The three-day journey ended quickly, and along the way, the group of Norscans was not as difficult to manage as expected. On the contrary, when Rhodes was there, they were still respectful to the White Bear Lord. Boss consciousness is one of their main traits, the leader can have all the privileges in the army, priority for the spoils of war, priority for the best food and women, and even after the battle, the spoils of war are distributed by the leader.

Naturally, Rhodes, as their leader, also enjoys all these privileges. As long as the Norscans submit to this chief, they will obey him wholeheartedly, because they are convinced that the leader will lead them to survival, lead them to plunder more wealth, and lead them to victory. All of this is what the leader says. But, in the same way, in order to become the leader, one must always be ready to accept the challenges of other members.

This is a process of upgrading, survival of the fittest, no matter how bad your physical condition is, no matter how old you are, as long as someone in the team challenges you, you must accept the challenge. The winner of the duel will become the leader of the team, and if it is the original leader, he will continue to serve as the pirate captain or leader.

If the challenger wins, he will kill the original leader and become the new leader of the team. This primitive and barbaric system is the tradition of the Gnoscans. Rhodes knew that the combat power of these twenty or so Norscar marauders could even carry the beastmen head-on, but once they became their leader, they had to be ready to accept the challenges of others all the time.

......

Baker City, a seaport city in the northern part of the Imperial Oster Territory. Compared to the Black Hammer Fort where Rhodes was before his departure, this is a real big city. The half-moon-shaped harbor pier is filled with sailboats, and countless masts are like knights' spears pointing into the blue sky. When the Flying Giant landed, she almost couldn't find a place to anchor.

Spring is the time of the explosion of trade, and the demand for trade that has been dormant for a whole winter is exploded in the short spring, when the ships of the North and the Empire come and go, passing through this small port to the world. As a result, Baker Harbour is also at its busiest time, with the trade boulevard on the side of the wharf, with countless shops open to the public, and when the goods are unloaded from the wharf, merchants head straight to the market, which acts as a trade transit point.

You'll find all the specialties from the North, the South and the West. This is Caroline's favorite picture. Kislev is cold and solemn, but here, it is prosperous and welcoming. A person, especially an extroverted and adventurous person, will always get tired of staying in a certain place for a long time, and when she appears in a completely different place, the people and things here always evoke her most primitive happiness.

"Lawrence, watch her!"

Once on the shore, Caroline jumped ashore excitedly and ran in the direction of the market. Seeing this, Rod hurriedly asked Lawrence to catch up and watch this unreliable witch. Along the way, Caroline is of no use except to cause trouble for herself. It can be said that from the time I met her to the present, in the Battle of the Evil Moon, the witch showed what she should look and do, and other times, she was just a drag bottle.

"Celta, have someone unload the goods, and then you come with me, I have something to do. ”

Rhodes said.

The docks were full of people, and as soon as the Flying Giant docked, many dock workers came to ask for work.

"Two copper plates, sir, as long as two copper plates, we will help you move these goods to the warehouse. You definitely need a place to rest, let me do it for you......"

The foreman poked his head out and solicited business with a smile. Rod made a gesture, "Two copper plates, you send three people, help me unload these goods and transport them to the market warehouse, be careful, if you break it, I want you to pay double compensation." Rod said aloud.

"No, no, you can rest assured, you are satisfied. ”

The foreman nodded hurriedly and took the job with a smile. As for those Norskas, Rhodes knew that these people were just some guys who had nothing to do all day long, and they were tortured by asking them to fight, being more active than anyone else, asking them to do things, carrying goods, or something. The reason why the plunderers are called predators is that they have no habit of their own labor, and everything depends on plunder, plundering women as wives, plundering gold and squandering, and even plundering men as slaves.

Once the arrangements were made, Rhodes took his newly appointed lieutenant, Celta, to the underground trade market in Baker City. There was his old friend, the Imperial merchant Joyson. Rhodes is actually no stranger to this city, as far back as he can remember, he has been here many times, Kislev is not rich in products, and many of the materials in Black Hammer Fort are actually imported from the Empire, including soft bread, clothing, olive oil, ceramics and so on.

As for this old friend Joyson, he is not a serious person, he is a smuggler. The management of the borders of the empire was not so orderly, and all kinds of pirates and smugglers prevailed. Many people look like serious businessmen on the surface, but in fact, they are doing shady things behind the scenes. Even local officials have a leg with these smugglers. Because of the "protection fee", they turned a blind eye to their business.

Joyce is one such businessman who wanders in the gray area. Rhodes didn't let his subordinate Iron Paw go to him before, because he was afraid that Iron Paw was not familiar with him, and without close contacts, it would be impossible for the smugglers to receive him.

Walking through the bustling coastal trade boulevard, Rhodes and Celta arrived at the outer market of Baker City, the outskirts of the market. A place that specializes in buying and selling a variety of common goods. Here, the narrow streets are lined with small buildings of two to three storeys, with shops on the lower floors and rooms and apartments and hotels on the second and third floors.

"Fresh meat, come and see, freshly slaughtered in the morning. ”

"One copper plate, two copper plates, three coppers, sir, one of you? Just caught from the sea." ”

"Apples, oranges, wine from La Charre, lemons from Rabiu......"

"The mouth harp, the silver trumpet, the mirrors used by the ladies, come, look, they are all of the best order. ”

In the market area, small traders and vendors crowded the alleys, and the smell of fish and pork, the smell of vegetables and fruits, the smell of flowers coming from flower shops, and the smell of all kinds of liquor from wine merchants filled the air, which made people feel sick to their stomachs. However, this is the life of ordinary civilians in Baker City.

"It's here. ”

Finally, through the out-of-town area, Rhodes and Celta came to a special house. It's an inconspicuous corner at the end of the alley, and when you look through the arcade, it's dark but brightly lit. There were no guards at the door, but Rhodes knew that every shopkeeper inside had hired bodyguards, and it was a veritable black market.