Reborn as the Genius Son of the Richest Family

Chapter 1274: Coalition skirmishes

An alliance wasn’t the right word to describe the Vanderbilts. They were using their own forces, their own resources, their own army.

Unlike the Goldstones, they didn’t ask for help from other companies. They were completely confident that they could conquer the Chasm all on their own.

And their boldness, their utter self-confidence, others would think that they were stupid.

But who were they? They were the Vanderbilts! They stood at the top of the world with no other equal! If they said that they could conquer this Chasm without the help of anyone else, then they certainly weren’t bluffing.

This kind of strength, the strength that disregarded common sense, the strength that didn’t care how many opponents they fought against, it was something that gathered a lot of respect from other companies.

So, despite not asking for any help, many companies and organizations had lent their arms for the Vanderbilts.

Some just wanted to curry favor with them, while some just wanted to oppose the tyrannical rule of the Goldstones. After all, once they controlled the bridges in the chasm, they would definitely levy a hefty tax on anyone who tried to use their bridges.

Because of this, the Chasm had become embroiled in a large political scheme. Although there were only two sides as of now, many knew that there were many ulterior motives between the different companies.

Michael was having a lot of trouble trying to decipher the different motivations for each sides.

"So, two Conglomerates are fighting against each other," he said out loud to the group of Shadow Orcs around him. "But where’s the other three Conglomerates? Surely, they’ll want a piece of the pie."

Narito nodded before pointing to the 3D map in the middle of the room.

"BU TO TO! The Hephaestus Conglomerate has chosen to play both sides. They stand to gain more profit by arming both sides with their armors and weapons."

That made sense. In a war, it was always those who outfitted the soldiers that stood to gain the most profits.

In fact, the Hephaestus was doing the smartest move they could make. By providing both sides with armor and weapons, they gained a lot of money. And if either one won in the end, Hephaestus would still benefit from it if they had some kind of arrangement with either the Vanderbilts or the Goldstones.

"But Lord Michael, wouldn’t the Vanderbilts get angry that Hepheasteus was outfitting the Goldstones, and vice versa?"

Truly, playing both sides like this was very dangerous. It could easily backfire.

"They could play it off as the different heirs fighting against each other," answered Trilla. "The Oscorpes and the Vanderbilts aren’t the only companies having a succession war. Every Conglomerate does. So, one heir of the Hepheasteus could side with the Vanderbilts, while another sided with the Goldstones.

On the surface, it would seem like it’s part of the succession. But in truth, it could be that the main Hephaestus branch manipulates everything from the sidelines, benefiting from all sides."

Michael guessed that Sinclair’s Elixir Conglomerate was also doing the same tactic. Their pills and herbs and salves would become crucial in a war of attrition such as this. In fact, they may be the deciding factor. They could help human armies continuously recover, while the demi-humans continued to get whittled down.

Thanks to Trilla’s insight as a possible Conglomerate heir herself, Michael was able to understand their ways a little bit more.

Things were a lot more complicated than it originally seemed. This made his decision that much more important. He had to strike a peaceful deal with the underground demi-humans before anyone else.

"What about the Oscorpes?" he asked Trilla.

She seemed uncomfortable as she explained, "I was supposed to ally myself with the Goldstones. Then, I’m expected to gain full control of the bridge once it’s finished. An impossible task, of course. The Goldstones won’t want to give this source of income away."

Which meant that she was getting fed to the wolves. Just like Earl. They were given impossible tasks. And it’s up to them to prove themselves worthy of becoming an heir.

If she failed, then her chances of inheriting the Conglomerate would quickly slide down to zero.

"I already know I’ll fail this task. I’ve already forfeited my succession the moment I retrieved the Lionhearts from the Oscorpes and allied myself to your Reborn company. So, I do not want you to simply let go of your men like this.

You’ve never seen how Conglomerates fight. Their wars are short. They are quick. Clean. They decide the fight within moments of their arrival. That’s how powerful they are. No normal army can stand a chance to fight against them."

Sure enough, Michael had not yet truly learned the powers of Conglomerates. But even if he knew, even if all hope seemed lost, even if they didn’t look to be on the winning side after all this, he would still choose the same thing.

After all, that was his life’s motto, wasn’t it?

Letting all people of the world experience the same comfort as he did? He wanted to let those demi-human know that they don’t have to sequester themselves underground anymore. They could live normal lives. Beautiful, comfortable lives.

So, he was going to do it no matter what. It was just a bonus that he was well equipped to do so.

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One night, bells rang in the camps around the Chasm as a skirmish between the two sides erupted.

"What’s happening?"

"Someone from the Goldstone Coalition has attacked the Vanderbitls!"

"That’s mighty bold of them! Don’t they know who they’re fighting against? That’s the Levi Vanderbilt! Fourth in line to be the heir of their conglomerate!"

Metal clanged as some of the soldiers began to arm themselves with their weapons and armor. They were soon stopped by their superiors.

"What are you doing?"

"The Vanderbilts are getting attacked! We’re allied with them, right? We have to help."

His superior shook his head. "Are you kidding? We are not powerful enough to survive a skirmish like this."

The ground trembled in the distance as four meteors crashed onto the ground.

Not meteors, humans. Humans wearing armor that glowed incandescently bright.

Many would know this as Nascent Spirit armor.