Imperial Crown

The world of nobles is clearly divided into classes.

Even nobles with the same title have different statuses.

The most intuitive example is Raven.

He is only a baron now, but in the entire Nord Province, no baron would think that he can be on equal footing with Raven.

And if we look at the entire empire, the powerful nobles with the same title will undoubtedly have a more respected status the closer they are to the capital.

In addition to political factors, the most important thing is wealth.

The Keynes Empire firmly occupies the richest land in the central part of the Middles Continent, and the capital "Mingnagar" is the essence of this land.

Agriculture, commerce, and industry are all the best in the continent, and magic is deeply rooted in all aspects. It is said that in the capital, even street lamps are magic lamps.

Milk and honey flow in the river, and gold is everywhere.

The same earl, who lives near Mingnagar, can earn 3-5 times more than the nobles in the border areas.

There is no noble who does not yearn for the wealth of the capital.

If they could choose, many nobles would be willing to pay the price of reducing their territory by half in exchange for a piece of land near the capital.

The letter that Marquis Anthony was writing could not allow Raven to obtain the fiefdom near the capital, but its effect was enough to make Hyde jealous.

Yes, jealousy, Hyde clearly had this strong negative emotion.

Because it was a letter of recommendation.

The holder of the letter can enter the Royal University of the Keynes Empire!

The Royal University of the Keynes Empire is a legendary institution with a history of 657 years. All the presidents have been served by His Majesty the King himself.

This means that as long as you enroll, you will have the opportunity to meet His Majesty the King.

At the same time, the Royal University also has the largest library on the continent.

There, you can learn the magic and combat skills treasured by the royal family and obtain the most comprehensive knowledge of the entire continent.

No matter what you want to know or study, you can find the corresponding records and materials.

On the other hand, the admission threshold of the Royal University is quite high, and it can be said that "there are many earls and marquises everywhere."

In the more than 600 years since the establishment of the Royal University, 105 of the 143 prime ministers of the empire were born here; 71 of the 87 marshals had studied here.

The proportion of other officials such as the chancellor of finance, military adviser, foreign minister, and other important officials at all levels who studied at the Royal University exceeded 80%.

And as time goes by, this proportion is still rising.

So much so that in the past 100 years, if you have not studied at the Royal University, you are not qualified to enter the cabinet of His Majesty the King!

It can be said that the moment you step into the campus gate, you have half a foot in the core of the empire.

This incubator of imperial dignitaries, no noble does not want to enter it, but its admission requirements are also quite strict.

Although in theory, His Majesty the King has the qualification for special recruitment, this power has never been used.

The only way is alumni recommendation, and each alumnus has and only has three places.

And only outstanding alumni are eligible to issue recommendation letters.

As for what is an outstanding alumnus - of course it depends on the influence of the person. There are many jokes in history where people who think they are outstanding have issued letters of recommendation, but the holders of the letters have been rejected.

This also ensures the style and authority of the Royal University. Everyone who is fortunate enough to enter the Royal University is proud of their identity.

"My Lord Marquis, this return gift... is it too expensive?" Hyde swallowed his saliva.

To be honest, if possible, Hyde is even willing to exchange the Viscount for this letter of recommendation.

As long as he has this resume, even if his ability is poor, he can replace his elder brother Minsk and become the first heir of the Slater family.

And now, this letter of recommendation is about to fall into Raven's hands!

Anthony put down the feather pen, put the letter into the envelope, and printed his personal seal on the wax.

"As a noble, you can't be as stingy as a businessman. You must maximize every resource you have."

Hyde's eyes were still confused.

Anthony handed over the letter: "Give it to Baron Raven, maybe he can answer your questions."

So Hyde took on the job of the messenger.

Not only to answer the questions, he wanted to see if Raven, who had never lost his composure in front of him, would lose his composure because of this.

To his disappointment, when the letter was handed over, Raven did look happy, but this joy was completely disproportionate to what he had gained, as if he had just picked up a wallet filled with gold coins on the roadside.

"No, don't you feel surprised at all?" Hyde was a little upset: "Or did you know this result when you sent out the Angel's Glory?"

"I'm not a god, how could I calculate it?"

"Then why do you behave like this?"

"Don't let me make fun of you. I'm a nobleman. It's my basic skill to not show my emotions. Maybe after you leave, I will close the door and be happy like a fool?"

