Normally, even if we use the convenient water transportation of the Chongsa River, it would take at least a month or even longer to travel the approximately ten-day land route from Dongxing City to Taisir.
If you happen to encounter extreme weather, such as heavy rain, it is common to be stuck in a town for seven or eight days and unable to leave.
On the one hand, the road conditions are too bad. Excessive rain makes the ground muddy, so that the wheels often get stuck in the pits and can't get out due to insufficient friction.
On the other hand, livestock such as horses, cattle, and mules that are exposed to rain for a long time will become sick or die, and certain goods also cannot be exposed to moisture or water.
Therefore, unless it is an extremely urgent situation, no one with any sense would choose to travel in the rain.
This means that according to the original traffic and transportation level of the continent of Faerun, without establishing a stable portal, any large-scale transfer of materials and personnel would require at least a one and a half month buffer period from the West Coast to the Dragon Coast.
This is the case even with the convenience of river and sea transportation, so it would be even more terrible if we rely solely on land transportation.
This is why, apart from a few forces like Cyre, Mulhorand, Zhentil Keep and the Zhentarim, there are very few large-scale foreign wars of aggression in Faerun.
Even these forces usually only attack their neighbors, and do not launch cross-sea expeditions with the help of fleets.
Even if they want to cause trouble in a distant place, they will 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 that they do not understand the importance of utilizing sea control. It is more due to the huge logistical pressure caused by the poor and backward transportation system.
To put it bluntly, if too few troops are sent, they will easily be beaten back by the locals and those nosy "righteous people"; if too many troops are sent, the logistical supply will not be able to keep up.
Even if an important city stronghold was occupied, there was no way to deploy a large number of troops to control the grain-producing areas in the countryside.
They could only continue to consume financial resources and their own reserve materials, and transport them continuously from the rear.
In this case, the longer the war lasts, the more disadvantageous it will be for the invader, and the final result is often that they have no choice but to withdraw their troops and stop the losses.
The reason why Fuzor Chamberlain dared to cross the sea with the army of Zhentil Keep and invade the West Heartland area from the Dragon Coast was mainly because Zuo Si had helped him take care of all the logistics.
After landing and capturing Ximen Port, this guy directly obtained enough weapons, equipment and food supplies to sustain the army for several months.
In addition, they conquered towns and villages along the way and plundered the huge amounts of resources and wealth from the local ruling classes, which ultimately enabled them to achieve the feat of capturing Baldur's Gate.
Therefore, in the eyes of the Red Robe Wizards of Sel and the mortal rulers of the Mulhorand Empire who had just been liberated from theocracy, even if they were to engage in some small conspiracy in the West Coast Empire, the other side would not start a war for it.
Because one of them is at the westernmost part of the continent of Faerun, and the other two are at the easternmost part of the continent of Faerun, with the entire Falling Star Sea in between.
The intricate terrain of the Pirate Islands and the large number of pirates there are enough to give people a headache.
Don't ever think that the pirates of the Fallen Star Sea are just like the pirates of the Nelanther Islands on the west coast and the pirates of Luskan in the north, who are all cowards who can only hide from the regular navy.
Just the opposite!
The pirate tradition here is much older, more powerful and more terrifying than that on the West Coast.
In DR 1180, the once powerful Sembia naval fleet mysteriously disappeared in the Pirate Islands, and not even a ship or a survivor escaped.
The legendary pirate king, Imke, once opened the era of great pirates, sweeping across almost all forces in the Falling Star Sea to establish maritime hegemony.
At its peak, he possessed hundreds of fleets of various sizes, and many famous coastal port cities were attacked and looted by him.
In order to avoid such disasters, more than 70% of the towns were even forced to pay tribute to the pirate king, offering treasures, fine wine, delicious food and beautiful women in exchange for the pirate king's mercy.
Later, it was the Kingdom of Cormyr that 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 the pirates were proud of.
Although the Pirate Islands declined for a time, it is still a force that cannot be underestimated.
At least no city-state or even country along the coast of the Falling Star Sea dares to enter this dangerous waters full of undercurrents and reefs.
