The White Iliana finished loading cargo at the port of Ochakiv in the Principality of Kievan Rus and began its return voyage.
When the news of the emperor's defeat at Manzikert came out, shipping orders to the Black Sea increased dozens of times. Astute merchants had predicted that the southern trade route from Asia Minor through the Ilanian Plateau would definitely be cut off by the Seljuk Empire.
The only way to maintain normal trade with the Dragon Kingdom in the east is to take the Sarmatian-Mongolian steppe route north of the Black Sea.
This route is too far north so it can only be run in the summer. In the winter, heavy snow blocks the road and trucks can hardly run.
It didn't seem like the Principality of Kievan Rus had the money to spread snow-melting agent on the roads, not to mention that the Mongolian steppes were full of nomadic peoples running around. If they couldn't survive in the winter, they would squat on the roadside and plunder, so this trade route would inevitably be interrupted in the winter.
Therefore, you have to stock up quickly before the summer.
The nobles of the Principality of Kievan Rus were also very cunning. They learned the news of the empire's defeat from somewhere, so these Scolopendra lords and nobles, who were covered in animal furs, set up numerous tax checkpoints on the roads of their serfs' territories, causing the price of fur exports from Kievan Rus to increase threefold.
The ship owner roughly calculated that this trade could only barely break even, so it was a wasted trip.
If it weren't for the wealthy mercenary group on board, this trip to the Black Sea would have been a complete loss. The depressed ship owner ordered the ship to return, secretly praying that the mercenary group that landed on the mysterious island would survive.
Then you can gain another 5 pounds.
"What!" The ship owner, who was hoping for the best, was devastated when he learned from the lookout that the mysterious island had disappeared again. "It's impossible! Such a big... Such a big island! How could it disappear? Did we go off course?"
"Captain, even if you don't believe in the compass and sextant, you should at least believe in the GPS on our ship," the navigator said with a wry smile.
The ship owner leaned against the side of the ship in frustration and had to admit that the navigator's judgment was correct. After all, the mysterious island could appear out of thin air in the Black Sea, and it could also disappear out of thin air in the Black Sea... It was just a pity that he could not earn the 5 pounds.
Just when his mood hit rock bottom, a red flare suddenly rose in the distance. The ship owner's mood immediately became like the winter snow finally melting, and his whole spirit was lifted.
"Hurry, hurry, drive over there!" He shouted, pointing in the direction of the flare.
As the merchant ship approached, the sailors finally saw a small boat floating on the sea. Five people on the boat sat in a circle, whispering something.
"I'm a prophet." Nora said, "I looked at the identity of the leader last night. The leader is a werewolf."
"No, I'm the prophet." Ask said seriously, "I looked at Nora's identity last night. Nora is a werewolf."
"I can't tell who is lying!!!" Eleanor cried out and hugged Peggy beside her with tears streaming down her face.
"I think Ask is the werewolf." Peggy said calmly while being hugged.