Standing in the air above the spot where the construction was coming to a close, Daneel, Kellor, Luther, and Elanev looked out over the vast land where many tombs were placed.
In the center, there was a statue of a Raven with its wings aloft, as if it was going to take off and fly away into the starry heavens.
Daneel had a contemplative expression on his face, still thinking about the events surrounding Eloise and Sister Xuan. Eloise was still sleeping, because the metamorphosis would apparently take a long time to remold the core structure of her body.
He hadn"t gotten a chance to talk further to Sister Xuan, as he had been busy setting everything into place for the plan to unite the Kingdoms.
What almost no one knew was that the graves only had a few bones inside them. The flesh and blood of the soldiers had already been used by Daneel to rejuvenate the land that had been affected by the Echer seeds. This was what had occupied him for so long that he had been unable to find any time to do anything else.
Kellor, who had helped him in the process, knew about it, but he hadn"t chosen to ask. Yet, Daneel could see the questions in his eyes.
"My King, I cannot help but ask again. Why? It really will hamper our economic growth. The loss of these 10 acres could mean a large dent when it is considered that the land will not be able to be used for a long time, maybe even forever."
As this question interrupted his thoughts, Daneel smiled before answering.
"Kellor, tell me. If you had the choice between losing a tract of land and hastening the development of our entire Kingdom, tell me, what would you choose?"
"The latter, My King, but I do not understand how our development will be hastened. Trade happens anyway between the two Kingdoms, so what will change?"
"Everything, my dear Kellor. You say trade happens anyway. Tell me something. Who are the ones that do the trading?"
"Why, traders, of course. They buy goods from our Kingdom and transport them to others to sell them."
"And how do these traders make a living?"
"By selling for more than they buy."
"Exactly. Then they must be rolling in money, right? Trade should be the most profitable business on the continent! Why is that not so?"
This question from Daneel made Kellor ponder, and an expression of realization came on his face as he slowly told the answer. Even the other two beside them were also following the conversation with rapt attention in order to find out the motivation behind the King"s actions.
"Because….supply and demand aren"t a.s.sured. Maybe they won"t be able to sell something for a higher price. And they also need to hire mercenaries as guards to defend their caravans in the route between Kingdoms, which is filled with thieves…"
"Good. That"s why trade is both the riskiest and the most profitable job at the same time. Now imagine that there was a strong agreement between the two Kingdoms to have a mutually guarded route to transport goods in. Even the prices can be regulated with constant communication and the traders will never have to worry about fluctuating prices. What will happen then?"
"It will be just like you said, My King. The traders will be rolling in money. But that doesn"t help to develop our Kingdom."
Chuckling, Daneel answered, "My dear Kellor, if trade is so safe, why would the common people even choose to sell their goods to traders? They can just go sell themselves! They would obtain much more money, which they will invest back in Lanthanor, which will end up benefiting us. We will collect more money from taxes, and we can use this money for the welfare of the citizens to hasten development. Now, do you understand? Sometimes, it"s not just about what you lose at the moment. It"s fine to lose, if you have a plan to gain so much more due the loss in the future."
As Daneel expounded on his plan in this way, he actually felt a little guilty as he was showing it off as his own creation.
Of course, it was inspired from his experiences on Earth.
Development was something that required stability in prices and trade routes. This had been something that was understood since antiquity on Earth, where trade routes like the "The Silk Road" had been instrumental in hastening the development of nations. Even in present-day Earth, the existence of councils and organizations that facilitated smooth trading was one of the main reasons behind the boom in development in the 20th and 21st centuries.
As all three people behind him a.n.a.lyzed everything he said and thought on the matter while more impressed than ever at Daneel"s astuteness, the King was thinking about his other motive.
The unification of Angaria.
If he gave that reason right now, the others would be so shocked as to directly fall off the barrier they were standing on.
The three forces that were left in the Central Continent were the Hidden Kill Sect, the Kingdom of Arafell and Axelor.
He had already received a very carefully worded letter reminding him of the deal he had made with the Hidden Kill Sect, where his "master" would go to a.s.sist them in extracting the treasures of their core formation.
The Hidden Kill Sect was unique in the fact that it ranked among the top in the continent even though it did not control a Kingdom of any sort. Its power came mainly from its ability to essentially cripple any force if it wished.
Hence, right now, it was the top priority for Daneel. If he could find some way to take control of it, he would have both manpower and a powerful deterring force that would make any Kingdom think twice before deciding to go up against him.
One thing he had understood from the conversation with the Matron was that the Big 4 did not usually intervene in the matters of the Central Continent. Of course, this definitely did not apply to all of them as one of the Big 4 definitely supported Axelor and sought to conquer the Central Continent using it.
According to the letter, he still had one month to go before he had to make his way to the Sect. Although Daneel really wished that he could upgrade the system before he went, he doubted if this would be possible as even upping the satisfaction level would only net him 20,000 EXP.
But by reaching that level, he looked forward most to unlocking the secrets of the Empire Spirit. It had been on the back of his mind for a long time, and he was really looking forward to finally finding out just what that haughty Spirit was hiding.
"Daneel. It"s done. I"ve spoken to them about the loan, and they agreed even though they still suspect that we two are in on everything together. Should we be worried?"
"No. Let them think so; the entire continent does, anyway. We just happen to have perfect timing. Ask your spies to keep a close eye on the other Kingdoms. As for the matter of the trinkets, I will be supplying them myself. Arrange a meeting at your Palace where we can talk about the finer details."
Tied together in debt and trade. This was the perfect way to begin the unification of two Kingdoms which had been estranged for a long time.
"Let"s go. They have agreed to the proposal about the loan. It"s time to expand the Bank of Angaria. Oh, and send all information we have about the Hidden Kill Sect to me."
Just as Daneel was about to teleport away to the Palace so that he could visit Eloise, he saw something in Luther"s eyes which made him pause.
When he had said the words "Hidden Kill Sect", this man with an enigmatic past had shown more emotion than Daneel had ever seen.
Daneel hadn"t spoken much with Luther and the other commanders recently, what with him being away for so long handling the matters of the Black Raven Kingdom.
Now that he was back, he had resolved to consult them more and also find ways to increase their power.
Of all of three of them, Luther was definitely the one with the most experience and power. The former was due to his steady character, while the latter was due to the fact that he was the only one who felt like he would still pose a threat to Daneel.
Commanding him to come to his chambers using the oathstone, he wondered whether he had any connection with one of the scariest forces on the continent.