Chapter 182: Step by Step, We Became Mortal Enemies! (34)

In the lakeside study of Swan Castle, Stonard, director of the overseas intelligence bureau, placed a detailed statistical report on Luosen's desk.

"Sir, there are two main reasons for the rise in grain prices."

"First, the Duchy of Bohemia suffered a great flood last year; half its farmland was turned into mud, causing a severe drop in this year's output."

"Moreover, the Duchy of Bohemia is the Alliance's most important grain producer, its exports accounting for thirty percent of the Alliance's international grain market."

"Because of Bohemia's influence, the three great kingdoms have also tightened grain exports and increased their domestic grain reserves."

"Especially Aaron, who in our trade sharply raised grain prices, making grain imported from Aaron only slightly cheaper than from Kao."

Luosen knows this; Aaron merely wants to use grain to offset some compensation losses.

But Aaron does not dare to overstep, since his navy suffered heavy damage and he harbors a fear of Weilan's mysterious navy.

Because Luosen strictly keeps new weapons secret, Aaron still hasn't figured out how they were defeated.

"And then?"

"Second, the Levinde Royal Family is secretly buying grain on the Alliance market."

"Their operation is extremely covert, involving several intermediaries; they not only use civilian forces, but also enlist the nearby Duchy of Bohemia and the Duke of Baolian in the scheme."

"Preliminary estimates show they have quietly purchased at least one million tons of grain."

"Because the operation is so secret and the volume not huge, Kao and Aaron have noticed the price anomaly but attribute it to Bohemia's influence and haven't paid much attention."

"After all, the two great kingdoms aren't really short of grain."

Luosen frowned as he listened, "Levinde again!"

Weilan is already short of grain; when Bohemia had trouble, prices were already high, and now Levinde is covertly pushing them up again—aren't they just causing trouble? Stonard whispered, "Sir, it's clear Levinde wants to steal money from us; at least we are an important alternative option."

Luosen of course knows, and his impression of the Levinde Royal Family, especially the little king, drops once more.

They buy grain in bulk, making the market extremely scarce and sharply driving up Alliance grain prices.

When prices rise sufficiently, they sell the grain they stockpiled at low cost through various means at high price, pocketing the margin.

Weilan still lacks grain, so it must be the big buyer of this grain.

If Levinde's purchases double the grain price, and Levinde eventually sells five million tons to Weilan, the round trip could yield at least ten million Ogre profit.

If they're not vigilant, Aaron's 18 million Ogre loss could be siphoned by Levinde—the old rogue—for at least half.

Even if they are alert, without a flour mill, Luosen now has to pinch his nose and compete with Levinde for grain on the international market.

But now, Levinde can't take his money, and Luosen plans to turn the tables, making that old rogue lose everything! Honestly, he and the little king have never met, yet step by step they have become mortal enemies.

Since they're mortal enemies, they must fight to the death! After a few minutes of deliberation, he told Stonard, "I understand the matter; keep monitoring Levinde's moves and report any changes to me immediately."

"Yes, sir."

"Also, via Levinde's Divine Gun Alliance, discreetly contact the royal Crown Princess and give her this talisman."

It is Luosen's newly reengineered Ten Rings Boiling Moonfire Talisman, whose performance has been significantly improved over the original.

As for the Divine Gun Alliance, it's not Sir Maxim, but a secret alliance that he and Muradi have forged.

Politically it wields little influence, but its network is vast, reaching the Queen Dowager above and local widowed nobles below, totaling over two hundred members.

Some might think the Queen Dowager belongs to Sir Maxim, but that would underestimate her capabilities.

She has eighteen male favorites! Back to the point.

"Tell the Crown Princess that if she feels danger, she can seek refuge with me in Weilan; I will do everything to keep her safe."

"Understood."

After Stonard left, Luosen promptly had Alai summon Weilan's acting Foreign Minister.

It wasn't anyone else but the former Storm First Fleet Marshal, Sir Te Wu De.

His courage was shattered, leaving a psychological scar; he can't stay on a warship, yet his mediation skills remain decent.

To show his favor toward the Adrian family, Luosen promoted him to the position of Foreign Minister.

"Sir Te Wu De, I need you to issue a notice that I plan to hold an Alliance-wide Arcane Exchange Conference this winter on the shores of Swan Lake."

