Chapter 47: Departure, My Island

Six o'clock in the morning.

Splash~~ Splash~~~

Waves crash against the shore, the west wind howls, and a lone pure white gull circles freely in the azure sky.

Ding-ding-ding-ding~~~ Raise the sails~ Weigh anchor~~~

Woo~~~~

Amid the bleak sound of conch shells, three medium-sized flat‑bottom cargo ships laden with goods slowly sailed away from Shialin City's Broken Gold Dock.

No crowd saw them off, no flowers or tributes, and hardly anyone paid attention.

Amid the bustling Broken Gold Dock, this was just another ordinary departure.

Even if one marries a Princess, one remains merely a small Baron, with just over thirty thousand subjects, and the domain is the well‑known barren island.

Let alone the Natural Alliance with hundreds of millions of people, even facing the Weilan Giant Island of thirty million inhabitants, or the Shire County of a million, it all seems insignificant.

It's merely a tiny flea clinging to a beast; even a spotlight can't reach the beast's eyes.

When the three cargo ships fully left the dock, the small ripple caused by a pebble dropping into a pond quickly subsided.

The Broken Gold Dock remained as busy as ever; everyone was busy earning a living, and no one devoted excessive attention to matters unrelated to them.

Yet in the mortal world, not everyone buries themselves in the present plate; some always look toward the distance.

In the Golden Sturgeon Inn, on the second‑floor guestroom, Muradi, a brothel owner from Levinde, stood by the window, watching the fleet sail away.

Two people stood beside him: a young mage and a warrior guard, both his trusted aides.

The young mage looked a bit puzzled.

"Lord, I acknowledge this Baron is adept at the Transformation Technique, but just for that reason, extending credit for thirty thousand Ogre worth of goods—wouldn't that be too risky?"

Muradi smiled faintly: "He's just a minor Baron now; who knows what he'll be in the future~~"

The young mage was startled: "Future? Could the Princess ever return to the summit of Weilan?"

Muradi withdrew his distant gaze, turned to the aide beside him, and said seriously, "The Phoenix has already broken its wing; it can't fly back on its own, but I bet the Baron will lift it up, and he will certainly do so."

"Certainly?"

The young mage was stunned again, then said, "Lord, does he have that ability?"

"I think he does."

The guard beside him laughed, "Lord, this time your gamble is rather large. What gave you such confidence?"

Muradi lightly tapped a victory chess piece casually placed on the windowsill.

"Probably that spectacular victory chess match."

"Huh?"

Both aides seemed not to have understood.

Muradi smiled faintly, "No more talk, come on, who will play a game of chess with me?"

On the other side, aided by the howling sea wind, the fleet sped toward White Sturgeon Island.

Today is fine weather, bright sunshine, cloudless for miles, visibility is excellent; looking east over the sea, the outlines of mountains can be faintly seen in the sky.

After all, the Wind‑Rest Strait is less than 60 km wide, and White Sturgeon Island's highest peak, Dragon Sleep Snow Peak, reaches nearly three thousand meters.

At the fleet's current speed, crossing the strait takes under three hours, so they can reach the Sturgeon Dock on White Sturgeon Island before noon.

It's just a short voyage, and everyone in the fleet is relaxed.

Except for Luosen.

In the lead ship's cabin, he was talking with fifteen Kao mages.

The Kao mages have been hiding on the ship for several days.

Their soul wounds haven't fully healed, and after spending time in a dungeon, they remain anxious on the ship, eating poorly and sleeping badly, leaving each of them spiritless.

Their feelings toward Luosen are complex: they respect him as a fellow mage, distrust him as a lord, and harbor resentment for having their plans ruined.

Luosen introduced himself first.

"I am Luosen, Saxon Baron, also the lord of this destination, White Sturgeon Island; I believe you all already know me."

"My wife is Selena, Princess Adrian of Dawn City, and also a newly appointed Arcane Master."

"Our deeds are spread throughout the Weilan folk, so I won't say more."

After a brief introduction, he looked at the Kao mages and said, "Now, tell me your thoughts."

The Kao mages all wore sullen faces and remained silent.

Luosen turned to Ruwakado and asked, "Master, what are your plans for the future?"

Ruwakado glared at Luosen like a resentful wife, saying in a plaintive tone, "Since we've boarded the Baron's ship, do our personal future thoughts even matter?"

