The Gloom Mountains.
Everyone was stunned when they saw the place Gwen pointed out.
The first one to break the silence was the Grand Duke of the Western Region, Baldwin Franklin. He widened his eyes and asked, "Are you sure?"
"Why not?" Gawain chuckled. "Don't tell me this place has an owner?"
"No …" Francis II shook his head. "The entire Gloom Mountains and the areas further south are ownerless, which meets the requirements of the development decree. But that place is not only close to the Typhon Empire, but also directly connected to the Gondor wasteland in the south. It's really …"
The Gloom Mountains was part of the southern border of the Ansu. Its eastern section extended into the Typhon Empire, and its western section extended hundreds of kilometers along the Ansu border before bending southward into the decaying land of the Gondor wasteland. In theory, even the belt plain to the south of the Gloom Mountains was the territory of the Ansu. But in fact, the kingdom could only control the north of the mountains, and its control was quite limited.
The most important reason was the existence of the Gondor wasteland.
That land was still shrouded in chaotic elemental power and magic energy. The constantly roiling corrosive power made the land almost barren, and it was full of deadly toxins to humans.
Although it no longer spread, the poisonous sandstorms that blew in with the wind at the edge of the wasteland, as well as the occasional wandering monsters, were a deadly threat.
Historically, the Ansu Kingdom had tried to develop the south several times after the situation stabilized. They even planned to take back the Gondor wasteland, but in the end, all efforts were in vain. The purification of the wasteland was extremely difficult and full of iterations. The income was completely disproportionate to the effort. The pioneering strongholds that were barely established in the early days were often destroyed by poisonous sandstorms and monsters before they could produce anything. So in the end, the Ansu royal family withdrew all the pioneering teams and stopped on the north side of the Gloom Mountains.
Then, due to the increasing prosperity of the northern part of the kingdom and the establishment of diplomatic relations with the Violet Kingdom, the center of gravity of the kingdom further shifted to the north. Coupled with the Civil War of the Month of Fog a hundred years ago, the Cecil family in the south collapsed overnight, and the situation in the south deteriorated and regressed. Today, the entire Gloom Mountains and most of the surrounding areas were no different from the wasteland.
The smell of the wasteland that blew across the mountains even decayed the plains north of the mountains.
But Gawain only smiled at this. "I've faced worse situations than that back then. When it comes to political struggle and intrigue, I may not be as good as you, but when it comes to fighting against the evil of nature, you're definitely not as good as me.
Regardless of whether it was true or not, he had to brag according to the truth first.
Since Gwen was so confident, the rest of the people present certainly did not continue to worry about him. For the king and the other nobles, whether Gwen Cecil could gain a foothold in the south was not their concern. What they cared most was when this hot potato could leave the Captical. Since Gwen took the initiative to choose a place where even birds would not defecate, what else was there to say?
Let's see our ancestor off! "
If it weren't for the fact that they still had to discuss some details, Francis II would have already prepared the carriages for Gawain's family.
After finalizing the most important issue of the exploration rights, Gawain took the opportunity to make Francis II admit to a few other 'insignificant matters'.
First of all, Gwen Cecil's title of Duke had to continue, but only as his personal honor for the time being and could not be inherited by any of his descendants. Unless the Cecil family had indeed developed a vast land in the south when Gwen died again (without error), or had made some other achievements. At that time, the title of Duke would be determined based on the land and achievements of the Cecil family.
In fact, this was a nondescript plan. It was a product of the contradiction between Gwen Cecil's title of Duke and the terrible thing that happened a hundred years ago. No one dared to deprive the founding Duke of his title, but there was also no way for a viscount family to directly become a Duke, so this was the only compromise. Frankly speaking, this was not in accordance with any law since the founding of the Ansu. But how could you reason with a person who jumped out of a coffin?
The ancestor did not even want to talk about physics with you, so how could he reason with you?!
The so-called "not inheritable for the time being" was obvious at first glance. It was just to delay the time and give an explanation to the existing aristocratic system.
In addition, the Ansu Royal Family would fully recognize the Cecil family's complete autonomy in the newly developed land, just like the founding Emperor recognized the autonomy of any pioneering territory.
In addition to some other miscellaneous agreements, Gwen finally got the result he wanted.
A country within a country that would not be disturbed by anyone.
In fact, these details had already been decided. When Prince Edmund visited in advance, Gwen had already contacted the King. Now, in the oak hall, it was just a formality.
