Source of War

Hearing Grandet's words, Iver raised his head with interest. "Why would you think that?"

Although that's exactly what Iver thought... this attitude can't be easily shown.

—You still need to bargain.

"Let's get straight to the point," Iver leaned forward, asking with interest, "What are your demands?"

Grandet did not answer Iver's question directly.

Instead, he shook his head and said, "I'll give you a piece of information for free, Minister."

The deep, elegant standard Avalon Language was spoken methodically and slowly by the goblin merchant. "The Stibnite Person have been researching anti-griffin technology for decades, and they have recently made considerable breakthroughs..."

The green-skinned goblin casually pulled up the pocket watch that was hanging low, its chain held by his hand, and put it back into the pocket on his chest, leaving only the golden chain sticking out slightly.

"There aren't many top-tier superhumans in Avalon this generation. In fact, you could say they're quite rare. And the size of the army is decreasing year by year. How much combat power can an army that hasn't fought a war in decades and has been living a life of luxury have?"

The goblin spoke in a rather magnetic voice, "And as you and I both know, Avalon's true deterrent power lies in the Griffin Legion. And the Griffin Legion's combat strength certainly doesn't lie in the frontal battlefield."

"As long as the Griffin Legion can enter the enemy's territory, it can use its superior mobility to harass the rear; it can also use its excellent mobility to cut off supplies, divide and encircle, and bombard and harass. Although the Griffin Legion could not do much when Avalon was invaded... the Griffins can turn around and attack the enemy's homeland, launching a bloody 'rear-side war of attrition'."

"It is precisely because of this strategic deterrence that Avalon has been able to maintain its isolated position. But in my opinion, Your Excellency, those days are about to end."

The goblin merchant's deep, dark eyes were like a bottomless lake, making it impossible to discern his true thoughts.

He simply spoke calmly and rationally about things that everyone already knew, and that made them incredibly persuasive. "I guess Count Emma's visit this time is to discuss the issue of the trading ports."

"If I'm not mistaken, she will probably use the excuse that 'Star Antimony's goal is to head east' to convince you."

"That's true."

Iver nodded slightly. "That's what she said."

The goblin said, "Star Antimony harbors ambitions to unify the continent. Once Star Antimony has devoured the Iris, do you think Avalon will remain unscathed? Or do you really think Star Antimony will spare Avalon from being eaten?"

"Of course I know."

Iver nodded and countered, "So what? What do you want to do here in Avalon? To persuade Avalon to lift the siege, allow goblins to establish a trading guild, and allow Avalon to open up trade?"

"That's right," Grandet said frankly. "Avalon will eventually have to integrate with the world, or it will be abandoned by the times."

"As for Star Antimony... well, if I may be frank, most of what they promise you is just empty promises. They're already struggling to make ends meet themselves."

Upon hearing this, Iver suddenly understood... why this top capitalist had come knocking on his door at this time.

If Avalon truly cooperates with Star Antimony and opens its trading ports... it would mean that all the ports in the western part of the continent would be indirectly controlled by Star Antimony and Iris.

Avalon itself has virtually no resources. Although it is rich in metal ores, that is negligible for a planet like Avalon, whose land area is several times larger. Not to mention, Avalon's food structure is extremely precarious— the Corn Laws of the past were not passed by Queen Sophia, which has led to Avalon's current reliance on imports for food.

— Imported from Xingti.

The real significance of occupying Avalon lies in gaining a geographical advantage.

Heading northwest from Avalon leads to the Theocracy. Continuing northwest from Theocracy allows you to travel close to the Northern Continent. To the southwest of Avalon lies a vast, chaotic ocean... it's easy to lose your way if you try to travel from there.

The oceans of this world are extremely chaotic and turbulent, and the further away from land, the more dangerous it becomes—although the situation was similar in the original world. Sailing straight towards one's destination will inevitably lead to disaster in the long run. And cargo ships, in particular, cannot afford to be lost.

Therefore, although ocean voyages are called "ocean voyages," they cannot be too far from land. They must be at least at a distance where land can be seen with a telescope; otherwise, it is difficult to find the right direction.

