Starting as the Baron of the Lonely Island

"So they’re from the Starfall Islands? And you captured them?"

Inside the reception hall, Heck slammed his hand on the table and pushed himself up, his face a mask of disbelief.

"Oh my god, this is the most incredible thing I’ve heard all year!"

Within the Pruck Kingdom, any merchant who was even remotely well-informed knew about the Brian Family’s misfortune.

As a captain planning to do business on Black Forest Island, Heck’s knowledge of Duane was naturally more detailed.

This Baron of the Lonely Island had only one loyal guard and thirty soldiers gifted by the King. His strongest combatant was merely at the Human Tier.

’How did such a weak young man manage to take control of Black Forest Island in less than a year and even capture the Gale Corps, who served under the Baron of Blazing Sword?’

On a battlefield, this would be a great merit—a great merit worthy of a reward from the King!

At this moment, Heck found he could no longer fathom the young Baron before him.

"There’s no need to look so surprised, Heck. I have two important matters I need your help with."

"Name them!"

Heck slowly sat back down. "As long as it’s within my power, I will certainly do it for you!"

If he had previously wanted a good relationship with Duane purely for business, things were different now.

This Baron had already demonstrated his capability and courage. Barring any surprises, Black Forest Island was bound to grow powerful.

’For a new captain like me with no established foundation, building a solid trade relationship at this time would be a dream come true.’

"I want to request support from the King and demand reparations from the foreign noble who rashly attacked me. I have a ship now, but no crew."

Duane extended a sincere invitation. "If you’re willing, I’d like to invite you to be my captain."

"This..."

Heck had thought Duane just wanted to hire him for a single voyage, not recruit him as his personal captain.

While becoming a noble’s exclusive captain certainly had its benefits, like higher social status and certain privileges, it also came with constraints. He would have to obey the noble’s orders and prioritize the noble’s interests over his own.

Furthermore, sailing independently offered the chance to accumulate great wealth, whereas a noble’s captain had a relatively stable income. Striking it rich would largely depend on the noble’s rewards.

Duane said, "Rest assured, if you join Black Forest Island, I guarantee you won’t earn any less than you would sailing on your own."

’As the Island Master, if I want to contend for dominance on the seas, forming my own fleet is a necessary step. And a fleet naturally requires recruiting captains, first mates, and others. I chose Heck for a few reasons. On one hand, the man is young, motivated, polite, and quick-witted. On the other hand, he’s a newcomer without a stable client base, his income is unsteady, and he faces the constant risk of bankruptcy. A person like that is far easier to recruit than an old, established captain with a fixed clientele and stable business.’

"Thank you for your trust, Baron!"

Heck stood up and bowed. "However, this is a major decision. I need to discuss it with my family and also hear my partners’ opinions. I’m afraid I can’t give you an answer right away."

Duane nodded. "That’s fine. Whenever you decide, you can come find me."

He then added, "I’m going to recruit some people from my territory who are good swimmers. I’d like them to learn about sailing from you. Would that be possible?"

"Of course, I’ll pay you a sufficient reward. I won’t have you do it for free."

"That’s no problem at all!"

Heck agreed on the spot. "To show my respect for you, I’ll do it for free. I don’t need any payment!"

’Whether or not I become Duane’s exclusive captain in the future, I’ve already decided to build a good relationship with the young Baron. Taking on a few apprentices for a voyage isn’t an inconvenience; on the contrary, it will help strengthen our bond. Considering the business deal Duane just offered me, I have no reason to refuse such a simple request.’

"There’s one more thing."

Duane said, "I’ve already prepared some goods to sell to you. I hope you can load the ship and set sail as soon as possible. I will be traveling with you to Silent Harbor."

Heck laughed. "That’s even less of a problem!"

For them, time was money. They couldn’t wait to get the goods and depart.

’Now that the client has the cargo ready, what’s there to delay?’

And just like that, Duane finalized his upcoming plans.

For this mission, he needed to leave Black Forest Island and personally make a trip to the Silent Shore and the Royal Capital.

His reason for going to the Silent Shore wasn’t simply to rest or stop over, but to pay a visit to Earl Kais Kennedy.

After all, Silent Harbor was located at the mouth of the Great Michaelson River, serving as the gateway to the sea.

Whether Duane wanted to go to the Royal Capital or trade in other cities, traveling up the Michaelson River from this port was the most convenient route.

Although Silent Harbor wasn’t the Earl’s sole asset—the Royal Family and other nobles also had stakes in it—for the most part, its defense was managed by the Kennedy Clan.

’If someone wanted to deliberately obstruct you, there wasn’t much you could do about it.’

Therefore, Duane felt it necessary to pay a visit and make his face known to the Earl.

’If I can establish a partnership and link our interests, that would be even better.’

After leaving Heck, Duane returned to Forest Castle and had Jasmine prepare a tub of hot water. He was going to take a medicinal bath with the Body Tempering Potion.

First, he used a Mid-Level Body Tempering Potion to see if it would have any effect.

Unfortunately, it was ineffective.

So, he added a High-Level Body Tempering Potion to a second tub of water.

The moment his body entered the water, he felt a tingling numbness, as if tiny fish were constantly nibbling at him, much like a fish spa.

Immediately after, a searing heat spread through his body, and dense beads of sweat broke out on his forehead.

Duane knew the High-Level Body Tempering Potion was working.

He closed his eyes and began to circulate the Cyan Snake Breathing Skill to help his body better absorb the potion’s effects.

Half an hour later, as the water cooled and the potion’s effects dissipated, a line of text appeared before Duane’s eyes:

[You have used a High-Level Body Tempering Potion for a medicinal bath. Attribute points +0.1]

"It really works!"

Duane broke into a smile.

He currently had over 2,800 Gold Coins. After setting aside funds for projects like road and castle construction, he could still use a portion of it to buy suitable Magic Potions for himself.

’Magic Potions suitable for a Middle Level Warrior are no longer effective for me. I need Advanced Level potions at a minimum.’

The Mid-Level Body Tempering Potion he just used had no effect at all.

’When I go to the Silent Shore or the Royal Capital this time, I’ll need to buy some more Magic Potions to try out.’

Getting stronger just by taking potions was a feasible path for Duane.

’However, can I really keep getting stronger just by continuously taking them? For example, if there were 100 types of potions an Advanced Warrior could use, would I gain attribute points from each one if I drank them all? On second thought, that’s probably not possible. It’ll probably be like the Fire Source Beast Bone Soup—it stops giving attribute points after a certain amount, and drinking more becomes useless.’

「In the following days」

Duane spent his time soaking in medicinal baths.

Of the five High-Level Body Tempering Potions, only three were effective. The fourth one provided no bonus attribute points after being used.

He casually gave the last bottle to Raymond, who had come to report on his work.

Back at Lakefront Manor, Duane had been overjoyed to hear that Raymond, who could defeat a Human Tier Warrior despite being a lower level, wanted to pledge allegiance to him.

Now, Duane was already a Human Tier Warrior, his strength surpassing Raymond’s, while the latter was still stuck at the Advanced Peak Realm.

’This High-Level Body Tempering Potion, worth twenty Gold Coins a bottle, is a bit expensive, but it might just have a good effect on him.’