In the main hall of the central keep,
Lorist was bored enough to yawn; he had zero genuine interest in any of this.
"My lord, the warehouses now hold grain… fine linen… coarse linen… furs…"
As Spiel's endless inventory droned on in his ear, Lorist stifled a silent sigh, suspecting that by the time the steward finished reciting every last item in the family stores, it would be perfectly timed for lunch. A sideways glance caught Pat letting out a wide, unapologetic yawn — the bastard…
Hmm, Knight Pattiko was toying with his teacup, clearly miles away; he obviously wasn't listening to a word Spiel said.
By the time Lorist had drained his third cup of tea and was debating whether to feign a call of nature just to stretch his legs, Spiel finally finished the thick stack of vellum sheets in his hands. Lorist had just exhaled in relief when he saw the steward fish out another stack from his sleeve…
"Damn it, when does this end?" Lorist cut in quickly, halting Spiel's continued report: "Ahem, ahem. Steward Spiel, you're diligent — as your lord I'm deeply gratified, and I thank you for your tireless efforts. From here you can reconcile the accounts with Sadekamp; just hand me the finalized list when you're done."
"Knight Pattiko, give me a rundown on the guard corps."
Pattiko perked up instantly, straightening in his seat. "My lord, that basic
"I understand. I'll go over every afternoon for the next three days to instruct them. Though the basic Combat Force is simple, it can only be cultivated to the Iron rank peak. If any of them are ambitious, they can switch to the military Combat Force — after all, the former empire's military Combat Force can reach the Silver rank. Knight Pattiko, select from the guards who've awakened their Combat Force. Those suited for bows and crossbows, organize them to train with longbows and crossbows. We'll form a company of guards at the manor, with at least one squad of ranged units. For now, make do with the manor's bows and crossbows for training. In a while, send them to Ironrock Castle for further training under Knight Josk." Lorist said.
"Yes, my lord. I'll see to it." Pattiko accepted the order.
Lorist turned to Steward Kedan: "How's the situation at Poplar Beach?"
After staying at Ironrock Castle for over a month, Lorist received a messenger from Maplewood Manor. According to the messenger, Northfield Town had recently sent people to the manor urging Lord Lorist to begin construction of the new town at Poplar Beach as soon as possible. Northfield Town had already prepared manpower and materials, willing to contribute their strength to the new town's construction. Steward Spiel, following prior arrangements, replied that Lord Lorist was building a new walled checkpoint in the Morgan Hills region to oppose the Kenmays family and currently couldn't spare the time — it might still be a while.
As a result, over the next half-month, Northfield Town's envoys even traveled to Ironrock Castle seeking an audience with Lorist, demanding construction begin immediately. So Lorist dispatched Steward Kedan to go ahead and prepare the collection of building materials for the new town at Poplar Beach.
Steward Kedan smiled: "My lord, just as you predicted, Poplar Beach is in complete chaos now. Northfield Town's four major families have turned against the minor and medium families, and the conflict is irreconcilable. Especially those guards who were dismissed — their emotions are running high. They all believe they were deceived by the four major families and hate them intensely. Following your orders, aside from arranging the building material collection, I've turned a blind eye to their disputes. Any conflicts, I let the four major families' people handle. A few days ago there was even a mass brawl — several were injured..."
"How about those mercenaries?" Lorist asked.
"The mercenaries have been fairly well-behaved. Aside from guarding their own camp, they've had no contact with Northfield Town's people. Except for an incident at the start where they reportedly harassed some women, they've been quite obedient since. After
"In a few days, I'll head to Poplar Beach myself. Steward Kedan, Northfield Town's matters can be set aside for now. These next few days, keep an eye on the mercenaries — urge them to finish surveying the terrain soon and select a site for the military camp at the junction of those two mountains. Only once we start building the camp can we better divide Northfield Town's minor and medium families, breaking them up so they serve us." Lorist said, stroking his chin.
"Very well, my lord. I understand what to do." Steward Kedan nodded.
Everyone, have lunch here before you leave.
...
"Reddy, you little brat, where did you run off to? Bring that box from my carriage to my room." Lorist ordered upon seeing Reddy enter the courtyard from outside.
"Yes, my lord."
After going upstairs, Lorist discovered Irina had already gotten up. She was on the floor on hands and knees, her bottom stuck up in the air as she scrubbed the floorboards. Seeing him come up, she hurriedly scrambled to her feet, lowered her head, and greeted him: "My lord, y-you... hello..."
"Irina, I'm fine. But you don't look well..." Lorist walked over, snatched the rag from Irina's hand, and tossed it into the wooden bucket on the floor.
"M-my lord, wh-what did I... do w-wrong..." The girl began trembling again.
Lorist picked the girl up and sat down on the chaise by the window: "Irina, I'm not saying you did a bad job. On the contrary, you're very good, and I like you a lot. But you must remember, you're my woman. Rough, heavy work like scrubbing floors — you can have other servants do that. You just do light tasks like making the bed and tidying the desk. When there's nothing to do, you can read books, sleep in, dress up prettier, and if you're really bored, make some little pastries..."
"But my lord..." Irina, shrinking in Lorist's arms, stammered: "I... I'm just a maid. Doing this work is... is my duty. The things you mentioned... are for noble ladies..."
"You're my personal maid. To everyone else, you should be a noble lady. Understand? I'll find two more maids to come, and they'll take orders and arrangements from you..."
