Herald of Steel

Chapter 1362 Crimson Sword Pirates (Part-3)

The existence of piracy in these times was due to a variety of factors.

For one- there were various actors all wishing to pull their enemies down by straggling their trade and thus revenue.

Two- for many, this was a major source of their revenue as the cost of acquiring the stolen goods was much, much less lower than their original selling price. The poorer lords lived on these 'cheap imports'.

Three- there was a great, thriving industry surrounding the servicing and catering to the needs of these pirates, which made scaling down these activities now all the more impossible. There were not just cities, but entire regions related to the 'services' these pirates provided.

And four, and perhaps the most important of all- the vast majority of the slave trade was done by these pirates.

These men would regularly raid coastal settlements and other unprotected parts of the whole Central Sea's coastline, where tragedies like Vidiyan's would occur every day as if they were a dime a dozen.

After all, how else could all the countries get to sate their ever unquenchable thirst for more and more slaves?

Other than massive wars, there was very little chance to obtain slaves in everyday occurrences.

And this was how slaves, numbering as much as a hundred thousand to sometimes even half a million passed through their hands every single day!

Not in a month, or even a week, but in one day. This was a number too mind boggling to even think about.

And that too without Adhania's participation, which was one of the most populous countries in the world.

All of these reasons meant that without a global blue water navy like the United States patrolling the world's seas, in ships that were impossible for any independent actor to build and operate, the opportunities and incentives for piracy to not only exist but also thrive and flourish were too great.

The only way to root them out would be for Alexander to advance shipbuilding technology to such an extent that these wooden vessels became virtually useless so that not anyone with a dingy could hold merchants at swordpoint.

But until he reached that stage....

"Hmmmp, indeed what you said makes sense Captain Vidiyan, I should better protect my ships. But at the same time, I have also never been attacked in any meaningful way. My convoys have always left and reached with their cargo mostly intact. So as you can see.... why should I bother?"

The fact also was that the majority of Alexander's exports went to only two places- the Margraves and Pasha Farzah.

And they always left for those ports in very large convoys of anywhere from fifty to a hundred ships that naturally made them very hard to attack.

Most pirates preferred to bite something much smaller.

"No my lord, you underestimate the greed of us pirates." However Vidiyan seemed to have a very different view, solemnly shaking his head and pointing,

"The reason why your trade routes have not been attacked is not because they are safe. It is because most of the pirates have not realized their value yet!"

"Forgive me if I am wrong, but I believe that you only started trading two or three years ago. This is too short a time for us to take notice. Especially since Adhania rarely trades with other countries in the first place. So the only ones aware of your ships till now are likely the few local pirate forces and they are too small to dare attack a Pasha!"

But Alexander only internally scoffed at this sophistry

'The difference is they are my soldiers, under my full command. You are just a hired killer, a loose cannon.'

There was of course no way Alexander was going to accept such tall demands.

And he let it be known clearly, waving his palms very dismissively,

"This is too much. Even if what you say about the Heeat family is true, that was then and this is now. Everything is different. You admitted it yourself. You are desperate."

"In fact, it is I who is taking a big risk trying to shield you from such a ducal family. So let's not waste any more time and make a real offer."

The air of impatience Alexander gave was like he could not wait to get up and walk off.

And this indeed caused a brief panic to flash through the pirate captain's eyes as he clenched his teeth,

"We.. we can forget about the reduced prices in maintenance. But the rest...."

There was a look of defiance as he trailed off.

While Alexander casually matched that gaze, lightly humming as he scanned the man for any weakness.

Until with a trace of his chin, he narrowed his eyes and mused,

"Hmmm, I also forgot to ask, but what is stopping me from using my own navy to protect my ships? Why do I need you? They will surely be more loyal."

The pirate captain did not take the last words into heart, neither did he falter one bit at the rivaling question.

He just straightened up and chimed,

"You can have both- me and your navy, my lord. We offer different services. Particularly, we are useful when the situation calls for.... Anonymity."

Let us say no to piracy! Don't take part in a crime! Don't patronize thieves!

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