Super Righteous Player
Chapter 476 - 17 Supervisor Niusel_1

Chapter 476: Chapter 17 Supervisor Niusel_1

The residents of the Underground Federation never refer to its full name.

"The Twin Goddesses’ Republic Federation," this title, with the two goddesses not frequently residing in their homeland, is almost completely unacknowledged by the populace.

They indeed are very grateful to the two goddesses for granting them the ability to live underground.

However, gratitude does not equate to reverence.

For the underground residents revere nothing.

They do not revere monarchs, parents, or gods.

They even lack the concept of state, territory, or ethnicity... because their "territory" is constantly being expanded, and they were originally an assembly of many "failures," even now their numbers continue to grow.

In contrast to the narrow world above, the Underworld with its near-infinite space and extraordinarily abundant resources allows the citizens of the Underground Federation a considerable degree of freedom.

The underground people even feel a sense of superiority over those above ground.

They even often gather together to mock the worries possessed by the surface dwellers.

For there are always those above ground who worry they will be invaded via the subway system. These fears are reiterated in newspapers and speeches, emphasizing the threat of the underground people and the dangers of the subway.

But the truth is, they have absolutely no interest in the surface world.

They are not concerned about food or clothing, they can see the light, they enjoy extremely low prices, substantial personal space, and can easily buy exotic products from various countries; they don’t need to be conscripted into wars between states and do not have lords, kings, or nobles... except for the obligation to pay taxes to the Council of Sages and to follow the laws proposed by the Council of Sages, they have almost no duties.

The entire Underworld is governed by a bicameral system consisting of "The Diggers’ Council" and "The Council of Sages."

However, this does not mean that the councillors hold higher status than them.

In the Underworld, each city lacks a so-called "mayor." Nearly all are governed by members of the Council of Sages—none of them have specific titles; they each manage their own realms.

Because they are not answerable to a state, monarch, or local nobility, and with the Underground Federation always expanding and the population of each city not being large, there’s not much in particular that needs managing.

Even the laws differ completely between different underground cities on the same urban level. With extremely affordable housing and living costs and no immigration limits, when the local laws become unacceptable to the residents, they autonomously relocate to other cities.

This is a stark contrast to the world above.

"So that’s why there are so few people here..."

Four Concealed Triplets looked around and whispered, "Because the environment here is not good?"

He did not dare to speak loudly.

Being unfamiliar with this place, he was mainly afraid of getting beaten up.

"Oh, that’s not it."

The speaker was not Jiu’er or Lin Yiyi.

But a man with an exceptionally pale complexion, dressed in a long-sleeved leather jacket with a ruff collar.

"Because previously, there was a major incident here, a troublesome nightmare was hatched. This place used to be called Black Mushroom Mill, not the Sporogenesis Mill... After the nightmare occurred, quite a few found it troublesome and temporarily moved out, planning to return once the nightmare had dissipated."

As the man spoke, he reached out a hand to Four Concealed Triplets and smiled slightly at Lin Yiyi and Jiu’er: "Let me introduce myself, I am the supervisor of Sporogenesis Mill. My name is Niusel.

"Where do you come from? Coming to the Sporogenesis Mill at this time, could it be... you are friends seeking to solve the nightmare?"

His brown hair curled naturally, and his eyes sparkled with a strange green light—those self-illuminating eyes, the exceptionally pale or deep black, plaster-like or obsidian-like skin are one of the main characteristics of the underground people.

Niusel emanated a faint smell of alcohol and tobacco.

...A supervisor?

Lin Yiyi immediately became a bit more vigilant.

If there’s one thing similar to their surface world... it’s that the Underworld still has positions akin to "police," "judges," and "lawyers."

Undergrounders refer to police officers as "Supervisors," while judges are members of the Council of Wisdom—specifically, the lawmakers themselves. Lawyers are known as "Advocates," a profession that is despised and belittled in the Underworld.

The laws of different cities are decided through discussions by each local Council of Wisdom, while the funds to hire Supervisors are either paid jointly by the members of The Diggers’ Council or assumed directly by a member of that Council.

Of course, councilors are definitely wealthier than ordinary citizens.

But it isn’t because one becomes wealthy by being a councilor. It’s that only those who have the capability of becoming wealthy are qualified to be councilors.

The original bicameral system was comprised of the founders of the Underground Federation.

—Namely, the "Wise" and the "Diggers".

The apogee of "Wisdom" and "Diligence".

All members of the Council of Wisdom are followers of the Mysterious Lady, with a small number adhering to Sui, the Father of Flint. They are outstanding inventors, engineers, botanists... It is these "Wise" who have bit by bit crafted the splendid civilization of the Underworld. Only the most excellent and intelligent can become members of the Council of Wisdom.

Be it the subways that use Mist as energy or the underwater tunnels, all are their masterpieces—not gifts from the gods.

As for The Diggers’ Council...

Among them, followers of the Lady of Silence and Grave-Mother are equally divided.

Every volunteer who wishes to become a "Digger," to carve out new lands for the Underground Federation, receives a set of equipment and rations before delving into the exploration layers... After that, they are left to their fate.

There are not "wells" everywhere that lead back to the surface.

In the exploration layers, where there are no maps and resources cannot be replenished, it’s not uncommon to lose one’s light source, food, water, to be attacked by monsters of the deep, or even by other Diggers.

If one dies in an exploration layer, not even a message of "I have died" can be sent out.

They just become "missing".

The ownership of valuable areas discovered by Diggers automatically goes to The Diggers’ Council, and the discoverer is granted councilor status. Until the discoverer’s death, anyone who rents and uses the land through The Diggers’ Council pays a third of all expenses to the discoverer; ten years after the discoverer’s death, this amount is reduced to a tenth and continues to be paid to their family.

However, beneath this extremely generous compensation lies a 70% "disappearance" rate for "Diggers" in their first month.

This is why the "Diggers" worship Grave-Mother.

For many of them set out on their journeys with the mental preparation of "dying in the soil".

—If the "Wise" earn their wealth, respect, and happiness from citizens through their intelligence and minds, the "Diggers" gain their wealth through "hard-earned labor from digging," the "courage to face great dangers," and the "luck of a successful return".

In turn, "Supervisors" only need to be directly accountable to the Diggers.

Those they arrest may not necessarily be lawbreakers, but individuals the Diggers wish to be apprehended.

And if the Supervisor themselves is a "Digger"...

Lin Yiyi glanced at Niusel.

Her foolish little brother and Jiu’er were both young and unreliable.

Now that Prince Annan had visited the Winter Kingdom, the responsibility fell to her alone.

The Underworld... is not a place of reason.

The weak are bullied here, but being too troublesome also makes one unpopular.

One mustn’t appear too difficult to deal with.

Yet one must also inspire some wariness in others... right?

So Lin Yiyi pondered for a moment and came to a decision.

She spoke solemnly, "My name is ’Yiyi’.

"We are... the scribes of the ’Secret Eye’."