From Ascatla at the western end of the empire's continental territory to the West Gate at the eastern end, and then to the Pirate Islands in the center of the Sea of Fallen Stars, this distance is equivalent to spanning half of the Faerûn continent.
Normally, even if we use the convenient water transportation of the Chongsa River and only take the almost ten days of land route from the eastbound city to Texir, it will take at least a month or even longer.
If you happen to encounter extreme weather, such as heavy rain, it is not uncommon to be stuck in a certain town for seven or eight days without being able to go out.
On the one hand, the road conditions are too bad. Excessive rain will make the ground muddy, so that the wheels often get stuck in pits and cannot climb out due to insufficient friction;
On the other hand, horses, cattle, mules and other livestock that have been exposed to rain for a long time will cause illness and death. Certain goods should also not be affected by moisture or water.
Therefore, unless it is an extremely urgent situation, no one with any sense would choose to go out in the rain.
This means that according to the original traffic and transportation levels of Faerûn, without establishing a stable portal, any large-scale mobilization of materials and personnel will have to have a buffer of at least one and a half months from the west coast to the dragon coast.
period.
Even if this is the case with the convenience of river and sea transportation, it would be even more disastrous to rely on pure land transportation.
This is why, except for a handful of forces like Cyre, Mulhorand, Zhentil Keep and the Zhentarim, Faerûn rarely launches large-scale foreign aggressive wars.
Even these forces above usually only attack their neighbors, rather than launching cross-sea expeditions with the help of fleets.
Even if you want to cause trouble in a distant place, you will still adopt strategies such as infiltration, bribery, inciting a coup, and supporting puppets.
This is not because their strategic thinking is not broad enough, nor is it because they do not understand the importance of utilizing sea control. It is more due to the huge logistical pressure caused by a poor and backward transportation system.
To put it bluntly, if we send too few troops, we will easily be beaten back by the locals and those nosy "just people"; if we send too many troops, the logistics and supplies will not be able to keep up.
Even if an important city stronghold is captured, there is no way to divide a large number of troops to control the grain-producing areas in the countryside.
We can only continue to consume finance and our own reserve materials, and continuously transport them from the rear.
In this case, the longer the war lasts, the more disadvantageous it will be to the invaders. The final result is often that they can only retreat to stop losses.
The reason why Fuzuo Er Chambery dared to bring the Zhentil Keep army across the sea and invade the West Heartland region from the Dragon Coast was mainly because Zuo Si had already helped him handle all the logistics. p>
After this guy landed and captured Ximen Port, he directly obtained weapons, equipment and food supplies that were enough to support the army for several months.
Coupled with the massive resources and wealth obtained by looting various towns and villages from the local ruling class, the feat of capturing Baldur's Gate was finally achieved.
Therefore, in the eyes of the red-robed mage Thel and the mortal rulers of the Mulhorand Empire who had just been liberated from theocratic power, even if they engage in some small conspiracy in the West Coast Empire, the other party is unlikely to start a war because of it.
Because one of the two parties is at the far west of Faerûn, and the other two are at the east of Faerûn, separated by the entire Sea of Fallen Stars.
Just the complex terrain of the Pirate Islands and the large number of pirates inside are enough to give you a headache.
Don’t think that the pirates in the Fallen Star Sea are the same as the pirates in the Nelanthal Islands on the west coast and the pirates in Luskan in the north. They are cowards who can only hide from the regular navy.
Quite the opposite!
The pirate tradition here is much longer than that on the west coast, and it is also much more powerful and terrifying.
In DR1180, the once powerful Sambia naval fleet disappeared inexplicably on the Pirate Islands, and not even a single ship or survivor could escape.
The legendary pirate king-Imkh once even ushered in the era of great pirates, sweeping almost all the forces in the Falling Star Sea and establishing maritime hegemony.
At its peak, it had hundreds of large and small fleets, and many famous coastal port cities were attacked and plundered by him.
In order to avoid such a disaster, more than 70% of towns and cities even had to pay tribute to his vassals, offering treasures, wine, food, and beautiful women in exchange for the pirate king's mercy.
Later, the Kingdom of Cormyr took the lead, and several coastal countries and dozens of city-states formed a joint fleet to fight a decisive battle, which destroyed the golden age that pirates were proud of.
Although the Pirate Islands later declined, they are still a force that cannot be underestimated.
