Chapter 37: New Year

With the arrival of the Elven priest and his entourage, Master Adret Morningstar and the Elven mage returned to Elven Island on the same ship.

Although the Mage Tower has been completed, it currently lacks a Tower Spirit, which can be thought of as an intelligent central control computer, so it has only the most basic functions.

The tower ghost must be activated by the mage himself, using the spell "Animate Object" in conjunction with a magic array. Whoever activates it will become the mage's familiar, so Christine must cast the spell herself and wait until she has gradually advanced.

Since the Mage's Tower was completed, Christine moved in and took up residence. The maidservants, led by Elena, lived in the main building of the small castle outside, which was another reason why this annex had to be built beforehand.

With the completion of the Mage Tower as a symbol, the newly expanded city was named Dominaria, and the harbor was Dominaria Harbor. In the future, Salzo would be just a village without a port.

Take a look at the map I found online to get a rough idea.

The fifty infantrymen responsible for guarding the construction site of the Wizards' Tower also became the permanent soldiers of Port Dominaria. Together with the fifty cavalry stationed in the Mage's Tower barracks and the more than one hundred marines in the port's naval barracks, they were enough to suppress anyone who plotted against the state.

With the completion of the Wizards' Tower, Port Dominaria became the largest port in the county of Brittany and the fourth largest port in the Kingdom of France, after Le Havre, Marseille, and Calais. The reason these three major ports are inferior is that they all have branches of the Mage Guild and have built Mage Towers, and they have developed for nearly a thousand years. Although some other ports are much larger than the newly built Dominaria Port, they do not have a Mage Tower to protect them.

For merchants, a port with a Wizard's Tower means safety, and a safe business environment is exactly what they want. As a result, both the number of ships docking and the number of merchants trading here have increased.

The priests of the Goddess of Fortune Church are very happy, because the more prosperous the business, the more beneficial it is to the goddess. Moreover, with more merchants, there will be more prayers and donations to the temple, and the financial business of the church will also increase.

The priest of the Church of Order is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The priest of the Church of Order is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because there are more transactions and more contracts to sign. The Church of Order priest is happy because

The priest of the Church of the Dragon God was the happiest of all, because a new port city meant the addition of a new bishopric, which was a great achievement.

Where there is joy, there is also sorrow. A prosperous port is bound to have the presence of dark forces, but it is inevitable. After all, the Thieves' Guild is behind the Church of the God of Thieves. How can an organization with the existence of the true god be banned?

However, the completion of the Wizards' Tower in Port Dominaria has forced these forces of darkness to curtail their activities. Their main business of selling information is unaffected, but they can no longer steal or assassinate. For the former, it depends on whether they are lucky enough to be scanned by the Wizards' Tower; for the latter, the death of a person immediately sets off an alarm in the Wizards' Tower, so they will never get away with it. For them, it is like looking at a big piece of cake, but not daring to eat it.

They won't be able to assassinate the lord like they used to, because Christine usually lives in the Wizards' Tower and is escorted by at least 30 heavily armed elite cavalry when she goes out. Only a high-level thief could assassinate a Dragon Vein mage with such an escort. If they did, it would be tacit approval from the Church of the God of Thieves, and the retaliation from the Church of the Dragon God would be extremely fierce.

The last day of every year is the Chinese New Year on the mainland. In the morning, everyone, whether noble or commoner, must wash and put on their best clothes to go to the temple to pray to the gods. The temple will also hold different celebration ceremonies according to the different priesthoods of the true gods believed in.

Christine, of course, had to lead the vassals, knights, squires, and officials who believed in the Dragon God to the newly built Dragon God Temple in Port Dominaria to pray and make offerings.

The so-called temple is more than just a building. The larger the city, the more functional the buildings. The Dragon God Temple in Port Dominaria was built according to the level of the city, and it will be the main temple of the Dragon God Church in Baron Stewart's territory. When it is the seat of the church, it will be bigger than the Vatican in Blue Star. After all, there are real gods in this world, and the level of religious devotion is incomparable.

At noon, the lord will host a banquet to entertain his vassals and officials of the territory, followed by various celebrations throughout the afternoon, including balls, horse races, martial arts competitions and, of course, performances by minstrels and clowns.

The banquet hosted by the great lord is attended by many nobles. Noble gentlemen and ladies who are attracted to each other can also have a friendly match based purely on instinct, and this kind of thing can even be bragged about in private. Of course, it is not uncommon for two noble gentlemen or two noble ladies to interact, and everyone understands that.

The evening banquet is the main event, and it is the most luxurious of all the celebrations, both in terms of size and abundance. After the banquet, the Lady distributes rewards to her vassals, officials, and all those who have served her. For noble gentlemen, it is usually tea, wine, etc., and those with the title of knight may also receive weapons such as long swords. For noble ladies and young ladies, it is silk, sugar, etc., all kinds of high quality items that make them look elegant.

The rewards for non-noble officials and servants were very simple. Different amounts of gold and silver coins were given according to different ranks. Even the harshest lord would give a silver coin to the lowliest servant.

At the same time, the village chiefs and priests in various towns and villages would also organize banquets and celebrations. What food was provided depended on whether the lord was willing to spend money. The villagers had to bring gifts to the lord, such as eggs, firewood, vegetables, etc., as long as they didn't come empty-handed.

According to custom, the lord also rewards the serfs, usually giving each adult a set of clothes or the equivalent in other items.

Exactly what is rewarded depends on what the lord has in stock, as these are also the things that are usually collected from the lord's taxes.

The lord's dinner will not end too late, as the guests will return to their rooms to clean up and then pray to the gods again at midnight.

During the week after the New Year, there will be various celebrations organized by the church and the villages and towns themselves, and the nobles will host banquets in order of rank, sometimes lasting more than half a month.

This is a very important social event, and many noble families will make partnerships for the next year and decide on the marriage of noble ladies during these ongoing banquets.