Extraordinary Voyage-Chapter 702 - 604 The Beginning of the Civil War

Sea Origin Calendar Year 187, late autumn.

Tulip Islands.

Once an essential trade hub with the Ilya Kingdom, the long-silent southern city of Gloucester in Phaletis suddenly became bustling again.

One hundred twenty kilometers to its southeast lies the Ilya Kingdom city of Hereford, which is also the nearest place to the other allied countries of Ilya.

Though the overall natural resources of the Tulip Islands are fairly abundant, their distribution is highly uneven, making trade between nations a necessity.

It wasn't until after the Ilya Kingdom's fierce "Great Uprising" that the navigation between the two stopped for the first time, and the scene of ships coming and going vanished for a full three months.

However.

The ones who came here this time were not merchant ships loaded with goods after the resumption of commerce, but warships flying the flags of the other five member countries of this alliance: Phaletis, Tyrone, Paros, Thessaly, and Tulip.

Each nation had at least one quasi-legendary ship, and the accompanying ships were at least Level 5 Battleships.

During the decisive "Battle of Benin" for the fate of Tulip, apart from the already withdrawn Ilya, the alliance had only thirty-three battleships in total.

Now, however, there were a staggering forty-five ships, forming a terrifying united fleet!

Flags fluttered in the sea breeze like clouds.

Although primarily comprised of compromised Level 3 Battleships, it was enough to showcase the upper echelons' fear of Ilya's new rulers.

Even though the royal refugees who fled the palace early on were still missing, many nobles who sensed something was amiss in Ilya abandoned their manors and lands, bringing everything to Tulip's allied nations.

With a continuous flow of intelligence, they understood the misery of the nobles in Ilya with ties to them. If this regime that did away with kings and nobles were exported to the entire alliance, it would be terrifying.

Under the command of Major General Demong Brand, captain of Phaletis' "Brilliance," the united fleet's conventional forces were joined by the titled knight "Thunderbolt Halberd" Augustus from Tyrone and an unknown upper-rank wizard.

From the personnel configuration, it was clear they not only intended to uproot the asset class but had already prepared to redistribute the interests of Ilya's substantial cake after reestablishing order.

On Ilya's side, even before the coup, they had already recalled a large number of warships worldwide to defend their "uprising" achievements.

After abandoning most overseas interests and recalling the main fleet, they were mighty and confident.

Though some remaining royalist ships "defected" to become alliance guides,

the pirates in the Black Sea refitted into formal troops of the new "Ilya Republic," with Pirate King "Octopus Ghost" Hawkins rising to become the new Navy Marshal.

During the autumn navigation season, when other countries could not abandon overseas interests to focus on strangling Ilya, purely from the fleet's momentum, the Republic Army was even superior to the Alliance Army.

Additionally.

Three months were enough to reveal everything.

The asset class-led Constitutional Assembly became the highest national entity, establishing the new "Ilya Republic," with Jerome and Wright naturally elected as the President and Vice President respectively.

Truly aligned with the wild pursuit of interest in "free capitalism," to reward their class, the government of the Republic, controlled by them, immediately after extinguishing traditional noble power,

issued a series of bloody legislations to oppress and exploit the third-tier commoners who once fought alongside them, in order to ensure social stability and the vested interests of property owners.

The initially announced new policies were fairly standard.

The "Religious Bill" granted equal evangelizing rights, denying the Black Iron Cross Sect's exclusive evangelizing rights on the Republic's soil, following the ideology of "freedom of belief."

They did not forcibly require the populace to convert, knowing that belief cannot be imposed. If rejected from the heart, it would be futile regardless of how much legislation was enacted.

However, the officially supported "Black Wing Order" was developing rapidly, and the new title "God of Capital and Wealth" already attracted much attention. Although the commoners did not understand what "capital" was, they knew "wealth" was a good thing.

Yet, the second decree revealed the true intentions.

Though the drought ended following the "uprising" victory, the farmers' nightmare was just beginning.

This was because they formalized the "Enclosure Act"-legislated process of large-scale land appropriation mainly led by the Constitutional Assembly, then "leasing" them cheaply to large farm and ranch owners.

Neither lands originally owned by traditional nobles nor those of ordinary farmers were spared.

Then.

Men, women, elders, orphans, parents holding infants began to drift around. When they exhausted their limited funds, apart from stealing and risking execution by hanging or begging house to house, what else could they do?

If they pleaded door to door, they would be immediately imprisoned. Their final destination was the asset holders' factories, ranches, farms, and mines.

