Chapter 289 - 33: The Lord

Words : 1746 Updated : Oct 1st, 2025

Chapter 289: Chapter 33: The Lord Adelle introduced many people to Jones, including members of the Sambo family advisory council and members of the Hilde Chamber of Commerce. It could be said that Jones had his horizons greatly expanded all at once. Regardless of where Adelle went, someone would greet him. Jones was utterly stunned. "You know every single merchant in the Hilde Chamber of Commerce..." "No, I only know the big merchants. But generally, the rest know me. Jones, business is different from warfare. In war, there are always winners and losers, but business can result in a win-win or a lose-lose situation. War arrays opposing forces against each other, fighting for life and death, but business operates on a completely different principle. If your ventures are large and varied enough, you might even find you don’t truly have competitors at all. Every opponent may become a collaborator in some respect, and every partner may become a competitor in another respect—like the Ganggro Family." "One of the three major Blood Clan families?" "Yes, the Ganggro Family, which is comparable to our Sambo family." Adelle held a glass of wine as he stood on the balcony, gesturing toward the garden of the chamber. Following his gaze, Jones saw a tall Blood Clan member wearing a white robe discussing something with another Blood Clan member in the garden. Yes, a white robe, similar to the robes worn by priests. Among the Blood Clan, who favor formal attire, this style of clothing was exceedingly rare. "Is that a member of the Ganggro Family?" "Yes. The members of this family are easily identifiable, as they all wear the same style of white robe, regardless of gender." Turning around and leaning against the railing, Adelle said, "The Ganggro Family’s strongest business is banking, far surpassing our Sambo family. Admittedly, they’ve already put some pressure on us. But, on the other hand, we collaborate in the slave trade. Our Sambo family has an advantage in the supply of slaves, while they excel in slave sales. We can’t possibly take all the pie ourselves. If we were to attempt it, the only result would be to weaken our strengths and consequently, the other two families would join forces to devour us." "Is that the case?" "Of course. Do you understand spiders?" "Spiders?" "Yes, spiders. Business is like a vast spider web—chaotic but with inherent order. The spider at the center determines the location of prey through vibrations in the web. Every merchant is a spider, weaving their own web to gather information. Without this, a spider’s speed makes it impossible to chase down most prey. And many spiders working together can weave a larger web to capture more prey. That’s essentially how it works, so by introducing you to these people, I’m helping you weave your own web." Jones exhaled faintly: "I’m a spider?" "Not yet." Adelle smiled and said, "Only successful merchants can be considered spiders. You’re not one yet. But you’ll be soon—because I’m helping you." "But I just want to be a lord, not a merchant." "Is there a difference?" Adelle furrowed his brow, contemplated briefly, and then added, "It seems there is a difference, and quite a big one. However, if you want to become a powerful lord, you’ll need money. The quickest way to earn money will always be business. Like the deal we discussed in the carriage earlier—if you do it on your own, it might take ages to accumulate. But leveraging commerce takes only a moment. You merely need to lightly touch another spider’s web, release the scent of money, and they’ll hook themselves—like me. Hahaha." Adelle laughed as he spoke. Jones also chuckled. While chatting, Adelle suddenly noticed the butler had entered the hall and was saluting him from the balcony. "Hold on a moment." "Alright." Adelle set his wine glass on the balcony railing and walked toward the butler. Jones watched distantly. The butler seemed to report something to Adelle. Adelle appeared displeased and even reproached the butler a bit. Soon, the butler stood aside, and Adelle returned to Jones’s side. "What’s wrong? Did something happen?" "Nothing much. I had him handle something, and he didn’t do it well." Picking up the glass he had placed on the railing, Adelle took a sip and then asked: "Now that you’ve toured the chamber, what do you plan next?" "I want to start preparing matters for the smelting factory," Jones replied. "Otherwise, I’ll have to come back tomorrow." "Do you need my help?" "No need. I can manage it myself, especially with Patia’s help." "Alright, then go ahead. If you need anything, let me know anytime." "Thanks." After speaking, Jones hesitated, stepped forward to shake Adelle’s hand, and smiled. Then, he turned to leave. For a newly appointed minor lord like Jones, having a friend like Adelle was an extraordinary stroke of luck. Through him, Jones came into contact with realms he had never previously encountered—realms that, under normal circumstances, he might never have had access to. "Young master, do you really have to help him this much?" Watching Jones’s departing figure, the butler asked softly. "I’m just making a friend, so why not?" Adelle answered softly. "Besides, staying in the castle doesn’t give me much to do anyway." Lowering his