Angelic Feathers' mansion was the largest in that area, almost twice the size of the second largest property there, Draconic Feathers'.
Angelic Feathers was enormous, with over 300 students in its ranks, all of them students from Sectors 4, 5, and 6. At the same time, the leaders of this faction were almost as strong as local patriarchs, people who would soon become the leaders of their own organizations upon graduation.
Most of the students in Sector 6 were between levels 10 and 12. But monsters past level 12 existed there.
Most of these individuals were leaders of their own factions, the strongest of all being at level 14, the current leader of the Angelic Feathers.
But this person was no more talented than Viktoria, as some might think. Despite the difference in level, this woman was about five years older than Lothur's wife and therefore had such an advantage.
In any case, she was not the only cultivator stronger than Viktoria in that faction, as there were people in that group who could surpass Viktoria.
Lothur watched that place filled with Spiritual Warriors coming and going, surprised at so many powerful cultivators there.
"This group is compelling..." He muttered after whistling in appreciation. "Can Viktoria's group compete with this one?"
Elke then said. "Viktoria's faction has far fewer members, but they are all talented and have combat power above their cultivation levels. That's not something seen in other factions."
"Angelic Feathers, for example, has many members who are only Mortal Warriors."
"On the other hand, this faction has excellent connections. In contrast, Ice Feathers has problems concerning the Frost family."
"I see..." Lothur continued watching that place until he saw a woman with white hair, and golden eyes, coming out of that mansion, accompanied by three other high-level cultivators.
[Name: ****]
[Soul Cultivation: level 14]
[Body Cultivation: level 11]
[STR: 66.6] [CON: 71.1] [DEX: 69.6] [AGI: 68.6] [SOU: ???]
"Is that the leader of this faction?" He asked his woman.
Elke saw that beautiful white-skinned woman dressed in a pink outfit with lips as red as cherries.
"Hmm, that's the leader of Angelic Feathers, Larissa Carstensen."
"Carstensen? Where is this family from? Why have I never heard of it?" He asked in surprise as he saw that beauty staring back at him.
"The Morning Star Academy doesn't only accept nobles and subordinates from the nobility of the province. It accepts people from outside those social circles as well. It's just that there are few slots for outsiders to compete, and most of the individuals who get these slots are very talented cultivators. So, even they are not well known outside Sector 6."
"As for this organization, the Carstensen family is not a province noble power but a bourgeois house." She said, explaining the basics to Lothur.
House Carstensen was not exactly a power of that province but an organization based between two subdivisions of the empire. Since there were no limitations regarding the origin of students from this academy, there was no problem for someone with such a background to study there.
Anyway, powers like the family of this young leader were able to send members to academies like these from time to time. Of course, it was not easy since they did not have the privileges of the nobility. Still, since some of these organizations were as rich or even richer than noble houses, it was not impossible either.
As suspected by Lothur, the most powerful in the empire were not those known organizations or individuals. But instead, economic powers kept themselves aloof from most of the local political games.
These economic powers had all the means necessary to stimulate the talent of their members, considering their local limitations. So good seeds would emerge from time to time among them.
That was the case with Larissa, this woman who was not as talented as Viktoria, but she was not that far removed from Lothur's wife in that regard.
"So that's it..." Lothur muttered just before that woman came closer to him, recognizing him.
"Are you Lothur Ritter?" She asked in her angelic voice, which seemed to reverberate as if harps were ringing when she spoke.
Lothur smiled at her, noting that in terms of beauty, she would only lose to Viktoria of all the women he had ever seen in this world. "That's me. And you?"
"My name is Larissa Carstensen. It's a pleasure to meet someone as prominent as you, Lothur." She gave one of her hands for him to shake, smiling back at this man.
Meanwhile, the youths accompanying this woman, two men and a woman, were looking at Lothur with strange expressions on their faces, totally ignoring Elke's presence.
But Elke was not paying attention to them either. Her eyes focused only on Larissa.
Lothur waved one of this woman's hands and heard her asking. "You must be here to join one of the factions, right? So why don't you join my faction? I will not limit you in any way."
Hearing this, Lothur smiled, showing his perfect teeth to those people. "What about my wife? It would be a great betrayal for me to join a faction opposing hers..."
The two sides made a momentary silence after those words until Annaliese appeared, running towards them. "Hey! You hyenas, leave my brother-in-law alone!" She shouted at the opposing group.
Annaliese might be weak compared to those people, but she had enough courage to talk to them because of her sister.
Larissa and her followers looked at Annaliese, saying nothing to her as they moved again.
"Think it over, Lothur. It will be more interesting for you to be around people who can help you." That white-haired woman commented as she walked away and waved one of her hands at him. "Viktoria is already your wife. What new thing can she add to your life?"
With those words, she left while her companions began to question.
"Elder sister, why do you want to bring Lothur into our faction? He will join Ice Feathers." The only woman besides Larissa in that group asked in curiosity.
But Larissa knew things that these three were yet to find out. "Lothur made a big deal two days ago concerning something that could interest even my family." She told them, causing them to open their mouths in surprise.
"Are you serious? Why haven't I heard any of this?" One of the two men asked, not believing that Lothur could do something like that.
"Yes, he made a few million silver coins selling a project that hasn't even gotten off the paper yet." She replied, talking about what she had heard from her observers and local contacts.
Her family had relationships with several noble powers in this province, so it had not been difficult for her to get accurate information about Lothur's automobile project.
She did not know the most critical details of Lothur's car. Still, Larissa knew he had succeeded in creating an independent animal-powered carriage!
Considering the potential of such a thing, this woman could not help but feel the advantages of approaching young Ritter!
...