After leaving the small town, Zhou Qingfeng officially entered the interior of the Northland. His journey slowed down and focused on observing details such as terrain, roads, village and town development. No one had ever paid attention to these conditions. For example, no one could tell the specific population of the Qingbeiland.
Neither Adrian nor Marbury know how many villages and towns there are around Cold Wind City, what economic forms exist around the road from Cold Wind City to Banshee Castle, and they don't even know how many knights there are.
.
The knight lord is the basic structure of the foreign government. A knight can own one or more villages and towns, and is the lowest noble class. Only by understanding the situation of the knight lord can we know how much manpower and material resources an independent lord can mobilize to fight the war.
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A regular knight must be out of work, focusing on honing his combat skills and serving his superior lord. He may not necessarily be a cavalry, but he may also be a dismounted warrior, but he must have strong combat power. It is analogous to the elderly retainers around Inissa.
A regular knight would have several attendants, plus about a dozen serfs. This was worse than the heads of the various families in the human settlements in the Black Forest, but much better than ordinary adventurers.
However, equipment is very expensive, especially armor, so the combat effectiveness of different knights varies greatly. The rich ones are naturally stronger.
Zhou Qingfeng went from village to town to investigate, and he could basically determine the strength of a certain knighthood through simple inquiries. He soon discovered the cruel current situation in the North - overpopulation, stagnant growth, reduced stock, and serious involution.
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The life of darkness has lasted for fifty years, and the Northland economy has completely collapsed. It is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain survival resources, but the cost of obtaining them has increased significantly. The people at the bottom are increasingly unable to survive...
"In Marbury's eyes, the battle for royal power in the North was just a game for nobles. But now it seems that the situation is very different from what he expected."
What you see along the way are either scattered mountains and lonely travelers, or tired livestock and dilapidated villages. The decline of the Northland is all before your eyes, without any change, which makes people feel weak just looking at it. And the Banshee Castle is just ahead of the road.
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Examining the strength of the Phils family is the top priority of Zhou Qingfeng's trip. He must know how long this city can fight in the battle for royal power. Because based on the current investigation situation, the war in the North is actually just one word.
....., consumption!
Regardless of the lords or the knights under the lords, they don't seem to like to engage in brutal decisive battles. Instead, they prefer to spread their troops and engage in long-term confrontations.
Maneuvering, detours, ambushes, sneak attacks, these tactics that require high technical and tactical requirements are completely invisible. This reminds Zhou Qingfeng of the situation he once faced in the Black Forest...
The serfs cannot leave the gaze of the knight, the knight cannot depart from the lord's gaze, and the "grassroots" cannot act alone. The entire force must push forward all the way, otherwise even the march will be a disaster, let alone a war.
War is not about calculating casualties, but about who has more food, who has more gold coins, and who can last longer. In this regard, the former King of the North, the Phils family of Banshee Castle, has an absolute advantage.
The longer the investigation lasted, the more Zhou Qingfeng felt that although there were many other lords, it would be difficult to overthrow the rule of the Phils family.
But for a weak force like Harmony Village, it is inappropriate for one strong force to dominate the North. It would be better if everyone is evenly matched. Therefore, Zhou Qingfeng is naturally hostile to the Banshee Castle. Now that he has come to investigate in person, he hopes to find out
Opponent's weaknesses.
After several days of continuous inspection, Zhou Qingfeng finally appeared outside the city of Banshee Castle before the dry food was finished. This journey gave him an intuitive understanding of the consumption of marching - horses are far inferior to humans in long-distance marching.
Without the 'Quick Shadow' to carry the burden, and without using the Succubus to provide logistics, Zhou Qingfeng relied on his own horse to carry part of the rations, simulating the daily needs of ordinary soldiers. In the end, he found...
People's carrying capacity is too weak and cannot go far, but they have good endurance; horses have strong carrying capacity, but they are difficult to maintain after eating too much, and they cannot go far either; without sufficient logistical support, long-term war will be a joke.
No wonder Marbury once said, "The battle for royal power in the North usually takes one or two years to prepare for and one or two months to fight." Under such circumstances, no one can really afford to spend too long.
"But this world of swords and magic might have space treasures, that's not possible." Zhou Qingfeng thought to himself. His 'Gate of True Knowledge' is a virtual body that stores knowledge. It cannot be placed unless it is placed semi-permanently.
real thing.
Compared with the villages and towns encountered on the road, Banshee Castle, with a population of more than 30,000, is significantly larger. From a distance, you can see walls exceeding five meters, wide moats, tall defensive towers, and a castle guarded by soldiers.
Door suspension bridge.
The towering city brings strong psychological implications to people. It is a powerful force.
Everyone entering the city must pay a poll tax, and merchants must pay more based on the value of their goods. Of course, if you have a recognized noble status, you are exempt from tax.