head slightly with a sigh, the butler continued: "Young master, how should we handle the matter with Adolf?" "Does it need handling? Of course, check if there’s any flaw in where he’s staying." Adelle cast the butler a stern glance and said, "See if there’s a skylight or a hidden passage. He must’ve left through a spot you didn’t notice." "But we’ve thoroughly searched, no skylight, no hidden passage." "Then what? Did he vanish into thin air? Don’t tell me he’s capable of spatial magic?" The bewildered butler blinked, unsure of how to respond. Adelle continued, "It’s evident this was your oversight. Investigate and find out what’s going on, where he disappeared to. I’ll give you three days, just three days. By the end, give me an answer. Otherwise, I’ll be angry. Trust me, my anger won’t be a good thing for you." "Yes, young master." The butler answered respectfully. "This guy used me to get close to Jones from the start; everything was premeditated, and his identity is fake. Once I’ve figured it out, I’ll make sure to teach him a lesson!" Taking a small notebook and pen from the butler’s pocket, Adelle silently scribbled a series of characters before ripping off the page and handing it to the butler: "This is his bank draft code from the Ganggro family’s bank. Try to investigate. Two hundred thousand gold coins—it’s neither a lot nor a little, but traces are bound to exist." "Yes, young master." ... Thanks to Adelle’s assistance and securing Adolf’s money, Jones’s subsequent matters progressed remarkably smoothly. Patia helped him draft an entire plan, outlining all the expenses in detailed lists. He didn’t even have to run around himself—he merely had to nod and pay, and others would take care of everything. The sellers of the equipment would deliver the goods and even help build the factory. He didn’t need to lift a finger for anything. They’d even select suitable, affordable slaves for him. For the gold refinery, dwarf slaves were still the preferred workforce. The total budget would be controlled under 150,000 gold coins, with 50,000 reserved for contingencies. Patia would also handle all related transportation arrangements. According to the information Patia provided, Jones opted for a particular return-route transportation option. Between Hilde and the human nation, there was no direct road. Giant Snake City happened to lie along this direct line. However, there were periodic airship transports crossing the mountains between Hilde and the human nation. Since goods transported by the Blood Clan to the human nation were scarce, the airships traveling from Hilde to the human nation were often empty. Using this empty capacity for transportation would greatly speed up logistics and slightly lower costs. After all, regardless of Jones’s shipment, the airships had to return to their departure base for the next round of cargo. However, transporting goods out of Giant Snake City would not enjoy this convenience—unless they were headed to the human nation. "But there’s a problem." Upon returning to Giant Snake City, Dora looked at the plan, which she didn’t actually understand, and softly told Jones: "Are these new dwarf slaves considered residents of Giant Snake City?" "Of course. They’ll live here," Jones replied. "If that’s the case, by your promise, Jones, they cannot be slaves. All residents of Giant Snake City are free individuals." Jones froze. After a long moment, he spoke softly: "It’s okay, I’ll discuss it with Adolf. This can be resolved." Returning to Giant Snake City, Jones became busy once more. At the same time, he wrote letters to every human lord he knew, including Yilin and Bob, and even Bruto. He skipped Gray, however, as Gray’s Salted Fish Port lacked significant smelting business opportunities. There were only about a hundred sets of armor there, and even Gray himself was poorer than Jones. "We believe they’ll surely need this. After all, every country is currently preparing for war. The last battle has entirely dispelled humans’ prejudice against non-human races. At least, I don’t think they’d refuse to negotiate business with me just because these are Blood Clan-produced weapons and equipment." On the same day, he received a reply from Bruto. "Fantastic, Jones, we absolutely need you here. Four hundred new sets of armor? No, no, no, all members of the White Bone Holy Light Court already have armor; we don’t need new ones. But our Undead Army does. The blacksmithing skills of the undead leave much to be desired—while practical, they lack aesthetics and don’t suit our righteous, radiant image as promoters of justice. We urgently need dwarf-crafted armor to outfit millions of Undead Army troops! This is a massive business deal, isn’t it? What about money? No, no, no, we don’t have money. And as members of the Silver Moon Knight Order, we unanimously believe it’s inappropriate for you to discuss finances with us. If you have objections to the decisions of the White Bone Holy Light Court, we will personally visit Giant Snake City to discuss them with you. For justice! White Bone Holy Light Court—Bruto." After reading the letter, Jones’s previously ambitious expression froze. He realized he might have just poked an enormous hornet’s nest.

Chapter 289 - 33: The Lord

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