A massive floating boat slowly descended from the sky, landing in the bay. A tremor and a rocking sound echoed, and splashes of water slammed against the high side of the boat, wetting its dark gray, rustic wooden hull. Then, the boat slowly slid toward the harbor, finally landing on the shore.
Long stairs were lowered from the floating boat, which was as tall as a building and fixed to the dock. Then the distinguished guests on the floating boat slowly walked down.
Loranhill and Atesi followed the crowd down the mountain, Ye Ling and Irene in front of them. Looking over Ye Ling's beige hair, Loranhill took in the scenery of Longquan Bay.
Unlike Luojing, which worships vermilion and gold, the buildings here are mostly white. The square towers are like white trapezoids, stacked layer by layer, with only the eaves on the top of the roof being light blue.
The harbor is filled with stone pavilions, towers, and buildings, all painted in a uniform white and blue. While the shapes still lean towards the East, the colors, materials, and details reveal many elements of the Western Continent.
In the distant ancient times, this was the country passed down by the white-feathered phoenix, Hu. Its customs and habits were very different from those in the Central Plains.
After walking down the stairs, they entered the bustling harbor. The streets were paved with exquisite white stone floors, with laurel trees swaying in the wind on both sides. A gentle breeze blew from the sea from time to time, passing through the crowded streets.
"You can see a lot of people from the Western Continent."
Loran Hill used his hand to slightly shield his head from the sun and watched the passersby. Almost all of them were blond or chestnut-haired people from the Western Continent. Some of them were dock workers, some were cart drivers, and some were well-dressed wealthy people.
"Of course, little Lacey, this is where East meets West." Etesi was wearing a strappy off-the-shoulder dress today, looking very cool and beautiful. Although it was October, the seaside city was still warm.
Looking at Loran Hill's appearance, Aitesi seemed to have noticed again.
"Let's go buy some clothes first, especially little Lacey, she needs to dress up nicely."
"Oh, what is this for?" Loran Hill was a little confused and blinked.
"It has to match our status. From now on, when we travel, we can just say we're returning home with the daughter of a certain chamber of commerce. That way, we'll save a lot of trouble."
"Don't look at me like that. I'm an elf. It's not appropriate for me to lead the fleet because I have to deal with customs and other formalities and diplomatic matters. Humans are more suitable to be common and unnoticed."
...
"We still have to keep a low profile. After all, Irene's status is special. Moreover, even at sea, we have to sail away from the westernmost Pearl Islands to be considered out of the Plantagenet Empire."
...
"The influence of the Bibo Tianhai Pavilion, a faction of the upper gate, on the sea is beyond your imagination. They have many warships and fleets that patrol Longquan Bay and the Pearl Islands year-round, frequently battling large sea beasts and suppressing any pirates that appear to maintain order at sea in the dynasty."
"Even powerful Sequence 7 sea beasts have been hunted and defeated during these fleet patrols, so it's best for us not to engage in a head-on confrontation. We should wait until we leave the Pearl Islands and enter the depths of the ocean."
As they walked and talked on the street, Loranhill finally understood why Atesi wanted him to lead the team and come forward.
It seems that I will have to be Lacy again for a while, the girl thought so, then looked up and saw some familiar names on the signs on the street.
The Aoni Chamber of Commerce, the Tarsus Chamber of Commerce, the Dayas Chamber of Commerce... these were all once major chambers of commerce in Verga. I hadn't expected them to have branches in this far east. But it made sense. After all, the East-West shipping routes could bring in huge profits, so there was no reason not to capitalize on them.
Unfortunately, despite its prosperity, the Carites Chamber of Commerce is still too young, with only the accumulated wealth of Angus's generation, and has yet to extend its reach into the far east. If it had, it would have saved a lot of trouble.
Under the guidance of Aitesi, the group walked through the long white stone street and came to a slightly secluded and quiet courtyard.
After knocking on the door, an elf in a light green and white dress opened the door and peeked in. When she saw Atesi, her eyes lit up and she opened the door.
"Your Highness, you're back!" She came out skipping a little and hugged Atesi, her golden ponytail colliding with Atesi's.
"Huh, Aphra, long time no see." The two hugged each other and talked for a few words, and then the elf lady invited Loranhill and others to go in together.
The courtyard was very quiet in the afternoon, with only a few elf maids standing by.
"This is an estate of the Forest Elf Royal Family in the East, generally used to accommodate people coming and going." Atesi explained in a low voice, and then asked several people to sit at a white round table on the grass.
A large and exquisite white parasol blocked the glaring sunlight, and Aphra brought black tea in a porcelain bowl and poured it for everyone.
"There are more than 20 elves returning with us this time. Most of them are quite powerful, but they don't know much about sailing. They can be used as combatants on the ship, but it's difficult for them to be used as sailors."
"The ship I ordered can carry 40-60 people. If there are more, the living space will be much smaller, and the food reserves will probably not be enough."
"So we need to recruit 20-30 crew members, and also get the necessary paperwork for maritime passage. I'm going to have to trouble Lacey for that."
"I see."
Loran Hill nodded, but his thoughts drifted to the large chambers of commerce that Verga had known in the past. Perhaps he could find someone he knew this time.
"Well, we just arrived today. Should we take a rest first, or go shopping for clothes directly?" Atesi seemed to be very concerned about dressing up Loran Hill.
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