Cudius held an optimistic view of the future transformations in this world.

  Looking at the trajectory of history, these ges were undoubtedly iable.

  Eight turies of rule had accumuted a vast number of tradis. Wheensions could no longer be suppressed, they would iably trigger a massive backsh, one so turbulent that no human effort could halt it.

  Cudius didn't delude himself into thinking he owerful enough to single-handedly suppress the wave of aire era. For the various systems set in pce by the Wover, whatever was meant to ge iure would certainly still ge. However, Cudius had no iion of passively accepting all these ges.

  There were different types of ges.

  The first would be bottom-up, sparked by the revolutionary army that Dragon would one day establish. The csh of iron and blood would bring about a direct ge in the ruling dynasty. At that time, while the Wover might survive in some anizational form, its current rulers would be doomed.

  The sed type of ge would be top-down. This was the method Cudius favored a transformation initiated from within, allowing the system to adapt to the ging era, thereby revitalizing itself. This was the path Cudius was leaning toward, and it might be the approach he would take iure.

  "Even if the world ges, it should be guided by divine hands," Cudius muttered softly.

  "Yhness?" Nia, standing by his side, looked at him in fusion, unsure how to respond to his cryptic words.

  Cudius smiled, setting aside the book in his hand. "Don't mind me. I was just thinking out loud."

  Cudius's pn was clear: he inteo seize the right moment to initiate a top-down transformation that could adapt to the tidal wave of the new era. But before that, he o make preparations. If he wao stir up ge, he couldn't do it alone he needed power, allies who would spire with him.

  At present, Dragon seemed like someone who might be of use. However, Cudius was still too young. Had he been born a decade or so earlier, he might have beeer prepared. Therefore, until he possessed suffit strength, he couldn't act rashly or push Dragon too hard. His approach would o be subtle he would have to gradually influence Dragon's thinking, helping him uand Cudius's ideas, so that the two of them wouldn't end up as enemies.

  This kind of work required "culture." In simple terms: brainwashing.

  After all, Cudius hailed from an era of information overload in his previous life. His mind was brimming with knowledge, and as a well-educated man, brainwashing these natives shouldn't pose too much of a challenge.

  "If things go as expected, the best solution would be to adapt to the times by ref the existing system. Of all possible systems, a stitutional monarchy seems most fitting delegating symbolic power to the people so they feel like they have a stake in things, while holding the real, invisible power behind the ses. That's the framework I have in mind."

  Cudius pondered over this.

  When tradis piled up to a breaking point, if one didn't want to be overthrown, cessions had to be made. The biggest fw of the current system was that the Wover wielded too much power, and the Celestial Dragons were pletely urained, making them utterly wless.

  To avoid the fate of being overthrown, Cudius felt that some power o be ceded. However, this would only be a fa?ade. As long as societal productive forces hadn't yet reached a point of equal wealth distribution, css divisions would remaiable. Right now, these divisions were simply t, with the Celestial Dragons brazenly standing above everything else. Such tradis were bound to lead to flict.

  Although Cudius temporarily believed in delegating power, he had no iion of dismantling the upper css. His goal was to stabilize their power through the redistribution of authority. He would use wealth to trol power discreetly after the system was reformed.

  In short, Cudius inteo use stitutional reform as a fa?ade to create a pseudo-capitalist system. Outwardly, there would be no obvious power on dispy, but iy, he would still trol the true power wealth.

  By that time, with one hand holding the illusion of symbolic authority and the other holding real eic power, coupled with Marine waving the fg of justice, it would appear that signifit ges had occurred. But iy, he would still be at the top.

  That would be enough.

  Of course, Cudius knew better than to let Dragon in on these deeper thoughts. He had to these ideas in the rhetoric of the "new era" and make them seem progressive. After all, what's more effective than using lofty ideals to manipute others?

  This kind of trickery was easy enough. It appeared grandiose, but it wasn't too plicated certainly not for Cudius.

  Once Cudius uood this, he realized that gaining Dragon's cooperation would be his first majoal. The best way to do this? Books.

  Dragon was still serving as a Vice Admiral in the Marine, meaning his ideological views hadn't solidified yet. His values were still being shaped, rgely influenced by Garp.

  That erfect. At this stage, before Dragon fully discovered his path, Cudius could "rewrite" his thoughts using books that resonated with him.

