Chapter 519

Chapter 519: Collaboration

When Karoso reappeared with 『』, he had already arrived in Yaleman. He was in a tavern, having just listened to an impassioned speech.

This speech was indeed thrilling for the locals, but to Karoso… it was quite uncomfortable.

After all, this little mustached man suggested that only Yaleman people are noble, while others are inferior. What a crazy nationalist!

Looking at the little mustached man sitting in front of him, Karoso’s gaze was a bit odd.

This is what netizens say, a character created in the game just for fun, only mentioned briefly in the game as having been defeated.

In this timeline, Karoso set many things in motion six years early, causing this person to survive and even grow stronger.

A person of only seventh tier was able to stir up a storm in an empire.

He is not a noble, and when he appeared, he seemed a bit down on his luck, but the fact that he built himself up to this level from nothing is truly extraordinary.

"Honorable Mr. Karoso Colloa Spoleto, it is a pleasure to meet you in Yaleman," said the friendly Adolf Vienna, pouring a glass of wine for Karoso.

"Oh? Why do you address me like that?" Karoso asked with keen interest.

"You mentioned your name before, it was stated before a battle. This name now has the suffix Spoleto. I don’t know why, but I believe this surname must be important to you," Adolf said with a slight smile.

I must say, some people’s success is by chance, while for others, it is destined.

Many people overlooked such detailed matters, but this little mustache noticed them.

[Wow, he really looks like the Führer!]

[It’s done, my blood is boiling.]

[World War II, World War II!]

[The leader is an extreme nationalist, I don’t understand those who admire him.]

[At least what he did made Germans not hate him, and he really did make Germany strong.]

[Bread costs five hundred thousand, give me an AK and I can light a spark, I don’t think he did anything wrong.]

[Actually, nationalism is strong in our nation, except for a few public intellectuals and watchdogs, we see everyone else as barbaric…]

[Do you know how many Jews he killed during World War II?]

[Hehe, take a look at the Puffer Fish Plan, the Jews deserve to die.]

After netizens saw this person, the comments started rolling in wildly, with mixed opinions and great controversy.

However, that is from the point of view of a bystander. Karoso would never see things from the outside.

The only thing Karoso cares about is overthrowing the nobles’ rule, giving rights to the common people, and making sure they don’t live like dogs anymore.

No, the life of a dog is much better than that of the common people. They live like livestock.

Also, Karoso wants to bring back those above the seventh tier to work, turning them from soldiers into productive members of society.

"Did you come to see me for a reason?" Adolf asked as he saw Karoso finish his drink and poured him another. "It seems that whoever is with you is having a bad time."

"I want to work with you," Karoso said.

"Work together?" Adolf paused for a moment. "Do you agree with my views?"

"I don’t agree, but our goals are the same. You want to drive out the foreign troops and restore the economy, right?" Karoso replied.

"That’s true, but I won’t overthrow the nobility; I even need their help. Oh my goodness, what you want to do is too crazy, so crazy that I can’t even dare to think about it," Adolf exclaimed.

"Let’s make a normal trade," Karoso said. "Your country has a strong industry and is good at making precise vehicles for battle, right?"

"That’s right," Adolf nodded. "But our resources are limited."

"So, our mineral reserves in Canglang Province should be enough. I will give you resources, and you give me finished products; the rest will be for expenses." Karoso presented a blueprint. "Do you understand it?"

"Oh, let me see, this is a tank…" Adolf waved, and an elderly man came to his side.

"This tank… is very simple." The old man looked surprised. "If this thing reaches the battlefield, it will break with just one hit, and it seems to have too few functions, right?"

This is the advice given by a netizen to Karoso; some military fans even had data on tanks from World War II.

According to the netizen, Karoso asked Russell’s people to draw a picture of the tank based on the characteristics of this world.

The advantage of this tank is that it is cheap and sturdy; the downside… well, it is cheap and usable, what more could you want?

The netizen said, if we’re going to do it, let’s make a steel torrent; as long as it can shoot, that’s enough.

