Dear Broom Knight.

Chapter 1047 A New Path for Scholars
Euphemia looked at the table laden with food and stared at Antirochus in disbelief: "Brother~ did you evolve, or did you suddenly awaken?"

If I'm possessed, don't tell me. At least let me pretend to be stupid for a few days before asking for help.

Antirochus reached out and patted the back of her head: "Shut up and pack your things."

Beef is associated with the sun element, which is not suitable for you.

The rest were all bought with Ms. Alexandra's advice; they have milder energy, so they're all yours.

Euphemia still couldn't understand: "I only got back five hours later than you... how did you manage to make so much stuff?"

“Heh…” Antirochus recalled his astonishment just now, and a bittersweet envy welled up in his heart. “Ms. Ariges has a food cabinet that can automatically make food.”

There are more than a dozen recipes for each type of food.

She said it's very popular, but there are definitely over a hundred recipes!

Moreover, those recipes can be fine-tuned according to different food seasonings... Ah..."

Antirochus couldn't help but let out a sigh filled with mixed emotions.

Euphemia paused for a moment, then suddenly began rummaging through her storage ring.

"No need to think about it. That's a special product of Archmage Lori Montes, and the recipes inside all come from Green Maple Territory." Antirochus shook his head, understanding what she was thinking. "Given the current capabilities of the low-level alchemists in Green Maple Territory, I doubt anyone can create such a high-level alchemical item."

Even if all you want is a weakened version, that's not allowed.

"The Lord of Green Maple Territory is really protective of his own!" Euphemia smiled bitterly. "No wonder people at Harvey Castle always say that you can make a fortune by robbing someone from Green Maple Territory."

Antirochus couldn't deny this, after all, ordinary people in Qingfeng Territory rarely went out. Those who could leave the Northern Kingdom were definitely under the lord's direct command, and they couldn't possibly have less than Ariges, who was just a follower of Pat.

He sighed: "If the people of Harvey Castle continue down this path, even if they are not destroyed by other nobles, they will perish on their own."

If Euphemia could hear it, it proves that they must joke about it all the time.

Clearly, while these people understood that Lori Montes was not someone to be trifled with, they didn't understand just how powerful she truly was.

They might still be using impressions from twenty years ago to measure the deterrent power of Qingfeng Territory.

However, twenty years later, Lori Montes no longer needed to rely on the King of the North to establish himself in the world, nor did he need to rely on the delicate relationship between the White Dragon and the gods to be successful in all aspects.

He himself is an unparalleled expert.

In fact, this can be seen from the research of this great master.

Twenty years ago, even the recreational items in his magic shop had the function of self-defense.

Healing, relieving distress, exorcising curses, and illusions are almost the mainstream products on his side.

However, twenty years later, Qingfeng Territory clearly has a greater pursuit of daily life... Many people overlook this point because Qingfeng Territory has been very knowledgeable about these things from the very beginning.

However, upon closer examination, many of these items are likely products of Lori Montes' time at the Earl's Castle.

After all, those things that can provide convenience and enjoyment for long-distance travel are very much in line with the rumor that the great master loved to wander around when he was a child.

Even the famous rabbit meat patties, which can be preserved for up to six months, have that kind of flavor.

Whether it's because the Grand Mage was very creative from a young age or because he had some special methods, it's not quite consistent with his image after entering Qingfeng Territory.

As for the fashionable clothes that are so popular in Qingfeng Territory... a closer look reveals the great mage's progress in learning various magical runes.

Whether it's beautiful or not is another matter entirely.

Some people can make art out of a few casual strokes.

Some people, even after meticulously planning for a year or two, still end up with graffiti, or just random scribbles.

Antirochus doesn't think Lori Montes will put much effort into clothing design, just like his special-function jewelry.

He could tell that many of them were mass-produced... but they just had the ability to make them look beautiful even with casual combinations.

Even a gemstone bracelet looks like it was meticulously designed.

However, judging from the output, it's simply impossible.

Talent is a illogical thing.

The same goes for artistic talent.

However, apart from a very small number of people, no one would specifically pursue art.

Just surviving is already so difficult.

However, this does not mean that people cannot see the beauty of art.

The reason why goods from Qingfeng Territory, especially those produced by the lord, can fetch ten times the price there is because of this.

Although Archmage Lowry had many ingenious ideas, there must have been something similar to his creations over tens of thousands of years.

Yes, it's just a function.

From the appearance of the artifacts to the light and shadow effects when skills are unleashed, Lori Montes' creations are all unique.

