FLDI Chapter 196

Bang! Bang!

The sound of a hand tapping on the desk echoed through the room, and Joseph’s heart seemed to pound in sync with the intense beats. Just when he thought his heart might jump out of his chest, Thor’s voice finally broke the silence.

“Not bad!”

“This situation is acceptable, but we can speed things up. If you need more manpower, I can dispatch five thousand goblin slaves to you.”

“Also, as for the merit system, I will provide some additional rewards. The development of the territory will accelerate from here on.”

Thor’s calm voice filled the room as his gaze met Joseph’s.

“Yes, my lord!”

Upon hearing Thor’s words, Joseph’s heart, which had been racing, finally steadied, and he hurriedly responded.

“You’ve done well this time. Keep up the good work.”

“Also, the Eagle Knights will have another selection opportunity next month.”

Thor nodded and continued speaking.

“Thank you, my lord.”

Joseph’s face lit up with ecstatic joy at Thor’s words. He understood well what this meant for him. It was undeniably a cause for excitement.

“By the way, have there been any new updates from the family?”

As if recalling something, Thor turned to Joseph and inquired gently.

“My lord, three days ago, we received a reply from your father. It is in the bookshelf to your right.”

Joseph nodded respectfully and answered.

“Good!”

“You may leave now.”

Thor gestured, indicating that Joseph could leave.

Filled with excitement, Joseph slowly retreated.

Thor opened the bookshelf to his right. This was where he kept some of his documents.

The drawer opened, and Thor quickly found the letter. Without hesitation, he opened it.

The handwriting of Count Engel was immediately recognizable.

“Thor, my son, I am pleased with your growth. The support you need has been arranged. Michael and Chesire will come to assist you; I believe they will help solve your problems. Additionally, I have already set out to visit a few of the marquises!”

The words in the letter unfolded before him. After reading through it carefully, a smile appeared on Thor’s face.

His father was indeed reliable.

This time, not only had he dispatched two earth knights, but also Michael, who was the commander of Count Engel’s knights.

With these two, Thor now had four earth knights in the Eagle Territory. If Marshall were to break through, the number would rise to five.

Such strength was second only to Marquis Lehman in the entire Northern Province. If you added Neil Morton into the mix, even Marquis Lehman would struggle to match them.

Not to mention the other powerful members of the Eagle Chamber of Commerce.

And with Count Engel also planning to visit the marquises, Thor felt reassured. With his father’s support and the strength of the powerful marquises, even if other forces tried to intervene, Thor believed there wouldn’t be much to worry about.

For this, Thor felt quite satisfied. He couldn’t help but marvel at the benefits of belonging to a powerful family.

Compared to going it alone, the protection of a large family saved him a lot of trouble.

Without the Drosrosa family, even if he had reached this point, the future would be much more troublesome.

But with the Drosrosa family behind him, everything had proceeded smoothly—his expansion, his development, and even his current position.

“Now, it’s just a matter of waiting for their arrival. Hopefully, they won’t disappoint me.”

With a soft chuckle, Thor returned the letter to the drawer.

He then called a few others and further inquired about the current situation in Eagle Territory to ensure everything was running smoothly.

Once he was satisfied, he called for Kristine to update him on the important matter of the territory’s alchemist industry.

“My lord, we are now able to produce two low-level life potions daily. This should yield around sixty bottles per month.”

“However, this is the current limit. Unless the two alchemists can open the Spiritual Sea and become apprentice mages.”

Kristine respectfully reported the current status of the potion production.

“Sixty bottles?”

“That’s decent.”

Thor nodded slightly, not particularly surprised. After all, alchemists were only a lesser version of mages. The success rate and quantity of life potions they could produce were nothing compared to those of real mages.

To produce sixty bottles a month was already more than Thor had expected.

Even at a value of two hundred gold coins per bottle, sixty bottles would be worth twelve thousand gold coins.

And that was just for one month’s production. Over the course of a year, the number would reach a staggering sum.

Even considering that Life Grass could not be gathered constantly, and only a third of the months might yield potions, that still amounted to thirty-six thousand gold coins.

In fact, it was likely more. With forest elf Avira around, Thor couldn’t keep Life Grass production continuous, but producing it for half the year was no problem—worth over seventy thousand gold coins.

Of course, such a large quantity of potions could not be sold entirely. Even half would be difficult to move.

After all, the true purpose of life potions was to enhance one’s own strength, not for sale.

While few of the powerful nobles possessed mid-level life potions, low-level life potions were more common. But few would sell them.

Thor had already made plans for his own share of life potions.

A small portion would be sold within the Eagle Chamber of Commerce, an even smaller portion used for external sales, and the majority would remain within the territory to boost their own strength.

The Eagle Knights had expanded from just over three hundred to more than four hundred members, and their numbers would continue to rise. They would require a considerable amount of life potions.

“Kristine, how are you doing now?”

Thor’s thoughts wandered briefly, and he turned to look at her, asking the question.

“My lord, I have opened my Spiritual Sea. I should be at the peak of an apprentice mage.”

Kristine answered respectfully, looking up at him.

“Peak of an apprentice mage, huh? Not bad!”

“I can foresee you will earn five hundred merit points. Later, you can go to make arrangements, and you will be able to exchange them for a fruit from the Spiritual Tree. That should be enough for you to break through to first-tier mage.”

