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Chapter 68: A Lively Sea Voyage

—Two weeks later.

We traveled from the royal capital Quinpella of the Kingdom of Algeas to the trading city of Livonia.
In Livonia, we regrouped with the nomadic horse-rider tribe, the Kiritai, who had gone ahead of us, and began our journey home by ship.

Barbar’s Viking ships rode the wind swiftly and smoothly.

「Whoa! It’s rocking! It’s rocking!」

「Keep it down, will ya?!」

On my ship was Balta, the chieftain of the Kiritai tribe who had sworn allegiance to Barbar. He brought his horse along and boarded with us.
This was his first time seeing the sea and riding a ship, so he was brimming with excitement.

Rosso of the Great Lizard Tribe barked at the noisy Balta.
But the two of them were speaking different languages, so there was no real communication.

「Oh! I see, Sir Rosso, you too are enjoying the swaying of the ship!」

「You’re all fierce on horseback, but useless on water.」

「Indeed! I never imagined the sea could make my heart dance like this!」

「Hey! Don’t stand up! It’s dangerous!」

「Hahaha! Refreshing! Absolutely refreshing!」

「I said sit down!」

Their conversation just wasn’t lining up.

I was the only one who could understand both Barbar’s and the Kiritai’s languages, so I understood how mismatched their exchange was, but I found it amusing and left them to it.

Meanwhile, Balta’s horse was lying down quietly on the deck, behaving well.
Jessica, the elf, was sitting beside it, gently stroking its neck.

「There, there! Good boy!」

「Brrrr.」

The horse narrowed its eyes, clearly enjoying the attention.

Our Viking ship could only carry one horse at a time.
To move all the Kiritai people and their horses, we’d have to make multiple round trips between Barbar’s port and the trading city of Livonia.

That would take a lot of time.

So, in Livonia, we started hiring merchant ships to help transport the Kiritai people and their horses.

Initially, we Barbar folk were treated as outsiders in Livonia,
but once we presented the letter of introduction from Crown Prince Alex, the officials and merchants of Livonia instantly changed their tune.

They said they’d find us ships to carry everyone to the port of Barbar.

It takes time and money to transport the Kiritai, but…
they are skilled cavalry. Adding them to Barbar is worth the investment.

「Gaia. This expedition had enormous returns!」

My uncle Athos, seated beside me, said with a satisfied grin.
He had received a hefty payment from the Kingdom of Algeas, sold the spoils of war, and made a big profit.
No wonder he was in such a good mood.

「Indeed. In terms of money, manpower, and horses…」

「Above all, connections! Forming strong ties with the royal family of the Kingdom of Algeas was huge. Well done, Gaia!」

Uncle Athos gave me a hearty slap on the back.

Princess Sophia now comes out to the courtyard regularly and has regained her appetite.
All thanks to us Barbar folk.

Even the following day, Princess Sophia dined in the courtyard with Jessica.
The Kingdom of Algeas was surprised by her improvement and agreed to reevaluate her lifestyle and diet.

She took a strong liking to Jessica’s wild strawberry jam.
We arranged regular deliveries to the royal palace of Algeas.

Of course, Uncle Athos personally negotiated the price with the palace procurement officer.
Transport costs were high, so they managed to strike a good deal.
I’m grateful for my shrewd uncle.

「Hey, Gaia! I want to study Algeasian! I want to talk directly with Sophia-chan!」

That was Jessica, still stroking the horse.
Barbarian, Elven, Vaffancrow Imperial, Algeasian, Kiritai,
Thanks to the gods, I’ve mastered many languages, but we’ll need to train more interpreters.

Ahh, there’s so much to do!

Open a Barbarian shop in Livonia.
Build trade relations with the Kingdom of Algeas.
Expand the port.
Produce more ships.
Grow our trade network.
Train interpreters.
Secure settlement space for the Kiritai tribe.
Expand Barbar’s territory.

And then…

「Vaffancrow Empire…」

From the deck of the ship, I gazed southward.
***
The Emperor drinks more and more.
Dissatisfaction is building among the various ethnic groups under the Empire’s control.

We must gather strength and forge alliances to eventually bring down the Vaffancrow Empire.

「Hmph…」

I softened my stern expression.

No need to rush.
For now, I’ll focus on one thing at a time.

「All right! Let’s head home!」

「Yosoro!」

Gauch answered energetically.
The Viking ship rode the wind, slicing through the waves.

Surrounded by my lively companions aboard the ship, I smiled.