CHAPTER 79: CHAPTER79-THE EXPERIENCE WITH THE DEEPSEA TRADE ASSOCIATION

"A good person?" Owen’s smile faded from his face as his voice grew louder. "Should a good person let themselves be deceived?"

"No, sir," Morton felt an inexplicable surge of pressure, as if a towering wave from the deep sea was crashing down upon him, casting a terrifying shadow over him.

"Go on," Owen said, his gaze shifting away from Morton to the vast expanse of the Gosa Waters.

"Yes, sir." Morton didn’t realize when his back had become soaked with sweat, as it kept breaking out incessantly.

"I am the second son of the Sebastin family from the Deepsea Trade Association. Our journey into the Gosa Waters was indeed for the purpose of transporting goods."

Morton watched Owen’s expression, feeling as if his heart was being tightly clenched.

Half of Owen’s face was shrouded in darkness, while the other half was illuminated by the light, creating an oppressive interplay of light and shadow.

The critical point was that Owen showed no sign of surprise at the revelation of Morton’s identity.

The Deepsea Trade Association, after all, was the most powerful maritime commerce guild in the Laine Kingdom.

Mentioning its name alone would make the people of the Laine Kingdom give way.

Yet Owen showed not the slightest reaction.

Morton could see that Owen wasn’t feigning composure; he genuinely did not regard the Deepsea Trade Association as significant.

"Uh—" Morton pondered for a moment and then sighed deeply. "Transporting goods was only one of our objectives; the other was to find the Heart of the Ocean."

Suddenly, Owen asked, "Did you seek the guidance of an old man from a coastal fishing village?"

"How did you know, sir?" Morton’s face changed slightly, and a chill ran through his body.

Could it be that the Deepsea Trade Association had always been under scrutiny?

"Don’t overthink it," Owen offered a gesture of goodwill. "I just happened to know about it. Continue, please."

Morton let out a sigh of relief and, gazing towards the majestic expanse of the sea, spoke in a low voice:

"After learning about this, we brought fishermen from the village to seek out Heartstealer Island. Once we pinpointed its location, we sailed back to prepare for a more equipped expedition to Heartstealer Island."

"We spent half a month in preparations, assembling a formidable team. A grandmaster-tier leader, assisted by four master-tier experts, along with thirty diamond-tier warriors."

"We thought with such an impressive lineup, securing the Heart of the Ocean would be a sure thing. Unexpectedly, we didn’t even set foot on Heartstealer Island."

Owen’s statuesque face showed a flicker of disturbance.

Such a lavish force, capable of decimating a small disadvantaged race, couldn’t even reach Heartstealer Island?

It seemed the battle for the Heart of the Ocean was not as straightforward as he had imagined.

Probably the entire sea race of Gosa Waters had united against outsiders.

Owen’s mood grew heavier.

"Maybe we should call Barlo over?" he thought, as Morton continued his story:

"We dove into the sea, only to find Heartstealer Island already under the control of powerful sea races. Most were intermediate races, but there were two advanced races - the neptune race and the merfolk."

"The moment we approached, a belly-general of the neptune race confronted us, demanding we leave. Outnumbered and outmatched, we decided not to engage in a direct confrontation and abandoned our plan."

"But," Morton’s voice trembled with emotion, "they didn’t intend to let us go. The neptune race’s belly-general, along with a dozen tail-generals, attacked our ship, intent on making us perish in the Gosa Waters."

Morton’s eyes reddened with fury, his fists clenched so tightly they creaked: "These are nothing but beasts, we clearly wanted to leave."

Now, Morton was left with nothing but impotent rage.

After a long moment, he calmed down and continued:

"It was only through the self-sacrifice of our association’s grandmaster that a sliver of hope for survival was bought, allowing me to escape from the ship. Otherwise, not a single member of our Deepsea Trade Association would have returned."

Owen remained unaffected by Morton’s emotional state and said coldly:

"Didn’t you realize why the neptune race wanted to kill you?"

Morton, stunned, stared blankly at Owen:

"Sir, what do you mean by that?"

"Hmph, it’s likely that the powerful individuals in your association planned to retreat first, then spread this news to the public, enticing more people to come to Heartstealer Island to vie for the Heart of the Ocean. Then you would take advantage of the chaos," Owen conjectured.

Morton’s pupils shrank, his words stuttering: "Sir, this is... not... like that."

