Chapter 1196: Traditional Fishing

"Whether it is a small country depends on how you calculate it."

Li Ang explained:

"The Kroke Kingdom did not directly occupy those 400,000 square kilometers of land. Most of them were leased from other kingdoms and city-states, so they will not be drawn on any map, including the Kroke Kingdom itself.

The territory recognized by the Kroke Kingdom on the surface is only these 800-odd blocks, and only the people living in these 800-odd blocks are considered citizens of the Kroke Kingdom, so you are not wrong to say it is a small country."

"It's not small, it's not small."

Alger shook his head when he heard this:

"No matter how you calculate it, a country that actually controls over 400,000 square kilometers cannot be considered a small country... Speaking of which, since the actual control area is so large, why doesn't the Kroke Kingdom simply recognize these places?"

Because this is the way to maximize profits.

Hearing Alger's curious inquiry, Li Ang's eyes narrowed slightly, and he thought of the encounter between the robber siblings.

Cheshire, where they came from, was one of the mining areas of the Kroke Kingdom. Everything there was controlled by the Kroke Kingdom. Internal and external transactions were almost prohibited, and even food and some daily necessities needed to be exchanged for mined floating crystal ore.

Under this rule, the more than 10,000 people in Cheshire spent their lives from birth to death revolving around the mine, providing a steady stream of floating crystal ore for the Kroke Kingdom. And there are more than 100 "mining areas" like them.

Even if not all mining areas need so much labor, and not all mining areas are as miserable as Cheshire, the number of ordinary people directly or indirectly "enslaved" by the Kroke Kingdom is probably still over a million.

As long as they don't recognize the actual control of these mining areas, the Kroke Kingdom can stay out of it, use these million people as consumables, and wantonly mine the resources they need, almost without paying any price.

"Can it be like this?"

After listening to Li Ang's speculation and the miserable encounter of the robber siblings, Alger's face turned slightly red, and he said angrily:

"No one can manage this kind of thing? Just let the Kroke Kingdom do this?"

"Who manages it? The Cleaning Bureau?"

After glancing at this strong man with a relatively simple mind, Li Ang said:

"The ancestor of the Kroke royal family is the palace sitter of the Watchtower. The

As for the other kingdoms, don't even think about it. The technological level of the Kingdom of Kroke is at least a hundred years ahead of the others, so although the Kingdom of Kroke has a sparse population, its military strength is not weak at all.

What's more, the Kingdom of Kroke paid for these mining areas and even transferred quite a bit of technology to obtain the power of 'mining and usage' from the hands of other kingdoms. Who are you going to get to stand up and manage them? The other kingdoms that took the money and sold the mines?"

"..."

"Don't think about it, we can't manage this kind of thing."

After understanding the "business model" of the Kingdom of Kroke through the stolen data, Li Ang had already made up his mind to give this B-kingdom a hard blow if given the chance, but on the surface, he said calmly:

"We are just two ordinary cleaners. Our primary task now is to investigate the situation in Research Zone 1, find the Atifi-01 controlled by Prince Andre, and then confirm whether the royal family is truly all dead. If they are, then we'll find a way..."

"What did you say?!!!"

Hearing this, the unkempt man, who had been pricking up his ears to eavesdrop since Li Ang and the other started talking, could no longer hold it in. He stood up from his seat with a start and roared in shock:

"The royal family is all dead?!!!"

"Senior Alger!"

Looking at the unkempt man standing opposite him, Li Ang couldn't help but deepen his tone, frowning with slight dissatisfaction:

"Didn't you guarantee to me just now that if he had any extreme reaction, you would definitely discover it in advance and stop him?"

"Sorry, I was careless..."

Hearing Li Ang's words, Alger couldn't help but lower his head in shame:

"I was a bit distracted just now, and my reaction speed has dropped a bit more than yesterday, so I didn't react in time... Sorry, I will definitely be careful next time!" "Fine, this is something that can't be helped..."

Li Ang shook his head helplessly upon hearing this, then instructed:

"I'll let it slide this time, but you must be careful later. I can still use 【Secret Tail】 to cover for us now, but if we enter Research Zone 1 and something like this happens suddenly again, we'll be in danger."

"I... I'm sorry, I will absolutely not make this mistake again!"

"Alright, then you control Mr. Bell first, we..."

"Wait! Wait a moment!"

Seeing these two "fugitive criminals" preparing to control him again, the unkempt man couldn't help but feel anxious, and then he took the initiative to lower his voice:

"What did you just say? The entire royal family is dead?"

Hooked.

Glancing at the unkempt man's soul, which was dancing wildly, Li Ang's eyebrows raised slightly. He then frowned again and said to Alger:

"Sorry, I was also a bit careless. This kind of key intelligence shouldn't have been discussed in front of him. You control him first..."

"Don't! Don't control me!"

Hearing Li Ang preparing to have this strong man control him again, the unkempt man said hurriedly:

"I can help you! Don't stop me from talking!"

"This..."

After hesitating slightly, Li Ang shook his head and refused:

"Sorry, this matter is too important. We can't trust you. If you say you'll help us but actually try to tip someone off, then..."

"I won't!"

The unkempt man said anxiously:

"I am a classmate of Emperor Fei En! My rank as a Level 4 scholar was also specially approved by Emperor Fei En! I... did something really happen to the royal family? As long as you can prove that you weren't lying just now, I... I can help you sneak in!"

Got him!

Hearing the unkempt man's words, the corners of Li Ang's mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly.

He had already seen the unkempt man's identity as a die-hard "Royalist" in the stolen data. Given his relationship with the old king, once he heard the intelligence that the royal family might have all been killed, he would definitely be unable to restrain himself and would be eager to get to the bottom of it. This played right into his hands.

After all, Research Zone 1 was so important; Prince Andre, the suspected mastermind, wouldn't be a fool and would definitely guard it strictly.

His 【Secret Tail】 wasn't omnipotent. Even if he found a scholar from Research Zone 1 and used an anomalous object to replace his identity, without his knowledge, memories, understanding of his interpersonal relationships, and the rules of Research Zone 1, he would still be exposed in minutes.

Therefore, the only way to successfully sneak in was to persuade this unkempt man to lead the way for the two of them willingly.

And compared to earnest persuasion or begging for help by presenting facts and reasoning, it was naturally more secure to set the hook first, wait for him to take the initiative to strike up a conversation, and finally beg to help.

(End of chapter)