Late at night, Richard had been asleep for a long time.

It was a dreamless night, and the deepest sleep allowed his body, which was on the verge of exhaustion, to slowly recover. Powerful magic and energy-rejuvenating potions condense this process several times over.

There is an old saying among the Grey Dwarf tribe that time is gold. But that refers to the time of ordinary people or the secondary plane, such as the time of people like Richard or even Su Hailun, can no longer be measured in gold coins alone, especially their main plane time.

Richard knew he had taken the most important step, so he slept very deeply and peacefully. The frustration accumulated for many days seems to have been vented in the wolf rush of the ironclad horse. However, he still didn't fully realize the impact that his magic pattern had on others, or even the entire dark blue.

Stevenson's living quarters were larger than Richard's, and the floors were three stories higher. In the eyes of outsiders, this not only shows the favor and attention of His Royal Highness, but also a sign of his illustrious status as a child of a great aristocratic family. Only Stevenson himself knows what the price to pay for maintaining this decency is.

Richard's living quarters were completely free, while Stevenson had to pay full rent for the larger, more functional living quarters.

Even for Stevenson, who nominally had the full backing of the Doram family, the monthly rent of close to three hundred thousand Imperial Gold Coins was a very heavy burden. And he also needs to pay double the tuition fee, although the Duke of Solam has already paid his tuition for the next few years in a lump sum, but the cost of his study in Deep Blue this time is not calculated in this way, even if it is not amortized on a monthly basis according to the professional method, the interest that should have been generated by this huge amount is a lot of money.

Of course, the resources of Solam's huge family could not be invested in Stevenson alone. And a large part of the reason why he was able to impress the family council was the family's desire to have a large constructor with his own bloodline, which was also the unanimous desire of any slightly ambitious family on the mainland. Randolph was the right man, but his stupidity caused him to fail before he could even start. Stevenson seized the opportunity to convince the family council that he was not only a dragon warlock, but also a potential constructor, and that his own resources surpassed those of Randolph, and that in recent years he had begun to participate in the family's affairs, and that he had shown his outstanding talents.

However, the family's investment needs to see a return. Especially after the Randolph incident, the family's patience became increasingly limited. Duke Solam has already advanced to the legend, and after two or three years at most to consolidate the realm, it is time for a massive expansion.

In addition, Sdiwenson also pays for Minnie's tuition. Because after the marriage contract was established, the Marquis of Neo couldn't wait to stop paying his daughter's fee.

The war on the front line is indeed tight, and the Marquis Neo's financial situation is on the verge of collapse, and since the war is mainly burning in the marquisate itself, it is still a big question mark whether the marquis can survive until the end of next year. In the final analysis, it was because the Marquis's men were too incompetent, and of course, in Stevenson's mind, the uncle who led Solam's reinforcements should also be added to the sequence of incompetent people.

The combined forces of Neo and Solam already have absolute superiority in numbers, and they are fighting in familiar terrain, but they have not been able to fight against Ellieje for a long time, let alone encircle or crush her small army, even if it is a head-on defeat.

This woman has an incomparably keen sense of smell on the battlefield, and her use of troops is erratic, and once she finds the weak link of the opponent and attacks, she is like thunder and ruthless. With less than a third of her opponent's forces, she fought on not too large and complex terrain, but she dragged the combined forces of Neo and Solam to exhaust them. And she destroys the fields, mines, forests, and towns in Neo's territory, plundering all resources and destroying those that cannot be moved. So everywhere she went, the marquis's heart ached so much that he couldn't sleep.

Neo's one-sided weakness also made several of the big nobles surrounding it nervous, and Solam's strong intervention paid a corresponding price. With the tide of battle at a stalemate, most of Solam's gains from Marquis Neo have come to naught, and if Ellie continues to make such a fuss, it will soon turn into a loss.

The latest news that Stilvesant has received is that the Solam family has decided to make peace with her if they can't settle the woman within a week. As for the issue of war reparations, it will be a headache for Neo.

For most of the year, Stevenson had already decorated his living quarters with great taste. But now, from his bedroom area, there was the constant sound of all kinds of utensils breaking, and one by one the exquisite and elegant works of art were smashed by Stevenson on the walls and floors, and the fragments flew everywhere, and some even swept over Stevenson's face, leaving a few faint blood marks. The heavy burden, visible or invisible, weighed him down and he was almost out of breath, and smashing things could be a little **, but it was only a temporary solution. But now he only wants **, otherwise he will definitely go crazy.

"It's Akmund again!It's Akmund again!They're all crazy!Devils!Hell guys!Why are they all in my way!!" Stevenson roared and cursed like madness, but that wasn't enough to get the rage out of his heart.

However, there was nothing left to smash in the bedroom, except for an ancient vase made of adamantite gold and crystals. This is the most cherished collection of an emperor in the Alien Plane, and aside from the immeasurable value of art and time, the pure gold and the finest magic amethyst alone were cut and sold for nothing, and it was more than a million gold coins. Stevenson himself could not afford this top-notch art treasure, but it was actually one of the Duke Solam's private collections, and it was placed here for Stevenson's façade.

Stevenson's anger was also controlled, and thousands of ornaments were smashed and smashed, even if Richard stepped on his face in public, he didn't dare to move a finger.

