Tristan sat on the chair in his throne room. For the past few days, his life has been very calm, and the system has not even given him any tasks.
Although there were no serious problems that he had to deal with, his head was still dizzy, but at least he could sleep soundly.
After having nightmares for three days, the system seemed to take pity on him, so for the past four days, Tristan had not had any dreams at all.
Tristan was relieved that he had not been traumatized or afraid of sleeping. The three-day nightmare was terrifying and appeared real.
Sometimes, when he daydreamed, Tristan imagined what it would be like if he died from being burned by fire, having a heart attack, or being eaten by hungry crocodiles.
Would his nightmare come true if Tristan failed to complete the second and third tasks? He would die tragically.
Tristan shuddered in horror. The system could torture him until he died. He swore he would never forget the second and third tasks again.
"I don't want to die because I failed to complete the tasks," Tristan muttered.
"I'd rather die from being struck by lightning or hit by a horse." Yeah, although Tristan had never heard of someone dying after being hit by a rampaging horse.
"Everyone is complaining about the 5% increase in taxes." Tristan let go of a breath through his mouth as he placed the last paper scroll onto the metal tray on the trolley.
Tristan read all the complaints of his people while thinking about everything he had been through and about the system that threatened to kill him if he failed to ensure Carlos Madigan never recovered and that the witch Jane remained in prison until the old man died.
Tristan should have killed Witch Jane. When he thought about the third task, regret often came to Tristan's heart.
At that time, if Tristan sentenced Witch Jane to death, no one would protest because the witch deceived the soldiers guarding his palace.
"Ah, never mind." Tristan shook his head, throwing away the regret.
Witch Jane was under the supervision of Knight Ajax's men; the witch would never be able to escape from the prison in the Arafuro Kingdom.
"Okay, now think about the kingdom." Tristan cleared his throat after he took a sip of honey tea.
The palace announced yesterday that taxes would be raised by 5%, and almost all Madigan people sent letters to their king today objecting to the tax hike and questioning why it was necessary.
Six days ago, Tristan lent one of the kingdom's hills to the Halu Kingdom, and the next day, King Albert of the Widomar Kingdom suddenly came, and his soldiers caused trouble and injured 23 Madigan soldiers.
King Albert's statement that he would return to meet Tristan made the kingdom's officials and generals uneasy.
These two factors prompted the palace to increase taxes by 5%. Madigan required a significant amount of money to improve security. All the soldiers were preparing to go to war.
The Minister of Commerce had instructed two noble families to stockpile wheat. When war broke out, the palace would purchase wheat from them to feed the soldiers and distribute it to the affected populations.
However, the palace decided not to tell why the taxes were raised. This made the people angry.
"They would be very anxious if they knew that the Pireakan Kingdom, the Widomar Kingdom, or other kingdoms would most likely attack the kingdom. They have lived in peace for the past five years and have forgotten what it was like when the country was at war."
Tristan leaned back in his chair. He had no idea how to calm the people.
The palace did not expect the public to be furious because the economy was doing well. Taxes had only increased by 5%, not 10%.
Food and other commodity prices were not expected to rise dramatically, and certain varieties of vegetables and fruits would not see price hikes.
"Do you think they will hold a demonstration?" Tristan asked his two knights.
"Since the palace is unwilling to make a statement, the role of the nobles is vital at this time. You must trust that the nobles can calm the people's hearts, Your Majesty," said Knight Aiden.
"You are right," said Tristan.
Many noble families approved the tax increase. Meanwhile, noble families that objected were still required to follow the palace's policy and keep the reason for the tax hike hidden.
"I am sure they will not hold a demonstration, Your Majesty. Especially the merchants. They will not close their shops for even five minutes," said Knight Ajax.
"As long as the palace's reason for raising taxes is not leaked to the public and the palace ensures that there are no other costs that burden them, they will not hold a demonstration, Your Majesty," said the knight Aiden.
Tristan nodded his head. He had received several complaints from his people that many thugs were extorting money from them, and the chief general acted quickly by sending a squad of palace soldiers to secure the thugs. Now, the thugs would undergo the selection process to become soldiers.
"Okay. I won't worry about that," Tristan said. He shouldn't have worried because the prime minister who proposed the tax increase would ensure the people wouldn't protest.
"What about those 49 people? Have they recovered?" Tristan asked Knight Aiden. He gave Knight Aiden and his men the responsibility to monitor the 49 people who had contracted the plague.
"They haven't recovered, Your Majesty. But we should be grateful; at least for the past four days, we haven't found anyone infected with the plague," Knight Aiden said.
Tristan nodded. He had already stopped the soldiers surrounding the kingdom to check everyone's health, but the borders to the Kavar Kingdom were still closed.
"What about the Kavar Kingdom?" Tristan asked Knight Aiden.
"The number of people infected with the plague has stopped at 976. The plague was found in three villages. They have all performed the sacred rituals but have not recovered." Knight Aiden shook his head with a concerned look on his face.
"The high priest of the Kavar Kingdom who presides over all the sacred rituals stated that temples that are not used to worship the Gods must be destroyed because he believes that is why people have not recovered," Knight Aiden said.
"Okay. Thanks for the information." Tristan nodded in understanding.
If Tristan could be honest, his heart had been beating fast since yesterday. He was worried that people would blame him for not believing in the sacred ritual that prevented the Gods from healing the 49 people.
"Today, the Halu Kingdom and the Pireakan Kingdom will start a war. I hope their war will only last for five days. The medicines and herbs from the Momento Kingdom must arrive on time," Tristan said.
Of course, he prayed that the Halu Kingdom would win the war. The gold selling of Mount Silonga would increase the kingdom's income.
The three men were distracted by the knock on the door and the soldier's voice asking permission to relay information to his king.
"What is it?" Tristan looked straight at the palace soldier, who bowed respectfully to him.
"King Oberon of the Widomar Kingdom and 10 of his envoys have come to see you, Your Majesty."
Tristan was shocked. "He really wants to talk to me." For some reason, he had a bad feeling and wanted to refuse King Oberon's arrival.