Chapter 101

"Fire!"

*BOOM* *BOOM*

I smile at the sight in front of me. The canon is working as intended. We have yet to invent a flintlock type of cannon, but this is good enough for us at the moment. I smile at the group of engineers and scholars who make this project come to life.

"Good work, all of you."

The oldest man in this group walks forward and says.

"Don't worry, your highness! Your proposal is so interesting that we cannot help but work on this project."

"I will tell Bakir to reward you guys for your good work."

"Thank you, your highness."

I let them celebrate and look at Lorio, my Admiral.

"Lorio, I need you to put these cannons into the ship. You need to train them from the beginning but it should not be a problem. We are not in a hurry."

"Of course, your highness. With these cannons, the pirate will have a harder time facing our fleet."

"Good. However, we also need to plant inside their heads the safety of these cannons. There are a lot of accidents happening when the engineer did not store them correctly. I will teach you and the others about it."

"Of course, your highness. Should I prepare a room for it?"

"No. The training ground should be good."

I also need to train the people in Stormfist about using cannons and taking care of them. A cannon on the wall would be a great help against the Dothraki. I shake my head and decide to take care of the project one by one.

Stormfist is in great condition and can hold against the Dothraki for weeks to a month. We also can help them from the sea and attack their flank as they will never touch the sea, for they are afraid of them.

After checking and ordering my people to produce more of the cannon for the ship and the wall of Stormfist, I get back to the palace.

=||=

I look at the man coming from Braavos. Bakir tells me that he is from a family of rich merchants that has a good influence with the Iron Bank and the Sealord. The man himself is a new merchant that joins late in the game. However, because of his family, I cannot just ignore him.

"What can we do for you?"

The man bowed to me and said,

"Thank you for your time, your highness. The reason why I came here is to do business with you."

"Oh? What kind of business?"

"My family is a merchant family from Braavos since the first foundation of Braavos. My brothers are rich merchants that go around Free Cities and Westeros in search of money."

"So you want to do the same?"

"That's right. However, unlike my brother, I want to go to the far east. To the land of the mystic."

I raise my eyebrow. There is a lot of the land of the mystic in the east.

"Which one? The Slaver bay? Qarth? Yi Ti?"

"Qarth and Yi Ti, your highness. My men have found a route that is safe to go to Qarth and Yi Ti."

"If you have that route, why do you come here? Braavos has goods you can trade with Qarth and Yi Ti."

"And there is a problem, your highness. Even when it is the safest route, my crew still needs to go through the Gulf of Grief. After passing that point, we are all good."

"Tell me what you want."

"I want protection from the Lunaria Kingdom to pass the Gulf of Grief. Lunaria is the only one who can protect us from the slaver of Slaver's bay."

"Why not pay the fee to pass through the place?"

The man shakes his head and says.

"No. The fee is too big for me. They demand a lot of gold and other valuable things to let us pass. The only one who is willing to pay the fee is the one who wants to sell a LOT of goods to the other side. That is the reason why Qarth's merchants have a massive ship. They will have a massive profit from their voyage and can pay for the fees."

I nod my head and think for a few seconds.

"What do you offer?"

"I am willing to give you ten percent of the profit I got from the trade."

"That's it?"

"Not only that, but you can also get access to the route we take and the safe point where your crew can rest. You can also bring your merchant to come with us and trade in Qarth and Yi Ti."

"Fifteen."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that, your highness. Eleven."

"Ship is expensive, you know? Fourteen."

"I know and that is why I am willing to go as high as thirteen."

I nod my head and say.

"Very well. I will think about it. I will inform you in two days. While waiting, please enjoy our hospitality."

The man bows his head and walks out of the throne room, leaving Bakir and me alone. I look at Baker and say.

"What do you think, Bakir?"

"Truthfully? It was not a really profitable proposal. We don't know if this route is really safe. The Jade Sea is a harsh sea that only a great sailor can go through. If this route is truly that safe and the only problem is from the slavers, then this will be a profitable expedition."

"Hmmm, should we test the water first? Send a small fleet to accompany them and see if this route is truly safe."

"That would be a wise decision, yes. If we can train our soldiers in the art of cannon, we are good to fight the slaver from a great distance."

I nod my head and say.

"Prepare seven ships and goods we can sell to Qarth and Yi Ti. We need to know what kind of goods they want and what kind of goods are cheap in that area. Send a team of merchants and write what is happening in the market of Qarth and Yi Ti. If we need to do an expedition, at least we need to get a lot of profit from doing it."

I get up from my throne and walk out of the palace. I need to play with Dany, Rhae, and Ari. I need to relax for a little bit. All these projects and meetings make my head hurt.