"...Did I...make a sarcastic remark just now?"

Several days ago, Qin Mo sent a letter to Rome through the Saintess's connections, asking Xu Ge to come to the Riga Fortress. Otherwise, it would be unrealistic to let Rae go to Madeira to take up the post of Viscount on her own. Moreover, Qin Mo had some important things to tell him, which he had to explain in person.

The day before yesterday, Saintess Heatherine found him and said there was a special mission that required someone with sufficient strength to complete. Kelly and the others were unable to accompany him, so the two of them would be acting alone. Today, Qin Mo asked about the details of the mission, but the Saintess unexpectedly used the matter of Leif to put him down, making Qin Mo feel very embarrassed.

Fortunately, this embarrassment did not last long. That evening, Qin Mo's personal guards Xu Ge and Chen Ji arrived at the Riga Fortress, accompanied by Giulio Medici, who was already a temple student.

"Medici, what brings you here? Are you here to participate in the great battle and earn merits too?" Qin Mo teased his important business partner as soon as he saw him.

“Oh! Your Highness Qin Mo, I am a qualified knight, but I am not here to fight this time, but for our business.”

Qin Mo frowned slightly and said, "What's wrong? Is there a problem with our business? Did my goods not arrive at Aden Port on time?"

"No, Your Highness's goods arrived on time, but there may be trouble with the route from Aden to the Western Continent recently, so I came here to discuss it with Your Highness in person."

Seeing that Giulio looked very serious, Qin Mo realized that this was a serious problem. He waved for Xu Ge and Chen Ji to leave and asked, "What kind of problem is it?"

“My family has a good relationship with the Temple. A few days ago, the Temple tipped off our Medici family that ships traveling from the Western Continent to the *** World must fly the Temple's flag, or they will be in danger of sinking.”

"What? The Temple wants to get involved too? Giulio, given your family's past as a Temple Elder, you shouldn't be extorted by the Temple, right?" Qin Mo was a little unhappy. Was this some kind of highway robbery starting to build a tollbooth?

Seeing Qin Mo's unpleasant expression, Giulio quickly said, "My father inquired from various sources, and this time it really wasn't the Temple acting on its own initiative, but rather... the sea race has appeared..."

Qin Mo's heart skipped a beat. He suppressed his nervousness and pretended to be calm, saying, "Sea Clan, what's wrong with the Sea Clan? There's been no news from them for so many years. Could the Holy Temple be making up an excuse to make money?"

"Your Highness Qin Mo, please be careful with your words. One of my uncles is the High Priest of the Temple Mountain. He has received definite information that the Sea Clan has returned to the Mediterranean Sea with the tacit approval of the Temple. Now, the Eastern Mediterranean Sea... is within the Sea Clan's sphere of influence!"

"As Your Highness said, the Temple has a deep foundation, and the sea creatures dare not attack the Temple's ships. So, just to be on the safe side, should we... pay the Temple a protection fee?" Giulio was very embarrassed. He had boasted that the Medici family could do whatever they wanted in the Western Continent, but now he had to be controlled by others, which made him lose face.

"You decide what to do! But try to find out as much as possible about the sea creatures, and it would be best if you could find out their whereabouts."

Giulio readily agreed, and then Qin Mo made another request.

"This is Rave, the newly appointed Viscount of Madeira. Her fief is on Madeira Island, which is 300 miles from the Moroccan coast. Travel to and from there is entirely by ship... I am about to go on a mission alone with the Holy Maiden. You can buy me some high-quality ships. Name your price."

Giulio, after hearing Qin Mo's words and glancing at Leif who entered from outside, stared blankly for a moment before uttering a phrase in Da Xia language: "Your Highness... is mighty!" (To chat with more like-minded people about "Sailing and Conquest," follow "Or" on WeChat to discuss your favorite books with other readers.)