Hyde was speechless: "You are only one year older than me, why do you talk like those old foxes?"

He is a very self-aware person. He knows that he can't beat Raven in words, so he goes straight to the point: "Why did Marquis Anthony give you the letter of recommendation? Your status and influence can't be greater than my father's, right?"

Raven said: "If you only look at influence, Marquis Anthony sent out the letter of recommendation as early as in the capital."

"Let me ask you a question, who is my gift for?"

Hyde blurted out: "Of course it's His Majesty, but..."

Hyde's brows gradually tightened, and he swallowed his saliva, feeling that he was shocked more today than in the past 21 years.

Raven's gift was for His Majesty, so does that mean that Marquis Anthony's gift... is also for His Majesty?

Hyde vaguely grasped something, but the answer seemed to be hidden in the fog, and he couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he thought: "Okay, I give up, just tell me the answer directly."

Raven didn't hate Hyde, a clear-headed noble, and patiently explained: "If His Majesty receives my gift, he may be curious about me and want to see me in person."

"Marquis Anthony must think what His Majesty thinks and share His Majesty's worries."

At this point, Hyde's eyes gradually revealed a hint of realization, and even tasted Raven's implication.

If it was just to let His Majesty meet Raven, Anthony still had many choices.

Hyde could think of bringing Raven back to the capital directly, or recommending Raven to serve in the inner court of the palace.

But all of these have the same problem, which is that not only does it make Earl Anthony look like a jester who is bent on personal gain, but it also puts Raven in the position of a clown or actor.

More importantly, this will make the outside world think that His Majesty the King is frivolous and not stable enough.

But with the recommendation letter, these problems are completely avoided.

Raven has a legitimate reason to enter the capital, and Marquis Anthony does not have to bear the stigma of a jester.

If His Majesty the King wants to see Raven, it is reasonable; if he does not want to see him, there will be no additional burden.

The key is that Anthony and Raven have understood each other without even communicating this information!

"It seems that what my father said is right. I am indeed not the material to inherit the family head." Hyde smiled bitterly: "In the future cooperation, you should dig fewer traps for me. I can't outsmart you."

Raven said with a smile on his face: "How is that possible? I am a very pure person."

Hyde rolled his eyes and turned away.

Raven laughed dumbly. When he was sure that Hyde was far away, he picked up the envelope on the table and kissed it hard, with an irrepressible smile on his lips.

How could he not be happy with this precious return gift?

This is not just a letter of recommendation, but also a stepping stone for him to enter the upper echelons of the empire. It also carries the attitude of Marquis Anthony-from today on, he is a member of Marquis Anthony's faction.

And Marquis Anthony represents His Majesty the King.

When Raven decided to marry the Fox family before, he had calculated the pros and cons.

First of all, this move can use the Fox family's network of relationships to open up more joints and trade routes, so that the economy of his own territory can develop more rapidly.

Secondly, it can improve his political reputation and status in the Nord Province.

Finally, there are the benefits of marriage itself.

Raven rarely holds cocktail parties because he doesn't like those overly lively occasions, and he also needs more time to improve himself and manage his territory.

Once he marries Nancy, Nancy can take the lead in managing these social activities and maintain the connection between the Griffith family and other nobles.

Of course, the disadvantages are also obvious.

Although Raven's territory is developing very well at present, it is far inferior to the Fox family.

The gap in the title is also quite obvious.

Once the marriage is made, whether willing or not, the Griffith family will be regarded as an inseparable part of the Fox family.

This is very likely to be suppressed by the Slater family, and even the position of President of the Lower City Chamber of Commerce in Mon'en City, which has already been obtained, is likely to be lost.

Raven has already made this preparation.

It is not a very unprofitable deal to exchange Mon'en City for Hovi City.

And now, with the letter of recommendation in hand, Raven has successfully removed himself from the Fox family camp, offsetting the disadvantages.

Raven poured himself a glass of Angel's Tears, leaned back in his chair leisurely, and suddenly sighed a little bored.

At this time, it would be nice to have a cigarette.

In the previous life, the work pressure was too great and I became addicted to smoking. Now that I relax, I really miss the taste.

