Chapter 1 Oleg, the King of the North Sea

The news that Oleg, the "King of the North Sea," had suddenly been crowned took Suren by surprise at first.

But after a moment's thought, he found nothing particularly shocking about it.

Two great empires were at war, employing a strategy of befriending distant powers while attacking those nearby.

This move by Mafa would bring endless trouble to the rear of Lu Ying.

It was a tactic similar to that of the United States in Suren's previous life, providing military equipment and economic support to local military organizations, causing continuous turmoil in specific regions without expending a single soldier. This not only created problems for competitors but also generated a steady stream of war dividends.

Moreover, the situation in the sea was entirely different from that on land.

Although those pirates didn't have the strength to directly confront a great empire,

they could always run if they couldn't win.

It was foreseeable that this newly crowned "King of the North Sea" would become a chronic problem for Lu Ying for many years to come.

Impossible to cut off, impossible to cure.

Suren even guessed the origin of this royal decree.

He finally understood what conditions Mafa and his people had used to acquire the [Super Mechanical Warrior Blueprint] back in Galtand Port.

Thinking back to the blueprint, the annihilation of Grand Duke Raphael's fleet by the King of the North Sea's Ninth Fleet was no longer surprising.

It was likely retaliation for the looting of Old Lingdun.

A dignified duke, robbed by pirates, naturally had to retaliate.

More than the pirates' coronation, Suren was more concerned with the strength displayed by Grand Duke Raphael.

The fleets under the King of the North Sea were very powerful. The fleet commanders were usually sixth or seventh-tier great pirates, true top-tier powerhouses. Like the Fourth Fleet that had raided Old Lingdun at Blackfort Reef, with two sixth-tier and a dozen fifth-tier squad leaders, along with tens of thousands of pirates, they certainly had the combat power to capture some large territories.

Unfortunately, they had underestimated Grand Duke Raphael's strength.

Suren recalled the extremely exaggerated iron battleship he had once seen, a super warship that no pirate fleet could sink.

Old Lingdun's distorted industrial society had allowed Grand Duke Raphael to master many leading technologies that were far ahead of the times. The technological level was much higher than the average level of the Lu Ying Empire. Even in fields like "neuro-mechanical technology," the Mafa Empire, known as the holy land of mechanics, was inferior.

Yet, despite being such a lord with great resources, Suren learned from the extracted memories that Grand Duke Raphael was a marginal figure in Lu Ying's top power circle.

Suren had once wondered why.

But it wasn't until he saw William, the young master of the Leiga Di family, appear on that iron behemoth that he understood that all great lords were old foxes with far-reaching plans.

This was a true leviathan lurking beneath the surface, and the alliance had gained an ambitious man.

His purpose was obvious.

However, Suren had no interest in concerning himself with the power struggles between the upper-class lords.

Now that the North Sea was in chaos, he wanted to see if he could fish in troubled waters.

........

Two months ago, when Suren came to Blizzard City, the city was orderly.

As the only human city near the Silent Forest, it attracted a large number of merchants and adventurers. As a result, the city's commerce was very prosperous. Although there were many pirates in the city, everyone tacitly agreed to the rule of no weapons in the city because it was a base for the pirates to sell stolen goods and resupply.

But now it was different. Oleg's coronation had thrown the pirates into a frenzy, and the original order had been broken.

All legitimate shops in Blizzard City had been looted, and no normal merchants dared to come anymore. The once prosperous Blizzard City had instantly become desolate and dilapidated.

The weather today was not good. The sky was leaden, and large snowflakes fell from the sky.

Nine out of ten shops in the city were empty, and the broken doors and windows and the bullet holes left on the walls showed how fierce the looting had been not long ago.

There were no city guards in the city, and no one even cleared the snow, which had piled up several meters high.

Only a small path trampled by pedestrians was passable on the main street.

Suren, wearing a black windbreaker, walked out of a tavern run by an intelligence merchant, holding a black umbrella in his hand and a crow perched on his shoulder.

"So, I'm wanted..."

Suren walked along, pondering in his heart.

He had just gone to the tavern to inquire about news and learned some of the latest information from the outside world.

Suren also paid special attention to news about himself.

As expected, he was wanted.

Both the pirates and the Lu Ying slave traders had put a bounty on the "Golden Cloak Man."

Mr. Mirror had the highest bounty, reaching one billion Resso directly, which was the bounty amount for a sixth-tier great pirate.

He, Suren, ranked second, with a bounty of 188.8 million Resso.

The good news, however, was that the wanted notice only described the golden cloak and the puppet ability, without any other details.

