I don't remember when Moriarty had ever heard about the so-called aristocratic life as a corrupt, extravagant, rotten, boring life that should be swept into the lowest garbage heap of history.

Moriarty did not agree with this assertion, nor did he say no to it. After all, as an engineer, he has not really been in contact with or entered such a circle, so there is no basis for comments and feelings.

And now, when Moriarty, as the only son of a baron's family, is completely in the territory of the powerful local nobles of the Kingdom of Erathia, he can say with great confidence: The above statement is simply a fart!

In my imagination, those noble children who bully men and women, smoke people's fat and ointment, idle all day long, and walk horses with eagles and horses do not exist in the land of Erathia at all.

This is not to say how noble the aristocratic tastes of Erathia are, how perfect the ideas are, and how noble the ideas are, but the cruel reality has eliminated the possibility of those aristocratic parasites from the roots.

Since the "Ice Apocalypse" five hundred years ago, the pattern of the Erathia Kingdom, the Antagriqi Continent, and even the entire plane has undergone earth-shaking changes.

Despite surviving the horrors of the "Ice Apocalypse", the Griffins still stand as rulers of the kingdom in the royal capital of "Standville". However, with its ancestor "Griffin's Heart" Griffin. Compared to Hart, the royal family's dominance over Erathia is far from comparable to that before the "Ice Apocalypse".

At the same time, taking advantage of the extreme decline of the royal family's military strength and the collapse of the mage system, the local nobles of the kingdom took advantage of the situation. Although, nominally, Erathia is still a complete human kingdom, the royal wielding of power can only be wielded in and around Standville. As for the public affairs and administration of the rest of the kingdom, to a large extent, it was already dominated by the local aristocracy.

Although the Griffin family has tried to regain the glory of the "Griffon's Heart" several times over the centuries, the "cunning" local nobles are willing to relinquish their hard-won power. As a result, the battle of wits and courage between the royal family and the local nobles, and the fact that you advance and retreat have become the mainstream of the internal political life of the kingdom since then.

Of course, these "central" and "local" "games" are always limited to acceptable procedures. Whether it is the royal family or the aristocracy, they all strictly follow certain rules to act. After all, this is the basis for the existence of the entire kingdom. If one day the royal family and the nobility no longer observe it, then the kingdom will cease to exist.

It is precisely because of this historical origin that the nobility of every kingdom, whether it is the descendants of the royal family or the children of local nobles, will be in this "big game" from the moment it is born. No one is an exception, and no one can escape. Unless someone declares that they will renounce their title and automatically become a normal civilian.

In addition to the subtle and subtle political strife from within the kingdom, another major threat to the local nobility was the more naked military pressure and threat of force from outside the kingdom.

The Kingdom of Erathia is located in the center of the continent of Antagreqi, occupying the most fertile land and the largest grain production area on the continent. Every year, the harvest of wheat, oats and other food crops in the Great Plains of Erathia accounts for almost one-third of the continent's output.

While orc cubs roam the wastelands of Krurod in search of food, while the natives of the Tartaglia Swamp struggle with famine year after year, and when caravans from Bracada have to trade precious magic items for flour and other supplies, the people of Erathia are easily fed. Ah, it may be an exaggeration to say that it is easy to eat, but at least the number of people dying of hunger in the kingdom is the least on the continent. …,

So, so to speak, the kingdom of Erathia occupies a permanent wealth that makes the entire continent jealous and jealous.

Although, in the kingdom's founding war, the "Griffon's Heart" led the extremely powerful human army to almost sweep through Antagreich, and then established the recognized pan-continental human hegemony. However, with the inexorable passage of time and the indisputable decline of the Kingdom's military strength, the other continent races that once trembled under the iron-blooded blade of the Human Legion began to stir up once again.

Of course, from the analysis of the current world situation, perhaps the moment of large-scale military conflict between countries has not yet come, but some small actions under the table have become more and more.

In particular, from the west side of the kingdom, the barbarians who were jealous of humanity for sweeping their ancestors from the throne of the continent would from time to time openly invade the territory of Erathia like greedy locusts to burn, loot, and destroy. And Krulord's official explanation for this is that it was just a handful of bandits in the wasteland.

However, it was in this group of "bandits of the wasteland" that the elite wolf cavalry of the Krurod army was found more than once.

In response to such a grim situation, the local nobles had to repeatedly strengthen their armed forces to deal with the ruthless "bandits of the wasteland" who came and went like the wind. However, before the actual outbreak of the all-out war between Erathia and Krurod, the status quo of the kingdom's nobility being strategically passively beaten was difficult to change.

It is precisely because of all the above internal and external pressures and persecution that the vast majority of nobles must always be vigilant and vigilant. Perhaps, ladies and ladies could pass the long time of boredom by attending banquets and outings from time to time, but the men of the nobility had to run incessantly about the various affairs of their domains.