Most of the other forces involved in the conspiracy also took this into consideration, so they chose to join forces with Sel and Mulhorand, wanting to test the ruling power of the new West Coast Empire and its possible reactions.
However, these people obviously overlooked one point, that is, Zuo Si had a powerful weapon, the airship, which could directly ignore the obstacles of the terrain and project military forces to any place at any time.
Moreover, the number of airships owned by the West Coast Empire is not just the ones on the surface, but also includes the terrifying magic industrial manufacturing capabilities of the floating city of Plantia in another world.
In just a few days, a super aerial gunboat crossed half the continent and appeared over the Pirate Islands.
Before the pirates could react to what was happening, countless shells fell like raindrops accompanied by a deafening roar, plowing the open space outside the simple town.
Whether it was trees, stones, or arrow towers built to defend against wild beasts and monsters, all were reduced to ashes in a single volley of fire.
The smoke powder provided by the Church of Gund, the God of Craftsmen, although it looks very similar to primitive black powder or maroon powder, is essentially still an energy explosion, so its power is not much less than that of high explosives.
The pirates were completely frightened when they saw the huge pits one after another in the open space outside the wall, the ground that had been flattened, the dust that was raised, and the flames and shock waves caused by the explosion.
Some panicked guys tried to escape by boat, but before they could get far, they were forced back to the port by dragon knights who swooped down and spewed flames, lightning, strong acid and freezing air.
There is no doubt that this was a complete surrender by force.
About a few minutes later, Arthur Mel, the supreme commander of this operation, landed in the square on a red dragon that was about ten meters long.
He announced to the leading pirate leader without further ado: "Surrender or perish. Now you make your choice."
As these words came out, countless dragon knights took off from the take-off and 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 scene before. They were instantly frightened out of their wits by the dragon's roar and might, and many of them even got their pants wet.
More than seventy percent of the guys couldn't even stand steadily. They fell to their knees on the ground, shaking violently and uncontrollably all over their bodies.
"I...we surrender."
The pirate leader's face looked as ugly as if he was constipated, and he chose to follow his heart without even thinking.
He had no idea what was going on with the other party. Why was he making such a big fuss?
Why? He was just an ordinary pirate leader! Although he had done some things like burning, killing and looting, and occasionally robbed beautiful ladies on merchant ships, he had never done anything like attacking and looting a city.
With such terrifying power, wouldn't it be better for you to start a war and conquer more towns and lands?
Why are you picking on me?
Do you know that this is just overkill? While the pirate leader was complaining in his heart, Arthur Mel showed a satisfied expression on his face.
"very good!
I like your straightforwardness.
From now on, take your men and go out to sea to plunder the ships of There and Mulhorand.
Remember, you are only allowed to rob these two countries, and the ships of other countries and city-states are not allowed to be touched.
Take this with you so you can signal if you get into trouble or can't win.
As long as our dragon riders are patrolling nearby, they will quickly chase the signal and provide air support.
After successfully completing the robbery, you can take the spoils to Ximen Port to sell them without having to worry about being hunted down for your pirate identity.
After saying that, Arthurmel stuffed a Shuoyou mobile terminal device into the other person's hand.
