The goddesses attempted to gain my salvation.

She had once heard her father mention the selection ceremony of the Auguston Empire.

It was a ritual so cruel that ordinary people could not even imagine it.

It was called a ceremony, but it was actually a life-or-death struggle and contest.

After the king-selection ceremony begins, all members of the Thiel family, regardless of age or gender, will be assigned to a main city. They will develop and grow stronger on their own, and then... fight each other until only one survivor remains.

This battle will not accept any surrender or submission.

There is only one fate for losers: death.

And the one who survived after the ceremony became the new king of the Thiel family.

The ceremony for the new king's ascension to the throne is a one-on-one duel between him and the former king in front of the entire nation.

Ultimately, the old king was killed, and the transition between the old and new dynasties was completed.

To Nancy, or the entire Duchy of Ferrante, this bloody ritual was utterly meaningless.

Family members can also rule a country by cooperating and assisting each other.

In fact, the Kingdom of Gmarui was a framework of rule based on hereditary kinship.

However, the former king of the Thiers family did not think so.

In the frigid North, survival is always the top priority.

The harsh winters and snowstorms forged a frenzied and bloodthirsty instinct within the people of the Auguston Empire.

As the ruler of a country, in addition to having outstanding foresight and wisdom, what is even more important is the fighting spirit forged from the battles.

Without this fighting spirit, even if one becomes king, one cannot lead the Auguston Empire to prosperity. Ultimately, one day in the future, one will be replaced by someone else.

Or, the country was invaded and destroyed by another country.

therefore.

Slaughter is a necessary baptism for becoming a king.

The best targets are one's own brothers and one's biological father.

So it is.

Each new king of the Thiel family has fought his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

It is this very spirit that allows the Thiele family to firmly control the core of this country.

The Central Council, the Seven-Pointed Star, and the iron cavalry on the frontier are the reason why they have remained loyal to the Thiel family for thousands of years.

Upon hearing about the king selection ceremony, Nancy inexplicably felt a touch of sympathy for the young man named Alvin before her.

At least, I don't have to fight my own brothers.

"Is it alright for you to tell me about something as important as the king selection ceremony?"

"Aren't you afraid I'll spread this around and it will affect you?"

Alvin shook his head bitterly.

"It doesn't matter."

"In any case, it won't be more than a month before the news of the king selection ceremony spreads throughout the entire continent."

"If I tell you about this now, I can still maintain some control."

Alvin picked up his glass and savored the red wine.

For some reason, the red wine tasted even more fragrant and mellow than before.

“Lord Nancy, let’s get back to our deal.”

"I have always been a person who makes friends with sincerity."

"Therefore, I will not hide anything. After the turmoil in the Duchy of Ferrante ended, I was surprised that the new regime was able to restore agricultural production in such a short time."

"The newly formed People's Assembly is more capable than I imagined. Moreover, the newly appointed Speaker Claire must also be an exceptionally capable ruler. The Phoenix family still shines as brightly as it did five hundred years ago."

"It is foreseeable that the staple food output of the Duchy of Ferrante this year should not fluctuate much compared with last year."

Alvin leaned back in his chair, slightly raising his head to look at the dazzling chandelier on the ceiling.

"However, even though production has not changed, panic can still spread."

"In fact, grain looting incidents of a certain scale have already occurred in the Auguston Empire. After all, very few people are willing to come to the Duchy of Ferrante to understand the situation in person. The vast majority of them are speculative merchants."

"The only channels through which ordinary people can access information from the outside world are the Adventurer's Weekly and word-of-mouth. And this kind of information transmission is mixed with a lot of subjective speculation and some highly targeted malicious guidance."

"Therefore, in my personal opinion, in the near future, many people will deliberately hype up the topic of food shortages, significantly driving up food prices and causing panic. This panic will also trigger a series of chain reactions."

"I don't want to see people killing each other over food in my territory."

Upon hearing Alvin's words, Nancy fell into deep thought.

Total grain production remained unchanged, but panic still spread...

