Chapter 230: Stay or Leave

In the following days, Wu Qingsong continually modified the airship’s envelope and pod materials, structure, and shape to reduce wind resistance and hope for greater speed.

However, he was limited by the available materials. Despite his resourcefulness, it was impossible to make something out of nothing. The precious material Ling produced could only be used for the envelope and the propeller, not for anything else. Therefore, many of his ideas would have to wait until they returned to Orgrimmar to be realized.

During this time, Ram and Red Moon were working to reach more agreements with Queen Gale and her ministers.

Following Wu Qingsong’s advice, they had revealed the true situation on the mainland to the queen. As Wu Qingsong anticipated, this revelation fostered greater trust between the harpies and them.

When the strong and the weak collaborate, the weaker party always has various concerns because, besides the strong party’s conscience and sympathy, there is no way for the weak to ensure they will not be harmed in the partnership.

However, when both parties are weak and face the same terrifying and overwhelming enemy, they can join forces for survival and form cooperative relationships in many areas.

The harpies were always most concerned about safety, and this was even more so after learning about the terrifying Elven Empire. This might be due to the stories passed down from their ancestors. In fact, they were not only uninterested in Red Moon’s proposals, but they were also strongly opposed to them, leaving Red Moon feeling very frustrated.

“After the sea tribes were driven away, we have enough resources to feed our people. There’s no need to risk being discovered by engaging in trade,” the harpy who had previously questioned Wu Qingsong, effectively the leader of the opposition, argued vehemently. “As long as there is profit to be made, it will attract those who seek it. People will want to know where these goods come from, and they might eventually trace them back to our island.”

She even strongly suggested keeping Red Moon and Eddie and their people on the island.

In fact, their faction wanted to ensure that no one left the island. Since they couldn’t interfere with or change Wu Qingsong’s decision, they aimed to minimize the risks as much as possible.

“We completely trust Lord Tagraedi and you, as well as your subordinates, but can you vouch for Red Moon, her captain, and those sailors? Can you guarantee they won’t reveal the existence of Gale Island?” 

They went as far as to ask Ram directly, excluding Red Moon and her team from the conversation.

They were blunt, telling Ram that Queen Gale had sensed Red Moon’s attempt to exert mental influence on them from the very beginning and had warned them about it.

“We absolutely cannot trust someone like her!” 

They expressed their emotions strongly, leading Ram to suspect that this might actually reflect Queen Gale’s own opinion, merely conveyed through them.

This made her secretly pleased. As a former victim, seeing Red Moon suffer felt like sweet revenge. 

However, from Ram’s perspective, the harpy sirens’ demands were quite unreasonable. Those people weren’t even their subordinates, so why should Wu Qingsong and Ram vouch for them?

Moreover, they themselves didn’t fully trust Red Moon and the Dark Moon organization behind her. How could they guarantee that these people were trustworthy?

If they returned, Red Moon would have to come to Orgrimmar as a de facto hostage, but what about Eddie and his crew? Who could ensure they wouldn’t divulge what happened? At the very least, they would certainly report everything to the other members of Dark Moon. What Dark Moon would do next was entirely unpredictable and uncontrollable.

Previously, Wu Qingsong and his team were merely stowaway passengers. The crew had no idea about their identities, only knowing where they boarded and disembarked. Even as the captain, Eddie only knew Wu Qingsong’s name and that he was an important figure but had no specific details about his identity or activities. After disembarking, it was unlikely their paths would cross again, so there was no fear of them leaking information.

But now, having seen Wu Qingsong use necromancy to control sea monsters, these people had become a significant threat, even if the harpy mages hadn’t mentioned it.

“This might be the best solution,” Ram quietly confided to Wu Qingsong. “We can use those sea monsters to help control and operate the ship. We don’t necessarily need these crew members. Leaving them on the island is beneficial for both them and us.”

Of course, dead people wouldn’t pose any security risk, but she knew Wu Qingsong’s principles. He would never agree to kill these people for such a reason.

So, whether they were detained in the Silver Moon Wolf territory, Orgrimmar, or on the island, it made no difference. At least on the island, they could move around freely.

She even thought leaving Red Moon on the island temporarily was a good idea. 

Otherwise, with her ability to manipulate minds, who knew what kind of trouble she could cause when they weren’t paying attention?

Even if she did nothing and simply observed what was happening in Orgrimmar, that itself would be a risk.

Detaining her or allowing her to stay relatively free on the island, the latter was certainly more humane.

It might seem like they were being overly cautious, but given Red Moon’s tendency to use mind-influencing magic as a greeting, it was hard to trust her.

“Alright,” Wu Qingsong agreed to Ram’s suggestion after weighing the pros and cons. 

However, he decided to reject Ram’s idea of telling them and chose to inform them himself.

“Lord Tagraedi…” Captain Aifre didn’t seem surprised by this outcome. 

Throughout his life, he had seen and even participated in many situations where secrets were kept through deadly means. But witnessing it and being on the receiving end were two very different things, and he found it hard to bear.

“I have a wife and kids… My granddaughter was just born, and I haven’t even seen her yet,” he pleaded, looking at Wu Qingsong.

“Give us their address. We can arrange to bring them here to reunite with you,” Ram suggested.

Eddie sighed deeply. “Forget it. My wife and I have been separated for years. As a sailor’s wife, she must have come to terms with this sort of thing long ago.”

“What about the crew?” Wu Qingsong asked.

“I’ll break the news to them. They should accept it. Being alive is better than being dead,” he smiled wryly. “At least this island is big, and there are plenty of bird people. Maybe after a few years, we can even learn their language.”

“Once we have developed enough to confront the elves and no longer worry about these secrets leaking, you can return home,” Wu Qingsong promised. “I guarantee you will be well compensated.”

Aifre laughed bitterly again. To him, this essentially meant, “You’re going to be stuck on this island for the rest of your life.”

“What about Miss Red Moon?” he asked quietly. “Is she staying with us too?”

“I will not stay here!” Red Moon’s response was firm. “If you try to make me stay, you might as well kill me now!”