Summer is over.
Although the coast of Mannheim is close to the Nalun Desert and has never had distinct seasons, the many races living on the coast can still feel the eagerness of summer, which has begun to fade.
The breeze blowing from the Sea of Stars blows across the shore.
The leaves of the trees are swaying with the wind, and they are aware of the autumn, and they will show a faint yellow within a few days.
Autumn is almost here.
But those who came taking advantage of the autumn wind, there were also sails full of wind on the Sea of Stars, which were fully hung on the mast, driving the merchant ships loaded with cargo to the fertile coast of Mannheim in the open sea.
There are also a large number of merchant ships entering and leaving the port of the capital of the Gray Mane Kingdom.
And there are quite a few of them.
On both sides of the stone pier, all kinds of merchant ships are berthing.
The coolies formed by the wolf men at the bottom were neatly loading and unloading goods for the merchant ships on the pier.
In the shopping malls at the wharf, you can see businessmen of all ethnic groups.
Gnolls, lizards, including elves, humans, and even orcs.
They were all discussing eagerly, or bargaining fiercely, and the straightforwardness, honesty, friendliness, and cowardice of the race evolved into businessman-style cunning without leaving any trace on the faces of these businessmen.
The purpose is to earn a few more big silver coins.
This shiny round silver product is something that all races are eager to flock to.
Including these jackals.
The port of the king's capital of the Gray Mane Kingdom is the only good deep-water port on the entire coast of Mannheim. Even if the gnolls are not good at ocean sailing and rely solely on berthing fees and commercial taxes, they will be full of food.
This is the advantage of maintaining a monopoly on the coast of Mannheim.
The only port that can berth a large number of merchant ships, receive them, and maintain a huge amount of commercial trade is the Royal Capital Port.
This is also something that the Lizardman has always been brooding about.
They are good at sailing and ocean-going trade. In their lizardman kingdom, there are only two small ports, and the number of merchant ships that can be docked every day is pitifully small, and even large merchant ships with deep drafts cannot berth a few.
It is simply incomparable with Wangdu Port, which can accommodate at least 50 large merchant ships.
But the two races have had a feud for a long time.
In order to guarantee their own trade, the lizardmen chose to compromise.
However, the conditions offered by the Gnoll were that while leasing a pier with high rent, a huge commercial tax would also be collected for each trade. The conditions were extremely harsh, almost blatant blackmail.
For this reason, war broke out between the two races.
The population of Graymane Kingdom is 40,000.
The population of the Lizardman Kingdom reached 70,000.
Although the infantry of the Greymane Kingdom was the strongest in the army, the Lizardman's crossbowmen were not bad either.
In addition, the lizardmen had their own navy, and secretly cultivated a few ferocious pirate groups, which blocked the port of the king's capital when the war started, making the Gray Mane Kingdom, which relies entirely on taxation for a living, also be wary.
It is precisely because no one can do anything to the other, and each is afraid of the other's strength, that they rely on this practice to continue.
Until the Elf Council came across the ocean and established a colonial city on the east side of the coast of Mannheim. Although the number of people was only a few thousand, they were good at fighting and their combat effectiveness was extremely strong. The kingdom suffered a lot, and after negotiations, they held their noses and acquiesced in the existence of the elves.
The fragile peace created by the three races is also continued because of mutual fear.
But this morning.
5 warships slowly sailed into the port of Wangdu.
The streamlined hull accurately cuts into the side of the pier and berths slowly.
The many merchant ships that had parked at other docks were all puzzled. They swept over the blank flagpoles that did not indicate their race and influence. Some shrewd merchants suddenly turned pale, and their hearts beat a little faster.
There are many pirates in the Sea of Stars.
Including gnoll pirates who like to jump overboard, wear chain mail, and hold two-handed battle axes.
Usually, letting these ferocious pirates jump on the deck would end the robbery, because no merchant ship of any race could defeat these strong, burly Gnolls on deck.
Just like those burly jackal warriors who were queuing up and coming down from these five warships.
If there is a businessman with sharp eyes.
You can even see familiar faces who have robbed you once.
But then, the entire port received news from the Gray Mane Kingdom, claiming that for the stability of Star Sea and the safety of many merchants who came to the port of the Royal Capital, the pirate group of the same family had been recruited and incorporated into the Gray Mane Kingdom's troops In the sequence, this ferocious wolf man pirate group will not appear in the Sea of Stars in the future.
The new young businessman may believe these words.
But for those veteran businessmen, they secretly scoffed.
This ferocious gnoll pirate group has been running across the stars for so many years. It is absolutely impossible without a backer behind it, and the only backer who can fully support this pirate group composed of gnolls may be the only one.
However, the lack of this pirate group is always good for the merchants.
But for the lizardmen and elves, they were all in doubt.
As forces that have taken root on the coast of Mannheim, they naturally understand that this pirate group composed entirely of gnolls is actually a force secretly deployed by the Gray Mane Kingdom on the Sea of Stars.
