After battle, the veteran Solusian warriors together with their draftees picked the field for spoils. Like hyenas, they happily fought over the remains of the pirates. Specially contested were the few bronze weapons and articles of armor that the pirates equipped themselves.
Linus put the newly branded slaves to work right away. He didn't want for infectious diseases and other pathogens to spread, so he ordered the slaves to dig pits for the mass disposal of the bodies, while some of them were tasked to gather those that were cleaned and picked by the Solusians in the field.
With the danger gone, Samir and his fellow workers came downstream. Their eyes almost popped out, seeing the massive defeat the pirates suffered in the hands of the Solusian defenders. They didn't know how massive their contributions were until they were told by Ray and his men. Samir palmed his head regretting coming late to the party. They weren't able to pick the bodies clean for themselves.
Linus congratulated Samir. "Job well done, Samir. It's the flooding of the river that caused them the most casualties, dampening their morale. Don't worry. I asked the men to give you some of their share for your contributions." A couple of men came in, dragging a cart full of goods picked from the pirates.
"Thank you Young Master!" Samir and his fellow workers bowed, earnestly thanking the boss for the opportunity.
At night, celebrations commenced, and the Solusian townsfolk merrily ate and drank as much crude liquor as they could. The draftees joined in the fun, locking arms with the townsfolk, dancing and singing together in harmony. Only the grumpy Old Vincent didn't join the celebrations, shutting himself alone in his house.
"Man, that Old Vincent really ought to change his ways." The people gossiped.
"Another magnificent victory fellows! Let's raise our cups to the person who brought us victory! To LINUS!" Ray raised his cup to the crowd.
"TO LINUS!" in unison, the crowd raised their cups to their Deputy Chief's name.
The next day, Linus sent out squads of veteran Solusian warriors to survey the surroundings, ensuring that no stragglers were left out in the wild. Ray together with his group of brothers went as far as the coast to monitor the situation. Hidden in the rocks, they spotted three pirate ships moored with only a few people onboard watching over, waiting for their masters' return.
"There's no need to ask the Young Master. We'll give these things to him as gifts. He knows how to better make use of them." Ray told his brothers.
Ray and his brothers snuck into the ships and used their newly acquired bronze blades to slash anyone who resisted. Although there were a few fatalities during the takeover, most of the men left on board were unarmed and didn't have any will to fight. They surrendered as soon as they saw the raiders' violent intent.
The crew were used to it, the law of the sea, that when pirates crossed each other, fights may break out and one group may appropriate the loser's ship along with its crew. They didn't want to offend the new masters of the ship, so they were submissive, hoping they would keep their jobs.
"Good, you know which side to pick. Your pirate masters were completely wiped out in the battle of the river Aourus." Ray proclaimed. "It is impossible for these three ships to have brought all of those men, where are the others?" he asked.
"They already left, Sir. I thought they will come back for some supplies or reinforcement, but they probably caught wind of the news. We didn't know, so we're left here, waiting for Master Gaspar and others." a crewmember spoke.
"Gaspar's dead, that's why we're here. No one's coming to get you. Now, I'll leave some of my men to guard over these ships. Those who wanted to eat must work, so maintain the ship." Ray said.
The crewmembers all sighed in relief they weren't dragged out of the ships to be brought elsewhere to work. They spent their lives in the sea, doing something for a living would have made their lives miserable. They were far more fortunate compared to the pirates who were tasked to mine for the rest of their lives.
In Solus settlement, Linus studied the effect of his newly acquired skill in his study, thinking of the potential applications for it.
[Harnessing Water Power]
[Type: Passive Skill]
[Level: 1]
[Grants user the technology necessary to build a water mill. The power provided by the mill can be used in many applications for agriculture, metalwork, woodwork, and others.]
Like magic, his head was filled with information about construction of a watermill. Although he already knew of the concept of water power beforehand, he couldn't just build a mill without prior experimentation, which may require a lot of trial and error. The skill saved him many hours of hard work researching the technology.
"I can't wait to get Simon to build a sawmill by the river." Linus sketched the blueprint of on a wooden board using a stick of charcoal.
"LINUS!" an angry Lina found herself at the back of the boy. She pinched and pulled the boy by the ear, saying "Young man! What on earth are you doing when your father is being held captive somewhere? Why don't you put that thing down first and think of how to get him out?"
"Ouch!" Linus reached for his ear. "The old man is fine. I'm sure of it. I swear to Enqui." he knew that Julius was doing alright since the system told him so, though he realized that his behavior was a little too calm for a person in a similar situation.
