"You mean that Westeni is lacking a person who can take charge." Maximus candidly articulated Quintus’s concern. He glanced around the hall at everyone present. Most showed concern, but their eyes were somewhat evasive. Clearly, they all realized the issue but were hesitant to raise it due to his authority.
Maximus smiled slightly and said calmly, "Originally, I intended to leave this issue for discussion at the end of the meeting, but since Quintus has already mentioned it, I’ll address it now.
I’ve previously stated that our Nix is different from other forces in the Mediterranean, and power needs to be highly centralized in the Political Affairs Hall. Naturally, Westley requires a City Lord to manage its affairs, but this City Lord is not like the chief of a small tribe under the great tribe of Alde who decides everything within the tribe, nor is he like the City Lord appointed by Rome to various towns in Italy, where power is largely held by local councils and nobles making him basically a figurehead.
The City Lord of our Nix is appointed by the Political Affairs Hall. He has his own subordinates, and each department must send subordinates to the town to jointly handle municipal affairs with the City Lord—"
"Like a small Political Affairs Hall," Pigeris blurted out.
Quintus then keenly identified another issue: "With both a City Lord and departmental subordinates, whose instructions should be followed in managing town affairs?"
"Indeed, the administrative institutions of subordinate towns are somewhat similar to but different from the Political Affairs Hall," Maximus patiently explained. "Our Nix Tribe Officials, like the military, are sorted by ranks from top to bottom, starting with me as the tribal leader, followed by you all present here—the chief officers of the nine departments, next are the city lords of other towns, then the deputies of various departments, and finally the subordinates of various departments..."
Looking at everyone listening attentively, Maximus said, "Currently, the tribe is newly established with small territory and population, and few officials, so the tribal officials are simply divided into 5 levels initially. In the future, as the territory expands, population increases, and officials grow in number, further subdivisions will be made. I imagine ultimately there might be a dozen levels of tribal officials."
Someone in the hall gasped, followed by Acronis asking: "Leader, may I ask what level I, as Chief of Internal Affairs, am?"
Maximus seriously answered: "The Chief of Internal Affairs is responsible for the internal affairs of my residence, differing from tribal officials and having a separate set of ratings. Currently, you don’t have many subordinates, so there’s no distinction between sizes; when more personnel are involved, detailed ratings will be established. But no matter what, the level of the Chief of Internal Affairs is the highest."
"That’s great!" Acronis rejoiced.
Maximus continued: "According to the tribal official ratings I just mentioned, specifically in the village of Westeni, the City Lord’s rank is the highest. When consulting with departmental subordinates on town matters, he has the leading authority and decision-making power; departmental subordinates should implement his final orders as long as they do not violate the tribal decree.
However, a few points must be emphasized! First, the City Lord and departmental subordinates must obey any orders issued by the Political Affairs Hall; second, the City Lord must not interfere in the internal affairs of the town’s departments; third, the City Lord has no right to command the town’s army, nor does the army have the right to interfere in town affairs; fourth, the City Lord’s term has a time limit, and after serving for three or four years, he must be transferred..."
Maximus looked at everyone listening and pondering, then said: "That’s all I can think of. Does anyone have anything to add?"
After a brief silence in the hall, Gaius looked around and said: "Leader, your plan is very thorough. I tried hard to think but couldn’t come up with anything else to add."
While Gaius’s words had a hint of flattery, they were also factual. After all, most of the chief officers, being of humble origin, were naturally quite limited in experience; although they had been trained for more than a year, the tribe had just been founded, and everyone was still political novices. The set of systematic political frameworks Maximus proposed had already made them rack their brains for quite some time, leaving little room for immediate suggestions, so they readily chimed in agreement.
Only Quintus asked: "Leader, I want to know how our army ranks are divided? How do they compare to the ranks of administrative officials?"
Maximus quickly replied: "As for the military, from top to bottom, it’s the three Chief Officers of the Military Department > Legion Commander > Great Captain > Centurion and Military Department subordinates > centurion. Legion Commander is on par with a City Lord, and Great Captain is equivalent to deputies in other departments."
"If the Segestica people invade again and Westeni needs defense, do the tribesmen follow the Legion Commander’s orders or adhere to the City Lord’s command?" Quintus asked further.
"In a wartime situation, of course, the Legion Commander takes precedence, with the City Lord as secondary." Maximus firmly added: "Two legions are stationed at Westeni, with two Legion Commanders there, Torrelugo and Camillus being of the same rank. The legion with the earlier number can temporarily take charge until the Political Affairs Hall issues an order specifying who the chief commander is."
Quintus nodded, finally ceasing his questions.
Maximus continued: "After all that’s been said, Westeni needs a City Lord, yet Snowdonia also requires one. However, with small territory, few tribesmen, and not many tasks for now, I will temporarily serve as the City Lord of Snowdonia. Everyone can also serve as members of the respective departments in that village, thereby learning together how to manage and build a village, which I believe will help us in managing larger territories in the future.
Now we need to decide who will take on the role of City Lord of Westeni. You may recommend whoever you think is suitable, but I hope this candidate has certain management skills and can read and count."
Initially, everyone was eager, but the two conditions set by Maximus dimmed the enthusiasm of many.
Vallerus spoke up: "I recommend our Agricultural Department’s Deputy Officer, Sicropus. He was once a slave of the Vidius family in Pompeii, recording the movement of goods at the docks for years, and later actively joined our team.
While I served as the administrative officer in Sarabia, he assisted me in completing various tasks assigned by the leader, making significant contributions to keeping Sarabia stable during the months of our occupation. I think he is suitable for the role of City Lord of Westeni."
"Sicropus, I know him. He certainly is quite capable, but are you willing to let him go from the Agricultural Department?" Maximus teased.
"We are all working for our tribe; there’s nothing to be reluctant about. Besides, the other people in our Agricultural Department are also quite capable. I will recommend someone else as Deputy Officer and seek your approval, Leader," Vallerus replied earnestly.
"It seems your Agricultural Department has plenty of talent," Maximus laughed.
Capito couldn’t resist saying loudly: "Leader, I recommend Yulitimos from the former Supply Camp. He was Sarabia’s shipwright and was forced to join us but began proactively working for us afterward.
He was responsible for drawing some of the workshop blueprints in Sarabia, and later during the march, I made him the head of the carpenters. From Italy to here, the carpenters have been the most orderly among all craftsmen in the Supply Camp, which shows his capability. I believe he is suitable to be City Lord."