海盗头子瞬间懵逼了，低头瞅了一眼手里的小玩意，又抬起头撇了一眼头顶的巨型炮艇和巨龙，下意识吞了口头唾沫，用惊魂未定的语气小心翼翼试探道：“您的意思是……我们现在可以进行合法打劫，并且还能呼叫巨龙作为空中支援？你们代表的是西海岸帝国？”
“没错。
你现在算是帝国军队的外编人员了。
如果在此期间表现好的话，说不定有可能会被转正成正式的海军舰长。
别忘了，帝国的海军最初就是由耐兰瑟尔群岛的海盗转化而来。
所以好好干，我保证你会有一个光明的前途。
但如果你消极怠工，亦或是违反规定攻击了其他国家和城邦的船只，那这一切承诺就全部作废。”
说罢，阿瑟梅尔伸出手拍了拍眼前这个又黑又壮实的男人肩膀以示鼓励。
等他骑着龙返回起降平台之后，其余进行武力恐吓的龙骑士们也都纷纷返程。
没过一会儿功夫，巨大的飞艇便再次爬升高度朝着下一座岛屿驶去。
由于自从传奇海盗王因姆克死亡之后，这里就再也没能崛起一个真正意义上能把所有海盗团结起来的领袖，因此想要收服整个群岛就必须花费点时间。
不过好在飞艇的速度足够快，而且还可以派出龙骑士进行低空侦查。
因此无论这些海盗团伙把据点建立的有多么隐蔽，都不可能逃过巨龙那敏锐的眼睛。
在这方面，飞艇搭配龙骑士的优势根本不是还要靠登陆进行侦查的水面舰队所能比拟的。
当巨大的飞艇彻底变成一个黑点消失在远处，被吓傻的海盗们这才一个接一个的从地上爬起来。
其中一名像是副官的半兽人稍微定了定神，立刻凑上来询问道：“船长，我们接下来要怎么办？按照他们说的做吗？”
海盗头子没好气的翻了个白眼：“这还用问吗？
你猜要是不老老实实服从命令咱们能活多久？ 都不用那些巨型炮艇和龙骑士出手，其他海盗团伙就会为了博个前程而对咱们痛下杀手。
看架势，对方这是打算直接收编整个群岛所有的海盗船长。
这也就意味着，本次行动将会是西海岸帝国跟塞尔和穆尔霍兰德之间争夺坠星海霸权的战争。
你刚才也听到了，只要我们表现足够出色，随时都有可能被转化成为帝国的海军。
而且抢来的船只和货物还能拉到西门港去合法售卖。
这可比低价处理给黑市商人赚得多多了。
那群该死的吸血鬼每次都把货物价值压的只有市场价的一半乃至更低。
这样的好机会要是不拼一把怎么对得起自己。
去通知手下所有的兄弟，让他们立刻收拾东西准备登船。”
“嘿嘿，明白。”
半兽人副官咧开嘴露出了标志性的尖锐犬齿，随后便连打带踹喝骂着其余海盗。
大概二十分钟左右，他们就完成补给全部登上一艘不是很大、但速度非常快的中型桨船只扬帆起航。
由于坠星海是费伦大陆的内海，或者说是一个超级大湖也行，因此风浪很小。
桨船在这里要比帆船更好用，尤其是在追击的情况下，短时间内可以爆发出惊人的速度。
如果长时间从空中往下看会发现，像他们这样的海盗船在最近两天之内，已经陆陆续续有三百多条离开了群岛，开始沿着坠星海最繁忙的几条航道游弋。
一旦发现穆尔霍兰德或是塞尔的船只，立刻就会靠上去发起进攻。
如果发现对方船上有法师或者其他强者打不过，那他们就会利用烁油移动终端发出求救信号。
另外两艘分别停靠在阿戈拉隆半岛南北两侧执行封锁任务的炮艇，就会立刻派出龙骑士前往支援。
通常情况下当船上的人看到巨龙出现并朝自己发起攻击后，很快便会放弃抵抗选择投降。
因为迟缓笨拙的船只在拥有空中优势的巨龙面前基本就是一个活靶子。
像冰与火之歌世界那种用强弩射下巨龙的情况虽说也也不是没有，但几率低到差不多可以忽略不计。
一般都是由于巨龙太过自大导致的。
不然龙只需要不停地在高空围绕船只飞行，避开巨弩的射击角度再俯冲下去喷吐龙息即可。
双方一个是牢牢掌握着主动权，另外一个则只能被动防御，谁优谁劣一目了然。
