When I finally found the time to go see Kakagar, I had many assumptions.
Would he break down in sadness because he lost his homeland? Would they think that they were determined to take back everything they owned? Or would he become dispirited and restless because he suffered a severe blow?
"No matter what, he's probably changed. It's so embarrassing that he fell so quickly in the past few years. "
However, I never expected that Kakagar would have such an expression when I saw him.
"Brave adventurers and Contract Heroes, the evil Inferno Demons are right in front of you, but are you truly prepared to deal with them? This is the final battle on the frontlines of the flames. Don't miss this opportunity. Ice enchantment scrolls, ice potions, and fire repellent staffs are all top-level equipment meant for dealing with fire creatures.
"And as the former owner of this place, not only can you obtain free maps from me, I'll even give you a mission. As long as you bring back a soul core or mana resource from an elemental creature, you'll receive my reward!"
Kakagar wasn't the one shouting with a megaphone, but rather his former secretary. He was currently squatting next to a price list and eating a pancake in an unseemly manner. He was even sweating profusely as he ate. If I didn't know him personally, I would have thought that he was just an ordinary merchant.
What was incomprehensible was that he wasn't glaring at the mountain of flames with deep hatred, nor was he depressed or helpless. He was no different from how he was in the past.
"Hey, isn't this Your Highness Roland? Are you here for a tour or a vacation? If you intend to go explore, I have some good stuff here. I guarantee that the flames won't hurt you, and I'll give you a 40% discount. "
Kakagar was actually the one who greeted me first. However, my eyebrows kept twitching as I saw this scene before me. If I were a slightly more normal soldier, I would have probably thrown Kakagar into prison already.
The reason? Kakagar was currently selling the adventurers all the military resources that had just been given to the human armies!
In order to seal off the fire elemental creatures, the surrounding human armies had probably already given out fire-resistant military resources. There was also a seal from the Allied Armies beside the products.
"Where's your army?"
"A total of three thousand. More than two thousand died in battle that night, so there's probably four or five hundred left. They're useless anyway, so they've all been dismissed."
Hearing this, I was truly stunned. The next moment, an indescribable anger rose within me. However, Gagalol spoke first.
"Country … I know that you guys don't recognize Sharal as a country, but at least it's a territory, right? If the territory is gone, what's the point of having the soldiers guarding it? It's better to let them go back and reunite with their families. It hasn't been easy for them to survive."
He seemed to be a little cold. Rubbing his hands together, Gagalol stood up. Although his expression was as calm as ever, I could see the sorrow and hatred in his eyes.
"… Do you regret it?"
I didn't mean regret, but I knew he would understand.
"Regret? That's the most meaningless thing of all. That's because my choice back then wasn't wrong. The trade route was perfectly suited for the Sharal Autonomous Region to begin with, and it's also thanks to this trade route that my citizens' living standards rapidly improved. Our status in the entire Mist Alliance also improved … "
Gagalol paused for a moment and mysteriously fell silent. He then became even calmer.
"If I could do it again, I would still choose this trade route. The Sharal Autonomous Region doesn't have many permanent soldiers to begin with, and we don't have enough population or combat potential. The hybrids aren't even able to keep up with the times. Rather than being on guard against this, we'll miss out on a great opportunity for the Mist Alliance's development. I might as well take a gamble and focus on the trade route. It's just that our luck was a little bad. There just happened to be a volcano right under our feet, and a Fire Elemental Lord even came looking for us …"
I mysteriously felt guilty as I kept repeating in my mind, "It wasn't my fault. It wasn't my jinx."
"… But since we've already enjoyed the benefits of our choice back then, it's only natural for us to pay the price for our choice. What's the point of regretting it? If we have so much free time, we might as well think about the future. "
I could sense that he was speaking from the bottom of his heart. Perhaps I … no, the entire Mist Alliance had underestimated him.
Weak countries also had their own methods of survival. Strong countries could be domineering, sly, and unparalleled. They could sow discord and scheme against other countries. However, weak countries would be playing with fire if they dared to do so.
Gagalol had seen through the future trend of the Mist Alliance's unification. In front of such a trend, the Mist Kingdom would definitely eliminate any troublemakers. Even if there weren't any troublemakers, the Mist Kingdom would at least find one or two troublemakers to make an example out of them to establish their authority.
Since the unification of the Mist Alliance meant that there would be no internal conflicts, only a cold war, Gagalol appeared to be greedy for peace and had given up on his armaments. However, he was actually using this as a way to remove other countries' guards against him. With the support of two major countries, he was able to focus on the service industry and business development. At the same time, he was able to gradually integrate into the Mist Alliance's political circle as a harmless party.
The developments over the past few years had proven his choice. Ten years ago, who would remember this Sharal Domain Lord? Now, all the other countries' kings would give him sufficient respect.
As for the other unnecessary things, Gagalol wasn't in a hurry. He would wait until the Holy War was over. Not having an army also meant that he wouldn't need to send any soldiers to fight in the Holy War. Paying for things like that was completely acceptable, which would actually reduce the pressure on him. After the Holy War was over and the power structure was reshuffled, it might be an opportunity for Sharal to rise up. At the very least, Sharal's economy would improve, and his country would naturally become stronger. Sharal's words wouldn't be any less authoritative.
