" Before the Tower, humanity trusted much of its power to individuals. Most people let others make decisions on their behalf and believed their leaders would keep everyone’s best interests in mind. They tried to be careful about who they gave their power to, but often chose badly. It took time and experience for them to learn whom they could and could not trust, and even then, it didn’t always work. So humanity adapted, creating laws that people hoped would protect them from those who would take advantage, or who sought power over and above anything else. But systems could be dismantled. The people who were given power could be corrupted by it. And more often than not, those who sought power and had only their own self-interests at heart rose to the top. "
― Bella Forrest , The Girl Who Dared to Fight (The Girl Who Dared #7)