At least no city-state or country along the Sea of Fallen Stars dares to enter this dangerous water filled with undercurrents and rocks.
Most of the other forces involved in the conspiracy also took a fancy to this, so they chose to join forces with Sale and Mulhorand, wanting to test the ruling power of the new West Coast Empire and what they might do.
Reaction.
However, these people obviously ignored one thing, that is, Zuo Si has the big killer weapon of airship, which can directly ignore the obstacles of terrain and project military power to any place at any time.
Moreover, the number of airships owned by the West Coast Empire is not only the apparent number, but also includes the terrifying magical industrial manufacturing capabilities of the floating city of Plantia in another world.
In just a few days, a super aerial gunboat had already appeared in the sky above the Pirate Islands across half the continent.
Before the pirates could react to what was happening, countless cannonballs fell like raindrops with a deafening roar, plowing the open space outside the simple town.
Whether it was trees, stones, or the arrow towers built to defend against wild beasts and monsters, they were all reduced to ashes in a volley.
Although the smoky gunpowder provided by the Church of Gond, the God of Craftsmen, looks very much like primitive black powder or maroon gunpowder, it is still an energy explosion in essence, so its power is not much worse than high explosives.
The pirates were completely frightened when they saw the large pits in the open space outside the wall, the ground that had been flattened, the dust rising in the sky, and the fire and shock waves generated by the explosion. p>
Some people who panicked and tried to escape by boat were forced back to the port by dragon knights who swooped down and spewed flames, lightning, acid, and freezing air before they could get very far.
There is no doubt that this is a complete forced surrender.
About a few minutes later, Arthur Meier, the supreme commander of the operation, landed in the square on a red baby dragon that had grown to about ten meters in length.
He declared to the pirate leader without any nonsense: "Either surrender or destruction. Now you make the choice."
As these words blurted out, countless dragon knights soared into the sky from the landing platform of the giant airship, directly covering the sky above the small town in front of them.
The pirates had never seen such a battle before. They were instantly frightened out of their wits by the dragon's roar and power, and many of them had their pants wet.
More than 70% of the guys couldn't even stand firmly. They fell to their knees on the ground with a plop, and their whole bodies were shaking violently uncontrollably.
"I...we surrender."
The pirate leader's face looked as ugly as constipation, and he chose to follow his heart without even thinking about it.
He didn't understand at all what the other party was doing to be able to reach such a huge height.
As for what!
I am obviously just an ordinary pirate leader!
Although I have done some burning, killing and looting, and occasionally robbed beautiful ladies on merchant ships, I have never done anything like attacking and looting a city.
If you have such terrifying strength, why don’t you start a war and conquer more towns? Isn’t the land bad?
Why are you trying to get in trouble with me?
Do you know that this is killing a chicken with a knife?
Just as the pirate leader was complaining crazily in his heart, a satisfied expression appeared on Arthur Meier's face.
“Very good!
I like your straightforwardness.
From now on, take your people and go to sea to rob Thare and Mulhorand's ships.
Remember, only these two countries are allowed to be robbed, and ships from other countries and city-states are not allowed to move.
Take this and send a signal if you are in trouble or can't beat it.
As long as our dragon knights are patrolling nearby, they will quickly chase the signal for air support.
After successfully completing the robbery, you can take the loot to Ximen Port for sale without having to worry about being hunted down as a pirate."
After saying that, Arthur Meier thrust a mobile terminal device into the opponent's hand.
The pirate leader was stunned for a moment. He lowered his head and glanced at the gadget in his hand, then raised his head and glanced at the giant gunboat and dragon above his head. He subconsciously swallowed his saliva and carefully tested in a frightened tone: "What do you mean?
…We can now carry out legal robberies and call in dragons for air support? Do you represent the West Coast Empire?"
"That's right.
You are now considered an outside member of the Imperial Army.
If you perform well during this period, you may be promoted to an official naval captain.
Don’t forget, the empire’s navy was originally transformed from the pirates of the Nelanser Islands.
So work hard and I guarantee you will have a bright future.
But if you slack off in your work, or violate the regulations and attack ships of other countries and city-states, then all these promises will be void."
After saying that, Arthur Meyer reached out and patted the dark and strong man in front of him on the shoulder to show encouragement.
After he rode the dragon back to the landing platform, the other dragon knights who had threatened with force also returned one after another.