The other members of the Mirror organization were also very low-key, with almost no news.

"Now, once I use my abilities, I'll have to be completely exterminated..."

Suren thought of something, clicked his tongue, but didn't take it to heart.

With only those vague descriptions on the wanted notice, he felt that as long as he was a little careful, it would be difficult for him to be targeted.

He walked in the snow, following the memory of the East City entertainment district, intending to go to the agreed-upon "Sailor Tavern."

Yesterday he contacted Chidori, and calculating the time, she should have arrived in Blizzard City by now.

Suren wanted to meet her first.

Firstly, to catch up.

Secondly, Chidori said she had news about "Rune Sorcerers."

There were not many pedestrians on the street. Unlike before, when there were wealthy merchants and tai-tais strolling around, now even the pedestrians were in groups of three or five, probably either pirates or fully armed adventurers. People looked hurried, and no one dared to linger on the streets.

As he walked, Suren noticed several malicious gazes fixed on him.

He wasn't surprised at all.

When he stayed at the inn last night, he had killed two groups of thieves who had sneaked in at midnight.

What was even more outrageous was that neither his killing nor the killing of those guys had caused any excessive reaction from anyone.

After the bodies were discovered, the owner with the musket skillfully threw the bodies into the snowy alley behind the inn and froze them into popsicles.

Blizzard City was now simply a lawless place.

Robbery, vendettas, rape—all too normal.

Before long, only a few sounds of wildcats moving came from the alley, and three still-warm bodies were buried in the snow.

Without attracting anyone's attention, Suren re-covered his face with a scarf, walked out again, and strolled in the wind and snow.

.......

Just as Suren returned to Blizzard City, a fleet that had left Blizzard City nearly half a month ago was about to arrive at Galtand Port.

There was an inconspicuous three-masted ship in the fleet.

But no one knew that the interior of this ship was unusually luxurious.

In the captain's cabin, a dazzling crystal lamp illuminated the room brightly, and the pure gold and silver utensils on the mahogany nautical table shone brightly. The corners of the tablecloth were embroidered with the aristocratic emblems of tulips and eagles. This was the secret sea ship of the Lance family, the great lord of the Northern Six Provinces.

A beautiful purple-haired girl was standing in front of a wall hanging with a North Sea military chart, looking lazily at the densely marked coordinates.

In her arms, she was holding an equally lazy long-haired white cat.

At the door of the captain's cabin, an old butler with drooping eyes was reporting something: "Miss, our arrangements in Blizzard City have basically been destroyed by those pirates. The pirates are very ambitious and seem to intend to purge all forces in the North Sea that don't belong to them. Mafa has also transported a large amount of military equipment over by submarine. It seems that they are preparing to build a mechanical fleet for those pirates. This will be a great threat to our territory in the future..."

Hearing this, the purple-haired girl didn't seem surprised at all and continued to look at the sea chart.

After pondering for a moment, as if she had the interest to speak, she opened her mouth and replied indifferently: "Let those Viking pirates taste the taste of power. Hehe, they really think being a lord is as easy as being a pirate? Seizing territory is easy, but what about after seizing it? Being a pirate is fine without restraints, but if you really want to play politics on the stage, those pirates aren't even fit to carry shoes for those old foxes in the council."

After a pause, she added: "Pirates are pirates after all, and are nothing but brute force. They'll make a fuss for a while, and then they'll quiet down."

Hearing this, the old butler asked again: "Miss, do you mean... we should withdraw our people first?"

"No."

The purple-haired girl shook her head, and a sharp light flashed in her beautiful purple eyes. "The North Sea is so lively, how can we just watch the fun? If we really withdraw, Mafa's plan will be too smooth. The family has invested so much in the North Sea over the years, how can we let outsiders steal this melon..."

The old butler asked, "Then what should we...?"

The purple-haired girl said meaningfully: "It's not as complicated as you think. We don't have to confront those pirates head-on at all."

She added: "There are hardly any people in the pirates who even know how to count. They don't even know how to set tax rates, let alone understand economics. Even if they seize wealth, they only know to stuff it into their private vaults until it gets moldy, and they don't even know what a bank is for... Since they lack talent in this area, we'll just send them some. Aren't there still some people left over from the failed 'Mist Moon Coup'? Now is the perfect time to put them to use, so send them over."

Speaking of this, the purple-haired girl thought of something and paused.

She narrowed her eyes slightly and said in a deep voice: "Since Oleg wants to be a lord, we'll help him be a good lord..."

