Lucien almost shouted that he was serving the people. Fortunately, he controlled himself in time and helped Polk up from the ground. "That's what every man with a conscience should do." Polk nodded and said to Lucien gently, "That's what every man with a conscience should do."
Lucien was surprised that a coachman in the Kingdom of Holm would do something so dramatic. Was it because opera was popular here?
Polk was not a poet, so he kept repeating the words "thank you", "thank you", "hope", "survive", "farmer", "harvest", and so on. After a while, he finally realized what was going on and hurriedly said, "Mr. Evans, please get on the coach. I'm so sorry for wasting your time."
"It's okay. We're not in a hurry." Lucien looked around and noticed that many passengers were looking at them curiously. They had no idea why Polk would do something like a church service or a formal meeting with the pope or the king. Was the king of a certain country visiting them secretly by magic steam train?
Under Polk's guidance, Lucien and Arthur got on the coach with the royal purple emblem on it. Arthur's guards were scattered around the coach.
"This country bumpkin really hasn't seen the world. For the sake of a harvest, he's showing such courtesy to someone who's not qualified. He doesn't care about etiquette at all. He's a disgrace to the royal family!" Arthur thought angrily. Then he put on a smile and complimented Lucien in a low voice, "It's a good thing that we're in the Hexagram Station. Few people dare to get close to us. Otherwise, if someone saw him doing something like this to you, Evans, he would've been thrown into jail. Harvest is the greatest hope of farmers. Evans, you've brought them a harvest, and you've become the Harvest Angel in their eyes. "
Lucien looked at the wooden board that separated the coach from the coachman. He smiled and said, "According to some historical records, after the Saint Truth was founded, the gods that appeared among human beings were Death, Sun, Moon, Life, and Harvest (or Hunt). Then, more and more gods appeared. Now, there are only a dozen countries in the northwest of the Dark Mountain Range left."
The worship of the gods by human beings originated from the Age of Ignorance. However, before the sorcerers took over the ruling position, the worship of the gods disappeared because of the harsh environment full of horrible creatures. Other than legends, there were only a few mural-like records that were passed down. At the same time, human beings were at the middle and lower level of the food chain. It was not until some people who were born with strong spiritual power slowly figured out the ability to cast spells by imitating the patterns and structures of magical creatures that they gradually rose to power.
For many years after that, there were no traces of gods or churches in the Magic Empire. If people wanted to do similar research, they had to attack other intelligent species or explore alternate dimensions.
When the Saint Truth surfaced, churches that believed in other gods also came along. They worked together to defeat the Magic Empire, but they were wiped out by the Saint Truth. Only some countries in the northwest of the Dark Mountain Range survived the attack and coexisted with other countries in a subtle way.
Hearing Lucien talking about the gods and how they were described as "rich", Arthur did not dare to interrupt. Although he had been communicating with the sorcerers openly, and he had great doubts about the Church after the modification of the God of Life Theory, he was still in awe of the God of Truth because of the education he received since he was a child.
Lucien noticed Arthur's expression and changed the topic to the minerals and the Harvest Company. Instantly, the two parties were in a good mood and started to talk happily.
…
The banquet was held in a private villa on the bank of the Verossa River in the city of Renstadt. The front of the villa was dyed with gold, like a belt of light, and the back of the villa was a natural garden full of flowers. The view was breathtaking.
In the villa, Lucien met Prince Patrick, Natasha's uncle, again. The prince looked older and thinner than he did a year ago. Instead of looking like a vigorous middle-aged man, he looked more like an old man.
"Welcome back, Evans. You're back much earlier than I expected." Holding a glass of red wine, Patrick was hiding on the balcony under the protection of several servants, enjoying the cool breeze from the river. "I've always wanted to travel around the continent like you, to visit different places and appreciate different customs. Unfortunately, my body doesn't allow me to do so. Right, how's my dear niece doing now? Is she having a good time? Did you grow taller again? "
Lucien replied with a smile, "Your Highness, Natasha has long passed the age of growing taller, but she's slowly walking out of the shadow of the past."
After chatting for a while about Natasha, Aalto and their travels, Patrick patted Lucien's shoulder and said, "Evans, come here. Before the banquet starts, let me introduce a few friends to you."
Patrick seemed to be in a good state today. He did not cough as often as before.
Walking in the banquet hall with Lucien, Patrick nodded to the few nobles and then entered a lounge. Following them were three well-dressed nobles and a middle-aged man in a black magic robe.
"This is Count Haisson, the Minister of Finance of the kingdom." Patrick pointed at an old man wearing a white wig. He had a pair of sharp blue eyes. Patrick didn't look down on them. He didn't look down on them.
"This is Russell, Duke of Wolfburg, and this is James, Duke of Paphos. They're both influential members of the Parliament of Nobles."
Wolfburg County and Paphos County were both prosperous counties in the Kingdom of Holm. The two dukes seemed to be in their prime years. One of them had long blond hair and was handsome, while the other looked ferocious and had shaved his head. However, as far as Lucien knew, they were not young at all. The reason why they still looked young was that they were Knights.
In the end, Patrick pointed at the black-haired and black-eyed sorcerer with a faint smile, "This is Viscount Harrison from the Royal Magic Academy of Holm. He's also a member of the Family of Sorcerers and a member of the Parliament of Nobles. He's a famous illusionist and alchemist. Lucien, you've heard of him, right?"