After a while, the huge airship climbed up again and headed towards the next island.
Since the death of the legendary pirate king Imuk, there has never been a leader here who can truly unite all the pirates, so it will take some time to conquer the entire archipelago.
Fortunately, the airship is fast enough, and it can also send out dragon knights for low-altitude reconnaissance.
Therefore, no matter how hidden these pirate gangs build their strongholds, they cannot escape the sharp eyes of the dragon.
In this regard, the advantages of airships paired with dragon knights are not comparable to those of surface fleets that rely on landing for reconnaissance.
When the huge airship completely turned into a black dot and disappeared in the distance, the frightened pirates got up from the ground one by one.
One of the half-orcs who looked like an adjutant calmed down for a moment, and immediately came up and asked: "Captain, what are we going to do next? Do we do what they say?"
The pirate leader rolled his eyes angrily: "Do you even need to ask?
How long do you think we can live if we don't obey orders honestly?
Even without those giant gunboats and dragon knights taking action, other pirate gangs will kill us just to gain a future.
Judging from the posture, the other party plans to directly recruit all the pirate captains in the entire archipelago.
This also means that this operation will be a war between the West Coast Empire and Cyre and Mulhorand for hegemony of the Fallen Star Sea.
You just heard that as long as we perform well enough, we may be transformed into the empire's navy at any time.
Moreover, the stolen ships and goods can be taken to Ximen Port for legal sale.
This can make a lot more money for black marketeers than dealing at low prices.
Those damn vampires always lower the value of the goods to half of the market price or even lower.
How can I be worthy of myself if I don’t fight for such a good opportunity?
Go and notify all your brothers and ask them to pack their things and prepare to board the ship immediately."
"Hey, I understand."
The half-orc adjutant grinned, revealing his iconic sharp canine teeth, and then he kicked, kicked, and cursed the other pirates.
In about twenty minutes, they completed the supplies and boarded a medium-sized paddle boat that was not very big but very fast to set sail.
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Since the Sea of Fallen Stars is an inland sea of the Faerûn continent, or a super large lake, the wind and waves are very small.
A paddle boat is more useful than a sailboat here, especially in the case of pursuit, as it can burst out at amazing speeds in a short period of time.
If you look down from the air for a long time, you will find that in the past two days, more than 300 pirate ships like them have left the archipelago one after another and began to cruise along the busiest channels in the Falling Star Sea.<
/p>
Once Mulhorand or Thael's ships are discovered, they will immediately approach them and launch an attack.
If they find that there are mages or other strong men on the opponent's ship who cannot be defeated, they will use the Shuoyou mobile terminal to send out a distress signal.
The other two gunboats docked at the north and south sides of the Aglalon Peninsula respectively to perform blockade missions will immediately send dragon knights to support.
Normally, when people on the boat see the dragon appearing and attacking them, they quickly give up resistance and choose to surrender.
Because slow and clumsy ships are basically a living target in front of the dragon with air superiority.
Although it is not impossible to shoot down a giant dragon with a powerful crossbow like in the world of A Song of Ice and Fire, the probability is so low that it can be ignored.
This is usually caused by the dragon being too arrogant.
Otherwise, the dragon only needs to keep flying around the ship at high altitude, avoid the shooting angle of the giant crossbow, and then swoop down to breathe dragon breath.
One of the two parties firmly holds the initiative, while the other can only defend passively. It is clear who is superior and who is inferior.
At this moment, on another airship, Steel Princess Yalusel was condescendingly admiring the scene of flames soaring into the sky on the sea, as well as the scene of a large number of warships being destroyed by salvos of artillery and sinking to the bottom of the sea with billowing smoke. p>
Countless soldiers and sailors from Sale wailed on the boiling sea, begging for mercy and forgiveness from their opponents.
But all they got were shells falling from the sky, explosions and the dragon's deadly breath.
Even outsiders who see this kind of scene will know that this is not a war or a battle at all, but a one-sided massacre.
As for the objects that were massacred, they were of course the garrison fleet from Ser Araul Province.
The so-called Araul Province refers to the country’s two southernmost islands far away from the mainland. It is also the smallest province in terms of area.
Despite its small size, it is the largest naval base in Sayre.
