The Use of Black Ironwood

Luo Ning brought back a few pieces of black ironwood to the castle.

He had Macken cut off a small piece and told the guards to stab and chop at it with their longswords. He found that even after several stabs, they could only pierce through a piece less than five millimeters thick. As for chopping, it only left marks on the surface; they couldn't cut through it in just a few swings.

The hardness of the black ironwood truly brought Luo Ning an unexpected surprise.

It was difficult for the guards to pierce through black ironwood less than five millimeters thick, which meant Luo Ning could make simple chest protectors out of it, to some extent replacing iron armor.

Of course, this didn't mean black ironwood was truly equivalent to iron. The protective gear made from it would absolutely not have the same level of defense or durability as iron gear.

Mountain Forest Town had no iron ore. If Luo Ning wanted to arm the guards, he could only purchase the corresponding equipment from outside.

On the market, a set of ordinary chainmail, helmet, leg guards, shield, etc., would cost no less than 20 gold coins in total.

With Luo Ning's current financial resources, arming all the guards was simply impossible.

Furthermore, lords and nobles weren't very interested in arming commoners. It was better to use that money to strengthen the defense of Professional Knights.

Good equipment could only be utilized to its fullest value by Transcendent individuals.

Take Wushan Castle, for example. The guards of the Seventh Squad at most wore linen armor; only the better ones had leather armor.

For Luo Ning, in the absence of iron protective gear and without enough money to purchase iron equipment for ordinary guards, using black ironwood to make armor and weapons was an excellent choice.

Moreover, he was confident that such items could also be sold.

"This has great potential!"

In the study, Luo Ning increasingly felt that this idea was very reliable.

The only problem was that black ironwood wasn't easy to cut.

It was impossible for ordinary people with stone axes to successfully cut it. Only if they were equipped with iron axes would it be possible to succeed after expending a great deal of effort.

Furthermore, processing black ironwood also required a high level of physical strength from a carpenter.

"Gallon!"

Luo Ning called out, and the Personal Manservant standing outside the door immediately walked in.

"My Lord, please give your orders!"

"Do you know if there are any carpenters in town?" Luo Ning asked.

"Yes, my Lord."

Gallon, like Tom, was a native of Mountain Forest Town.

Having lived here for over ten years, he had some understanding of certain craftsmen in the town.

"My Lord, the best carpenter in town is Uncle William. When Prinster built this building, it was Uncle William who led the people to complete it."

Uncle William, Luo Ning kept this name in mind.

Luo Ning nodded, "Very good, now take two guards and invite him over."

Gallon was slightly stunned, then bowed and responded, "My Lord, I will go and bring him to you right away."

Bring?

Luo Ning frowned, "I said 'invite'!"

He specifically emphasized it.

"Pay attention to your attitude, don't offend this carpenter."

Although Carpenter William had worked under Prinster, Luo Ning wasn't so petty as to hold him accountable for that matter.

Moreover, craftsmen were relatively scarce resources in any era, let alone in a remote and barren place like Mountain Forest Town.

Luo Ning was still counting on these craftsmen to make money for him.

Gallon immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

He had only heard the first half of the sentence just now. When Luo Ning told him to take the guards, he subconsciously thought he was supposed to bring William by force, so much so that he didn't hear the word "invite" that came after.

Knowing that he had almost made a mistake, Gallon immediately knelt on one knee, "My apologies, my Lord, it was my fault, I didn't hear clearly!"

Luo Ning didn't expect such a strong reaction from him, so he waved his hand, "From now on, remember to listen to everything I say, think it through before acting, don't be so hasty. Go quickly."

"Thank you for your leniency, my Lord!"

Gallon quickly bowed, then exited the study and hurried towards the carpenter's house with the guards.

On the stairs, he happened to meet Bella who was coming up, "Why are you in such a hurry?"

Gallon sighed, saying with great distress, "I said the wrong thing just now."

Bella also became nervous. She was just about to go find the Baron. If the Lord was in a bad mood at the moment, she would have to be careful.

"Did the Lord criticize you?" she asked nervously.

Gallon shook his head, "No, he was very lenient. I just fear leaving the impression of being 'hasty' in his mind."

He shook his head with some worry, "Never mind, I'm going to be busy."

Looking at the retreating back of the Manservant, Bella couldn't help but feel a little uneasy in her heart.

The new servants in the castle were all very cautious when interacting with the Baron, afraid of doing anything wrong.

They were so apprehensive for two reasons. First, they didn't want to lose this good job. At least in the castle, they had new clothes and could eat their fill. Sometimes, they could even have a couple of bites of the white bread the Baron left over.

Second, they were still quite afraid of Luo Ning. After all, the scene when the Baron led the team into the town that day was too terrifying. There were over twenty corpses piled up on that cart!

Bella cautiously approached the door and gently knocked. "Master, the kitchen is preparing dinner now. Mrs. Bandler asked me to inquire if you have any special instructions."

Luo Ning's gaze left the book and turned to Bella.

Today, the maid was wearing the women's clothing left in the castle, and it fit quite well. After changing into this outfit, Bella's overall appearance improved significantly, adding a touch of youthful vibrancy.

He had thought before that Bella would look better than Prinster's two mistresses if she dressed a little better, and today it was confirmed.

In this remote mountain town, having such a presentable maid by his side, if his predecessor were here, he would probably be pulling her in for some deep interaction and wonderful things tonight.

But Luo Ning had no such intentions.

It was true that he liked looking at beautiful women, but when it came to actually making a move, it felt a bit off.

Marriage in this era still had strong class distinctions. Generally speaking, a noble's partner could only be chosen from among other nobles.

It was rare for nobles and commoners to be together, and even if they were, it was mostly as lovers.

Stories like a maid falling in love with a knight, or a noble abandoning their status for true love and eloping with a servant, were mostly found only in knightly novels.

For example, the knightly novel Luo Ning was currently reading was about a princess who fell in love with an Advanced Knight, then gave up her noble status to wander the world with the knight, making a home wherever they went.

This was somewhat nonsensical.

"Tonight, I will be dining with Elrond, Macken, and a few other Transcendent. Remember to tell Mrs. Bandler to prepare enough," Luo Ning instructed.

Usually, Luo Ning ate dinner alone, mainly for the quiet.

Calling them all over for a meal tonight was mainly for the arrangements that followed.

Now that the castle servants and the territory's administrator were properly settled, and Luo Ning had conducted an initial inspection of the territory, he needed to prepare for a trip to Pasture City.

He would have Macken and the others make defensive arrangements for the territory during dinner.

"Yes, Master. I will inform Mrs. Bandler right away."

Bella breathed a sigh of relief. The Master hadn't spoken for a while just now, and she thought she had said something wrong.

After the maid left, Luo Ning continued reading the novel from the other world.

This novel, bound with over thirty pages of parchment, had a very simple plot. It was nothing more than killing Magical Beasts, rescuing people everywhere, and then focusing heavily on descriptions of affection, which was quite watered down.

However, it was fine to glance at it during rest time. Being able to pass the boring time gave it some value.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

The door was knocked on again, and it was Chahar standing outside.

"Master, the squat toilet you instructed this morning has been arranged. Would you like to take a look?"

Luo Ning immediately closed the book and stood up. "Let's go, take me to see it."

Thank you to Master Tong Xinyu for the reward, and thank you to all the masters for your voting support~