Path of Light.

Chapter 968, Section 963: The Dock
Legion Commander Kleis looked up and grabbed Roy with his strong hand. The half-elf guards nearby drew their elven longswords, trying to rescue Boss Roy from the clutches of the gray dwarf legion commander.

The two sides immediately became extremely tense...

Commander Klein stood on tiptoe, beads of sweat forming on his forehead and nose. He raised his right hand to stop the gray dwarf warriors behind him from surging forward, and shouted to Roy:
"Boss Roy, please let me explain."

They want to stay and will not continue to occupy the Villaria Valley.

From the moment all the southward-migrating forces withdrew from the city of Boles, the Valley of Villaria belonged entirely to the Half-Elf Mine Guard, including the cities of Boles and Precitus.

Some of the grey dwarves on our side who are unwilling to leave Durag's Knee will continue to live in the territory controlled by the half-elf mine guards.

I implore you not to drive them out of the Villaria Valley.

Leaving this valley, they will inevitably perish under the Black Riders' death scythes. Let them peacefully complete their final journey in the Valley of Villalia!

As the commander of the Northern Fleet, Klay's first action upon Roy's arrival at Drag's Knee was to provide a way out for the grey dwarves who did not want to leave Drag's Knee.

This was something Roy hadn't expected at all...

Roy thought all the grey dwarves of Durag's Knee were going to leave and head to Garo Island in the Seven Realms Sea.

Roy waved to the group of half-elf guards who had surrounded him, signaling them to back off.

Although the atmosphere was still tense, with the half-elf guards and gray dwarf warriors facing off, Roy went straight to the carriage. Legion Commander Kleis followed behind with his short legs, boarded the carriage, and sat down opposite Roy, panting heavily.

He was wearing a military uniform, with a layer of chainmail over it, which made it difficult for him to breathe.

The bewildered orc leaders all poked their heads out of the carriage, eager to know what kind of conflict had occurred.

The carriages slowly moved forward...

Roy sat in the luxurious carriage, thought for a moment, and then asked the Legion Commander Klein sitting opposite him:
"How many grey dwarves will remain in the Valley of Villaria?"

Commander Klein's eyes lit up. He figured Roy's question might be because he wanted to take in the gray dwarves who remained behind, so he said:
"It's probably over 100,000, but the exact number hasn't been tallied yet..."

Roy rubbed his forehead. He didn't want so many gray dwarves to stay in the Valley of Villaria, as it would exponentially increase the difficulty and uncertainty of governing the Valley of Villaria.

"So many? How will they live in the valley from now on?"

Roy asked Commander Klein.

The implication is that the half-elf mine guards will not provide any assistance to the gray dwarves left behind.

Commander Klein said:

“They have lived in the Knee of Durag for generations. A small place to live is enough for them. They can survive on their own in the Valley of Villaria.”

Roy was speechless. It seemed that Commander Kleis was determined to leave these gray dwarves in the Valley of Villaria...

"Have you considered the consequences if these grey dwarves clash with the half-elf who moved here in the future?"

This is what Roy is really worried about.

In fact, most half-elf people loathe the grey dwarves...

In the eyes of the elves, 'grey dwarves' are synonymous with bandits and slave traders.

"To be honest, these grey dwarves who are willing to stay are all elderly people. They have lived most of their lives at Durag's Knee and do not want to leave their homes before they die, or even die on the ships on their southward journey. They do not want their bodies to be thrown into the sea to feed the sharks after they die."

"They will definitely live obediently in the valley..."

Commander Klein made a solemn promise to Roy.

Roy and Woods, who were sitting next to him, exchanged a glance, and Roy asked the regimental commander, Klein:
"What guarantee do you have... that they will never cause trouble in the Villaria Valley?"

Commander Klein gave an awkward smile; he couldn't really guarantee that.

The carriage left the port and headed south along a muddy road by the sea. Legion Commander Kleis explained to Roy that Boles City was currently under military control, with a large number of gray dwarves converging on the city, resulting in shacks built by gray dwarf immigrants everywhere outside the city, making the entire city of Boles quite chaotic.

In fact, when Roy saw a large number of grey dwarves carrying large and small bags and lining up to board the ship at the dock, with the long line stretching for nearly several kilometers, he already realized that the grey dwarves' southward migration was not as smooth as he had imagined... It was the tail end of summer at this time of year. In Durag's Knee, there was no spring or autumn. The short summer lasted from mid-June to early September, after which Durag's Knee would enter a long winter.

It's the end of August now. Although you can still see green moss around, the monsoon from the Frozen Sea has brought the chill to the city of Boles.

The carriage moved forward on the muddy road, and the north wind blew on the elves. At first, they didn't feel anything, but after a while, they felt their joints were cold.

There were still some ice shards splattered in the mud on the road...

