News about Max ascending to kinghood spread fast and wide across the vampire society.
Unlike the lord's, the general population only thought that it made sense that the strongest vampire was made king. However, they were unaware of the intricate undercurrents that arose from Max's succession.
Max had become king not through popular consensus but through a show of strength as he had forced the other lord's to submit to his reign by beating them black and blue and not by winning their loyalty.
Although he was the new vampire king on the surface, in practice he was yet to consolidate power as his ascension did not restore the faith of the common people in the future of vampire society, with the gloomy atmosphere created by Regus's death only intensifying as time passed.
Max who understood the mountain of difficulty that he was facing knew that he needed to make bold assurances to the common masses to restore a sense of security and peace, which is why as his first imperial edict as king, he issued the following letter-
[Imperial Edict]
To the Esteemed Citizens of our Sovereign Realms,
We acknowledge with profound solemnity the passing of King Regus Aurelius, whose reign epitomised unparalleled excellence and whose loss has deeply shaken the very pillars of our society. The notion that any could rival the magnificence of his legacy is unfathomable.
As I ascend to the throne, I am acutely aware that I embark upon a path where King Regus' shadow looms large, however, I shall strive, with every fibre of my being, to uphold the glory of his name, and that of the kings before him.
As your anointed leader, I vow that no territory under our watch shall fall prey to the scourge of Dracula nor the feral onslaught of the werewolves.
Within the span of the next five years, it is my oath to lead our kind to a resounding triumph, reclaiming every inch of our hallowed ground that has been tarnished by malevolence whereby I personally promise to behead Dracula.
Despite the tribulations that beset us, I stand firm in the belief that our society shall emerge from this crucible fortified and unbroken, however, it shall only be possible with the unwavering support of every individual that we come out of these trying times as a better and stronger community.
Our enemies are mistaken to think that we are diminished without King Regus and they are mistaken to think that we shall falter or shall be easily conquered in our moment of grief as they could not be more wrong.
We possess a strength they cannot comprehend and as your king, I assure you that now is the perfect time to strike back and to prove our might.
Our campaign against those who threaten us will not waver; it will be relentless and fearsome as we shall only rest when King Regus, Lord Vega and every other noble vampire that has lost their lives to the tyranny and evil of our opponents has been put six feet under.
With loyalty and unity,
Your Vampire King,
Max Rajput
—---
Max's letter was shrewd and politically motivated.
He understood that the public sentiment was extremely conservative surrounding King Regus after his death which is why he said nothing but praises about the dead king in his edict.
However, he also emphasised on the importance of not cowering or backing away at this moment and continuing with the full-fledged counter-offensive against the forces of Dracula.
In a way, a tier7 god promising to stop and kill Dracula within the next five years sounded like an empty promise, however, since Max was a Rajput, people believed him and had faith in his growth potential and family background to surmount this challenge.
*********
( Meanwhile on Zandar )
" The crown looks good on you, my friend," Sebastian said as he admired the look of the vampire crown on Max's head.
Max had always had a feral look of a warrior as he exuded an intensity that made everyone notice him when he walked into a room, however, with a crown over his head that intensity was changed into magnanimity as he simply looked regal and majestic.
" Thankyou, my brother " Max said with a soft smile on his face as he enjoyed the weight of the vampire crown over his head.
" I've listened to the full story by Severus, seems like you need to prove your worth by actions rather than words as the peace you have forcibly forged will not last for long- " Sebastian said as he expressed concerns over how Max had taken over power as even he understood that ' Fear ' was not a potent tool in ruling over a family like unit such as the vampire society.
" *Sigh*, I know…. And that's exactly why I needed to call for you my friend, because I need to sniff out Ulrich. If I can kill that werewolf, I'll be able to calm many of my critiques and will be able to restore some confidence in the crown " Max said as Sebastian rolled his eyes.
" I told you it's not the policy of the church of cowards to divulge classified info-..... Pfft, hahaha, I can't-, acting noble is too hard " Sebastian said as he chuckled midway through his own sentence as he was unable to keep a straight face.
Max chuckled with him as the way Sebastian rolled his eyes and tried to say the first few words with a straight face was truly funny.
" Ofcourse, I'll sniff him out for you Max. Just give me a day! The church of cowards can get anything done, no problem " Sebastian said as lowkey the church of cowards had grown into a force almost as formidable as a monarchy by itself.
It had amassed billions of followers and any mission issued by the church became a priority for all believers to fulfil.
Sebastian held unprecedented power in his hands by being the pope of a truly popular religion whose deity of worship was already dead.
" I just need to ask Man, if you fight Dracula instead of Ulrich, what do you assume shall be your percentage of success in beating him? " Sebastian asked as Max thought a little about his question and replied " 30% "
It was a modest reply and Sebastian automatically increased it to 50-50 in his head as he knew Max and what his replies really meant.
" Then wouldn't it have been better to kill him when he was injured after fighting Regus?
You could have avoided all these problems if you fought him when he was down.
As a coward, it's what you should have done " Sebastian said as he could not wrap his head around why Max let Dracula go away when he arrived to save Regus.
It was a valid question, however, Sebastian did not understand how [ Soul Devour ] worked.
Max could not reveal to his best friend how he planned to eat Dracula's soul to nourish his own, however, he could only do so when Drax was active and prepared.
Not wanting to end-up with a dual personality and the memories of another man being fed into his brain, Max had no choice but to let Dracula go as he selfishly wanted to devour him at a later date.