The Vastness of Magical Destiny
Chapter 554: Volume 13: Sea Rain and Heavenly Wind - 24: Grace and Power

Chapter 554: Volume 13: Sea Rain and Heavenly Wind Chapter 24: Grace and Power

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News of the Catania River navigation channel being open had spread in Ugru and Mattdam, even reaching Muscat and Santiago before Komer’s return to Ugru. However, since there was no official confirmation from the Lord’s Mansion, everyone was still in a state of semi-belief, until Komer appeared in the Lord’s Mansion of Ugru and officially raised the Bear Head Flag in Damarlinsk Castle, signifying the lord’s return. Only then was the shocking news truly confirmed.

After settling the weary Eve and her companions, Komer could finally focus on dealing with the backlog of political affairs that had accumulated over the past couple of months.

Puber seemed to have lost even more weight compared to before Komer had left, probably thanks to his barbarian girlfriend. Komer was considering whether he should concoct a rejuvenating elixir for his old friend; he really didn’t want to see his buddy unable to get up off his woman’s belly.

Komer had met Puber’s barbarian girlfriend, whose features were quite delicate and beautiful, with a fair bit of charm. It was only that her build was much larger than Puber’s; at best, he could only come up to her ear, a good half-head shorter. Her full and sturdy figure also attracted some attention. No wonder Puber was so infatuated.

Komer didn’t mind his old friend’s racial preferences, be it Barbarians, Half-Beastmen, or Half-Elves. However, he was quite concerned whether Puber’s physique could handle the demands of a barbarian woman but was helpless since it involved a man’s pride, and no one would admit defeat in such matters.

Ilot seemed to have become much tougher, which showed that training with the Dark Knight Vladimir Koff had done him good. At least from his words and deeds, Komer could tell he had benefited greatly.

For Puber, the opening of the Catania River navigation was undoubtedly like lifting the heaviest burden off his chest. The rising import prices of food had driven up food prices within the Caucasus territory, leaving Puber somewhat desperate.

Controlling food prices was clearly impossible, as merchants, faced with a huge shortage, preferred to hoard rather than sell. With the news of a poor harvest in the southern regions of the East Mediterranean coast, food prices in the Caucasus soared again. Despite the demands from the Lord’s Mansion for merchants to guarantee supply, food prices could not be suppressed.

The demand in the Mandu Region had even caused Neptune to lodge the strongest protest against Puber twice. If the Lord’s Mansion could not meet Mandu’s needs, there was a possibility Mandu would face a rebellion again. Dragumo’s Self-Defense Army was already on standby in Mandu and Muscat, but Puber knew it was futile. It was impossible to ask beastmen to suppress their starving kin, even Dragumo himself admitted so.

But all of this ceased to be a problem with the arrival of the merchant ship Marta at Bahomon. On the day Komer’s group reached Bahomon, food prices in the Caucasus plummeted immediately, especially in Bahomon, where they dropped by thirty percent by the afternoon. The next day, the traders throughout the Caucasus started a frenzy of selling off, and food prices quickly fell to their lowest level, a third of what they had been three days before, and then rebounded slightly. Yet even this price was still thirty percent higher than the loading price in Luxembourg, which showed the enormity of the profit margin.

However, this was no longer a major issue, as long as the source of food was secured, the price difference was no longer problematic. At this time, Puber could finally relax and enjoy his love life with his barbarian girlfriend. He had already decided that once Komer returned, he would immediately ask to take a paid leave for a month, to properly soothe his body and mind.

Watching the incessantly complaining Puber pour out his hardships and Ilot boasting about his strong physique, Komer felt a long-lost sense of warmth. Ilot would still interrupt Puber’s tirades by exposing some embarrassing truths, causing Puber to become flushed with both anger and embarrassment, retaliating while trying to rebut.

"Enough, enough, Puber, don’t make other excuses. You can relax your mind, sure, but your body can no longer afford any relaxation. If you become any more lax, I think the boss and I will have to start preparing a grave for you. Don’t think about conquering Megan all day; focus more on your own health. If she really likes you, you won’t need to show off in bed, and it’ll be fine, but if she doesn’t, she might just use you and then kick you aside," Ilot said with a bit of a sharp tongue but hit the nail on the head, causing Puber to turn red and then green with embarrassment, finding no suitable words to argue back, he could only mutter curses under his breath.

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Komer quite enjoyed this atmosphere, where the three of them had no barriers between them. Even their mutual teasing and irony were done in good spirits. It was this kind of relaxed and comfortable conversation that allowed Komer to find some mental relief amidst all the tension and complexities of his affairs.