Not only that, but they also recommended to Karoso some ruthless artillery and the 107 rocket launcher, which can be fired with or without a stand.

When Karoso saw this, he thought it was an incredible weapon!

Although it might not be very reliable to use, Karoso’s team already lacked resources, and money was tight, so weapons that could be mass-produced and used by ordinary people were the best kind of weapons.

How much does it cost to train a wizard? How much is this pile of junk worth?

The money to equip a well-equipped unit could support several units armed with this junk.

"I didn’t expect you brought a weapon expert?" Karoso was a bit surprised; he didn’t think Adolf would be so prepared.

"Haha, Canglang Province is known for its heavy industry. If I meet you without bringing a weapon expert, that wouldn’t be very professional, would it?" Adolf didn’t seem proud at all.

Facing a ninth-tier powerful person, he could remain composed, which showed he was a great collaborator.

Adolf didn’t take the expulsion of Karoso from Canglang Province seriously at all.

"This is exactly what I want, and in large quantities." Karoso said, "What do you think of this price quote?"

Adolf glanced at the quote and started consulting an expert.

Soon, the expert nodded, "It’s reasonable, we can make a profit, and the leftover materials can produce quite a few airplanes. But…"

The expert whispered a few words to Adolf, not realizing that Karoso was listening.

They meant that they could ask for a bit more; there is a profit now, but not too much.

"Alright, we will take this deal." Adolf said readily, ignoring the expert’s advice.

Although he acted confidently, he still wanted to give respect to a ninth-level powerhouse.

Collaborating with a ninth-level powerhouse’s team can create a sense of intimidation against enemies, just like when the wealthy dog owner bought fireworks from the rabbits back then.

"Then I have no other matters to discuss." Karoso stood up.

"Wait, do you really not want to collaborate more deeply?" Adolf called out to Karoso.

"My head is on the line with the United Nations now. Later, I worry that the United Nations and the church will team up against me. Getting too close to me is definitely not a good thing; I might get implicated," Karoso replied. "If I really help you fight, would you dare to accept it?"

"What if I say I dare?" A glint of cleverness sparkled in Adolf’s eyes.

"Let me finish up here first. I think by then, you won’t need me anymore." Karoso stretched lazily. "I admire your courage."

"I also admire you, a strong person facing the whole world. Even though I don’t know your reasons, that courage is very commendable."

Adolf lifted his glass again and clinked it with Karoso’s.

[Is this what they call Soviet-German cooperation?]

[Not at all, the Germans don’t seem like Germans, and the Soviets don’t seem like Soviets.]

[Yes, we suggest that Master Karoso follows capitalism, not communism. In this world, playing with communism is impossible.]

[When production started, it was found that merchants, or we could say capital, would replace the nobles.]

[The nobility is also a kind of capital…]

[Come on, nobles can’t compare to capitalists.]

[What if capitalists had the privileges of nobles? Just take a look at the chaebols.]

[We can take inspiration from other systems, but if we copy them exactly, it will lead to failure.]

[China has too many historical special features; at least back then, our students truly cared for the country. In this world, common people have no sense of nation, and neither do students; everyone has a refined self-interest like in the West.]

[They can help Master Karoso for various reasons, some out of a sense of conscience and others for their own benefit, wanting to break the existing class structure, even if it means breaking everything.]

Karoso often marvels at the bullet comments, wondering what these people are learning.

He noticed that when they talked about playing cards, their interest was not that high, but when something happened between him and 『』, the bullet comments were particularly lively.

Furthermore, when it comes to political issues, they get very excited.

Karoso found it hard to imagine a world where even common people know so much.

Although some only know a little, ordinary people in this world who can read are already considered educated.

After Karoso left, the weapons expert said to Adolf, "Leader, should we also make tanks like this? They really are very cheap."

"No, they must be precise and exquisite, and the military uniforms I mentioned must not miss any details." Adolf sighed, "Their situation is not the same as ours; they are fighting to overthrow the class system, to survive. We, on the other hand, must make young people proud to join the army and proud to join us, so we can attract more people."

