Surviving The Fourth Calamity

Dragons aren’t really afraid of mages capable of defeating them... But mages who can directly suppress them with power? Those they wouldn’t dare provoke even a little bit.

Yet, they can also sense which places are truly safe for them.

The only unfortunate fact is, others don’t dare act recklessly there, and neither do they.

Then again, a place where Chromatic Dragons can act recklessly wouldn’t be managed so tightly, right?

Hence, even Evil Giant Dragons would rather choose to be with Agleya than those forces that welcome them fervently.

Even if only the port area is accessible.

Meanwhile, many Neutral Dragons, like Gem Dragons and Mist Dragons, prefer to seek out the Youth Journey of the Wenjian World.

Perhaps due to the dance troupe composed of Kalinsan’s Little Fairies and Wenjian being especially attractive to Mercury Dragons, that Mercury Dragon with close ties to Terry and his kin often mingle with Wenjian’s people.

Though they are Mercury Dragons, their relations are actually better with Neutral Giants... particularly Gem Dragons.

Even if dragons gather in one place, they still gravitate toward those most similar to their own attributes.

In truth, the close ties between dragons and the Undead Tribe have long been a public secret in Toril.

The Toril people aren’t surprised by these dragons charging madly into territory belonging to Agleya... those Undead Tribe, the deities backing them, and the notable Lord of Agleya have nearly become symbols of wealth.

Especially the Lord of Agleya, who is a super-rich magnate capable of outmatching the Goddess of Wealth herself!

Hill actually understands how these crazy rumors started... For one, when he just appeared in Toril, he used money to drive away an Envoy of Valkin.

For another, during his fight with Valkin, he effortlessly suppressed that golden cloud representing wealth.

Rumors among Toril people persist that Valkin’s golden cloud divine artifact attacks all who are less wealthy than Valkin.

The so-called penetrating damage... unaffected by any protective spells.

If it hits you for 100 points, as long as you’re poorer than her, it won’t be 99 points... Hill describes that thing with hundreds because he believes Valkin’s cloud is worthy only of such a number.

Of course, now he somewhat suspects that there’s a problem with that ’Valkin’... Hence, she can control Valkin’s exclusive divine artifact but cannot absolutely master it.

In that case, Toril people’s rumors aren’t too bizarre... ’Valkin’ must be using faith power to wrap those divine artifacts.

And when most of Toril think she’s poorer than Hill... the title of Goddess of Wealth virtually evaporates.

Therefore, Hill may not be pleased with these rumors, but he doesn’t want to benefit the disliked Valkin either.

Ultimately, he chose not to hinder the spread of the gossip... Actually, if it’s just about gold and silver jewelry, Hill believes not even ten Valkin can surpass him.

But gold coins are just one form of wealth... Wealth refers more to the value of the trading aura flowing over those gold coins.

Money only truly holds meaning when transactions occur, such simple principles Hill understands.

Yet he absolutely doesn’t mind if the uninformed Toril people mix up this concept.

By the time they manage to grasp the deeper meaning, likely a new money god will have appeared in Toril.

Isn’t Apollo present for precisely this reason?

AO, despite having a terrible character and doing things carelessly without order, possesses sharp vision and instincts.

How did he know the aura flowing from Apollo could replace Valkin?

But indeed, Apollo is considered a god of commerce within the Greek deities.

He and Athena essentially dictate the myriad commercial matters in the Greek world.

Tsk, that old man really relies on selecting cherished beings, which aren’t necessarily good, like Cyric, but are certainly not useless.

Especially those he painstakingly digs out... whether Tyr or the Greek Triad, they are all beings that even Hill finds acceptable.

Nonetheless, Agleya’s dragons are also quite impressive to the Toril people... The flourishing trade between the Undead Tribe and dragons naturally stems from increasingly more merchants being willing to pay protection fees.

In Toril, if dragons can be kept from causing trouble on commercial routes, it’s mostly safe already.

And if dragons can seriously do the work of being bodyguards, the remaining small portion is not a problem at all.

Humans never really fear threats from humanoid creatures, no matter how strong... but they do fear these enormous monsters tightly restrained by the Undead Tribe.

So, as long as these dragons genuinely accompany merchant ships willingly, even pirates will vanish.

The Toril people first grasped this principle deeply, but they also know, if they directly hire these dragons, the greatest danger would be the dragons themselves.

