Overlord: Start from the Goblin Lair.

Chapter 342 The mantis stalks the cicada
"To be precise, it's 21,362 gold coins," Levi Bengtson said calmly, knowing that his paper trick had also been exposed. "Excuse me, Sir Ron, but we can't afford even a loss of 20,000 gold coins. After all, we are only one of the three major families in Yungang."

"This is profit, and net profit!" Constance knocked on the table with a bad look on her face. "Sir Bengtson, do you think all of us are goblins?"

Driver said nothing. He took the chart from Ron's hand and looked at it. He concluded that the other party seemed to have lost money, and a lot of it.

But Ron and the others obviously didn't think so, and the goblin hunter didn't care whether the other party suffered a loss or not - it would be better to say that it was just as well if they suffered a loss, since he didn't like these two guys anyway.

If Constance must make an example of him, so be it.

"Net profit is net profit, but our Bengtson family is so large that each person gets very little. Now many people are complaining about your territory. It's really aggressive."

"Why, you're still planning to challenge us for this?" Ron found it funny. "Come on, you can cross the entire Gobi Desert to attack us if you have the guts."

"You sound confident?" Levi narrowed his eyes. He had already inquired about this. Although this lord was a refugee from the north of Frome Town, and although he had been active near the City-State Alliance some time ago, apart from persuading Rose City to remain neutral in the conflict with Carolina, he seemed to have no other foreign aid.

Despite this, it is better to be cautious - Bengtson is unlikely to really send people to attack the Delusion Land. Not only will the empty rear make it easy for them to be attacked by other families in Yungang, but public opinion will also be unfavorable to them. If they really want to completely remove this thorn, it is better to reach an agreement with the city-state alliance in the south, which is safer.

Thinking of this, Levi immediately put away his eager look: "You are joking, our Excellency. We definitely don't have any improper thoughts about the Delusion Land, but I also came here with a mission. The family has suffered so much loss, how can we just let it go like this."

"Just tell me, what do you want?"

"One price: 100,000 gold coins," Levi said shockingly. Even though he saw the people next to Ron standing up, he still wanted to finish quoting the price. "Sir Ron, your advisors don't need to react so strongly. The family only asks you to compensate for the economic losses you have caused in the past six months. By the way, you have to stop this trade route as well."

"Stop it?" Ron laughed in anger. "Then I'd like to hear how you stop it - setting up checkpoints along the way, withholding goods?"

"No, no, no, you can use a more gentle method. I've thought about it for you," Levi said confidently, "The climate in the north is getting colder and colder. It's almost winter now. You can use this as an excuse to increase customs taxes. Merchants will naturally leave for profit, and you won't give anyone a reason to criticize you."

"For example, you can collect road maintenance fees, travel fees, etc. With these taxes, you can earn more than you do now, and our family's interests will not be harmed. I believe you can cooperate happily with us."

"This kid's brain was squeezed by the door, right?" Even Driver could tell something was wrong. Wasn't this one of the tricks they used in the cave? It just sounded better!

As a goblin who came from that time, how could he not know which of the two is more popular and can provide a more comfortable life?
Ron completely lost interest in negotiating with this kind of people who had no ACD at all even after experiencing the threat of death. However, half an hour later, Levi and Stellan were stripped of their shirts and thrown into the street. An order from the lord quickly spread throughout the entire New Green Swamp Town: All caravans from the Bengtson family must pay high road maintenance fees, carriage fees and land occupation fees if they want to trade in the Delusion Land!
"What's the use of the land occupation fee?" Ivy asked curiously as she looked at Ron who walked out with his hands behind his back. "They definitely don't plan to open a chamber of commerce here."

"The caravan doesn't occupy the land, but the people do," Ron looked at Stellan, whose bald head was purple with anger, at the bottom of the stairs. "See? They've touched the ground, and they want money for touching the ground!"

"I protest against the above fees! How dare you treat a knight like this!" Levi was helped up by the followers waiting outside, and shouted angrily, "Ron! Are you really going to go to war with the Bengtson family?"

"Do you dare to declare war?" Ron sneered. A dragon roar was faintly heard from the only high tower in New Green Swamp Town. "By the way, you have to pay the above fees even if you protest!"

"It's okay if you don't want to pay. I will put up signs at every intersection in my territory, letting all passers-by know that you Bengersen have broken your promise to me from now on!"

"You!" The City-State Alliance wanted to reach Yungang by land, and they thought that Yungang was the only way to get there. What was the difference between this and notifying all the merchants in the south?
"Our family will definitely seek justice!"

While the two Bengtsons were quarreling fiercely in the front, their caravan's base was unusually silent. They doubled the number of guards at the gate of the base, and anyone who wanted to get close to watch the fun would be ruthlessly driven away.

If a stealth expert sneaks into the base at this time, he will find that the silence here is not accidental.

Almost all the caravan guards, servants and accountants were gathered in the yard. Under the influence of some force, these ordinary people lay unconscious on the ground, without any intention of resisting. In the whole yard and even in the whole station, only two people were still standing.

The tall and thin one was a female cat-man, and the stockier one was a man wearing a monochrome mask, who looked like a dwarf. They were all wearing the clothes of the Bengtson family's retainers, with a silver star on their shoulders.

"Master, the suggestion of 'Purple Rhythm' was very successful. The two idiots Levi and Stellan are now making trouble with the lord here." The cat-man respectfully handed the dwarf a pendant. The rope of the pendant was made of gold wire, which set off the mysterious atmosphere of the amethyst on it.

However, even such a precious magic item has a limited number of uses. Hypnotizing all the living people in the station at once completely exhausted the power of the pendant. When the dwarf took it, the slight shake became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

Along with a slight shattering sound, several irregular cracks appeared on the surface of the amethyst.

"Master..."

"It's alright, we're just about to leave," the dwarf waved his hand. He and the spotted cat man became blurred in an instant. After a while, only two ordinary humans were left on the ground. "Since the Bengtson family has made a fool of themselves, it's time for us to step in."

"Master, you are very smart," the servant who transformed into a female tabby cat but was actually a fifty-year-old man bowed and saluted, "Among the three major families in Yungang, Milkway focuses on dealing with mermaids and doesn't care about matters on the shore; Bengtson showed his big eyes in public today. If the lord of Delusion Land wants to continue to maintain his relationship with Yungang, he can only rely on us."

"During the negotiations later, will you still be behind the scenes? If so, where is our bottom line?"

"There's no rush for the details," the man, who was about the same height as Levi, waved his hand, "Mark, take down all the Bengtson family emblems first, let's go to another place and wait for the right opportunity - have you booked the hotel?"

"It's booked," the old man took off the silver star on his shoulder, "Interestingly, the hotel is actually run by a group of kobolds. There's a huge black dragon head painted on the front desk. They..."

The old man and the man probably had a very close relationship, even though they were master and servant. However, the man at the moment was not interested in listening to these nonsense: "Uncle Mark, we will have plenty of time to talk about these interesting things later. Now, we have to leave as soon as possible, before these people wake up and Levi comes back."

"We will visit this 'hard-boned' lord in the evening. Before that, I need to find a place to rest and let my face get some fresh air."

After walking out of the Bengtson caravan's base and turning a few street corners, the man slowly took off the mask on his face. Three or five huge scars running across his entire face loomed hideously on the man's originally handsome face.

"Levi Bengtson, you ruined my reputation, so I will trample the reputation of the entire Bengtson family under the feet of my Holt family!"

(End of this chapter)