Yalusel believed that if the warships in this base and port were allowed to exist, it might cause certain damage to the blockade plan, so after gathering more than forty pirate ships, he took the initiative to launch an attack here.
With excellent strategy, she first used pirates as bait to pretend to launch an attack on the coast, and successfully deceived the fleet in the port.
Then, relying on the speed and air superiority of the gunboat, they directly launch a surprise attack, intending to annihilate Serge's most powerful fleet on this burning and boiling sea, and completely interrupt the opponent's will to resist with one blow.
Facts have proven that this Iron Princess is definitely a qualified or even excellent commander when she is not facing an opponent of the level of Fuzuo Er Chambery.
Under her calm control, the dragon knights cooperated with the covering fire of the artillery, and often a single dive could set a ship on fire and send it to the bottom of the sea.
Less than half an hour after the war started, Serge's main fleet lost more than 60%, and most of the remaining ones lost their combat capabilities. They either abandoned the ship on the spot and fled or struggled hard on the sea.
More than a hundred mages equipped on the battleship who tried to take off for combat were all killed mercilessly by the dragon knights.
You must know that these dragon knights created by Zuo Si are not just warriors with long-range magic weapons.
Instead, it is based on the magic knight of Mutahar Floating City, and has undergone a series of optimizations and genetic modifications to make it closer to the armored dragon warlock.
It's just that they master fewer spells than Dragon Vein Warlocks and cast only about half the number of spells, but they also have good melee capabilities.
Perhaps in a one-on-one battle on the ground, you may not be able to defeat a spellcaster of the same level.
But if you ride a dragon and fight in the air, a mage below LV13 will basically have no chance of winning.
What's more, Yalusel didn't come alone, he also brought in a heavyweight ally.
This "special guest" is none other than Xinbu, the ruler of Aglalon and known as the Queen of Storms, who hates the red-robed mage Ser.
Her biggest characteristic is that no matter who wants to cause trouble for the red-robed mage, she will definitely come forward to help.
With Xinbu here, not to mention the ordinary red-robed Tour de France instructors who dare not show up, the chiefs including Sazhastan also have to behave honestly with their tail between their legs.
As a true believer in the theory of firepower superiority in the field of magic, the Storm Queen was undoubtedly interested in the astonishing destructive power of the huge war machine beneath her feet. She looked through the window at the spectacular scenery of the burning sea below without looking back.
asked: "This thing must have been made by Soth, right?
How much does it cost to build?
If it’s not too expensive, I’d like to buy one to deal with the endless invasions of the red-robed wizards from Cyre.”
"Sorry, Your Majesty, I can't answer any of your questions."
Yalusel shrugged helplessly.
To be precise, if she and Zuo Si hadn't worked hard to get this opportunity to go out to fight, no one would have known that the empire still had such terrifying war weapons.
Moreover, Princess Iron knows very well that she is just a guest, not a member of the empire's military and political system, so it is not convenient for her to inquire too many secrets.
Even being appointed as the supreme commander of one of the airships was a bit unexpected.
Xinbu turned around, looked up and down the youngest member of the Cormyr royal family with great interest, and then said with a smile: "Interesting.
I'm curious, how close is the relationship between you and Soth?
So much so that he will give you such a powerful military force to command."
Hearing these words, Yalusel's face suddenly turned red, and he hurriedly stammered and explained: "We are just friends who appreciate each other. He only gave me command of the army out of trust."<
/p>
"Haha, I'm afraid you don't even believe this statement.
Forget it, I'd better ask Soth myself later.
At least he is quite honest in this regard and never hides it and refuses to admit it.
Now let us seize the time and deal with those fleeing Serge ships first.
I just noticed that there should be a dragon in the cabin behind the flight deck that has not been dispatched.
How about lending it to me?"
Saying that, Xinbu stretched out and began to move his limbs as if no one was watching, and his joints made a cracking sound.
"Of course, no problem. Here, this is an armband that can communicate with the dragon. After wearing it, it can accurately understand the various commands you give through the spiritual link."
Yalusel took off the silver armband set with emeralds from his arm and handed it over.
You don't need to ask to know that the last dragon that was not dispatched was assigned to her as the supreme commander of the ship.
Xinbu was not polite, took it and put it on his arm.
About three to five minutes later, she jumped up from the flight deck riding a red baby dragon, dived down at an extremely fast speed, and caught up with a fleeing warship in the blink of an eye.