The bigger the territory, the higher the title, and the greater the responsibility.

Over the next month, the restored Moriarty spent more than half of his time following the baron's father, helping with the family's affairs. As for the rest of the free time, it was allocated to magic and the General History of the Continent.

The harvest of the grange, the trade of the family caravan, the defense of the territory, the liaison with other nobles in the county, and the massive amount of work made Moriarty thoroughly understand the "happy life" of a noble young master from top to bottom, from the inside to the outside.

And because of Moriarty's previous "absurd behavior", the prestige and dignity of the director inside and outside the family have been greatly affected. Although there have been no undesirable phenomena for the time being, Moriarty can clearly perceive the subtle "opinions" of many people, including servants, about him.

However, after that, Moriarty's excellent performance in assisting the baron in handling family affairs changed everyone's opinion somewhat. Even the baron was amazed at the maturity and ease with which his son showed in his work. The only explanation the baron could come up with for such an abrupt change was that the great stimulation of the loss of his mother had brought the previously fragile boy to grow up overnight.

Gradually, Moriarty is regaining his father's trust and expectations for him, and this is what the newborn Moriarty is trying to achieve.

"Moriarty, what do you think of the Fries' caravan, how is this year's table?" In the large study, the Baron sat in his usual high chair, while Moriarty sipped a cup of special black tea.

Suddenly, the baron handed Moriarty a piece of parchment with dense numbers on it. Above is the performance report of a caravan belonging to the Ensberg family.

"Well... So so. Moriarty put down his teacup, took the parchment, read it carefully, and then handed the report back to the baron. …,

"Oh? Do you think so-so? The baron looked at his only son with interest: "Why? You know, this time, Fries brought more than 30,000 Kingdom Gold Coins. ”

"Yes, Father, that's my opinion." In response to the baron's rhetorical question, Moriarty smiled slightly: "The so-called income is not just an abstract number or amount, but more of a beneficial and comprehensive state. In the case of the Fries, the caravans have traveled back and forth between Erathia and Tartaglia twice in the past year, exchanging grain and iron tools for a large amount of cheap furs and some marsh specialties. From this point of view alone, Fries deserves to be the family's silver-level caravan master, and his hard work has indeed brought considerable wealth to the family. ”

"Well, go ahead." The baron looked patiently.

"However, the mere fact that fur and marshland specialties like 'tequila' do not seem to me to be fully commensurate with the great risk that the family caravan is taking for it. Although there are no barbarian bandits in Tatalya, the chaos and conflict between the indigenous tribes there pose no less threat than the wasteland. Moriarty said calmly.

"So in your opinion, what kind of business is more in line with the interests of the family?" The baron then asked.

"In the long run, the benefits of colonization are the greatest." Moriarty got up from his seat and said unhurriedly, "But in the current reality, this can't be done. ”

"Not bad. The swamps of Tataria are a nightmare for any army. In the past, the kingdom did not fail to make such attempts, but the results were clearly not ideal. The baron agreed with Moriarty's first point.

"So, father, which of the 'goods' that you think is the cheapest of the 'goods' that Tartaglia produces?" At this time, Moriarty suddenly asked the baron.

"The cheapest?" The baron didn't seem to expect Moriarty to ask such a question, and he himself had never thought of it that way: "Herbs, furs, wood carvings, coarse brimstone?" The baron was not embarrassed that he had been questioned by his son, but said with more and more interest. And what he mentioned were the commodities that Tartaglia exports every year.

"No, father, none of these are any." Moriarty shook her head as she pulled out a Daneman black cigar from a delicate wooden box next to her desk, sliced open the mouthpiece with a silver cigar cutter, and swiped a match to light it for her father.

The baron took the cigar and took a gentle first puff before exhaling it, nodding his head in satisfaction and waiting quietly for Moriarty to continue.

"In my opinion, the cheapest 'commodity' in Tartaglia is not the swamp specialties, but the natives of Tartaglia themselves." Looking at the baron, surrounded by cigar smoke, Moriarty leaned over and propped his hands on the large desk.

"Oh?" The baron's gray eyes flashed instantly: "You're talking about the Tartaglia mercenaries?" Well, Tartaglia's mercenaries are indeed the cheapest warriors in the pan-continent, but their reputation for cowardice and uselessness is just as well-known as their cheapness. Besides, the Ensberg family does not have much 'inherent territory' in the 'arms' market, and it may not be easy to get involved in it. ”

"No, father, I'm not talking about armed mercenaries like hammerhammer wolfheads or lizard archers, but the most common natives. Including the elderly, women, children. Moriarty spoke again.

"Be specific." At this time, the baron slowly put down the cigar in his hand and sat up straight.

And for this conversation, the baron also began to be really interested.