When the Mist Alliance was first established, the moon elves from the Northlands had joined as well. Actually, the entire Northlands had joined as well. If the moon elves didn't join, that would be the equivalent of isolating themselves and becoming little lambs sleeping in the mouth of a dragon.
But even though the moon elves had joined as well, their status in the Mist Alliance had always been quite awkward.
How was the relationship between the elves and humans? Their bitter friendship didn't even need to be mentioned. The grudges between the elves and humans had already given rise to countless historical stories. It would be no problem for the elves to support countless playwrights and novelists.
The core of the Mist Alliance was the two major Mist kingdoms, and the Mist people were humans. In that case, the core of the Mist Alliance would naturally be humans. As for other species such as beastmen, Northlands barbarians, undead, and Underground factions, they were either allies from the very start or enemies that had been defeated. As long as one side was strong enough and the vassal side didn't have much conflict, it wouldn't be too difficult for them to join together.
So-called joining together meant that there would be one voice telling us what to do, and nobody would oppose us.
Joining together with the entire Mist Alliance sounded simple, but it actually included a series of actions and projects.
Some of the most important ones were the construction of transportation routes, the redistribution of administrative responsibilities, and the unification of military ranks.
These policies didn't seem like much, and they seemed like they were just for show. But they actually directly affected whether the Mist Alliance was truly united or just a pile of loose sand.
In the past, the roads between different countries … If those muddy and messy mountain roads could be considered roads, then roads would probably barely cover more than 5% of the roads.
Although "build roads first if you want to get rich" was just a slogan, it definitely wasn't just empty words. This was especially true in this era of cold weapons. The difference between horse carriages and walking wasn't just in speed. The amount of goods transported by horse carriages and horses was completely different from the amount of goods transported by horse carriages. When goods couldn't be sold, farm products were left to rot in the fields, and the price of goods transported from mines was higher than the price of ores, so-called development would be nothing more than empty words.
As for transporting goods by air? Not to mention the terrible ratio of air transportation to transportation costs, the Mist Alliance's airships alone wouldn't be able to handle regular transportation tasks. It should be known that while roads might seem inconspicuous, tens of thousands of people would use them every day. Not only that, it was a permanent investment. Every time they used air transportation, the Mist Alliance would have to calculate the cost to see if they would be able to make a profit.
But, unlike the residents of a certain world who desired a better life, the residents of the feudal era had lived like this for generations. They didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Relying on the heavens to make a living seemed like it was only natural.
If the Mist Alliance really started building roads and started using labor, they would feel that it was too much.
Not only did they feel that the Mist Alliance's domain's domain, but they also felt that the Mist Alliance, the domain 'domain's domain' domain's domain was the end. but, the Mist domain 'domain domain's domain's Mist. The Mist domain' domain 'domain domain was also the Mist' Mist Empire 'domain's domain. The Alliance' domain domain domain lords domain's domain.
The Mist Alliance's establishment also meant that the Mist Alliance's domain lords were no longer afraid of being attacked by others for building roads. Not only that, Donglan, Sleuweir, and other countries were rapidly developing, as well as improving their citizens' living standards. Of course, the most direct part was that countless new gadgets had appeared, which indeed touched the hearts of the people who hadn't changed for generations. Many people now truly desired change.
But to put it nicely, almost 20% of the Mist Alliance's total tax revenue over the past eight years had been invested into the Mist Alliance. The Mist Alliance's road coverage had increased from 5% to 10%. Now, all of the Mist Alliance's roads had four lanes of stone … Although this number was small and the roads looked shabby, this already meant that all of the countries' main roads were now passable. They wouldn't be completely cut off when it rained or snowed.
As for the details, that was the responsibility of the various countries and domain lords. The Mist Alliance was already doing a good enough job as an alliance between countries.
The completion of these main roads also meant that normal administrative tasks and documents could now be sent back to normal. Centralization of authority was beginning to replace the feudal system. Secret messengers from kings would often appear in novels and dramas. Although these messengers represented the people's sincere desire for justice and their enmity towards evil domain lords, they were also the result of inconvenient transportation and ineffective government orders.
As communication became smoother and more normal, the redistribution of administrative responsibilities meant that the Mist Alliance's countries were no longer independent entities. Not only was the royal authority and domain lord authority weakened, but the various countries also began to follow the Mist Alliance's policies and plans. This gigantic Northlands giant now had a skeleton that could support itself.
Of course, these policies had already received the approval of the various countries' kings. They were all quite shameless, and wouldn't cause the domain lords to retaliate … It was best not to talk about this. Just the games and schemes involved would be enough to last several days.
Following this was the mutual recognition of military ranks and the reorganization of the armies. This was the equivalent of giving all the Knight squadrons, military officers, and Knight nobles of the Mist Alliance's countries a number. This would allow them to recognize each other's ranks, and they would all listen to the Mist Alliance's overall commander under the name of their country's king. Of course, this would only be an unconventional arrangement that would only take effect during times of war. Normally, the Knight squadrons would still be doing their own things.