此时此刻，在另外一艘飞艇上，钢铁公主雅卢赛尔正居高临下欣赏着海面上火光冲天的景象，以及大量战舰被火炮齐射摧毁，冒着滚滚浓烟沉入海底的景象。
数不清来自塞尔的士兵和水手在沸腾大海上哀嚎，祈求着对手的仁慈与宽恕。
但他们得到的只有从天而降的炮弹、爆炸和巨龙喷出的致命吐息。
哪怕是外行人看到这种画面，都知道这根本不算是战争或者战斗，而是一边倒的屠杀。
至于被屠杀的对象，当然是来自塞尔阿劳尔行省的驻防舰队。
所谓的阿劳尔行省，指的是该国最南端的两个远离大陆的岛屿，同时也是面积最小的行省，没有之一。
不过别看面积小，但却是塞尔最大的海军基地。
雅卢赛尔认为如果放任这个基地和港口里那些战舰存在，可能会对封锁计划造成一定破坏，因此在收拢了四十几艘海盗船之后，便主动向这里发起了进攻。
凭借出色的谋略，她先以海盗作为诱饵假装要对沿海发动攻击，成功把港口里的舰队骗了出来。
然后再凭借炮艇的速度和空中优势直接发动突袭，打算把塞尔最强大的舰队歼灭在这片燃烧沸腾的大海之上，一击彻底打断对方的反抗意志。
事实证明在不面对像傅佐尔·钱伯瑞这种级别的对手时，这位钢铁公主绝对算得上是一个合格乃至优秀的指挥官。
在她从容的调度下，龙骑士配合着火炮的掩护射击，往往一轮俯冲就能把一艘船点燃并送入海底。
开战才短短半个小时不到，塞尔的主力舰队就损失超过六成，剩下的也大多失去战斗能力，不是当场弃船而逃就是在海面上艰难的挣扎。
超过一百名配备在战舰上试图升空作战的法师，都被龙骑士们毫不留情的杀死。
要知道左思制造的这批龙骑士可不仅仅只是拿着远程魔法武器的战士。
而是以穆塔哈尔浮空城的魔法骑士为蓝本，进行了一系列的优化和基因改造，更接近于披甲的龙脉术士。
只不过他们比龙脉术士掌握的法术数量更少，施法数量也只有一半左右，但却同时拥有不俗的近战能力。
或许在地面的时候进行一对一的战斗，并不一定打得过同等级的施法者。
可要是骑着龙在空中作战，低于LV13的法师基本连一点胜算都不会有。
更何况雅卢赛尔也不是一个人来的，还拉来了一位重量级的盟友坐镇。
这位“特邀嘉宾”不是别人，正是对塞尔红袍法师恨之入骨的阿戈拉隆统治者，人称风暴女王的欣布。
她最大的特点就是不管谁要找红袍法师的麻烦，自己一定会出面帮帮场子。
有欣布在，别说是一般的红袍环法导师不敢露面，包括萨扎斯坦在内的首席也得老老实实夹着尾巴做人。
作为一名魔法领域的火力优势学忠实信徒，风暴女王无疑对脚下这艘巨大战争机器表现出来的惊人破坏力充满了兴趣，一边透过窗户看着下方大海燃烧的壮观美景，一边头也不回的问：“这玩意肯定是索斯搞出来的，对吧？
它的造价是一艘多少钱？
如果不太贵的话，我想要买一艘用来对付塞尔红袍巫师没完没了的入侵。”
“抱歉，女王陛下，您的这些问题我一个都回答不上来。”
雅卢赛尔无奈的耸了耸肩膀。
确切地说，如果不是她跟左思软磨硬泡好不容易争取到了这次外出征战的机会，都不知道帝国竟然还拥有这样可怕的战争兵器。
而且钢铁公主非常清楚自己只是个客人，并非帝国军政系统内的成员，因此也不方便打听太多的秘密。
甚至连这次被任命为其中一艘飞艇的最高指挥官都有点出乎意料。
欣布转过身，饶有兴致上下打量了一番这位科米尔王室年龄最小的成员，随后笑着说道：“有意思。
我很好奇，你跟索斯之间的关系究竟亲密到了什么程度？ 以至于他会把这样一支强大的军事力量交给你来指挥。”
听到这句话，雅卢赛尔脸色顿时变得有些发红，赶忙结结巴巴的解释道：“我们只是相互欣赏的朋友。他把军队交给我指挥仅仅是出于信任而已。”
“呵呵，这番说辞怕是连你自己都不相信吧。
算了，还是等稍后我自己去问索斯好了。
At least he was honest about it and never hid anything.
