Chapter 264

The Temple Knight said: "Yes, my lord, the Slo family monopolizes all rice supplies in the eastern region!"

Baomanzhu Sect said: "The Slo family is powerful, the largest clan in the eastern region; their family even has a prodigy mage who, it is said, became a Magus at barely thirty. Now that divine beans from the Beastman Nation have entered the market, they will inevitably disrupt their rice business."

Here, his tone shifted: "But the Slo Count is as wealthy as a nation, with many ways to make money; the current volume of divine beans is still small, and may not attract the Slo family's attention. Go there yourself and inform the old Count of our findings—the old Count has long been interested in the eastern Beastman Nation; decades ago, he personally armed a five-thousand-man army to join that expedition!"

The Temple Knight said: "Yes, my lord!"

The political system of the Hilin Kingdom resembles the Western Middle Ages before Lin Yan's reincarnation.

Noble estates of all sizes dot the Hilin Kingdom.

Of course, the royal family is the greatest noble, holding the most land.

The church also holds substantial land, nearly equal to the royal family's.

Together, the royal family and the church control nearly half of the Hilin Kingdom's land; the rest is divided among the various small and large nobles.

Commoners naturally lease land from these nobles to farm, then pay a certain tax.

By the way, mages and knights are already considered part of the Noble Class; once registered, they can all claim a certain amount of land.

The church's presence prevents nobles from imposing excessively high taxes—or too low ones—since the church sets the minimum; most nobles tax at one-quarter.

On church land, commoners can lease land with even lower taxes—typically one-fifth to one-sixth.

Royal land taxes are similar to the church's, and nobles must also pay the royal family a certain amount of Qian Cai annually!

Above small nobles are large nobles; above large nobles are even larger nobles—this is the structure of the Hilin Kingdom!

For small-scale wars, the royal and church armies can handle them alone.

For large-scale wars, conscription begins from the lands of small nobles.

Layer by Layer, troops are summoned upward, and each noble is responsible for arming their own conscripts.

Even in peacetime, nobles maintain large private armies—as long as they can afford it!

The Slo family is the largest noble in the eastern region, with a standing private army exceeding five thousand.

During wartime, the Slo family can arm an army exceeding ten thousand from their vast territories.

"Armed" here naturally means fully equipped.

The armor, weapons, and boots of a single warrior require substantial funds—each supported by gleaming gold coins.

The Slo family's ability to sustain such a massive army reveals wealth of terrifying scale.

If not fully equipped, but only lightly armed, the Slo family could raise an even larger army!

Within the Slo family's vast castle lies a grand hall with exceptionally exquisite decor.

"A letter from Baomanzhu Sect?"

A well-dressed steward took the letter from the Temple Knight and brought it to an old man warming himself by the fireplace, reading it aloud in a low voice.

The long letter took the steward nearly half an hour to read.

The old man was the Slo family's old Count.

After listening, the old Count spoke in a hoarse voice: "Send someone to verify. Tell that Temple Knight to return."

The steward said: "Yes!"

About two days later, a flood of intelligence was gathered before the old Count.

Before a fireplace burning with magical flame, the old Count idly turned a gold coin from the Flame Nation in his hand, listening intently as the steward reported.

Beside the old Count sat a man clad in a mage's robe, appearing barely twenty, though his true age was already over thirty.

He was the Slo family's most outstanding mage—the young Magus!

For a Magus, being over thirty was indeed young.

The number of Magi in the Hilin Kingdom was small—no more than thirty—and nearly half belonged to the royal family and the church!

"This Flame Nation's origins are likely significant."

After hearing the report, the old Count looked at the flame pattern on the coin and finally spoke.

The mage beside him said:

"Uncle, their gold coins carry natural magical protection; more astonishingly, these protections combine effectively—meaning the more coins one carries, the stronger the magical defense. If someone stood in a full cart of these coins, even a Fifth Rank mage's spell might be fully blocked; if even more coins were added…"

"Could it block even your magic?"

The old Count interjected.

The mage replied: "At a certain quantity, it's not impossible—but it would only block one spell. Still, it's astonishing. Most astonishing is the way the magical protections combine—something unheard of!"

The old Count asked: "Oliver, you haven't taken faith in any deity, have you?"

The mage named Oliver replied: "No, uncle."

The old Count said: "You've traveled many kingdoms—have you ever seen such coins or these divine beans elsewhere?"

Oliver shook his head: "No."

The old Count rose, eyes gleaming with alarm: "This is the key. The deity of the Flame Nation is likely a new god with disruptive divine power. If the Flame Nation grows unchecked, the Hilin Kingdom is doomed!"

"Oliver, send men to surround Sir Hawk's territory. If he invokes the law, tell him he violated unfair competition statutes. I'll force the people behind the Flame Nation to reveal themselves—see who they are, He Fangshensheng!"

Oliver hesitated, then said: "Uncle, rumors say a Forbidden Spell mage has appeared in the Misty Mountains. If the Flame Nation grows strong, it threatens the entire Hilin Kingdom—why should we take the Vanguard role? Baomanzhu Sect's intentions are likely not pure."

The old Count laughed: "Oliver, you're still too young. Baomanzhu Sect does want to use us as a blade—but this time, we must let him use us. Our family is too powerful; we control one-third of the eastern region. If the Flame Nation ever attacks, we will be the first to suffer."

Here, the old Count fixed his gaze on Oliver; though not a Magus, his stare made Oliver's scalp prickle.

The old Count spoke: "Do you believe that if the Flame Nation attacks and our army collapses, before our wealth is burned away, no great noble will lift a finger to help us—not even the royal army will move."