Lord: I can see loyalty.

"My lord, no bandits are resisting anymore!" On the blood-red beach, Vio strolled on the post-battle sand, while Jimmy followed beside him to report.

"Eleven bandits surrendered and were captured alive, and two captured warships were slightly damaged and have now been sent to Old Patton."

Vio nodded, seemingly listening but not really, and then asked, "What's the situation with the militia?"

"The entire militia participated in the battle. Twenty-eight were killed and eight were wounded, most of whom have been healed by Lord Valentine." Jimmy's expression darkened slightly.

"Check the list of the dead, issue compensation as previously agreed, and hold a proper funeral for them as soldiers."

Vio thought for a moment and added, "Send the surrendered bandits to Adriana for interrogation, and tell him to be careful not to kill them."

"Yes, ma'am."

Reaching the edge of the beach, the sea before me had returned to its calm, azure blue, as if the battle that had just taken place had never occurred.

But he knew that Connor's attack would not stop, especially since he had lost at least a hundred men this time.

After the battlefield was cleaned up, Vio had the militiamen bring back the fleeing villagers and then returned to the lord's manor.

Half a day later, after the post-battle cleanup was completely finished, Vio summoned the captains, including Jimmy, who were in relatively good condition.

Gina and Cohen were already waiting quietly beside Vio, seated in the lord's chair. Vio's gaze fell on the map on the table:

To be precise, it is on the Gare de la Cité, behind the village of Bordeaux or rather the entire southern region.

"As you all can see," Vio said, his fingertip landing on the dark blue area on the map representing the Gajah region, "we have virtually no defenses behind us."

"This Connor is clearly trying to coordinate with the man who tried to assassinate me to catch us off guard."

Vio's gaze swept over every face at the table: "There were only two this time, but they might send more next time... This Connor seems to be very good at naval warfare."

A silence fell over the room. Jimmy and Ansquie exchanged glances, all seeing the worry in each other's eyes.

"What you say is absolutely right, sir, but there are no shipbuilders in Bordeaux and Châteauneuf-du-Champaign. Old Patton and his men alone are probably far from enough." A captain broke the deadlock first: "Right now, all we have are the two captured warships and our old ship."

Another captain chimed in, "That's right, and the villagers rarely go out to sea, so they can't even train a decent crew."

The problem was right in front of them, and everyone frowned. Bordeaux village not only lacked boats, but also lacked people and experience in fighting at sea.

Just as the room was about to fall silent again, Jimmy seemed to remember something and hesitated before speaking in a low voice, "There are skilled sailors in the Southern Territory too..."

Ansquie, standing beside him, seemed to understand his words, and asked with a hint of doubt, "You mean...?"

"Pirates." Jimmy answered seriously, cutting to the chase.

These words shocked not only the captains but also Vio, whose faces were filled with disbelief.

Cooperating with pirates? In their traditional view, this is tantamount to asking a tiger for its skin, inviting disaster upon oneself!

But after the initial shock, Vio quickly calmed down. He leaned back in his chair and fell into a brief moment of thought, his fingers unconsciously rubbing his jaw.

Upon closer examination, it's not entirely unworkable.

There are two reasons why there are not many pirates in the entire southern region. Firstly, there are not many resources, and there are not many coastal cities and villages in the southern region.

Secondly, because a pirate group that dominated the South Seas already existed in the region.

The Black Pearl Pirate Crew.

Unlike the farmers who went out to sea as part-time pirates every summer, Black Pearl could be called a "professional pirate".

They work for money, burning, killing, and looting; they are essentially a mercenary group at sea.

Of course, most importantly, it is said that the Black Pearls also originated in the Southern Territory and have an unwritten rule: plundering will not take place in the Southern Territory.

If the news is true, then in this not-so-harsh winter, enough gold coins might actually be enough to drive them out to sea.

Just as the others were about to refute Jimmy, Vio waved his hand and said, "Perhaps we can give it a try. Cohen, take some men and find out some information about the Black Pearl Pirate Crew."

Upon hearing the lord's words, the captains remembered the pirates who were famous throughout the kingdom, and recalling the legendary rules of the Black Pearl, they said no more.

……

Western border, Frido Port.

Unlike the bustling port of the past, the sea was relatively calm today, with only a few large ships docked.

Upon closer inspection, the large ship was covered with round shields on both sides, its hull was dark and shiny, and it was covered with marks from various sword and axe strikes, with several huge flags taut like wings.

Without a doubt, these were several warships.

