The Vastness of Magical Destiny
Chapter 356: Volume 6: Cautious Planning - 11: Magic Machine

Chapter 356: Volume 6: Cautious Planning Chapter 11: Magic Machine

Early summer in Caucasus was a scene of bustling activity. Komer, who had just returned from a visit to the Barbarian Territory, immediately threw himself back into endless work and cultivation. The northern Lords’ policies of containment and oppression had gradually begun to show their effects. Although Komer had previously stored a large amount of food, it was only enough to sustain them through May’s small spring harvest. Moreover, the cost of food now was more than double the original price due to transit taxes. This put Komer under immense pressure and prompted him to further relax the policies for clearing new land. However, distant water couldn’t quench immediate thirst, and couldn’t solve the impending pressure of a food shortage. The entire Caucasus’ spring grain harvest was far from sufficient to meet the needs, necessitating massive imports, and the current market prices for food were obviously unacceptable.

Furthermore, a very important clause of the peace and trade agreement signed with the Barbarians stated that the Barbarians would buy food through Caucasus at market prices. But when Komer couldn’t even meet the needs of his own people, how could he talk about exporting food to the Barbarians?

After the agreement was signed, Barbarians began to appear frequently in the markets of Bahomon and Ugru. Their robust stature even surpassed Komer’s Half-Beastman Guards, which made the residents of the territory, especially the new immigrants, quite apprehensive despite the Lord’s proclamation having been widely posted in all the fairs. The increasing frequency and numbers of Barbarians in their midst continued to cause concern among the residents.

However, they soon realized their worries were completely unnecessary. The Barbarians’ behavior in Caucasus was even better than the locals; they mostly came to sell their game or goods and then exchanged them for the life necessities they needed. One of the terms Komer had negotiated in the agreement with the Barbarians allowed them to freely enter Caucasus for trade, and the people of Caucasus, with the Barbarian Tribes’ approval, could enter specific Barbarian regions to make purchases.

Although their demeanor was blunt and they rarely smiled, in business their credibility was even better than that of any merchant. They seldom haggled over prices, and the quality of their goods was surprisingly high. Exotic birds and animals from Cordillera Wilderness made for the Barbarians’ best trade items, but to them, the diverse goods available in the markets of Bahomon and Ugru were irresistible. The trade items they could offer in exchange were obviously very limited, which led many Half-Beastmen to slowly harbor the desire to stay and work in Caucasus for wages. After all, back on the Cordillera Wilderness, hunting was their only activity. Yet, hunting was less reliable than earning money from laborious work in Caucasus. Here, hard labor jobs such as felling, road construction, house building, mining, cart pulling, and loading and unloading goods were plentiful, their recruitment ads ubiquitous. The Half-Beastmen of Caucasus were clearly insufficient to meet these labor demands, especially after Komer recruited five hundred robust Half-Beastmen as guards, increasing the burgeoning labor needs within the territory. Everyone wanted to earn more money and aspired for a better life. To the Barbarians, accustomed to poverty, it seemed they had spotted a new hope on their neighbors’ land.

Both parties’ authority figures seemed to have noticed this change and trend. Both seemingly adopted a laissez-faire policy without inquiry. For the observers, seeing the Barbarians hurriedly pulling carts in Ugru, toiling in the mines in Darman, along with the Half-Beastman Guard soldiers and Half-Elf Archers on patrol, and the merchants speaking in various accents, made newcomers hardly believe their eyes. This was Caucasus.

"Mr. Kudan, please sit here."

The whiskered man felt an inexplicable tension in his heart facing this young Lord who smiled at him. As a shareholder of The Caucasus Cooperative Bank, he had no choice but to come forward more often. He didn’t understand why his leader wanted him to get involved in this. Presenting himself openly made him feel somewhat uneasy. He didn’t believe that the Lord in front of him was unaware of his true identity, and even if it was not initially known, over time Hesse and the others would undoubtedly expose all his details to the other party. Yet, to his surprise, after several months, no one had ever questioned him. Everyone treated him like a real Food merchant, and he had even been made a Shareholder representative! That shocked him and also made him feel uneasy. What exactly was this Lord planning?

"Mr. Kudan, you’ve been trading food in Caucasus for several years now, haven’t you?" Komer casually began the conversation with a question.

"For over a decade, I suppose. But for over a decade there hasn’t been much change in Caucasus. It’s not flattery, Lord, but the developments in Caucasus over the past few months have exceeded the accumulative growth of the past several decades. Our region’s name has only now truly secured a place in the Kingdom and the Eastern Continent." While pondering the Lord’s invitation, the whiskered man carefully responded to his questions.