No one at the scene objected to these details. After all, the Cecil family was going to explore a barren land. No matter how much land they developed, it would not affect the vested interests of any of the families. Since there was no conflict of interest, the nominal conflict was easily resolved.
Francis II signed a new pioneering document on the spot, declaring that according to the ancient law, the Cecil family would have the right to explore all the lands between the Gloom Mountain Range and the surrounding kingdoms. He also announced that the Cecil family would provide the necessary support for this exploration, including a team of 100 craftsmen and apprentices, as well as the food and cloth needed for the first year of exploration.
Among them, the craftsmen and apprentices would work in the pioneering territory for three years. After three years, they could choose to stay or leave voluntarily. However, if anyone wanted to stay, the Cecil family would have to "buy" them from the Royal Family at the price of 30 gold shield coins per person.
This support wasn't much, but Gawain was already very satisfied. For the impoverished Cecil Family, this was a solution to their desperate situation.
The gold, silver, and ingots in the mountain treasury could not be directly turned into food, nor could they be turned into skilled craftsmen. In this era where the word "exploration" had become a distant history, no one was willing to leave their stable homeland and go to a wasteland close to Gondor. The 100 craftsmen and apprentices would be the most valuable wealth.
It could also be said that Francis II, on behalf of the Royal Family of Ansu, expressed his goodwill to Gwen, thanking the founding Duke for recognizing his bloodline.
The deal was over, and everyone was very satisfied. After a deal that satisfied both sides, a banquet was necessary.
The oak hall was closed again, and a banquet was held in the banquet hall on the second floor of the castle. Good wine and delicious food were served on the table. The king and his most trusted nobles were here to celebrate the return of a legendary hero. Many nobles whose names were unknown, and no one knew where they had been hiding, suddenly popped up, and the banquet hall was very lively.
Those who popped up were not qualified to enter the oak hall, but were qualified to know the result of the meeting. They had been waiting in the lounges of the Silver Castle for half a day. It was not until the attendants ran into the banquet hall and rang the bronze bell that they had prepared for the celebration that they appeared with smiles on their faces.
It was Rebecca's first time to participate in such an occasion. The destitute young lady had never been to such a magnificent place in her life, and due to the rejection of the Cecil family by the entire noble circle, she had not attended many decent banquets in her life. The grandest banquet she remembered was when she came of age at the age of 16. Her father held a very lively celebration for her in the castle, but it was just a long table full of food.
It was completely different from the banquet in the Silver Castle.
The whole hall was full of long tables with delicious food and wine on them. In the middle of the hall was the place where the gentlemen and ladies danced, and there was a well-dressed band playing music on the stage at one side of the hall. Mages cast magic in the four corners of the hall, constantly creating beautiful dazzling lights and falling snowflakes in the air. It was simply inconceivable for Rebecca to let the precious mages create such an illusion to hype up the atmosphere.
His Majesty … was so rich.
At first, Rebecca tried to keep a straight face, trying to look mature and steady. But soon, her girlish nature overpowered her forced steadiness. She grabbed Gwen's hand and asked him questions, and Gwen, with a smile on his face, bragged about her based on his memory and imagination as a time-traveler.
Rebecca's country bumpkin behavior did not escape the eyes of the great nobles, but they did not show any disdain for the little lord from the countryside. Perhaps they were a little disdainful, but Gawain Cecil had been standing by Rebecca's side. This "parent" who never left her side forced everyone to put away their disdain. At the very least, they had to smile at Rebecca on the surface.
Then, a few young people came to invite Rebecca to dance with them. They probably thought that the Cecil family now had an ancestor, so there was some potential value in getting closer to them. However, these people were all rejected by Gwen.
What a joke. With Rebecca's brain and iron-headed character, she could not mix well in the Southern Territory. If she had to deal with the Captical, wouldn't she sell her whole family in an instant?
"Excessive protection won't let children grow up." A gentle male voice came from the side. "Viscount Rebecca is already an adult. You should let her come into contact with the social circle of the upper class."
Gwen turned his head and saw the Grand Duke of the Western Region, Bai Dewen Franklin, standing behind him. Standing with Bai Dewen was the Grand Duke of the Northern Region, Victoria Werde.
"I died early, so I don't have much experience in disciplining children." Gwen shrugged and said indifferently.
Bai Dewen: "…"
Victoria: "…"
"And I think even if I don't stop her, Rebecca won't have time to care about others."
As Gwen spoke, he pointed to his great-granddaughter on the N + 1 floor. At this time, the viscountess was lying on the long table nearby and gorging herself.
"She's really … straightforward," Duke Bai Dewen said dryly.
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