The New Rules

Vivian certainly knew this.

After all, different environments nurture different people, and the mindset of an era is what it is.

So she hadn’t summoned her two capable subordinates to reprimand them or to give them some sort of ideological enlightenment—not to mention one of them was a succubus.

What profound principles could a succubus possibly understand?

Right?

In any case, she wasn’t naive enough to think that a few words from her could turn everyone into highly motivated citizens.

The previous effectiveness was merely because her subordinates were soldiers, former members of the Demon Lord’s army, with strong professional skills and execution.

That’s why Vivian hadn’t noticed these problems for a while.

…Initiating her plan wasn’t just about setting a goal.

The quality and knowledge of the people below also needed to be improved, but in any case, this would be a long process.

But for now, Vivian just needed these people to complete the tasks and work plans she proposed as quickly as possible.

That was enough.

“Tomorrow morning, before work begins, gather everyone—civilians, serfs, soldiers, everyone.”

Vivian ordered.

It was already very late today.

The day’s work had come to an end, and the night-shift demons had just finished their “breakfast” and were preparing to start.

So Vivian decided to wait until the next morning, to gather everyone after they had woken up and before the nocturnal demons went to rest.

She was preparing to change her approach slightly.

“Sigh, I was planning to go to bed early today, but it looks like I’ll have to work overtime after all.”

Vivian sighed.

After briefly explaining the matter to Aria, she returned to her tent to continue working overtime.

She had to rush out a new plan and system.

And during this time, Luna…

“Lady Demon Lord, may I stay by your side tonight?”

“You may, but I will be working very late.”

“Hee, that’s alright.”

Vivian looked at the white-haired little succubus beside her and responded with a touch of affection.

No one would dislike having a sweet, soft little succubus by their side, especially when she could subtly provide emotional value—

So Vivian didn’t refuse Luna.

She even adjusted the layout of the tent slightly.

Besides the original “desk,” she also set up a small stone table where one could sit and write or draw.

Of course, she had no time or energy for more.

The most pressing matter at hand was still completing the task planning.

So, Luna leaned against Vivian and drifted off to sleep, while Vivian herself wrote her plans and arrangements on paper.

The candlelight illuminated their figures, the flickering flame weak, as if it could be extinguished at any moment.

Vivian wrote her plan quietly, and only when she had finished did she let out a long breath, gently stroking the face of the sleeping Luna before lying down to rest for a while herself.

The next morning, the sky of the Evernight territory was still a leaden gray, as if a layer of gauze covered the sky.

The demons who had just finished their night shift and those who had just finished their rest were quickly gathered, crowding the square.

No one knew what this Demon Lord wanted to do.

She had just given a speech yesterday.

Even Aria and Luna were in a state of confusion, just waiting for Vivian to speak.

Beside them, Lucia had a look of interest, curious as to what Vivian was about to announce.

As for the civilians and serfs, they just numbly followed orders.

The civilians gathered in one group, the serfs in another, and next to them stood the soldiers responsible for maintaining order.

Many people thought the Lady Demon Lord had new orders, but having just heard her speech the day before, they couldn’t help but feel a little confused.

They even began to whisper among themselves, wondering if the tasks they had to bear were about to become more complex or more difficult.

Vivian stood on a high place, looking down at the dense crowd of thousands below, at the somewhat numb and timid faces of her subjects, and took a deep breath.

The populace was not unenlightened, but that didn’t mean they weren’t ignorant.

“Unenlightened” is a judgment made with prejudice and contempt, whereas “ignorant” is simply stating a fact.

It is the most realistic representation, the law of objective reality.

You cannot look at these people with prejudice and a sense of superiority.

The civilians and serfs of this world are ignorant.

In fact, most worlds with a medieval-like setting are like this.

The social structure and the small-scale peasant economy meant they had almost no access to knowledge or opportunities to broaden their horizons.

The heavy burden of survival left them with no energy to focus on anything other than staying alive.

Living under such conditions for a long time made them seem not to think, creating the illusion of being “unenlightened.”

But in reality, they could think.

It was just that their ignorance made it difficult for them to understand things that were too far removed from their daily lives.

So you couldn’t talk to them about grand, empty concepts.

You couldn’t talk to them about ideals, the future, the prospects of the territory, or the logical relationship of productivity development.

Once you said these things, they would immediately classify these “high-sounding” concepts as the goals of the “Lady Demon Lord” or the “sovereign.”

Once this habit of classification was formed, they would push the matter over to the “sovereign’s” side and draw a clear line between it and themselves.

Therefore, the best way was to talk to them about things related to their own lives.

Vivian let out a heavy breath.

Then she looked at the assembled subjects, cleared her throat, and used her usual magic technique to raise her voice, ensuring everyone could hear her words.

“Subjects of the Evernight territory, I have something to say—about your future, and the new laws and policies of the Evernight territory!”

“You should all know who I am—I am the Demon Lord Vivian, and the sovereign of the Evernight territory. Therefore, you should also know that I am the one with the most authority in this land.

My words represent everything, overriding all common matters!

I will provide you with protection, but you must also obey my will.”

With that, Vivian paused.

The crowd below looked at Vivian, listening with bated breath.

Sweeping her gaze over the crowd, Vivian continued.

“We are rebuilding our Demon Lord’s Castle, rebuilding our Evernight territory, but it is basically starting from scratch—which means we need some new rules. So I am here to announce three things:

“First, since Evernight City, Blackthorn Village, and Graystone Keep have been destroyed, all past wealth and land have been wiped clean. Therefore, in my name as the Demon Lord, I declare that all debts within the territory involving lords, landowners, and even the Demon Lord herself are hereby canceled—whether the debtor is a civilian, a peasant, or a serf, from this day forward, you will no longer bear any debt to the upper-class landowners, village chiefs, lords, or even the

Demon Lord!”