Thor tapped the desk lightly, pondering briefly before speaking slowly.

“My lord!”

Hearing his words, Kristine’s eyes widened in disbelief.

She knew how much five hundred merit points were worth.

At her current level, it would take her years of work to earn that.

“Don’t get too excited just yet.”

“Let me tell you the rest.”

“I will give you three months. You can take a trip back—both as a break and to recruit some alchemists. If you manage to bring one back, I will grant you fifty merit points.”

“Also, if you can bring your teacher here, I will give you a thousand merit points.”

Looking at the excited Kristine, Thor slowly laid out his plan.

The development of Eagle Territory was about to enter its true fast-paced phase.

He was in desperate need of all kinds of talent.

Though Kristine’s requested individuals had not yet arrived, Thor knew that her background was not simple.

She is a student of the kingdom’s most famous potion master, Senpu.

This renowned master of potions, not only in the Tulip Kingdom but also in the three major kingdoms of the Northern Provinces, has a huge reputation.

This is because two of the formulas for low-level life potions were developed by Master Senpu himself.

In fact, he is the first known person among the three great kingdoms to be able to craft intermediate life potions without relying on his identity as a wizard.

Such a background is something that Thor must take advantage of.

The previous person did not come, probably because they didn’t believe it, but if Christine herself returns and demonstrates her own strength, the situation will be completely different.

It’s even possible that Master Senpu could be attracted to come as well.

By that time, Thor would have truly succeeded.

This would not just be the presence of a top-level potion master, but potentially a whole group of skilled potion masters.

“Yes, sir!”

“I will not disappoint you.”

Christine’s eyes lit up, her breath became heavier, and she quickly spoke up.

She had no objections to Thor plan.

After all, if she could bring her teacher here, not only would she benefit, but her teacher would too.

Her teacher had always wanted to become a wizard but never had the chance.

This time, it was undoubtedly a huge opportunity.

“No need to thank me.”

“Currently, the development of the Eagle Territory requires more talent. If you can do it, these rewards will be yours.”

Thor waved his hand and spoke in a deep tone.

“Understood!”

Christine nodded.

“Go prepare.”

Thor waved his hand, and Christine, full of excitement, slowly exited the study.

Watching her leave, Thor fell into a brief contemplation.

Then he turned his attention back to the matters at hand.

With the general affairs officer around, there was less for him to handle, but that didn’t mean nothing needed attention. There were still some things to deal with upon his return.

Time passed slowly.

That evening, Thor hosted a grand banquet for Brian.

It wasn’t until the next day that Brian, accompanied by his knight brigade, departed to inspect the territory where his son was stationed.

He needed to prepare to return to the northern front lines afterward.

As a force of the kingdom, he couldn’t be away for too long.

Meanwhile, Thor remained in the territory, handling affairs and waiting for the family’s reinforcements to arrive.

Fortunately, the wait didn’t last long.

On the fifth day after his return, the family’s reinforcements finally arrived.

This time, the reinforcements were far from weak. They brought not only Michael and Chesir, two Earth Knights, but also ten other Great Knights.

More importantly, Michael, the knight commander under his father, had reached the peak of the Earth Knight rank.

Such strength was comparable to the top combat forces of some powerful noble families.

Even Chesir had reached the late stages of the Great Knight rank.

Naturally, Thor was shocked.

But Michael and Chesir were even more stunned.

Their shock was even more intense than Brian’s arrival.

They never expected that in just two years, Thor had developed his entire territory to such an impressive scale.

The two exchanged looks, feeling as if they had made the same mistake as Pelos did in the past.

It wasn’t until they saw Thor greeting them that they finally dared to believe they hadn’t made the wrong choice.

“My goddess, young master Thor, this is truly incredible.”

“Is… is this really your Eagle Territory?”

Looking at Thor as he greeted them, Michael couldn’t help but speak.

Compared to the others, Michael knew Thor best.

As a fledgling from Dressrosa, Thor hadn’t been particularly remarkable in the training grounds, so Michael hadn’t paid much attention to him.

Even when, in the final days, this fledgling unexpectedly condensed the Seed of Life and became an unexpected pioneer, he still wasn’t overly concerned.

But everything after that had been a series of surprises.

First, there were the reports from the Northern Provinces, and then Thor’s continuous displays of strength.

He had even directly faced an Earth Knight in a recent confrontation in Pat City.

This gradually made Michael feel unfamiliar with Tor.

But at this moment, that sense of unfamiliarity seemed to deepen.

Looking at this vast and prosperous territory, Michael found himself at a loss for words.

All he could do was sigh in amazement.

“Of course, welcome, Uncle Michael, Uncle Chesir!”

Thor smiled and nodded.

Seeing Thor’s calm smile, Michael and Chesir exchanged glances, their inner turmoil still hard to calm.

“Truly sorry, this is just… so shocking.”

A moment later, Chesir couldn’t help but speak.

“Hahaha!”

“Uncle Michael, Uncle Chesir, I’ve prepared a lavish dinner. Please, follow me!”

Thor smiled and nodded, gesturing for the two of them to enter.

As they entered the town, what they saw left them deeply shaken once again.

If no one had told them, they would have suspected they had entered a count’s territory.

(End of Chapter)

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