"At the very least, we need to improve our equipment a bit more, so they will feel safe joining us."

……

Canglang Province.

Kazan looked at the huge pile of reports in front of him and felt overwhelmed.

When father was here, I didn’t feel such a big pressure.

Now that father is missing, the second brother has joined Presea, Karoso has somehow reached the ninth level, and has become a world enemy. This makes it a bit hard for him as the ruler of Canglang Province.

Presea is gathering troops near Canglang Province, and it seems like they are ready to take over at any moment; if that happens, this province will be under Presea’s control.

With Saaya here, there is no fear of losing control over Canglang Province.

Looking at the front line, the Kingdom of Persia is eyeing closely, defending against Pande Empire’s attacks while also planning to move against Canglang Province.

After all, Aileen has just taken a fortress and is pressuring Lionheart City, while the Pande Empire is also gathering its forces to defend, which gives Persia a chance to act.

If things go wrong, Canglang Province could be attacked from two sides.

Moreover, war is very damaging to the economy, and now the commercial cities in Canglang Province are visibly declining.

When the food in the granaries is not enough to sell and the military funds are running low, that will be the greatest crisis Canglang Province will face.

Furthermore, Canglang Province’s finances have also encountered serious problems. Kazan had not anticipated that to maintain these troops, the military expenses in Canglang Province had reached such a degree.

"Is the only solution now to reduce the military?" Kazan thought that supplying the army was the most expensive part. If the military continued like this, Canglang Province would surely collapse.

For a province, having half the military strength is already sufficient.

In fact, fifteen divisions are much more than most provinces have.

But after reducing the military, how should they arrange things? Each division has eight thousand people, so fifteen divisions would be one hundred twenty thousand. Should they find jobs on their own?

No, they are all in preparation for battle; it would be very hard for them to find jobs.

Go farming? It has only been a short time since the autumn harvest, and there isn’t much need for labor.

Go to factories? That is one way out, but factories must be built before they can work in them, right?

Canglang Province has plenty of raw materials and also has factories for refining steel, but currently, factories for vehicles and military supplies are already saturated.

I have to say, Kazan is indeed a capable ruler. When considering disarmament, he also thinks about their future jobs.

If someone without a conscience were in charge, they might take an Olympic champion to bring glory to the country, but in the future, they might not even afford medicine, let alone a bath.

"Young master, if you have no ideas, why not take a walk on the street?" Red suggested. "The duke did the same before."

"Sigh… What a heavy burden," Kazan said as he stood up.

……

Quickly, the two of them arrived on the street.

Kazan was wearing regular clothes, while Red looked like an ordinary old butler, following closely beside him.

"Extra! Extra! Young Master Karoso fought seven alone in the Alchemy City and defeated a rank nine Professional!" The newsboy shouted excitedly while holding a newspaper.

Many curious adventurers, seeing such exciting news, quickly rushed over and bought a lot of newspapers.

"Wow, to fight seven and still take one down? I wouldn’t dare say I could take on seven second-tier ones."

"Maybe the gap at the ninth level is even bigger?"

"I don’t know, aren’t ninth-level ones not allowed to take action?"

"What happened? They didn’t sink the Alchemy City, did they?"

A crowd of ordinary people hurried by, not paying attention to the newspapers; only a few were discussing.

"A ninth-tier Professional, how powerful must they be?"

"The old cobbler was once a first-tier Professional and a powerful adventurer, but he retired after an arrow hit his knee. Young Master Karoso can take on so many ninth-tier ones; that means he could defeat a hundred old cobblers!"

"A hundred old cobblers? That’s incredible! Don’t underestimate the old cobbler; even with three or five young men, they can’t get close."

Everyone was talking about what they knew; ordinary people only understood that Professionals were very strong, but they weren’t sure how strong. They just knew that powerful Professionals were almost like gods.

One can fight hundreds; to them, that is like a god.