Unfortunately, although tobacco is also produced on the Middles continent, not only is the quality extremely poor and the taste is worrying, but also due to the lack of filtering technology, the smoke is like squatting next to the stove and eating ash, and the mouth is full of dregs after two puffs.

"Grow some tobacco?" Raven thought about the feasibility of this plan and wrote a line in his notes, preparing to do it again in the future.

Looking back on the past year, many goals have been achieved.

The forging factory has been built and put into use, and the glass factory is also on track. It can not only produce mirrors and canned food, but also provide high-quality and cheap packaging for its own Angel's Tears and Angel's Kiss.

The Congyun kumquats are ripe, the magic casting potion is successfully refined, and its own strength has also been improved to the third level.

The only regret is that the construction of the new castle itself is a little slow due to the need to take into account the construction of Anno's academy and the dragon's nest. Judging from the current progress, it will not be completed until the middle of next year.

And I now have more than 800,000 gold coins in my hand. Although it is still a little far from 1 million, Raven is not a miser and will not wait until 1 million to consider spending.

Tapping his fingers on the table, Raven took out a feather pen and began to plan his future goals.

The first thing is undoubtedly to become an earl.

Viscounts and barons are lower-level nobles. No matter how great Raven is, he can only play both sides. Only when he becomes an earl can he officially sit at the table.

But this step is difficult. The angel glory that he has given out is far from enough.

Therefore, Raven will strive for the support of the Fox family next, and at the same time, he will use the good impression he has left on Marquis Anthony to consolidate his weight in the heart of His Majesty the King.

Of course, this will inevitably involve a fight with the Slater family.

The second thing is to build a platform of his own.

It is not realistic to eat a fat man in one bite. What Raven has to do is to develop gradually, starting from Xuefeng County, then the five counties in the northwest, and then radiating the entire Nord Province.

After achieving this goal, consider expanding outward.

The last thing is to improve personal strength.

At present, Raven's magic power is three stars in the third level, and there is still a long way to go before the fourth level.

If the extraordinary level is divided as a whole, then every three levels are a hurdle, and after breaking through, there will be a qualitative change.

The fourth-level knights and warriors can condense battle patterns, greatly enhance their physical strength, and burst out terrible destructive power; and the fourth-level magicians can make their magic creations exist forever.

The difficulty of going from the third level to the fourth level is much greater than that of going from the first level to the third level.

Therefore, there are so many magicians stuck at the third level in the Mage Guild; Angel also fell on the road to sprinting from the third level to the fourth level.

To become a fourth-level magician, Raven still has three steps to complete:

1. Select and refine a kind of magic, and engrave its magic circuit in his own magic pool.

2. Raise your magic power to the third level and ten stars.

3. Obtain "Magic Upgrade Potion".

Refining a kind of magic is a process for magicians to temper their magic controllability and a process of carving themselves.

It is like an enchantment for oneself, making the manipulation of magic power become instinct, and the selected magic will no longer be constrained by the level, and will gradually increase with the improvement of the magician's own strength.

This also involves the ability to awaken at the fifth level.

There is no need to say much about accumulating magic power. The most important thing is the third step, "Magic Upgrade Potion".

Because this kind of potion is truly "different for different people" - because every magician has a different magic composition in his body.

This also causes its price to remain high at six figures.

If you want to customize it, you will undoubtedly need to go through a comprehensive inspection by the Mage Guild, which also means that Raven will have to expose himself completely to the Mage Guild's vision.

This is unacceptable to Raven.

Not to mention that the secret of the Eye of Truth cannot be made public, in the future, he will have many more magicians under his command, and he cannot be strangled by the Mage Guild.

The formula of the magic upgrade potion is priced at 379,600 gold coins.

Raven scratched his head and listed a budget list, of which the simple version of the "Intellectual Magic Network" used to build the platform alone costs 570,000 gold coins. If you buy this, you won't be able to get the formula of the magic upgrade potion!

"There's never enough gold to spend..."

Raven sighed, put down his pen for a while, rubbed his temples, and returned to his room.

After all, it would take some time for the cash to arrive, so Raven had plenty of free time to think and rest.

This time, the nobles didn't stay too long, but left after receiving the first batch of goods - Angel's Glory is a fragile item, and the price is quite high, so they really can't rest assured if they don't escort it themselves.

And Eric also took the initiative to find Raven after a long time.

……