The third legislation "On Laws for Various Craftsmen, Workers, Agricultural Servants, and Apprentices"

The decree stipulates: All vagrants with the ability to work are to be arrested and whipped or chained to the back of a carriage and whipped until they bleed, then made to swear to work and sent back to their hometown. Those who violate the decree a second time will be whipped and have half an ear cut off; those who violate the decree a third time will be executed.

The decree stipulates: Any wanderer who fails to find a job within one month will be judged as a slave to the whistleblower upon being reported. The master has the right to use chains and whips to force them to work. If such slaves escape for more than 14 days, they will be judged as lifelong slaves and branded with an S mark on their forehead or back.

The decree stipulates: All artisans and workers who are paid daily or weekly and employed by others must work from 5 o'clock or before in the morning until 8 o'clock in the evening each year from February to October, excluding time for breakfast, lunch, and drinking water, but these times must not exceed two and a half hours a day at most.

Obviously, even though nominally workers and not slaves, there's little difference between them and slaves.

And the lack of macro-control leads to its first adverse effect, which occurs so swiftly!

After driving farmers directly off the land and converting them into sheep pastures, the current level of development of social productivity has not been prepared to provide sufficient corresponding positions.

Even though fierce competition has already reduced wages to the ultimate low, it still cannot accommodate so many people.

For asset holders, it's a happy trouble, but for those farmers who cannot find work within the stipulated time, it's a nightmare they'll never wake up from.

In three months, approximately seventeen thousand people were killed in total, most of whom were traditional nobles and families obstructing the new class's rule, but there wasn't a lack of "idlers" among the vagrants either...

The civilian class, which had just begun to feel they had turned things around, didn't have time to sing before being stomped into the mud again.

Moreover, the commercial nobles lack the sense of honor cultivated over hundreds and thousands of years of coexistence with their vassals possessed by traditional nobles and knights, almost to the point of writing "cannibal" on their foreheads.

Originally at least still a person, now merely resembles a person.

Except for creating value for asset holders, all attributes belonging to humanity have been completely stripped away.

Thus, after waiting for three months, the alliance seized the opportunity.

...

At this moment.

Aiven and Anita stood side by side at the bow of the "Storm Horn," constantly monitoring the movements of those diplomatic personnel just sent to the island through the sea bird's perspective.

Because, after all, supporting those asset holders is a True God. It's best to avoid conflict if possible; war has always been a means, not an end.

Although the [Legendary Battleship: Crown of Miracles] wasn't sent out beforehand, he had already brought along his entire crew, which is enough to wage a high-intensity war.

Aside from the combination of the two Tier 4 Demons and the Pirate King, whose identities have gradually become clear, he doesn't regard others seriously.

He made a special trip to the "Eye of the Storm" in the Black Sea to visit the "Tempest Church," though it's clear they lack the capacity to control Hawkins, he still managed to gather a lot of intelligence regarding this Pirate King from Fisher.

The most important point is the [Legendary Battleship: Sea Soul (Chapter 495)] he governs! It should also be their greatest reliance for preserving the results of the uprising.

Back then, when Saint Angel Bellenus left with a relaxed expression, he promised Isabella. In support of the Phaletis Kingdom, as long as they could build an extraordinary battleship, He would be willing to expend considerable power to grant blessings, transforming it into a true legendary battleship.

Coincidentally, the Treasure Tree originally intended for constructing the Sea Monarchy with a designed displacement of 5826 tons had surplus after the actual standard displacement construction of the Crown of Miracles at 2800 tons.

Subtracting the iron components, "Treasure Tree" still has a small portion remaining. Aiven pondered over whether to trade it to the Kingdom, considering what benefits such a transaction might bring.

Suddenly, Anita tugged on Aiven:

"Negotiations failed, prepare for combat!"

...

Over at Tulip, class antagonism is ongoing with fervor, and just across the sea, Hilus is equally far from peaceful.

A year and a half has passed since Philip II was crowned Emperor after Hilus was promoted to Empire.

Whether misfortune accompanies fortune remains unknown.

The Hilus Empire serves as a prototype of absolute authority, with pitifully few handicrafts, let alone a developed class of asset holders.

Hilus could be considered the place furthest from the flood-like beast known as [Capital], and currently one of the most eligible countries to be a spectator in the entire Source Continent.

Yet they have their own troubles to deal with.

The conflict between old and new religions similarly wreaks havoc.

Philip II established the "Flame Court," issuing the "Bloody Decree" specifically to judge and burn heretics, who were predominantly stubborn old believers.

Of course, the traditional "Eternal Flame" sect cannot sit idly by, establishing the Inquisition specifically to hunt new believers of the "Tinder Sect."

The top two forces in the Source Continent are in turmoil, leaving them temporarily unable to concern themselves with each other...