In the ocean, even if you only deviate by one degree at first... by the time you reach your destination, you will have veered directly to another country.

Therefore, if Avalon's navy and Griffin Legion were to set up roadblocks in the northwest direction towards the Theocracy, it would pose a huge threat to Star Antimony's sea routes.

Because of the tense relationship between Avalon and Star Antimony, Star Antimony's sea routes can only go south, along the edge of the Southern Continent. Alternatively, they can take a short route, transporting goods from Star Antimony to the Southern Continent and then handing them over to the goblins. The goblins then resell these goods through their long-established trade routes to various parts of the world.

In this process, goblins basically do not participate in production except for "training trolls". They are only responsible for buying low and selling high, relying on the shipping routes and ports they have established and maintained in various countries over the years, as well as highly synchronized commodity supply and demand information, to continuously transport goods to the most suitable places.

"Clearly, the Stibnite Person are envious."

Iver chuckled, leaning back comfortably in his chair. "They want to get involved too."

"That's what laymen always think."

Grandet just chuckled, "The Stibnite Person are so confident they're practically exploding... They stubbornly believe they've mastered the secrets of alchemy. They can easily turn low-value raw materials into products worth tens or even hundreds of times more. The only problem is who to sell these things to."

"Then naturally we can only sell it to you."

Iver laughed sarcastically.

Grandet humbly corrected him, "No. Although I am also a member of the 'Merchant Guild,' members are all free to do as they please. No one is anyone's King."

"Since Star Antimony couldn't handle the large amount of alchemical products inside, it naturally had to contact the 'Merchant Guild'... Avalon also deserves a lot of credit for this. Or rather... you deserve the most credit."

When he heard the goblin merchant say this, Iver was slightly dazed.

He realized what was happening—

That's because of Avalon's tariffs on the alchemical products of antimony!

Previously, the royal family had been cursed to death one after another, Avalon could never be sure whether it was the Iris or the Stibnite Person who were responsible, nor could they find any concrete evidence. Because of this, they were unwilling to participate in the war, and were thus dragged into the quagmire of war by the two directly opposing countries.

But Avalon still maintained a fairly hostile attitude towards Star Antimony—this was actually just for show for the people.

Regardless of whether the source of the curse is the Iris or Star Antimony, it can only be Star Antimony. Because Iris can defeat the Avalon Flower, but everyone knows in their hearts that they truly cannot defeat Star Antimony.

The constant condemnation of Star Antimony is actually a delaying tactic to appease the people and to lull Stibnite Person into a false sense of security, giving them the impression that Avalon is being looked down upon... Behind this lies the Queen's plan to quietly launch the "Shadow of Avalon" project.

Although the plan failed before it even began due to Jacob's interference...

... But in retrospect, the tariffs that were raised at the time actually had a positive effect.

Star Antimony and Iris are clearly hostile nations—Star Antimony wants to annex Iris, but it's difficult to do so directly. This is because the two nations have significantly different ideologies; Star Antimony clearly wants Iris's population and talent, not just its land. A bloody war would easily breed hatred, so Star Antimony only wants to achieve its strategic objectives quickly through a sufficiently short war.

For this reason, it is unlikely that Iris will accept the dumping of Star Antimony.

The best solution is actually Avalon.

Avalon and Star Antimony have no enmity whatsoever, and in fact, Avalon has a long-standing feud with the Iris over the "Ten Day War." Furthermore, Avalon is ruled by Path of Authority, its alchemy is extremely backward, and its people are relatively wealthy. If Avalon can accept Star Antimony's dumping, Star Antimony won't need to contact the Goblin Merchant Guild at all.

Thinking about this, Iver suddenly realized something earlier—

Why would Star Antimony use Lloyd's's connections to smuggle alchemical products into Avalon? Why could even a Bottom Layer henchman like "Big Purple" possess "Drunken Dream Tincture" produced by Star Antimony's Alchemy Workshop? Why would the "King" complain about alchemists exploiting domestic botanists and constantly driving down purchase prices? Why have the alchemists within Star Antimony become so arrogant and manic, while Demon Scholar have maintained a subtle restraint and quietness...?

In a sense, the culprit behind all of this is these goblin merchants.