In contrast to the deserted dock, shouts could be heard from time to time from the spacious tavern next door.

Inside the tavern, there was rough, maniacal laughter and the clinking of glasses. Countless pirates were drinking expensive wine and flirting with the shy maids around them.

Deep inside, the tavern owner stood with a forced smile in front of a bearded man wearing a single black eye patch, cursing the smiling pirate captain in his heart.

"Boss, are we really going to spend the winter in the West this year? Not going back?" The burly man next to the pirate captain stroked his tangled goatee and took a big gulp of wine.

"Hmm." The leader took a small sip of his drink and observed his men.

"But boss, I'm afraid the brothers aren't too satisfied." The burly man shook his head and continued, "Although we made a fortune this year, and can enjoy ourselves this winter..."

"But everyone still wants to go back to Caithro, after all, their families are there, and I heard there's been a bandit problem recently..."

"Massan." The boss interrupted him without turning around. "If it weren't for you, I would have thrown you into the sea to feed the fish for saying that."

Masane grinned, patted his head, and said, "Don't I understand what the boss is thinking?"

"Of course I know about what's happening in the South, that's why I didn't go back. It's not the ocean there." The leader put down his wine glass and shooed away the tavern owner standing nearby.

"Don't worry, those bandits haven't made a move against Keslow yet. They're probably wary of our presence."

With his head bowed, Masane asked in a low voice, "So, what are your plans...?"

"What other plans could we possibly have?" the pirate captain said, somewhat irritated.

Although his homeland was also in the South, his family and clan had long been wiped out, so it didn't matter to him where he went.

Kaislow Village is the hometown of most of the Black Pearl's crew and the place where they spend the winter every year. According to his intelligence, the large village has not yet been taken over by bandits.

"Should we just drag this out like this?" The leader cursed the useless Southern nobles in his mind, then stopped thinking and took a big gulp of strong liquor.

"Damn it! Take him there!"

"Behave yourself!"

Just then, a commotion arose outside the tavern.

The pirate captain stood up in confusion, instinctively gripping the curved sword at his waist, while Massan, standing beside him, gripped the long bench beneath him.

The tavern door was kicked open, and two tall pirates dragged a man who had been beaten beyond recognition and threw him in front of the pirate captain.

"Axel, this guy's been eavesdropping on our conversation outside." The pirate kicked the trembling man.

Pirate captain Axel stepped forward, pressed the hilt of his sword against the man's head, and asked.

"Who sent you?" The tavern immediately fell silent.

"Philip? Derek? Or Timothy?" Axel thought for a moment and asked for the names of several Western pirates.

Could it be that those guys from the West have already received news of my arrival at Freedor Port?

The pirates nearby, upon hearing their leader's question, realized what was happening and immediately shouted angrily.

"Those bastards dare to lay a hand on us?!"

"Is that Timothy woman? I've disliked her for a long time!"

Amidst the commotion, the man raised his head, which was swollen like a pig's face, and stammered out an answer that no one present had expected.

"It's Border Wolf Connor... I don't recognize any of the ones you're talking about..."

The pirates looked at each other, their faces filled with disbelief.

"Which stray dog ​​is Connor, the wolf over there?"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

A burst of laughter that shook the roof erupted in the tavern, and Axel twitched his lips into a slight smile.

The man, looking bewildered amidst the laughter, quickly explained, "Gentlemen! This Connor is one of the bandit leaders in the Southern Territory! He has quite a few warships under his command, and he's planning to conquer the Western Territory by sea after dealing with the Southern Territory..."

"He was afraid you pirates would get in his way, so he sent me to keep an eye on things..."

"How many days have you been watching?" the boss interrupted him.

"Three days, just three days! You guys have been having a good time in this tavern every day, and I haven't heard a thing!" The man kowtowed several times with great effort, and his words made the bandits around him laugh again.

Axel sneered, didn't ask any more questions, and walked straight towards the tavern's exit.

"Axel, what should we do with this guy?" the pirates asked from behind.

"Do whatever you want, just don't let them escape."

Axel didn't look back. He walked out of the tavern. The sky outside the harbor had turned a deep red, and the sun shone with a blood-red light, as if it were shining its last time.

"Boss, these guys don't look very trustworthy." Masane followed him out of the building and stood beside him.

As he watched the setting sun, Axel remained silent for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the warships resting in the harbor.

"That's true." He finally spoke, his voice devoid of emotion: "Perhaps this southern region deserves a true ruler."