Crisis Lurking

Time flies, and days turn into months.

In the blink of of an eye, another two months have passed.

Roland had now completely grown accustomed to life in the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands. Although it was full of unexpected events and dangers, seeing his territory gradually getting on the right track filled Roland with a sense of satisfaction.

Since the last Armor Crab invasion, Rising Light Island had experienced two more monster invasions in the past two months.

One was a Level 3 Magical Beast, the Poison Sting Seahorse, which was also a gregarious monster. The other was a high-level Magical Beast, the Storm Eagle, a wind-elemental monster.

However, facing the heavily fortified Rising Light Island, these two monster invasions not only failed to gain any advantage but also allowed Roland to make a small fortune.

The value of the corpses of dozens of Poison Sting Seahorses and a high-level Magical Beast, the Storm Eagle, far exceeded that of the Armor Crabs previously.

Although the Poison Sting Seahorse was only Level 3, like the Armor Crab, it was a low-level Magical Beast. However, the most valuable parts on them were not just their magic cores. Their venom sacs were highly toxic and could be used not only to refine potions but also by many archers to coat their arrows, making them quite valuable.

Combined with the high-level Magical Beast, these two monster invasions brought Roland an additional income of over three hundred gold coins.

Meanwhile, Roland's potion trades with Leslie had also returned to normal over the past two months, with a surplus of over a thousand gold coins each month. Of course, after paying the Loyal Lion Mercenary Group's hiring fee, not much was left.

However, combined with the three thousand gold coins Leslie had lent Roland earlier, Roland now had over two thousand five hundred gold coins remaining.

At the dock of Rising Light Island.

Two months later, this dock was still not completely finished. When it was only half-built, it was attacked by a swarm of Armor Crabs.

Before the construction could resume its previous pace, it suffered an attack from Poison Sting Seahorses.

The construction process had been quite arduous.

Although Roland was very troubled by the endless stream of monsters from the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands, he was helpless.

While the Sea of Ten Thousand Islands was dominated by three major powers, the strength of Magical Beasts in the vast ocean could not be ignored.

Let alone Roland, even the stronghold of the Black Knight Pirates, Double Gate Island, was frequently attacked by monster swarms.

Moreover, the scale of the attacks they faced was not comparable to the low-level monsters Roland dealt with. Any Magical Beast that dared to attack large islands was invariably composed of groups of high-level Magical Beasts, and some even included super-level Magical Beasts.

Therefore, faced with this situation, Roland could only order O'Neal and Artur to defend rigorously and minimize losses.

Although the dock could not accommodate the three-masted merchant ships, the hidden reefs below the bay had been cleared. Thus, the three three-masted merchant ships could currently dock tens of meters from Rising Light Island's shore, and they could receive protection from Rising Light Island even if attacked by monsters.

As the weather gradually warmed up, Roland was about to face the major undertaking of developing and cultivating his territory. However, the current number of slaves on Rising Light Island was far from sufficient. Therefore, to avoid affecting the harvest, Fili brought back a full one hundred and fifty slaves for Roland on his return voyage.

This time, Roland purchased one hundred adult male slaves and fifty adult female slaves. For this, Roland spent all his savings and became penniless again.

And this was by utilizing Leslie's trade channels; otherwise, the price of these slaves would have increased by at least twenty percent.

One small boat after another docked, transporting robust slaves to Rising Light Island.

Fili, who had been away for half a month, rushed from the merchant ship after seeing Roland.

"Greetings, Apothecary Roland." Fili maintained his respectful demeanor towards Roland.

"Was it smooth this time?"

Roland had only asked out of habit, but he didn't expect Fili to frown.

Seeing this, Roland's expression turned serious.

"Reporting to Apothecary Roland, during our return voyage through the Chaotic Sea, our fleet was apparently noticed by a Pioneer Knight's territory. They followed us for five days before finally leaving."

"Although they did not show any intention to attack during that time, I believe they definitely had ill intentions," Fili speculated.

"Chaotic Sea, Pioneer Knight?"

The Chaotic Sea Fili mentioned was actually the southeastern waters of the Azure Sea Region. It was a place where hundreds of small forces gathered, constantly at war, leading to extreme chaos. Hence, it was eventually called the Chaotic Sea.

What Roland didn't expect was that someone would dare to tail Fili's fleet under the banner of the Black Knight Pirates.

"Can we avoid that sea area on the next voyage?"