Owen waved his hand, indicating that Morton need not explain:

"Enough, I’ve already obtained the crucial information. The rest is up to you."

"Yes," Morton lowered his head, his face shadowed.

Owen had hit the nail on the head. Driven by their greed for the subartifact Heart of the Ocean, they had planned exactly as Owen described.

They had not anticipated the neptune race’s ruthless decisiveness in preventing any leaks by eradicating them without hesitation.

Owen added: "Now you have two choices. The first is to stay on the ship until I return, and I will take you back to the mainland. The second is to accompany me to Heartstealer Island. Choose for yourself."

Morton’s eyes widened again, his voice almost distorted with incredulity:

"Sir, did you not hear what I said? Heartstealer Island is now surrounded by the sea race. Not even a fly, no, not even a tadpole could get in."

"And you still want to go? I see your strength is merely at diamond-tier. Going to Heartstealer Island would be nothing short of suicidal."

Owen did not respond to Morton, standing stoically.

Morton then realized that he only had the power to choose, not to advise.

"I won’t go. I’ll wait for you on the ship. Sir, it may not be pleasant to say, but I think you must be mad," Morton said, shaking his head as he left the deck and disappeared into the cabin.

He passed Finn on his way, giving him only a fleeting glance, unaware that he was in the presence of the second prince of the Laine Kingdom.

"Sir Owen, it seems your conversation with him wasn’t very pleasant?" Finn approached Owen, his demeanor relaxed.

"It was fine. Have you heard of the Deepsea Trade Association?" Owen asked without turning.

"The Deepsea Trade Association, he’s from the Deepsea Trade Association?" Finn appeared surprised.

"Ah, I should have guessed. Only the Deepsea Trade Association could manage to venture into such deep waters."

"Oh, is the Deepsea Trade Association that powerful?"

"Indeed. They pay over three billion gutecoins in taxes to our royal family each year. They are a key entity that we actively support. The chairman of the Deepsea Trade Association even met with our father, the king. I heard he brought a millennia-old jade coral to the king, a precious gift indeed."

"How strong are they?" Owen inquired.

"Quite formidable. The king has granted them special permission to maintain a private army of three thousand, making them akin to a regional lord. But they are quite rational; these forces are mostly deployed at sea. Their measured approach has put the king at ease. In fact, the chairman of the Deepsea Trade Association is quite a figure."

"I’m referring to their high-level strength."

"Oh, well, in terms of royal standards, they have only one grandmaster-tier individual and about twenty at the master-tier. As for those below master-tier, there are many more."

"It can’t be just one, can it?" Owen’s expression turned quizzical.

If a grandmaster from the Deepsea Trade Association had perished in the Gosa Waters, wouldn’t that mean their strength had been halved?

"Ah, sir, you must understand that every family has its secrets. In the kingdom, there are only three hundred and twenty-seven registered grandmasters, but many more are unwilling to register. So, the kingdom has at least a thousand grandmasters. It’s normal for these major families to have one or two hidden grandmaster-tier individuals."

"That makes more sense."

"What’s the matter?" Finn asked curiously.

Owen shared his recent conversation with Morton with Finn.

Finn’s face lit up with a sort of schadenfreude: "I didn’t expect the Deepsea Trade Association to meet such a tough challenge. Losing a grandmaster-tier individual is a significant blow. The Far East Trade Association is going to bleed heavily this time, and their local influence will drastically diminish."

"You seem quite pleased?" Owen was somewhat surprised. Finn did not show the expected shock; instead, he seemed quite delighted.

Finn chuckled softly: "Sir, I may not match your talents in terms of inherent abilities, but I like to think I have some skills in governing a nation."

"As I just mentioned, the Sebastin family is currently very influential, their power in the region far exceeding what’s typical for a single family. The royal family is deeply concerned, fearing the rise of an uncontrollable lord. Now that they’ve lost a grandmaster-tier individual, their position is bound to be somewhat affected."

"It’s possible they might even seek the royal family’s help to prevent other trade associations from uniting against the Deepsea Trade Association. Perhaps we could then broker a significant deal."

"The king certainly won’t miss this opportunity to reclaim power. For the royal family, this is a godsend."

Owen glanced sideways at Finn, surprised at his political acumen.

"However, I am quite curious. Morton, hearing that I still intend to go to Heartstealer Island, was thinking of ways to stop me. Yet you show no worry, which seems unlike you."

Finn looked earnestly at Owen and said: "Sir Owen, I am concerned. But I believe in you."