"Puber, how’s the situation in Leon?" Getting back to business, Komer also needed to catch up on the situation since he’d been away, especially regarding Leon, which was of utmost importance. Neptune had made a good start in Leon, where the youth’s blood and passion had been fully mobilized. However, mere enthusiasm couldn’t solve everything; it was a matter of control. Komer believed that with Dragumo’s support, Neptune could maintain control in Mandu, but Mandu was only a small part of Leon. The true crisis in Leon lay to the north and the west, and Mandu was now about to serve as Caucasus’s barrier and gateway.

"There’s good and bad news. With your return, the food problem has found an easy solution, and food prices have now plummeted. I estimate Neptune won’t keep protesting at me. The merchants naturally would begin to sell their stockpiles, and as long as the Half-Beastman miners have bread, everything is manageable. But, the situation in the north and west is continuing to worsen and is starting to affect Mandu. A large number of Half-Beastman slaves are beginning to surge southward. Besides Mandu, Muscat is also under great pressure. These fellows are like locusts, consuming everything as they go..."

"Three days ago, Dragumo issued a warning to Fran and me. He’s worried that in another month, the entire western and northern regions of Leon could be without food, and the situation could spin out of control. I’ve also been worried that if you didn’t come back soon, we might have to consider abandoning Mandu temporarily and just hold on to Muscat. But on reflection, it seems that wouldn’t help much. However, although food prices have dropped now, those Half-Beastman slaves have grown accustomed to living off the land without labor, and they no longer have anything to exchange for food. Both Fran and Baoling are concerned that those fellows might eventually organize and come to pillage the south."

Under Fran’s suggestion, Muscat had been established from the start with a dual nature as both a military stronghold and a commercial trade center. The abundant local stone resources became the biggest advantage for constructing fortress-like strongholds. The corner stones and stones of slightly lesser quality, although not ideal for the construction of palaces and residences that had high demands for aesthetics and luxury, posed no major problems for fortresses, which required durability and sturdiness.

Although the cost of building such a fortress was significant, both Komer and Puber agreed to Fran’s planning and design, after considering that investing more money to operate a strategic chokepoint to the interior of Caucasus was worthwhile, especially with such favorable natural conditions.

A trade center and streets naturally formed to the south of the castle. Limited by military needs, civilian buildings were constructed no closer than five hundred meters from the fortress. Two hundred-men squads from Dragumo’s forces were stationed within the fortress. Of course, the notion that such a fortress could hold back the tens or even hundreds of thousands of Half-Beastman slaves in the event of an uprising was laughable. Fran’s initial intention was merely to enhance the deterrent effect on those Half-Beastman bandit mobs in the region.

"Mm, this is probably the biggest problem we’re facing now. Caucasus has become a thorn in the side for some people, and I reckon Homer is also deliberately creating this situation. The Floating Bridge of Bruce Fortress has shown no signs of progress; Philip seems to want to drive these mobs southward. He’s probably betting that even with the kingdom’s support I wouldn’t be able to satisfy the stomachs of those tens of thousands of Half-Beastman mobs. If these mobs really do pour in because they can’t find food, then Caucasus would truly be ruined."

Everyone understood this logic; if the mobs really had nothing to eat, with the Nissai River and the Greenland Great Forest blocking the north and the west, and the Nether Sea to the east, they would have no choice but to head south. No matter how well Caucasus armed itself, it could not contend with tens of thousands of desperate mobs fighting for survival. This was why Komer decided to establish an experimental farm in Mandu first.

He wanted the Half-Beastmen in the western and northern parts of Leon to understand that by working diligently and abiding by the law, they could obtain a satisfactory and happy life. This, coupled with a series of deterrent measures like the magic demonstration once performed in front of the Homer Army, would be the only way to bring these lawless Half-Beastmen back onto the right track and teach them how to adapt and live a normal life.

"Hmph, those damned mobs, if such treatment still can’t keep them settled, then only violence and bloodshed will teach them how to live," Ilot skillfully twirled his wide-bladed silver-edged sword, forming a flower of blades, and a foreboding aura of threat emerged subtly.

"Ilot, think more. They’re people with nothing to lose. Do you think they would fear combat? Do you think they’d fear death? No, we can only show them the hope of a better life. Only then can we prevent the situation from worsening. We must be both kind and strict, with kindness being the priority and strictness secondary. Besides, if such a large group of Half-Beastmen can be utilized properly, they could be an endless source of wealth as a workforce," Puber disdainfully considered Ilot’s simplistic thinking. In his view, harnessing this cheap labor force to generate wealth for Caucasus was the most economical strategy.

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