Oz flowed into my hands, making me, after Ozma, the most powerful person in the country.
Of course, I didn't abuse my power, which I had gained through Ozma's favor, but focused solely on my duties.
After about a year, the main enemy of the common people had become the nobles, and the main enemy of the nobles had become the Oz Governorate, which was collecting exorbitant taxes.
While I could have been even harsher, citing war reparations, I stopped after a year, fearing that if I pushed them any further, they would take up arms instead of paying taxes.
Of course, the money I had collected in that year was equivalent to three years of the national budget, which gave me a good sense of how corrupt the country was.
I was surprised to find a slush fund of nearly a million gold in the territory of a rural baron.
Someone had likely given him the money for safekeeping, but we found it before it could be returned to its original owner.
The owner of the slush fund must have been furious.
If he had claimed the money was his, the governorate would have launched a tax evasion investigation.
The day we found the money, the entire governorate had a feast.
If the first year of our rule was spent turning the nobles and commoners against each other, the second year was spent winning them over.
First, we secretly contacted some of the nobles and, with promises of preferential treatment in exchange for their support, we divided them into pro-demon and pro-restoration factions.
There had been a pro-demon faction from the beginning.
But they had been hesitant to openly support us, fearing the consequences if the demons were ever driven back to Doom Land.
So, we favored those who had sided with us early on and gradually expanded our influence.
If only one or two had betrayed the kingdom, it would have been a different story. But as the number of traitors increased, those who remained in the pro-restoration faction began to suspect each other.
What if everyone else has already switched sides?
Will I miss out on the benefits by hesitating?
Am I being foolish? Is there any point in holding out when everyone else has already given up?
We used spies within the pro-restoration faction to fuel their paranoia and encourage them to switch sides.
Of course, there were those who remained loyal, but they were a minority, mostly the great nobles who could maintain their power even without siding with us.
With Prince Tipetarius, the only remaining heir to the throne, having renounced his title and secluded himself in his territory of Dresden, the right of succession naturally passed to a distant relative.
If the monarchy was restored, a new king could be chosen from one of the families with a drop of royal blood.
Those with such ambitions held their followers close, whispering sweet promises.
If they sided with us now, they would be treated worse than those who had sided with us early on. It was better to remain loyal and become a founding member of the new kingdom.
Forgetting that the kingdom had surrendered unconditionally after just two aether magic spells, they were swayed by the great nobles’ empty promises and remained in the pro-restoration faction.
The current stalemate between the pro-demon and pro-restoration factions was a perfect situation for us.
Having pitted the nobles against each other, we then began to win over the common people by introducing policies that were common in demon territory.
"A sixty-hour workweek?"
"A succubus brothel?"
"A minimum wage?"
"You get money if you marry a demon and have a child?"
"And the tax rate is lower than before?"
The people, who had been working at the whim of their bosses, without any regulations, were stunned by the new labor laws.
Of course, the nobles and the bourgeoisie, who were the ones exploiting them, protested, but I told them to fuck off and threw anyone who didn't comply in jail.
Sometimes, force was necessary.
And since demon soldiers, who had been stationed here for over a year, had been marrying human women, the new laws were all the more necessary.
The people who had worked in the heavenly Demon Lord’s army wouldn't be able to tolerate the hellish working conditions of Oz.
As public support grew, the dissenting voices gradually faded.
People were creatures of habit.
While there was an initial uproar, they eventually adapted to the new reality and returned to their daily lives.
While it was a colony in name, we had forbidden any discrimination, so there was no resentment based on social status.
Of course, there were still those who hated demons, but most of them had been indoctrinated to hate demons, rather than having a personal grudge. Their hatred quickly subsided.
As I had said before, humans were just demons without horns, and demons were just humans with horns.
We all had emotions and spoke the same language. It was only natural that we would learn to coexist.
And with the highest authority in the country being a demon, no one dared to discriminate against them.
And so, after two years of hard work, this was the result.
Colony Oz.
The only country in the world where humans, demons, and other races lived together.
The Demon Lord, the architect of this plan, would have been very pleased.
***
Ozma and I had gotten engaged before the Demon Lord left Oz.
To be honest, I hadn't wanted to, but since our one-night stand had been discovered, I had to take responsibility.
Thankfully, the other members of our… party… understood, and Ozma was acknowledged as my official fiancée.
And so, our current relationship was established.
Ozma was my fiancée, and Vanessa, Dorothea, and Camilla were my lovers.
While we were practically living together, it would be a few more years before we could get married.
This was due to the cultural differences between humans and demons. Humans, with their short lifespans, considered sixty to be old, but for demons, sixty was still young.
So, while humans would get married after dating for a year or two, demons, who chose a mate for life, would observe their partners for a long time before getting married.
We had agreed to get married after Oz was stabilized and we returned to the Demon Lord's territory.
“I’m off.”
“Bring me back some whiskey.”
I waved at Dorothea, who had retired from the Four Heavenly Kings to become a housewife, and left the house.
The four of us boarded the carriage that would take us to the governorate.
“It’s a beautiful day.”
I would have to take a walk around the governorate after lunch.