Chapter 331: Volume 5: Lord’s Path - 16: Rhode Island
Rhode Island, this place is an inconspicuous island among the Bermuda Islands in the Southern Nether Sea region. The surrounding Shajia Island has a more advantageous geographical position than this one, Mannlicher Island is larger in size, and Closseau Island boasts more beautiful scenery. But unexpectedly, this is the location of the headquarters of the Gray Skull that controls the sea transportation throughout the entire Southern Nether Sea region.
On the northern end of the island, two gigantic, sharply pointed capes extend deep from the northeast and northwest, forming a vast oval-shaped harbor. The cape on the northeast extends farther into the sea. At the very tip, a lighthouse built from gigantic basalt rocks looms into the clouds. At night, the lighthouse’s beacon can be seen from at least fifty miles away on the sea. As the cape winds deep into the ocean, although the cape stretching to the northwest isn’t as extensive as its northeastern counterpart, its terrain is much flatter, and the few hundred meters wide waist of the cape is also much straighter. There’s also a lighthouse at the tip of this cape, just considerably shorter. The tips of both capes have a split, akin to the pincers of scorpions and crabs, hence their names, Eastern Pincer Cape and Western Pincer Cape.
The two protruding capes form an arc-shaped island arc, and the inside of this arc becomes a series of natural deep-water harbors. A string of docks of various sizes along the inside of the island arc looks neatly arranged. Outside the island arc lie excellent fishing grounds, while the series of hidden and visible reefs along the arc happen to be the Southern Nether Sea’s most famous coral producing area. However, if one wishes to fish or harvest coral there, they would need to see how the mood of the island’s master fares.
The bottom of the island arc constitutes the most concentrated area of buildings on Rhode Island and is also the most bustling district of the island. Foreign vessels entering the harbor between the closely watched Eastern and Western Pincer Capes are greeted by a gloomy three-story building located right in the middle of the arc’s base. A flag with a white background and a gray human skull insignia unfurls on top of the building. The skull’s eye sockets are embroidered with black silk thread, making it even more striking against the wind.
The window in the center of the second floor is wide open, and an elderly man with a slightly hunched back faces the bay. He wears a snugly fitting velvet waistcoat with a gold-edged chain hanging from the left chest. His nearly closed eyes resemble someone about to fall asleep. His hands are clasped behind his back, skillfully rotating a sandalwood pipe between his fingers. The sea breeze brings bursts of salty, fishy aroma, but the elderly man seems to quite enjoy this scent from the open sea, flaring his nostrils and looking thoroughly content.
A burly man with sideburns stands respectfully behind a large desk, bending slightly in front of this hunchbacked old man. He doesn’t dare to show the least bit of disrespect in front of the old man. Perhaps if this hunched old man were to appear in any other setting, those who do not know him would assume he is some elderly noble or gentleman. Nobody would associate him with the leader of the Gray Skull, the formidable power of the Southern Nether Sea.
"So you’re saying that this new Lord of Caucasus seems quite ambitious, which doesn’t quite align with the information that Philip old chap had passed along." His half-closed gaze remained on the calm sea surface within the harbor. There aren’t many ships coming and going – it’s not the busiest time. Occasionally, a couple of small patrol boats glide out of the harbor, performing routine patrols along the edge of the capes. No matter the situation, these routine patrols could never be neglected, that was one of the ironclad rules set by the old man. Once someone breached this rule, they would end up dangling from the noose erected in front of the three-story building.
"Yes, it is said that these 150,000 immigrants are already on their way, and will start arriving in Caucasus one after another within half a month at most. The attack from the Half-beastmen of the North has been too fierce; several countries and city-states have already fallen, hence such a large number of refugees. Upon his arrival in Ugru, this new Lord immediately started rallying local powers on one hand while seeking various opportunities on the other, appearing very much like someone ready to make a big impact in Caucasus. It is rumored that they have discovered an iron mine on the southwest corner, bordering Barbarian Territory, and this Lord is already recruiting and mobilizing the populace to focus on constructing a road from Ugru to the mine, presumably to solve financial difficulties within the territory." The burly man with sideburns then added, "Now Hesse father and son and that Lord have gotten quite close, especially Hesse’s son. He has hit it off with one of the Lord’s attendants who came with him, and almost all daily affairs within Caucasus Territory are now being managed by that attendant and Hesse’s son."