Magic Industrial Age

In the carriage.

When Vincent Ackerman stepped inside, the entire carriage dipped, demonstrating his astonishing weight.

As transcendent knights, especially third-tier Berserker Knights, they were the most valiant warriors on the battlefield.

Their job was to assault and break formations, emphasizing incredible physical strength.

Moreover, Vincent Ackerman hadn't reached this point by relying on his family; he was a powerhouse who had fought his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

The Ackerman family didn't practice a system of inheritance based on the eldest son, but rather respected strength, with combat prowess determining the order of succession.

Vincent Ackerman was the sixth son of the family, sent to sea ships in his youth, escorting family trading caravans for ten years, finally developing his third-tier strength.

Slightly bowing, Vincent said, "Earl, you seek me?"

"Yes, sit down and let's talk. I want to hear your understanding of the Flowery Territory."

Vincent, having just sat down, was somewhat puzzled, "Earl, you should ask Lord Reagan about this; he certainly knows more than I do."

"I will naturally ask him, but I want to understand the Flowery Territory comprehensively.

So, just talk about what you know, especially regarding the armed forces within the territory."

Vincent thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll talk about the territory's strongest, the Lion Knights.

This is a knight order that the Raymond family has built with all their might, so its strength goes without saying. The mounts are…"

A moment later, Loye asked again, "Also, what do you know about arcane machinery?"

"Well, I don't know much about that, but I've heard that…"

"Then what do you think of arcane machinery?"

"…"

Vincent Ackerman was actually a very shrewd knight, at least more politically savvy than ordinary knights.

He answered cautiously, seemingly afraid of saying something he shouldn't, but under Loye's guidance, he also spoke some truths and his innermost thoughts.

An hour later, the second person was changed, Alan Wells.

Although this one was much more silent and lacked eloquence, he was honest enough and dared to speak more freely.

He expressed his dissatisfaction with arcane machinery, believing it was a disruption of order and the reason the Flowery Territory had fallen into chaos.

An hour later, Loye called in Reagan Durant.

This one, as expected of a butler, provided information that was not only detailed and comprehensive but also supported by a lot of internal data, making it the most convincing.

The time spent communicating with him was the longest, a whole afternoon, with the two of them conversing in the carriage.

Although Loye didn't take out paper and pen to record, Deep Blue was activated throughout, extracting enough information and summarizing it item by item.

Coupled with the records in the books, the letters sent by Butler Hoover, and the gains from various channels…

Finally, in Loye's mind, he had enough understanding of the Flowery Territory, which was called the 'Lion King's Territory'.

The Flowery Territory was located in the northwest of the Norman Duchy, with a territory covering both banks of the Ruhr River and parts of its tributaries, covering an area of approximately 3,000 square kilometers and a population of as many as one million.

Although it was an Earl title, in terms of territory and population, it was definitely not inferior to the Four Marquisates.

But the most important thing was the geographical location of the Flowery Territory!

The Old Continent had two major mountain ranges, one running north-south, the endless Beast Mountains.

The other ran east-west, dividing the plateau and snowfields of the Dome Mountains.

The north of the Flowery Territory belonged to the end of the Dome Mountains, extending to the border of the Silver Sea.

It was said that it directly penetrated into the Silver Sea, forming huge trenches on the seabed.

And the islands on the Silver Sea were all places where the mountains protruded.

Of course, this was just the view of some scholars; no one knew the specific situation.

However, one could not deny that it was because of this Dome Mountain Range that the cold currents from the far north snowfields were completely blocked from heading south.

This world had transcendence, and flying was not impossible.

If one flew high enough into the sky in winter and looked down, one would find that north of the continuous mountains, the cold air turned into white clouds, extending to the end of the field of vision.

But south of the mountains, it was cloudless, the sky was clear, the sun was shining, and the green fields were everywhere.

In terms of latitude and longitude, the Flowery Territory was definitely north of the Habsburg Empire, but in terms of temperature, it was much warmer than Oakland City.

This was because of the mountain range's blocking effect on the cold currents!

In addition, the Ruhr River, which flowed directly into the Silver Sea, and its tributaries, determined the excellence of this area.

The temperature was suitable, spring-like all year round, rainfall was abundant, and there were many rivers…

With these conditions, the reclaimed land was all fertile, and at least two crops of grain could be harvested each year.

To the west was the sea, and although there were ups and downs, there were also many places suitable for establishing excellent ports.

During the Age of Exploration, the Raymond family had taken advantage of the convenience of the ports to seize the era's dividends.

The Lion King's fleet at sea was also extremely famous, bringing great wealth to the Raymond family.

According to Lord Reagan, one-third of the Raymond family's annual wealth came from here.

In addition, the mountains to the north were also rich in minerals. Many iron mines had been discovered, as well as copper and silver mines.

The only thing that the Raymond Earls of the past were dissatisfied with was that they had not been able to discover a real gold mine, which was somewhat regrettable!

