Chapter 35: The Conscription Order (III)

Hearing Donald’s question, Sir Jesse, unusually, rolled his eyes despite his noble demeanor. He thought to himself, “It’s so difficult to become a noble, especially a land-owning noble—often requiring generations of effort. Do you think everyone is like you, a genius mage who appears once in a hundred years, or an heir to a hereditary knightship?”
Though he grumbled inwardly, Jesse patiently explained to Donald, “You don’t know, Donald. Orc armies of over ten thousand usually appear only during large-scale invasions, and such things haven’t happened in our Kingdom of Selt for decades. It’s more common in the countries of the central plains. As for higher rewards, the conscription order doesn’t specify any, because even the adult orc soldiers from the three small tribes can’t exceed ten thousand. Moreover, the number of orc spellcasters has always been scarce—there might be no more than a dozen high-ranking shaman priests in entire orc territories. These Silver Shaman Priests are equivalent to the chiefs of large tribes and rarely join the army; they usually stay in their lairs to command.”
“If such a figure appears, it means the orcs are about to launch a major invasion, and the kingdom will surely deploy armies like the three great legions. On a battlefield of tens of thousands, individual combat skills alone won’t suffice to achieve much. That’s why the conscription order doesn’t mention such distant rewards. But according to historical records, if one can kill a high-ranking shaman priest, they can at least receive the title and lands of a hereditary viscount or even earl, becoming a true land-owning noble!”
After hearing these explanations, Donald sighed, “It’s truly difficult to become a noble or advance within the noble class! But this is a great opportunity for me! Thank you, Jesse, for traveling such a long distance to bring me this news. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have much time to prepare in advance.”
Jesse was pleased and smiled, saying, “We’re friends, aren’t we? It’s only right to show a little kindness between friends!”
Donald also smiled and said, “Indeed, we’re friends. To thank my friend, I’ve prepared a gift just for you—one that can’t be found elsewhere. Please don’t refuse it!”
With that, Donald ordered Codd, who was waiting nearby, “Butler! Please pack a bundle of the fresh black tea from my plantation for dear Sir Jesse. I’m sure my friend will like this drink!”
“Wonderful! You’re so generous, Donald!”

Jessie was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly expressed his gratitude.
The beverage known as black tea had already spread throughout the upper classes of the North County through the word of several mages and nobles he had met, even reaching fame in the royal capital. However, the distribution of sales profits had not yet been determined, and it could only be consumed within the mage guilds.
If he could use black tea as a beverage to entertain guests, he would likely be the first noble in the North County, and even the entire kingdom, to possess this mage beverage. This would undoubtedly boost his reputation greatly and be extremely helpful in making connections with various nobles!
Thinking of this, Sir Jessie, excited, held the wooden box brought by butler Kord. Inside was a pack of black tea leaves weighing about one so, wrapped in gold foil.
A “so” was the standard unit of weight in this world, roughly equivalent to 80 grams in Donald’s previous life. An “er” was a smaller unit, with one so equaling ten ers.
These terms originated from the measurement systems of the ancient Arcane Empire and were further developed by the ancient Magic Empire of Bannai thousands of years ago, becoming the unified measurement standard across the continent. The weight of one gold so was exactly one so, which also explained the name “gold so.” Each country on the continent issued its own currency, which, despite differing names and designs, had nearly identical compositions and weights, all cast in a ratio of one copper to two silver to seven gold. Thus, the gold coins of various countries were generally referred to as gold so.
This practice served not only to facilitate trade between countries but also to make gold coins harder and more durable, as pure gold is relatively soft and prone to scratches. Adding small amounts of other metals significantly increased the hardness of the coins.
This practice also stemmed from the system of the Bannai Empire, as most of the current rulers of the great nations were descendants of Bannai nobles. Aside from Celt, two countries on the continent claimed to be the legitimate heirs of Bannai. Even a war over this claim to legitimacy had left both sides severely weakened, and they remain hostile to this day.
One so might not seem like much, but considering that these black tea leaves were dried and roasted, their weight was considerable. Saving a little would be enough for Jessie to drink for a month or two.
The fact that Donald, a mage, could offer such a precious and meaningful gift—not just a simple gold so—showed that he regarded Jessie as a friend worth deepening ties with. How could Jessie, who had his own ideals and goals, not be delighted?

After seeing Sir Jesse leave with a box of black tea and achieving his goal, Donald was inexplicably excited.
“Uncle Codd, the time for our Merlin family to rise has finally arrived!”
Donald was overjoyed upon receiving the official summons.
Military achievements had always been the best way for commoners to gain power and status, and other sons of noble families who were not the eldest legitimate heirs often chose to join the army or work for other nobles in hopes of earning a noble title. Even the sons of high-ranking nobles would participate in one or two battles with their family’s support to prove they were qualified to inherit and lead the family.
In Donald’s words from his past life, this was like high-ranking officials sending their children to the countryside to gain experience!
For Donald, who had already lost his family’s lands, this war came at just the right time. As long as he could achieve merits on the battlefield with his skills as a summoner, he was almost certain to receive rewards from the kingdom’s elite. Killing a thousand orcs alone could earn him a knightly title and a manor, while killing a black iron shaman priest or ten thousand orcs would grant him a knightly or lordly domain.
Like the eradication of demonic creatures, the fight against orcs was a joint declaration by human kingdoms, so the rewards for such merits were strictly regulated. After the war ended, rewards would be granted jointly by the royal family, the noble council, and the temples, and no one could stop it even if some were dissatisfied.
Donald set his goal to obtain at least one domain of his own. Although a knightly domain was usually not very large, consisting of only two or three villages, it was still far better than his two manors. With a domain, he could nominally establish his own private army and gain stronger military forces. Moreover, his family was already hereditary knights, so there were no strict requirements regarding titles—this was much easier than for commoners who wanted to rise to nobility!
Therefore, Donald was determined to achieve merits in this war; at the very least, he wouldn’t let anyone else take that knightly domain.
Butler Codd was even more excited than Donald, tears in his eyes as he said, “Yes! We’ve been waiting for this day for over a decade. It’s all thanks to you, young master!”
Donald expressed his sincere gratitude:
“I owe this to Codd’s care over the years. Without your upbringing, I probably wouldn’t have survived past age ten, let alone achieved what I have now! Let’s prepare well these next few days and set off as soon as possible to the border of Marquis Ansel’s domain. With my skills, which are now on par with most black iron mages, I’m confident I can achieve great merits!”

Cord nodded happily repeatedly, then busied himself preparing for the young master’s battle. Watching the butler get ready, Donald didn’t stop him. With the Book of Truth in his possession, he only needed enough crystal cores and energy—nothing else was lacking. Yet he didn’t want to dampen the butler’s enthusiasm; after all, his space imprint could hold plenty more items. Although his own estate was still in its infancy and required time to be carefully managed, leaving now would inevitably slow progress. But the benefits of gaining a territory far outweighed the development of just one estate. Yet despite his joy, thinking of the attack from the previous day, Donald was also very troubled. What worried him was that without him around, the safety of the people in the estate couldn’t be guaranteed. They were all people he valued in this world, so he had to find a way to eliminate that hidden threat before setting off. That’s why he was rushing to acquire elemental crystals to deal with this problem.