Lina pulled on his ear again. "Do not blaspheme the gods! Do something!"
"Enough! I'll do something. I'll get Uncle Rock." Linus rubbed his ear, feeling it almost got torn away by the abuse.
He packed up his things and prepared to leave for the mountain fortress when the devil himself came knocking at the door.
KNOCK! KNOCK! The door opened and a smiling Julius stepped inside "I'm home!"
Drop! Lina dropped the cooking utensils in her hand, immediately flying to Julius' arms. "Welcome home honey!" In a warm embrace, the two shared a kiss as if time momentarily stood still. For a moment their eyes locked at each other, gleaming weakly to the ambient light. Julius then started caressing his woman's rear with his other hand caught under her upper garment, forgetting their son's presence.
Linus' eyes dropped. "GET A ROOM!" He yelled, turned back to his room, and shut the door behind them. He sat down the study and busied himself, finishing the watermill blueprint he planned to show Simon.
Knock! Knock! "Son, we're sorry. We're just, you know, it's a long trip…" Lina spoke behind the door.
"Alright, alright, I'll come out for lunch later." the boy replied behind the door.
"No, son. We have a guest. Your dad says they need to talk with you." Lina coaxed.
"Alright." Linus replied, stepping out of the room.
In the living area sits a gentleman with a refined temperament, patiently waiting, sipping tea with his long legs crossed. "Ah! Tea could never be better drunk in this porcelain cup. Oh, you must be Linus." Their eyes met.
"Right, I'm Linus Stannous, son of Julius. And you mister?" Linus asked.
"I'm Blake Shepherd, the third son of the Shepherd clan, Nora's husband. Your Auntie told me many amazing things about you. From the bottom of my heart, you have my thanks for saving her from the bandits. Come here and sit down boy." Linus felt awkward offered a seat at his own home.
"Oh, you must feel confused with my coming here. I helped your father get out of the cell using my family's connections." Blake told Linus.
"Ah, I heard about that incident. Please tell us what happened." Linus sat down.
"First, I got your father out. Just with my family's name, they city guards never bothered objecting to my demand. It was suspicious too, so I sent someone to investigate the matter. It appears that the guards were bribed by someone to detain Julius." Blake paused, sipping tea.
"Exposed, I filed a complaint to the chief against the corrupt guards. Later, we got the chance to interrogate them. They were told, by a fellow who hides his face under a hood and a mask, to detain Julius for a week for reasons they didn't know. They accepted a generous sum from the suspicious man and did as instructed. The warden was found to be in cahoots with them." Blake put the cup down.
"That man must be with the pirates." Linus replied.
"What are you up to son?" Julius asked.
"No, rather, did you hear what happened here in Solus while you were gone?" Linus asked.
"A little. That you repelled some pirates." Julius replied.
"Some? There was an army of them more than three-thousand men strong!" Linus said.
"Three thousand!" jaws dropped, Blake and Julius said in unison.
"Yes, and it was a very convenient time for them to come. Like they knew you were away for business or something. The pirates may even have a spy in our settlement. We must be careful." Linus said.
"Right, the timing was very suspicious. But tell me more how you fought against those numbers? There's no such way we could field enough men to fight against them all." Julius said.
"Oh, it's a long story, but I'll tell you anyway." Linus said. He told the two how the defense of the Mountain fortress went according to the reports.
"Lunch is ready, boys!" Lina called them, interrupting Linus from telling the story.
Lunchtime, Linus continued the tale over food, telling Julius and Blake how the battle of river Aourus was won using the newly developed tactics. The men were engrossed listening that they didn't notice how much time had passed. By the time Linus was done narrating the tale, the sun was about to set.
"That was the most fascinating tale, Nephew. Oops, I almost forgot my other purpose." Blake smiled.
"What is it, uncle?" Linus asked.
"I came here to negotiate a deal. I heard from your father that you made Sean Haroldson the exclusive distributor of your wares up north. I'm very interested in doing business with you." Blake clasped his hands together, his eyes sparkled in great anticipation.
"Pops?" Linus glared daggers at Julius.
"Come on, son. Just give a little something to repay your uncle's kindness." Julius winked, his teeth sparkled.
"Alright." Linus' eyes rolled. He turned to Blake, saying "Uncle, I can negotiate a deal with you, but under one condition. Help us investigate this Lady Priscilla."
"That's a thing the Shepherd clan will gladly help you with. This will be a long ride." Blake replied.