- Fantasy Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence
- FLDI Chapter 127
6. In seven days, on the way to Pat City, you will encounter an attack by a pack of Ash Wolves led by a Level 2 Alpha.
7. In fifteen days, the Assad family in Pat City will hold a grand auction featuring a rare Purple Gold Grass.
8. Seventeen days from now, on a road in Pat City, a fallen knight will be selling an artifact rumored to contain a rare breathing technique. Although damaged, it is still powerful enough to support a breakthrough to Sky Knight level.
Line by line, the text appeared, and as Thor read, his indifferent expression shifted into astonishment.
“It’s real!”
Murmuring to himself, his gaze landed first on the seventh line.
He hadn’t expected his father’s suspicions about the Purple Gold Grass to be true; the Assad auction did indeed feature one. But before he could fully digest this surprise, he read the eighth line, causing his breathing to quicken.
A knight’s breathing technique.
Thor had never expected that a knight’s breathing technique would present itself like this.
For him, the greatest lack wasn’t strength, resources, or cultivation, but the right breathing technique.
The Eagle Breathing Technique, while decent, had begun to fall short of his potential, given his enhanced talent. He needed something better.
Obtaining a new breathing technique wasn’t easy. Setting aside Nil Morten’s help, the only way to acquire a higher-level technique was to earn enough merit points for an exchange. However, with the Eagle Breathing Technique already quite advanced, exchanging for a better one would require a significant amount of merit points—possibly beyond even what the Dressrosa family could provide, let alone what he could earn on his own.
As such, Thor had set the idea aside.
Yet, now, here it was.
Though the intelligence indicated that the breathing technique was incomplete, it also stated that it could still support training up to the level of a Sky Knight—undoubtedly superior to the Eagle Breathing Technique.
If he could obtain it, not only would it benefit him and Rayne, but it might even allow his father, Count Engel, to break through to Sky Knight.
Thor hadn’t expected such an astonishing opportunity.
His eyes shone with excitement, and he could hardly contain his eagerness.
It took him a long while to calm down.
After all, the breathing technique was still in Pat City, and no amount of anticipation would bring it closer. And since the daily intelligence indicated it wouldn’t be available for another couple of weeks, there was no point in getting anxious.
Settling his thoughts, Thor scanned through the other entries in his daily intelligence.
He spent the rest of the night awake, reviewing each piece of intelligence and delving deeper into the details.
When dawn broke, Thor had just finished washing up.
The butler knocked on his door.
“Come in,” Thor called out, allowing the servants to assist him with his attire.
“Young Master Thor, Knight Marshall is waiting outside the castle. He asked when you plan to depart.”
“Fifteen minutes,” Thor replied after a brief pause.
“Yes, sir,” the butler replied and quickly left.
After a few more moments of preparation, Thor, accompanied by Peros and Anna, headed out of the castle.
Outside, he saw Marshall, his companion for this journey.
As the vice-captain of the Eagle Knights, Marshall wasn’t yet an Earth Knight, but he was at the peak of Grand Knight status and only a step away from advancing.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Knight Marshall,” Thor greeted, apologetic.
“Young Master Thor, no need to apologize. The timing is perfect,” Marshall replied with a smile, sizing up Thor.
He had heard much about this young master lately and was curious to meet him.
Contrary to expectations, Thor seemed surprisingly gentle and far from the stern figure he’d anticipated.
“Shall we get going?” Thor smiled, mounting Nia.
“Yes, sir,” Marshall replied, signaling the other knights to mount as well.
With that, the large troop set off.
Count Engel had prepared a company of over a hundred knights, most of them full-fledged, to accompany Thor, both as escorts and to transport goods.
But they had barely started on their journey when another group approached from the distance, led by Morris Dressrosa.
“Morris?” Thor asked, a bit surprised.
Morris, accompanied by a dozen riders, approached.
“Uncle Marshall, Thor, Father sent me to join you,” Morris explained after bowing to Marshall.
Marshall nodded with a smile, and Thor welcomed him warmly.
With Morris’s group joining, their party grew even larger.
Riding alongside Thor, Morris spoke in a low voice, still somewhat affected by their last encounter.
“Thor!”
“Yes, Morris?” Thor replied, equally friendly.
With the additional company, the journey progressed smoothly as they left the castle and headed for Pat City.
Pat City was about 1,500 miles from Dressrosa Town, requiring around twelve or thirteen days by horseback, crossing several noble territories.
Unlike the rugged paths of the Northern Province, the Frost Moon Province offered broad roads and a stable environment, with only minor threats from weak magical beasts, making the journey relatively easy.
Ten days passed swiftly, bringing them closer to Pat City.
The journey was smooth, marred only by a single attack from Ash Wolves—a threat Thor chose not to avoid.
