Chapter 122: Alertness
In mid-November, the merchant ships from the Starfall Islands, having been at Black Forest Island for half a month, finally began to raise their sails, preparing for the return voyage.
Duane, on horseback at the port, bid farewell to Garrot, Selena, and the others.
Duane was very satisfied with this group of merchants.
They had brought him an income of 697 Gold Coins, which brought his savings up to two thousand Gold Coins.
Now he could consider spending a few hundred Gold Coins to purchase a cargo ship.
’No, I could even consider buying another ocean-faring passenger ship.’
’Unfortunately, Black Forest Island has no seafaring captains.’
’I need talented people in that field.’
Duane wasn’t the only one satisfied with the trade; the island’s residents were pleased as well.
Over the past few days, both Duane and Garrot had hired many laborers to help move goods.
The island’s strong young men had earned some extra money as a result.
It reached the point where some people were hoping more merchant fleets like this would visit Black Forest Island, as it would mean more extra income for them.
At the port, the cargo ships had already begun to depart in succession, and now only the last one remained beside the pier.
Duane gave a slight bow, paying his respects to the group.
He didn’t have to come.
But he had come to see them off because this was the first major deal, making it a memorable occasion. Plus, Duane wanted to check on the port.
"Black Forest Island welcomes you to visit again. I wish you all a safe return journey. Farewell!"
"Farewell, Baron!"
Garrot, Selena, and the others bowed in return. Everything seemed perfectly normal.
The two parties exchanged final farewells, and Garrot led his people aboard the ship.
Duane stood on the pier, watching as they raised their sails and slowly sailed away from Black Forest Port.
His gaze fell upon Cameron, who was actually grinning from ear to ear and even waving goodbye.
Duane frowned slightly. ’I whipped that man. How did he suddenly become so polite?’
’And Garrot and his men all seem to be in a pretty good mood too.’
’By all rights, they shouldn’t be.’
’After all, this trade deal fell far short of their expectations.’
’They still have several empty ships. The round trip must have resulted in a huge loss.’
’What’s more, they probably won’t be able to account for their failure when they get back.’
"These people are strange."
Julian was a little confused. "During the negotiations at the banquet, they were adamant that we sell them at least two million pounds of grain. They were even willing to get into a heated argument with us over it. But then they never brought it up again, as if the grain suddenly became unimportant."
Kaelon reminded him, "It’s not that they didn’t bring it up. Didn’t they buy some from the farmers?"
Julian shook his head. "They only bought fifty thousand pounds of grain from the farmers. That’s a far cry from two million pounds."
Simone voiced his own opinion. "I find it strange, too. Why are all of them on a single ship?"
His words made Raymond realize something as well.
"By all rights, they should have been spread out to ensure every ship had Warriors on board."
"And Lady Selena is on that ship, too."
Raymond recalled the scene of their arrival. "When they came, she was separate from Garrot and his men."
"Perhaps they were worried we’d make a move against them, so they decided to leave all together at the end?" Kaelon guessed.
Duane shook his head, dismissing Kaelon’s guess. "The port of Black Forest Island can easily accommodate two ships docking simultaneously. Even if they were on guard against us, there was no need to leave just one ship behind."
These past few days, Selena hadn’t been close with Garrot and his men; they had always dined separately.
Now, this Baroness had boarded a ship with a group of Warriors, which was highly inappropriate.
After all, it was a cargo ship without many private cabins, which would surely make daily life very inconvenient for her.
’It is strange!’
Duane’s brow furrowed. ’Are they planning to disperse to their respective ships only after they reach the open sea?’
’That would be too much trouble. It would have been better to sort it out on shore.’
’So, what are they planning to do, all gathered together like that?’
"My lord, if you have no other orders, Haien and I will be heading back,"
Julian’s words interrupted Duane’s train of thought. "In a few days, we need to start harvesting the late-season rice. We still have many things to arrange."
"Go on, then."
Duane added, "Oh, right. Remember to have a few people bring out the threshing machine. We’ll need to use it during the harvest to see how it performs."
Julian and Haien readily agreed.
They had already seen this miraculous device called a threshing machine and couldn’t wait to see it in action.
As Duane rode back, he surveyed his surroundings.
’All this transport has caused considerable wear and tear on the pier and the surrounding land. They’ll probably need repairs.’
’The pier needs to be inspected and reinforced, too, after all that back-and-forth with heavy goods.’
