Chapter 385: Coral Courtyard

"The Church, the Governor's Mansion, and the Bay Chamber of Commerce."

"These three forces are like three cables twisted together, pulling the big ship that is Suoyu Wan."

"Sometimes they pull in different directions, and the ship rocks violently; occasionally, when they exert force together, the ship moves faster."

"But at least most of the time, they know that it's in no one's interest if the ship sinks, so it's generally stable."

"As for those of us squeezed on the deck and in the cabins..."

Padi grinned, revealing his slightly yellowed teeth with some gaps.

"Learning to find food in the cracks of the deck, holding on tight when the ship rocks so you don't get thrown off; staying away when the cables are straining so you don't get tangled in, that's the greatest skill."

Listening to the introduction of this small merchant, Xia Nan's face showed a thoughtful expression.

The distribution of power in Suoyu Wan was already clear.

The Governor's Mansion controlled order and power, the Church manipulated faith and divine authority, and the Bay Chamber of Commerce grasped economy and trade.

Although the three often had conflicts for various reasons, they were tied to the same ship after all, sharing common interests, and after countless years of grinding, they wouldn't make things too ugly no matter what.

Possessing their respective support and the rich foundation accumulated over many years, these three organizations combined occupied almost ninety-five percent of the resources of the entire Suoyu Wan.

As long as one wanted to make a living in this bay port city, contact with them was inevitable.

Even for those homeless people who couldn't get enough to eat, choosing a location closer to the Chamber of Commerce shops when begging, those "masters" who were generous with their money would casually reward them with a handful of copper coins, enough for them to live well for a while.

Not to mention the relationship with the Governor's Mansion patrol guards responsible for maintaining street security, and the Church that often distributed supplies.

In the entire Suoyu Wan, relatively speaking, the only ones who could be slightly less involved with these three forces were probably adventurers like Xia Nan who had lower material desires.

Suddenly thinking of something else, Xia Nan raised his eyebrows slightly and asked Padi beside him:

"What about the Adventurer Association? I remember Suoyu Wan should have an association branch, right?"

"What is its relationship with these other three forces?"

If one started solely from the perspective of power coverage and strength volume, the Adventurer Association was undoubtedly a behemoth of crushing level for the three forces currently controlling Suoyu Wan.

The Bay Chamber of Commerce, a merchant organization mainly operating economic trade in coastal areas, was not worth mentioning;

The Governor's Mansion, a local management agency of the Servia Kingdom, let alone the governor of a small seaport, wouldn't even rank if their King were called over;

As for the Church, it was even more of a scattered sand, with faith disputes and filth between gods not even sorted out, and if there were any real conflicts, the Association wouldn't even need to take the initiative, the so-called "heretics" of hostile churches would take action themselves.

Under these circumstances, despite Suoyu Wan having an Adventurer Association branch station, it was excluded from the main forces, which could only mean one reason:

—It didn't care.

Or even actively withdrew from the struggle for power.

Suddenly remembering the style and organizational form of the Association itself learned in Hegu Town, after Xia Nan's question was uttered, he already had an answer in his heart.

And Padi's answer was just as he had guessed.

"The Adventurer Association..." This middle-aged man with graying hair and beard looked at Xia Nan's expression with some caution, weighing his words, "Mr. Xia Nan, you must know more than I do."

"The Association itself has its own resource channels, and compared to these interests in the port, what it cares more about should be the development and cultivation of adventurers."

"Basically, it won't participate in disputes within Suoyu Wan, and the other three major forces will also very tacitly maintain restraint and reduce contact when touching upon matters related to the Adventurer Association."

The Adventurer Association itself was more like a nature of an "interaction platform" for adventurers compared to an "organization", which would not change just because they moved from Hegu Town to Suoyu Wan. ===== CHAPTER 386 =====