After the training, the soldiers and the guards fell to the ground like marionettes whose strings had been cut. Their bodies were drenched in sweat, and their chests rapidly rose and fell with heaving breaths. The heavy spears they carried made running around the vast hall arduous, almost excruciating.

To Lark’s surprise, aside from three soldiers that fainted from exhaustion, everyone finished the task. As promised, he gave each of them a lavish meal with dried fish. Everyone regained their vigor seeing and smelling the feast. Great food after a rigorous task was always more delicious.

While everyone ate, Lark clapped his hands once. “As promised, the one who finished first, in addition to dried fish, will also get an egg.” On his signal, a servant brought out a boiled egg. She gently placed it on the plate of Clarkson, the Head of the Guards.

Seeing the envious looks of the soldiers, Clarkson smirked and slowly ate his prize. In the middle of winter, eggs were a luxury.

“Damn, to be eating wheat porridge with both dried fish and egg.”

“The Head Guard is so lucky.”

“Hey, just think of the guys that are still unconscious over there. At least we get to receive a reward.” The soldiers looked at their unconscious comrades, their eyes filled with pity.

Lark cleared his throat. “Now, everyone will rest for an hour. After that, each of you shall proceed to the room on the second floor to receive further training.”

Everyone froze. They looked at the young master in disbelief. Making them run around the hall three hundred times while holding a spear was already excruciating enough, and now, they were supposed to perform more of this stuff?

The soldiers wanted to protest and grumble, but they were afraid that the porridge and dried fish would be taken away from them if they complained. Instead, they all shut their mouths, except for one—the Head of the Guards.

“Young Master,” said Clarkson carefully. He knew the room on the second floor was a bit small for training. “What kind of training is it?”

The young master smiled. “Basic education. We will be teaching you how to read and write.”

***

Night came. Under the light of the candelabra, Lark reread the documents Gaston had handed to him a couple of days ago. Although Reading Magic enabled him to read at a relatively fast rate, comprehending everything at once was still impossible. Lark checked the documents and reports that seemed confusing or suspicious. His attention was drawn to the number of deaths in Blackstone Town.

“Five hunters died last year,” mumbled Lark as he contemplated.

The number was actually small considering the risk of the profession. For the citizens of Blackstone Town, a hunter being killed by its prey was a normal occurrence, especially considering the fact that the Endless Forest was uncharted territory. Although fierce animals seldom attacked the town, it was an entirely different thing for hunters who purposely looked for such beasts.

Everyone had dismissed the deaths of the hunters as natural, a consequence of the job. But after analyzing the reports, Lark found a peculiar detail—they all died in the eastern part of the Endless Forest.

Currently, the eastern part of Blackstone Town was the place Lark was trying to expand. After it reached a certain size, he planned on clearing out some trees in the Endless Forest.

“Gaston said that the deaths of the hunters last year must have been a coincidence,” said Lark. He had consulted the old butler for his opinion this afternoon. “But the state of the bodies… all of the wounds are identical.”

Lark could not rest until he confirmed the state of things. He donned a black cloak, swept aside the curtains, and opened the window. The night breeze brushed against his body.

The town was sleeping.

Lark breathed in the night air, amplified the strength of his body using mana, then jumped out the window. He landed with a soft thud. After checking there was no one around, he quickly ran out of the mansion grounds into the town. His body blurred as he sped through the empty streets, his cloak violently fluttering.

Eventually, he arrived at the eastern border of Blackstone Town. He saw some builders resting near the half-constructed houses, their chatter heard through the quiet night. Since several heat stones had been installed in this area, the workers were able to stay outside.

The construction project is going smoothly, Lark thought with a smile. Good.

Although the workers were amateurs, under Lark’s guidance, they were able to build decent houses. Though not as good as the houses in major cities, these were definitely better than the shacks elsewhere in Blackstone Town. At the very least, each of these half-constructed houses was built with wood and stones. The houses would not easily collapse from the weight of snow, leaving the residents homeless during winter.