He looked ahead. It had rained a few days ago, and the constant foot traffic at the port had turned the ground muddy.
’This main road needs to be considered for repairs as well.’
’Looks like I’m going to have to shell out a big chunk of the money I just earned.’
"You’re all dismissed."
Duane instructed Kaelon, who was beside him, "Garrot and his men are gone. We can stand down the alert here. There’s no need for everyone to be gathered here anymore..."
He frowned and suddenly whipped his head around to look out at the sea.
In his line of sight, the ships from the Starfall Islands were already tiny specks, and soon they would likely vanish from view entirely.
He hadn’t finished his sentence. His intention had been to tell everyone to return to their posts.
But the phrase "gathered here" made him suddenly realize a certain possibility.
Duane had concentrated most of his fighting forces near Lingang Village to prevent Garrot and his men from doing something drastic out of desperation.
’So, now that Garrot and his people are all gathered on one ship, could it be that they’re planning to do something?’
"Kaelon!"
At that moment, Kaelon was in the middle of assigning tasks, telling everyone to begin patrolling the Territory.
Duane’s shout cut him off.
Everyone looked over.
"My lord, what is it?"
Duane pondered for a moment before asking, "On that ship that just left—were all of Garrot’s best fighters gathered there?"
Kaelon paused, taken aback. ’Why is the Baron mentioning them again?’
"I suppose so?"
Kaelon said as he recalled, "Garrot, Blake, Hall, Cameron, Brison, and Selena... they were all there."
Raymond added, "I recognized a few of them. They’re Middle Level Warriors, and they were on the ship, too."
"Plus, all those soldiers in Armor."
A faint sense of unease stirred in Duane’s heart, and it grew stronger and stronger.
As the saying goes, you concentrate your power to achieve great things.
Garrot concentrating his forces must also be for the sake of accomplishing something major.
’In these waters, besides Black Forest Island, where else is there to accomplish something major?’
’And if it’s a major event on Black Forest Island, what would that be?’
"What is it, my lord?"
Seeing the grim look on the Baron’s face, the men were all puzzled.
Duane was silent for a long moment. He realized that perhaps Black Forest Island...
’No, to be more precise, the danger to me has not yet passed.’
"Everyone, wait here."
Duane said, "Kaelon, and you three Camp Commanders, with me."
Duane urged his horse forward a short distance. Once the four had caught up, he explained the possibility that had occurred to him.
"I suspect Garrot and his men intend to turn back and attack Black Forest Island."
His words made the four men’s eyes go wide in shock.
They found it impossible, utterly unbelievable.
Duane laid out his speculation.
"For them to come to Black Forest Island on such a large scale, it’s obvious there’s a problem in the Viscount’s Territory and they need to resupply from here. But this trade didn’t meet Garrot’s expectations. He failed his mission, and he’s bound to be reprimanded by Viscount Freddy when he returns."
"On top of that, they were thoroughly humiliated on Black Forest Island, especially that Cameron..."
As he said this, Duane recalled the smile on Cameron’s face during their departure. The more he thought about it, the more unsettling it became.
’How could a person’s personality change so drastically in just half a month?’
"The Baron’s analysis makes sense!"
Raymond recalled what he knew about Viscount Freddy.
"The Viscount possesses Celestial Tier strength, which has contributed to his personality of being extremely demanding and results-oriented. If Garrot’s expedition was under Freddy’s orders and he fails, he will absolutely be reprimanded."
"Then why leave first?" Gaius asked.
"It’s possible they want to use it to mislead us."
Simone speculated, "To make us lower our guard, then come ashore again under the cover of darkness. Their target..."
He looked at Duane as he spoke. "...would very likely be the Baron’s residence."
HISS!
As the men analyzed the situation based on Duane’s hypothesis, a chill ran down their spines.
Just a moment ago, Kaelon had been assigning tasks to the various teams. Everyone would have been separated.
In that situation, if the enemy launched a surprise attack tonight, they would be completely defenseless.
Once the Baron was dead, the rest of them, being scattered, would be picked off one by one. Black Forest Island would once again become masterless land.
Then, they could take whatever they wanted by force.
That way, they would get their revenge, complete the Viscount’s mission, and even make a huge fortune in the process.
"Whether we’re overthinking this or not, we must be on high alert tonight!"
Kaelon said, "Tonight, we’ll all surround the pier. If they come ashore, we’ll swarm them!"
"No!"
Duane shook his head. "We will be on alert, but we will not be defending the pier."