CHAPTER 408: CHAPTER 23 CROSSING THE SEA

To avoid unnecessary trouble, the group rode hard on their horses and reached Venice after spending most of the day traveling.

They had not encountered any pursuit from Purgatory’s Jailers, which Aske found regrettable.

What exactly do you regret! Albrecht complained silently in his mind.

Venice City State, built on numerous islands in the northern Adriatic Sea.

In the early Fourth Epoch, the city area of Venice was still on the mainland. Due to continuous invasions by Barbarian Transcendent armies into the West Solomon Empire, residents of West Solomon were forced to escape to the nearby islands. They demolished the bridges connecting to the mainland, maintaining only maritime and canal transportation.

They ultimately survived the Barbarian onslaught at the end of the Fourth Epoch and held out until the East Solomon Empire came to their rescue.

By the middle of the Fifth Epoch, as the national power of the East Solomon Empire declined, Venice gradually gained autonomous political status from the strict control of the Empire.

Among the most renowned autonomic benefits was Venice’s centuries-old policy of a free port and tax exemption, which attracted a large number of Italian financial consortia to invest in Venice, eventually turning it into a major offshore financial center of the West.

Economically, developed multinational banks, securities markets, funds and trusts, insurance, financing leases, and futures businesses, as well as various financial derivatives, were almost clustered in this island city-state on the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Royals and nobles from various mainland countries also preferred to deposit their properties in Venice banks or hand them over to professional managers for operation and preservation.

Politically, as a manipulative tool for Italian financial consortia to operate capital, at its peak, Venice City State could even openly challenge the Church Court and independently implement lenient policies towards Transcendents. This is also why the Emperor prioritized collaboration with Venice rather than negotiating by force.

After all, the Saxon Family also owned assets in Venice!

The group approached the seashore and saw from afar the gigantic bridge spanning the sea, which had been split into two sections centuries ago.

This was the famous "Venice Freedom Broken Bridge," which completely separated the Venice islands from the mainland.

"How are we supposed to cross?" Albrecht, a north Frank knight on his first visit here, was puzzled about how to enter Venice. "Should we cut down trees to make some canoes to row across?"

"Then you’d be sunk by their shore-based artillery," Aske retorted.

"What should we do then?" Albrecht asked.

"Find the Thief’s Guild," Aske said.

In the original world of the game, the first thing players did when entering a new town map was to find the Thief’s Guild.

Once they found the Thief’s Guild, one could clearly figure out which places and NPCs in the city offered tasks, where the secret black markets and illegal Transcendent meetings were, and most crucially, if you accidentally killed a resident’s chicken, how to pay guards a ransom to get rid of the warrant.

Aske walked to the shore, where the saline lake was full of dense reeds, appearing barren yet serene. He led the group about 1 kilometer along the reed beds and finally found a simple dock. A wiry young man was sitting in a boat, smoking.

Seeing a group of armed knights approaching from a distance, the young man’s face changed, and he was about to dive into the water to escape when he suddenly heard the sound of metal clashing.

More precisely, the sound of coins clashing, a clear and beautiful melody he knew all too well.

Aske held a purse and casually swung it in his hand in circles. The young man’s eyes followed the movement of the purse, turning round and round, until he finally couldn’t resist asking,

"Hey, what do you want?"

"We’re looking for a way to get to Venice," Aske casually replied, "and we’ve prepared a hefty ship fare. Too bad we can’t find a passenger ship."

"Hey, the Empire has even pushed into Italy, who’d dare sail passengers in the Adriatic Sea these days? Probably got forcibly conscripted by the Divine Luo Emperor," the young man chuckled, tossing his cigarette butt into the muddy ground beside him. "If you trust me, take my boat."

"You?" Aske also laughed. "How many can your small broken boat carry? We’ve got armor and swords, which are pretty heavy."

"Don’t be fooled by the shallow draft of this boat," the young man slapped the boat’s side, "but it’s broad at the bottom! Including myself, carrying two more knights wouldn’t be a problem."

"That’s fine," Aske couldn’t be bothered to haggle with him, "Three silver marks for everyone. For every one-third of the people transported, I’ll give you a third of the fare."

"Only three silver marks?" The young man jumped up as if greatly insulted, "That price is impossible! You need to know..."

"I know that in Venice, hiring a small boat like yours for half an hour costs only 80 copper coins," Aske sneered.

"That’s the in-city rate!" The young man, unexpectedly aware that Aske knew the rates within Venice City, quickly changed his tune and said, "From the shore to the islands, there are often strong winds and waves. Plus, there are Guards inspections. The price should be doubled at least..."

"Then we’ll keep looking," Aske turned around and spoke to Albrecht, "there should be more than one boat along the coast."

Seeing that the knights really were about to leave, the young man couldn’t keep calm anymore. Carrying people from the shore was off-the-books work, and whoever transported the smugglers would pocket their earnings—it wasn’t just him loitering at the shoreline.

If he ran into any of his companions, it was uncertain who might accept the three-mark fare, and then he would lose out on the money.

So, the young man stood up, raised an arm, and called out:

"Wait!"

The knights turned back, but didn’t speak.

"The price of three marks is barely acceptable," the young thief chuckled, "But recently the city has been strictly inspecting outsiders. You definitely won’t blend in with that gear."

"I do know a safe place for smuggling, just follow me. Of course, the fare is one thing, but any additional procedures will cost extra. You understand?"

"Alright." Seeing his compliance, Aske agreed swiftly.

Thus, everyone began to board the boat. The small boat could only carry two people at a time, so Aske arranged for one knight and one girl to board together, transporting all the girls first.

This was to prevent the possibility of two girls boarding at the same time, which might entice the young thief to take a risk by assuming the girls were easy targets (although, in fact, none of these girls were easy to bully).

The young thief quietly observed his arrangements, thinking to himself that this guy was indeed an old slick, not easily fooled.

After transporting everyone, Aske was the last to board the boat.

"Can you row?" asked the young thief, directly tossing the oar to him.

"A bit," Aske picked up the oar and began rowing effortlessly.

"Wow, a veteran," noticing his skilled handling of the boat, the young thief exclaimed, "You’re using the Norman rowing technique!"

"You know about the Normans?" Aske inquired casually.

"Of course," the thief said, "The Norman pirates have taken over Sicily, haven’t they? Everyone on this side of Italy knows that; we Venetian navy even battled with them."

"You were in the navy?" Aske asked.

"Used to be," the thief said, "but not anymore. Corruption is rampant up top; old soldiers can’t survive."

As he spoke, he leaned in closer and whispered mysteriously:

"Did you know? Recently our Governor of Venice was hanged at the gateway port of Tuoqieluo!"