Now let's hurry up and get rid of those fleeing Sel ships.
How about lending it to me?"
As he spoke, Xinbu stretched himself as if no one was around and began to move his limbs, his joints making a series of crackling sounds.
"Of course. Here, this is an armband that can communicate with a dragon. Once you wear it, it will be able to accurately understand the various commands you give it through a telepathic link."
Yalusel took off the silver armband inlaid with emeralds from his arm and handed it over.
Needless to say, the last dragon that was not deployed was assigned to her as the supreme commander of the ship.
Xinbu took it and put it on his arm.
About three to five minutes later, she jumped up from the flight deck riding a scarlet young dragon, swooped 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 blinding red flames instantly exploded in the densest part of the crowd.
More than ten soldiers died on the spot, and the captain was killed instantly.
Just as the scene was in chaos, the red dragon opened its mouth and spewed out a deadly breath of fire at Xinbu's command.
A blindingly bright cone of flame sprayed from the bow to the stern, and all the unlucky people on the deck were burned to death or 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, their situation was not much better.
The entire ship quickly turned into a mobile incinerator in the raging fire, and eventually burned out and sank to the bottom of the sea.
"Hahahaha! Well done! This is much more exciting than the usual spell duel."
Xinbu laughed and patted the red dragonet's head.
Her long silver hair fluttered in the wind under the strong airflow, and then she regained her altitude to chase the next target.
If I had to describe the scenery on the water in one sentence, it would be that the sea is burning.
The hundreds of warships that Seel had accumulated with great difficulty were now like huge torches, stretching for kilometers.
Naturally, this large-scale battle that broke out in the sea east of the Sulpan Volcano and west of the Alaur Province could not be hidden from anyone.
Because whether it was the huge roar of the gunboats shooting from high above, or the many dragons and dragon knights flying and diving in the sky, or the largest fleet of Cel being annihilated on the sea, the flames and black smoke rising into the sky could be seen clearly from several kilometers away.
When this shocking news spread, the first reaction of all the countries and city-states along the coast of the Falling Star Sea was to be stunned.
They simply couldn't believe that the West Coast Empire actually launched an expedition across the entire Falling Star Sea for a little "trivial" test, and almost wiped out the navy of the traditional power, Cel.
You have to know that this is Sel, ruled by red-robed wizards!
Possessing the most advanced military and magical power in the continent of Faerun.
Even Mulhorand, which also has a vast land area and population, pales in comparison.
If the chiefs had not been fighting each other endlessly, the surrounding areas such as the Giant Valley, Sesk, Seraman, Nafir, and Agralon would have been annexed long ago to establish a huge empire dominating the East.
Its land area is almost the same as that of the West Coast Empire which has not yet annexed the North.
But now, such a powerful country has been defeated in one war and lost almost all of its naval power. It may not even be able to protect the isolated overseas province of Alaur.
Not only the red-robed mages who had been beaten into a daze were dumbfounded, but the other spectators who were here to watch a good show of dragons fighting tigers were also dumbfounded.
The most outrageous thing is that this feat was accomplished by just one of the three aerial gunships.
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 didn't want to repeat Cel's mistake and lose their entire fleet.
In that case, not only will it be impossible to launch an invasion of the neighboring country of Enther, but the most important sea transportation route, the Aranbo Sea, will also become a playground for pirates to wreak havoc.
In fact, after destroying Cel's main fleet, Yalucel and the gunboats she commanded docked on the sea west of the Alaur Province to carry out blockade missions, and did not continue to attack Cel's coastal ports and inland areas.
But the pirates she brought with her began to revel without any hesitation.
Since the province of Alaur was originally two small islands, there were not many soldiers stationed there after the fleet was destroyed, and it was easily captured by the pirates who arrived later.
Not only were all the valuables looted, but the families of the officers, soldiers, and mages who remained on the island also suffered.
Some of those who tried to resist were killed without mercy, and the young women became tools for the pirates to vent their desires.
