Chapter 554 (1/2)

Chapter 554: Reaching the City of Neverwinter

Translator: TransN Editor: TransN

…

“There are so many boats here,”

Edith thought, lying beside the porthole of the poop deck. She glanced over to see the fleets that were coming and going on the Redwater River.

Since she entered the Western Region, she noticed that many strange Concrete Boats were sailing on the river with no wind sail, making the stream a very crowded one. And according to shipmaster’s introduction, they were called paddle steamers. They relied on steam power to march forward and their speed could not be influenced by the wind. It was said that even if you sail upstream, they were faster than the sailing ship. A paddle steamer usually marched in front of other boats on the river with a string of black smoke lagging behind. No one could clearly explain how the steam pushed the big wooden wheel on both sides of the boat.

While one thing was certain, these things were made in the City of Neverwinter.

Edith secretively made some estimates that almost every hour there would be one paddle steamer passing by. If it was cargo that these ships carried, then there was no doubt that the amount of material the City of Neverwinter was importing would be astonishing. She learned from businessmen that a city could not be bigger than its ability to import materials. You could get a rough idea about how prosperous this city was and how many business opportunities it could offer, if you just stayed for a couple of days on the city’s main road. You would even know what the most popular goods of the city were if you were good at communication.

Obviously, the Redwater River was the most important main road for the Western Region.

And watching this busy stream way, she believed all the propaganda she had seen in the king’s city might be more than just Roland, His Majesty’s brag.

In such a short time, Roland had integrated the Western Region into one new city whose permanent population and commercial trade had outperformed the old king’s city. Such an outstanding heir to the throne actually had a bad reputation of being ignorant and stubborn… Thinking of these rumors, Edith was more interested in Roland Wimbledon.

“Miss Conrad, are you observing the boat again?” The door was pushed open, a well-dressed, brown-haired, handsome man walked in. “Want to go out to breathe some fresh air? You must be bored of staying here all the time?”

“No, this place is nice.” Edith stood up and nodded to him. “Thank you for your hospitality.”

“You don’t need to thank me,” he laughed and said, “I’m lucky to have such a beautiful lady’s company.”

Edith had heard too much of these kinds of compliments, but she still replied with a delightful look, “Without your help, I’m afraid I may have had to crash with the cargo and refugees.”

“Of course I couldn’t stand by and let this kind of things happen,” the man sat opposite and said. “There’s no one jeweler who’s willing to let jewelry be covered with dust, and you’re just like jewelry to me.”

This man was Victor, the owner of the Everspring boat. He was a jeweler from the king’s city. After their original boat was burnt, Edith quickly picked out this two-master ship from all the ships that traveled to the Western Region. It was not a passenger boat, neither did it accept any employment. It was Victor’s private ship. But for the Pearl of the Northern Region, as long as the ship-owner was a male, everything was fine.

She pretended to be a noble lady from the Northern Region, who came to the Western Region to find her missing relatives. With a couple of words, she made Victor feel sorry for her and invite her aboard the Everspring voluntarily. Compared with the common miniature sailing boats and freighters, the Everspring was spacious and bright, with a comfortable passenger cabin in the poop deck. Besides, it did not have the odors of the rotten wood that were caused by the longtime aquatic travel. Victor even arranged two servants for her, without charging a single gold royal from her.

Of course, the only price she needed to pay was to endure Victor’s visits from time to time, showing his generosity and concern, but for Edith, who had been good at running around the circles of the noble, it was just a piece of cake, as she had already gotten used to it. And if he was good enough, she would enjoy the feeling of controlling him.