Chapter 86: Commercial Suppression

The envoy sent by the Viscount’s estate was “courteously” sent away by Donald. Even the simplest-minded could guess the true purpose behind the other party’s attempt to buy his Night Manor.

There had long been rumors that Viscount Macbeth intended to annex the territories of all the nobles in North County and become the supreme noble lord, with the Merlin family having been the biggest victim in the past. Although neither the nobles nor the royal family wanted another powerful noble to emerge in the kingdom and thus obstructed him in various ways, it was undeniable that the Macbeth family had grown increasingly strong in recent years.

Now that the Merlin family had just regained its ancestral lands, Macbeth came to buy their manor and used his strength to pressure them into backing down—clearly showing his unrepentant greed.

Although losing the Night Manor wouldn’t affect his income if he transferred the Tree of Life to create two or three more Night Mansions, Macbeth didn’t understand this. But Donald wouldn’t weaken just because his enemy was powerful and give up the Night Manor that had witnessed his growth. On the contrary, now that he had both territory and strength, he was eager to confront Macbeth head-on to see if the Merlin family was still as weak and easy to manipulate as before, to the point of allowing a scoundrel like Gri to interfere.

So Donald deployed his spies who had been lurking around Macbeth. Soon after, Ad, the spy he had personally turned against Macbeth earlier, sent back important news, giving Donald insight into Macbeth’s plans.

“Trying to suppress me through business?” After thinking for a moment, he came up with a plan to counter Macbeth.

He then obtained detailed information from Goldthorn Auction House. After comparing it with what he already knew, Donald concluded that Macbeth finally couldn’t hold back and intended to go to war.

Indeed, Donald’s series of actions—from gaining prominence in the capital to holding auctions in North County—had left Macbeth, the governor of North County, deeply troubled. Initially, when Viscount Macbeth first learned that the former heir of the Merlin family had become a mage apprentice, he hadn’t taken it seriously, planning to pressure them later under some pretext. If possible, he would deal a decisive blow; if not, he would at least create obstacles to prevent them from growing strong and threatening his family’s interests and his own ambition to unify North County.

Who would have thought that before he could take any action, there came the astonishing news that someone had defeated a peak Black Iron-level mage as an apprentice. That Black Iron mage had been recruited by his vassal, LordGuli (Guli). Viscount Macbeth naturally knew how strong he was—although there might be some exaggeration, the strength of a high-level Black Iron mage was real, and even ordinary Bronze-level melee professionals would be wary of such a mage.

To be able to defeat such a powerful peak Black Iron mage as an apprentice—what kind of talent must this person possess? No wonder the top mage in the North County valued him so much, not only taking him as his sole disciple but also openly showing his concern for the young man, warning that anyone who dared to hinder his growth would face his wrath along with that of many mages.

The fact that even the usually low-key Mesel went to such lengths showed just how important this disciple was in his eyes.

Yet the more attention Donald received, the more determined Macbeth became to get rid of him. After two failed attempts at assassination, Viscount Macbeth no longer hoped to nip the threat in the bud. Such a genius mage must have heavy protection, and it wasn’t possible to defeat him through covert actions alone. Moreover, he had the entire mage community of the North County backing him.

If he acted openly, the Macbeth family would face devastating consequences. Even the king, upon hearing the news, would likely not spare them—this was no crisis their family could easily resolve.

Just as Viscount Macbeth was preparing to change tactics and try to ease relations with this talented mage, news came of another level-up. But to Macbeth, this news sounded strangely off, making him feel extremely uneasy!

First, the emergence of Moonlight Wine brought huge profits that even the viscount envied, yet its creator was a remnant of the Merlin family. This made the viscount even more annoyed—why did all the good things go to that young mage? But considering the enormous potential profits from Moonlight Wine, the viscount had no choice but to lower his stance and consider a conciliatory approach.

Then news of an orc invasion arrived, putting the plans on hold. Viscount Macbeth had to put aside all his affairs and focus on the border—a great opportunity to further elevate his family’s glory.

His trip to the Northwest, which he had planned to make a significant impact in, was once again thwarted by that young mage, Donald. Essentially, most of the credit went to him. The son of Viscount Macbeth brought an army of a thousand men yet only managed to claim credit for killing a hundred foes—a situation even more humiliating than returning empty-handed. Why would his noble family need the Kingdom Warrior Badge? At the very least, they needed achievements worthy of a hereditary knightly title to match the prestige of a viscountcy.

Now that the Merlin family had regained territory in the North Counties, it was like getting a piece of meat from their own plate—a rather large piece, even the size of an earldom!

In Viscount Macbeth’s mind, the North Counties would eventually become his domain. Not only had his son and his army failed to achieve any notable results, failing to meet the expected standards for rewards, but now a portion of his own territory had also been taken away. It would likely be difficult to reunify it in the future.