However, the pirates did not just destroy and kill, they also experiencedly freed the oppressed slaves at the bottom of the society and absorbed them into their 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 free from the constraints of their masters, they have no way of returning to normal life.
This also means that slaves will not easily escape or become traitors.
Many pirate gangs grew stronger by constantly attacking slave ships.
After receiving two or three thousand slaves from the province of Alaur, their number quickly exceeded four thousand.
Some of them began to launch all-round three-dimensional attacks on the ports, towns and villages of Cel along the southern coastline.
Another part went south into the waters controlled by Mulhorand to expand their business, and also contacted the rebels in Unther to establish an alliance, using the intelligence provided by the other side 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 empire's military power.
Theil and Mulhorand, which originally occupied a large share of the trade, quickly collapsed under the pirates' pursuit like mad dogs, and lost hundreds of ships in a very short period of time.
Ximen Port, where spoils can be sold legally, has become the largest commodity and second-hand ship trading market.
Many merchants gathered here to buy cheap goods and cargo ships captured by pirates.
With the Sulpan volcano as the boundary, maritime trade to the west is still extremely prosperous, but to the east there are almost no ships to be seen.
Even if we saw them, they were most likely pirates active here and plundering the coast.
Due to the blockade of water transportation, merchants from Cyre and Mulhorand were forced to use more expensive roads for transportation.
All of a sudden, 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 led to a large number of uprisings and rebellions in the already unstable Mulhorand region, which was exactly the same as what happened in the neighboring country Unther at the beginning of the collapse of its rule.
In comparison, Searle, who practiced autocratic rule, was slightly better, but not much better.
The massive amount of food they obtained through agricultural production by the undead had no price advantage at all after they lost the 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 surplus grains in exchange for funds, they can only sell them to the neighboring countries they have invaded at extremely low prices, allowing the other party to earn the difference several times their own profits.
That’s not all.
The always arrogant red-robed wizard had to swallow his anger 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 fleece him.
That kind of psychological gap and imbalance has even caused many members within the organization to begin to feel strong dissatisfaction with the current chiefs who are not taking action.
As the country closest to Cyre on land, Agrallon, ruled by Storm Queen Simbu, was completely helpless under such strange circumstances.
In particular, ultra-low-priced food not only solves the country's food shortage problem, but also can be exported in large quantities to earn profits.
As for the magic materials that the Red Robe Wizard urgently needs, he would simply sell them to the other party at double the price, and occasionally he would deliberately disgust or make things difficult for the other party.
If possible, Simbu hopes that this blockade can continue until the red-robed wizards of Sel can no longer maintain their rule and eventually collapse and disintegrate.
At this moment, Sazastan was throwing all the bad news on the table at the Chief Council, and said to the other chiefs in an extremely gloomy tone: "I warned you before, don't provoke that damn guy easily.
Because he is a madman! A sane madman!
Any stimulation from the outside world will inevitably make him have a strong desire for revenge.
Now who can tell me how to deal with this situation?"
"Can't we gather our forces and use teleportation magic to get those three aerial gunships? Even if we can't get 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 thousand meters in the sky.
But for the red-robed wizard who controls many arcane spellcasters, he is not invincible. It just requires a certain price to pay.
"Seize? Destroy?
Soth had such a big reaction to a small attempt to incite rebellion.
What do you think will happen if we do this? I can tell you very clearly that it will lead to a full-scale war! He will show his cards without hesitation and launch an attack on the entire territory of Cyre, bringing tens of thousands of troops and mage groups to kill every red robe 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, go ahead, but don’t take me with you.”
Sazastan glared at the other person fiercely, his tone full of undisguised contempt and disgust.
The longer time passed, the more he felt that the chief council system that was established when the organization was first established was a pile of shit.
How can you govern the country well with a bunch of insects who only know how to fight and pull each other back all day long!
Especially Aznar Sruer, his political enemy, is an absolute scourge.
This time, the small move that they secretly made in alliance with Mulhorand was most likely related to him.
"So what do you think we should do? Are we just going to watch helplessly as the other side blocks maritime transportation and trade?"
Another chief frowned, clearly dissatisfied with the cowardly behavior.
