"I was wondering why there had been no movement from Bloodstone Island these past few days; it turns out they were waiting for us here."
Watching the warships eyeing them hungrily on the distant horizon, Loga couldn't help but lick his lips.
"Brothers, our opponents have appeared!"
Seeing that the sails overhead had already been hoisted, Loga shouted to his men, "They want to catch us? Well, let's see if we give them the chance!"
With a world-shaking roar, the pirates on Loga's ship howled and shrieked, rowing their oars with all their might, wanting only to fly away from this sea area as quickly as possible.
The Triarchy's ships far outnumbered theirs and were clearly prepared; no one wanted to throw their lives away here for nothing.
The sea wind howled as the Triarchy's warships trailed far behind. Loga did not dare relax, constantly urging his men to increase their rowing speed.
At this moment, a southeast wind was blowing, and the fleet was sailing with the wind. While the distance between the two sides seemed far, with the boost from the wind, it could be closed in an instant, so no one dared to be the least bit careless.
Unexpectedly, however, after a symbolic pursuit for a distance, the Triarchy's warships actually turned their bows and sailed back.
The pirates on the ship immediately cheered and jumped for joy, thinking they had scared off their pursuers. They made crude gestures toward the opposite side, their strange cries rising and falling.
Loga was also somewhat surprised. He had thought a fierce battle was inevitable and hadn't expected the enemy to give up the pursuit so easily.
"Perhaps they saw our scale wasn't small and didn't want to pay a heavy price."
Loga shook his head and ordered the fleet to slow down, adjusting their course toward their intended target.
After sailing at sea for another half a day, Loga's fleet was completely away from The Stepstones and had arrived at the mandatory route for House Velaryon's merchant ships from Driftmark.
They docked at a deserted island to replenish fresh water and rest the crew. The pirates scattered in twos and threes; some wiped their weapons, while others lay on the beach sunbathing, conserving their energy for the subsequent actions.
For several days, there was nothing on the sea but seagulls—not even the shadow of a merchant ship.
Fermon couldn't help but lean in toward Loga. "leader, could the Shipwright's information be fake? If we wait any longer, the brothers will go crazy from boredom."
"Trust my judgment. Let them endure a bit longer. Soon, I'll take you all to find a good place to enjoy yourselves."
Loga withdrew his gaze from the horizon and offered a few words of reassurance. Although his subordinates were puzzled, given the prestige he had built over these days, no one dared to disobey his orders, and they remained lying in wait on the deserted island.
Until the following morning, an urgent report finally came from the scout ship at sea: "leader! The merchant ships from Driftmark have appeared!"
Loga looked into the distance and saw three merchant ships flying the silver seahorse flag appearing on the sea. He was instantly overjoyed. "It seems the Shipwright's intelligence was correct."
"Have the men get ready; a good show is about to begin!"
Fermon and the others were confused. Weren't they here to plunder these merchant ships?
Seeing the bewildered looks on his subordinates' faces, Loga smiled and explained, "According to my arrangement, when the merchant ships from Driftmark pass through here, they will encounter a 'pirate attack.' We will then step in to rescue them. This is the best excuse to make contact with Lord Corlys."
Only by gaining his trust will it be possible for us to become mercenaries for the Black Party."
With the war between the Black Party and the Greens in Westeros imminent, Loga had to intervene as early as possible. Only by demonstrating his value could he join the Black Party and gain the opportunity for Dragon taming during the future selection of Bastards!
As for how to demonstrate his value, he paused and pointed in the direction from which the Driftmark merchant ships were coming, his tone carrying a hint of craftiness: "Since we want the Black Party to see our value, we'll just create the opportunity ourselves."
Everyone followed his gaze and saw several flat-bottomed rowboats racing out on the horizon behind them, carrying howling pirates in no small numbers.
These were idle pirates scattered throughout The Stepstones. They had received the news Loga had sent people to spread in advance, thinking Loga was going to move against the Driftmark merchant ships. Coveting the rich spoils from his last raid on the Dornish camp, they followed en masse, wanting to seize the merchant ships before Loga and get a piece of the pie.
For these usually destitute pirates, being able to follow Loga—a rising star among pirates who had recently gained fame—out to sea for plunder was an opportunity that absolutely could not be missed.
Unfortunately, they didn't realize that the moment they followed Loga, this predator of the high seas, like a pack of hyenas, they had already fallen into his trap.
Although his subordinates were still a bit dazed, Loga was clear in his rewards and punishments and generous with his wealth, having long ago established absolute prestige. They immediately responded and stood ready on the ships.
The fleet slowly sailed out of the deserted island's bay, but its target was not the Driftmark merchant ships currently under attack, but rather those plunderers.
Those idle pirates rushed to the front, taking the lead in engaging with the Driftmark merchant fleet.
Seeing movement from Loga's fleet, they became even more impatient, roaring and quickening their actions, wanting only to conquer the merchant ships and claim the spoils for themselves before Loga arrived.
After all, the world of pirates had always been simple and cruel: whoever took it first had the final say.
"Damn it! News of the convoy's route has leaked! These pirates have been lying in ambush here for a long time!"
The manager of the Driftmark merchant fleet stood on the deck of the lead ship, his face as pale as paper as he watched the pirates approach in their flat-bottomed rowboats.
These ships were House Velaryon's routine merchant vessels traveling between Westeros and Essos, carrying mostly ordinary supplies like cloth, pottery jars, and spices. Because they weren't important, there were only about fifty guards on board. Faced with a sudden raid by so many pirates, they were caught off guard.
The pirates threw out grappling hooks, firmly latching onto the merchant ships' gunwales, then grabbed the ropes and swung up. Rusty scimitars and crude spears rained down on the guards.
"Kill!"
A pirate leader with a face full of scars roared, swinging his blade to cut down a guard. "The Throat-Cutter's fleet is right behind us! We must take the merchant ships before he does! Let him know that only veteran pirates are fit to command these waters!"
The deck instantly fell into chaos. Although the guards fought desperately, they were outnumbered and soon retreated step by step. Cloth was slashed to shreds by scimitars, pottery jars shattered on the deck, and spices scattered everywhere, mixing with blood to emit a strange odor.
The merchant fleet manager was protected in the center by two guards. Watching more and more pirates swarm the ship, he was sweating profusely with anxiety and roared, "Protect the ship in front at all costs! You must not let the pirates get close!"
In the rear, Loga saw the siege of the merchant fleet intensifying and knew it was time to act. He didn't want to take a fleet of dead men to negotiate with Lord Corlys.
"Move out! Follow me and attack these scum who dare to steal our food!" Loga suddenly drew the longsword at his waist, the blade flashing with a cold light in the sun.
The sails were hoisted once more, and the five ships raced toward the sea where the melee was occurring. His subordinates on board could no longer contain themselves, roaring as they prepared to join the fray.
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