  As someone who came from an information-rich era, Cudius had more than enough material in his head to pose a book that could sway someone like Dragon. But for this pn to work, the tent had to fit this world it couldn't be too outndish.

  Thus, Cudius had Nia tinually gather books from this world for him, expanding his knowledge and preparing for the task ahead.

  This was just the beginning. First, he would write a simple work to "enlighten" Dragon. He'd find a way to ehat Dragon stumbled upon it naturally, arousing his curiosity. That would be the first step.

  Later, when he was strong enough to travel freely, Cudius would traverse the world, writing a more substantial book ohat could genuinely inspire Dragon.

  The best oute would be co-publishing a book with Dragon, tying him firmly to these ideals.

  "I really am devious... tsk." Cudius touched his , smiling wickedly.

  For now, g the strength to act openly, he had to rely on this "cultural" approach. It was the only path avaible to him.

  Of course, Cudius khat without real power, all of this was mere talk. If this path succeeded, it would be ideal. But if it failed, he would have to explore other means to secure his is.

  "Mass murder..." Cudius muttered.

  The first approach, a top-down transformation, was the kingly path ruling through benevolence, enlightening the people, and guiding them with reason.

  The sed, more brutal path, was hegemony. If reasoning failed, Cudius would have to use raw power to enforce his will. Whoever tried to overthrow him would be eliminated.

  These were thoughts Cudius kept to himself, weighing each option carefully. In the end, though, all roads led back to one clusion: strength was essential.

  With that thought, Cudius snapped back to the present. Nia was still standing quietly beside him, waiting patiently.

  "Nia, bring me my pen and ink," Cudius said.

  Nia blinked in surprise. "Yhness?" She thought he had been fog on martial arts retly, and now, suddenly, he wao write? Could he be thinking of posing a book?

  She was momentarily fused, but in the end, it didn't matter. Cudius was a Celestial Dragon. Whether he was writing or even burning books, no one would dare question him.

  Pushing aside these thoughts, Nia quickly fetched the pen and ink.

  Cudius took the pen, paused for a moment, and thought to himself: if he wao influence Dragon's idealism, he needed a title that sounded grand!

  After a few moments of sideration, Cudius made his decision and wrote twe characters on the paper: "Civil Rights."

  But when he looked at his handwriting, Cudius froze. While the words themselves were fihe writing was atrocious practically illegible.

  "Ugh, my predecessor was truly useless. A noble who 't even write properly... It's embarrassing," Cudius muttered to himself.

  Frustrated, he set the pen down. "Nia, you do it."

  "Me?" Nia was taken aback. "But Yhness... I'm not sure what you want to write."

  "I'll dictate it to you. My handwriting is too awful to show to anyone. You write detly, right?" Cudius asked, smiling.

  Nia nodded hesitantly. "We do have to learn proper calligraphy in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Along with music, chess, painting, and so on..."

  Cudius wasn't surprised. As a steward for the Celestial Dragons, it made sense for her to be highly skilled. After all, if one of the Celestial Dragons was in a good mood and asked you to py a tune or paint something, you couldn't very well say no. Otherwise, they might kill you for being useless.

  "Good, then you write for me," Cudius said with a grin.

  Nia sat down in the spot Cudius had vacated. After ly writing the words "Civil Rights," she paused, waiting for Cudius to tinue dictating.

  Cudius stood behind her, his voice calm and measured as he spoke:

  "The people are like water, and the ruler is the boat. Dynasties may rise and fall, leaders may ge, but the people endure. Water support a boat, but it also overturn it. Therefore, the well-being of the people must always e first, while the ruler serves as their guiding light..."

  Cudius tio dictate in a low voice while Nia diligently recorded his words. If Cudius wao influence Dragon's idealism, he had to craft this carefully, blending grand ideals with practical rhetoric. The title and the text o sound profound enough to inspire someone like Dragon.

  Nia, listening ily to Cudius's words, couldn't help but feel a growing sense of disbelief. Initially, she thought Cudius's sudden i in writing was just a passing whim, perhaps some lofty rhetoric praising the greatness of the Celestial Dragons. But these words...

  The more Cudius spoke, the more shocked Nia became. His thoughts, his philosophy, seemed almost radical. As a member of the Celestial Dragons, Cudius's ideas about the people being the foundation of society, about rulers needing to adapt or face ruin were astonishing, almost bsphemous.

  She kept her posure, though, tinuing to write, her pen moving steadily across the paper as she recorded every word.