"Hail, Your Majesty!"

As the master of ceremonies, Blanche Orlando, led the bowing, all the officials knelt together, forming a low human wall on both sides of the palace.

"Hail, Your Majesty!"

Next came the attendants and servants within the courtyard, responsible for the daily management and trivial matters of the palace. Wherever Roland's gaze fell, all lowered their heads, their expressions full of respect and awe.

"Hail, Your Majesty!"

Finally, it was the First Army following behind, their shouts particularly loud, like endless waves.

He originally thought that he had seen many scenes of teeming crowds and grand military parades, and had a certain immunity to such occasions, but he realized at the moment of personal experience that the feeling of being looked up to by everyone accelerated the blood flow no matter how many times.

In this chorus of cheers, Roland ascended the steps step by step and entered the core area of the old royal capital—the Twin Tower Sanctuary.

After he sat down on the throne, the officials entered the hall one after another and stood in three rows in front of the throne. Seeing these nearly a hundred people, Roland couldn't help but feel a little emotional. Dawnlight City was indeed the heart of the Kingdom of Graycastle in the past. In just one year, it had recruited so many staff members with basic literacy skills. What was even more commendable was that a large part of them came from commoners. Such an educational level, apart from Neverwinter City, should be one of the best in this era.

"Your Majesty, this is your scepter." Blanche handed over a golden scepter, which was not only engraved with exquisite patterns, but also inlaid with a crystal-clear sapphire at the end. "It is made by a special goldsmith, and each king holds a different one."

Roland was not interested in this undisguised symbol of power, because it was too straightforward and crude, making people feel like a nouveau riche. However, he soon discovered that this object was not entirely a decoration. After all, in such a spacious hall, it was not easy to focus everyone's attention.

And the scepter could do this very well.

He raised the scepter and tapped the floor, and everyone quickly quieted down.

"You all know who I am, so there is no need for an opening statement." Roland scanned the entire hall and said slowly, "The purpose of my trip is simple, one is to eliminate threats, and the other is to rectify order. The former does not only refer to those who resist by force, but anyone who hinders the implementation of new policies is included, whether he was a noble, a merchant, a freeman, or a rat. As long as he harms the new policies, the outcome will be no different from that of a rebel."

"The latter is to standardize order and establish an administrative system similar to that of Neverwinter City. You should have heard that once you become a municipal official, you can enjoy generous remuneration and treatment, and the path to promotion has nothing to do with blood or family background—in other words, as long as you are capable enough, even a commoner has the opportunity to obtain positions such as department minister or prime minister!"

A burst of whispering immediately arose in the crowd. Not to mention commoners, even small nobles did not dare to think about such high positions before. Barov, as a disciple of the Minister of Finance, has now become a popular figure in front of His Majesty, which is no secret in the old royal capital. At the thought of having the opportunity to become a royal minister, people's eyes became much more fiery.

"But not everyone can enter the City Hall, you need to pass an assessment." Roland said calmly.

The discussion grew louder.

"Your Majesty...may I ask what the assessment will cover?" Someone bold asked.

"Reliability questionnaire, which is also a must for the Neverwinter City Hall," he explained with a smile, "It's not that you have to answer all the questions correctly to pass, but you must at least meet the minimum requirements. As for the specific content, you will only be informed before the assessment."

In fact, this set of questions was transformed from the "Ten Questions of Loyalty" compiled by Ermu, and some questions about the attitude and expectations of work were added at the same time, mainly to ensure the purity of the team. The reason why it is not called the "Loyalty Questionnaire" is to avoid scaring away those who think too much—in this era, disloyalty is definitely a serious crime, and it can be big or small. Does it count if you scold the royal family in your heart? Does it count if you slander the king when you are drunk? However, which commoner has never complained in private?

Not to mention the nobles. According to the law, these are all acts of disloyalty. If they hear that this is going to be investigated, I am afraid that most people will avoid it.

Of course, when the business grows bigger in the future, Nightingale will naturally not be able to review everyone clearly, but at least in the initial stage, Roland still hopes to ensure the reliability of the government as much as possible—after all, as long as these people can adapt to the new administrative system, there is a high probability that they will become the backbone of the future.

"In addition, after choosing to join the City Hall, you must give up your original industry," he continued, "In short, municipal officials must not have any business dealings with any merchants, otherwise they will be severely punished. I hope everyone will consider this carefully."

This sentence was like a bucket of cold water, and the hall suddenly became a little quieter.

Unlike Border Town, which started halfway, almost everyone in the old royal capital has their own business. It is undoubtedly a difficult choice to abandon everything accumulated in the past and devote themselves wholeheartedly to a new job.

However, if you want to promote the concept of "professionalization," this is an inevitable step—even if some people hand over the industry to distant relatives or hire others to manage it, they must maintain this on the surface. Roland knew in his heart that the Four Kingdoms did not have "officials" in the true sense. The so-called ministers were all nobles trusted by the king. It was an honor rather than a responsibility to handle affairs and share worries for His Majesty. When the honor no longer existed or when they encountered a crisis, they would still consider their own interests first.

Professionalization binds people and positions together, which means that people live and die with the organization. Having no way out can be regarded as the unity of interests—only when the kingdom is thriving will they get more benefits.

Another point is that the separation of business and politics can avoid the embarrassing situation of being both a player and a referee to a certain extent.

"Finally, regardless of the position, the name of any official City Hall official will be recorded in front of my desk." Seeing the atmosphere was low, he threw out the sweet dates that he had prepared long ago, "Your treatment and position will be effective in more than one city. As long as it is a territory under my rule, it will recognize the power you have."

This is the trump card of the professional bureaucratic system—the establishment.

The significance of becoming a member of the system is self-evident. It is not only a recognition, but also the most solid guarantee. The people in the hall may not be able to realize its benefits immediately, but as time goes by, they will eventually understand the wonderful taste of eating from the state coffers.

Since the old royal capital has already undergone several screenings, the noble class has almost disappeared, and it is much more convenient to rectify than the previous cities. Although many people were still skeptical, no one jumped out to publicly oppose it. With a try-it-and-see attitude, the registration office was soon lined up with long queues after the general assembly.

Roland returned to the room and was about to summon Tassaw and Yokoe and other old buddies to chat alone when a guard walked in in a hurry.

"Your Majesty, the guards stationed in the north have a messenger reporting that they have spotted the Dawn Army west of Hermes."

…