Before the soldiers and sailors on the ship could react, the Storm Queen raised her hand and threw a fireball.
Boom!
The dazzling red fire instantly exploded in the most crowded place.
More than ten soldiers died on the spot, and the captain was killed instantly.
Just when the scene was in chaos, the red baby dragon opened its mouth and breathed out a deadly flame breath under Xinbu's command.
A dazzling bright cone-shaped flame sprayed from the bow to the stern of the ship. All the unlucky ones on the deck were burned to death and injured on the spot. Countless people on fire jumped into the sea one after another in extreme pain.
As for those who hid in the cabin, they were not much better.
The entire ship soon turned into a mobile incinerator in the raging fire, and eventually burned up and sank to the bottom of the sea.
"Hahahaha! Well done! This is much more exciting than a normal spell duel."
Xinbu laughed and patted the red baby dragon on the head.
Her long silver hair flew in the wind under the strong airflow, and she then raised her height again to chase the next target.
If I had to use one sentence to describe the scenery on the water, it would be that the sea is burning.
The hundreds of warships that Serge had managed to accumulate with great difficulty were now like huge torches, stretching for several kilometers.
Naturally, it was impossible to hide this large-scale battle that broke out in the sea east of the Surban volcano and west of the Araul province.
Because whether it was the huge roar of the gunboats shooting from a high position, or the many giant dragons and dragon knights flying and diving in the sky, or the largest fleet of Serge being annihilated on the sea surface, the sky-high fires and
The thick black smoke can be seen clearly from several kilometers away.
When this shocking news spread, the first reaction of all the countries and city-states along the entire Falling Star Sea was to be stunned.
They simply couldn't believe that the West Coast Empire actually launched an expedition across the entire Sea of Fallen Stars just for a trivial test, and even defeated the navy of the traditional powerhouse Cyre until it was almost completely annihilated.<
/p>
You must know that it is Sel ruled by the red robe mage!
Possessing the top military and magical power in Faerûn.
Even Mulholland, which also has a huge land area and population, is much inferior in comparison.
If it weren't for the constant fighting between the chiefs, it is estimated that the surrounding areas such as Jugu, Cesk, Selaiman, Nafell, Aglalon and other areas would have been annexed to establish a huge empire dominating the east. Its land area is almost the same as that of the West Coast Empire that has not yet annexed the Northland.
But now such a powerful country was beaten to the point of losing almost all its maritime power in one battle. It might even be unable to save the isolated province of Araul overseas.
Not to mention the red-robed mages who had been beaten into a daze and were dumbfounded, the rest of the people who were planning to watch a fight between dragons and tigers were also dumbfounded.
The most outrageous thing is that it was only one of the three aerial gunboats that achieved this feat.
After receiving the news, the rulers of several coastal cities in Mulhorand immediately ordered their fleets to return to the port and hide inland along the river.
They don't want to make the same mistake as Serge and lose their entire fleet.
In that case, not only would it be impossible to launch an invasion of neighboring Unser, but the Alambo Inland Sea, the most important maritime traffic artery, would become a playground for pirates to wreak havoc.
In fact, after destroying Ser's main fleet, Yalusel and the gunboats she commanded docked on the sea west of the Araul province to perform blockade missions, and did not continue to launch attacks on Ser's coastal ports and inland areas.
Attack.
But the pirates she brought over started their unbridled carnival unceremoniously.
Since the Araul Province was originally two small islands, there were not many soldiers stationed on it after the fleet was destroyed, and it was easily captured by the pirates who arrived later.
Not only were all valuables robbed, but the families of the officers, soldiers and mages who stayed on the island were also in bad luck.
Some of them who tried to resist were killed mercilessly, and young women became tools for the pirates to vent their desires.
However, the pirates are not just destroying and killing, they are also very experienced in freeing the oppressed slaves at the bottom and absorbing them into the team to strengthen themselves.
Because to a certain extent, slaves are naturally the most ideal soldiers for pirates.
Because they are born with a strong desire for freedom, and at the same time, they will be wanted after breaking away from the shackles of their masters, and there is no way to return to normal life.
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This means that slaves will not easily escape or become traitors.
Many pirate gangs grew up through constant attacks on slave ships.
After being supplemented by two to three thousand slaves from Araul Province, their number quickly exceeded the four thousand mark.