Now it is directly recalled, claiming that it has been recruited and adapted.
It is tantamount to handing over the rights to the Sea of Stars to others, how can this be believed by others.
After all, if you have mastered the deep-water port of Wangdu Port, if you lose control of Xingchenhai, there will be endless incidents, enough to make the Gray Mane Kingdom, which relies solely on the port, very busy.
Some things cannot be done by obvious means.
Just like the merchant ships of the Lizardmen, why are they often plundered.
And some merchants who depended on the port for their livelihood and made good friends with the wolf man would also be patronized by the pirate group.
These are all hidden truths.
Losing these means means losing some partners. Even merchants who have formed good trade relations must carefully consider whether they should make friends with other races.
The Port of the Royal Capital is indeed under the control of the Wolf Man.
But it doesn't mean that it will be firmly held in the hands of the wolf man for the rest of his life.
The dark tide is raging on the coast of Mannheim.
But for the upper echelons of the Graymane Kingdom, this is just a way to disturb the enemy's sight.
The recall of these more than 300 ferocious pirates is also part of their plan, because these ferocious wolf man pirates will form 3300 people together with 1000 wolf man elite warriors and 2000 wolf man fighters drawn from the army. The expeditionary force of the team crossed the Nalun Desert, went to the opposite strange world, and plundered enough resources to come back.
This is a plan they have been planning for ten years. If possible, the Gray Mane Kingdom will even extend its territory to the south of the Nalun Desert, conquer the local humans, and create a large rear area belonging to the high-level wolf man.
They are land creatures.
The vast and rough sea is not an ideal battlefield for the Wolf Man.
After all, the undulating deck cannot compare with the thick earth.
After contacting and fighting those lizardmen and elves, these high-level gnolls in the Graymane Kingdom had to admit the reality that even though they were on land, their frontal army was invincible in field battles.
But right on the sea, it was no match for the lizardman navy or the elf navy.
Lizardmen who are flexible, good at water, and prefer to use crossbows.
An elf with high intelligence, various extraordinary spells, and excellent archery skills.
These burly high-level wolf men have nothing to praise except for close combat, or even more violent close combat after the shamans use various simple witchcraft.
That's right.
Even if they can figure it out by themselves, they are not suitable for the sea.
So make strategic decisions.
Since I am not used to the sea and cannot have a powerful navy, then I will give up the hegemony of the Sea of Stars, stick to the only deep-water port on the coast of Mannheim, and extend my power towards the human kingdom in the south of the Nalun Desert, creating Its own land hegemony, even conquering the human kingdom and becoming a colony, instead took the opportunity to develop and swallow the coast of Mannheim.
In the Nalun Desert, the gnolls who are good at endurance are not afraid. They can endure the heat and cold, march and trek during the day and night, and carry out surprise attacks unexpectedly.
Therefore, the most elite 300 Gnoll pirates were recalled.
They are all elites who have been tried and tested every day in the navy of lizardmen and elves.
In addition, 1,000 elite jackal warriors stationed in the capital city-state, 2,000 heroic jackal warriors, and a few shamans who have mastered extraordinary powers are enough to conquer the human kingdom.
Of course, this is a conquest force that will not set off until a month later.
The first thing to go now is the 300 most elite Gnoll pirates.
Capture the sentry oasis that has been recorded, lead the low-level gnoll tribe in the Nalun Desert, establish an outpost, and the expeditionary force composed of the remaining 3,000 gnolls will be able to set off without any mistakes.
This conquest of the human nations must not fail.
And in the minds of the high-level people in the Gray Mane Kingdom.
Even 500 weak human soldiers can't stop 50 ordinary Jackal fighters.
Although human soldiers also have long-range weapons such as bows and crossbows, their shooting level is not as good as that of the elves, and their melee skills are too poor. They can't even be like the lizardmen. And move.
Practical examples have been shown.
Among human beings, there are indeed brave men worthy of praise.
But most of the time, when the ferocious Gnoll pirates resisted the shooting of the feather arrows and jumped onto the deck of the human merchant ship, it meant that a massacre was about to begin.
Humans are really weak.
300 of the most elite Gnoll pirates are enough to capture the sentry oasis.
Perhaps, it can also drive those low-level wolf men living in the desert to launch a general attack first.
A country that can easily slaughter humans without the arrival of the main force of the Gray Mane Kingdom.
PS: I recommend a newly discovered divine book "Rising Ten Thousand Years": In the First World War, the main weapon was a rifle. In World War II, the main weapons were aircraft and tanks. World War III... World War IV, the main weapons were spears and stones. Ten thousand years later. When civilization is lost, when technology is absent, when everyone in this world dreams of becoming a revivalist. I met a woman who came from 10,000 years ago in the 21st century and gave me a dream. She taught me mathematics, physics, chemistry, and the products of science when the earth was at its most glorious. She is my daughter-in-law.
(end of this chapter)