Setting a trap

Over the weekend, Rowan delivered 100 tons of coal to Gazlowe's Merchants' Guild as promised. Afterward, Gazlowe offered him another coal contract for 400 tons a month.

Rowan did not agree to the trade agreement right away, however. He reduced the monthly supply to 200 tons before signing his name.

Once the Ironworks went into operation, it would burn enormous amounts of coal, and Rowan had to prioritize its supply. As a town with the beginnings of an industrial base, Morris Town would need coal as an indispensable source of energy for its long-term development.

Factories needed raw materials.

A round trip from Morris Town to the Norwington Family's mines took half a month. Without fast transportation such as railways, transporting iron ore by wagon was far too slow. It clearly could not meet the Ironworks' demand for raw materials.

That left Rowan with only one option: shipping by sea.

The Norwington Family's iron ore generally arrived in Boralus from all across its territory before being shipped onward. Thus, even buying his own family's ore still meant trading through Tradewinds Market.

Rowan had considered asking his father for help, having the family's mines supply Morris Town directly and placing the orders with the family.

After careful consideration, however, Rowan abandoned that plan.

Without Kul Tiras exercising centralized oversight of the Norwington Family's Merchants' Guild, internal trade would certainly be far from straightforward. Everyone would want a kickback along the way. He could only imagine how much gold that would cost him.

Besides, Lord Aldrius had no intention of letting Rowan get anything for free. Otherwise, he would not have made his son write an IOU earlier.

Since he had to pay either way, he might as well buy iron ore directly from Tradewinds Market. It would save both time and effort. The Kul Tiran trade association also provided after-sales guarantees, so even if someone wanted to interfere, it would not be easy.

On this trip to Boralus to negotiate the ore trade, he would recruit a few skilled workers as well.

Right, I also need to see Jaina. It's been four days since I last saw her after the pirate incident ended. Admiral Daelin must have confined her again. After all, Jaina forged the magical assistance agreement, and it came to light.

This was entirely my fault. I have to explain things to Admiral Daelin myself. I can't let Jaina take the blame for me.

Rowan boarded the warship, with Byron, Ellen, and Leonard close behind. The ship weighed anchor and departed immediately.

A day later, the following scene unfolded at Hook Point in Boralus.

The busy sailors gazed out over the calm sea, astonished to see a warship slowly entering Hook Point without its sails raised.

Merchants working at the harbor, guards, and passersby all stopped in their tracks, their faces filled with shock.

Rowan's warship docked at an astonishing speed. The thirty-six cannons mounted on its hull left the guards silently marveling. Which fleet had built this new kind of warship?

Soon, Hook Point was packed with spectators.

Rowan waited aboard the warship for quite some time before a vast crowd of curious onlookers finally gathered.

Then he straightened his appearance and stepped off the warship with his three class professionals under everyone's watchful eyes.

"Unbelievable. Isn't that Young Master Rowan?"

"Isn't he that idio-no, no, forget that. So this warship is the Norwington Family's new vessel?"

"Do you realize what a warship that can sail without sails means? This ship can move without even relying on wind runes! I heard House Stormsong had a trade dispute with the Norwington Family recently and maliciously cut off supplies of wind runes to the Norwington Family's shipyard..."

"Tsk, tsk. House Stormsong must be kicking themselves now. What a slap in the face."

Rowan basked in the crowd's admiring looks. Not long ago, he had still been an idiot in their eyes. Now he had transformed into a young genius.

Following behind Young Master Rowan, Byron also enjoyed the envious looks directed his way for serving such a promising young master.

"So that's why you kept hanging around in the cabin, young master. You wanted to show off." Byron's tongue slipped, and before he could stop himself, he had blurted out his thoughts.

The corner of Rowan's mouth twitched. Feigning composure, he said evenly, "Byron, it hasn't even been a day, and you're getting full of yourself again?"

Ellen and Leonard struggled to suppress their laughter as they watched Byron turn red, cover his mouth, and shake his head repeatedly.