Adrian has already gone into the city to explore the way. Kelly has not shown up in the past few days, and has less contact with the Holy Light. It is not known where her full-time bodyguard has gone.
Seth followed Zhou Qingfeng and reminded in a low voice: "Master, you must change your name to make it easier to interact with others. But don't tell people that you are from the Black Forest. The nobles here will think you are a barbarian.
.”
"Count of Monte Cristo, what do you think?" Zhou Qingfeng asked.
"Earl?" Seth immediately shook his head, "Master, this is too exaggerated. There has never been an earl in the North. If you were an earl, you should be riding in a carriage decorated with gold and silver, followed by hundreds of heavily armored knights. Not just me.
A servant."
Taking advantage of Zhou Qingfeng's thoughtfulness, Seth continued: "Don't use the full name of Victor Hugo. Do you know that the whole North now knows who developed the Black Forest? Don't say that you are a
Warrior, change your profession."
Zhou Qingfeng has an oriental appearance and is completely different from the locals in Faerun. He is indeed easily noticed by others and needs to change his identity. He thought for a while and said, "How about an alchemist? I know a little bit, but my level is not high."
"You don't have the physique of an alchemist. But you are a young adventurer who is traveling around, hoping to find a way to learn alchemy. This way there won't be too many people suspicious." Seth suggested.
"Okay." Zhou Qingfeng agreed, "What's your name... let's call it Edmond Dantès."
Seth sounded strange, "Master, does this name have an origin?"
Zhou Qingfeng smiled slightly and said, "This is the Count of Monte Cristo's real name."
Hey..., this old man is still dreaming about the earl.
The master and servant paid the poll tax at the city gate, and followed the people into the Banshee City. Most of the buildings in the city were made of stone, and they looked like military fortresses. In fact, all the cities in the North were given priority for military purposes, followed by civilian purposes.
expansion.
After entering the city, I walked along the streets. The city was not large in size, with several streets hundreds of meters across to divide different areas. There were quite a few shops in the city, about a hundred.
There are many specialty medicinal herb shops in the North, and there are also some specialized timber and ore trading houses. Most people in the city make a living from this.
Zhou Qingfeng went into several shops to inquire about prices, but the merchants were very indifferent to unfamiliar faces like his, and seeing that he was young, they were too lazy to pay attention to him. He encountered a few soft nails and was very discouraged.
In Zhou Qingfeng's eyes, a city with a population of more than 30,000 is more like a town. He has seen a few 'busy' streets casually. He will not be allowed to wander around in places like military camps, so a rough impression is natural.
It won't get better there.
Invisible servants are greatly restricted in the city, and there is no message when they go to many places. For example, the city lord's palace, the church, and... Zhou Qingfeng went shopping and came to a tower wrapped in thick fog. He looked up and saw
Found this to be a typical wizard's tower.
Necromancer Mondino also built a tower in Harmony Village, with only three floors on the ground. The wizard's tower in front of us has seven floors, which is considered a quite tall building in the city.
Zhou Qingfeng was quite interested in wizards and arcane arts, and stopped outside the tower to watch for a while. Although he didn't know which wizard's tower this was, there were many people outside the tower who came to visit, and it was quite popular.
After wandering outside the tower for a while, someone walked up quickly and said happily: "Young man, do you want to be a wizard? For only ten gold coins, I will give you the opportunity to attend the master-level introductory course."
Where did this guy come from? It was like he was soliciting customers at the small hotel next to the train station. Zhou Qingfeng shrank his hands and said coldly, "No money."
The person who came did not leave. Instead, he held on to the corner of Zhou Qingfeng's clothes and said in a deep voice: "Young man, this opportunity is rare. Eight gold coins are enough. The person teaching is a new official wizard, recognized by the Magic Church."
Zhou Qingfeng sneered, waved his hand again and shouted: "With an introductory course of only eight gold coins, such a wizard will probably starve to death. It's not like I don't understand the market."
Tambos once complained to Zhou Qingfeng, saying that his teacher Fabro tried every means to make money. He had to charge a separate fee for each class, no less than one hundred gold coins each time. Some key courses even had to increase the price.
The tuition is too expensive, and Tambos can't afford to attend a few classes a year. In comparison, Mondino, who uses "soul-absorbing coins" to trade, is considered the conscience of the industry, but because of his identity as a necromancer,
Very bad reputation.
The price of learning knowledge in another world is too expensive, and it has never been affordable by ordinary people. Now that you encounter an 'opportunity' to learn for eight gold coins, it is 100% a lie.
Zhou Qingfeng scoffed, but Seth behind him reminded him in a low voice, "Master, you will be staying in the Banshee Castle for a while, and now you are a newbie from outside who is eager to learn alchemy."
Ah... Zhou Qingfeng was stunned, and then looked at the solicitor, thinking to himself: "Is it possible that I jumped in even though I knew it was a trap?"