Of course, most of the time, these words were spoken with a hint of boasting.

Also because the climate was suitable, there were many kinds of flowers here, everywhere.

The Raymond family adapted to local conditions, developing the perfume industry, which was very successful, selling well in various countries of the Old Continent and even overseas.

The name Flowery Territory was initially called that by others, and gradually, it was recognized, and then recognized by a certain Lion King.

There were even poems circulating: The Lion King patrolled the territory full of flowers, driving away every evil wolf who dared to covet it.

Of course, this territory did not belong to Raymond from the beginning.

In fact, Loye saw from ancient books that this area was actually the territory of the Winged People in ancient times.

The Winged People, because their image was similar to the angels in the Holy Book, were sought after by many believers.

In ancient times, the Winged People were still very powerful, occupying the most fertile land, but later, when the human race rose, they were beaten, killed, and driven away.

The Raymond family's original territory was not here before, but their ancestors saw the excellence of this place and constantly exchanged territories.

Slowly, they had the current scale!

They even caught up with the wave of the Age of Exploration, so that the Raymond family had been passed down for a full thousand years.

The nobles of the Old Continent naturally had long-standing inheritances, and tracing their bloodlines back to ancient times was also common.

However, in the process of inheritance, ups and downs, prosperity and decline were also the norm.

After the decline, it was often a branch of a certain family that rose again, inheriting the glory of their ancestors, which was considered a resurgence.

This was the norm, but the Raymond family was different.

The so-called inheritance of a thousand years meant that for these thousand years, it was the main line that continued, constantly managing this territory, without interruption.

Because of this, the thousand-year Earl family was a point of pride for the entire Flowery Territory.

Even the Four Marquisate families, the Norman family, were inferior in terms of heritage and reputation.

And the people of this territory recognized the Raymond Earl from the bottom of their hearts.

This was why the Four Marquisate families had never thought of forcibly occupying it, but had to disintegrate it through the Council of Nobles.

They were also afraid of triggering a civil war, which would unite the Raymond family internally again.

However, the current Flowery Territory was completely chaotic.

Loye summarized that one reason was that there was no leader and factions were established.

The vassals and knights were divided into several factions, competing with each other for power and voice.

This could be seen from the fact that there were as many as three heirs pushed out within the territory.

In Loye's view, Reagan Durant belonged to the political faction, controlling the family's business and wealth channels.

Vincent Ackerman was a military faction, a loyal fan of the Raymond family, and also the strongest faction.

As for Alan Wells, he also belonged to the military faction, and was also an obstinate faction. The people who opposed arcane machinery the most were this group.

Separation of powers!

Balance of power!

Before, with Earl Karl Raymond in charge, he could balance it well, grasp the overall situation, command from the heart, and no one dared to act rashly!

Earl Karl Raymond's prestige was so high that he could 'forcefully promote' arcane machinery and still be able to continue, which was the fundamental reason.

In Loye's words: He was very skilled in the art of governance!

But now, it had all become a disaster.

Especially without an upper-level noble to suppress them, the contradictions between the lower-level nobles broke out, and many territories fought each other in battles of all sizes.

Secondly, it was to blame on the promotion of arcane machinery.

Thinking more, Loye gradually understood some of Earl Karl Raymond's thoughts.

He didn't not know the disadvantages of 'forceful promotion', but after careful consideration, he still did so.

Because he was prepared to carry out the most thorough transformation with the fastest speed and the strongest posture.

The pain in the middle was inevitable, but as long as the speed was fast enough, it would not cause irreversible consequences.

When everything was on the right track, the benefits were seen, and there was a huge inflow of profits, he could then use various means to appease the vassals and knights.

It was a pity that the idea was good, and it was not impossible, but halfway through, the Raymond family was gone.

Then, the original order was broken, and a new order had not been established. The people in the territory were confused. They didn't even know what they should do.

Chaos ensued!

Looking back a hundred years, the Flowery Territory at this time was also the most chaotic.

Nobles were killing each other, resolving old grudges.

The people had no source of livelihood, and many had to become robbers, killing and setting fires.

Seeing the chaos in the Flowery Territory, many nobles around were eager to move, wanting to get a share of the pie.

Even the pirates overseas seemed to feel the weakening of the lion and began to collude and gather, wanting to rob a big one.

And this was the current situation that Loye had to face.

Really, the more he understood, the more of a headache Loye had!

However, after having a comprehensive understanding, he still issued the first order as Earl Raymond without hesitation.

"Vincent Ackerman."

"Alan Wells."

"Lord Reagan."

"Since you are willing to acknowledge me as the new Earl Raymond, then go!

Go and pass my will to every noble, every vassal, every knight in the Flowery Territory."

"Tell them, the new Lion King is summoning, and is waiting for their audience!"

"Or, submit at the feet of the Lion King!"

"Or, I grant them the right to die!"

The second update is here, and the third update will continue!