Lord of the Sky City

Karina's proposal had put Rocky in a real bind...

Objectively speaking, he was actually very tempted to join Karina on this venture. The prospect of earning millions was an enormous lure, especially at a time when Rocky needed money the most.

On the other hand, the powerful backing behind the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group made him apprehensive. He already had one major enemy; if he managed to offend Wild Horse City, which was a medium-sized Sky City, life would undoubtedly become even more difficult...

What to choose was indeed a difficult question.

So, faced with Karina's pressing question, Rocky chose to keep his cool and did not answer immediately. He took quite a while to ponder before raising his eyes and speaking, "Karina, why do you want to cooperate with me?"

Instead of giving a direct answer, Rocky instead asked this question, which also echoed the doubts in his heart.

He did not understand why Karina would want to cooperate with him. Logically, Karina should have been stronger; she might even have been able to take down the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group on her own, so why would she need to cooperate with others?

And even if she did need a partner, there was no necessity to choose him, was there?

"I need your troops."

"The fleet?"

"No, your soldiers."

Looking at Rocky, Karina spoke outright without any hesitation or beating about the bush: "I don't care about the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group's fleet, but their ground base is quite troublesome. However, to completely annihilate this Air Pirate Group, destroying their base is essential."

"Rocky, I know you've completed the mission at Backhill Village. Faced with the relentless attacks from over a hundred demons, your troops managed to emerge victorious—this is exactly the kind of strength I need. I need your troops to take over their base while I hold off their fleet!"

Perhaps it was her personality that made Karina reveal her thoughts without any reservations. She was not interested in Rocky's fleet, but his soldiers!

It's necessary to explain here that since entering the Sky Era, aerial forces had seen significant development and strengthening, leading to a qualitative change. However, the development of ground forces was limited, with little difference from what they had been during the Land Era.

There are many reasons for this imbalance of strong aerial capabilities but weak ground forces. For example, as it was the trend of the times, with everyone living in the sky and people still fighting each other, it's obvious that they would choose to develop air forces rather than ground forces.

Not only this, but the majority of Sky City Lords have even given up on ground forces altogether. With the exception of a few guards to maintain order, there isn't an organized army in the city; all their strength and resources are poured into developing the fleet.

I remember Wensel once said in his will, that once people flee to the sky, they will never have a chance to take back the land. Perhaps he could foresee this situation which is why he made such a statement. And indeed, the fact that the two *** wars failed proves that this was directly related to the weakness of the soldiers.

After all, floating warships might be strong, but they can only influence ground battles; to finish a ground battle, you still need soldiers.

This was precisely why Karina chose to cooperate with Rocky. She was confident in facing the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group's fleet, as she was one of the City Lords who only maintained an air force without a ground force. Consequently, the base of the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group was a tough challenge for her.

By contrast, Rocky held an advantage in this aspect. Despite his Guard Corps consisting of only a little over three hundred people, these guards were all elite soldiers. The original guards of Thunderhawk City became experienced veterans after the mission at Backhill Village, while the troops from Backhill Village were hardened warriors who battled demons all year round.

Combined, they made Rocky's Guard Corps extremely formidable.

"So..."

After Karina's response, Rocky nodded in understanding. He could tell she was not lying, so he continued to inquire:

"How do you plan to divide the spoils of war?"

"You can keep the money and the goods, but the people are mine."

Without any hesitation, Karina gave her answer directly, the money and goods would belong to Rocky, but the people would be hers.

This proposal was clearly something she had considered beforehand; it seemed simple and crude, yet it perfectly met the needs of both parties. Thunderhawk City, having already increased its population twice consecutively, didn't need more people for the time being.

Rocky needed money most of all, so Karina planned to give all the money to him; whereas Karina herself needed people desperately for her city's development, so she chose the population.

Regarding this distribution scheme, Rocky didn't say much after hearing it because he was quite satisfied. There was no question of inferiority or superiority in this allocation; it was distributed based on need, providing both parties with what they needed most.

After pondering briefly, he nodded and accepted Karina's offer!

"I haven't misjudged you; you and I are cut from the same cloth."

Seeing that Rocky finally nodded, Karina revealed a smile for the first time and raised the wine glass beside her to toast with him.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"My God... you two reckless maniacs..."

Unlike a smiling Karina, Berg slapped his forehead in resignation, his face full of helplessness.

Unfortunately, it was too late for any objections, and since Rocky and Karina had already decided to join forces for a venture, the three of them stopped making idle chit-chat and began discussing the matter at hand.

"Karina, have you found the base of the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group?"

Looking at Karina, Berg asked.

The Air Pirate Group, being the new era's equivalent of pirates, naturally had their own base. Unlike the Mercenary Group which, being a formal organization, could have its base in Sky City, the Air Pirate Group, as a band of robbers, couldn't be accommodated by Sky City; they had to build their base on the land, and even Wild Horse Sky Island, which had the support of Sky City, was no exception.

But don't forget, the land by now had been occupied by demons. For the Air Pirate Group to establish their base on the land required courage and was also exceedingly dangerous. Typically, the bases of air pirate groups would be in very secret locations that were easy to defend but hard to attack, so hidden that even the demons, let alone people, would have difficulty finding them.

"I have found it."

After taking a sip of wine, Karina nodded. Rocky's response had put her in a very good mood, and a woman of her demeanor only became more striking when cheerful.

"To find their base, I spent over a hundred thousand Gold Coins at the Shadow Alliance, but it was worth it."

Putting down her wine glass, Karina spoke, clearly showing that she was hellbent on taking down the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group if she was willing to spend such a large sum just to locate their base.

"Karina, how closely related are the Wild Horse Air Pirate Group and Wild Horse City? When we attack them, will Wild Horse City send reinforcements?"

This time it was Rocky who spoke. Since he was about to join forces with Karina for a venture, he had to be fully prepared. Some things had to be clarified.

"Wild Horse City? Hmph, it would be better if they come to support!"

Mentioning Wild Horse City, Karina snorted coldly, her eyes flashing with a trace of murderous intent.