From a small country's perspective, not only was there nothing wrong with such a development path, it was even quite wise and daring. Even if Sharal's reputation was completely ruined in the process, if he played it well, he might be able to obtain the reputation of being the ruler of a prosperous country in the future. But if he was unlucky … just like what was happening right now, he would be labeled as a foolish domain lord who caused the destruction of his country due to his excessive licentiousness. Not only that, he wouldn't be able to get rid of this reputation even after he died. It was likely that his children would be forever tarnished because of this.
Actually, the difference between a foolish ruler and an eternal emperor, between a lunatic and a genius, was sometimes just a tiny bit of luck. The unlucky person who failed would always be wrong no matter how he tried to explain it, while the lucky person who succeeded would only be treated as being humble no matter how much he tried to explain it.
"… Do you want to reclaim this land?"
"I do, but it's unlikely. I also know what an elemental war represents. Besides, the entire Mist Alliance, the Mist Kingdom, and you … probably don't want to see the 'fire' being extinguished. In that case, no matter if he's capable of doing it or not, it's impossible to extinguish it."
Indeed, the Mist Alliance should be at war, and it would be best if the scale of the war could be controlled. That way, we would have a reason to withdraw from the chaotic battles in the center of the continent. The flames of war in the Northlands would also make the other Order Faction and Chaos Faction feel less worried about the Northlands.
Perhaps we weren't the ones who started this fire, but looking at it from a long-term perspective, this would indeed be beneficial to the Mist Alliance. I indeed wouldn't allow this fire to be extinguished so easily.
"Sly Fox" smiled honestly, just like a skilled merchant. However, he didn't try to hide the fact that he had already seen through everything.
I fell silent. Since Sly Fox was being so direct and sincere, I would seem even more foolish and vulgar if I tried to speak in a bureaucratic manner.
"… Actually, there's no longer any need for the Sharal Autonomous Region to exist."
If any other Sharal person had said this, I would probably have thought that they were insane. However, Kakagar had finally gotten rid of his playfulness and was saying crazy things with a serious expression.
"Chauvinism is actually another name for 'racism.' Back in the day, my ancestors gave this region this name in order to remind their descendants that unlucky people like us are actually a group of pitiful people who have been persecuted and exiled by racism. Since other species don't treat us as their own, us mixed-bloods are considered a family. No matter if they're half-elves, half-humans, half-beastmen, or half-giants, as long as they're victims of racism or pure-bloods, they're all our kin.
"… Over the past several centuries, eleven generations of Sharal Domain Lords have fulfilled their promises, and the situation hasn't changed at all. The entire Northlands are our enemies. They look down on us, view us as enemies, and call us bastards. Pure-blooded humans even treat us like beasts. Apart from the Mist Kingdom and barbarians who are related to us by blood, the entire Northlands views us as lowly outsiders."
At this point, Kakagar paused for a moment. The next instant, his murky yellow eyes seemed to glow with a golden light as he became spirited.
"However, the appearance of the Mist Alliance changed everything. When the entire Mist Alliance began to accept undead, elves, beastmen, dwarves, dark elves, and Dragons, under your policy of equal communication and mutual respect, it became much easier for mixed-bloods like us, who were born as freaks, to accept us. Your Highness Roland, we mixed-bloods are truly grateful to you for this. At the very least, we don't need to wear hoods and capes anymore. We can walk openly in the Northlands without having to worry about being seen as bandits or bastards, or being treated as slaves or prisoners for no reason. "
After many mixed-bloods, Kakagar's physical appearance was basically identical to that of a human's, apart from his pointy ears. However, deep in his heart, he still viewed himself as a mixed-blood, as well as the representative of the mixed-bloods' benefits. Although he seemed slow and foolish, he actually had a sensitive heart.
"I won't say anything about treating all species equally. As long as the Mist Alliance becomes stronger, all species will be able to live together. Everyone will be a different species, and no one will be a different species. The 'Sharal' shelter that protects the mixed-blood 'bastards' will indeed no longer have a need to exist. It was at this time that I was tempted to start developing businesses and tourism. At the very least, magical engineering technology made the mixed-bloods lose all their advantages in combat. Their weaknesses of having fewer people and being uneducated were quite obvious. In order to not be left behind by time, I needed to find food for the future Sharal people. Now that Sharal is gone, it might be a good thing for our mixed-bloods to integrate into the Mist Alliance and Mist Kingdom. The Mist Kingdom is such a large country, so we can't mistreat our own people. "
The old cunning fox patted his butt and stood up, leaving me in the background.
"I don't need any compensation. As long as the Mist Alliance doesn't fall, and the Mist Kingdom doesn't fall, it'll be enough for us mixed-bloods."
Right after that, Kakagar's deep voice, which was filled with philosophical thoughts, suddenly became sharp.
"… Everyone passing by, don't miss out on this! The newest top-quality military equipment is on sale. You won't be able to buy anything anywhere else, even if you have money. I risked my life to get my hands on this …"
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