Magna Carta.
Bill of Rights.
If you didn’t sleep through world history class, you’ve probably learned about them at least once.
These documents are the foundation of modern democracy and constitutionalism.
So, what do they say?
To put it simply… they’re like an installment sales contract for royal authority.
The Magna Carta was created in 1215 because of the idiocy of a fool named King John.
Every time he waged war against France, he lost, and he made the nobles pay for it.
Eventually, they had enough and rose up, declaring that this guy was incapable of risk management, and they put shackles on him.
From then on, he couldn’t impose unnecessary additional taxes, and certain rights had to be guaranteed.
Even the king was now subject to the rule of law.
“Well, not that it mattered much—since the Pope later declared it invalid, effectively breaking the contract.”
And thanks to his successor, Henry III, coming up with the futuristic concept of “limited inheritance waiver” (but only for the contract), it was rendered useless for centuries.
Still, as the first-ever constitution and the foundation of the rule of law, the Magna Carta held significant meaning.
The Bill of Rights followed the same path.
If the Magna Carta laid the groundwork, the Bill of Rights painted the picture on top, realizing constitutional monarchy.
In other words, these two documents were what made democracy possible worldwide today.
“It should work in this world too. Politically, we’re around the early modern period.”
There’s no way this won’t be effective.
The level of civilization is advanced enough, and the political environment is suitable.
Even if it’s only within Alcyone, it should still be effective.
But there was one big problem getting in the way of my plan.
“Writing it down is easy. But how do I spread it?”
Even if I created the document, there was no clear way to distribute it.
My previous works were published in stable countries where I could just print and sell them.
But this time, the country is about to descend into civil war.
The moment Drake IV is assassinated, the whole nation will erupt into chaos.
There’s no time to leisurely print and sell books.
“Should I just print it and distribute it like pamphlets?”
It’s not a long document anyway.
At most, it would take two or three A4 pages to summarize the content.
Mass-printing and scattering it could be a viable strategy.
Cost?
Printing pamphlets is much cheaper than publishing actual books, so the organization can cover it.
If I can sway even a portion of the public and form widespread consensus, there will be plenty of factions eager to align their strategies with it and seek public support.
But the Bill of Rights isn’t exactly the kind of document that sparks passionate enthusiasm, so I wasn’t entirely sure about this plan.
“Relying on the general public’s response is pretty inefficient. There’s no guarantee people will act the way I intend.”
The first pamphlet I ever wrote was packed with quotes from Hitler and Goebbels, so at least it had shock value.
I designed it to be as provocative as possible, with the clear goal of propaganda.
But the Magna Carta?
The Bill of Rights?
Who in their right mind would read those and suddenly think, ‘Ah! I should become a constitutionalist! From today onward, I support the constitution!’
If someone did, they should probably be sent to a mental institution.
That would be the kind of person who gets aroused just by looking at words—an abnormal fetishist.
“Maybe there’s a way to selectively distribute it to high-ranking figures and persuade them instead.”
As I was mulling over this unsolved problem, Kalia poured me a cup of coffee and asked, “What are you thinking about?”
“Why are you sighing so much?”
“Kalia, the thing is…”
After I explained the situation, she looked at me with an exasperated expression.
“Then why don’t you just leave it to the organization? Do you know how many agents we’ve infiltrated into Alcyone?”
“Oh.”
“Sometimes, you overcomplicate simple things way too much.”
According to Kalia, there were already over a hundred agents stationed in Alcyone, disguised as merchants, brothel owners, and veteran mercenaries.
A select few were even knights or baronets (landed gentry).
While controlling the entire nation’s public opinion was impossible, delivering key information and influencing major figures within various factions was well within reach.
The elites aren’t fools—if they receive the Bill of Rights, they’ll recognize its value.
They’ll naturally find ways to use it for their own political maneuvering, leading things exactly where I want them to go.
Have I been working too hard?
I must have been an idiot.
I work for an organization that operates on a continental scale, and I doubted we could pull off something this simple?
Maybe my brain got fried after spending the whole day recruiting new talent and handling other matters.