“I truly regret not acting sooner to crush these remnants of the Merlin family at the outset, out of concern for our family’s reputation. Now this little scoundrel has grown strong enough to pose a threat to our family. With that old bastard Mersel backing him, it will be extremely difficult to get rid of him!”

In the study of the Castle ofCastle of City -> Castle ofCastle of City City, Macbeth said these words in anger in front of several of his confidants and his son.

“Father, should we bring in assassins from the continent to deal with him? Although Silver-level experts are expensive, they should be able to succeed 100% of the time!”

Macbeth was tempted by his son’s suggestion. But after some thought, he said, “This is a last resort. If we really reach that point, it will inevitably provoke a reaction from Mersel. Mages think differently from nobles. Even without evidence, he will retaliate against us directly. Moreover, our family has received information from insiders in the Royal Mage Association that Mersel holds a special status among mages. Even if he were to destroy our family, he probably wouldn’t face severe punishment. My Macbeth family has been operating in Celt for three hundred years, and now we’re allied with the Crown Prince. Once the Crown Prince ascends, we’ll have an excuse to purge other nobles in the North Counties. With the situation turning in our favor, giving up now would be a betrayal of our ancestors!”

One of his confidants said, “It’s a pity that the only insider we can get involved with is an apprentice who will never be able to advance, too low in status to obtain real information.”

Borton immediately asked, “Then what should we do?”

Macbeth thought for a while before saying to his trusted advisors, “The original plan remains unchanged—suppress Dalaran’s development in every possible way. I want all the nobles in the Northlands to know who the real masters of the Northlands are. Those who offend my Macbeth family will not end up well.” Then he turned to his son and said coldly, “As for your plan… first buy off the people there but stay inactive for now. Once it’s clear that nothing can be done here and we all withdraw from Thistledown, then act immediately—make sure to eradicate them completely!” After discussions in the city lord’s residence, changes began outside Thistledown the next day. Many people went to those in the know to find out what was going on and learned that their city lord had set up checkpoints north of Thistledown, preventing any caravans intending to enter Dalaran’s territory from passing through. Those unaware of the details wondered what was happening—why would their city lord antagonize Merlinar, the baron of Dalaran and a hero of the kingdom? But many nobles and high-ranking officials were aware of the old grudges between the two families. Yet Merlinar, though once the victim, had not taken revenge right away, while Macbeth, a viscount, had become impatient and started exerting pressure first—such impatience was seen as contemptible by most. By blocking trade, Viscount Macbeth not only tried to hinder Dalaran’s development but also angered many merchants in Thistledown. After all, Dalaran was new and in need of supplies, forcing it to purchase heavily from outside. These merchants had made good profits from previous deals with the Merlinar family and had long set their sights on Dalaran’s valuable territory. Moreover, it was said that Baron Merlinar was extremely wealthy, spending vast sums of money—like tens of thousands of gold sols in the capital of Kosovo without batting an eye. As merchants, they naturally favored such generous clients. Thus, the tide in the Northlands gradually turned against the Macbeth family. However, this had little impact on Viscount Macbeth, whose family was powerful enough that such criticism would only result in a few whispered remarks—nothing that could truly harm them. But Macbeth clearly underestimated the power merchants could exert. His action of blocking north of Thistledown not only affected the merchants in the city and Dalaran’s territory but also severely disrupted business in the Redmaple Baronage, located north of Thistledown. After all, the road north of Thistledown led not only to Dalaran but also was a necessary route to the Redmaple Baronage. Now that Macbeth prevented large caravans from traveling north, the Redmaple Baronage would also suffer significant losses.

As the most powerful merchant noble in the Northshire, Baron Redmaple expressed his dissatisfaction several times in front of other nobles and even sent letters to Macbeth to explain the situation, but Macbeth paid little attention and dealt with it perfunctorily. Macbeth had long wanted to suppress Baron Redmaple, and this was an opportunity to teach this indecisive merchant a lesson, so that he could understand the situation better and choose his side wisely.

Although merchants believe that harmony brings prosperity, they won’t let themselves be manipulated. Faced with Macbeth’s disregard, Baron Redmaple immediately counterattacked. Though he didn’t appear personally, he secretly contacted many merchants, large and small, to jointly exert economic pressure on Macbeth’s family. In the business world, the long-standing reputation of Baron Redmaple’s family was clearly more convincing to merchants than that of pure nobles like Macbeth.

As a result, many merchants who had previously traded with Macbeth’s family stopped doing so, and the viscount’s household lost most of its sources for large-scale purchases. This directly affected Viscount Macbeth’s quality of life.

As for the Dalaran territory under attack, aside from slight impacts on economic development, there were no difficulties in daily life. Although the trade routes to Stonehold were cut off, several merchant guilds based in Redmaple Town and shops under Baron Redmaple’s control continued to trade with Dalaran. Moreover, aside from the large caravans from Stonehold, Macbeth’s family couldn’t stop the small traders, so these pressures had little effect. You might suppress them for a while, but not forever. As long as Dalaran’s foundation remains strong, such tactics are like a gentle breeze.