In the early years of the empire, the aristocracy was the most important ruling force, and the nobility at all levels formed a solid upper class.

However, by the middle of the Empire, the royal family had died out and supreme power had been replaced by the High Council of Cermites, and with the exception of the self-proclaimed Holy Soul Wizards, the traditional nobility gradually lost its influence over the years.

Especially more than 400 years ago, after the emergence of the mechanical trade union, the rapid development of productive forces completely broke the feudal system established by the traditional aristocracy through the monopoly of land, and many aristocratic forces disappeared in the long river of history.

Of course, because of the existence of supernatural powers, there are still traditional nobles who still hold the power to rule some regions, but in smaller numbers, often called old nobles.

The counterpart to the old aristocracy was the new aristocracy.

The new aristocracy no longer relied on land and taxes, but through trade and commerce, created factories, ran companies, and amassed a large amount of wealth in the form of capital, so as to gain power and receive knighthoods.

The titles of these new nobles were generally fictitious, status symbols, mainly barons and viscounts, and lower knighthoods and knighthoods.

Moreover, the fictitious title is only a lifelong nobleman and cannot be hereditary.

Earls and above are real fiefs, and most of them have fiefs, either old nobles or members of the ducal family.

The Earldom of Winterthunder is a rare real title, and the population of citizens in Winterthunder City alone is more than 300,000, and the population of the entire territory is more than one million.

There is also a huge lake in the territory, located on the main waterway transportation route, the value and benefits are so high that the entire empire cannot find a few better counties.

In addition, Earl Winterthunder also has a seat in the Imperial Diet.

If you can become Earl of Winterthunder, then you will automatically become a member of the Imperial Parliament, enter the power center of the Empire, and reach the peak of your life.

Under the temptation of such huge profits, who is not tempted?

Even Wren himself, if he has the opportunity to be named Earl of Winter Thunder, he will go all out to fight for it and clear all obstacles in his way.

He looked at Viola, and it was clear that she was bound to the title of Earl.

But it's not easy to get there.

The decision on who can be canonized as an earl is in the hands of the Duke of Silver Star.

And the Duke of Silver Star depends on interests, and whoever can show the best management ability and bring more wealth will be favored by the Duke.

In a year's time, it is very difficult to stand out from a dozen competitors. None of the members who were able to manage the family assets for the Duke were mediocre.

And it's mid-August, just over four months before the end of the year.

Unless you can find another way to create a new way to make money, and get the Duke's approval.

Wren remembered the previous idea again, and thought to himself, this matter is not difficult to say, it depends on what Viola thinks of herself, and after figuring it out, maybe he can help her.

If Viola becomes an earl and owns a large fiefdom, she may be able to follow suit.

Of course, it certainly can't be said now.

Wren didn't mention the matter of the Earldom of Winter Thunder again, but asked, "After Phyllis goes back, what if she finds out that the demon soul of the mountain giant is fake, she doesn't know that it is a scam by Gallowera, and comes back to you for compensation?"

Phyllis was cheated of more than 20,000 gold, this person is a scoundrel, he will definitely not swallow this breath, let alone reason with Viola.

Viola can't just say that it's Gallovena's ghost, and without evidence, the other party won't believe it.

The best thing to do is to catch Helinny.

But after all this time of trading, that Helini must have escaped from Longsander.

She said it herself that it had nothing to do with the Violet House, and she didn't have to worry about being a scoundrel. Viola didn't care at all, and said confidently: "This is Longsander, not Pallas, and I have a reason, as long as I talk to the duke, she will be honest." ”

Wren nodded and said, "If you have a way to deal with it, it's fine." ”

He saw that it was not too early, so he offered to take his leave.

"Then you go back and rest, thank you for today. Viola got up and went out the door, and stood at the door of the room, and Wren was about to enter the elevator when he suddenly said, "You are not skilled enough to play the harpsichora, so come to me every afternoon to practice." ”

Wren turned to look at her, and saw that her gaze was a little evasive, and the offer was almost explicit.

With a smile on his face, he nodded, "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow afternoon." ”

After speaking, he waved his hand and left.

After leaving the Violet House, he called a carriage and sat on it.

Wren keenly noticed that before getting into the car, there were several pairs of eyes staring at him in the dark corners of the street, and then quietly followed.

"I don't know if these people were sent by the so-called 'rivals in love' or if they were Gallovena's men. ”

Wren was helpless.

He knows very well that from today onwards, his name should have a little popularity in the upper echelons of Longshande, and he is firmly bound to Viola, and his life may not be peaceful in the future.

After the carriage crossed the bridge, Wren chose a random place to get off the car, and used the sound of everything to easily get rid of all the stalkers.

I went back to my apartment and slept overnight, waking up early in the morning for a three-hour meditation session.