"I hope to invite as many renowned mages as possible from the Alliance. As long as they come, we will cover all travel expenses."

"Also, I will personally present a report at the conference, sharing my magical cultivation experience and unveiling a series of important arcane achievements."

Sir Te Wu De was slightly startled, "Duke, may I know the deeper purpose?"

Luosen nodded, "Besides the exchange, I hope to recruit mage talent at the conference and let Weilan's local mages broaden their horizons and see the gap between them and Alliance mages."

There is one more thing Luosen hasn't mentioned: a counterattack on Levinde.

But the three reasons are already sufficient; Sir Te Wu De nodded in agreement, "I understand. How many participants are we talking about?"

"Invite on a scale of five to ten thousand people, with about three thousand renowned mages, each allowed three assistant slots. Of course, they can bring more; if they do, we won't cover travel costs, they'll pay themselves."

"Understood."

Sir Te Wu De left, full of vigor.

Compared to being a Navy Marshal, he prefers this current position.

Because he can constantly look down on Aaron's diplomatic envoy, and Aaron is always easily rattled by a few of his words, which is especially entertaining.

Luosen, however, is not idle.

His true self hurried urgently to Ruer County, next to Mont County, to meet Mentor Anna, who leads the construction of an Electric Car production line there.

Luosen now has a plane, and the distance is short; he feels Ruer County is less than half an hour away.

Soon, he arrived at the county seat Rutelan City in Ruer County and found the mentor in a governmental study.

He also noticed a lively, beautiful young girl accompanying the mentor.

Squinting, he realized she was Princess Alice, Count Robert's eldest daughter.

Having not seen her for over a year, the princess is now seventeen, growing ever more youthful and beautiful, like a bud about to bloom.

Taking advantage of the mentor's free time, Luosen walked over and explained his plan.

"Mentor, I wish to urgently produce a batch of ultra‑luxury electric carriages for use at the upcoming Arcane Exchange Conference on Swan Lake's shore."

Anna immediately understood Luosen's intention: "Are you planning to take this opportunity to expand the market?"

"That's right."

Anna thought for a moment and asked, "When exactly will the conference be held?"

"In about three months, will that be in time?"

Anna nodded: "The factory in Ru'er County definitely won't make it in time, but White Sturgeon Island still has a small production line, currently averaging three electric carriages per day."

"If we tweak it a bit, we should be able to produce 300 vehicles in three months—uh, that seems a bit low."

Producing 300 electric carriages in three months is White Sturgeon Island's capacity; on Earth, that's pitifully low.

But considering this is a completely new mode of transport, with most details built from scratch, this speed is actually quite good.

Once the Ru'er County factory and its supporting factories are established, monthly output could increase about tenfold, reaching 1,000 vehicles per month. If sales go well thereafter, there will be funds for continual improvement, and capacity will keep rising.

Luosen thought and said, "300 vehicles will do; we'll specially host the top 300 mages."

300 vehicles aren't many, but that's enough for advertising.

After finishing the business, Luosen intended to find a moment to get cozy with the instructor, but then noticed a light bulb beside them.

Princess Alice's big eyes blinked at him, her face showing curiosity mixed with admiration.

"Your Grace, may I participate in the Arcane Exchange Conference?"

"Of course."

"Then could you give me some guidance on my magical cultivation?"

The instructor immediately scolded: "Alice, didn't the Duke write a book? Can't you read it yourself?"

Alice immediately pouted: "What's written in the book can't compare to the Duke teaching in person."

"The Duke is very busy."

Watching the aunt and niece play off each other, Luosen found it quite amusing.

He laughed heartily: "When the Arcane Exchange Conference comes, come visit Swan Castle and I'll give you guidance."

"Good, then it's settled!"

Alice was very happy.

Seeing Alice constantly following the instructor, Luosen couldn't find a chance to be alone, and he instantly felt a bit regretful.

Just as he was preparing to return to Swan Castle, the instructor said: "Alice, I have an important document here; please deliver it to Master Lamil."

"Okay, Aunt."

The innocent and lively Princess Alice took the document and ran off.

Click—

The study door closed, Instructor Anna lightly bit her lip and gazed at Luosen with a moist, lustrous look.

Luosen couldn't fail to understand; he immediately cast a soundless crystal barrier.

After about half an hour, he left Rutland City satisfied.