Antirochus heard that the high-ranking members of the Dark Church were frantically buying up the illusion cards because even cards with the same theme had different images in different boxes.

He could paint hundreds of breathtaking scenes with the Moonlight brand.

Even those who follow the path of moonlight and are devoted to the darkness can gain new insights after witnessing these different moonlit illusions for the first time. This is the most direct and powerful impact that art can have.

There must have been others who could do this before, but they didn't choose to mass-produce and sell it like Archmage Lowry did.

Cutting-edge and singular products only make people feel that they are rare, but they do not make people think that others may be able to do it as well.

But didn't Lori Montes also have his scholars and sorcerer apprentices imitate his work?

Although it's not as perfect as the original author's work and looks rather stiff, it's still useful for those who need to understand the path ahead.

After all, these people are also legal professionals, and their memory and mental capacity far surpass those of ordinary people. At the very least, they can incorporate their own understanding of the original work into their replicas.

Art, even when diminished, is still art.

But it brought the stars down to earth.

Although it's not something that ordinary professionals can obtain, it's something that those who stand on tiptoe to reach for it can come across.

The Church of the Dark Night should have realized this twenty years ago.

That's why the Laurel Church has added some arts education courses in recent years... In this world, only noble families would offer arts courses to their children.

It wasn't because they valued art so much, but because the aristocratic class needed a talent that only they understood.

With just a few words exchanged, without needing to pry into the other person's background, one can immediately determine their origins.

The nobles didn't care whether anyone was taking advantage of the situation... Anyone who could muddy the waters was no ordinary person.

Who would deliberately learn this, and even have the means to do so?

Let's not delve into it; let's just treat them as respectable nobles.

Therefore, it is relatively difficult to find suitable teachers.

The reason the Church of the Dark Night was able to offer courses so quickly is because they already had similar courses.

However, these ladies were all of extraordinary status and position. No matter how powerful Bishop Laurel was, he could not force Darkmoon, who was in charge of teaching them, to teach at his primary school.

Therefore, the Bishop of Laurel must have been preparing for many years to be able to start classes at this time.

This wasn't the kind of simple musical instrument and painting lessons typical of aristocratic society... He and Euphemia's art teacher really enjoyed taking them to appreciate the beauty of nature.

She also frequently took them to experience art... Queen Louise even brought out royal treasures for the children to admire.

The royal palace specially opened a side gate of the palace and converted it into an art gallery.

It is indeed beautiful, but that's about it.

Professionals accustomed to pursuing power find it difficult to be distracted by art, including Antirochus and Euphemia.

This skill still depends on talent.

Only those who are naturally gifted and able to perceive beauty can quickly master the basics despite the hard work and training required.

Lord Lori also devoted most of his energy to the path of becoming a mage!

Art is something people do casually, not something they deliberately pursue.

But it's not entirely useless; at least it can provide a new way out for some people who don't have enough talent for cultivation.

In particular, the academic profession.

While scholars may not be required to have high magical aptitude, their intellectual requirements are extremely high.

For other professions, level 10 is a hurdle.

However, for scholars, the intermediate level is very difficult to surpass.

They lack intelligence and can't even understand books. Not only are the spells and divine arts they can learn before reaching the intermediate level extremely rare, but they are also a level lower than mages and priests of the same level.

But these disciplines, which require both artistic beauty and basic magical power, are very suitable for their survival.

Even if they lack artistic talent, they can at least copy the art of others.

In the past two years, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of talented young scholars at Laurel Church. In the past, if there was even the slightest possibility, they would still try their best to let their children follow the path of pastors, even if it meant being a novice pastor for life.

Parents who love their children are all the same; when it comes to decisions about their children's future, between hobbies and livelihood, they will absolutely choose livelihood.

Scholars, whose profession requires a significant investment of time and resources in the early stages and yields little reward, may even lead to a life of mediocrity and a life no different from that of ordinary people... I would not choose such a profession if I had any other hope.

However, when new possibilities emerge for this profession, or even when it becomes safer, parents will certainly seize the opportunity.

As for the difficulty for scholars to advance in their careers, who cares?

Do they think they'd be better off forcing themselves to learn other professions?
But at least other professions can provide them with food for life, and they can also think that maybe their child will strike it rich.

Once it is determined that scholars can stay in the rear areas and take up their posts, without even needing to go to the battlefield, parents will inevitably choose to let their children with academic qualifications squeeze into this path.

A bright future and great power are not issues that many people can or should consider.

Most people are only looking to survive.

(End of this chapter)