Farming in a Parallel World and Becoming a God-Chapter 1260 - 686: No Good Stubble_3

Anyway, as someone who has seen it all, King Yasan would never believe in such perfect adult fairy tales. In the end, it is highly likely that force will be employed, the losers will be completely eliminated, and the victors will take everything. This is the inevitable development pattern once a faction reaches a certain level of influence.

As his power grows stronger, the waves of revolution he stirs will become increasingly huge. By then, the Obisceal Royal Family will undoubtedly be affected and shaken. They must adapt and join in before that happens, ensuring they become new beneficiaries of the shift, turning this wave of reform into an opportunity to usher in new glory for the Komeer Kingdom.

If Gaven initially represented only a possibility,

now that King Yasan has reached this realization, it’s no longer just a mere possibility. This shrewd old fox will actively push this agenda forward, securing greater benefits for the Komeer Kingdom.

Thus, during the subsequent talks, Gaven received many preferential policies. These policies were not related to Rocklands but instead targeted economic development within the Komeer Kingdom, focusing primarily on investment promotion and resource mobilization. The intention was to exploit Gaven’s capabilities to the fullest.

During his days in Susar, Gaven scarcely had a moment of rest.

His days were occupied with meetings of varying scales, all concerning the development betting agreements for Rocklands. Once King Yasan set the main tone, he withdrew from active involvement and delegated the matter to Crown Princess Tainalasta, designating her as the royal family’s representative.

Gaven naturally could not personally spar over every detail. Instead, he formed his own strategic team led by Veranika to conduct in-depth planning, negotiate, and wrangle over the specifics with the other two parties.

His evenings were filled with various noble social banquets.

Such banquets were entirely unappealing to Gaven. He understood that, as an undeniable outsider, it would be difficult for him to integrate into such gatherings.

He would either be isolated or become an object of amusement for those noble ladies seeking novelty.

Aside from a few unavoidable royal banquets he attended at the insistence of the Crown Princess, the rest were flatly declined. However, the women he arranged in advance from Anfield Village, backed by the influence of power and wealth, infiltrated this upper social circle to gather a variety of useful intelligence for him.

World-shaking secrets or matters determining the rise and fall of nations aren’t the only forms of intelligence. The interpersonal relationships among Komeer Kingdom’s nobles and the private rumors within aristocratic circles—the kinds of things whispered over wine—all count as intelligence, as they help reveal a clearer picture of one’s opponents.

Mother Gao Ser, who arrived in Susar less than ten days before Gaven, was intimately familiar with the intricate relationships among the Komeer Kingdom’s nobles, as if counting pearls.

"The rise of the Red Raven Mercenary Brigade started with undertaking some outer perimeter bandit suppression contracts in Arabey City. Later, they moved into the security and mercenary work for Arabey’s municipal council. Eventually, they surged to prominence, becoming the largest mercenary group in Arabey City and its surrounding areas. Their fame skyrocketed when they signed a contract with the royal family to clear Rocklands. Every year from that agreement alone, they receive hundreds of thousands of gold coins in mercenary payments from the royal family."

This year, the Red Raven Mercenary Brigade further signed a wasteland reclamation contract with Arabey City. The brigade is responsible for mobilizing personnel to reclaim new farmland in the northern wastelands near Arabey City and establish new fortress estates. For this endeavor, Arabey City pays them at least several million gold coins annually."

As the main competitor for Rocklands development, they naturally became one of Gaven’s primary focuses. Regarding this mercenary brigade, Mother Gao Ser dug deep, collecting not only recent information but also uncovering their entire rise to prominence.

Gaven did not question why, despite Arabey City possessing the mighty Purple Dragon Knights, they continued to rely on the Red Raven Mercenary Brigade—a seemingly unwise action.

First, there’s the issue of risk costs. Some tasks with highly unpredictable danger levels aren’t suitable for deploying the Purple Dragon Knights. Instead, these tasks are assigned to peripheral mercenary brigades for relatively little expense. Especially when dealing with matters involving gray areas, if problems arise, the mercenaries can immediately be scapegoated. Their status as "temporary workers" ensures it’s no fault of the Komeer Kingdom.

Second, as the regular army, the Purple Dragon Knights only have jurisdiction within the Komeer Kingdom. Once they operate outside their borders, they risk retaliation and accusations of illegal intrusion. Mercenaries, by contrast, operate much more freely.

Third, there’s a rather gray area of collusion between internal and external interests. The wasteland reclamation led by Arabey City results in estates that belong to the city itself. Meanwhile, the reclamation conducted by mercenaries, even if not fully owned personally, benefits from a slew of preferential policies, such as tax reductions and limited-term ownership rights.

This is a classic case of national assets flowing outward—using national and city funds to accomplish personal agendas for individual gain. It couldn’t be more commonplace.

"What’s the background of the Red Raven Mercenary Brigade’s Captain Rayana? And what’s her relationship with Lady Milra, the City Lord of Arabey?" Gaven asked.

Such collusion between internal and external forces usually demands bloodline-level trust. Even trusted confidants can often betray their superiors when driven by profit. Such betrayals are far too frequent.

"There are several rumors. Some say Rayana is the illegitimate daughter of City Lord Milra. Others say Rayana carries royal bloodline, a lineage that the royal family allowed to drift outside its bounds. Between these two, I personally lean toward the latter. The support Arabey City gives to the Red Raven Mercenary Brigade is far too blatant, yet there’s no reaction from the Obisceal Royal Family. This is out of character for them unless the matter has royal approval from the start."

Mother Gao Ser, notoriously interested in gossip, explained with relish, "This incident would also align with the nature of that old dragon. The ages match up. The only mystery is the identity of her mother and what role Lady Milra played. If she were their illegitimate daughter, now that would truly be interesting."

"Rayana isn’t likely the illegitimate daughter of King Yasan and Lady Milra. Her body contains the bloodline of Fire Element lineage, whereas both King Yasan and Lady Milra are purely human," Gaven pondered aloud, recalling the previous scene in the Royal Court Conference Hall and the interactions among the individuals.

Previously, he hadn’t considered this angle and therefore missed the clues, but now upon careful reflection, certain peculiarities began to emerge.

From beginning to end, Rayana seemed preoccupied with discussions with the Court Archmage, never once sparing a proper glance at King Yasan.

King Yasan, for his part, displayed no signs of offense and instead seemed to betray traces of guilt in his gaze.

The most unremarkable was Lady Milra. This proud peacock-like City Lord hardly acknowledged anyone she deemed unworthy of her status, much less someone like Gaven.

"The General is falling into the trap of conventional thinking again. There are many ways to manifest the traits of elemental bloodlines—it doesn’t necessarily have to come from inheritance through parents. I’ve heard that certain rare profession-related legacies or powerful magic artifacts can also imbue users with similar features." Mother Gao Ser shared yet another piece of intelligence, "Captain Rayana might as well have appeared out of thin air. In her youth, nobody had seen her. However, someone once claimed to have seen Captain Rayana with golden hair, though that person was merely a drunkard, and no one believed the tale."