The Mafia Empire

He wanted Mr. Kesma to help bribe another sheriff in town—or, as they were formally called, a chief. During the National Defense War, also known as the Civil War, the Empire had followed the chancellor's advice and granted rural areas, like towns and villages, the authority to form local guard units to resist the relentless assaults of the federal army.

The ultimate executors of this order were the local sheriffs, who would become the leaders and commanders of these guard units. Additionally, the Empire had granted these sheriffs another crucial privilege.

They could purchase standard-issue rifles, and even war machinery and weapon platforms, at a low cost from the military arsenal.

This policy proved highly effective during the war. The wealthier one was, the more afraid they were of dying. At the start of the war, the nobles still held vast lands in the Empire, making them the true landowners.

Consequently, this policy pushed the nobles to the warfront—either they "donated" money to arm local guard units and purchased advanced weaponry to fend off potential invaders, or they fled to the imperial capital and lamented the destruction of their lands, wealth, and estates by war.

So, many nobles gritted their teeth and handed over large sums to arm the local guard units, to the point where some noble territories had guard units more heavily armed than the Empire's regular army.

But!

They got swindled.

With the new decree signed by the Emperor, the "National Defense War Special Requisition Act," heavily armed local guard units were absorbed and restructured into the regular army. In other words, the Empire used noble-funded armies for battle without paying any price.

Although this left many nobles resentful and indignant, they had to swallow their grievances and act as if they were willing to sacrifice everything for the Empire, fearing the consequences of losing the war.

After the war, many noble-formed armies, as well as Guar and Ordinian troops, suffered heavy losses on the battlefield. This quelled the brewing class conflicts almost instantly. Conspiracy theorists even suggested that the Imperial family had colluded with the New Party to betray the nobles, ending the centuries-long feudal monarchy.

This betrayal stemmed from the royal family's exploitation of the nobles wealth and resources through war policies, sowing seeds of discontent.

Regardless of the causes and outcomes, the local guard policy was never rescinded after the war, as if forgotten, and it remains enforceable by wartime laws to this day.

This raises another question: Are the wealthy and influential exploiting this loophole?

The answer is no. Although the wartime policy was never repealed, the New Party, upon taking office, imposed numerous restrictions. For example, during peacetime, a town's local guard unit couldn't have more than seven members or more than three rifles, and war machines or platforms were strictly forbidden.

The Imperial Investigation Bureau even had agents patrolling the Empire, and the local gendarmerie strictly enforced these regulations.

Thus, for the wealthy, spending money on such endeavors was pointless. It was more effective to invest in a group of ruthless enforcers.

But was there really no other loophole to exploit?

Not entirely. According to the "Rights and Duties of Local Guard Units During Peacetime," if dangerous wild animals appeared near a town or village, the guards were required to eliminate them to protect citizens' property and rights.

And who decides if such "dangerous" animals are around? The sheriff!

Seven members might not seem like much, but if these seven men were well-trained and armed with three rifles, their impact would far exceed the sum of their numbers.

Imagine if, during a standoff where both sides were evenly matched or even if Julian was slightly at a disadvantage, a highly trained seven-man squad with rifles suddenly launched a surprise attack from behind. The result would be catastrophic!

Julian organized his words and then expressed his request. Mr. Kesma did not agree immediately. Instead, he curiously observed Julian, as if he were meeting this "stranger" for the first time. After scrutinizing him for about half a minute, Mr. Kesma asked with interest, "Have you been reading recently?

How do you know all this?"

Julian was momentarily stunned; he hadn't expected Mr. Kesma's thoughts to jump in such an odd direction. Instead of addressing the requests that could arguably be said to violate imperial law, he was inquiring if Julian had been reading.

Julian quickly recovered and nodded, "Yes, Father, I've been reading whenever I have free time. In the city, I learned how to read and write, and I even befriended a lawyer so rotten that his feet were practically festering. When he left Ternell City for the capital, he threw away some things he no longer needed and passed them on to me!"

When Kevin left, he didn't bother taking those worthless professional books with him. For a lawyer like him, who had already signed with one of the biggest law firms in the empire, any reasonable needs would be met by the firm, including a complete set of deluxe law books.

In fact, many of these exquisitely bound and hefty legal volumes—like art pieces—weren't for the firm's lawyers to read, but rather for the clients seeking consultation to "see."

These books were essential decorations for any law firm. The more lavish and refined they were, the more they symbolized some inexplicable strength. So Kevin left them behind, taking only some decent clothing and sentimental items. Before leaving, he handed Julian the books and advised him to read through them whenever he had time.

In Kevin's words, to succeed in society, one must first master "legal wrongdoing" and then "legal evasion." Only by achieving these two points could one climb the stairs to success without losing balance over an unnoticed pebble and plummeting from the heights.

Julian listened to Kevin's advice attentively and remembered it well. Through his interactions with Kevin, he sensed the ever-present shackles of both divine and imperial law, binding everyone. Yet, some people could effortlessly break these chains and commit crimes in "legal" ways.

Remarkable, isn't it?

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