No way can it be like now, where each dragon resembles an absolute Orderly Good faction... However, they can still recognize Red Dragons and Black Dragons.

Moreover, if silence is quickly maintained, Metal Dragons aren’t above committing the robbery on the roadsides.

In short, in Toril, the sea is now the most orderly place... even the most troublesome Chromatic Dragons are dutifully serving as the figureheads of ships!

Who would dare stir up trouble?

Therefore, if the families of Black Rose and Youth Journey of the Wenjian World really ignored Snow Old Dog’s statements and sought to cause trouble at Doomsday, adding some unique flair to Ambori, ’Lu Huayu’ would truly find it difficult to resist.

The shark-head of Ambori might be able to dig up shells in the sea and collect some coral minerals, but if they truly engage in battle... even against dolphins, they might not prevail. What could one expect?

Fortunately, despite their despicable nature, the people of Black Rose and Wenjian have integrity.

Even if reluctantly agreed upon, those two families did not cause any extra trouble.

As for the conflicts arising among the lower-level members, those cannot be avoided.

With tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of people, there’s always bound to be some idiots appearing.

Managing basically solves these problems... whoever is wrong gets cursed, whoever is wrong takes responsibility, which is actually easier said than done.

Especially when those involved are former enemies.

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’Lu Huayu’ can certainly manage this now... it’s not his own family, his own subordinates.

No matter how good the workplace relationship, a worker can’t treat the boss’s property as their own.

Deciding based solely on who is good or bad naturally leads to more fairness.

And the other side, indeed, has moral integrity and a bottom line, managing all this without letting past grievances escalate trivial issues into major ones.

’Lu Huayu’ never noticed before.

As for the student family of Wenjian, they maintain fairness, mostly because they don’t want to be mocked in the streets by the neighboring school.

That group of students, the reasons they use for mockery, would only make adults shake their heads in bitter laughter... But for students, those who abuse their power for selfish intentions have no right to represent the students.

If such a person emerges from one’s own school, it’s distressing; but if it’s across the street, especially a nearby neighbor, it becomes a topic to discuss endlessly.

Perhaps it’s that society has placed Academy Star apart from power struggles... it is the only place fully controlled by an intellectual brain.

No human interference in student elections or entrance exams.

Even for schools teaching skills like cooking, entrance exams are random questions by the intellectual brain... Anyway, the school just wants students with some talent, not ones who can create masterpieces upon entry.

So Academy Star is the only pure land... Even those as wealthy as ’Young Master’ have little impact there.

At most, money can hire people, but it can’t stop others from succeeding.

Only after entering society do you understand how important it is to have a future that isn’t swayed by money and power, and to have your progress untouched.

Lansendel’s Lord of Dawn is quite chummy with the Wenjian people, and even the Undead Tribe can understand.

Young ones—the Chuunibyou Deity would surely seek Chuunibyou Teenagers.

But the fact that Black Rose achieves this shocks ’Lu Huayu’ profoundly, understanding deeply what ”people can’t be judged by their cover” means.

Never mind that those of Black Rose also emerged from University Town... ’Perfect Baldy’ might not find a single soul in Wenjian daring to utter the words they curse.

The Black Rose folks have mouths honed through countless trials... Depravity is their synonym.

’Lu Huayu’ knows that eighty percent of his nicknames originate from these guys.

Their disdain for him is clear.

Thus, it’s bewildering to ’Road Eunuch’ that Black Rose hasn’t taken a biased side even once.

Integrity is one thing, but for no one to act impulsively—that’s incredibly unusual!

Someone must have issued an absolute restriction order.

Snow Old Dog and ’Perfect Baldy’ don’t have that kind of influence.

In Black Rose, only one person can do this... ’Old Age Striking King’.

This has nothing to do with whether she’s the caregiver of that Toril Goddess of Magic, Edna Mistrala... ’Cunlü’ and ’Hard Wind’ leading the Wild Boar Legion, and the Flat-headed Brother Priest Corps absolute loyalty to her will are why she commands authority in Black Rose.

Of course, her formidable combat strength, extraordinary vindictiveness are also intimidating.

Thus, ’Lu Huayu’ is quite worried... ’Old Age Striking King’ isn’t someone who meddles in trivial matters.

No matter how much he ponders, he can’t comprehend any benefit to the Goddess of Magic from Ambori heading toward the New Continent.

If not to uncover this mystery, ’Lu Huayu’ would hardly leave so much behind to venture into this world!