Chapter 534 Guests from Afar (1/2)

Fiat was a mining town, but on a much smaller scale than Deep Stone City. They focused on business and processing industries while lacking the interest in basic industries. The South relied on importing raw materials from the North before processing them for sales and profit. Due to this, they felt that they were a step higher than the northern hard laborers. They earn merely a few gold coins from hacking down forests manually while we can sell them for up to a thousand gold coins after we process them into luxurious furniture and decorations… How will the muscle-headed barbarians in the North even understand this?

There were multiple layers of conflicts between the North and the South. Not only due to the disagreements between the rulers and the gap between the rich and the poor, but such superior mentality also occupied the majority. The South relied on its own transportation network, and they weren't afraid of complaints from the North because no matter how hard the North complained, they would still obediently make a living like slaves through manual labor. Without the South, perhaps the North couldn't even fill their rice bowls.

Under such a superior mentality, the Southerners were less concerned about the basic industries and the manual laborers were often looked down upon. In such a huge Southern region, only Grosso and Fiat supported basic industries, whereas the remaining regions mostly strived in the trade, commerce, and processing. As the ores and foodstuff in the Grosso and Fiat regions weren't advantageous in price as compared to their Northern neighbors, their influence was insignificant. However, now that the South had lost their resources and the Grosso region utterly destroyed, their last hope would be Fiat.

The Southern Parliament was tied up with a ridiculous amount of work at the moment. The small mine in Fiat could produce a concerning, limited number of ores annually while the foodstuff crisis over at the Grosso region forced them under immense pressure. Although they had opened up the granaries and more or less appeased the restless civilians, they knew that this was only temporary and they would be in for a rough ride if they couldn't search for a stable food source promptly.

Due to these reasons, they lacked the time to focus on the small town situated in the lofty mountain range.

The mining town was extremely quiet when Rhode entered in his chariot.

Perhaps because of its distant connection with other places or because it was far away from Grosso, the storm that Rhode had stirred up didn't seem to affect this place at all.

Rhode withdrew his gaze from the window and looked at Celestina opposite him, who was scanning himself from head to toe. The Demon young lady revealed a mocking smile and Rhode knew exactly what was going on in her head.

Anyone who had spent enough time with Rhode would know that he despised being treated as a woman. But this time, he actually dressed up in a female costume of his own accord and this was obviously an excellent pretext for a gossip. This was the reason Rhode had rather left without bringing Anne and the others along since his summoned spirits wouldn't let the cat out of the bag. If the others were around… Rhode would be better off dead.

Celia sat quietly at the side, gazing fixedly on the moving scenery, as though she had no opinions on Rhode's dress. Celestina would turn to him with a teasing and mocking gaze every once in a while as though this was her sweet revenge since Rhode had made her his maid. However, Rhode's reactions disappointed her hugely because he didn't appear embarrassed or ashamed at all. Not only did he turn a blind eye to Celestina's gazes, but he also displayed an elegant, gentle smile, like a well-brought-up young woman.

Shameless!

Celestina ground her teeth aggrievedly before letting out a discontented 'hmph' and looking out of the window. But this didn't mean that she had given up. She would surely ridicule him harshly when a chance presented itself.

Rhode said nothing after Celestina admitted defeat. Even though he hated to be treated as a woman due to his feminine features and this current situation should have been a torture for him, he let it all go after putting on the dress as it felt like putting on a play, where one would feel bashful and unable to perform standing before the whole crowd. However, this reaction was normal. By letting himself go, he didn't need to worry and be concerned about outsiders' opinions. Now, for the sake of victory, Rhode couldn't care less about such embarrassment. Since he was in on it, he might as well do it with alacrity. What's the use of hating it? I might as well treat it as I have opened a transsexual account in the game. I don't see any psychological issues associated with the players who have done this.

The chariot slowed down gradually and Rhode saw themselves approaching the entrance to the Trade Associations, which was also Rhode's target.

The mining resources were dominated by the Howard Family and Edward Family. Both families started out by mining and each held half the mining resources. Of course, this was what was made known to the public, but there were still some differences in their respective resources.

The Howard Family controlled the crystal ores, while the Edward Family controlled silver ores and iron ores. Fiat had an abundance of ores and it could fulfill the requirements of both parties. However, they were obviously dissatisfied with being just that and they had been digging into each other's resources in order to monopolize the entire Fiat region.

Of course, it was the same in the political standpoint. The Howard Family leaned toward the King's Party and their crystal ores were mainly sold to the North for production of magical technologies and weapons. On the other hand, the Edward Family supported the Reformist Party and had always treated the Howard Family as a traitor and enemy. The conflicts between them had never been settled.

Rhode did ample research on this place before his arrival. The two families were evenly matched in forces at the moment. During the Midsummer Festival, the Edward Family suffered grave losses for supporting the Liberty Wings Guild and Rosen, while the Howard Family seized the opportunity and took the upper hand. The Howard Family could have taken over the entirety of Fiat and resolve the major troubles hidden within, but, as every dog had its day, the Reformist Party declared independence when the Howard Family was sharpening their swords to strike. The Howard Family who had lost the support of the King's Party withered abruptly and the Edward Family that was on the verge of crumbling grabbed the chance to revive themselves. The current situation seemed to be developing well for the Edward Family and no matter what, the Howard Family couldn't save the situation without the King's Party's support.

This downfall wasn't as simple as Rhode had heard of. He spotted the entrance to the Howard Trade Association. It was completely deserted and seemed about to close down for good. The crystal ores were materials for manufacturing magical weapons and technologies and the majority of them were sold directly to the King's Party. Now that the transportation routes had been blocked off, the Howard Family had no other ways to deliver their bread and butter. Moreover, their bad reputation in the South resulted in no one willing to engage in business transactions with them.

Rhode wasn't here to provide help. Firstly, he had better things to do and secondly, wouldn't he be finding trouble since they were at the heart of the struggle? Rhode disguised himself mainly to dodge his terrible reputation and why would he be that foolish to reveal himself?

His target for this operation was located at an entirely different place.