Free Web NovelAs envoys traveled back and forth between various small noble territories, the expansion of the Red Tide Territory was progressing at an undeniable pace.
The reason for this was that most lords had no deep attachment to the land beneath their feet; they were willing to let go at any time if offered enough temptation, such as a territory more suitable for their own development.
Moreover, these small nobles were well aware that without the support and trade from the Red Tide Territory, their small territories would have long been swallowed by war and famine.
Before the Red Tide Territory emerged, even without war, they had to endure food shortages and rely on external aid to survive.
Now, the Red Tide Territory was like a lighthouse, emitting a reassuring glow, protecting them from external pressure and harassment.
This was especially true for the pioneer nobles who had only arrived in the North for a couple of years; for them, their territory was more of a burden.
In fact, if not for the explicit prohibition in the Northern Pioneering Edict that pioneer lords could not leave the North at will, these people would have preferred to sell their territories directly and return to the South to continue being their dissolute selves.
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But now, Lord Louis of the Red Tide Territory offered them a new opportunity.
The supply of food, money, and materials had already revived them from their former poverty.
The trade in goods also allowed them to regain their aristocratic dignity, enjoying the noble life they had once lost.
Every cart of wine sent by the Red Tide Territory was their hope for continued extravagance.
So, when the Red Tide Territory proposed the idea of exchanging territories, many small nobles readily agreed.
They looked at the land in their hands, feeling no reluctance to part with it.
Who wouldn't want to seize such an opportunity to secure a more stable future?
However, not everyone could complete the transaction in one go.
There were also a small number of nobles who harbored an unspoken obsession.
This land was a symbol of their family's glory, a testament to the sweat and struggle of countless generations.
Whether it was the wind-swept and sun-baked wilderness or the busy figures in the fields, this place was deeply etched into their lives, almost becoming an inseparable part of them.
Even with such tempting conditions before them, the exchange proposal offered by the Red Tide Territory—the food, money, resources, and future guarantees—still could not shake their attachment to this land.
Therefore, Lord Louis did not forcefully demand an exchange from these noble lords.
Instead, he proposed a new plan with a cooperative attitude: joint development of the territory and working together to build a future.
"We are not just exchanging this land," the Red Tide envoy said gently, "we can cooperate, cultivate the land, establish workshops, and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results.
The Red Tide Territory is willing to provide you with materials and technical support, and we will jointly share all the profits from this land, only requiring you to cede some power to the Red Tide Territory."
This proposal was almost the only way these nobles could accept it.
Although they found it hard to part with this land, in the face of the Red Tide Territory's promises and the cruel reality, they knew they had no choice.
If they continued to cling to the territory under their family's name, their family's influence would gradually weaken, and they might even be unable to survive.
After long consideration, these nobles finally agreed to the Red Tide Territory's proposal.
"We are willing to cooperate and forge a future," one of the lords nodded, his voice carrying a hint of determination.
Even though their hearts were filled with bitterness, for the future of their families, they were willing to let go of past glories and embrace new opportunities.
The Red Tide Territory's subsequent cooperative attitude also softened the nobles' mindset.
They no longer clung to the mere form of this land but strived for shared prosperity in the future.
Aside from these few nobles who upheld ancestral glory, most lords, in fact, only saw immediate benefits.
And although they knew that the conditions offered by the Red Tide Territory were already very generous, seeing the Red Tide Territory's envoys extend an olive branch, many small noble lords became greedy, believing they held bargaining chips and could demand higher terms.
They thought to themselves, "This is a big piece of fat; how can I let such a rare opportunity slip away easily?"
These people were not unaware of the importance of the Red Tide Territory's protection to them.
"Add three thousand gold coins as additional compensation for the exchange," a lord raised an eyebrow, proudly suggesting.
"Or provide two more years of food rations?" another lord greedily added.
Some lords even proposed more exaggerated conditions, demanding that the Red Tide Territory reduce land taxes, or even demanding more land in exchange.
