The witch thought I am a Demon God
Chapter 188 - 135 Coming of Prince Jalen and Belisarius the Banker (4101)_2

Chapter 188: Chapter 135 Coming of Prince Jalen and Belisarius the Banker (4101)_2

Apart from being a wizard and his dominion being too small, these two flaws aside, Ivita was the ideal king in the view of Scholar City.

But, him being at this level and aiding a baron was a misuse of talent, both wasteful and not very meaningful.

Scholar City has plenty of lower-level scholars.

It would be more appropriate to have a fresh graduate scholar from university, lurking around Ivita, assisting him, making the next move casually.

Tartax thought about it. After all, he was a dual doctor of ancient history and humanities philosophy from Scholar City. His target this time was the crown prince of Alsace, and only by governing a country could he fully utilize his abilities.

Tartax changed his mind and sincerely wanted to help Ivita, considering him a future ally.

"Actually... aside from robbery, there’s a faster way to make money."

Ivita looked up at him, puzzled.

In this world, what method is faster than robbery?

Tartax paused for a moment, stood up, supported himself with both hands on Ivita’s desk, and said, "Borrowing money!"

"This method is even faster than stealing money!"

"Robbery requires taking action, while borrowing only requires talking, so the cost of borrowing is less than the cost of robbery."

Ivita pondered, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry. "I suppose so. But from whom shall I borrow?"

"Borrowing money still requires collateral, doesn’t it?"

Tartax pointed to his nose and said, "Sir, my reputation can serve as collateral."

"And you are a lord with a territory, inherently a high-quality service target for the private loan industry. What you lack is a reliable borrower. But I know many bankers in the Belisarius Business Republic."

Ivita pretended to be puzzled and narrowed his eyes. "But... Tartax, aren’t you just a second son of a nobleman? How do you know so many people?"

Tartax coughed, it was something he made up on the spot.

The tuition fee of Scholar City was not small, ordinary noblemen’s sons couldn’t afford to study for a doctorate there.

Tartax changed the subject and said, "The Belisarius Business Republic is a renowned banking center, the name of their highest national institution - the Belisarius National Bank, that’s the most powerful bank in the world."

"There’s an interesting description about the Belisarius National Bank - [It’s not the nation that owns the bank, it’s the bank that owns the nation]."

"For bankers of the National Bank, a customer like you is already a quality customer."

"You just lack someone to introduce you."

Ivita nodded.

This was information asymmetry.

Many things are not because others are smarter and therefore can think of more things, just because you don’t know this information.

Sometimes, just by trading on information gaps can make a lot of money.

Tartax said, "The Three Republics all collaborate with various universities, attracting management talent from them. Therefore, I have some influence there. If you need, I can introduce you."

"I estimate you could loan between 8000 - 9000 gold pounds."

Ivita’s breath was disrupted for a moment, this was simply a tremendous sum of money.

This money could even build a small castle.

But if he got his hands on this money, he could completely invest in industries such as soap, not only bringing huge investment to his territory in the future, but also giving work to his civilians, allowing them to make money, and repair the village.

Ivita agreed by nodding his head, "Then you go find someone."

"I will allow you to meet Prince Jalen."

After paying his respects, Tartax left.

Watching him leave, Ivita took out the Candy Mirror and continued to attempt to merge the four remnants into the mirror.

The Peacock Stone Powder Array at his feet released red rays, as the second remnant merged into the mirror.

In an instant, a faint glow appeared in the Candy Mirror. After the second remnant entered the mirror, it seemed to arouse the black magic inherent in the mirror, making scenes appear on the mirror surface.

The scenes were surprisingly of every corner of Moro Castle.

First, the Griffin Knights training the knight attendants on the castle lawn, having them use wooden swords to chop down scarecrows.

Then, the Black Wolf on the second floor of the castle, adding maintenance oil to his great two-handed sword.

Next up, the old witch situated in the castle’s tower was secretly up to something, extracting a letter from under the foot of a black pigeon. The surprising thing was, the sender was the old witch’s beloved disciple.

From the mirror, Ivita saw the letter in the old witch’s hand read, ’Teacher, I welcome you to my domain. I have emphasized this for the seventh time, I am ready to host you and the protector you’ve found for me.’

’My friends and I are at my house day and night, waiting for you and the esteemed guest. Please hurry to Ambros City.’

Ivita: "..."

What friends...

I’m afraid they’re a bunch of people waiting to kill you when I and the old witch get there.

In the mirror, the old witch seemed to realize this too.

She tore up the note, abruptly lifted her head and shouted angrily, "Who dares to spy on me!"

"You dare to spy even on an old woman."

"Have you no shame?"

"Wait... This abnormal sensation of magic power... Ah... It’s his majesty."

The old witch was so scared that she broke out in a cold sweat and immediately began to apologize on the spot. "Your majesty, that was accidental, I..."

The next moment, the Candy Mirror let out a wailing sound.

The image disappeared.

Ivita looked at the mirror, "Just with the second fragment of a soul joining in, it has such an ability. Spirit Mirror Divination is even more useful than I imagined. Even if it’s not being used for divination, it’s very useful just to scout the environment."

He continued to integrate the fragment of the soul into the mirror.

Days passed, and on the tenth day after Tartax had left the territory, Ivita successfully merged the third soul fragment into the mirror.

Meanwhile, the territory was slowly being rebuilt.

At the toll station, in this period, around fifteen gold pounds in taxes were collected.

Ivita took the money and traded it all for grain, which he then distributed it free to the citizens of his territory to help them rebuild their homes and repair their damaged farmland.

This action not only earned him some popularity but also increased Ivita’s sky attribute magic power.

Only at this point did Ivita understand that the best source of sky attribute magic power was this territory.

At the same time, his control over fire magic improved once more, and now he only had to close his left eye for one hour before and after noon each day.

The old witch said this was because those two hours were the moments when the power of fire between heaven and earth was at its strongest.

On the tenth day, a white pigeon landed next to Ivita’s window. Ivita went over, picked up the pigeon, and discovered a letter on the pigeon’s leg.

He opened it to read, and it was a letter from the Pan God himself—

[Dear friend, according to the news I’ve received, Prince Jalen of Alsace will pass through Ambros and enter your domain in about ten months. This is probably because the Franks have once again attacked the Alsace Kingdom.]

[But the mayor of the Thirteen City-State Union will enter your territory in about a month and a half.]

[At that time, please be cautious of their army’s tyranny. Without enough troops, your sixteen toll stations won’t be able to collect their taxes.]

Ivita crumpled up the letter.

Through Pan God’s words, it was assumed that he would certainly stand against the mayor, yet Pan God was considered a friend.

This was truly laughable.

However, he indeed needed to increase the fighting power of his domain, especially before Prince Jalen enters his territory.

If they were to discover his identity, the territory he managed to obtain would be destroyed.

Moreover, the transit of an army is a big deal.

Who knew if the passing army would rob you while they passed?

Will Tartax come back sometime soon? Ivita thought. He had said he would come with a banker, but there was no sign of him.

Fortunately, the iron business was still available.

Maintaining the operation and repair work in the territory is not a problem.

But if he wanted to expand his land rapidly, a massive injection of funds was needed.