The door was opened after the steward got the permission to let Woden come in.
"Woden, come, come." David and Solo were drinking their after-meal tea in David's office, David sat on his new wood table instead of the couch in front of him.
David urged Woden to join them without any formality, just like how they were.
"My pleasure, your majesty."
"No need for that, there is no one other than us here. Let's talk like we always were."
"Yes,y..." It was not that they always talked formally when they were only close friends even after David's coronation, but the issue at hand made Woden tensed and could not talk in a carefree way.
"By the way, what happens with your old desk. I think the old one is way better, this one color does not suit this room much." Solo asked David about his new desk to lighten the atmosphere.
"….That one was too fragile, so I change."
"Fragile?"
"Yes, fragile. Trust me, this one is more durable."
Marble vs Wood. Which one is more durable? But Solo did not inquire further?
"Woden, let's talk about your petition. Feel free to voice your opinion." David pointed to Woden's petition document on the desk.
"Um… I want you to pardon their wrong conduct, we already achieve our goal, the continent and all of its people are under your rule. No more bloodshed is needed…"
"My friend, you see, they may submit but that's because we overpower them. They just waiting for a chance, like a poison snake waiting for an attack."
"Woden, I believe that you should know more about this operation. I'm sorry that we exclude you out of this plan. David, please let me explain everything for Woden in full details." Solo apologized Woden and asked David for permission to explain everything to Woden.
"Okay, it should be easier for you to accept if you know more about it. Here, take this." David allowed Solo to explain, he also went behind his desk opened the drawer and brought a document out from his drawer before threw it to Woden.
Woden look at the document in front of him and opened it, the First page inside the document was a catalog of magician and their basic personal info like age and sex, this list was the list only consist of insubordinate mages and on the second pages was the list of various disobedience sects. When he reached the third pages, it was the list of dojos and martial artists.
"And this too." David went to the bookshelf and took a lot of document files out. "I know it was a lot but please look in details."
Woden was not surprised with this list as he already heard that the number would not be as much as the rumor but it still not convinced him to agree with David and Solo. He opened the document and read it without a sound, sometime he would pick out one and put it in a separate place but most of the time he just skimmed over it. It took almost 2 hours for Woden to read all of it
David and Solo did not annoy or anything, they talked about other work and sometimes looked at Woden's act, the file that Woden chose was what you could say they really deserve to die, murderers and serial rapists. But that seemed to be the limit of Woden judgment because after all only a few numbers were put on that group.
"Are you finish?" Solo asked Woden.
"Um… I believe that these people should be judged according to what they did, but…we need to investigate it deeper and at least give them the right they deserve as human beings. The other crime offenders were not of that much degree and should get a chance for their redemption."
David sighed, he guessed that it would be like this. Woden was like his NGO friends in his former world, they were good people but sometimes their moral ways of doing things were seriously annoying.
"Woden, you know with just lese majeste alone, their entire family could be wiped out in some case. We are now promoting the legalism, the need for an example is irreplaceable." It was a fact that in Noseth, those with high power would be spared but it was not like they abolished the death penalty, it just that most of the time they did not do so, even if they do it would be against other races. Solo stated that to support david.
"But it's not right, isn't it wrong to kill someone when they still did not prove as guilty without redemption? And what's about these people with a lesser crime."
"If they do not resist, I will judge them myself. I believe that would be enough. Woden, don't get me wrong, I too admire qualities such as benevolence and mercy but consideration for the times we are living now, I do not believe that only moral or virtue is good enough to create order. You say we achieved our goal, I don't think so, our journey only just taking another page in history." Although Woden was not die-hard morally saint, he could not be easily convinced, the type of people that question you with moral and ideology, a good but sometimes too annoying friend.
David looked at Woden and saw that Woden wavered a bit but it still not enough to convince him. He needed a heavy punch to knocked Woden now. At a time like this, David must follow the ways of otherworlder, plagiarised.
"Oh! Great teacher Zhang please grant me your power." David thought.
The science of government it is my duty to study, more than all other sciences: the art of legislation and administration and negotiation, ought to take place, indeed to exclude in a manner all other arts. I must study politics and war that my sons may have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy.
"Not good a bit too pretentious." David thought.
To me, ideas are worth nothing unless executed. They are just a multiplier. Execution is worth millions.
"Even if I modify it a bit, it's just like I disregard his thought." David pondered for words to use but could not decide, while Solo convincing Woden.
"Woden, you are a good healer, I have ever seen. You could bring someone who about to die back to life, I think highly of you, and your idea of not let life gone is honorable but not like everyone could do it like you. Sometimes we need to sacrifice a lost cause for a better."
"But this is different. You are about to kill innocence people. Why don't find another way?"
"I don't want to repeat yesterday talk, Woden. Why don't you think like this, when the wound is infected and the area around the wound is starting to show sign inflammation, we cut those areas to make the healing process become easier for healer mages, right? That's what we are doing now, those people are a wound that we need to cut."
David stopped thinking for a while to listen to his friends' arguments but it seemed the argument would drag on without easy conclusion.
"Should I just order him? Hey! Iris, can I just told him about my cheat?" David asked iris in his mind.
It's would be easier if he could tell Woden that he really could read people mind literally and his judgment was 100% correct, in fact, everything would be a lot easier. Since he could not, they just thought that David was only crazily good at reading people's mind.
"No, you can't. I am sorry master but you start to become senile. Please refrain from asking me this question. You ask me from the time you were a toddler and now you are 45, stop asking, please. And don't ask anetroc, the answer is the same." Iris said.