Lark once again moved toward the eastern part of the Endless Forest. Reaching it, the darkness of the night swallowed him entirely. The canopy of leaves blocked the moon above, amplifying the black of the night. The sound of insects and ravens filled the forest.

Now, let’s see. There should be something here. I don’t believe the deaths of those five hunters last year was mere coincidence.

Deep within his heart, he sincerely wished it was a coincidence. However, his instinct told him there was something dangerous in this place. After searching the area with his magic, his instinct was proven right.

Over there.

His body shot forward, skillfully moving over the root-blanketed ground. After a few minutes, he arrived at the mouth of a small cavern.

If anyone else was nearby, they would not notice the cavern through vines that blocked the view.

Lark once again scanned the area using magic. But this time, he focused inside the cavern.

His eyebrows rose when he detected numerous presences inside. There were at least fifty of them.

Lark erased his own presence, casting concealment magic, and entered the cavern. Although it was very dark inside, he could see the flow of mana. Whatever the figures inside this cavern, they were definitely not human—the flow of mana told him that.

As soon as Lark entered, a putrid stench assaulted him. He frowned and wrinkled his nose, but kept walking. Soon, he could identify the creatures living inside.

“Goblins,” he whispered.

Some of them were walking around, rummaging through piles of loot, while others simply sat on the ground. The nocturnal monsters failed to notice that someone was observing them.

Lark looked around, but it seemed there was no hobgoblin or shaman. He was amazed that, despite having no leader, this group was able to live here for so long. Judging by the reports, these creatures never once attacked Blackstone Town.

Still, Lark was not naïve. Although these creatures may seem harmless, they would definitely kill the humans if given the chance. They were probably unable to attack the human settlements because of the lack of a leader. This was a rare thing, even in Lark’s previous life.

The hunters must have encountered these creatures and died. That would explain why all five of them died in this part of the forest.

For now, Lark decided to leave the group of goblins alone. Once he had trained the soldiers, he would issue an order to eliminate these monsters. After all, real life battle was different from training. Lark decided to make these weak creatures the stepping-stone for the growth of his men.

Of course, if these creatures decided to invade the town, he would eliminate them there and then. No questions asked.

As Lark was about to leave the cavern, he noticed something glimmering near the walls. He increased the flow of mana to see more clearly in the dark.

Kalrane gemstones?!

Lark’s lips curled. For the past few days, he had been pondering how to solve the lack of funds for Blackstone Town.

Tilling soil and planting wheat takes time; it would be several months before they would be able to reap the harvest.

Although Lark still had a lot of gold coins given to him by his father, they would run out sooner or later.

He needed to compensate for the lack of funds. But in this town, which literally had nothing to offer, he found it difficult.

Finally! A product that could become the town’s specialty!

Lark licked his lips in anticipation. He could already envision it. Workers from Blackstone Town gathering kalranes. Merchants coming and going out of the town to buy them. He could already hear the clinking sound of gold coins.

He looked at the goblins. At first, he wanted to leave them alone until the soldiers were strong enough to subdue them, but now he decided to act sooner. Although it would be dangerous for the trainees, Lark would accompany them. He would not let anyone die during the encounter.

***

In the morning, Lark summoned Gaston into his room.

“You called for me, Young Master?” said the old butler.

The young master was sitting at his table, scribbling something in a notebook. After the butler entered, he closed the notebook and smiled.

“Just in time,” said Lark. “Here, take a look.”

The old butler accepted a parchment, with numerous things listed on it. “This is…”

“I want you to send a couple of servants, along with some guards, to Lion City and buy those for me,” said Lark. He took a sip from the goblet and stared at the butler. “Prioritize the seeds and the iron ingots. We don’t have a surplus of funds, so buy those two first before anything else.”

Since Lark was not aware of the prices in the Lion City, he could only surmise using data gathered from his subordinates.