Minnie Mouse stood quietly in the corner, lonely and beautiful. She is the age when the flowers are first blooming, and her growing figure and cold and arrogant temperament add color to the fresh youth. But there were also a few thin red lines on her face and arms, and Sdivinson's rage also affected her. The flying debris is unrecognizable.

Seeing Minnie, Stevenson suddenly became angry again. At this moment, in his eyes, Minnie Mouse is not a beautiful maiden, a genius mage, but a huge black hole of gold coins. Minnie's tuition is only one-fifth of his, but it's not a lot in absolute terms. Her living quarters, though not as large as those of Stevenson and Richard, were no smaller than those of an average Magister, and the rent she paid for her living quarters was even more than her school fees. And these two items did not include the cost of her magic practice.

For the Solam family, it is not difficult to provide for an extra Minnie. But when Sdivinson's own expenses had reached a staggering figure, and Minnie's portion was added to it, it was particularly breathless.

On a sinking ship, adding even a small stone to the weight can suffocate the people on board.

Stevenson knew very well that after using such a huge investment from Duke Solam, he had no room for failure at all. The lives of legendary people will be greatly extended, and in the still long life of Duke Solam, there will be no shortage of sons and daughters, and there will be no shortage of gifted ones.

Stevenson's Enlightenment Teacher had long said to him that a genius was nothing until he became a truly strong man. I don't know how many geniuses are born on the continent every year, and only those geniuses who are supported by sufficient resources can grow. And those who don't have access to resources can only bear a seemingly brilliant empty title, and it is before adulthood. Because when they grow up, they are really nothing, even worse than ordinary people, and the aura of the past will become a shadow for their future lives.

Randolph is a recent example.

Stevenson was desperate for success, and equally fearful of failure, for the path he had traveled had all turned into an abyss to hell, and even a small step back would be shattered.

A mere dragon warlock is not worthy of such a huge amount of funding, and the reputation of being a long-sleeved dancer in the social world is not worth so many gold coins, as for the management of family affairs, as an ancient family that has lasted for more than a hundred generations, there are countless managers. In fact, in order to get this opportunity to become the Constructor of the Su Helen Inheritance, in addition to the family's and Duke Solam's personal resources, he also invested a lot of manpower and material resources from the maternal line. Once the family decides to give up, then his fate will not be much better than that of the mages outside the Deep Blue Inner Ring who are busy making money.

However, on the single-plank bridge leading to the architect, Richard's newly grown figure stood in front of Stevenson like the Augustonian Mountains, the "Trench of God".

And the marriage contract he made to Minnie Mouse on his own initiative added a lot of money to the bill that Duke Solam had to pay. In fact, Stevenson could not be blamed for this, he just acted according to the laws of aristocratic society, and made a decision that was most beneficial to his future development under the circumstances, because in addition to the patrilineal family, the maternal line and the wife family were also extremely important resources. But who would have thought that Marquis Neo would be so shameless and ruthless, dumping his most outstanding daughter directly to the Solam family?

So Stevenson was almost snarling against Minnie's face: "You! You say, what's the use of asking you now? What else can you do to help me except pay a large sum of money every month for you? Is it to help me improve in my construction studies, or is it to help me get the teacher's favor?

Seeing Minnie's silence, Sdivinson found it even more difficult to suppress his feelings, and he sneered and said, "I almost forgot that you are still a woman, at least you can use it to." Now, you strip me naked and get out of bed!"

Instead of arguing, Minnie did not resist, but silently took off all her clothes, lay down on the bed, and parted her legs. When she did this, her expression was calm. But when he lay down, he turned his face to the side so that no one could see the tears that could not be stopped.

Minnie Mouse closed her eyes tightly, not waiting for the expected rampage. After a few moments, there was still no movement, and she couldn't help but open her eyes to see Stevenson standing on the edge of the bed, clutching the bottleneck of a bottle of spirits, and taking a sip from time to time. His gaze crossed Minnie's body and stared out the window at the ice floes. The harbor at night is not completely dark, and the ubiquitous ice reflects a strange glimmer, without any signs of biological activity, which is particularly cold.

He looked at Minnie Mouse and said coldly, "You are a smart woman, now is not the time for you to be willful or petty." If I can't become a constructor, then it's all over. Status, honor, money, power, nothing. You should be well aware of this. Marquis Neo has long since abandoned you, and your fate is tied to mine. You should feel lucky, because a big aristocratic family with a long history like ours still respects the formal marriage contract, so I have no intention of abandoning the marriage contract for the time being. So, you need to fight for your future now, prove that you are useful to me, to the Solam family, and to prove that you are worthy of the monthly expenditure of 500,000 gold coins. If you can't do it, or don't want to do it, then I won't force you, you can get out of the dark blue next month! I believe that no one would be willing to pay 500,000 gold coins for the daughter of a ruined marquis, a woman who has been used, every month!"

Minnie Mouse stared up at the ceiling in a daze, not moving.

Stevenson was telling the truth, and she couldn't afford to lose the support of the Soram family. If she didn't have money, then not only would her status plummet, but her situation would be even worse than Irene's. Because of her once noble status, there will be many more men who want to leave something in her body. And her magical talent was simply an insignificant factor at this time.

Su Helen famously said: "Gold coins are limited, but geniuses are many." ”