"I'm afraid not. To detour, we would have to pass through the waters controlled by the Mandy Family, which is even more dangerous," Fili shook his head.

After all, their merchant ships flew the flag of the Black Knight Pirates. Sailing into the waters controlled by the Mandy Family would be pure provocation.

Roland's expression turned grim upon hearing this. With his current financial situation, every transaction with Leslie was crucial, and he could not afford any losses.

However, the Chaotic Sea was located between Rising Light Island and Highland City, making it a route that was impossible to bypass.

The smooth transactions of the previous two times had led Roland to naively believe that he could travel unimpeded in the Chaotic Sea with the Black Knight Pirates' flag. But the news Fili brought back today cast a shadow over Roland's heart.

"Can we notify the Black Knight Pirates to provide escort?" Roland's eyes flickered as a sudden thought occurred to him.

"That... is possible, but we would have to pay an additional fee, and it wouldn't be cheap," Fili said softly.

Looking at Fili's expression, Roland immediately understood that he likely couldn't afford this fee.

"Then, regarding such situations, doesn't the Black Knight Pirates have any solutions?" Roland asked with some dissatisfaction.

"As long as the merchant ships under the Black Knight's protection have not been attacked, the Black Knight Pirates generally will not intervene." Seeing Roland's dissatisfaction, Fili explained more cautiously.

Roland couldn't help but feel helpless upon hearing this.

In fact, Roland could understand the Black Knight Pirates' approach. After all, if they were to intervene before any action was taken, it would undoubtedly provoke widespread anger. Even the Black Knight Pirates could not confront all the forces in the Azure Sea Region single-handedly.

But understanding aside, this matter concerned Roland's own merchant ships, and he naturally hoped the Black Knight Pirates could do more.

Roland, after a long silence, couldn't come up with any good solutions. He currently possessed too little power to escort merchant ships. Therefore, he could only place his hope on the reputation of the Black Knight Pirates to deter the greed of potential attackers.

"If that's the case, then next time we return, let's avoid that Pioneer Knight's territory first," Roland sighed, instructing Fili.

"As you command, Apothecary Roland. I will be mindful on our next return voyage."

Fili's assurance slowly eased the worry in Roland's heart. He then turned his gaze to the ships filled with slaves.

In the past three months, of the one hundred slaves who had arrived on the territory with Roland, only eighty-five remained. Ten had died at the hands of Armor Crabs, two were killed by wild beasts on the island during land reclamation, and three were killed by Storm Eagles.

While Roland felt a pang of heartache over these losses, according to Leslie's earlier introduction, his losses should have been far less than those of other Pioneer Knights.

After all, no Pioneer Knight would hire a mercenary group of over a hundred people to protect their territory's safety right from the initial stages of land reclamation. The monthly cost of one thousand gold coins would be difficult for even a minor noble to bear, let alone a Pioneer Knight.

Therefore, Roland was relatively satisfied. He would have been very upset if he were the only one suffering losses, but since everyone else was also suffering, and their losses were even higher than his, Roland felt much more balanced.

As the small boats docked, the one hundred and fifty slaves quickly gathered on the shore of Rising Light Island.

With these one hundred and fifty slaves, the population of Roland's territory had now doubled.

"Steward James, take them to their housing, let them rest, and start working tomorrow," Roland said with satisfaction upon seeing the strong and healthy-looking slaves, addressing James by his side.

"As you command." James first bowed slightly, then his expression hardened, and his demeanor changed drastically. He loudly shouted at the timidly standing group of slaves, "You damned pigs, the great Apothecary Roland has granted you a day of rest. Hurry up and express your gratitude."

"Thank you, Lord." The hundred or so slaves, upon seeing James holding a long whip, couldn't help but show deep fear in their eyes. They quickly knelt and shouted their thanks to Roland.

"Go on." Roland waved his hand dismissively. He had no particular words for the slaves; he simply needed them to work hard.

After arranging for the slaves, Roland did not immediately return to refine potions. Instead, he went to a more spacious wooden house behind the residential area.

The three-story wooden house was where Roland's future mage corps resided, although they were currently pitifully weak.

In the span of two months, of the twelve adolescents including Ryan, eight had undergone magical enlightenment under Alice's tutelage. This meant they had successfully practiced the Meditation Method and could absorb the power of potions to enhance their strength.

The other four had been slow to successfully practice the Meditation Method. Roland had no good solution for this situation. Only by practicing the Meditation Method could they absorb potions; otherwise, even consuming them would have no effect.