Reaching an Agreement

After Roland returned to his territory and shifted the punishment of corruption into the shadows, the situation within the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands gradually stabilized.

But as the seven nations of the Eastern Continent joined the negotiations, the matter of opening trade with the Beastkin Empire could no longer be concealed. Within mere days, it spread across the entire continent, stirring up a massive wave.

Countless civilians and scholars were enraged, fiercely condemning the Human Alliance leadership for breaking the blockade on the Beastkin Empire for profit. It was utterly foolish.

However, within human society, those commoners and scholars held too little power. Their opposition barely caused a ripple among the human upper ranks.

Just one month later, the Human Alliance officially lifted its blockade on the Beastkin Empire and opened trade with it.

Although the Human Alliance still listed weapons, equipment, Magic Crystals, Magic Potions, and other strategic resources as prohibited exports,

countless nobles were still thrilled. The Beastkin Empire was simply too poor. Even without transporting those strategic supplies, selling food, porcelain, and all manner of handicrafts would yield considerable profits.

Besides, they had already managed to smuggle prohibited goods into the Beastkin Empire before. Now that trade routes had opened, they had countless ways to evade the Human Alliance's inspections and earn even greater profits.

Thus, amid the wave of opposition from commoners and scholars across the continent, fully laden merchant caravans began appearing throughout every nation, setting out for the Beastkin Empire.

Naturally, Roland was among them. Relying on the foundation he had built through previous smuggling operations, just after the Human Alliance lifted its blockade on the Beastkin Empire,

thousands of merchant ships appeared along the coast of the Hidden Valley Clan. They sailed in such vast numbers that they nearly covered the entire