Domas couldn’t help but shout; as the Governor appointed by the Federation, he abused power, engaged in corruption and bribery. As a corrupt official, he did everything he could, but this couldn’t deny his ability and his recognition of his self-identity.
Even in the face of the formidable Dragon-man from across the sea, he didn’t succumb but instead found the real issues within the seemingly reasonable conditions proposed by the other party and raised questions.
"Of course there are distinctions. We will only have the usage rights of the entire port during the lease term, and once it expires, we will return the port in full."
Barbos replied earnestly.
"How long do you intend to lease?"
Even knowing the Dragon-man before him was talking nonsense, Domas still couldn’t help but ask.
"Um, after consultation, we unanimously believe that a five hundred-year lease would be a more suitable term."
Barbos exchanged glances with other Dragon-men, then smiled and continued.
"Five hundred years? How is this different from outright occupation? This is invasion!"
Domas couldn’t help but angrily retort; leasing for five hundred years, he wasn’t even sure if the Federation would last five hundred years, it essentially meant directly handing over the port.
"Of course, there are differences. Firstly, we are not using any violent means or bloody acts of war. Secondly, we are willing to pay rent, so this is a commercial activity, unrelated to invasion."
"I absolutely cannot agree with you; this is selling out the Federation’s interests."
Domas insisted indignantly.
It wasn’t that he was particularly fearless of death, but fulfilling his duties as a Federation official, because he knew if he dared to agree to such unreasonable terms, his fate could be a hundred times more terrifying than death; after all, the New York Port was the most prosperous port in the Federation economy, affecting countless city-states.
"Didn’t you say you don’t have the right to lease the port? If that’s the case, you also don’t have the qualification to negotiate with us, so what you need to do now is to report this matter and let authorized officials discuss it with us."
In response to the refusal from the Federation official in front of him, Barbos was indifferent, merely flicking his nails and continued calmly.
"What exactly are you trying to do? Our Federation has Legends. If I report this, at least three Legends will arrive."
Domas was both reminding and warning.
"No problem, go ahead and report, but I hope when you report, you can make the message as accurate as possible."
"What do you mean by that?"
Domas was bewildered.
"Nothing in particular, come, follow me out for a look."
Before long, the Governor of Harbor City was escorted by a group of Dragon-men to tour the city he once ruled; he referred to it as ’once’ because the Dragon-men who landed had already begun organizing the Harbor City.
The focus was on public security, targeting gangster elements and the gray industry chain, as these are forbidden in the Holy Dragon Land.
The Dragon-men were so active because this Harbor City was destined to welcome more Dragon-men in the future, as it needed to align with the order of the Holy Dragon Land in all aspects.
"Why are there so many Dragon-men, is there something wrong with your homeland?"
Leaving the mansion, Domas had initially prepared himself mentally, but when he saw the Dragon-men everywhere in the sky and underground, he was completely stunned.
"What are you talking about? We are conducting a justice expedition; we are the first batch of Dragon-men to arrive at your Alviss Continent, and there will be more Dragon-men coming after, so we need to lease a fine port."
"This is only the first batch?"
Looking at the Dragon-men who already in practice occupied the New York Port, Domas had grown numb. He suddenly felt that leasing out the port might not be a bad option.
"Have you seen clearly? Once you’ve seen clearly, go and report."
After touring the city, which had become completely unfamiliar to him, the mentally dazed Domas staggered back to his mansion and, after thinking for a long time, reported the matter to the Federation.
The Federation’s reaction to the matter was tremendous, and by early the next morning, the aura of Legends appeared above the port. However, as the aura belonging to the True Dragon Species emerged, coupled with three unmistakably legendary pressures hidden within, the legendary aura from the Federation quickly calmed down.
"I am Terramus, the second son of Holy Dragon Noah. I have led my followers to your land and have brought some disturbances and inconveniences to your people; I sincerely apologize."
Upon meeting the Legend dispatched from Divatlin Federation, the actual leader of this massive expedition fleet, Terramus, stepped forward,
"But we urgently need a piece of land where we can reside long-term. I hope we can discuss and coordinate an outcome that satisfies both parties and mutually benefits."
Although Terramus’s current strength is not particularly powerful, his identity as the Holy Dragon’s Son is enough to make any force in the world take him seriously and show proper respect.
Having truly realized the advantages of this identity, this Holy Dragon’s Son, who is not rigid-headed, has started flexibly using this status.
"Terramus, Your Highness, on behalf of the Federation, I warmly welcome you and your followers. It’s just we would like to understand, what is your objective? We are informed that you are conducting a justice expedition; is this true?"
One Independent Domain Lord asked among the two Federation Legends present.
The Divatlin Federation is a joint political entity composed of various coastal city-states and inland Free Territories forming an alliance, making internal opinions difficult to unify. Naturally, they have a nominal Supreme Commander, though this Supreme Commander rotates every ten years.
"Yes, I will lead the supporters to the Goltai Region to support the justice work my brother Iliad is undertaking."
"Since your destination is the Goltai Region, why do you want to lease our port?"
Both Legends let out a sigh of relief; truth be told, even Legends shudder at the sight of so many Dragon-men in New York Port presently.
Anyone seeing the number of Dragon-men and their activities for the first time would instinctively think the Dragon-men from the other side of the sea were launching an invasion.
"Because we are merely the first batch; there will be endless personnel and supplies arriving in the future, so we need control over a vast port that can stably receive them."
"Your Highness Terramus, we fully understand your needs; however, the New York Harbor is our Federation’s brightest jewel on the West Coast, jointly managed by all city-states and territories within our Federation, and even we don’t have the authority or the possibility to rent it out for management by anyone."
One Legend looked troubled and spoke in a very tactful tone.
"Um, perhaps some of my Dragon-men citizens expressed somewhat radical opinions and needs, causing a misunderstanding; we don’t need to lease the entire port.
We only hope to have a residential area here exclusively for us Dragon-men, just to accommodate our personnel and material transportation needs."
After pondering for a moment, Terramus proposed conditions that surprised the two Legends.
"If it’s just leasing a piece of land, that’s certainly no problem."
The two Legends exchanged a glance, then responded with relaxed and cheerful tones. Asking for just a portion of the port is certainly acceptable; if necessary, they could expand the residential area of the port to allocate to the Dragon-men.
"I also hope that in this piece of land, my followers can have independent judicial authority, and I can deploy troops to station for protection..."