A line quickly formed, and people were allowed to ask me one question each. Other people listened in nearby. There were four guards around my platform to keep people away from my rear and to stop a rush towards me. I wouldn’t be doing this on a regular basis, but initial impressions mattered a lot. Better to solidify things first and then focus on fixing the curse damage and Astrologer tumors still inside of me.
This was my idea, which I had taken from Carlos. He had done something similar when he had been in charge of Purgatory for the new arrivals. It was annoying to do regularly, but doing it once like this was important enough and would have a far greater impact compared to any other time.
I had been making progress, slowly, but my hand was getting better over time. The constant restorations I was getting slowed things down, but I had no complaints, better to be safe, rather than risk my gut blowing up again.
If that happened, I would be in huge trouble. Once my left hand and feet were completely fixed, I would work on my gut, and then lastly my head. I was getting better at maintaining the state of mind I needed to adjust my energy while doing other activities. But once I could get away from it all, it would be much better.
“Emperor Michael, how did you kill the Divine Empress exactly?” That was the first question that was asked. I really wanted to get a burger instead of talking, but this was important.
“I battled her across multiple cities and zones. From East Bastion to Heaven. Even in a level 4 zone as she relentlessly sought to kill me.” That last part was a complete lie. She hadn’t been going all out, since she hadn’t targeted me with ranged skills until the very end. But no need to share that with the masses. Victors wrote history, and I was going to write it in the way that made me look as good as possible.
“She pursued me to a tower, and I retreated inside. While I battled my way up the interior of the tower through countless monsters and traps, the Divine Empress climbed the outside of the tower and waited at the top for me.” No need to mention that I had lost a hand to her.
“Once I had reached the top, I tricked her by altering my appearance to be that of someone else. In that critical moment of weakness, I struck her down, ending her threat once and for all. Well, I should say that I melted her as she screamed in despair. Even half melted, she never stopped fighting. While she was completely evil and needed to die, she was not afraid of fighting.”
I mentioned altering my appearance to trick the Divine Empress, so people were aware of the threat that imposters posed.
“Thank you, Emperor Michael,” the man said and bowed hesitantly. I gave him a smile and a nod. The next person came forward. The questions were screened by one of Clarissa’s assistants for anything stupid or annoying. They were also informed how to address me, thank me, and bow at the end before they left my presence.
“Emperor Michael, what about other nations. The Fifth Caliphate still exists. Are we going to attack them?” a woman asked.
“No. Now is the time of peace. The Fifth Caliphate is a hostile nation and their leader who is named the High Priestess, or the Avatar is not to be trusted. A delegation has been invited. Once they are here, we will confirm the boarders and then close them except for official communication between our governments.”
“There is no reason to trade, and they are not allies or friends. They are a competing nation. While they only have three cities, I believe that peace is more important after facing the Dragon Empire. But make no mistake. If they act against us, I will crush them without hesitation or mercy,” I explained.
I was still considering crushing the Avatar’s cities, but she was too useful as an acquaintance and was a terrible enemy. There was no way to contain or kill her. That just left appeasement. Letting her keep three cities was acceptable.
If she instituted 50% solely for herself, then she could compete with my tax revenue, but the strength of her forces would stagnate. Also, she wasn’t a fighter. She was a schemer. With her connections to the Almighty System, there were just too many downsides from fighting her. Even though I wanted to grab her head and crush it like a balloon or melt her while listening to her scream for how she had manipulated things.
There would be no trust and I would take the policy of containment with limited interactions between governments through our respective embassies and ambassadors. Otherwise, she could stay far away as far as I was concerned.
“Thank you for answering Emperor Michael,” the woman gave a deep bow and left. The next person stepped forward.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“Um, Emperor Michael, um, yeah. Thank you for listening to me. Um, what I meant to ask, do you have a successor?” The man was clearly nervous, and I didn’t interrupt him.
“No direct successor. If I die, or go missing for an extended period of time then Supreme Governor Clarissa will take charge with the assistance of the Governing Council. In time they could name someone to the position of Emperor and elevate someone to the position.”
“But I don’t plan to die any time soon. I am quite hard to kill. If I die or am killed in combat, Supreme Governor Clarissa has my full blessing and authority to act as she sees fit, including surrender to a hostile power.”
“Dragging the entire nation into a war is not something to take lightly. That is why, if I am killed in combat it is better to surrender and preserve as many lives.” I was kind of lying. It would be a battle to the bitter end if at all possible. To weaken any hostile powers and make their leaders reveal their trump cards and combat ability.