Some of them began to launch an all-round three-dimensional attack on the ports, towns and villages of Ser along the southern coastline.
The other part went south to expand business in the waters controlled by Mulhorand, and also established an alliance with the resistance forces in Unther, using the intelligence provided by the other party to continuously attack the logistical supplies of the invading army.
It can be said that with the three gunboats firmly occupying the most critical nodes of the route, the entire Falling Star Sea is under the deterrence of the imperial military power.
Sale and Mulhorand, which originally occupied a large share of trade, quickly collapsed under the pursuit of pirates like mad dogs, losing hundreds of ships in a very short period of time.
Ximen Port, where trophies can be sold legally, has become the largest trading market for commodities and second-hand ships.
Many merchants gather here to buy cheap goods and cargo ships captured by pirates.
With the Surban Volcano as the boundary, maritime trade is still very prosperous in the west, while there are almost no ships in the east.
Even if you see them, they are probably pirates operating here and plundering along the coast.
Due to the blockade of water transportation, merchants in Sale and Mulholland had to take more expensive road transportation.
Suddenly, the prices of many imported goods began to soar exponentially, while the prices of some local specialties plummeted because they could not be shipped out.
The rapid deterioration of the economic situation has led to a large number of uprisings and rebellions in the Mulhorand region, which was already very unstable politically. It is exactly the same as when the neighboring countries first collapsed under Unther's rule.
In comparison, Serge, who implements autocratic rule, is slightly better, but not much better.
The massive amount of food they obtained through agricultural production by the undead has no price advantage at all after losing cheap sea transportation.
But this is not the most ironic thing.
The most ironic thing is that in order to get rid of these serious surpluses of food in exchange for funds, they can only sell it to those neighboring countries that have invaded at extremely low prices, allowing the other party to earn a price difference several times their own profit.
Not only that.
The red-robed mage, who has always been arrogant, has to endure it and use the channels of these countries to import various materials necessary for the magic research institute at high prices, allowing the other party to peel back and forth.
That kind of psychological gap and imbalance has even caused many members within it to become strongly dissatisfied with the current chief executives who are inactive.
As the closest country to Cyre on land, Aglalon, ruled by Storm Queen Ximbu, simply lost out in this weird situation.
In particular, ultra-low-priced grains not only solve the country's food shortage problem, but can also be exported in large quantities to earn profits.
As for the magic materials that the red-robed mage most urgently needs to obtain, they directly sell them to the other party at double the price, and occasionally they will deliberately make them disgusting and make things difficult for them.
If possible, Xinbu hopes that this blockade can continue until the red-robed mages of Ser can no longer maintain their rule and eventually collapse and disintegrate.
At this moment, Sazastan was throwing all the bad news on the table in the chief council, and said to the other chiefs in a very gloomy tone: "I warned you before, don't provoke that damn guy easily.<
/p>
Because he is a madman!
A sane madman!
Any stimulation from the outside world will inevitably give him a strong desire for revenge.
Now who can tell me how to deal with this situation?"
"Can't we gather people and use teleportation magic to get people up and snatch those three air gunships? Even if we can't snatch them, we can destroy them through magic rituals."
Another chief expressed his opinion.
Perhaps for other forces, there is no good way to deal with airships floating two or three kilometers in the sky.
But for the red-robed mage who controls many arcane spellcasters, it is not invincible, but it only requires paying a certain price.
"Seize?
Destroy?
A small temptation to stir up rebellion, Soos had such a big reaction.
What do you think will happen if you follow this method?
I can tell you very clearly that it will trigger an all-out war!
He will unceremoniously show his trump card and launch an attack on the entire territory of Ser, leading tens of thousands of troops and mages to kill every red-robed mage who is unwilling to surrender until our rule collapses and disintegrates. Not to mention that there are many gods standing behind this madman.
If you want to die, please do so, but please don't take me with you."
Sazastan glared at the other party fiercely, with undisguised contempt and disgust in his tone.
The longer time passes, the more he feels that the chief council system that was in place when the organization was first established is a piece of shit.
How can we govern the country well with such a group of insects who fight among themselves all day long and hold each other back?
Especially Aznar Srul, a political opponent, is an out-and-out scourge.
The little trick they made with Mulholland in private this time is probably related to him.
"Then what do you think we should do? Are we just going to watch the other side block maritime transportation and trade?"