Luosen looked again at the other Kao mages, each wearing a similarly mournful expression.

That obviously wouldn't do; he still expected them to serve him.

So he needed to persuade them properly.

"Master, if your scam succeeds this time, how much money can you split?"

"What does that have to do with you?"

"Of course it does, because it concerns the amount of compensation I owe you."

"Compensation. Amount?"

All the Kao mages were taken aback.

Ruwakado was also stunned: "What does that mean?"

Luosen smiled, "I ruined your good plans; you resent me, distrust me, which is understandable."

"But if I compensate you that amount, then there should be no hard feelings between us, right?"

"Uh~~~"

Luwakaduo was somewhat dazed, and the other Kao mages also looked at each other, unable to fathom the intention of this baron lord before them.

After a round of Spiritual Whisper communication, Luwakaduo said cautiously: "That bastard Nuode promised that if the plan succeeds, he will finally give us fifty thousand Ogres."

Luosen smiled without changing expression: "Fifty thousand Ogres is no small sum; do you really think, given Nuode's character, you can actually take this money and leave Shire County?"

Luwakaduo fell silent.

He knew Nuode would surely silence them, because that way he wouldn't have to spend money and could guarantee absolute safety.

Important figures all like to do this; in their eyes, commoners are merely tools they can discard at will.

At that moment, the High-tier Mage proficient in Arcane missiles, with a pair of brown‑red bright eyes.

Luosen remembered his name was Gatelan.

He stepped forward and let out a cold snort.

"Baron, we certainly know Nuode is no good, but we also have our own means of escape."

Luosen nodded in agreement: "That's also correct; I personally believe that after some effort, you can at least walk away with five thousand Ogres—this inference is fine, right?"

The Kao mages looked at each other, and finally all nodded in acknowledgment.

The High-tier Mage skilled in low‑level Arcane lattice forging, Makelai, nodded: "About right."

Back in the dungeon I hadn't seen it clearly, but now Luosen discovered that this guy actually has six fingers on each hand—not malformed six, but fully functional and well‑coordinated six.

Quite strange.

Of course, this detail doesn't affect the negotiation; Luosen continued: "My idea is as follows."

"Once we reach the island, I will provide you with sufficient tools, materials, and a forging chamber; you help me forge a Lightning Torrent Crossbow."

"If you actually manage to make it, I will give you a bounty of ten thousand Ogres in one payment, plus five thousand Ogres as compensation, for a total of fifteen thousand Ogres."

"How about that?"

Upon hearing this, the Kao mages exchanged glances again.

But it was clearly visible that the resentment on their faces had largely faded, replaced by much excitement and anticipation.

Obviously, for them of commoner origin, an income of fifteen thousand Ogres is quite substantial.

But there was also confusion.

Because Luosen asked for a Lightning Torrent, not the Arcane Torrent they specialized in.

Although it's only a one‑word difference, they are completely different things.

A very handsome High-tier Mage who exuded a strong scholarly aura stepped forward—none other than the Runecaster Mage Gelangke.

He pointed out: "Baron, we specialize in Arcane, not lightning."

Swish—

Luosen directly handed over a magic book titled *Analysis of the Similarities and Differences Between Arcane and Lightning*, handwritten and still exuding a strong ink scent—obviously just finished.

"I am familiar with lightning, and also with Arcane."

"I hope to use lightning missiles instead of Arcane missiles."

The three High-tier Mages immediately gathered to look at the book.

The book is not thick, only twenty pages, filled entirely with technical data related to practice.

The three are indeed talented; after a quick read‑through, they understood it.

After a low‑voiced discussion, the Runecaster Mage Gelangke gave a concluding statement.

"If the contents of the magic book are true, we can forge a Lightning Torrent Crossbow."

"But the crossbow's accuracy will drop; its range will shorten, possibly to no more than two hundred meters."

"The advantage is that its power will increase, after all lightning is far more explosive than Arcane."

Luosen was pleased and asked again: "So, how about my earlier terms?"

"Let us discuss it."

With those words, Luosen clearly felt waves of magical power erupting in the crowd, stirred by Spiritual Whisper.

He listened expressionlessly as they whispered.

About a quarter of an hour later, Master Luwakaduo spoke.