In all the stories I had read, it seemed stupid to me to send the weaker people out first. But now that I was strong, I realized that information about any future opponents was incredibly valuable and could alter the outcome of a fight.
If the Empire of Purgatory encountered a hostile power, then it would be war. Waves of summons, beam attacks, bombs, while I stood back and waited for their leader to counter them and strike in a moment of weakness. Hopefully things wouldn’t get to that point. I was not looking to expand my Empire.
The man things that needed to happen with my Empire was solidifying my control and increasing the economy. I just said nice things, so people didn’t think I was a battle hungry monster like the Divine Empress.
“Thank you, um, Emperor Michael,” the man bowed slightly, then bowed some more before scurrying away. He had been awkward.
“Emperor Michael. I am Clark Gables. Will you be allowing for a press organization to form?” an older man asked me.
“Freedom of speech is not a guaranteed right in the Empire. However, I understand the need to inform others of news from across the Empire rather than relying on word of mouth. You may speak with Supreme Governor Clarissa about such an organization and the requirements she will place upon it.”
“To make clear, that certain knowledge is considered classified, and descent to the Imperial Government will not be tolerated. But informing people of fighting styles, news of events in various cities, important people or laws, are all things people should know.”
“Thank you, Emperor Michael, for your clear answer,” Clark Gables said and gave me a short bow before leaving. A younger woman stepped up.
“Emperor Michael, are you single or looking for an Empress?” the woman was a clear 10 out of 10. A nice face, cute smile, and the right proportions.
“Only a woman with the beauty of yourself and the ability to fight close to my level would be considered for such a role. Reaching the heights, I have reached is not simple. The title of Emperor or Empress, is not just one of political power.”
“Instead, it is a title denoting my immense combat abilities, that stand far above anyone else. I estimate I stand at a high combat level five. Based on your energy, I would estimate you are around a low or mid combat level 2 at best.”
“If I named you as Empress, you would not have the personal power to hold onto that position. It also isn’t just about throwing points at someone either to make them strong. There is combat knowledge that one needs to develop along with their stat points or skill. I have seen people who were lacking in combat knowledge and their deaths always came as a surprise to them.” I was thinking of you Gertrude.
“Thanks Emperor Michael. I will keep it in mind,” the lady said with a smile and a wink. I suppressed any desire I had. While I wasn’t averse to having a one night stand, I couldn’t afford complications right now, or distractions.
Healing myself up took priority over anything else. Once I was healed up, then I might indulge. The key word being might. I needed to keep my edge sharp. Falling into the trap of thinking I was safe or slacking off was death. I needed to accumulate power and grow stronger. Pushing my fighting skills to the edge and beyond.
“Emperor Michael, how will the remnants of the Dragon Empire be integrated?” a man asked.
“The appointed governors will take the lead on capturing their assigned city with support from the Imperial Government and solidifying control. As for the cities and populace themselves, that will be left in the hands of the Governors.”
“The Imperial Government’s purpose is to allow a framework that the Governors operate under with a small set of rules and regulations. As Emperor, I act as the nuclear deterrent and final authority. But just as the United States had multiple states with slightly different policies and rules, the Empire of Purgatory will operate in a similar manner just with cities instead.”
“This way the mismanagement of one city won’t spread and good practices will be adopted. Differences in economic focus, regulations, and development will help differentiate various cities to help promote trade and travel, uniting the Empire.”
Also, it put the blame on anything bad happening on the governors and insulating the Imperial Government and myself. At least that was the hope. The only thing that died faster than people who just arrived were the various forms of government.
It was a sad state of affairs when the Dragon Empire was the longest lasting government in the Systemic Lands. It still amazed me it held together for so long, that was the strength of the Divine Empress. I might have killed her, but if the Astrologer hadn’t created an opening, there was zero chance that I could have won.
I wasn’t about to delude myself into thinking I was some kind of super fighter like her. I couldn’t even imagine punching things like she did and was still trying to figure out how she beat all those super slimes when she upgraded the Forbidden City.
That was the other thing, no name changes. Otherwise, it would just make things confusing and require updating maps. If one city was allowed to change their name, then the rest would want to do so as well. I had put a hard no on that. Also, some idiot might try naming a city Michaelopilis to give me a favorable impression of them. So no name changes were allowed.