Food shortages and panic buying will still occur.

The frenzied buying will further exacerbate the food shortage, leading to a vicious cycle and ultimately causing a regional disaster.

It's clear that Alvin has a certain foresight.

In Nancy's view, the fact that Alvin could say such things proves that he is at least somewhat competitive in the king-selection ceremony.

As a businesswoman, Nancy is happy to deal with, and even invest in, people with such vision.

However, as the city lord of Lavala appointed by the People's Council, Nancy could not accept the deal so easily.

Alvin naturally understood Nancy's concerns. After taking a small sip of red wine, he continued speaking.

"Therefore, in order to ensure that my territory is not too affected in this food-centric upheaval, I need a large grain reserve as a foundation."

"For this purpose, I can sell off the assets of the territory."

"After all, as long as there are people, assets will continue to be created. But if everyone starves to death, then no matter how much wealth you have, it will only benefit others."

"If possible, I would also like to rent several berths in Moon Bay Port as a window for direct trade between my territory and the Duchy of Ferrante."

"As for the price, it's negotiable."

Setting down his wine glass, Alvin slowly rose and offered Nancy a standard aristocratic salute.

“I will stay at Moon Bay Port for a few days. Lord Nancy, you can report my proposal to the People's Council of the Duchy of Ferrante. If they agree, I will meet with you in good faith.”

Chapter 188 One thing after another

After Alvin took his leave, Nancy sat at the table, calculating on paper the final benefits the transaction would bring to the Duchy of Ferrante.

Time passed by minute by minute.

When midnight arrived, the calculations ended.

If Alvin's terms are met, the Duchy of Ferrante will undoubtedly make a huge profit.

Alvin's territory is rich in mineral resources, breweries, and a large-scale Orichalcos smelting plant.

In this deal, Alvin decided to relinquish some of the mining rights to copper and iron ore, as well as two breweries, to the city of Lavala.

At the same time, Lavala City will purchase Orichalcum from the smelter at a price 10% lower than the market price, with no limit on the amount.

Meanwhile, the city of Lavala needs to provide agricultural products such as grain.

As for the port lease agreement, Alvin will propose corresponding conditions later.

To avoid political risks associated with the Auguston Empire, Alvin specifically emphasized that the two parties to the transaction were Alvin and Nancy.

In essence, however, this is actually a "shameful act" by Alvin to sell off local resources in order to obtain staple food and cope with impending risks.

However, as he said before.

As long as people are still alive, resources will eventually come back.

Alvin will not regret this decision.

So Nancy summoned several prominent government officials and representatives of the local People's Association overnight, and publicly explained her ideas and the subsequent procedures once the deal was agreed upon.

Ultimately, this temporary mini-people's council unanimously approved Nancy's proposal.

The following morning, Nancy, who hadn't slept all night, wrote a letter to the People's Council of Canosa.

It's more accurate to call it a report than a letter.

The document contains Alvin's proposed details of the deal, as well as Nancy's speculation on the subsequent impact of this transaction on the Duchy of Ferrante.

After it was written, a dark-attribute mage was instructed to make it tamper-proof and to affix red wax before handing it over to a wind-attribute mage, who was then required to deliver it to the capital of Kanosa as quickly as possible.

After finishing these tasks, it was time for breakfast the next day.

Nancy finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as Nancy was about to lean back in her chair for a short rest, the rapid knocking forced her to open her eyes.

"Hey......"

Even though Nancy was the lord of the city, she still felt tired.

He sighed softly, drank some water to clear his mind a little, and then sat back down in his chair.

"Come in."

Several flustered guards opened the door.

Upon seeing Nancy, they didn't even have time to bow before loudly announcing their arrival.

"Lord City Lord!"

"Something has happened at the An'i Church in Moon Bay Harbor!"

Nancy, who had been busy all night, was momentarily stunned.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to regain his composure.

"An'i Church..."

"Is it that little chapel that's almost been abandoned by the Papacy of Basilica?"

"What happened?"