They were confident in these proposals, believing that the Red Tide Territory's envoy would surely compromise for a piece of land.
After all, they had already given such "generous" land; they shouldn't get nothing in return.
But the Red Tide Territory's envoys seemed to have anticipated this negotiation tactic.
They calmly dealt with every unreasonable demand, but made no compromises whatsoever.
Under the constant pressure from the greedy nobles, a Red Tide Territory envoy said coldly, "Since that is the case, let's not waste any more time."
He then left the banquet hall directly, leaving the lord who had made the demands looking bewildered.
At that time, many lords still thought this was a negotiating tactic by the Red Tide Territory.
Regardless, they were confident that they would eventually gain more benefits and would not give up this opportunity.
However, in the following month, they discovered unusual changes.
The aid goods and supplies that had previously arrived on time from the Red Tide Territory were now nowhere to be seen.
Some lords couldn't sit still and immediately sent letters of inquiry to the Red Tide Territory.
However, the Red Tide Territory did not offer much explanation, only stating: "Currently, materials are scarce, and applications must be approved in order of submission."
But no specific date or queue order was provided.
As days passed, more and more lords began to realize that they might have been deliberately ignored by the Red Tide Territory.
"Is this how the Red Tide Territory operates? They're barbarians," they muttered, feeling uneasy.
Those nobles who once thought they could extract more benefits from the Red Tide Territory gradually realized they had reached a dead end. The Red Tide Territory's patience had reached its limit, and any attempt to be insatiably greedy in the transaction would ultimately come at a cost.
As time went on, many nobles' previously firm stance of refusing to give up their ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) territories gradually became complicated.
Some previously arrogant lords now began to show helplessness and anger.
Although they were dissatisfied, they gradually realized that they could not refuse the Red Tide Territory's proposal.
A few months later, almost all lords proactively requested to exchange territories with the Red Tide Territory.
But to their surprise, the Red Tide Territory's terms were much lower than the original version!
This made them very angry, and they questioned the negotiating envoy as to why this was the case.
The envoy shrugged, saying indifferently, "Next time it will be even less."
Since their territories were already struggling to make ends meet, some lords could only reluctantly accept.
Others tried to continue negotiating, fantasizing about securing better exchange terms or the original exchange terms.
But with each negotiation, they eventually found that the first price offered by the Red Tide Territory was indeed the highest version; every subsequent version would only be lower and lower.
These greedy nobles were no longer arrogant; they even greatly regretted why they hadn't agreed to exchange territories from the beginning. The hateful market monopoly deprived them of any chance to resist.
But what could they do?
This world has never been about fairness and decorum, but rather the stark reality of the strong preying on the weak.
Moreover, the North is far from ordinary times now.
After the insect plague and barbarian wars, the entire power structure collapsed and was rebuilt.
Aside from Duke Edmund, the only one who could truly help people survive was this young lord of the Red Tide Territory.
Complain? Even the complaint window no longer existed.
Lord Louis was the host of the Imperial North Reconstruction Conference, not to mention the inspector who had long fled the North and whose whereabouts were still unknown.
Even the imperial capital itself was in political chaos; this small matter in the North would not cause even a ripple.
In this Southeast snowy land, the only place that could feed them and keep them alive was the Red Tide Territory.
The only force that could control resources, control markets, and decide who lived and who died was also the Red Tide Territory.
So, they bowed their heads.
Even though they knew they were at a disadvantage, they could only grit their teeth and accept the now significantly reduced exchange conditions.
"At least we can still get something back, not nothing at all," they comforted themselves.
Thus, like an invisible giant hand, the Red Tide Territory continuously and steadily gathered one piece of land after another from the old nobles and pioneer lords.
What was incorporated was not just the seemingly "resource-poor" border hills or the "seemingly dispensable" forest valleys.
What was truly important were those territories that contained special resources or were located at strategic passages and transportation hubs.
You Teng Slope was just the beginning.
