Making money couldn't be rushed; it had to happen naturally. Nalant suddenly thought of something and asked, "Thomas, besides you, is there anyone else in the castle who can read?"
Although he knew the population of his territory, Nalant wanted to conduct a detailed census. He wanted to record every serf's family circumstances, including their age groups and any special skills they might have.
That way, he could use the population data to make arrangements for the territory in the future.
"My lord, I don't think so!" Thomas answered cautiously. Although the castle's three male servants had also come from Tulip Castle, they couldn't read.
Thomas himself had been trained as an elite male servant.
There were only a few dozen elite male servants like him in Tulip Castle. They had received training in reading and arithmetic.
Normally, they would become assistants to Tulip Castle's steward, sent to manage an estate or another profitable enterprise.
Of course, the count sometimes gave them to his vassals as well.
Nalant was one such case. Thomas had come here and immediately become an excellent steward, sparing Nalant the trouble of training one from scratch.
"No one?" Nalant fretted. In this world, literacy was considered an advanced skill, and people with such skills weren't easy to find.
"My lord, I... my sister can read!" A quiet voice came from the side of the long table.
"Hmm? Vivian can read?"
"Yes, my lord. My sister went to school for two years!"
Before Vivian and Lilia were exiled to Storm Territory, they had lived in Tulip City. Their parents had run a tailor shop, which gave Vivian the opportunity to attend school for two years.
Of course, knowing how to read had been useless before Nalant came to Storm Territory, so nobody knew Vivian was literate.
Actually, Lilia could read too. She had learned from Vivian, though, so her studies weren't as comprehensive.
"Excellent!" Nalant was delighted. Vivian really was a treasure. As he spoke, he handed Lilia a piece of white bread. "Lilia, go fetch your sister!"
"Yes, my lord. Thank you, my lord!" At the sight of the white bread, Lilia's face lit up with delight. She happily took it and hurried out of the dining hall.
When Vivian arrived, Nalant assigned her the task of conducting the census.
He also created a form, even more detailed than the household registers from his previous life. It would record not only each family's members, but also their skills and other details.
As soon as Vivian received her orders, she set to work with her second guard squad.
After lunch, Nalant went straight to his study.
"System, I want to draw!" The system's weekly lottery was available again. Nalant had been busy last night, and only now had a moment to try it.
At his words, a large lottery wheel appeared on his retina.
"Hmm? An Affinity Fruit and a Charm Fruit?" To Nalant's surprise, the fruits available in this draw had changed.
The Strengthening Fruit and Agility Fruit had been replaced by two others.
"Start the draw!" He was a little disappointed that the Strengthening Fruit hadn't appeared, but he knew there would be other chances.
"Ding! Congratulations, host. You have won one Charm Fruit. Please claim it from the system panel!"
The original owner may have been a little weak, but he was handsome enough. If I eat a Charm Fruit too, won't I become the most dazzling guy around?
Nalant was speechless, but he still took out the Charm Fruit and ate it.
It was just as delicious as before, and just as instantly swallowed. But afterward, Nalant couldn't tell what effect it had. Even when he went to look in the bronze mirror, he still seemed like the same old self to himself.
If I can't see a difference, so be it. Strength is what matters most in this world!
Two days passed in the blink of an eye. Nalant had been free these past two days, spending his time cultivating Battle Qi in the castle.
The fishing rod was ready, but the blacksmith still needed more time to make the artificial bait.
"My lord, Kenbi Cowdung, the village chief, is waiting outside the castle. He says a giant sea monster has appeared by the shore!" Quick came in with Thomas, his face full of worry. Nalant had been cultivating.
"What? A giant sea monster?" Nalant exclaimed in alarm.
"Take me to Kenbi Cowdung at once!"
Kenbi Cowdung was brought into the castle's front hall.
"My lord, the giant sea monsters are gray all over, and their cries are terrifyingly loud. Each one is at least this big... There's a whole group of them, chasing the Slippery Flying Fish around. One of the monsters even made it onto the shore, and it's writhing around there!" Kenbi Cowdung's eyes were still full of fear as he gestured emphatically in front of Nalant.
He even circled the open space to show how enormous the sea monster was.
"What about the villagers? Has anyone been hurt?"
"My lord, all the other monsters are in the sea. I've already told the villagers to stay away from the shore, so no one has been hurt!" Kenbi Cowdung replied.
"Quick, gather all the guards and prepare to leave!" Nalant finally breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that the monsters hadn't attacked Misfortune Village.
Still, as the lord of the territory, he had to go investigate the situation himself.
"Yes, my lord!"
Quick soon gathered all fifteen swordsmen guards.
As for Vivian, Nalant had assigned her to handle the census, so she had taken the archer squad with her.
The territory had only a little over a thousand people, but recording them all was still a huge task for one person.
Nalant mounted his warhorse and had the guards climb into the carriage. Then the group hurried toward the shore.
This time, the guards didn't have to walk, so after a little over half an hour of travel, Nalant and the others arrived at Misfortune Village.
"The lord has arrived!"
"The lord has arrived!"
When Nalant and his group reached the entrance to Misfortune Village, all the villagers were gathered there, still shaken. The moment they saw Nalant, they erupted in cheers as though their savior had come.
"Greetings, my lord!" The serfs all fell to their knees.
"Get up. Don't go near the shore. Kenbi Cowdung, you're coming with us."
"Yes, my lord!"
After giving his orders, Nalant dismounted and headed toward the shore with his guards.
They proceeded cautiously, and a few minutes later, they reached the coast.
"My lord, look! The sea monsters are still out there!"
Nalant and the others didn't dare approach the shore as closely as they had last time. They stayed on a pile of reefs, far enough away to observe the sea.
As soon as they reached a high point on the reefs, Kenbi Cowdung pointed toward the nearshore and cried out in alarm.
Nalant and the others followed his gesture.
"..."
"This is the sea monster that had me scared out of my mind?" Nalant rolled his eyes, feeling an urge to strangle Kenbi Cowdung.