The Lord Demon King is Unfathomable!

The Twilight Province crisis this time has triggered a wave of refugees, affecting multiple provinces directly ruled by the Kingdom as well as Duke Domains, especially the coastal Campbell Duchy.

Sensing a business opportunity, he predicted a famine would erupt in Thunder County. At the very least, grain prices would skyrocket. Acting quickly, he purchased a batch of grain in the southern Ryan Kingdom and transported it across Dusk Castle, Rapid River Castle, and Cold Crow City, all the way to the Campbell Duchy.

However, as the saying goes, "Man proposes, but Heaven disposes." The influx of refugees did indeed push up grain prices, but it did not cause severe famine in the region.

When he arrived at the local market, he could hardly believe his eyes. For a moment, he even suspected that the locals were collectively trying to deceive out-of-town merchants like him for show. It wasn't until he camped near Thunder City for a few days that he realized this place genuinely didn't lack grain.

He was not the only merchant to encounter such a situation.

Through discussions with his peers and in-depth field investigations, he finally discovered an important detail he had overlooked: almost all land in the Campbell Duchy was controlled by Lords!

This was starkly different from most regions in the Ryan Kingdom.

In most regions of the Ryan Kingdom, including directly governed provinces like Twilight Province, a significant proportion of the agricultural population consists of independent farmers. In many areas, the proportion of independent farmers and tenant farmers is even fifty-fifty.

These independent farmers, working as family units, exhibit strong self-sufficiency. Most of the grain they produce is for their own consumption, resulting in uneven production levels. Naturally, nearby towns are more susceptible to fluctuations in grain prices.

However, in the Campbell Duchy, rural lands are almost entirely owned by various nobles, both minor and major, and nearly all agricultural workers are tenant farmers. Over time and through accumulated wealth, these rural nobles have developed their farming tools to be nearly fully mechanized with iron.

In many areas, steel tools and modified steam engines have even come into use, something unimaginable for most regions of the Ryan Kingdom!

In such a context, the agricultural land in the Campbell Duchy produces a large surplus of grain, continuously driving down local grain prices.

Whenever grain prices in Thunder City rise even slightly, nearby rural nobles eagerly open their granaries to seize the chance for profit. As a result, not only was there no famine, but the region also had surplus grain to export during the refugee influx.

As for the cost, most tenant farmers tied to the land might never even see what silver coins look like for their entire lives.

But does that matter?

After all, their only pursuit is filling their stomachs. The only ones who truly suffer are the out-of-town merchants attempting to profit off them.

As for Thunder City's industrialists, they don't even count on selling their goods to these beasts of burden tied to the land. They only need to ensure cheap grain is supplied, allowing Thunder City's countless workshops and factory workers to sustain themselves on monthly wages of less than 30 Aurum to produce higher-value-added goods.

These high-quality yet inexpensive goods are then transported to ports in the Aus Empire and its colonies to generate Aurum profits.

Within this economic system, Socduo found himself despairingly realizing that it was nearly inevitable his grain would remain unsold. He couldn't find his place anywhere in this supply chain.

Perhaps importing wool instead might make some money—after all, in Thunder County, wool was one of the few commodities with a decent profit margin.

As for cotton, flax, and other similar goods, the Empire's colonies produced them better and in abundance.

Watching grain worth millions of silver coins about to become dead stock, Socduo naturally refused to accept bankruptcy so easily. He decided to follow the migration direction of the refugees, taking his caravan north to try his luck.

According to past experience, not all destitute refugees would choose to camp near cities, waiting for Lords and the Church to provide relief. Some powerful families might dare to venture into unclaimed lands to establish new settlements.

If he could trade his grain for timber and drag it back to the southern Ryan Kingdom, he might be able to recover some of his capital.

Yet what Socduo did not anticipate was that the refugees' migration routes did not lead to any mapped village or city. Instead, they guided him to the outskirts of Baron Ges's territory, deep within the Silver Pine Forest.

Heading further north would lead straight into the Ten Thousand Ridges Mountain Range.

That was by no means a good place.

On the Aus Continent, any mountainous area tended to be plagued by Undead or goblins. If unlucky, one might even encounter Ogres.

At this moment, a mounted guard rode up to him, tugged at the reins, and stopped his horse.

"...Up ahead is Beifeng Mountain. It used to be the Andes Family's coal mine, but supposedly, while mining coal, they accidentally dug into a Maze. Since then, it became the playground of adventurers."

Socduo's frostbitten lips cracked as he exhaled white mist from his frozen nostrils.

"A Maze entrance, huh? Seems the refugees picked a good spot."

Seated on his horse, the guard shrugged, quickly dispelling his boss's optimistic thought.

"What I said is all from ten years ago. Back when Demon King Reggie Dragon was still alive, the area was already abandoned. Now the Undead rule over it... For safety's sake, I advise you to steer clear."

"Undead don't light fires." Staring at the black smoke winding upward in the distance, Socduo stubbornly retorted, "The version I heard was that a powerful Mage came to the northern part of Silver Pine Forest. To help the homeless wanderers, he used forbidden spells to summon servants from the nearby burial ground... Perhaps the Mage in those rumors is right there."

Dealing with an Undead Mage might be risky, but he didn't seem like a malicious man.

There might be a chance for negotiation; if nothing else, he could offer part of his grain as leverage to earn the Mage's favor.

At least it was better than complete financial ruin.

After all, he was gambling on luck by coming here in the first place, so it made no sense to turn back now.

The head guard stared at his boss in astonishment.

"Are you serious?"

After gazing at the distant smoke for a long time, Socduo gritted his teeth and finally replied.

"I want to take a look, at least to put my mind at ease."

Seeing his boss's resolve, the head guard gave up dissuading him and sighed.

"Alright... But I suggest we take fewer people. If the Mage turns hostile, retreating won't be too difficult."

Socduo nodded in agreement, though defiantly added.

"That's what I think too... But this isn't preparation for retreat; it's to show our sincerity."

The guard captain didn't argue further, replying indifferently.

"As you wish."