Imperial Crown.

Chapter 59: What kind of melee combat does the mage play?
"Why do you want to enchant weapons for Visdon?" Denise asked.

Raven answered casually, "Because he wants it, I'll give it to him."

He turned to Weisdon and asked, "How is it, do you like it?"

Weisdong glanced at his mother and whispered, "Yeah... I like it!"

Raven shrugged. "Look, he doesn't mind it himself."

Denise frowned and glared at Weston, then looked at Raven, her tone slightly heavier: "Raven, I'm talking to you seriously."

She knew Raven. This man was as shrewd and cost-calculating as any other businessman. He would never waste precious enchanted weapons on Visdon during such a busy time.

“Oh, don’t get excited.” Raven picked up the napkin and wiped his mouth: “I’m talking to you seriously too.”

"In two months, Visdon will be fifteen years old, right?"

Denise nodded and asked in confusion, "Yeah, but what does this have to do with giving him a weapon?"

"Fifteen." Raven said with a hint of emotion, "At this age, I was already on the streets."

Denise knew Raven's background very well. She glanced at him and said, "How can they be the same?"

"It's true. Weisdon's conditions are much better than mine back then." Raven said with a click of his tongue, "He's physically stronger than I was back then, and he's got more money. Most importantly, he has a family."

Denise was ready to retort, but after hearing Raven's words, she fell silent.

"He has to shoulder the responsibility and protect this family." Raven cut the pork sausage slowly and said, "I will definitely lead the counterattack on Bloody Highland. Someone will need to guard Eagle Castle by then."

Denise's brows suddenly relaxed, and there was a hint of astonishment in her eyes.

It was indeed a very reasonable arrangement for Raven to leave and for Weston to stay in Eagle Castle, but she always felt something was wrong.

Seeing Weisdon's eagerness to try, she became even more worried:
"But he's only fourteen."

"It's almost fifteen," Raven emphasized.

"That's still two months away!"

"It's only two months away!" Raven's voice became a little higher. "How do you think people grow up? They become adults at the age of fifteen, become experienced in the ways of the world at the age of forty-five, and become indifferent to worldly affairs at the age of sixty-five?"

“Growth requires experience and knowledge.”

"If you continue to protect him like this, he will never grow up!"

Denise wanted to argue, but Weston was provoked: "Yes, mother, I also want a chance to gain some experience!"

"You--" Denise looked at her son, feeling quite disappointed with him.

It's not that she can't let go, but to gain experience, she needs that ability.

With Visdon's current naive mentality, let alone managing a barony, he would probably be swindled of all his savings if he were given a tavern!

Just as he was about to continue arguing with Raven, a beautiful figure walked in.

Seeing this, Raven frowned slightly.

Why did Nancy come? Didn't she always dislike the food at Eagle Castle and bring her own chef?
Today, Nancy was wearing a fluffy pink skirt, with two curls of hair hanging behind her head, and a big smile on her little face.

"What are you talking about? You look so happy. Tell me about it." She floated to Raven like a morning glory, and Jenny immediately moved a chair over.

Sitting next to Raven, Nancy put one arm on the table and stared at him with a smile in her eyes.

Being stared at was a little frightened, Raven calmly moved his chair away from Nancy and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Nancy moved her chair closer and said, "I just discovered that Baron Raven is still very handsome."

As she spoke, she clapped her hands in an affected manner, like an actress on the opera stage, and Jenny immediately took out a silver bowl from the basket she carried and placed it on the table.

Nancy gently pushed the bowl in front of Raven: "Try it, I made this caramel cream ice cream myself."

Looking down, Raven couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth.

It is called "caramel cream ice cream", but there is no trace of cream at all. It is covered with a thick layer of caramel, and it is worthy of its name, as it is burnt to carbonization.

This must have been done by Nancy herself.

Nancy's attitude made Raven feel uncomfortable. He could only cough and say, "Miss Nancy, what do you want to do?"

"Try it first. I won't poison you," said Nancy.

Looking at the food in the bowl, Raven couldn't move his hands, so he pushed the food in front of Weston: "Miss Nancy's gift, try it!"

"Raven!" Nancy's brows furrowed and her voice rose, but soon softened: "Forget it, if you don't want to eat it, then don't eat it."

As he said that, he swept the silver bowl into the trash can.

Raven instantly became alert. Nancy was acting very abnormally today. He stood up and said, "Sorry, I'm a little tired. I'm going to rest first."

After saying that, he walked towards the door.

"Don't go." Nancy stood up and chased after him: "Take me to Bloody Heights. If you promise me, I can consider marrying you!"

Raven immediately quickened his pace.

Take Nancy to Bloody Heights and then marry her - double punishment!
Only someone would agree to something that has no benefit.