"But... but, my lord, if two more maids come, th-there won't be enough room here, and... and the bed isn't... isn't big enough either..."
"Hehe..." Lorist laughed heartily and flicked Irina's nose. "What's going on in that little head of yours? Did you imagine me as some big pervert? I don't take every maid to bed — you're special. I only let you into my bed because I like you. The two new maids can stay in the guest rooms downstairs. There are two empty guest rooms on the second floor; we'll clear one out for them. From now on, the cleaning and upkeep of the second floor will be their job — you just supervise."
The girl's ears turned red from Lorist's smile. Finding it amusing, Lorist took her earlobe into his mouth. She stiffened all over as if struck by lightning, then let out a soft moan and went limp in his arms, trembling again.
Irina's delicate, clinging appearance stirred Lorist's desire, but the memory of yesterday's frenzy forced him to tamp down the fire in his belly. "Irina, I'm truly sorry about yesterday. I made you suffer. If you can't take it, tell me — don't just endure it silently. Seeing you cry made me realize I was no better than a beast in heat. I'm sorry..."
Apparently not expecting Lorist to apologize to her, the girl froze for a moment before reacting. "N-no... it's my fault for being useless. My lord shouldn't apologize to me..."
"If I did wrong, of course I apologize. Irina, I won't be that rough again. I don't want to see you cry..."
The girl said nothing more, only shifting a little to nestle herself tighter against Lorist's chest...
"Cough, cough, my lord. The trunks have been brought up."
Lorist had heard Reidy's footsteps on the stairs long ago, but he couldn't be bothered to move — holding Irina felt too good. The girl, though, sprang up from his arms like a startled rabbit, face flushed, standing awkwardly to the side.
"Put the trunks on the table over there. Irina, give the scale armor I took off yesterday to this brat. Reidy, go downstairs and polish the scale armor, then bring it back up. After that, come with me to the guard barracks." Lorist said.
"Hehe, my lord, how long will the polishing take? You name the time — I'm afraid if I'm too quick I'll disturb you two..." Reidy said with a lecherous grin.
Lorist glared. "You've already disturbed us. Get going, we're leaving soon. What's with all the chatter..."
He opened the trunk and took out an exquisite jewelry box. "Irina, this is for you. Come, put it on, let me see how it looks."
These were spoils from Red River Valley Castle — several large trunks of women's clothing and jewelry, seemingly delivered to the wrong address. Originally, they were gifts Viscount Kenmays had prepared for a party to win the hearts of noblewomen and young ladies, but the Flying Feather Mercenary Band had directly escorted them to Red River Valley Castle. Meanwhile, Viscount Kenmays had been busy pulling strings with Duke Loggins to obtain passage permits for his family's armed forces, and had no time for banquets, so the items remained at the manor and were transported back by Seldcamp.
Lorist had picked out a few items from the lot to bring back for Irina.
Irina gazed dreamily at the sapphire necklace in Lorist's hand, her words at odds with her feelings. "M-my lord, this... this is too precious... I... I couldn't..."
"What's precious about it? Remember, you're my woman — you should dress beautifully. The clothes in this trunk were all chosen to fit your figure. Try them on; whatever doesn't fit, you can give away. The jewelry's all yours too — keep it safe." Lorist smiled.
"Mhm... mhm, th-thank you, my lord..."
"Then I'll be going. Oh, right — finding two more maids is on you. If you can't find suitable candidates, have Steward Spiel help you pick a couple..." As Lorist descended the stairs, he faintly heard the girl's delighted cheers from the room...
...
Irene was so happy that when Lorist returned in the evening, he could still see the joy on the girl's face.
After serving Lorist with his bath and getting into bed, the girl also washed up, wrapped herself in a towel, and actively snuggled into Lorist's arms.
Lorist was quite surprised: "What's wrong? Usually when I have you come up, you're all reluctant, so how come you're so proactive today?"
The girl trembled in Lorist's arms, her breath fragrant: "Th-thank you, my lord..."
Lorist smiled and pulled away the towel from the girl's body, entering her very gently, moving slowly, while also taking her earlobe into his mouth...
The girl involuntarily let out soft moans...
The room was filled with spring.
...
In the morning, Lorist woke to the sound of birds chirping, feeling something unusual down below. He glanced sideways and saw Irene half-sitting up, studying his morning wood, occasionally poking at it with her small hand, seemingly very curious how this thing could make her feel like she was dying and ascending to heaven at the same time. Perhaps thinking about how this thing went in and out of her body, Irene even used her fingers to measure its length, then compared it against her lower body, and then widened her eyes in shock, as if unable to believe how her body could accommodate such a massive existence...
Lorist "pfft" laughed out loud.
Noticing Lorist was awake, the girl blushed and tried to get out of bed, but Lorist held her back: "Don't go, let me teach you a way to make me happy..."
"Open your mouth... lean down... yes, take it in... just like sucking on a sausage... move up and down..."
"Ow, hiss... don't use your teeth, you idiot, it hurts, like before, yes... uh... feels good... just like that... keep going..."
"Tired? Then fine, let me do it..."
Lorist put the girl down and flipped on top of her...
...
Carrying his sword, he went downstairs to the courtyard where Pat, Reidy, and the guards were doing morning exercises.
"Hmm, I need to start my second round of morning exercises..." Lorist looked up at the sky in a cheerful mood. What wonderful weather...
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Author's note: Rushed out a chapter in two days at a relative's house, happened to write this kind of chapter, really feels like being a thief...