The old butler's eyes widened as he listened, and after understanding the true power of this strategy, he couldn't hide his shock.

A strange look flashed across his face, and he nodded respectfully: "Yes."

After a pause, he said again: "By the way, Miss. There's another new piece of news."

Without waiting for the purple-haired girl to ask, he said directly: "Grand Duke Raphael's cruise fleet encountered Oleg's Ninth Fleet near the Boman Islands five days ago. A great battle broke out between the two sides, and the pirate fleet was completely annihilated. It is said that Grand Duke Raphael has mastered very advanced warship technology and already possesses an iron fleet with unknown strength, but possibly stronger than the Imperial Navy..."

Hearing this, the purple-haired girl raised her eyebrows slightly.

She didn't seem surprised, but sighed, "Not only us, everyone underestimated that nouveau riche."

Despite the fact that some officials change every year, the top aristocratic class of the Lu Ying Empire has long been solidified. The wealth accumulated by the great nobles over hundreds of years is simply unimaginable to ordinary people. Council seats, banks, social resources, wealth, and population are actually controlled by those top families.

As long as Lu Ying doesn't collapse, there will hardly be any major changes in the structure.

Therefore, under normal circumstances, no matter how hard a newly promoted noble works, they can only get a sip of soup; they shouldn't even think about eating meat.

If they really have the idea of eating meat, they will immediately be strangled in the cradle by those bigwigs.

However, technology is an exception.

Before this, no one knew that steam mechanical technology would develop so rapidly, nor did they know that its potential would be so exaggerated.

Grand Duke Raphael silently managed it for three generations, making a sharp turn.

A completely isolated mine also created such conditions for them.

By the time the imperial bigwigs truly reacted, it was too late to turn things around.

.......

The old butler said here, and then asked: "Miss, should we contact them? Just got the news, now the major lords, those few in the council, and even the royal family have extended olive branches to Grand Duke Raphael..."

The purple-haired girl's expression was as usual, and she said calmly: "It's too late to go now. Since Grand Duke Raphael dares to reveal his cards now, he must have something to rely on. Going now won't get us any benefits."

The old butler said worriedly: "If the rumors are true, will we be very passive if we don't contact them?"

"My impatient eldest brother and second brother are probably already gone; we don't need to join in the fun."

The purple-haired girl didn't care at all, and said: "Besides, that's not just a rumor. I have already received definite intelligence that Grand Duke Raphael has mastered many top-secret technologies. Right there, in that underground place called 'Old Lingdun'."

Hearing this, the old butler's eyebrows relaxed, and he suddenly realized: "So, Miss, you had plans long ago. I was too talkative."

The purple-haired girl changed the subject and continued: "Instead of directly looking for that cunning old fox Raphael, it's better to start with the Reiga Di family. It seems that these two families have been very close for a long time."

The butler immediately understood, "You mean, the marriage?"

He thought of something, his eyebrows furrowed, and he seemed to have some words that were difficult to say. After hesitating for a moment, he said: "Before, news came from the Reiga Di side saying that they were willing to marry, but it wouldn't be with the eldest son. But it seems that something has changed recently, and their attitude is very ambiguous..."

The purple-haired girl chuckled, obviously knowing something: "That's because they think that all illegitimate children should be killed. After all, my classmate William is very conceited and wants to hold everything in his hands. Hehe..."

Speaking of this, she suddenly thought of something, and a strange light flashed in her eyes.

But that glimmer hadn't caused any emotional fluctuations before it completely disappeared.

She said in a cold tone: "Sometimes, the eldest son is not necessarily the best choice."

The butler didn't know why his young lady had suddenly changed her mind, but he seemed to understand something and asked: "Miss, then how should we reply to the Reiga Di side? Should we cancel the marriage?"

"No, of course we're going to get married. That's an indispensable part of the family's interests..."

The purple-haired girl seemed to have lost the interest to continue listening and waved her hand, "You don't need to worry about this matter; I have my own arrangements."

"Yes."

The butler responded and withdrew very decisively.

(ps. Don't say why the old butlers of the big families seem so stupid and don't understand anything. A smart servant won't always make himself seem more intelligent than his master in front of his master.)

.......

After the riots, almost all the normal shops in the city were closed.

However, the must-have venues for the pirates' daily entertainment, such as taverns, brothels, and gambling dens, became even more lively.

When Suren arrived at the "Sailor Tavern," it was already crowded.

It used to be the secret meeting place for pirate captains in Blizzard City, but now it had become public, and the area had been expanded several times.

