Chapter 123. Agreeing to the Marriage Alliance as the Four Kingdoms Secretly ddle
Inside Kroll II’s Study, the candlelight flickered bright and dim, reflecting off his grave expression.
Only after a long while did he give an order to the attendant outside to bring William over. The attendant received the command and withdrew at once.
Before long, a knock sounded from outside the door.
“William, co in.”
He pushed the door open and entered. The mont he saw how frighteningly dark his father’s face was, a wave of unease rose in his heart.
He had barely co to a stop when he heard words he could scarcely believe.
“William, make preparations. You are going to enter a marriage alliance with the foreign races.”
William’s head jerked up sharply. “Father? What did you say?”
Kroll II rubbed the space between his brows and laid out everything about the unusual movents of the Orc Federation of the Northern Continent and the Lizard Alliance of the Western Continent.
“The foreign races have their backing. We cannot et them head-on. A marriage alliance is the safest way to buy ti for now.”
He paused, then added, “Among the orcs, there are Half-Orc princesses. Among the dwarves and the barbarian tribes, there should also be girls with decent looks. When the ti cos, have them sent to the Royal Capital in batches, and you can choose a few to keep.”
But William’s attention had been completely drawn to words like “Western Continent” and “Northern Continent.” He pressed the question at once. “Father, what continent are we actually on?”
“The Eastern Continent.”
Kroll II’s voice was deep and steady. “Most lands here follow the kingdom system. There are fifteen human kingdoms and nine Foreign Race kingdoms in total. At the center of the continent stand the Three Great Empires—two human empires and one Dark Creature Empire. Their strength is the greatest of all.”
He took a huge map out of his Spatial Ring, laid it on the floor, and walked over to it.
“The Southern Continent belongs to the Magical Beasts and the Barbarians. It is primitive, yet rich in resources. But aside from the Three Great Empires, no one has the power to control it.”
“The Orc Federation of the Northern Continent once colonized a region of the Southern Continent. They fought there for eight years and nine months before finally withdrawing. I have heard they have begun stirring again recently.”
William stared at the tangled lines of territory across the map, his brows tightly furrowed.
He had never imagined that the world he lived in was so vast, or that so many powers lurked within it.
“Father, I can accept the marriage alliance, but we need resources.”
William’s voice was low and firm.
“It must be an equal exchange. Since they want to send their daughters, then I will marry them, but the resources cannot be lacking.”
Kroll II looked at the sharpness in his son’s eyes and slowly nodded.
“Very well. I will have the ministers draft the terms. I will not let you bear this hardship for nothing.”
After Kroll II and William settled the broad direction of the marriage alliance, he imdiately ordered the core ministers to be summoned.
The council chamber was brightly lit deep into the night. Layers upon layers of hardened wax had ford in the candlesticks, while the ministers sat around the long table, arguing endlessly over the docunts spread before them.
“We must secure the dwarf kingdom’s Black Iron ore veins. Our armory workshops are in urgent need of them.”
The Minister of Military Affairs slapped the table, his voice hoarse.
“And we cannot do without the magical beast pelts and herbs from the Orc Federation. Our winter military supplies depend on them.”
The Finance Minister hurriedly added his piece, his fingers flying across the account books.
“The Misty Forest controlled by the barbarian tribes has rare ores. Those are essential for forging magical implents. They must be included on the list.”
The Magic Advisor pushed up his crystal spectacles, his tone brooking no argunt.
The debate continued from deep night until the first light of dawn filtered through the window lattice. Only then did they finally draft a detailed resource list.
Kroll II picked up the parchnt and reviewed it word by word. Little by little, his brows relaxed.
“Good.”
He set the list down on the table and tapped it lightly with his fingertips.
“Every item here has a marked bottom line, and the total leaves us with twenty percent room for concessions.”
“In the negotiation, hold firm to this number first. If they bargain, then give ground bit by bit. We must make them feel they have gained an advantage, but we cannot truly let them damage our foundation.”
The ministers all nodded. The Minister of Military Affairs could not help asking, “Your Majesty, what if they refuse to yield?”
“Refuse to yield?”