Early the next morning, Duke Weilan's announcement of holding the Arcane Exchange Conference was swiftly spread throughout the Natural Alliance via lightning messengers.

Aaron.

Deng had just finished arguing with a few troublemakers in the cabinet; the cause was that cabinet ministers demanded the royal household's daily income and expenditure be made public and sought to cut royal expenses.

For example, the king's table should have its dishes reduced to ten courses, only two more than Duke Weilan across the sea.

The reason is that Aaron's economy is poor, so spending needs to be trimmed.

Deng naturally wasn't willing; he had slaughtered the nobles to enable his own grand ambitions, not to have a bunch of impoverished commoners dictating how many dishes appear on his table.

The argument ended unpleasantly, and then Deng received a message from Weilan.

"This Duke Weilan is stirring up trouble again!"

Upon seeing the message's content, he knew Duke Weilan wanted to attract arcane talent from all countries to develop the domestic arcane industry.

Could he agree? Certainly not! He immediately summoned the cabinet minister of political affairs he had just appointed.

"Issue a ban, strictly forbidding Aaron's mages from participating in Weilan's arcane conference!"

The cabinet minister of political affairs is also an arcane master, just over fifty years old, with a very stubborn personality.

Among the few ministers who had just argued with Deng, he was the one who took the lead.

Upon hearing this, his brows immediately knit: "Your Majesty, Duke Weilan is a seventh-circle mage; his willingness to share arcane achievements is a fortune for all mages in the alliance."

"If Aaron's mages don't participate, Kao and Levinde mages will surely join, which would be unfair to Aaron's mages!"

Deng, still angry, picked up the teacup on the table and smashed it hard onto the floor, making a loud "bang".

"Old thing, are you deliberately opposing me?!"

The minister of political affairs twitched his brows: "Your Majesty, providing correct advice is my duty."

"What duty! I promoted you to minister of political affairs; I want your support, not constant opposition!"

"From now on, you're no longer the minister of political affairs; pack your bags and get out!"

"Besides, you're also an Aaron mage; you're forbidden from participating in Weilan's Arcane Exchange Conference, or it will be considered treason!"

The dismissed finance minister, face dark, gave Deng a slight bow, said nothing, and turned and left.

Deng, feeling thoroughly displeased, went to find Sangqisi to vent his frustration.

"Sage, I now feel these commoners are more annoying than the nobles!"

Nobles are good at reading faces, at least knowing to respect him; these commoners, however, are especially fond of nitpicking, feeling as if they completely disregard this king.

Sangqisi frowned:

"Your Majesty, Master Derek has done nothing wrong. Regarding correct advice, I believe you should humbly accept it."

Deng felt even more vexed: "Sage, I certainly know he's right, but I need him to propose countermeasures, not oppose me."

Sangqisi then said: "Your Majesty, there is no countermeasure for this; you can only accept defeat in this matter and then compensate for the loss through other events."

"After all, we don't have the huge influence of a seventh-circle mage."

"But we can improve the treatment of mages, increase investment in various spells, to retain Aaron's talent."

"Deng Ge listened halfway and then couldn't be bothered to listen further."

"All right, all right, I know, I'll do as you say, but I absolutely disagree with Aaron the mage participating in the Weilan Spell Conference!"

"He wants to hold a spell conference, I'll also hold one, bigger, better, grander than his, and steal all his people."

"Having said that, he didn't even bother with Sangqiesite's reaction, turned and left."

"Sangqiesite watched Deng Ge leave, knowing that after experiencing the Blood Blade Night and tasting the thrill of absolute power, Deng Ge had changed a bit."

"Ah~ after all, he's just a martial man, his spirit isn't resilient enough to maintain his original intention in the face of huge impact."

"In this regard, Duke Weilan, as a seventh-circle mage, is another extreme."

"The other side has been moving toward the same goal from beginning to end, without change."

"This can be clearly felt from the various policies and decrees issued by the other side, and from the public's evaluation of the duke."

"Compared to each other, Deng Ge is somewhat going with the flow, advancing then retreating, while Duke Weilan is like a strong bow, gradually building up power."

"When this bow is fully drawn and the arrow released, who knows what astonishing scene will unfold."

"He couldn't help but think: 'Mortals, after all, cannot oppose the gods?'"

"He also couldn't help but think: 'This spell exchange conference is truly rare; perhaps I should find an opportunity to go.'"

"(End of chapter)"