บท 60: Reforged Chapter 60: Sea King Duke - Part 1
Another glorious victory.
More witnesses, more spoils of war.
For three consecutive days, the corpses of Greyscale Naga chieftains and hundreds of Murlocs were hung at the Stormwind City Harbor.
"Great Duke Marcus has cleared most of the Naga and Murlocs within 300 nautical miles from Stormwind City. Fishermen, you can now fish freely in the open ocean—if you join our 'Hurricane Trading Company,' you will receive better protection and better profits."
"If you don't have a boat, we can lend you one. All you have to do is sign a five-year labor contract with our company, agree to spend at least 25 weeks at sea each year, and promise to hand over 30% of your catch to the company. A brand new fishing boat will be yours, and upon the completion of the contract, the boat will belong to you."
As one of Duke's spokesmen, Marco has officially become a follower of Duke.
Now, he often helps Duke recruit more fishermen and young men to join Duke's newly established Hurricane Trading Company at the docks.
In fact, Duke's methods, similar to those used by taxi companies before his journey, prove irresistible to the jobless fishermen or their descendants.
Moreover, a greater variety of fish and seafood products support Duke's business expansion.
Especially in the past month, Duke has formed a whaling fleet.
On the large ship, Duke patted a few huge barrels next to him.
"These are float barrels. As long as you pierce the whale with a harpoon tied to a rope, there's no need to fight the massive creature. All we have to do is prevent it from diving, and when it's exhausted, victory will be ours."
Duke's explanation left Windsor, standing next to him, speechless.
Yes, Windsor had returned, bringing with him the craftsmen Duke needed. Even before he arrived in Stormwind City, he had already heard of Duke's fame in Kul Tiras.
The Pearl Route.
In an age where diving for pearls meant risking your life against Murlocs, Naga, and sharks, most people could only try their luck by collecting pearls from shells washed up on the beach. Yet Duke continuously produced a variety of underwater treasures that drove the nobles wild.
The emergence of the Pearl Route also stimulated the Kul Tiran merchants engaging in sea trade.
A 500 gold coin bet?
It's worth much more, even with two extra zeros.
So when Windsor arrived, he claimed to be the owner of the Pearl Route, sent to recruit craftsmen. With Duke persuading the Stormwind City military to lend a gryphon, Marco flew over and directly delivered a 20,000 gold coin promissory note to Windsor.
As a result, Windsor returned with a massive team of 200 craftsmen and cleared out the stock of all shipyards in Kul Tiras.
Little did he know, as soon as he returned and Duke saw the large ship Windsor brought, he had a new idea—a whaling fleet.
Others used their arms to throw spears, but Duke was better, cheating with a Mage Hand to insert the harpoon directly into the whale's tail.
The sailors watched in amazement as the large barrels floated on the water, not sinking.
An hour later, the exhausted whale surfaced, and the hundreds of sailors on the three whaling ships erupted in cheers.
Windsor and Marco were dumbfounded.
"Reggie, do you know what this big fellow is good for?"
Reginald "Reggie" Windsor, who was nicknamed Reggie, was still uneasy with Duke's almost blind trust and overly familiar treatment of him.
He wanted to keep things strictly professional, but remembered that he had lost a bet and was now a follower of Duke. With a sigh, Windsor tentatively answered, "Can we eat it?"
Duke laughed and shook his head. "Most whale meat isn't that tasty. What I'm after is something inside the whale."
Duke wouldn't reveal that his target was the ambergris found in sperm whales. Made into perfume, it would drive noble ladies across the human kingdoms of Azeroth wild. He generally knew how to make it, and this would be Duke's key stepping stone to wealth and prosperity.
Duke continued, "Of course, I won't waste such a massive amount of meat. When we haul it back, I'll show you how to cook it properly. By the way, whale fat is also valuable."
Duke already had a complete soy sauce brewing method, which he had unintentionally memorized when he was bored and researching what soy sauce was.
He would break down the process into multiple parts, with different masters handling each. In fact, the first batch was already produced, and the results were quite good.
A few days later, in the royal palace of Stormwind City.
King Llane Wrynn, the Queen, their young prince and princess, and Anduin Lothar were presented with a dish they had never seen before by the royal chef.
"What is this?" The king looked up at his chef, puzzled.
"This is a new dish recently introduced to Stormwind City – raw salmon."
"Fish? That smelly thing? And how can you eat it raw?"
In Azeroth, people didn't know how to remove the fishy smell, and fish was generally considered a lower-class food among the nobility.
But the royal chef, using the methods personally taught by Duke, showed Llane and Anduin how to pour lemon juice over the chilled salmon and how to eat it with wasabi and soy sauce.
With an open mind, both Llane and Anduin tried it.
"Mmm, indeed, the taste is very unique. I think I'm starting to like this," Llane said as he gently wiped his mouth.
The young prince and princess eagerly requested additional servings.
It was then that Anduin spoke, "Llane, do you remember the famous Duke Markus?"
"Of course, the youngest Archmage of our kingdom." As he answered, Llane glanced at the large fan-shaped red coral placed prominently in the dining hall. The fiery red coral had a radius of nearly a meter and was a gift from Duke to the king. "What about him?"
"This dish is also his creation."
"Oh? I thought he was a mage. How did he become a chef?" King Llane was curious.
"In fact, Archmage Markus has been involved in many things lately." Anduin listed Duke's recent activities one by one for Llane to hear. From reclaiming Naga and Murloc territories to establish the Pearl Shipping Route, to expanding the fishing grounds for fishermen, to whaling, to producing soy sauce and wasabi, and other spices.
The more Llane listened, the more intrigued he became. "I like this young man. My tax collector has mentioned him to me more than once, always with satisfaction. He pays his taxes promptly and in full. It seems we're in for a prosperous year. It's a shame... Medivh is missing; otherwise, I would introduce this dish to him as well."
"The problem is, recently, he has submitted a formal report to me, requesting to form a 200-person whaling team equipped with harpoons and crossbow launchers. He also wants to expand and construct a large stone pier."
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