The deeper we go into the Viking countries, the worse the weather becomes. At first we could still see some sunshine, but now the entire sky is covered by gray cumulus clouds. The sunshine tries to penetrate it, but is eventually blocked.
Outside, it only slightly illuminates the clouds, making their gray color much brighter.
Lorenzo rubbed his hands and shook his body. This Viking country is much colder than the old Dunling. According to the season, it has gradually entered late autumn. It is hard to imagine how cold it will be here during the winter solstice.
.
"Every winter, most of the seaports in the Viking countries will be frozen, making it impossible for ships to pass through. Part of the reason why Lingbing Bay is important is that it is one of the few large ice-free ports in winter.
.”
Notal was wearing gloves, holding his hands lightly on the steering wheel, looking through the frost-covered glass at the sea blocked by the cold wind.
"I'm beginning to understand the Viking raids. It takes all your strength just to stay alive in this hellish place."
Lorenzo murmured that even a demon hunter would feel bad because of this temperature, let alone the Vikings who had lived here all their lives.
"In winter, part of the waterways will also be frozen, and most of the navigable waterways also pass through Lingbing Bay. Under various conditions, it can be said that this is the heart of the Viking countries." Highbold explained to several people.
"But this heart does not belong to the Ice King." Lorenzo said.
"The lords will not allow the King of Ice Sea to control it. Even if Lord Wilgdason wants to offer the Ice Bay, the other lords will not agree and even say to 'help' him make the right choice."
Haybold also felt very distressed about these things. Although the civil war was over, every lord felt that he was more suitable to be the king.
"Everyone is waiting for when Floki sets sail and never comes back. He is completely obsessed with sailing. He has no wife and no descendants. As for his relatives, most of them have little power. Once he dies, this place will become
A battlefield for contention.”
"But as long as he is alive, everyone will abide by the rules of the game."
Shrike seemed to know a lot about these power disputes. He sat on the side and puffed away while talking.
"This is just like grabbing land in Xiacheng District. No matter how powerful I am, I can't dominate the dock business alone. This is equivalent to monopolizing everything in Xiacheng District. Those gangs will fight me to death."
"But you are here with us now, what about the lower city? Aren't you leaderless?" Lorenzo asked.
"How could it be so? I'm just the one who makes the rules. Rules are a good thing so that people don't fight and kill each other, but rather reason at the negotiation table. Unless those guys are crazy, they will take my idea." Shrike said.
Referring to these insidious doorways, "Of course, if someone really does this, it means that he really wants to be the boss of the entire Lower City area."
"Then what should you do?"
"What else can we do? Report to the superiors! In less than ten minutes, the scavengers will sink them into the Thames and throw the bodies into the furnace pillars to burn them up."
It seemed that Shrike was already accustomed to these things, having done them countless times.
"Xiacheng District is essentially a small courtyard. Cats and dogs fight in it. As long as the courtyard is not demolished, no one will care. But when someone wants to demolish the courtyard, it is time for a higher-level being to take action.
"
As he spoke, Shrike's expression became slightly serious, and he sighed intentionally or unintentionally.
"Our world is also a small yard."
Lorenzo understood what he meant, but struggling with it wouldn't change anything. He turned to look at Hebold.
"What's going on with the galleons you're talking about?"
"Garon Jesillo, a subordinate of the shipbuilder Floki, is responsible for the entire Ice Bay."
The Morning Glory Advance is about to arrive at Lingbing Bay, and it's time to sort out the existing information, Haybold explained to Lorenzo and others.
"As you have heard, the shipbuilder Floki is not a lord at all. He spends most of his time floating on the sea and never sets foot on land, but he is indeed a lord, and a territory needs to be managed by him.
For this reason, he handed over most of the power to his confidant, Garon Jesillo. During Floki's sailing time, he was responsible for the entire Ice Bay affairs, and even if Floki came back, he would
I don’t have much thought about managing the territory, and I basically leave it to Gallon.”
"A mascot?"
