Reborn As a Pirate

If the Scandinavian Peninsula is the source of the image of the evil dragon Nidhogg in the Viking mythology system, then the Borkenfjord must be the nasal cavity used by this evil dragon to breathe out flames and frost.

Bypassing Cam Island, the Artis Beauty sailed into the Borken Fjord.

The hydrology here is complicated, with cliffs and cliffs on both sides of the bank, and small islands all over the way.

During the driving, the channel suitable for large ships is sometimes wide and sometimes narrow, intersecting with other ships from time to time, leaving only a small gap of a few meters between the two ships.

In this environment, Henna's steering skills must be difficult.

Lorraine took over the handwheel early and furled the mainsail, Henna stood in the watchtower, and the crucial bowsail was entrusted to Keren to take care of it.

Their destination was the Black Harbor of Stavanger.

Stavanger, the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Norway with the same name, was built on the Tongennes Peninsula on the west bank of the fjord, while this prosperous Black Harbor was built in Lundes, which is separated by a sea and less than 20 kilometers away in a straight line. island.

The boat sails on the water, following the outline of the island around the pier.

Standing at the high helm position, Lorraine saw a grassy slope on the south side of the island. On the grassy slope was the famous Utterstein Abbey with white walls and a red roof.

The monastery was built on the sunny slope of Ulstein Island next to Lennes Island. It began in the Augustus period and was once the oldest religious building in the Kingdom of Norway.

It has been glorious for four hundred years, until the religious reformation broke out in Europe in the sixteenth century, it was abandoned by the king and given to the Ivason family, and then became the private property of the Garman family for various reasons.

And it just so happens that the Garman family is the actual controller of Staneghey Harbor and the only member of the management committee.

If the news from Elgin is true, Sir Garman, who manages Black Harbor, was expelled from the family because of his non-religion. He is an "abandoned son" and a pure Viking.

Thinking of this, Lorraine could not help but narrow his eyes.

Sir Garman's belief and identity are his advantages, while his never having contact with real Vikings is his disadvantage.

How to make full use of strengths and avoid weaknesses, and quickly open up the business route of Stavanger?

As he thought deeply, a tall and slender gunboat suddenly inserted into the back of the Artis Beauty.

She filled the narrow channel with sails, smashed the waves, and swished away against the side of the Beauty.

The crew of the Beauty jumped in fright. Lorraine steered the rudder, and Karen controlled the sails, frantically avoiding possible collisions.

The moment they passed by, Lorraine could clearly see the flag flying on the opponent's mainmast.

Black background, white pattern, the pattern is two skulls facing each other. There is a sword and an ax under the skulls, which cross to form an X.

Two young men as tall as giants stood side by side on the deck. The long-haired one hung a Scottish machete at his waist, and the bald one carried a wheelaxe.

When the distance between the two sides was the closest, Lorraine vaguely saw the bald man spit: "Tch, Brit!"

After a while, the gunboat disappeared, and the terrified crew gathered around Lorraine.

Little Pierce's face was pale, and there was a bulge on his forehead from the fall just now, which was red and swollen very high.

He trembled with lingering fear: "Captain, was that skull flag just now? Are they... real pirates?"

Karen frowned deeply: "From the perspective of the flag, they should be the Viking Twins Pirates, which have become famous in recent years. The leader is a pair of twin brothers, Leif and Bonet from the Eriksson family."

Hannah looked at Karen differently: "Do you know them?"

"I haven't met the two captains, but the Black Harbor Branch of Bell's Dock has repaired ships for them, and also handled the merchant ships they robbed, so I'm more or less familiar with them..."

Pierce opened his mouth: "Their boat...is so big."

Lorraine held the steering wheel and shook his head slowly: "Brigantine standard, 30 meters long,

Brig. The foremast sail is 20 meters high, and the main mast is 22 meters high. The bowsprit is 5 meters, four triangle sails are hung, and there are two wind-catching sails between the two masts. "

"This type of ship is a standard high-speed ship, with a speed of twelve knots downwind and five knots against the wind. It is slender, stable and adaptable."

"She's no bigger than the Belle of Tis. You think she's bigger mainly because she has a longer bowsprit and a lot more sail than the Belle."

"Besides... Brigantine has five decks. Even if the two upper decks are removed, her ship height is nearly two meters higher than that of the Belle at a similar draft."

Karen's face was serious: "Captain, have you seen what's on their deck?"

"Cannon." Lorraine let out a long breath, "There are eight cannons on the main deck, all of which are six-pound guns. There are two stern gun windows in the poop, and the ten side gun windows on the gun deck are also closed. Fully loaded, that is twenty gunboats..."

Karen took a deep breath: "This is a real gunboat..."

...

Even though psychological construction has been carried out long ago, the experience of encountering the Gemini Pirates in the waters of Black Harbor suddenly cast a shadow on the hearts of the crew of the Artis Beauty.

The North Sea is not calm.

In this small sea area, the Scots, English, French, and Dutch are haunting the densely-covered routes, and the strongest and cruelest of them...is the Vikings.

The home of the Viking pirates is on the small islands dotted around the Scandinavian peninsula. There are about 20 or 30 pirates in total. The Gemini pirates are just one of them, and they are far from the most powerful one. .

This made Lorraine pay attention to a problem again.

If the Chamber of Commerce wants to use Northern Europe as one of the fulcrums of triangular trade, he must properly address the threat of pirates.

Sir Garman...could it be an opportunity?

Under the setting sun, the Artis Beauty sailed slowly into the peaceful harbor.

Stavanger's wharf was a bit dilapidated, and it looked far less orderly than Elgin's, at least Lorraine didn't see the pilot.

The ship randomly chose a vacant mooring pier to anchor, far away from the Gemini Pirates on the other side of the harbor.

After the ship stopped, Lorraine left Keren and Pierce to guard the ship, took Henna into the port area, and began to inquire about Sir Garman's hobbies and residence.

In his mind, Henna and he were both pagans. In the port of the Vikings, they should be born with an affinity higher than the belief in God.

It's a pity that his plan was good, but his luck was not so good.

After inquiring around in the port area, he learned that Sir Garman lived on Ulstein Island across the strait most of the time, and only came to Black Harbor two or three days a month to handle chores, and the last time he visited the port happened to be May Days ago.

He also likes quietness, and he doesn't like strangers to disturb his peaceful life...

This is almost the worst news, and it means that Lorraine is likely to stay in this strange black port for a whole month.

He and Haina walked back helplessly, and when they got back to the pier, they found a group of big men who looked like pirates, howling and attacking the Artis Beauty.

There were about a dozen of them, clamoring and confronting each other around the plank road and the boat.

Karen carefully removed the plank of the ship. They could not directly board the ship, so they began to throw the hook line to the ship, and climbed to the deck according to the way of connecting with the ship.

A total of five or six hooks were hung on the 20-meter-long main deck at the same time. Pierce was cutting vigorously with a kitchen knife. Karen wanted to protect him while dealing with three or four opponents who boarded the ship at the same time. There were several bloody cuts on his body, and he defended extremely hard.

Lorraine was dumbfounded.

Lao Tzu's boat... was robbed at the anchorage pier?

"Damn it!"

Lorraine, who had encountered a soft nail all the way in the port area, became angry, and even uttered Chinese.

He was angry from the heart, evil to the guts, he drew his sword with a clang, and the tiger descended the mountain as if pounced into the battle group!

"Hina, try to stay alive!"

"Oh."