The Steam Warship's arrival at Hook Point drew plenty of attention. Originally, Rowan had wanted to quietly build his fortune in Morris Town and only start stirring things up once he had built a steam-powered fleet. But the pirate attack had exposed his warship's capabilities, making further secrecy pointless. He might as well bring the Steam Warship into the open and spare himself another stab in the back.

Rowan sent Leonard and the other two to rest at the Norwington Family's residence. He slipped away halfway there and headed to the Proudmoore family's residence instead.

"It's been a while. Have some fruit." Lady Catherine called over a maid to pour Rowan some tea.

Rowan politely thanked Lady Catherine, then asked, "Aunt Catherine, where's Jaina?"

Catherine's gentle expression changed, and she said coldly, "That girl goes out causing trouble every day. She hasn't even been home a month, and she's already made a huge mess. She's confined to her room."

"Uh, it really wasn't Jaina's fault. It was mine." Rowan let out a long breath and spoke frankly.

Catherine shook her head slightly and was just about to say something when a deep voice came from outside the door. "If she's not to blame, who is? As the Proudmoore family's eldest daughter, she forged a magical agreement without permission and even drew pirates from the inland sea to you, nearly getting you killed. And you're still speaking up for her?"

Catherine patted Daelin's wrist and gave him a look, telling him not to lose his temper in front of the boy.

"Rowan, don't listen to your uncle's nonsense," Catherine reassured him.

Rowan scratched his head and said awkwardly, "I wanted to build an ironworks in Morris Town, so I asked Jaina to help me buy an Iron Smelting Blast Furnace. If I tried to buy the Ashvane Family's products as a member of the Norwington Family, the deal would definitely fall through."

Satisfaction from Daelin +100.

"Don't try to pull the wool over my eyes, boy. I've watched you grow up. Do you think I don't know what's going through your head? You've always been sensible and obedient. How could you do something so dangerous? You need to understand that this involves friction between families. Once it comes to light, it means serious trouble." Daelin spoke sternly, his expression grave.

Where did those emotion points come from?

Was Admiral Daelin pleased with my answer just now? Damn, if I'd backed down and gone along with what he said, wouldn't I have sunk myself?

What a crafty old veteran, setting a trap for an innocent young man like me.

"It really was my idea. What use would Jaina have for an Iron Smelting Blast Furnace otherwise? I also handled the recent pirate attack myself. I imagine that, following normal procedure, the Third Fleet has already reported my violation of the coastal defense regulations to the family council. I admit to that, but I disagree with those regulations." Rowan laid out everything that had happened recently. As a legendary hero of the Alliance, Daelin's image was one of greatness, honor, and righteousness.

If I'm taking the blame, I should take all of it. Besides, all of this started because of me.

"Is everything you've said true?" Daelin lowered his voice, a trace of anger entering his tone.

Rowan nodded without hesitation. "It's all true. I hope you won't blame Jaina anymore, Uncle Daelin. If someone has to be punished, punish me."

Daelin snorted. "Neither you nor Jaina will escape punishment. I'll explain all of this to your father. Of course, wiping out the pirates in the inland sea also counts as a meritorious deed. We'll have to discuss the exact punishment further. But you'd better rein yourself in, boy. If you cause a real disaster, no one will be able to protect you."

"I'll remember that." Rowan nodded.

Catherine stepped in to shield Rowan. After all, she had watched him grow up too, and he was her close friend's son. "All right, all right, that's enough. Stay for dinner tonight."

"Of course, Aunt Catherine, but I need to go home first," Rowan said politely.

Lady Catherine waved her hand. "Make sure you come back tonight."

Rowan had only just stepped out of the Proudmoore family's residence.

Ding! Satisfaction from Admiral Daelin +200.

Happiness from Jaina +520.

Was the whole family setting a trap for me? I could cry.

"Father, did you hear that? Rowan isn't the way you imagined at all. He's a very responsible person," Jaina said with a silly grin.

Daelin cleared his throat. "That's the bare minimum of responsibility for a man. What are you so happy about?"