Another chief frowned, obviously dissatisfied with the coercion.
Sazastan sneered and asked: "What else?
Are you planning to fight Soth?
By not taking the initiative to attack our homeland, he is showing that his attitude is limited retaliation.
If any counterattack is made at this time, it will be equivalent to declaring that the scale of the war will be expanded.
What's more, now Xinbu has joined in.
Coupled with Kelben and Laila, who have been standing by Soth's side, if we start a war, we need to deal with four electors of the magical goddess with silver fire at the same time.
This does not include the power of his Arcane Society and the Masked Mage Guild.
Oh, by the way, in addition, there is also the great arcanist left over from the Netheril era—Ovo the Undead."
As these words blurted out, all the chiefs present fell into silence.
You must know that the Storm Queen Xinbu alone has made all the red-robed mages feel extremely afraid.
After being silent for a long time, Aznar Sruel finally couldn't help but suggest: "If it doesn't work, just send an envoy to admit defeat.
As a price, we give up all naval defense capabilities.
Just like the Sword Coast and the Sword Sea, each ship will pay a protection fee based on the value of the cargo.
In this case, he shouldn’t refuse.”
"At a time like this, do you think this little concession can satisfy South's appetite?
Don't be naive!
If I guess correctly, in order for him to lift the blockade, he needs to cede at least two islands in the Araul Province.
Once Araul is captured and transformed into a military base, the entire Ser will be within the attack range of those gunboats and dragon knights.
Our sky will never be peaceful."
After saying these words, Sazastan was obviously very angry, and his eyes made him want to eat the other person alive.
Due to the information provided by the Wizard King Larocco, he is very aware of how terrifying Zuo Si and the west coast empire he rules are today.
Especially after cooperating with the church of Gond, the god of craftsmen, the army was equipped with gunpowder weapons in large quantities, which allowed ordinary soldiers to exert power comparable to low-level mages in war.
Aznar Srul was obviously feeling guilty. He avoided Sazastan's murderous eyes and responded in a evasive tone: "Then let's cede it.
Just like you said, what else can we do now?
I can’t fight.
If the blockade continues, many provinces will fall into financial difficulties.
Not to mention providing us with funds to research magic, even its own operation may have problems.
Serge's rule and order must not collapse.
I believe that everyone here should have this consensus."
"I agree!"
"I agree too!"
"Pay a price and let this farce end."
"At worst, be more cautious when dealing with Soth and the West Coast Empire in the future, and try not to provoke this lunatic."
……
In just a few seconds, the chiefs present expressed their attitudes.
Since Ser owns eleven provinces, and the one that needs to be ceded is the smallest province of Araul, which does not belong to any chief's sphere of influence at all, so they don't feel bad at all.
Seeing this situation, Sazastan became more determined in his heart to kill all these insects and take over the power by himself.
But now his plan is still in the brewing stage. He can only hold back his anger and nodded: "Okay! Since everyone agrees, then we will officially send an envoy to negotiate. But the question is, who will be this extremely important envoy?"
Come and take charge?"
"If you don't mind, leave this matter to me."
Demetra Vlas stood up and took over this obviously drudgery task.
As one of the few women among the chiefs, she is a secret ally of Sazastan, traveling between the two mutually hostile factions, so both sides consider her one of their own.
But everyone who knows something about the politics of the Red Robe Mage knows that?
?This kind of person is more dangerous.
In fact, Demetra Vlas's role in the Chief Council is to sell both sides' plans and intelligence to each other to ensure that both factions know each other's plans, thus forming a delicate balance.
You don’t need to ask to know that the risks of doing this kind of thing are high, but the rewards are also very high.
Otherwise, with her qualifications, it would be impossible for her to climb to the top position at this age.
Sazastan glanced at this dangerous woman, and finally nodded slightly: "Then leave it to you. Remember, when facing Soth, never try to show so-called toughness in order to bargain.
Just state our conditions directly."
"Don't worry, I still have some experience in diplomacy. What's more, I have a perfect candidate this time."
Having said that, Demetra Vlas stood up and bowed slightly, then activated the teleportation magic and disappeared.
As she left, the other chiefs also stood up and left one after another.
It is not difficult to see from the tense atmosphere that the conflicts among the country's top rulers have accumulated to a terrifying level and may suddenly break out at any time.