Sazastan sneered and asked, “What else?
Are you planning to fight Soth?
The fact that he did not take the initiative to attack our homeland shows that his attitude is one of limited retaliation.
Any counterattack at this time would be tantamount to declaring an intention to expand the scale of the war.
What's more, Xinbu has joined in now.
Together with Khelbourne and Lyra who have always stood by Soth, if a war breaks out, we will need to deal with four chosen ones of the magic goddess who possess silver fire at the same time.
And that's not even counting the power of his own Arcane Mystic Society and the Guild of Masked Mages.
Oh, yes, in addition to this, there is also the great arcanist left over from the Netheril era, Ovo the Undead."
As these words came out, all the chiefs present fell silent.
You know, just the Storm Queen Xinbu is enough to make the entire Red Robe Mage feel fearful.
After a long silence, Aznar Sruul finally couldn't help but speak up and suggested, "If it doesn't work, send an envoy to admit defeat.
As a price, we give up retaining all naval defense capabilities.
Just like the Sword Coast and the Sword Sea, each ship pays a protection fee based on the value of its cargo.
He shouldn’t refuse this way.”
"At this point, do you think this little concession will satisfy Soth's appetite?
Don't be naive!
If I'm not mistaken, in order to get him to lift the blockade, at least two islands in the Alaur province must be ceded.
Once Alauer is captured and transformed into a military base, all of Cyre will be within the attack range of those gunboats and dragon riders.
Our skies will never be at peace."
After saying this, Sazastan was obviously extremely angry, and his eyes looked as if he wanted to eat the other person alive.
Thanks to the information provided by the Wizard King Lalok, he was very clear about how terrifying Zuo Si and the West Coast Empire he ruled were today.
Especially after cooperating with the church of Gunder, the god of craftsmen, the army was equipped with gunpowder weapons on a large scale, allowing ordinary soldiers to exert power comparable to that of low-level wizards in war.
Aznar Sruul was obviously feeling guilty, and he avoided Sazastan's murderous gaze and responded in an evasive tone, "Then cede it.
Like you said, what else can we do now?
You can't hit him.
If the blockade continues, many provinces will be in financial difficulties.
Not to mention providing us with funds to research magic, even its own operations might fail.
Cyre's rule and order must not collapse.
I believe everyone here should have this consensus.”
"I agree!"
"I agree!"
"Pay a small price to put an end to this farce."
"At worst, I will just have to be extra 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 one after another.
Since Sel had eleven provinces, and the one that needed to be ceded was the smallest province, Alaur, which did not belong to the sphere of influence of any chief, they did not feel sorry at all.
When Sazastan saw this situation, he became more determined to kill all these insects and take control of the power himself.
However, his plan was still in the planning stage, so he could only suppress his anger and nodded: "Okay! Since everyone agrees, then we will formally send an envoy to negotiate. But the question is, who will be this extremely important envoy?"
"If you don't mind, let me take care of this matter."
Demetra Flas stood up and took on this obviously daunting task.
As one of the few women among the Chiefs, she is a secret ally of Sazastan, walking between the two hostile factions, so that both sides consider her to be one of their own.
But anyone who knows something about the politics of red robe mages knows that these people are the most dangerous.
In fact, Demetra Flas's role in the Chief Council is to sell the plans and intelligence of both parties to each other, to ensure that both factions know each other's intentions, thus forming a delicate balance.
It goes without saying that the risks of doing this kind of thing are very high, but the rewards are also very high.
Otherwise, with her qualifications, it would be impossible for her to climb to the chief position at this age.
Sazastan glanced at the dangerous woman and finally nodded slightly: "Then I'll leave it to you. Remember, when facing Sos, don't try to show so-called toughness and try to bargain. Just state our conditions directly."
"Don't worry, I have some experience in diplomacy. What's more, I have a perfect candidate this time."
After saying that, Demetra Flas stood up, bowed slightly, then activated the teleportation magic and disappeared on the spot.
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 contradictions between the top rulers of this country have accumulated to a very terrifying level and may suddenly erupt at any time.
(End of this chapter)