There were also Fuh River Crossing, Hanzhi Valley, and Red Earth Ridge. Every area quietly circled in red on Lord Louis's map has now legitimately changed hands.
With contracts in hand, eighty percent of the target territories have been brought under control.
But there are always a few places that neither exchanged nor cooperated, refusing to budge even in the face of the most generous offers.
There must be something fishy!
These are no ordinary lords; a heavy blow must be struck!
For example, in the Red Tide Territory's continuous expansion plan, there was one corner that remained excessively quiet.
Viscount Zachary's territory.
He was the only noble who showed no sign of wavering from beginning to end, neither proposing an exchange nor discussing cooperation.
Even the envoy sent by the Red Tide was shown the door without even a cup of hot water.
Why?
Of course, it wasn't because he was so stubborn that he didn't know his place.
In fact, Viscount Zachary had been having an extremely difficult time these past few days.
The first thing he did every morning upon waking was to stand on his tower and gaze south, silently praying, "Please, no more people... please, no."
Because he knew very well that once the Red Tide people truly set foot on this land, never mind the matter of exchanging land or not.
His own body would probably be hung at the city gate, becoming a dried specimen.
The reason was also simple: he was not an ordinary noble.
He was a descendant of the "Old Snow Country," once having ties to the Snowsworn, who had been completely eradicated.
Even with imperial noble status, his underground hall still enshrined a broken statue of the ancient god of the cold abyss.
Every year, he would offer living sacrifices, which could bring protection from death in the winter winds.
As for where those sacrificed people came from? Just grab a few random people from the territory, wasn't that enough?
So when the Red Tide Territory proposed the "land exchange and cooperation" plan and sent an envoy, Zachary was almost scared out of his wits.
Once the Red Tide Territory entered, they would see everything.
"If I'm found out—then it's over, truly over."
So he made a seemingly strong, but actually panicked, decision: close the city gates, refuse all Red Tide visitors.
Even if it meant offending the Lord of Red Tide, they could not be allowed in!
The morning sun streamed through the high window, illuminating a large map of the North Southeast, densely marked.
And most of the land had been stained with deep red markings, symbolizing the continuous expansion of the Red Tide's territory.
These were territories that had been annexed, integrated, and exchanged, spreading like a tide around the main city.
But there were also a few places that seemed out of place.
Small black stamps, isolatedly embedded between the blood-red, like rotten tumors.
"As of yesterday, the ninth batch of envoys has completed their reports," Bradley said, looking down at the scrolls.
"Eighty percent of the territory incorporation agreements have been completed, with only the last three territories still not successfully contacted."
He pointed to a hilly area near the edge of the map, a particularly conspicuous black mark.
"For example, Viscount Zachary's territory still refuses the Red Tide envoy entry. Your subordinate is still unable to determine his intentions."
For a moment, the entire conference hall fell into a brief silence.
Several officials responsible for negotiations exchanged glances, subtly revealing a hint of unease.
"He has a problem," an middle-aged intelligence officer spoke up. "He clearly has an unspeakable secret; special measures must be used."
"Reason for sending troops?" a young official frowned. "Without evidence, rashly sending troops—I'm afraid it will cause controversy."
However, the next moment, the young man sitting at the head of the table spoke unhurriedly.
"No reason?" Louis raised his eyes, his tone terrifyingly calm. "First, open their gates. If there really is no crime..."
He paused slightly, then smiled, "...then find a suitable one and pin it on him."
When these words fell, the entire conference hall seemed to instantly drop several degrees in temperature.
No one spoke again.
For a viscount, finding a "suitable crime" was never a problem.
Of course, what they didn't know was that at this time, Lord Louis had already learned about Viscount Zachary's worship of an evil god through the Daily Intelligence System.
"A branch of the Broken Fang Knights is currently stationed at Red Rock Pass and can dispatch a hundred elite knights to reach Zachary's border within a day," Lambert reminded.
"Have Reggie lead the team," Louis said softly, as if arranging a trivial matter of no importance.