Gaston looked at the list once again. It was an amazing list with some items he had never heard of. Wheat seeds, iron ingots, hemp ropes, Loi saplings, ormatane dust, and many more.

Gaston mumbled, “A thousand eggs.” He read it again, then asked, “Sorry for the impudence, but isn’t a thousand eggs a bit… unnecessary?”

Gaston knew the state of the town. There was no way the residents would be able to afford eggs right now. Without doubt, the eggs would eventually rot in storage.

“It’s fine,” said Lark, dismissing the remark. “Just do what I say.”

Lark planned to use magic on the eggs to force them to hatch. After all, eggs would be cheaper than poultry.

Gaston felt that the amount of wheat seeds and iron ingots was absurd too. If they actually went ahead with this, they would be buying a large portion of the wheat seeds in Lion City. Furthermore, the amount of iron ingots was enough to build armor for more than a dozen knights.

The old butler felt the young master was squandering his money.

“Young Master, please reconsider,” said Gaston. “The amount of seeds is too much. The lands of this town are mostly barren. As for the iron ingots, there’s no blacksmith living here. If we buy them, it’ll only be unnecessary expense.”

Lark creased his brow. He sighed, then leaned in his chair. “Listen, when I told everyone that I’m going to reclaim the land in the north and the west, I meant it. Once winter ends, I plan on starting a large-scale farming project in those areas. To do that, we need at least this many wheat seeds. Do you understand?”

Gaston was not fully convinced, but he nodded. Still, the old butler did not immediately back down. “As for the iron ingots, there’s no sense in buying raw materials when there’s not a single blacksmith in town.”

“We have a solution for that,” said Lark. He planned to use the iron ingots to make farming and mining tools. He would include some weapons too. Still, he did not tell the old butler his thoughts. After all, he was going to transmute those raw materials into high-grade tools using magic. It was better for the other party not to know.

Lark grabbed a large pouch from the drawer, then handed it to the butler. “For now, just do what I say.”

Gaston opened the pouch; it was full of gold coins. He grimaced, thinking of them soon being spent on useless things. The list was simply unreasonable.

After a long sigh, Gaston bowed. “I will do as the young master says.” He bit his lip. “This old man shall obey.”

He took a peek at the young master and remembered the reports he’d received just a few hours ago. According to the “inquisitors” hired by Silver Hand, the young master was the one who subdued the men who kidnapped him. They all mentioned the use of magic—silent magic. This was impossible to believe, since even among the Royal Court Magicians, only a handful knew how to perform such complex techniques.

But Silver Hand has no reason to lie. And I was also there when the leader of those scum finally confessed. But… it doesn’t make sense. I’ve been with the young master since he was born. He knows nothing but the most basic of magic, the mandatory education required by the duke.

The old man breathed in. “Young Master?”

Lark noticed the butler had been staring at him for quite some time now. “What is it?”

Seconds passed. Gaston sighed. “Nothing,” said the butler. “Just some useless thoughts of an old man.”

“Gaston, you’re becoming a little thin lately,” said Lark, his eyebrows creased in worry. “Be sure to take some rest every now and then. If you need a vacation, be sure to tell me.”

Gaston softly smiled at the young lord’s concern.

That’s right. So what if the young master knows silent magic? Even if it’s true that he did subdue those kidnappers, it doesn’t change a thing. I vowed to serve him the moment he was born. Nothing will change that. This old man shall see things through until the very end.

“There’s no need for the young master to worry,” said Gaston with a smile. “This servant is perfectly fine.” He bowed. “If you’ll excuse me.”

As Gaston was about to go out of the room, the young master called out to him.

“Ah, I almost forgot.” He stood and handed the old butler two notebooks. “Here. Give the other one to Melody.”

Gaston adjusted his monocle as he stared at the notebooks. “What are these, Young Master?”

“Basic arithmetic,” said Lark. “I wrote them myself.”