Otherwise, all went well, and the atmosphere among the group remained lighthearted.
Ten days of travel brought Morris, Thor, and Marshall closer together, with many conversations shared along the way.
Checking the map, Marshall’s face turned serious as he looked up.
“Young Master Thor, we’re approaching the Emerson family’s territory. We may need to pay a toll. I’ll handle it.”
“Emerson family?” Thor raised an eyebrow.
The familiar family name sparked Thor’s curiosity once again.
As for Marshall’s mention of additional payment, it was customary for merchant caravans to pay a toll when passing through territories belonging to nobility of similar rank; only in smaller noble territories was this not required.
They had already paid several such tolls along the way.
This was a characteristic of the Frost Moon Province.
Unlike the Northern Province, Frost Moon Province had been fully developed for hundreds of years. As mentioned earlier, the power structures here were well-established, and for the nobles, the most straightforward way to profit was by setting up road tolls.
Nearly every noble’s land here had such a checkpoint.
These tolls applied only to nobles of the same or lower rank; higher-ranking nobles were exempt and could pass without paying.
Throughout the journey, Thor experienced first-hand the challenges faced by merchants in this era.
It also became clear why only a few families dominated the trade business in the Tulip Kingdom—mostly the royal court, dukes, and marquises. Among counts, only the Assad family had established a successful trade network.
In this environment, barons and viscounts, even counts, would likely face escalating costs just to stay in business, making it nearly impossible to open viable trade routes.
Thor felt a certain relief that the Northern Province was still undeveloped. Even some nobles who had been there for over a decade found it difficult to set up checkpoints. Otherwise, his trade plans might never have begun—let alone the auctions he had in mind.
Shaking his head, Thor’s mind filled with intersecting thoughts.
Meanwhile, Marshall rode ahead to negotiate.
About half an hour later, he returned with a grim expression.
“Uncle Marshall, what happened?” Thor asked, noticing his look of displeasure.
“Those Emerson bastards want an extra toll, don’t they?” Morris grumbled, guessing the situation.
“Yes, Young Master Thor. They claim their costs have increased due to recent efforts to clear out nearby magical beasts. They’re demanding an additional fifty coins per cart, a fifty percent increase over the usual rate,” Marshall explained, addressing Thor.
With over two hundred carts in their caravan, this added twenty silver coins per cart, amounting to four thousand silver coins—or forty gold coins—a considerable sum.
“Those damned bloodsuckers,” Morris spat, his face darkening further.
Thor’s brow furrowed as well.
He knew there was bad blood between his family and the Emerson family, perhaps even a longstanding rivalry.
But experiencing such blatant extortion firsthand was a different matter altogether.
If their antagonism was so overt, then what might happen in other scenarios?
Thor considered these thoughts, frowning.
“Young Master Morris, Young Master Thor, let’s go. It’s best if we leave quickly,” Marshall urged, gesturing for them to continue the journey.
While Frost Moon Province was relatively stable, they were still in the Emerson family’s territory, and leaving quickly was the wisest choice.
“Alright,” Thor agreed, nodding.
Morris, though still seething, held his tongue.
The group pressed onward toward Pat City.
Three days later, they crossed out of the Emerson territory, with Pat City finally coming into view.
Not long after they exited Emerson territory, at the heart of the region, inside Emerson Castle…
“Master, the Dressrosa family heirs dared to cross our land. How could you just let them pass?” a noblewoman asked, her tone displeased. “They stole Colen’s territory!”
“Madam, Colen lost that territory; it wasn’t taken from him,” Count Emerson replied with a sigh. “Besides, this is legitimate trade. If we interfere, merchants will think twice about passing through here in the future.”
Count Emerson spoke patiently, though with a hint of resignation.
Despite his status as count, his wife came from a marquis family, and he knew he had to handle her concerns with care.
“Colen didn’t lose it! That conniving Dressrosa heir seized it while Colen was away!” the noblewoman protested.
Count Emerson’s mouth twitched slightly as he shook his head.
Nonsense about being “away from his territory” and a “conniving Dressrosa heir” claiming it.
Though their families were indeed rivals, the Dressrosa family was known for its honor. Such claims wouldn’t fool even a three-year-old.
He knew his son’s character well.
The Northern Province had already ruled on the matter—there was no controversy here.
But he also knew better than to argue further with his wife on the topic. He had no intention of paying any ransom to reclaim the territory; if she wanted to resolve the matter, she’d have to find her own way.
Blocking a Dressrosa caravan outright was out of the question. Some extortion was fine, but taking direct action would tarnish his family’s reputation.
If they damaged their image, as he had explained, trade could dry up entirely. Such an outcome would harm the Emerson family and was something he couldn’t allow.
Seeing her husband’s silence, the noblewoman’s face turned slightly sour.
*(End of Chapter)*