The gray dwarves were not afraid of the cold. Some gray dwarf immigrants set up simple tents by the roadside. These makeshift tents were tattered and lacked sufficient wood for support, so they could only keep out the rain. The dwarves wore clothes made of fur, with their arms exposed, and were not afraid of the biting cold wind.

Sabrina, who had sat down by the carriage window, rolled it open completely. The gray dwarves on both sides of the road watched the half-elf and orc inside the carriage with curiosity...

The cold wind made Moira hug her arms tightly.

She and Sabrina grew up in Castletown, a city with a warm climate and abundant rainfall, where even the coldest season of the year wasn't this cold.

Sabrina looked at the shacks built with tattered canvas. Almost all of the shacks were dug down to a depth of one meter, and some elderly people and children were lying in the holes.

Next to the tent was a large pot, and something was burning underneath it, emitting thick, pungent smoke.

The entire road was crowded with these dilapidated tents, and there were columns of smoke like bonfires every ten meters or so.

It's clear that these grey dwarf people live in great poverty, far less comfortable than the grey dwarf bandits who plunder the seas...

The Villalia Valley is flanked by towering mountains with snow-capped peaks and black rocks on the slopes. Only at the foot of the mountains can one see some low vegetation, mostly shrubs and large patches of mossy hillsides.

A few gray dwarves were squatting in twos and threes on that hillside. They were too far away for Roy to see what they were doing...

The gray dwarves by the roadside looked at the carriage with curiosity. They were strong, but their clothes were a mix of leather and armor. They had a sharp axe hanging on one side of their waist and a short-handled square hammer on the other. They carried heavy packs and their faces were dirty, as if they hadn't washed their faces in a long time.

The carriage traveled along the muddy road for a while until it came to a sheltered harbor with a large shipyard.

The agreement reached between Roy and Marshal Kane of the Northern Fleet was that the Half-Elf Guard would allow the southward-migrating Grey Dwarf fleet to pass smoothly through the Strait of Mensa and the waters of Quel'Thalas, and provide sufficient fresh water and some food at the transit stations along the way. After leaving the Knee of Drag, the Grey Dwarfs would not only hand over the cities of Boles and Presidius to the Half-Elf Guard free of charge, but also give them several shipyards near the coastline of Boles free of charge.

The enormous shipyard before us is located in a fjord seven kilometers from the city of Boles. The fjord is not very large and is connected to a river in the Villalia Valley, from which a large amount of glacial meltwater flows into the frozen sea.

Some gray dwarf warriors guarded the dock gates. When they saw the Clefthoof Bulls pulling large wagons to the gates, they quickly opened them.

Commander Kleis pointed to the shipyard inside the gate and said to Roy, "This is the largest shipyard in Boles City. The last voyage ship was just launched a couple of days ago. The entire shipyard has now ceased operations. To prevent the gray dwarf immigrants outside the city from destroying this shipyard, we have sent a squadron to guard it day and night."

Commander Klein pushed open the carriage door, and the gray dwarf warriors guarding the shipyard gate immediately saluted him.

Several horse-drawn carriages slowly drove into the shipyard and stopped in the square in front of the dock gate. From here, you can see hundreds of huge logs piled up on the flat ground to the left of the dock. The logs, which are like small mountains, are still covered with bark. It is unknown how long these logs have been stored.

The dock gates were wide open, the interior was empty, and the ground was a mess, with dismantled planks and other debris scattered everywhere.

Unable to see the dwarven craftsmen in the shipyard, Roy and Chief Grop walked side by side into the enormous dock. Inside the dock was a huge water tank more than ten meters deep, two hundred meters long, and more than fifty meters wide.

The imperial merchant ships that Roy seized from the imperial merchants could easily sail into this dock, which meant that the dock could accommodate large five-masted warships...

The wooden scaffolding, dozens of meters high, erected opposite the dock has not been dismantled yet. In the corner of the dock, there are some assembled wooden plank walls, showing that many things on the ship were assembled directly below before being moved onto the ship.

"Oh, so this is where the big ships are built?"

"Looking at the massive shipyard, Chief Grop said in a deep, muffled voice."

The orcs didn't have shipyards, so he wasn't particularly interested in them...

Roy nodded and said to Chief Grop, "The dwarves' shipbuilding technology is second only to the Grin Empire. This time, I plan to take over the shipyard near Boles City. With such a dock, those imperial merchant ships can come here for maintenance..."

What he didn't say was that if the Half-Elf Mine Guard wanted to continue controlling the Mensa Strait and the waters around Quel'Thalas, they needed to have their own shipyard and keep trying to build large sailing ships to incorporate into their fleet.

Commander Klein kept his promise and preserved these shipyards instead of abandoning and dismantling them. Although the shipyards were in a state of disrepair, Roy was generally satisfied.

(End of this chapter)