Chapter 656 - 372: Territory, Territory, Territory (Part 2)

The Count’s second son, resolutely embarking on a journey to pioneer the Northern Lands.

The rise of the Northern Lands, ennobled to Baron.

Expelling wars, ennobled to Viscount.

Kingdom War, ennobled to Count.

Each event is undoubtedly legendary.

Many young knights have even taken this figure as their idol.

No one expected that they would actually see this person with their own eyes at this moment.

Countless people let out gasps of astonishment.

Many had their eyes glowing.

In the distance.

A Knight Order even halted in their tracks.

A few young knights were breathing heavily.

"My goddess, that, that seems to be Reine Knight."

"Yes, and there’s also Steve Knight."

"They’re actually saluting."

"Could that person be Count Thor?"

"It must be."

"Oh my God, I’ve actually seen Count Thor!"

Exclamations rose one after another.

Thor and his entourage were then welcomed into the city by Reine, Steve, and others.

Compared to a year ago when Thor left, Eagle City indeed seemed more prosperous.

The city’s population, judging by the current scale, probably exceeded three hundred thousand now.

Even though two hundred thousand people couldn’t all be permanent residents, the number had indeed increased rapidly.

Indeed, this was the case.

According to the previously gathered information,

The population of Eagle Ridge had now reached nearly half a million.

Among them, Eagle City had over two hundred thousand permanent residents, Falcon City a hundred thousand, and other cities had their own populations in the tens of thousands.

One could say it was not inferior to some centuries-old counts.

More importantly, Eagle City was still in a period of explosive development, and at the current rate, this population growth could be further ensured in a few years.

Especially now that the canal had been opened.

The vast farmlands revitalized by the Maine River Valley were almost fully utilized.

Now, the Eagle Merchant Association nearly single-handedly supported nearly seventy percent of the entire Northern Territory’s grain trade.

Seventy percent.

That’s seventy percent of the entire Northern Territory’s grain trade.

And this is the present Northern Territory.

This is undoubtedly an astonishing figure.

After all, with the current context, if not for a population of millions, at least there were five or six million people.

An average adult typically consumes about two to three pounds daily, so for five million people, that translates to ten million to fifteen million pounds, seventy percent of which exceeds seven million pounds. That’s just the food demand of ordinary people, and knights need even more. In fact, the Eagle Merchant Association provides over ten million pounds of grain annually.

It can be said that now, when Eagle Ridge coughs, the entire Northern Territory has to take a deep breath.

Might even encounter major problems.

In such circumstances, if Eagle Ridge doesn’t develop rapidly, that would indeed be the real issue.

Of course, Eagle Ridge isn’t just involved in grain.

There are also weapons, materials, slaves, and Life Potions.

At this moment, Eagle Ridge is like Habbs Commerce Association magnified endlessly.

It completely encompasses the entire Northern Province and the whole Northern Territory.

For this reason,

Eagle Ridge was able to obtain copious amounts of funding and resources for rapid development.

Feet stepped onto the wide roads.

The scenes previously filled with many slaves were no longer present.

In fact, a large number of former slaves had already been transitioned into Free People.

Thor had long provided broader terms.

After all, most tasks done by slaves could be replaced by goblins, with only a few exceptions.

So, transitioning into Free People had become easier.

Of course, it was only easier to become Free People.

Becoming a Knight was not so easy.

It’s even harder now.

Requiring stronger talent and more merit points.

"By the way, Reine, has there been any abnormality in the Northern Province and the Northern Territory lately?"

Listening to the reports, Thor seemed to recall something, his gaze turned to Reine with a deep, resonant voice.

He hadn’t forgotten what the Soul Academy’s headmaster had told him before he left.

Members of the Church of Gods began converging towards the Three Northern Countries.

There was no daily intelligence system now.

But Thor still felt a sense of impending doom.

He wanted to see if anyone sensed anything at Eagle Ridge.

"Abnormality?"

"Not at the moment!"

Reine paused, then shook his head instinctively.

However, as Reine shook his head,

Thor instantly noticed Pelos seemed hesitant to speak.

"What’s the matter?"

"Pelos, is there an issue?"

Looking at Pelos, Thor frowned slightly, speaking in a deep voice.

He hadn’t anticipated there being a real issue.

"Uh, which aspect are you referring to?"

Responding to Thor’s inquiry, Pelos couldn’t help but speak up.

"Oh?"

"What do you mean?"

Thor asked instinctively, his pace halting.

"Sir, during this period, I’ve been responsible for related matters on the side of the Blazing Kingdom. Things there seem a bit off."

Pelos pondered slightly, then spoke slowly.

"The Blazing Kingdom!"

"What’s happened, any issues?"

Thor’s brow furrowed, the Blazing Kingdom was indeed one of the Three Northern Countries, and he hadn’t expected real problems.

"About two months ago, the royal court of the Blazing Kingdom issued a baffling order to begin nationwide conscription, supposedly to attack the Northern Orcs!!"

Pelos nodded, then spoke softly.

"Nationwide conscription to attack the Northern Orcs?"

Thor’s brow furrowed, even without knowing, he sensed something unusual.

Currently, Northern Orcs had almost entirely retreated.

Logically speaking, even with the need to seize land and resources, there was no need for nationwide conscription.

In the Tulip Kingdom, there were usually three levels of mobilization.

The final level being nationwide conscription.

The Three Northern Countries were approximately the same.

The Blazing Kingdom starting with nationwide conscription seems off.

Even if it could barely be explained.

For example, to acquire more resources, or someone wanting to establish a fiefdom might be possible.

But it was a far-fetched explanation.

Getting more resources wasn’t necessary this way.

Establishing a fiefdom, no related news had emerged.

It also doesn’t seem like anyone has amassed enough merit points.

It should be noted that the kingdom is actually suppressing the development of major nobles.

From controlling top-tier breathing techniques and monopolizing high-level resources, a trend can be noticed.

Even if a noble steps forward into the Empire, accumulating a million merit points isn’t easy.

Or rather, it takes centuries of effort for ordinary nobles to not necessarily accumulate.

Thus, the issue becomes apparent.

"Yes, it’s indeed nationwide conscription."

"And initially, it involves total conscription, requiring all nobles to participate, which is why we decided to temporarily withdraw from the Blazing Kingdom."

Pelos nodded, speaking seriously.

"You did right!"

"But remember to send word to Rajos later, to closely monitor the Blazing Kingdom."

"Also, the Purple Gold Flower Kingdom, Tulip Kingdom, increase vigilance, and report any unusual situations immediately."

Thor took a deep breath, pondered briefly, then shook his head.

The available information was too little; even for him, the situation remained unclear and whether it related to the Church of Gods.

He could only issue some instructions.

"Yes!"

Pelos responded respectfully.

Soon after, the group continued their walk.

An hour later,

They finally returned to the castle.

In comparison to the castle from before, today’s Eagle Castle had undoubtedly expanded significantly.

The towering castle was enough to overlook the entire Eagle City.

Even enough to overlook much of the Maine River Valley.

In this extraordinary world, construction height isn’t a concern.

After all, magic can solve ninety-nine percent of problems.

The remaining one percent, knights can handle.

Returning to the castle,

Thor first arranged accommodations for Catherine.

She needed time to recover and had to follow him for the time being.

To this, Catherine didn’t object.

She just settled down quietly.

However, this Seventh Princess of the Empire remained aloof, without uttering a word.

Thor didn’t mind this either.