Elephantom
Chicken Broth Paragon
Interesting. In my mind, I was thinking that the Southerners would be ruled by mercenary corporations where their lifestyles are completely militarized. Every man would hold a rank, starting from Private and ending to General of the Army. People who hold important positions in your community are typically high-ranking officers who can order their troops around.
I think all elysians are supposed to be militarized, if I read the lore right. And, for a strict country like Elysium, mercenary presence should be more low-key. You can have the council be a separate identity, merchants with a tight grip on the district and the district's coins, and an authority figure who sort of who handles all security a la mercenaire — though he's really just an identity to intimidate criminals/heretic, and is really just controlled by the merchant board.
Additionally, the merchant (and bankers) in the board are very shrewd and... Well, somewhat corrupt and greedy.
Every man would have the right to bear arms. The South would be filled with farmer-merchant-mercenaries who would have a diverse set of skills. They would farm, trade and steal, fight and take loot, and then sell that loot.
Farming, I believe, should be less emphasized, since they're basically the middleman when it comes capitol/northern trade with other countries. All profits at gained from trading, capitol funds, and doing military stuff.
The place is really just filled with colorful buildings, artsy, and even more vivid men — ranging from low-level pilferer to high-level gambler. Really just the same thing, plain highway robbery.
The place is chic, but it has its dark sides — and rumour has it that the merchant board's slowly running out of money, and the warden's getting more underfunded as time goes on. This should add a lot of conflicts.