Lan Jade said that it reminded her of Queen Victoria, but there were some differences between the two.
"Almost, but he still has power, and Garen is loyal to him."
"It's strange. Didn't the other lords have an idea for him? If you put it this way, this territory is simply a terra incognita." Lorenzo said.
"On the contrary, the lords are very happy to see this situation. Lingbing Bay is so important. If it is handed over to any ambitious person, it will play a great role and frighten other lords."
Listening to Heibald's words, Lorenzo continued, "Floki is obsessed with exploring the Sea of Silence. Everyone is happy to see such an unambitious guy take control of this place."
"Yes, this territory cannot be allocated. Everyone wants to snatch it. In this case, Lingbing Bay is, in a sense, a neutral area among the Viking countries."
After thinking about it this way, Heibald somewhat understood Floki's behavior.
"Perhaps the shipbuilder Floki also understands this, so he has no ambitions and only pursues the secrets of the Silent Sea to bring peace to Lingbing Bay."
"Is Lengbing Bay peaceful?"
Listening to Haybold's description, Lorenzo always felt that the place Lingbing Bay was familiar, as if he had been there before. It was not that he had been to Lingbing Bay, but to a place similar to Lingbing Bay.
place.
"Tranquility... shit, as a shipping hub, Vikings from different territories have settled there, and some of them carry the secret orders of the lords, or human lives... It's a mess there, everyone is there,
It also led to the growth of the Terminus Society, but everyone abides by the rules of the territory, so fortunately it’s not too chaotic.”
As Hebold talked, he noticed that the eyes of Lorenzo and Shrike changed slightly, as if they were shining with light.
"you……"
"Tell me earlier!"
Lorenzo slapped his thigh. At first, he was still wary of the actions in Lingbing Bay. After all, this foreign country had already bombed Maruri before. Who knows what will happen here?
I saw Lorenzo and Shrike walking up to Hebold at the same time. They looked at each other and smiled, and it seemed that they both wanted to go together.
"Let me introduce to you, the boss of the lower town of Old Dunling, I am Shrike!"
Lorenzo boasted to Hebold.
"And this is Brother Thorn that I use to stab people!"
Shrike praised Lorenzo again and called him an inexplicable "brother of thorns".
In the eyes of the two of them, Lingbing Bay was just another more complicated lower city area. When they arrived at Lingbing Bay, they felt like a fish in water.
If these two people stay here for a while longer, there is a chance that Lingbing Bay will be instigated by them.
"What kind of combination is this?"
Lan Jade probably understood what the two of them meant, but thought it was very strange.
"Probably...the gang boss and his top thugs."
Notar, who was at the helm, looked at everyone and said with some uncertainty.
"A real big brother can conquer a piece of land in a foreign country."
Shrike said proudly, and Lorenzo and Lorenzo got nervous together, but Lorenzo knew that Shrike was actually very serious.
You could see the silver revolver stuck in his waist, it was polished to a shine, and Lorenzo guessed it was full of ammunition.
For Shrike, this is not a siege, but a revenge that has been prepared for a long time. Lorenzo began to wonder if Shrike was lying to himself. He came here to kill Floki. As for saving the world,
Just happened casually.
"We should be almost there, right?"
Seleu staggered over, her body covered in layers, like a penguin.
"Soon."
Notar looked ahead. The clouds became thicker and gloomier. It was obviously daytime, but the place was covered with heavy leaden gray. There were countless shadows rising from the ground along the coast, like monsters with teeth and claws.
Lingbing Bay is just around the corner.
…
"How is he doing now? Is he still confused?"
Seeing the doctor walk out of the room, Garen immediately greeted him and asked eagerly.
The doctor glanced at the room behind him. The door was not completely closed, and the figure on the bed could be seen through the gap.
"There's nothing I can do, I can't cure him."
The doctor sighed, said nothing more, lowered his head and left.
Garen tried to stop the doctor, but after hesitating for a while, he finally gave up and slowly leaned against the door, his face full of worry.
