Daily News: Insect Girls' Heavy Dependence

The stench of blood from Night Tide Fortress had not yet completely dissipated from the noble circles of the capital.

Led by the Duke of Donghai, several powerful families who had lost their heirs were naturally furious. They vowed to dig deep and find the real culprit, to repay blood with blood.

However, the heirs of the other families all looked disheveled and listless, as if their energy had been drained.

But at least he returned safely, and upon closer inspection, there was a hint of indescribable determination in his eyes that he had never seen before.

Since their own child is fine, who would want to worry about someone else's death?

However, going to war with the Duke of Donghai and opposing the investigation is not a wise move; the cost would be too high.

As a result, the attitudes of these families became ambiguous. They verbally expressed their support for a thorough investigation, but in practice, they refused to contribute any effort and simply stood by and watched.

Richard had absolutely no interest in the petty squabbles and backstabbing among the nobility.

Leave professional matters to professionals.

This mess of endless arguments was best left to the future Grand Duchess Catherine to handle.

His thoughts were already wandering in the biting cold of the northern border. He was still far from having enough of the essential insect venom needed to advance to the third tier!

The 260 vials of essence insect liquid I obtained during my last trip to the Mushroom Forest were just a drop in the ocean.

This time, his target was no longer a relatively wild forest or snowfield.

Instead, it pointed directly to a very prosperous resource point in the North: the Mithril Mine.

The team arrived at the mining area, surrounded by rugged rocks, after only half a day of travel.

Unlike the previously remote gathering points, the Mithril Mine, an important mineral vein in the North, is not privately owned but a public mine.

Therefore, several exploration and mining teams from different families and border cities are stationed near the mithril mine.

The surrounding area was filled with the noise of people, and the booming sound of hammering echoed through the valley.

The August family's storm-patterned banners fluttered above a sizable camp.

Further away, one can see the striking emblem and banner of the Littor family of Giant Stone City, bearing the marks of chisels and axes.

As for more flags? Richard didn't bother to look at them.

Interestingly, in the two weeks since Richard arrived in the North, he has never set foot in the megalithic city famous for its mining industry.

At the disastrous banquet at Night Tide Fortress, there was a representative from the Lituo family.

Unfortunately... before that guy even had a chance to become familiar with Richard, he was eliminated by Rhine as a pest.

When Richard and his gathering team arrived at the August family camp, travel-worn and weary.

Having already received the news, the mining team leader immediately led several of his men and jogged over to meet them.

"Young Master Richard! You've finally arrived! You must be tired from your journey!"

The mining team leader was a sturdy middle-aged man with rough, weathered features from years of exposure to the elements.

He rubbed his hands together, his face plastered with an almost fawning smile, and bent his back very low.

"I am the manager of the 18th Mithril Mine of the August family, and the 78th mining team. My name is Ba..."

"Alright, alright."

Richard casually waved his hand, not even lifting his eyelids, precisely interrupting the other person's about-to-utter full name.

"I know you're the boss here. Your name doesn't matter. Lead the way and find us a place to rest. Also, tell me how the mine is doing lately. Yekalin sent me to check if there's anything I can help with."

As he spoke, he habitually scanned the camp layout with his eyes.

His gaze paused for half a second as it swept over the Lituo family's camp in the distance.

The mining team leader's enthusiastic smile froze almost imperceptibly for a moment before returning to normal.

Even more attentive:

"Yes, yes, yes! Young Master is very busy, so there's no need to worry about such trivial matters! The camp has already prepared clean barracks for you and your men, and hot water and food are also ready. This way, this way, please!"

He hurriedly led the way, his steps light and quick, occasionally stealing glances at Richard's expression, and cautiously reporting as they went:

"Thanks to His Excellency the Duke, mining operations have been progressing smoothly with stable production. It's just...sigh, these past few days, I, Barton, have been incompetent...and encountered some annoying little troubles..."

Captain Patton, the name the middle-aged man hadn't had a chance to say, was still spoken by himself.

"Oh? What's the trouble?" Richard asked lazily, without stopping.

Patton lowered his voice, his face showing a mixture of helplessness and suppressed anger:

"It's the Lituo family from next door! I don't know what's gotten into them, they've been making things difficult for us these past few days. They're trying to steal our identified rich mineral deposits, deliberately blocking our transport routes with waste rock, and even... there was even a small-scale physical altercation that injured several of our brothers!"

He paused, stealing a glance at Richard's expression. Seeing that the official didn't seem to have any particular reaction, he continued his complaints:

"Sir, what kind of situation is this? Originally, we were all digging our own digs, keeping to ourselves. But now they're clearly deliberately causing trouble, greatly affecting our work efficiency."

"The brothers are also seething with anger, and morale is a bit low... These daily losses are real and substantial, losses for Your Grace and the Duke!"

He concluded by adding a clever touch that linked the losses at the mine to Richard's interests.

After hearing this, Richard slowed his pace slightly, a knowing, slightly mocking smirk appearing on his lips.

He didn't even need to use his brain to understand the key point.

"Oh."

He gave a soft snort, his gaze once again turning towards the direction of the Lituo family's camp. A hint of amusement flickered in his eyes.

Inwardly mocking:

What else could it be?

In Night Tide Fortress, their good-for-nothing, unlucky heir... is gone.

That old Count Littor didn't dare to openly provoke the August family, yet he couldn't swallow his anger, so he could only resort to petty squabbles in small places like this.

To sabotage the August family's businesses in such a despicable way, just to find some pathetic psychological balance? I can understand it, I can understand it…

Richard was unaware of these things until Yekaterin told him before he left.

He barely managed to remember the name of the Earl family, Lituo, and the name of the mining team leader, Barton.

That's why he was so rude earlier, telling this stocky man not to introduce himself. He already knew, so what was the point of an introduction?

Although this may seem very impolite, nobles never need to be polite to their subordinates!

Ekaterin had also warned Richard that, as a nobleman, he should not treat commoners with equality.

Richard wholeheartedly agrees. You should act according to the customs and practices of your chosen social circle!

Last time, he kept saying thank you, and Julia and Louis mistook him for an insectoid...