"We can serve the Baron, but we don't trust his reputation; what if we finish the job and he refuses to pay, outright drives us away, or even kills us?"

Luosen gave a light smile: "Gentlemen, first I want to state that I do not like killing, especially not taking the lives of fellow mages."

"Mother Nature says, cutting off a head full of wisdom takes only an instant, but pouring wisdom into that head requires decades of time."

"I deeply agree with that."

Luwakaduo's expression softened considerably, but he was not fully convinced.

"Hmph~ noble lords are the best at lying; they say one thing to your face and do another behind your back."

Luosen then said: "So, I will swear a sacred oath in the name of Mother Nature to prove my sincerity—how does that sound?"

Upon hearing this, the Kao mages' expressions visibly eased; after a brief low‑voiced discussion, Luwakaduo began to set conditions.

"We can work for you, but you must not mistreat us; you must give us sufficient respect and a decent livelihood."

Luosen nodded: "These will all be specified in the contract."

Luwakaduo had no objection: "Then let's sign the contract."

Luosen had already drafted the contract terms; he now took them out and handed them to Luwakaduo.

Luwakaduo examined it carefully, made a few minor revisions, then stamped his magical seal; the other Kao mages did the same in turn.

Finally, Luosen and the Kao mages also each issued a sacred oath, doing their best to ensure the contract's validity.

After the oaths were spoken, the Kao mages all let out a long breath, their faces relaxing into smiles.

Master Luwakaduo wondered: "Baron, why do you believe we can forge an Arcane Torrent Crossbow? Aren't you afraid we'll deceive you again?"

Runecaster Mage Gelangke said: "Exactly; when we recommended ourselves to the Mage Guild in Shire County, they thought our idea was absurd and laughable."

Exactly, those bastards directly said we were dreaming.

Luosen didn't answer immediately; he told Ailiya to open a few bottles of fine maple dew wine, and using fine crystal cups he poured a glass for each of the Kao mages.

He took a sip first, then smiled and said: "I'm also a mage; I constantly keep track of the latest developments in sorcery. So, as soon as I heard, I knew your idea has strong feasibility."

Six-Fingered Macklay laughed: "Baron, you're not like the ordinary Weilan mages."

Luosen also laughed: "Of course not; the other Weilan mages haven't married the Dawn Princess."

That remark instantly drew a burst of laughter, but as they laughed, the Kao mages gradually fell silent.

They gradually came to realize, slowly appreciating the difficulty of a little baron competing with the Aaron king for the princess, and also gradually appreciating the terrifying ability of this baron before them.

They felt that this young baron exuded an unfathomable aura, an aura deeper than the ocean beneath a cargo ship.

Luowakado held his wine cup and asked cautiously: "Baron, once we've built the torrent ballista for you, how do you plan to arrange us?"

Then you'll be free; you can go wherever you want, entirely up to you.

Huh?

Everyone looked at each other, disbelieving that the other party would be so easy to talk to, and the long-standing distrust of noble lords rose again.

Their gaze toward Luosen began to seem off again.

Luosen saw through their psychology; he gently swirled the amber-colored clear liquor, his gaze earnestly sweeping across the faces of the Kao mages, and spoke in a gentle tone: "I can see that deep down you all hide the wildness of adventurers—you are eagles that love to soar in the high skies, not hens cooped up laying eggs."

But the scarcity of money has bound your nature, and once that bond is gone, what you'll most want to do is surely spread your wings and fly high.

If I were to bind you now, the harvest would be only hatred, which is not good for either side.

On the contrary, if I set you free now, we would be friends. One cooperation might not preclude a second or third.

This is beneficial for both sides, isn't it?

After these words, the Kao mages all fell silent, each not speaking, just quietly drinking.

After a while, Master Luowakado suddenly raised his hand to wipe his eyes and exclaimed: "No wonder the baron could marry the princess; it turns out he has a pair of eyes that can see into people's hearts."

This lightning torrent ballista, we will surely get it done for you as soon as possible!

The other Kao mages also nodded in agreement, expressing similar sentiments.

Luosen then raised his wine cup: "Come, let us forget worldly worries, forget our differing stations, and offer a toast to the pure friendship among mages—cheers!"

"To friendship—cheers!!"

For a moment, the atmosphere in the cabin became very harmonious, as if old friends who hadn't seen each other in years were reuniting.

(End of chapter)