Chapter 406: Negotiation and Reflection

"Before departing, the God-King and God-Queen allocated some of their attendants to me, and the venerable Lu Huiyikeye provided me with a little help." Aurelia did not answer Sinuoli's question directly; instead, she began to introduce the forces at her disposal.

"I understand what you mean."

Sinuoli stroked his beard and nodded slightly. Sometimes there is no need to spell things out; every excellent commander knows the operational characteristics of Undead troops—using large numbers of cheap, low-tier units to exhaust the opponent's living forces.

It is simple to crack this tactic: either use heavy-armored troops that they cannot penetrate to hold the line, or use equally cheap cannon fodder to wear them down. But the Wood Elves have a sparse population, and their elite troops prioritize ranged combat and mobility.

In Aisuoluolun Senlin, there are Forest Spirits of small, medium, and large sizes—Dryads, Tree Kin, and Treemen—that can meet various needs, but unfortunately, the jungles of the Southlands cannot summon them.

"I cannot send my kin to help you; the reason, I think, needs no further explanation. As for the Humans, I will summon their leaders tomorrow; you can go and talk to them yourself."

"I thought your title as King of the South World's Edge Mountains was not self-proclaimed."

The Woodland Lord frowned slightly. The reclusive nature of the Esilai made her unwilling to communicate with a large group of short-lived races. One must know that in the thousands of years the Wood Elves have spent with the Bretonnians, their limited interactions have mostly been non-contact.

"Don't think I don't know what is waiting for them at the edge of the desert. The Sons of the Mountains and Humans are the closest of allies, and I must be responsible for them. But believe me, as long as the conditions you offer are appropriate, the negotiations will be very easy."

The Dwarf King spoke very slowly, attempting to mobilize his aura to press down on the woman opposite him. After Wende left, he had been thinking and weighing his options, and ultimately decided to be more conservative.

Most of the current Human immigrants are proletarians from the bottom of society. They come to the Southlands either forced by personal attachment to Knight lords or to take a risk and gamble for a chance at wealth; generally speaking, the quality is on the low side.

After ten years of development, the supporting facilities in the Southlands have become complete. The number of immigrants has decreased in the last two years, but the quality is constantly improving. These pillars of society, who possess property, skills, and knowledge, value safety above all else.

In the forests of the Southlands, there are no large groups of Greenskins or Beastmen jumping out, and there are no giant rats the size of half a man in the sewers; every winter, there are no large groups of Northmen raiding along the coast in longships; nor are there Midnight Aristocrats lurking in gloomy ancient castles.

Considering this, Sinuoli decided not to come forward himself to organize the Human army, so as not to lower the potential safety rating. He hoped to downplay the threat of the Undead and control this military operation in the form of voluntary mercenaries.

"Very well, I hope it is as you say."

Aurelia's chest rose and fell slightly, but having long held a high position, she naturally had her own composure. Her strength was greater than Wende's, and she could detect the extraordinary power emanating from Sinuoli.

Although it was hard to believe, this meant that the Dwarf opposite her was qualified to face that black-toothed Demigod skeleton directly, and her greatest reliance was undoubtedly greatly diminished in effectiveness.

"You are finally back, I want."

""

"You must judge this fairly."

""

"Those guys from Reikland are no good!"

The next morning, as soon as he stepped into the conference room, a chorus of shouts rushed toward Sinuoli. Every participant seemed to have something for him to judge, and even though he had anticipated it, the Dwarf King still felt a darkness before his eyes.

A few years ago, the population was small and circulation was not so convenient, so it was peaceful enough for each village to govern itself. Now, a large number of people with different cultures and backgrounds have gathered together, and conflicts and friction have increased exponentially.

There are already significant differences between the various provinces/duchies of the Empire of Man and Bretonnia, and now some Humans from the Nanfang Wangguo, the Tilea Federation, and Araby have been added, making the composition even more complex.

In terms of status, those collateral branches and illegitimate children of the nobility can no longer suppress the merchant leaders and wealthy independent farmers. After the grassroots self-governance system failed, the pressure all fell on the Council of Elders, and the unprecedented challenges made these people unable to cope for a time.

"Quiet, I said, quiet!"

The chaotic venue made Sinuoli lose face in front of the beautiful Elf, so he mobilized his Authority and roared, the wind forcing the sound directly into the eardrums of the Humans.

"Whoosh!"

"Bang! Bang!"

The conference room was suddenly so quiet that only breathing and heartbeats could be heard. Those with weak strength were physically shocked, while the stronger ones felt a tremor in their spirits.

"I already know your demands. I will personally mediate conflicts involving more than fifty people or over one thousand gold coins after the meeting; handle the rest of the small matters yourselves! Besides those domestic trifles, is there anything else that needs to be discussed now?"

After a long while, Sinuoli scanned the still-silent conference room and nodded secretly. The Humans present still had some sense; even if there were other matters, they did not bring them up now to touch his bad side.

"Let me introduce you. This is Lady Xinge from the rainforest at the western foothills. She has some things she would like to discuss with you."

Aurelia stood up and took over the initiative. After stating the pros and cons and promising sufficient military funding, the Human leaders agreed even more readily than Sinuoli had imagined.

When a problem faced is difficult to solve for a time, solving the person who brings the problem is also a good way. He did not expect the recruitment of the Wood Elves to take away all the unstable social factors, but as long as they could take away a portion, it would prevent the remaining ones from clapping with one hand.

Sinuoli knew that they still harbored the idea of using this war, which might last for a long time, to redefine the dominance of Human society. Once the teams were formed, there would be no shortage of infighting among the various factions over command.

After finalizing the agreement, the Woodland Lord left directly, while Sinuoli was plunged into tedious mediation work. He had previously adopted a laissez-faire policy to accelerate development, and now he had to digest the side effects himself.

"Finally done! Notify the Blacksmith Guild and the Engineer Guild to start rushing the work. Divide the orders that cannot be finished among Tiefengbao and Keladeluomen."

【Source-switching app】

Leaning comfortably against the back of his chair and slowly savoring his beer, Sinuoli spread several sheets of white paper on the table and fell into thought. The timely invasion by the Tomb King gave him a brief opportunity to alleviate the contradictions, and he had to seize this chance to transform his internal affairs model to cope with the new situation.

"It's a headache. There was never any chance to cultivate spokespeople, and now I have to find a way to reduce my reliance on the two major sects."

The King of the Southlands tugged at his beard in distress. The intricate situation made him feel strained, and what was even more painful was that he could not find helpers among his single-minded kin. Thorgrim Grudgebearer sat firmly on the High King's throne by virtue of his extremely outstanding political skills among the Dwarfs, but even he could not gain the upper hand when facing Dieter IV, who was recognized as the most useless of all the past Human Emperors.