Chapter 25: Waste Utilization

After sending Uli and Monterrey away, Komer began to consider how to take advantage of this extremely favorable situation.
The barbarians in the Cordillera Wasteland had long been a major obstacle between the Caucasus and Flanders. Beyond its vast size, the more crucial reason was the unruly barbarians living in that region. In fact, the terrain of the Cordillera Wasteland wasn’t particularly complex—aside from the Baden Gold Mountain Range, which meandered along the coast of the Northern Mid-Sea from north to south, the main features were high plateaus and gently undulating hills.
Although Komer had already controlled the Flanders region, he hadn’t considered connecting these two territories, separated by thousands of miles, by land until he took control of the Sanjia tribe. After all, the Cordillera Wasteland seemed like an insurmountable barrier to any normal person, and the barbarians would never allow anyone to traverse their wasteland as if it were their own territory. Even after the Sanjia tribe completely submitted to Komer, he still hadn’t thought of such a thing.
However, the visits of Uli and Monterrey seemed to pique Komer’s interest.
The abundant resources in the Cordillera Wasteland had always been the main attraction for mortals—magical metal mines, mana crystal mines, and precious magical beasts—things that were extremely rare in the mortal-controlled areas of the Blue Continent. Yet no one was willing to risk their lives exploring the wasteland, as even if they found what they wanted, they couldn’t take it away, as they first had to overcome the barbarians.
But now, it all seemed possible.
The northern region controlled by the Sanjia tribe was firmly in Komer’s hands. However, he hoped to enter the Northern Cordillera Wasteland in a more gentle manner, trying to avoid provoking those older, conservative barbarians. He didn’t want to rush and ruin the delicate situation he had painstakingly built. The central part of the Cordillera Wasteland had always been the domain of smaller tribes, but as the north became increasingly attractive, many of these tribes left the central region to head north in search of a better life. In fact, the central wasteland was in a state of semi-vacuum.

The main strength of the barbarians was concentrated in the south—ten out of the thirteen influential tribes in the tribal alliance lived in the southern part of the wilderness: the Four Kas, the Three Was, and the Three Ya. These tribes formed the core of the Cordillera Wilderness, and their armed forces had always been the biggest threat to southern invasions of Iberia and Smyrna. Comer had long understood that the barbarians would split and weaken when faced with interests. Looking at the current disintegration of the Four Kas tribe, one could see just how difficult the mountain people’s situation was.

The Karon, Kabo, and Three Ya tribes faced off against the Three Was tribe led by the Karo tribe, with the neutral Kat tribe watching from the sidelines—a truly evenly matched situation. No matter how it turned out, this battle seemed unlikely to harm the Caucasus or Flanders at the moment. To put it precisely, it was like ruffling the surface of a pond—why should it concern them? Perhaps it would only intensify the barbarians’ internal strife and cause more losses, which would be more beneficial for Comer to gain control over these people who defied historical trends in the future.

However, Comer had no intention of doing so—it was a relatively short-sighted approach. In his mind, the entire group of mountain people had become a powerful tool in his hands. The submission of the Three Ja tribe had greatly stimulated his desire for conquest, and the opportunities offered by Uri and Monterrey only further fueled his ambition. If he could conquer all the barbarians in the Cordillera Wilderness, the glory and pride alone would be worth fighting for.

Uri and Monterrey were not sure they could win this battle, and Comer was aware that although their side had gained much from deals with Flanders, the time was still too short. The Karo and Three Was tribes also continued to receive reinforcements from the Three Ja tribe and other sources, though far less than what Uri and his group had. The military gap could not be bridged in just a few days.

What kind of outcome could he hope for if he intervened?

Comer was weighing this opportunity. If he really decided to act, he needed to use this battle to completely resolve the problem of the barbarians—or at the very least, make them follow his commands. He needed to have the power to control them all. The armed forces of the Karo and Three Was tribes were no small force, so to achieve his goal, he would need to consult experts.

Komer’s idea of getting involved in the Barbarian Civil War didn’t encounter as firm opposition from Fran as he had expected. Fran’s attitude was somewhat strange, with a hint of expectation, which surprised and intrigued Komer.
“Lord Komer, you don’t need to look at me that way. I already had some ideas I wanted to suggest to you. Now that you have this platform and opportunity, I think this matter could serve two purposes.” Fran’s tone remained calm and composed throughout.
“Hmm, it seems we’ve overlooked some issues somewhere, right?” Komer immediately understood the dissatisfaction behind Fran’s words.
“The Poznan Wave Knights and the Silesian Bright Flame Knights.”
With just two short sentences, Fran made Komer realize the problem. “Is there any issue?”
“What do you think, my lord? After the soldiers are disbanded, they can go back to their own jobs. But what about these knights and apprentices? If they gather in one place, it will cause a lot of trouble. Princess Lenta has repeatedly reminded me and asked me to consider a solution for the Wave Knights. Sending them back would be a great insult to their families and their own honor, and it would only bring disaster to the region. The Silesian Bright Flame Knights are facing the same problem now.” Fran said coldly.
Komer nodded apologetically. “Fran, I was negligent in this matter. I didn’t expect those stubborn folks to cause so much trouble. I made a mistake.”
“Hmph, my lord. Since it involves the attitude of an entire class, we’d better be cautious.” Fran said discontentedly.
“Heh, by the way, Fran, what do you think should be done? Oh, right, it should be up to you to decide, right?” Komer believed Fran would surely give him a surprise.
“Give them a chance to start anew. The two knight orders can merge, and they can go to the South Cordillera Wasteland to fulfill their dreams of conquest and pride.” Fran raised his head thoughtfully.