“As soon as you finish the manuscript, give it to me. I’ll have it printed in bulk and sent to the Alcyone branch.”
“Thank you. Whether it’s in class or elsewhere, I always end up relying on you.”
“If you know that, you should treat me better. You always just say thank you and nothing more.”
“Then maybe next time… I’ll show my gratitude physically?”
“H-Hey! Cut the nonsense!”
*****
After getting smacked by Kalia for making a dirty joke, I took a full day off to rest.
Once my fatigue faded and my mind cleared, I was finally able to start working the next day.
“Where should I start…”
This time, I needed a lot of editing.
Since the originals were from the 13th and 17th centuries, their structure was outdated.
There were no proper numbering or paragraph breaks—just an endless stream of text.
Hundreds of lines of continuous writing.
That might have been fine back then, but to a modern reader, it was pure frustration.
So, I made some changes.
I rewrote it to be clearer and easier to understand.
I adapted a format similar to legal codes and official reports for better readability.
[1. The king shall not have the power to suspend the law or halt its execution without the consent of Parliament.]
[4. Petitioning the king is the right of the people, and punishing or imprisoning someone for such petitions shall be unlawful.]
[9. Parliament must be convened at regular intervals. Elections and freedom of speech within Parliament, as well as the people’s right to petition, are sacred and inviolable.]
[14. No member shall be prosecuted or questioned outside Parliament for anything said, debated, or discussed within it.]
The Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights shared fundamental similarities.
Since distributing two separate documents would be cumbersome, I merged them into a single text.
I started by defining the rights and authority of Parliament.
Since Alcyone was formed by the unification of several small states, I had heard that its parliamentary system developed early on to accommodate diverse opinions.
Regardless of the outcome of the civil war, this system would likely continue to exist even after the conflict.
So, I made sure to grant it ample authority and legitimacy to keep the monarchy in check.
Just as my intended audience desired, the parliament would function as the true governing body under a powerless figurehead monarch.
I also ensured that no one could threaten the parliament’s existence or political position.
[27. The monarch shall not demand excessive bail from criminals. Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor shall cruel or unreasonable punishments be administered.]
[32. Jurors attending a trial must be selected through due process in parliament. In cases of treason, the jury shall not be appointed by the monarch.]
[48. No free person shall be arrested, imprisoned, deprived of property, stripped of legal rights, or exiled without the lawful judgment of their peers or the due process of law.]
[51. Without the consent of parliament, the monarch shall not recruit or maintain a standing army within the kingdom during peacetime.]
Next, I introduced practical measures to turn the monarch into a mere puppet.
In a typical state, the king would hold legislative, judicial, and executive powers.
I transferred legislative power entirely to the parliament and placed judicial authority under its indirect supervision.
Executive power remained untouched since there was no alternative governing body to take over, but I stripped the monarch of key privileges.
For instance, land management rights.
[54. If a noble dies without an heir and the king reclaims the land, he may only hold it under the same conditions as the previous noble. He shall not impose new taxes, forced labor, or other obligations at his discretion.]
This prevented the monarch from exploiting his authority to oppress the people and consolidate power.
No matter what happened, the parliament’s influence would remain unmatched.
No matter how much the monarch struggled, he would never be more than a glorified rubber stamp.
“This should do.”
Those who despised absolute monarchy would love it, while those who aspired to the throne would loathe it.
This alone was enough to divide the Alcyone Federation into several factions and set them against each other.
If I released it right as the civil war reached its peak… it would be quite the spectacle.
It would be troublesome if the idea of constitutional monarchy spread beyond the island, but given how isolated it was, that seemed unlikely.
How could they engage with the outside world while they were too busy tearing each other apart?
“Kalia, I’ll be counting on you, then.”
“Leave it to me.”
Having entrusted the follow-up to my reliable colleague and superior, I refocused on my role as an instructor, looking forward to some good news in the near future.
*****
But then, what was this?
[The Holy Maiden of the Goddess’ Church delivers a speech to the masses in the capital of the Kram Empire.]
Looks like my runaway troublemaker of a disciple is up to something cute.
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