Only at this stage would the Mist Alliance's combat strength be able to cooperate with each other and be effective in battle. But this was only a brief introduction. The messy matters involved could be written into a novel. It would be far too long to go into detail.
As for the elves, or more accurately speaking, the Northlands moon elves … The Mist Alliance's plan was stuck at the very first step.
According to the original plan, the Mist Alliance would need to clear out a road to the Moon Kingdom of the Elves. However, one of the roads would naturally be the Tassel Kingdom of the Elves's territory. That was where the elven countries and the human countries were connected.
There used to be a road there, and it was an excellent road built by the Tassel Kingdom. Although the natural calamity had caused severe damage to parts of the road, repairing the original road would be far easier than rebuilding it from scratch. No matter if it was in terms of time or cost, it would save more than 70% of the elven countries' time and money.
However …
"This area doesn't belong to any of the Kingdom of the Elves. We refuse to pay for the construction of this road."
From a certain standpoint, this was basically a lie. This road could only lead to the Elves' territory. What did the Elves' territory mean by refusing to repair it?
According to the Mist Alliance's current policy, the local country would pay 70% of the cost of repairing the road, while the Mist Alliance would pay 30%. This was common sense as well as tradition. The local country would benefit the most, so the local country would naturally pay more. However, the Mist Alliance was only paying 30%, which was already an astronomical amount when considering the cost of masks.
However, there was a small problem with this policy. As mentioned before, the Tassel Kingdom's territory didn't belong to any country on the map. The Kingdom of the Elves would use this reason to refuse to pay for the road, which was barely acceptable.
However, there were also such obscure areas on the map. In the end, the domain lords all readily paid for the road. Nobody was an idiot. Refusing to repair the road would not only mean missing out on the opportunity to develop their infrastructure, it would also mean isolating themselves from the Mist Alliance's system.
Yet, the Kingdom of the Elves refused, completely refusing without leaving any room for negotiation …
Did the elves have no money? Even the undead wouldn't believe this. The elves' exclusive magical products and artwork were highly profitable businesses. Even robbery wouldn't be as fast as the elves. Plus, with the elves' many years of savings, who would believe that the elves were actually poor?
Were the elves unwilling to pay for the road? The amount of money and magical resources needed to maintain a low-temperature magical barrier in the Northlands would be astronomical. The elven mages who were so extravagant that they could even walk on air lived such extravagant lives. How could they possibly be poorer than the human domain lords?
Nobody was an idiot. But since the Kingdom of the Elves insisted that this area didn't belong to them, the elves had no obligation to pay for it. The Mist Alliance held a meeting for three consecutive days. In the end, for the sake of the Mist Alliance's internal unity, the elves gritted their teeth and paid for the road!
And then … there was nothing else.
After the road was constructed, strange things kept happening. Either a certain part of the road was suddenly haunted, or a certain part of the road was attacked by mounted bandits. The workers were chased away, and even their tools were stolen.
More than twenty such incidents had happened in the past three months. Even an idiot would know that something was wrong with the situation. Yet, the Mist Alliance's investigation team had returned on the very same night. It was quite obvious that the elves were the ones who had done this.
What were the moon elves trying to do? The Mist Alliance's higher-ups were all confused. In the end, the former moon elf princess Suana told them the truth …
"The moon elves of the Northlands have always looked down on and feared humans. They're probably worried that they'll be devoured …"
Alright then, the elves didn't say it directly. Instead, they used such an uncooperative attitude to express their distrust of humans. Perhaps this was the elves' typical petty and indirect … elegant diplomatic trick.
This time, the problem was now the Mist Alliance's leaders. What could the human countries do next?
Continue to forcefully construct the road? The elves were willing to pay for it, and the elves were willing to pay for it. Even if the elves were to wash their faces and try again, they wouldn't be able to accept it.
Forcefully breaking through, forcefully interfering, and demanding that the moon Kingdom of the Elves fulfill their alliance? The elves were being quite careful. Even if everyone knew that the elves were responsible for this, they wouldn't be able to obtain any evidence. And even if they obtained evidence, would they be able to use this as an excuse to attack the elves? Not only would that be breaking the alliance's agreement and making all the other countries feel threatened, it would also be an actual invasion.
At this time, the reason why the moon elves had so easily joined the Mist Alliance in the first place was revealed. The moon elves had such a plan from the very start. Rather than forcefully resisting the Northlands' unification, it would be better to join the Mist Alliance in name only and create their own small cliques. They would be independent and uncooperative.
Actually, in the relatively direct (and simple) Aichy political circles, this was already a brilliant move. This was the crystallization of the elves' thousands of years of political experience. It was indeed effective, but …
"… The elves have always been like this. They're always scheming, always looking at what's in the pot. They've obtained many benefits, but they're too scheming and don't want to give in at all. They're so short-sighted that they're blinded by immediate benefits that they lose everything in the end …"
The Tassel Kingdom of the Elves's road project had been stopped. The other Kingdom of the Elves's other kingdoms hadn't even started.