Then he went out to the Basil Inn, and in the courtyard of Zoltan, borrowed the equipment of the dwarves to exercise his strength, and by the way, he also brought the fine iron war hammer and waved it in his hand.

There are also skills in using a warhammer, and although it is not as complex as swordsmanship, it also requires years of practice.

These techniques are not so subtle, and there is no hammer technique, which can be summed up in two points: one is smashing, and the other is blocking.

Picking up a hammer and smashing things is very simple to say, but in fact, there are many doorways inside.

Smash with one hand, smash with both hands, smash horizontally, smash vertically, smash forward, smash backwards, smash half a circle, smash in a circle, use a few forces, leave a few forces, and you must be familiar with it. When fighting, you must master the balance of the center of gravity of the war hammer, cooperate with the footsteps, exert the maximum strength, and be able to recover it in time after smashing, rather than buying and selling with a hammer.

These tricks must be practiced repeatedly, combined in battle, and used smoothly, without causing the offensive to pause due to excessive force, and the enemy will take advantage of it.

In addition, the block, the warhammer is larger than the average weapon, and can be used as a shield in many cases.

Not only the hammer head, the hammer handle, and the hammer tail, use every part of the hammer to attack the target while parrying.

Sometimes the hammer tail is topped, and the killing effect is better than a sword piercing it.

With the assistance of the mobile phone gyroscope and the metallic touch elements, Wren quickly became familiar with the war hammer in his hand, as if he had become one with himself, becoming an extension of his body, like an arm and finger.

The one hundred and twenty-pound war hammer, whirring in his hand, whipped a violent air current in the courtyard.

After practicing for more than an hour, Wren stopped his movements, and his whole body was soaked with sweat.

He flicked the hammer, the heavy weapon getting easier and easier, just the right amount of weight.

With a hammer in his hand, he looks like a nail.

It's a pity that he has been practicing for so long, and he is waving in the air, and the yard is empty, except for a dozen large iron blocks, there is nothing to smash, which makes him a little itchy.

Wren shook his head, resisting the urge.

"I don't have an offensive physique element right now, otherwise the Warhammer would have been even more powerful. ”

Among the physical elements, there are many that can increase the attack power, and the transcendents generally refer to these elements as skills.

For example, the most common "heavy attack", which many melee transcendents will have, bursts with more power when attacking, and the Berserker's "Rage Strike", which has a similar effect, and has a higher power increase.

In addition, there are "Charged Slash", "Forward Slash", "Triple Strike", etc., many of which are common to all kinds of weapons, and some are not suitable for Warhammer.

Wren doesn't have any skills now, so he can only rely on his own strength and skill to attack.

He suddenly grasped the upper end of the hammer handle and shook his palm hard.

The warhammer spun in the palm of his hand like a windmill, and instead of landing, it became faster and faster, forming an afterimage and making a sound that broke through the air.

"Warhammer, you can spin it too?"

Zoltan happened to come in from the gate of the courtyard, and when he saw this scene, his eyes widened.

After a pause in Wren's hand, the afterimage suddenly disappeared, and he turned into a war hammer in his hand, and said with a smile: "I tried it, and it just happened." ”

"You kid, you don't like to tell the truth. ”

Zoltan shook his head, the red cockscomb hairstyle on his head flicked around, and his eyes were full of surprise.

He prefers soul guns and is not good at using war hammers, but as a dwarf, his knowledge of war hammers is much higher than that of ordinary people, and he has seen many masters of war hammers in the clan, but none of them can play war hammers like Wren.

A heavy warhammer, light on one end and heavy on the other, how much power control and skill does it take to make it spin?

Those rangers with "dexterous hands" can't do it!

Wren put away the war hammer, took out a piece of paper from the coat hanging on the wall, and said, "Zoltan, I want to buy a batch of alchemy materials, and a lot of mechanical parts, can you help me get them?" I have made a list, and the price is up to you." ”

This is what he wrote before he went to bed last night, and he was going to use it to make something.

Zoltan took the list and looked.

"Phlogiston, enchantment powder, alcohol, graphite, rubber, copper tubes, dense wax, distilled water, sulfuric acid solution, horns, iron sheets, needles, iron shelves, ......" He quickly browsed and found that Wren wanted a lot of things this time, and they were also very miscellaneous, there were dozens of them in total, and he couldn't tell what they were used for at all.

He didn't ask, though, and the more things Wren wanted, the more money he earned.

"I have most of these materials, but the quantity is not enough, you give me a few days to prepare it, and I will tell you when I have it. Zoltan made a rough estimate and said, "The value of all the materials is about five gold guilders, and you have to pay me three gold in advance." ”

Wren took out three golden shields and handed them over.

"Wait for my message. Zoltan happily put away the golden shield and left on short legs.