John the Baptist

From the source texts, and from a Classical Philologist perspective:

It seems that John the Baptist is another prophet with his own people, unrelated to Jesus the Christer. Cousin of Jesus (mother was Elizabeth, sister of mary mother of jesus). right?

That’s the way the Greek New Testament presents him.

• John the Baptist (Ἰωάννης ὁ βαπτιστής) is a prophetic figure with his own following, independent of Jesus’ inner circle. He was not counted among the Twelve.
• Family link: According to Luke 1, his mother Elizabeth was a relative (Greek συγγενής) of Mary, the mother of Jesus. This makes John and Jesus cousins, though the text does not emphasize it for political or theological reasons—it is mainly a way of situating John in a priestly/temple context.
• Role: John runs his own baptismal movement (baptism for repentance), has his own disciples, and functions as a bridge between older prophetic traditions (temple, Pharisaic, and Essene-like circles) and the Jesus movement. He is not subordinate to Jesus; the Gospels portray some tension, e.g., John questioning whether Jesus is the Messiah (Luke 7:19).

John is an independent initiator, appears to be performing rites similar to Jesus’ pharmaka ritual but in a different lineage. His role is as independant prophet conducting his own mirror of the Jesus rituals, not as a “disciple” of Jesus.

Role of the Magi

This supports the notion that the Magi funded and supported many prophets, not just one (Jesus), in an attempt to get traction in creating a competing tradition to upset the established Echidnaic Oracular Order.

Throwing spaghetti at the wall, see what sticks.
This is a common investment technique that we see today, e.g. invest in 10 companies, expecting 1 to do well or "win"...