Lucien slightly nodded, indicating that he had heard of him before. According to the private agreement between the Church and the nobles, when there were other heirs, sorcerers could not inherit the title of nobility. At most, they could only become members of the Parliament of Holm. However, since "other heirs" covered a wide range of people, including many distant relatives, almost no sorcerers could inherit the title of nobility. At most, they could only learn magic after becoming a noble. Only a few lucky ones could inherit the title of nobility as sorcerers, such as Viscount Harrison.
What made him even more enviable was that when he inherited the title of nobility, he was only a fifth-circle sorcerer. However, with the help of the wealth of the Viscount Family and his own ability, he became a senior-rank sorcerer within fifteen years.
However, Lucien heard about him for something else. He refused to join the Will of Elements but became a leader of the Family of Sorcerers, which was unbelievable for the people of the Holm Royal Magic Academy. It seemed that he preferred illusion to alchemy.
After introducing the few nobles, Prince Patrick coughed and said to them with a smile, "I think you've already guessed who he is. Let's welcome the youngest winner of Holm Crown prize, the talented arcanist and sorcerer, Mr. Lucien Evans."
The bald Duke James put on a friendly smile at Lucien with great interest, while the other three nobles remained reserved and only slightly nodded.
"Mr. Evans, I envy Arthur for winning your cooperation. What a shame. Jinkela is like a bag of Quintal." Duke James said straightforwardly, "I wonder, what other research have you been doing recently? I think we can have a good cooperation. "
"I'm sorry, Duke James. I've just finished my mission and returned to Allyn. I haven't started any new research yet." It was the first time they met, so Lucien naturally did not want to talk too much.
James did not mind. He chuckled, "I hope we can work together in the future. Right, Harrison and I are trying a new product. Are you interested in joining us? "
"What is it?" Before Lucien replied, Count Henson, the Minister of Finance, opened his mouth with great interest like a shark that smelled blood.
Holding the wine glass, Harrison smiled and said, "Mr. Lord of Storm's Electromagnetism Messaging is very good. It can allow two people to talk directly from a long distance. Although it's prone to interference and noise, it's enough for daily use. Also, it's much cheaper than teleportation circles! "
"Think about it. When you're hunting in the forest, you can share your joy with your friends in the city as soon as possible. That's a wonderful thing, not to mention its application in communication and negotiation. The shorter the time, the quicker the reaction, the greater the advantage. "
Unlike most illusionists who were gloomy and unpredictable, his face glowed when money and products were mentioned.
"But it's a level-five magic item. Few people can afford it." Duke Russell shook his head. He was not optimistic about their future. In Holm, there were a lot of magic items. Because of the price, most nobles could only choose the ones that they needed.
"Of course. So, we're trying to simplify it. For example, we're replacing the constant magic circles with magic circles that store electricity. In such a way, although the usage time is limited, the price will be much lower. Also, the Congress of Magic is building more and more magic towers that can transform the power of the river into electricity. As long as we can introduce them into our homes, the energy of the items will be recovered quickly. Right now, there's only one problem that bothers me. In any case, this is a fifth-circle spell, and the price can't be much lower. I'm trying to improve it. "
"If it works, part of the exclusive rights of the Lord of Storm on this spell will be bypassed, and the cost will be greatly reduced."
Harrison was a bit upset. He was not good at electromagnetism magic. So, he turned to Lucien, "Our genius friend, what do you think? Do you have any ideas to simplify this spell? "
"Not yet." Lucien had tried to simplify it before, but when the fifth-circle spell was reduced to the level of the second circle, it would either become a "walkie-talkie" or a "radio transmitter" within a range of hundreds of meters.
It was the first time that the nobles met Lucien, and they did not expect to hear any opinions from him. After all, this was related to the ultimate magic item, which was pure money!
After a while of discussion, the topic shifted to the recent events in the kingdom. Lucien listened to them in boredom. One moment, they criticized the Minister of the Interior for being too slow, and the next moment, they accused the President of the Noble Congress of being an out-and-out conservative who had sold himself to the Church wholeheartedly. They also viciously speculated that the President of the Noble Congress was too old and was about to reach the end of his life, so he had to cling to the Church, hoping to go to Mountain Paradise after he died.
"Isn't it boring?" Harrison walked to Lucien with a glass of wine in his hand. "But it's not a bad thing to listen more. At least, it can help us to distinguish who we can win over and who we must suppress. This circle is the representative of the liberals in the kingdom. "
Lucien took a sip of Sky Blue and smiled gently, "Just take it as a rest for me to study magic."
"Not bad, young man. No wonder you can win the Holm Crown prize at such a young age. Later, I'll introduce you to more senior-rank sorcerers. It'll be very helpful for you to move forward on the path of magic. " Seeing that Patrick introduced Lucien in person, Harrison knew that Lucien was a member of the Congress of Magic who was in favor of the nobles, and he had a close relationship with the prince.
Lucien smiled casually, "Thank you, Viscount."
The topic gradually turned to magic. As they talked, Harrison mentioned Isabella's paper. It seemed that the arcanist who approved the paper leaked the news, and many sorcerers knew about it before the journal was published.
"It's completely superficial. She only saw the surface reaction when the illusion works on the human body, but she forgot the reason why the alchemical substances are secreted." Harrison expressed his opinion to Lucien, a bit agitated and indignant, "Mind and soul are the foundation of illusion! People's minds are changeable and unpredictable. No matter how advanced the arcana studies are, it's impossible to completely analyze people's minds. Only illusions can make use of them! "
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