Leo's father, the Knight of Erik, was the second son of a Baron. His territory was built with the help of his father, the former Baron Amborite. It was also his father who helped him choose the location for his territory. It was a very good territory.
This territory was close to the mountain range, and there were two small rivers flowing out of the mountains. These two small rivers, which were more than ten kilometers apart, left the valley and converged about ten kilometers away from the foot of the mountain, forming a larger river.
The Knight of Erik called this converging river the Pedro River because he planned to name his title "Pedro" in the future. In other words, if he received the title of a Knight in the future, his title would be Sir Pedro, and the name of his territory would be Sir Pedro.
Erik's castle was located at the intersection of the two rivers.
On the river, more than ten waterwheels were slowly rotating. The river water was raised to an elevated wooden canal. Then, through these wooden canals, the water was diverted to the farmland … The whole territory looked like a rich farmland.
Leo's high expenses in the Mage Academy came from this territory that his father painstakingly managed.
Looking at this remote territory that Leo used to look down on, Feng Chou's eyes were filled with more and more tears …
More than twenty kilometers downstream of the Pedro River, there was a slightly larger castle. It was the castle of an old Knight family in the territory of Viscount Ferguson.
Further downstream, at the intersection of the three rivers, a town could be vaguely seen. In the town, the castle and the temple were the most conspicuous.
At the other two tributaries where the three rivers converged, a few castles could be faintly seen …
If the endless plains and forests at the foot of the mountain were an ocean, then the human castles and towns were islands of varying sizes in this ocean.
Feng Chou looked at the castle at the foot of the mountain and couldn't help but wipe his tears. This made Simon and Anrui feel a little strange. They stopped and looked back at him.
Feng Chou fiercely wiped away his tears and said to Simon, "Simon, I have good news for you."
Simon frowned at him.
Feng Chou then said to An Rui, "This good news involves a little secret of ours. Could you please leave us for a while?"
Without another word, An Rui walked down the mountain and only stopped when he was dozens of meters away.
Feng Chou then said to Simon, "The good news is that I lied to you in the Dungeon. I'm not the son of Viscount Fegesack. I'm actually the son of a Frontier Knight. My name is Leo Stuart Amborite."
Simon took a few steps towards Feng Chou with a dangerous glint in his eyes. He put one hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist and asked, "So?"
Feng Chou chuckled and pointed at the castle at the foot of the mountain. "Do you see that?
This rich territory under your feet belongs to me. According to the laws of nobility, the nearby mountains also belong to me! "
Simon frowned when he heard this. He looked at the castle at the foot of the mountain and then looked at the mountain they had just escaped from. He asked thoughtfully, "You're saying that you're the lord of this place?"
Feng Chou said, "That's right."
Feng Chou pointed at the mountain they had just escaped from and said, "That passage to the subterranean world is like a treasury …"
He then pointed at himself. "And I am the key to opening this treasury!"
"Simon, you're from the El Chamber of Commerce. I heard that you specialize in doing business with the gray dwarves. I think that the ones who colluded with Drow and killed my family shouldn't be you."
"Your Chamber of Commerce is powerful enough to obtain and protect this key of mine, isn't it?"
Simon licked his lips and said, "You're right. Our El Chamber of Commerce is the strongest Chamber of Commerce in Antalya County. This passage will be a huge fortune. Only our El Chamber of Commerce can protect you."
Feng Chou smiled. "And you, will be the key to opening this fortune for your Chamber of Commerce … Look, are you satisfied with my compensation?"
Simon let go of the hilt and rubbed his hands. He couldn't help but smile. "Satisfied, very satisfied …"
Feng Chou said, "Then what are we waiting for?"
Simon used his lousy aristocratic etiquette to make a gesture of "Your Excellency, please". Feng Chou smiled and walked down the mountain. Simon followed behind him.
Feng Chou's current emotions, under the influence of Leo's feelings, were somewhat agitated. However, he didn't reveal his identity on impulse, but after a long period of careful consideration.
He had been trapped underground for so long. Naturally, he often thought about what he should do if he could escape from underground.
According to Qiankun Pagoda's opinion, because of the transmigration, because of the deep changes in the laws of the two worlds, many of the preparations he had made in his previous life had gone to waste. If he could escape, the most important thing he should do was to study the laws of this world and find a way to restore the magic of his previous life, or even a way to return to Earth.
According to Leo's memories, to study the laws of this world, becoming a mage was the only choice. This was because in this world, mages were professionals who studied the laws of this world.
To become a mage was not a simple matter. First, you had to be born with 15 points of intelligence to have the possibility of becoming an official mage.
What kind of concept was 15 points of intelligence? According to Qiankun Pagoda's calculations, it was roughly equivalent to an IQ of 130.
Secondly, you had to have enough money. In the process of becoming a mage, regardless of whether it was the cost of tuition, magic knowledge, magic materials, or magic experiments, every single one of them was astronomical to a commoner.
Leo's father's fief was rather well managed. He lived frugally, earning him a net income of 10,000 crowns every year. This was even higher than the annual income of some of the smaller noble families.
'Crowns' were the standard currency of the Ovendell Empire, just like the pound sterling, franc, and dollar on Earth.
Most of the countries in this world were the same as the 18th century Europe on Earth. They used gold and silver as the standard currency. The government generally stipulated that the ratio of gold and silver was 1: 20.
'Crowns' were the standard unit of silver in the Ovendell Empire. This silver coin weighed a little more than 20 grams. It was not small and looked slightly smaller than China's silver dollar during the Republic of China. It was 95% silver.
The purchasing power of one crown, according to Leo's memories and Qiankun Pagoda's estimations, was roughly equivalent to 100 RMB on Earth.
Leo spent 3,000 crowns every year in the Mage Academy, which was roughly equivalent to 300,000 RMB!
This amount of tuition took up a third of his father's income. The remaining 6,000 crowns not only had to be used to continue the development of the fief, but also to cover the expenses of his entire family.
In order to support Leo's studies in the Mage Academy, his father was almost unable to maintain the image of a noble family.
With such a high cost, it was already difficult for a noble family to support a low-ranked mage, let alone a commoner.
There was only one way for a commoner to become a mage!