He has sought out many doctors, and even some shamans who talked a lot, but no one can cure such a disease... They don't know if this is a disease.
Inhaling and exhaling forcefully, Garen knew that he could not fall yet. Now Lengbing Bay relied entirely on him. Lords from all walks of life were trying to get a piece of meat here. Due to the frequent population flow, Lingbing Bay was full of people.
With their spies and power, in this situation, there is no guarantee that these lords will not do something.
Garen had to stabilize the overall situation. He ordered people to guard this room, and he left here. When he walked out of the darkness, his attendants came up to him and talked to him about many matters.
"How is your situation, my lord?" Garen's deputy asked.
"It's still not getting better, and these doctors can't find the reason."
As Gallon spoke, resentment arose in his heart, but there was no way to vent this negative emotion.
"Rumors have begun to spread in the city. Lord Floki has explored the Silent Sea several times and finally angered the gods..."
"Shut up!" Garen stopped speaking.
"What's the situation now?"
Garen suppressed the anger in his heart. He still had things to do and couldn't let his mind be captured by his emotions.
"Those guys are getting more and more arrogant, but we have nothing to do yet. In terms of status, they are subordinates of various lords, and they come to Lingbing Bay for trade... Now their hands are stretching longer and longer," the deputy said.
explain.
"I have a knife in my hand, but I can't cut off their hands, right?"
Garen asked the deputy. The deputy was stunned and nodded with difficulty.
The orthodox person in charge of Lingbing Bay is Floki, not Garen. He is responsible for managing Lingbing Bay, but when he meets these guys who represent the lords, he still does not have enough power to fight against them. Once he rashly cuts them off,
With the hands of these people, no one can be sure what these lords will do when they take the opportunity... After all, they now know Floki's condition.
The civil war among the Viking kingdoms has never ended, and it will never end as long as there are still lords.
"At least these guys are out for profit. Enough profit can temporarily silence their mouths... Have the movements of the Terminus Society been found out?"
Garen asked again, compared to other things, this is the most important thing.
"Currently we only know that they have blended into Lingbing Bay and mixed with the lords' men. It is difficult for us to conduct an investigation," the deputy said.
"Then strengthen the defense and add a few more patrols. Nothing will happen to you, sir."
Garen looked worriedly at the darkness behind him, where Floki was lying behind the door.
"My Lord has always been devoted to the Silent Sea and has no heirs at all. Once he dies, Lingbing Bay will truly become a land without one."
Garen hummed, and something suddenly appeared in his field of vision, catching his eye. He raised his head suddenly and looked above the sea.
An iron-clad ship covered with scars broke away from the waves and calmly leaned towards Lingbing Bay. This was an iron-clad ship that had never appeared in the Viking countries and could never appear. Although it was scarred, the heavy cannons on it were still impressive.
People are frightened, but what is more important is the collision angle of the bow.
If it accelerates towards Lingbing Bay, no one will doubt its destructive power.
"As for it, if my guess is correct, it should be the Morning Glory Advance that was reported a while ago. It is carrying guests from Yin Erweg. Their trip is to discuss trade with Lord Floki."
The deputy looked at the armored ship that was getting closer. He probably had too many things to worry about and he was already a little numb.
"They shouldn't have come so quickly... They just arrived in Valente a few days ago."
"Do you think Yin Erweg's armored ship can be compared with the armored ship we produce?" Gallon looked at the Morning Glory Advance. Compared with it, the Viking's armored ship was like a toy. "You know,
Lengbingwan Shipyard was built with the technical support of Inerweger."
"What do we do now?" the deputy asked.
"Go and greet the guests first. With them here, I guess the lords won't act rashly."
Garen thought so and strode forward.
At this moment, Lingbing Bay has gathered too many forces that do not belong here. They are intertwined together, and they do not know when they will be completely detonated. And in the sea farther away from here, the armored ships sail silently.
"In other words, if we continue along this channel, we will reach Lingbing Bay in a few days?"
The epidemic doctor put down the chart and looked through the dark clouds.