The Northlanders had witnessed the Mist Alliance's rapid development over the past few years. Only the elves were still living their own independent lives. Did the elves regret it?
"No, they won't regret it. They'll only celebrate for defeating the humans' plan to devour the elves yet again. As for the development of the outside world, that has nothing to do with them. They're still living ten thousand years in the past. "
Suana's words were completely in line with my understanding of the elves. Even if the younger elves had objections, in the elven kingdoms, the elders had the most authority. Tradition was incredibly important.
The final result was that the Kingdom of the Elves had won in a way. The elves had maintained their own expectations, but the humans hadn't lost. The Mist Alliance would still be able to advance without the elves. Their nominal alliance would allow the humans to purchase special products from the Kingdom of the Elves and send students to study there, which would still benefit them to a certain extent.
The entire Mist Alliance was becoming more and more unified. The second phase of the Mist Alliance project, the "Milky Way" project, had already begun two years ago. However, the elves were the only exception. The first phase of the elves' project hadn't even been completed yet, and yet they remained outside of the Mist Alliance. This had a terrible influence on the Mist Alliance. Since the Mist Alliance's leaders didn't have the time to play around with the elves, they could only let the elves do as they pleased.
Although the elves had been able to endure it before, this time, they were truly unable to do so.
According to tradition, the moon elves in the Moon Kingdom of the Elves would become one of the four Superior Elf species in the new Northlands Elven Empire. But no matter what, the moon elves were the "most skilled at scheming" among the elves, and they were the ones with "actual power" in the new Northlands Elven Empire.
"They want the Northlands Elven Empire to establish Moonflower City as their capital? That isolated city located at the southernmost tip of the Kingdom of the Elves's territory? They want the entire Northlands Elven Empire to be isolated from them? "
"They want the moon elves to retain the moon elves' rights to their territory since they're providing it to the moon elves? The Northlands Elven Empire's Senators and Guardians should be moon elves? The empire hasn't even been established yet, and they're already intending to make the Empress a figurehead? "
"The moon elves have a grudge against the dark elves. They want the dark elves to not step onto the new Northlands Elven Empire's territory … The four Superior Elf species, the silver elves, have only just arrived, and the wood elves don't have many members. Only the dark elves are strong enough. Are they intending to directly kick the other party out of power?"
"They want independent diplomatic and military power … What's the difference between this and a civil war? Are the moon elves intending to start a civil war?"
I smiled as I slowly read out these documents. The elf tribe leaders in front of me were all trembling. The killing intent in the hall seemed to have solidified. In their eyes, what was going to happen next was going to be dozens of assassins jumping out and setting up a trap?
I wasn't targeting anyone. In fact, I even smiled in a friendly manner at the moon elf representative Suana, who was pushed out … Judging from how she retreated several steps, it seemed that she didn't have much confidence in me. Or had I accidentally revealed my intention to use my blade?
"Moon elves …"
I helplessly tossed the documents to the side. I had long since expected that things would develop to this point, but I didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
Previously, when Harloys had been crowned, the Northlands moon elves had been unable to elect a new moon elf leader. In the end, they could only have Suana, who had already become a grayblood elf and an undead, become the new moon elf representative … Ever since then, the moon elves had probably decided that if they couldn't come to an agreement, they wouldn't even acknowledge the previous agreements.
My suggestion at the time was also a chance to break out of this situation. I would give Suana a chance to revive. Once she became a moon elf again, she would be incredibly famous. Perhaps she would be of great political use and change the current situation that was becoming more and more helpless … I had already lost all patience with the moon elf elders who had never experienced war and only knew how to fight amongst themselves! I was doing serious business, yet those bastards were holding me back!
Suana's reply to me at the time was that she needed more time to think things over. Fine, I would think things over, but I was too busy, so I abandoned her.
And so, I did my best to maintain a friendly smile as I continued asking questions.
"Suana, you've thought things over long enough. What's your final decision? To revive or to maintain your current state … I'll tell you beforehand that you'd better choose carefully. I've already lost all patience with the moon elves. I'm not threatening you! But your decision will affect the survival of all moon elves. I refuse to believe that the Northlands Elven Empire won't be able to survive with only three Superior Elves! "
"… Don't scare me! If this isn't a threat, then what is? "
Harloys' clone, who had been pretending to be a decoration, finally spoke up. The moon elf leaders all heaved sighs of relief. However, what she said next made them not know whether to laugh or cry.
"Actually, I really dislike the moon elves who always cause trouble. They were the ones who rebelled back in the day … Actually, I'm quite confident that the new Northlands Elven Empire will be able to develop quite well even with only three Superior Elves. Suana, don't worry and boldly refuse this idiot."
None of the moon elf leaders said anything. However, their expressions were quite strange, as if they were holding back their panic. It was as if they were saying,
"… You've already said that. Refusing her will mean the death of the entire tribe! Who would dare to refuse her!? "
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