The two of them had just walked out of the pet enclosure.
Heavy snow was flying everywhere. The speed at which the citizens shoveled snow couldn't even keep up with how fast it was falling from the sky.
The thick layer of snow had already reached knee height.
When you stepped down, it felt loose and soft.
Pull your foot out, step down again, and another hole was punched into it.
A perfectly smooth snowfield immediately stopped looking whole and pure white. It felt like it had been ruined.
But Ethan actually found it incredibly satisfying.
So he kept walking along, poking hole after hole in the snow.
By the time he returned to the villa, the originally spotless white road had already been poked full of pits and holes, completely ruined.
Crash!
Ethan pushed open the villa's front door.
The snow piled up on the door immediately slid down like an avalanche, all falling into the living room.
"Lord!"
Cook Four had already lit the heating furnace in the villa. At this moment the whole villa felt warm and cozy.
As soon as Ethan walked in, he handed his gloves to Cook Four and said, "Mm, well done!"
"Huh?"
Cook Four looked up, her face full of surprise.
Just now, the lord had actually praised her.
She was so happy that she almost became tongue-tied, "Lo… Lord, um… um… I've prepared… that… that magma chili dumpling… dumpling soup. You can warm yourself up."
"Oh? Then thank you."
When Ethan heard that Cook Four had prepared magma dumpling soup for him, he was quite satisfied.
After all, in weather this freezing, who wouldn't want a bowl of something hot?
And Mr. White, standing nearby, heard it as well, and started licking his lips.
"Cook Four, prepare a portion for Mr. White too," Ethan added. Then he said again, "No, make one for all the citizens. Tell them to stop shoveling snow for now. It's too cold."
"O-okay, Lord!"
Cook Four nodded repeatedly and hurried toward the kitchen.
When the villa had originally been designed, there was a door connecting directly to the kitchen. Another door from the kitchen led to the dining hall. This way, Cook Four could go straight to the kitchen without having to go outside into the cold again.
It had to be said, the design was quite thoughtful.
.
.
.
After that, the two of them walked over to the sofa area in the villa and sat down.
Ethan's sofa had long since been replaced by the attendants with a leather one. The outer layer was made entirely from tanned white animal hide. The texture was extremely soft, almost comparable to a woman's skin.
When you sat down on it, it was unbelievably soft, almost like you were sinking into it.
Extremely comfortable.
"Lord Ethan."
Mr. White spoke first, opening the conversation, "Regarding my younger brother's matter, it really was our fault. Fortunately I intercepted the messenger bird beforehand. That prevented the lord from suffering even greater losses. I'm truly very sorry."
"You intercepted the messenger bird that was sent to the witch?"
Ethan's eyes widened in disbelief.
'Doesn't that mean he blocked my chance to get rich overnight?'
He had been waiting for the witch to come deliver money.
"Exactly!", Mr. White let out a sigh of relief, "Good thing I stopped it. Otherwise I really would've become a sinner for the ages."
"If you stopped it, that's exactly what makes you a sinner for the ages!"
Ethan cursed angrily.
"Huh?", Mr. White was immediately stunned, "Lord Ethan means… you actually hoped those wild witches would come again?"
"Heh! Didn't you already see the real Nine-Star Formation today?", Ethan asked back, "What do you think about using that Nine-Star Formation to capture those wild witches?"
"Th… the person who set up that Nine-Star Formation… really is a Archmage Nostradamus?"
Mr. White quickly took the chance to ask.
Ethan smiled, "So what if it is? Or it isn't?"
"If it is, then Lord Ethan's territory will become far more than just a station," Mr. White stroked the stubble on his chin, "I might even be able to apply to the Merchant Alliance to build a branch chamber of commerce in your territory."
"A branch chamber of commerce? Do you think my territory isn't crowded or chaotic enough already?"
Ethan shook his head when he heard that.
If it were just a station where merchant caravans could stop, that might be negotiable.
But a chamber of commerce? Forget it.
He didn't want a bunch of arrogant merchant guild members coming into his territory and throwing their weight around. If he couldn't drive them away afterward, wouldn't he just be asking for trouble?
"Lord Ethan, you misunderstand. It's not like that," Mr. White quickly explained, "Normally our chambers of commerce are only established in main city districts. In remote places like this, we usually don't set up branches."
"But if there's a Archmage stationed here, then it's different."
"We could establish the branch here. The branch wouldn't occupy your territory. In fact, we'd even help expand your territory. The branch would also bring in new merchants, customers, and so on."
"Plus the chamber of commerce would need service staff. Slowly, a new town would form around the chamber."
"And for you, Lord Ethan, this would bring nothing but benefits!"
"You could collect taxes from nearby merchants. You could also gather more citizens and provide them with suitable jobs. At the same time, you could cooperate with our chamber and become the new branch president. These are extremely profitable opportunities."
"At that point, Lord Ethan could upgrade from lord to city lord in no time. What do you think?"
"I'll just sit here and listen to you brag."
Right then, Cook Four happened to bring over another bowl of dumpling soup. Ethan picked up his own bowl, blew on it, and took a big sip.
Instantly, warmth spread throughout his whole body.
"No, Lord, I'm serious!"
Mr. White also picked up a bowl of dumpling soup and took a big sip. His eyes immediately lit up, "This cooking is excellent! If your servant opened a small restaurant near the Merchant Alliance and just sold dumplings, she'd make quite a bit of money."
"I tricked you out of so many things. Don't you hate me?", Ethan narrowed his eyes at Mr. White, trying to see whether he was telling the truth.
"Those little things were all produced by our own company anyway. They aren't worth much," Mr. White laughed, "Compared to that small amount of money, I value my friendship with Lord Ethan more. If we really manage to get approval for a branch, making a few million later would only take a day or two."
Ethan saw a gleam in Mr. White's eyes.
That kind of excited, shining look couldn't be faked.
Only when someone encounters something that truly excites them, something they're deeply interested in does a light called expectation appear in their eyes.
"You're serious?"
Ethan suddenly grew a little curious.
After all, for a lord, money was never enough.
Especially for a lord who constantly needed to upgrade his territory and equipment.
And besides, he was only the lord of a small district right now.
With so many people in this world, who knew how many small lords there were?
If he wanted to stand out among all of them, it would be difficult without pulling out some real trump cards.
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