After returning to the study, Raven asked Petty to bring him some snacks to fill his stomach. He read the Elvish language for a while, and when everyone was almost ready to rest, he turned around and left Eagle Castle, leaving even Volaf behind. He waded through the snow all the way to the valley behind Eagle Castle.

The straw mat covering the wall of the valley was moved away, and a burst of hot air turned into white mist and was swept back into the cave before it could rush out. However, the smell of charcoal fire and horse smell still hit me in the face.

The guards on duty here hurriedly saluted: "Baron, you are here!"

"Yeah." Raven nodded in return and walked inside.

This used to be a mine, but it was abandoned because the ore was exhausted. The entrance was once used as a storage space, thus creating a large space.

In the center is a fire pit with a diameter of three meters, filled with firewood. At this moment, it is burning with a crackling sound, and sparks jump out from time to time, making the whole space steaming hot.

It’s not as good as the heating in the previous life, but the temperature is above 10℃. As long as you keep warm, it’s enough to keep people alive.

On both sides were stables made of simple wood and stone materials, with half-demonized war horses tied inside. Some were resting with their eyes closed, while others had their heads buried in the trough, chewing grass in big mouthfuls.

"Thank you for leaving you here alone. It's hard work." Raven said as he looked at her.

Unlike the half-demonized domestic pigs, war horses are military supplies, and after being transformed by magic cores, the difference from ordinary war horses can be seen at a glance.

Its shoulder height is only slightly shorter than that of the Blood-Eyed Warhorse, but its overall physique is more robust, and its hair is soft and smooth. Its agile and strong muscles are clearly revealed with every move, just like a bodybuilder.

Although Nancy might not notice the special features of these war horses given her personality, Raven did not want to take the risk. After a visit to the Bloody Highlands, these war horses would naturally be "cleaned".

"It's not hard. It's my honor to serve the Baron." The soldier smiled and said, "Besides, these Warcraft horses are very docile and easy to manage." "That's good." Walking to the stable, Raven reached out and opened the trough. In addition to dry grass, there were also a lot of black beans and smashed raw eggs. He nodded with satisfaction.

Raven nodded slightly. At this moment, there was a crunching sound of snow being trampled, and Eric appeared at the door: "Baron, here I come!"

He saluted deeply, his eyes fell on the war horses, and he couldn't move them away.

Walking up to a warhorse, Eric stretched out his big hand to stroke its shoulder, pinching it from time to time, with undisguised admiration in his eyes: "What a good horse, much better than the ones Miss Nancy brought, and almost as good as the Blood Eye Warhorse!"

"Of course." Raven hugged his shoulders and said, "You don't know how much it cost me!"

If the elemental affinity is strong, one magic core can turn two domestic pigs into half-demon beasts, but the physiques of these war horses are stronger than domestic pigs. In order to achieve the same effect, more energy must be absorbed.

Moreover, Raven did not strengthen them in order to skin them and eat their meat. Of course, he would give them as much as they could absorb. Therefore, more than 80% of the energy in a magic core would be used on the same warhorse. The rest could only be absorbed by Raven himself to expand his magic power limit.

Eight magic cores were used to power the eight war horses in this stable.

It’s not that Raven doesn’t want to save some, but if he wants to avoid waste at all, he needs to use at least four magic cores to strengthen five war horses at the same time. His mental strength is not enough to support the filtering of so many corrupt soul essences at the same time.

Gradually calming down the excitement on his face, Eric asked, "Baron, what exactly do you want me to do?"

"Gunther, please go out for a while. Don't come in without my order." Raven said.

"Understood, Your Excellency the Baron." The guard in charge of guarding the place saluted and retreated.

The footsteps gradually faded away, and Raven touched his belt with his hand, and an enchanted rapier was already in his hand.

Eric was stunned: "Baron, what are you doing...?"

"Draw your sword." Raven's face darkened. "From now on, I will use all means except magic to attack you. All you need to do is treat me as an enemy."

"But... Sir." Eric scratched his head: "I'm afraid you..."

"I'm afraid I'm no match for you?" Raven smiled slightly, shook his rapier, and suddenly rushed towards Eric: "Then you might get hurt!"

The figure wrapped in black leather armor was as fast as lightning. The speed was so fast that Eric was stunned. For a moment, he remembered Anderson who was wrapped in dark fighting spirit at that time!

Shine——

The tip of the rapier scraped across the thick surface of the steel shield, creating a streak of fire that illuminated the faces of Eric and Raven, and also revealed the astonishment on the latter's face.

The two figures crossed each other, and Raven spun around with the rapier in his hand pointed at Eric's back.

The latter seemed to have eyes on his back. Before he turned around, the steel shield had already reached the point where the sword would land.

The shield wrapped in silver steel fighting spirit shone like a diamond, and it suddenly swung away the rapier. Then the blood-red scimitar came whistling with the sound of breaking wind. The silver fighting spirit and the blood-red luster of the scimitar itself intertwined together, like a blood-glowing crescent moon.