"Nine o'clock! Nine o'clock! Nine o'clock!"

"Big! Big! Big!"

"Oh, give me a good card, and I'll bust this dog dealer!"

"..."

Listening to the noisy clamor, Suren felt a sense of familiarity.

The mechanical sound of the slot machines, the noise, and the vulgar curses all reverberated together.

Pirates were almost all gamblers and drunkards, and the tavern was also the liveliest place.

After contacting her through the communicator, Chidori had already arrived.

Suren didn't find her in the bar area on the first floor. His intuition told him that the gambling addict must be sitting at a gambling table downstairs.

Sure enough, as soon as Suren walked down, he saw Chidori's heroic face at a high-roller table in a small hall.

She was sitting by the gambling table with her legs crossed, with a little girl holding a long knife next to her, looking sad.

Suren looked at the long knife, which was Chidori's saber.

He was very curious about when this gambling addict started bringing a little girl with her. But before he could say hello, he heard the sword-holding little girl earnestly advising, "Captain, are you still gambling... If you lose again, we won't have enough money to buy supplies this time..."

Although her voice was very soft, Suren heard it clearly and couldn't help but laugh.

The gambling addict hadn't changed at all.

When she was a cadre in the Cross Society, she often lost everything and relied on the help of the members to survive. Now that she was a pirate captain, she still had the same old problem.

However, there was something wrong with this gambling game.

Suren glanced at the dealer's dealing technique, and his pupils shrank slightly.

He didn't think that Chidori hadn't noticed the trickery.

This... it seemed like they were going to cause trouble?

Suren couldn't help but smile and walked over.

Chidori naturally noticed him, but didn't say hello.

The little girl next to her took out the last stack of banknotes from her pocket and anxiously advised, "Captain, this is the last bit of money. You should bet sparingly..."

Chidori raised the corners of her mouth slightly, took the money, interrupted her, and said meaningfully: "Your captain is about to turn her luck around."

The little girl pouted and muttered: "You always say that, but you always lose..."

Suren almost laughed out loud listening to this.

He also pretended not to know them and randomly found a seat at the table and sat down.

He could now see clearly that Chidori wasn't wearing a kimono anymore, but had changed into a signature pirate captain's outfit.

A deerskin tricorn hat, with a silver skull ornament on the edge of the hat; long leather boots that just covered the calves; a Gothic-style leather skirt that was convenient for fighting; a linen shirt that showed her cleavage; and a brownish-grey windbreaker with gold-edged tassel epaulettes on her back; a knife hung at her waist, and there were also three traditional flintlock pistols, the standard equipment for pirates, in the scabbard.

However, the clothes looked like they hadn't been washed for a long time, and the sloppy style was exactly like a pirate.

Suren chuckled in his heart and thought: This gambling addict has quickly integrated into the role of a pirate captain after coming ashore.

......

Suren sat down, and the game continued.

They were still playing Texas Hold'em.

This kind of gambling could make people rich quickly and also drain the last penny from a gambler's pocket.

Because there was something wrong with the gambling game, Chidori lost all of her last stack of money. As everyone was waiting for her to take out more money, she suddenly slammed the knife that the little girl next to her was holding onto the gambling table and shouted sharply: "I'll bet this!"

The pirate wearing an eye patch opposite her also looked like a captain.

This guy was also the biggest winner in this game.

Hearing this, a trace of discomfort flashed in his eyes, and he said fiercely: "Hey, hey, hey... What do you mean? You lost money and want to cause trouble? This is Chris's gambling den; you should think carefully..."

At this, a group of pirates also chimed in, looking like they would start a fight at the slightest disagreement.

Suren could also see that most of the people at this table were with the one-eyed dragon.

Chidori sneered: "I'll bet this knife that there's an 'Ace' in the dealer's sleeve!"

That female dealer's psychological quality wasn't so good. Being caught cheating at a pirate gambling table would at the very least result in her hands and feet being broken. Hearing this, fear was evident on her face.

The one-eyed dragon's eyes twitched, and he didn't give anyone a chance to attack. He took the lead and slammed the table hard, "What the hell are you talking about!"

With a "bang," the money and cards on the table were scattered, and the entire gambling hall instantly fell silent.

Seeing an opportunity, the dealer immediately wanted to take advantage of the chaos to shake her hand and drop the hidden card.

At this moment, a dark muzzle pointed at the dealer's head.

"If you dare to move, I'll blow your head off with one shot."

Everyone turned their heads to look, and it was Suren with a playful expression holding a gun. "I'll bet too; you have a card in your right sleeve."