Game of Thrones: The Road to Pirate King

Chapter 440 Business - Negotiation

In Qarse's intricate business game, Lisa Garfield clearly defined her own boundaries and territory.

She was open to any business that could generate profit, ranging from spices, jewelry, and textiles to food, timber, rare metals, and even intelligence and mercenary services; her scope of cooperation was vast.

Besides the slave trade.

No matter how lucrative the profits, Lisa refused to accept them without hesitation; this was a bottom line she would not tolerate. She had almost been sold into slavery, and Euron was also deeply disgusted by the buying and selling of people.

Lisa's confidence in negotiating with any major business tycoon stems not only from her personal business acumen, but also from another trump card she holds: the Ice and Fire Merchant Guild.

After more than a decade of careful planning and development, this business empire's route network has spread like a spider web throughout the known world.

Its reach extends from the major ports of Westeros in the west to Braavos and Pentos in the north, from the edge of the Summer Isles and Sothros in the south, and from the Jade Sea and the Isle of Thunder in the east; its influence is everywhere.

This vast network signifies unparalleled logistical capabilities, information nodes scattered across the globe, and a profound understanding of multiple currencies and markets. It is this solid backing that gives Lisa complete confidence and composure when dealing with the tycoons of Qarth; she brings not only capital, but also a passport to the entire world.

In the luxurious mansion of Zarro Zanwan Dasos, Qarth's most renowned merchant, Lisa Garfield sat across a pool of water from which blue lotuses floated.

"On the vast ocean, I am invincible." Lisa smiled as she softly uttered these words, her voice as clear and crisp as a dewdrop rolling on a lotus leaf. "These are the words my husband, Lord Euron, often says."

She picked up a glass of amber wine, but her gaze pierced through the glass dome, looking towards the distant sea: "From Thunder Island to the Stone Steps Islands, and then from the Summer Sea eastward to the Scorpion-tailed Beast Islands, you must have witnessed it all yourself, and this is absolutely true."

Zhalo, standing on the opposite side of the pool, narrowed his eyes slightly.

Lisa continued, "On the high seas, we are protected by sea monsters, and golden sea monster flags flutter atop our masts. Wherever the seas reach, the Iron Islands fleet can roam freely."

She gently placed the wine glass back on the table with a crisp sound, and gazed into Zarro's eyes, saying, "By cooperating with me, our goods can rely on this invincible fleet to be sold to any corner of the known world, to any port. Apart from the Ice and Fire Merchant Guild behind me, no other merchant guild dares to make such a guarantee to you."

Her tone immediately shifted, remaining calm, yet the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees.

"More importantly, you must know that the high seas are always turbulent and not always safe. Only with the approval and protection of the Golden Sea Monster can your merchant ships and your cargo sail smoothly."

Lisa's words contained no murderous intent, but the threat hidden beneath that calm was more oppressive than any roar. On this vast ocean, if the golden sea monster flag wanted to make someone's ship unsafe, then that ship would never see another port again.

Zhalo Zanwan Dasos stroked the heavy gemstone ring in his hand, falling into a long silence. He understood; this was not a request, but rather two doors—one of wealth and one of destruction—lay before him simultaneously.

Zarro was bald, yet he appeared more majestic than any crowned king. His scalp was meticulously shaved, gleaming like ivory, and inlaid with countless gems: three pigeon-blood rubies arranged in a triangle on his forehead, cat's-eye stones with flowing honey-colored halos adorning his temples, and the back of his head covered with tiny diamonds, as if the Milky Way had been crushed and sewn onto his skull—the Qarthians privately called this astonishing masterpiece "the star map of the Shang king."

He had a face sculpted by time and political maneuvering; his high, hooked nose was like a poisoned dagger sheathed in a velvet sheath, and the almost invisible pale scar on his left cheek added to his sinister appearance.

He wore a moon-white silk robe with dark gold dragon patterns embroidered on the cuffs and collar. A pigeon-egg-sized emerald hung from an indigo silk sash at his waist. The vibrant green swayed as he moved, making his light gray eyes gleam with a ghostly light.

Those were extremely light gray-blue eyes, like thin ice pierced by sunlight, yet they concealed a scheming more unpredictable than the deep sea.

Zhalo Zanwan Dasos stared at the swirling wine in his glass, his voice low and deep like distant thunder: "Madame Lisa, do you know that Great Morak Island, Elephant Island, Little Morak Island—these lands that were once etched with my family crest no longer belong to me?"

He raised his eyelids, the pale scar faintly visible in the candlelight: "Not only me, but many of the wealthiest merchants in Qarth suffered heavy losses because of your husband's conquest. We lost not only the islands, but also the shipping routes and trading posts that generations had painstakingly built."

Lisa gently swirled her glass, a smile playing on her lips. "Lord Zarro, you wouldn't expect the Iron Islands to spit out the meat they've already eaten, would you?"

Zarro downed the drink in one gulp, his jeweled head shimmering eerily under the lamplight, silence speaking volumes. He certainly didn't dare; if he had the guts, he wouldn't be sitting here sulking, utterly helpless.

Lisa stood up, the golden snake earring casting a swaying shadow around her neck, and said calmly, "In that case, we should know even better how to cut our losses. A wise businessman doesn't cry over spilled milk, but rather seeks a new source of milk."

She lightly tapped the nautical chart spread out on the table, drawing a circle in the unmarked shaded area east of Qarth: "The old routes have sunk, but new routes are rising."

Lisa said calmly, "When opportunity knocks and you fail to seize it, the consequence is elimination. The consequences are self-evident. What I want to tell you is that it doesn't matter if you don't cooperate; I will visit you one by one. In Qarth, when there's profit to be made, countless people will flock here. But what will you do then?"

Zhalo Zanwan Dasos: "You are very capable, and your terms are very convincing. I can't see why I wouldn't cooperate with you."

In the days that followed, Lisa moved like a precise chess player, landing on key squares on the Qarth chessboard.

In Melarre Rogar's hanging garden, filled with the scent of a thousand spices, Lisa picked up a pinch of precious golden cinnamon: "The Iron Islands now control the finest spice islands in the Jade Sea. If the Rogar family doesn't cooperate," she flicked her finger, sending shavings flying, "the competitors vying for your position would probably stretch from Longbridge to the Temple of a Thousand Gods."

Facing shipping magnate Aris Antalion, she opened the window of the council chamber piled high with nautical charts and pointed to the Iron Islands fleet laden with precious timber in the harbor: "The Ice and Fire Merchant Guild controls all foreign trade in the Summer Islands. The yew and gold timber there are enough to revitalize your fleet—of course, this requires you to show sufficient sincerity."

Lisa always manages to pinpoint everyone's deepest anxieties and most pressing desires. Backed by the Iron Islands' military might and lured by the resources of the Ice and Fire Merchant Guild, she transforms seemingly unsolvable predicaments into win-win deals.

As the focus shifted to the warlock of the Temple of Immortality, the Shadowbinder Evelyn stepped alone into the shadow-shrouded tower. Facing the shadowy creatures that Paiya Boli attempted to summon, she merely raised her hand. The roaring shadows coiled around her fingertips like gentle silk, then vanished as crystalline dust.

"In the face of a true master of shadow, your tricks are like a child's scribbles."

The Shadowbinder Evelyn casually deflected a violently struggling curse back at the caster, watching as the other person terrifiedly dispelled the spell she had cast.

"Tell your colleagues," she said, her black robes billowing as she turned, "that they either cooperate or watch their prized shadow magic become a joke."

When Evelyn returned to Lisa with the wizards' compromise, the Iron Islands fleet at the port had already begun loading the first batch of goods secured by magical contracts.