A cold light flashed through Kroll II’s eyes.
“Then let them weigh what matters more—those resources, or William.”
The ministers moved with decisive efficiency and quickly delivered Kroll’s reply regarding the marriage alliance, along with the attached resource list, to the three kingdoms.
When the rulers of the orc, dwarf, and barbarian kingdoms saw the figures on that list, every one of them slamd the table in fury. The resources Kroll demanded were nearly equivalent to three full years of their total production.
But after weighing the pros and cons, the three kingdoms still suppressed their anger and decided to send delegations to the Royal Capital of Kroll first, hoping to negotiate the terms down.
Yet sothing strange happened. The first delegation had barely entered the border of the Kroll Kingdom before all news of them vanished.
The second delegation took a different route and t the sa fate. They disappeared without a trace and did not even have ti to use their Communication Crystals.
The upper echelons of the three kingdoms could no longer remain seated.
“Has Kroll gone back on its word?” The Orc King gripped the armrest of his throne so tightly that his claws sank into the wood.
“It does not look like it.”
The dwarf leader tapped his stone table.
“If they truly wanted to go back on their word, they could simply have torn up the agreent. There would have been no need to seize people in silence.”
The Barbarian King’s gaze turned grim.
“There is only one possibility—that those four damned human kingdoms are causing trouble. They do not want to see us reach an agreent with Kroll.”
Suspicion and fury spread among the three kingdoms.
In the end, they reached a consensus: they would send a Domain-Level Powerhouse to escort the delegation and make absolutely certain the truth was uncovered.
And so, a white-haired old orc set out together with the delegation on the road to the Royal Capital of Kroll.
The mont he entered the border region, his brows drew together. His fingertips brushed through a lingering trace of blood and Mana Fluctuation in the air.
“Soone fought here,” the old orc said in a low voice. “Not Kroll’s people. It is… the aura of Dark Magic.”
The faces of the delegation changed at once. Dark Magic was precisely the favored thod of certain kingdoms among those four.
A cold gleam flashed through the old orc’s eyes. “Keep moving. This ti, I would like to see who dares make a move right under my nose.”
The group continued onward, and the tension in the air was so thick it almost seed to solidify.
When they reached a narrow Canyon, sheer cliffs rose on both sides as though carved by blade and axe, allowing only two riders to pass abreast.
The wind whistled through the mouth of the gorge with an eerie cry.
Then suddenly, a thunderous BOOM erupted overhead. Countless boulders as large as millstones ca crashing down from the tops of the cliffs, carrying gravel and dust as they smashed toward the group.
The delegation imdiately fell into chaos. One after another, they drew weapons or raised magical shields to block the attack, and the sharp clang of impacts mixed with startled cries echoed through the Canyon.
Only that old orc stood unmoving. His cloudy eyes tilted slightly upward as he looked toward the cliff tops, and a cold smile curved across his lips.
“Heh heh heh. Four Legendary Combatants hiding up there in the cold wind? Now that is interesting.”
The mont his words fell, several cold snorts sounded from both sides of the cliffs. Four figures erged from behind the rocks like ghosts—two n and two won, their auras deep and still as an abyss. They were clearly Legendary-level combatants.
“An old thing with re Legendary strength dares mock us?”
From the cliff on the left, a man clad in black armor raised his voice and shouted, “If you know what is good for you, do not struggle. We will make it quick. It will not hurt.”
The old orc slowly lifted a hand. A pale golden halo erged over his withered palm, and even the air around him seed to begin trembling.
“Four little pieces of trash. Do you really think joining forces is enough to trap this old man? Back in my day, even your grandfathers had to respectfully call ‘Old Savage.’”
He stomped down hard, and several cracks split across the ground of the Canyon. The falling boulders seed to freeze in midair under an invisible force.
“Good. I needed to stretch my old bones anyway. Let teach you what it ans to respect your elders.”
A brilliant light burst from the old orc’s eyes, and a vast pressure surged outward like a tidal wave.
The expressions of the four figures on the cliffs changed at the sa ti. They had never expected that this old monster was actually Domain-level.
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