Before the blade arrived, Raven's skin had already begun to feel the stinging pain. His eyes were slightly dimmed, and silver light was flowing. Under the effect of the Eye of Truth, Eric's movements became clear and intuitive.

Raven took two steps back with his feet moving alternately, and Eric had already turned around. He looked at Raven without any contempt anymore, took a deep breath, and then took the initiative to charge!
After being strengthened by Raven's magic core, the heavy armor on his body was no longer a burden, and his charge was as fierce as a mad rhinoceros.

Eric moved forward and Raven moved backward, but the speed of moving forward was much faster than that of moving backward.

The former drew his sword and swung it horizontally, and the latter knew that he could not take it head-on, so he suddenly contracted his abdomen and barely avoided the attack, but the former had already slapped up with the round shield in his left hand!
If you were really hit by this blow, it would be no different from being hit by a galloping horse!

At the critical moment, Raven moved his fingers slightly, and the enchanted rapier suddenly jumped up like a snake, brushed past the edge of the shield, and pressed against Eric's throat.

Clang.

The round shield fell to the ground. Eric's head was already covered with cold sweat. He looked at the rapier on his throat and swallowed his saliva: "Baron, your fighting skills are really exquisite..."

“Don’t brag.” Raven retracted his rapier and rolled his eyes at him. “You used your left hand to hold back at the last moment, which slowed down the shield a lot. That’s why I had a chance.”

"Besides, you still have plenty of fighting spirit, and you are wearing enchanted plate armor. If you really use fighting spirit to strengthen it, I may not be able to pierce through it with my sword."

"The Baron's vision is as accurate as that of a hawk." Eric praised with a smile: "But I did try my best."

"Oh, you know I can see clearly, yet you still dare to say such things." Raven moved his wrists and said, "Pick up the shield. You can't leave until you beat me tonight!"

"Ah?" Eric's face wrinkled like a bitter gourd: "Sir, you are a magician, why do you want to practice close combat?"

"Mages need to fight at a distance." Raven said calmly, "You know this, I know this, and our enemies know it too."

"But I can't guarantee that every enemy I encounter won't be able to get close to me, so at least, when the enemy approaches me, I hope to have some ability to resist."

Eric was stunned when he heard this. He did not expect that Raven, who had become a magician, would have such cautious considerations.

He bent down and picked up the shield on the ground, his eyes sparkling, and said in a very serious manner: "In this case, I am willing to help the Baron with all my strength!"

This sparring lasted nearly two hours, and poor Gunther was almost frozen. He had no idea what had happened in the cave. He only knew that when they returned to the abandoned mine, Eric was sweating profusely and Raven was panting.

For Raven, these two hours of sparring were very rewarding; but for Eric, it was a completely different experience.

In terms of close combat alone, he was far superior to Raven in terms of combat experience, skills, and strength, but for some reason, Raven always seemed to be able to see his movements and react in advance, like a slippery loach.

And his extraordinary strength and reaction speed are not inferior to most first-level extraordinary people. If he had not been strengthened by the magic core, Eric would not be much stronger.

What impressed him most was Raven's pace. No matter what time it was, his legs were slightly apart and shoulder-width apart, and his feet were never raised more than ten centimeters above the ground. This allowed Raven's body to remain stable at all times, while also minimizing the risk of stepping on foreign objects and losing balance.

These were definitely not the steps of a layman, but there were no signs of professional training either. They were more like the experience accumulated from battle after battle, which required a smart mind and keen combat instincts to develop.

"What a pity." Eric muttered on his way back to the barracks: "If Lord Raven had chosen to be a warrior, he would have achieved great success."

Time passed slowly, one day, two days, three days...

Although there was no second snowfall, the Eagle Territory was getting colder day by day. However, this did not stop the enthusiasm of the people of Eagle Town. They continued the construction of infrastructure and were about to build a new warehouse.

Raven's life became more fulfilling. After handling daily affairs in the morning, he would start studying books and practicing magic. After lunch, he would practice horse riding and lance, and occasionally go to the military camp to observe.

He would not rest at night. After practicing the Elvish language, he would go to Eric to hone his fighting skills.

Just like Eric said, Raven has a certain talent, and his melee skills improve every day, making it increasingly difficult for Eric to deal with him.

The saying "leaders lead by example" is universal in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad. Raven filled his schedule to the brim, and everyone in Eagle Castle was on edge, with the overall atmosphere becoming increasingly tense without anyone noticing.

That morning, Raven was studying "The Path of the Mage", thinking about a passage about meditation and mental power, when there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Enter."

Raven put the book down and saw old Gordon walk in.

This hardworking and meritorious old steward changed his usual calmness, with a hint of hesitation on his face, his eyes wandering, and his tone hesitant:

"Um... Mr. Baron, I have something that I hope to obtain your consent for."

……

(End of this chapter)