Making Amends

The Red Mill had been noisy all night, with decadent music lingering unceasingly in the air.

The next day, sunlight had already streamed through the multicolored glass window into the second-floor guest room when the faint sound of a door opening startled the half-asleep Roger awake.

The girl Halfpenny entered carrying a basin of clean water, and the wild flirtatious air she had worn a few days ago was gone.

After all, Young Master Roger had now become a knight and the lord of Milkhouse Manor. On top of that, he had recently slaughtered a nest of pirates, so Halfpenny did not dare provoke him lightly.

Roger had still not gotten down to business last night. This time, he had put aside those concerns and intended to pick two girls he liked and enjoy a night with them.

Yet the previous night's celebration had lasted until the stars hung at midnight. The beer was not particularly strong, but he could not withstand more than a dozen people taking turns bombarding him. Drunk into a puddle of mud, how could Roger possibly do that sort of thing? He had simply fallen over and gone to sleep.

As a result, it had been this Halfpenny girl attending to him all night again, though she likely had not done anything proper.

"Lord Roger, it is nearly noon. You should get up and have lunch." Halfpenny set the water basin on the washstand in the room, then walked to the bedside to help Roger put on his armor.

"No armor. It's too heavy and too hot. Bring me my linen robe."

Roger rubbed his eyes and studied the girl before him carefully. Her forehead was a little too broad, her makeup a little too thick, and the black mole at the corner of her lips a little too conspicuous.

Other than those things, the girl was actually quite good, especially her outstanding, proud figure.

Roger pulled on his linen robe, walked over to the basin, scooped up water to wash his face, and asked, "Are my guests all still here?"

Halfpenny had already neatly folded Roger's armor. She answered cautiously, "Lord Roger, your distinguished guests left after breakfast. Sergeant Ma'en and the brothers Earl and Neil are still waiting for you downstairs."

Once Roger had finished tidying himself up, he instructed Halfpenny to bring his weapons and armor downstairs later and load them onto the horses.

As he strolled downstairs, he encountered Kate coming up from the hall at the turn of the staircase.

Kate was still as bewitching and seductive as ever, and the faint fragrance of rouge still intoxicated the heart. Today, however, she wore only a thin pale-blue fitted outer garment, and her proud twin peaks drew every eye.

Raising her clear, gleaming, worldly eyes, Kate looked Roger over and greeted him with a seductive smile. "Oh, Lord Roger is finally awake. You drank yourself dead last night and made the girls wait in vain all night."

Roger was caught off guard by that worldly charm and took a moment to recover before changing the subject. "Why did you not attend the knighting ceremony yesterday?"

The worldly look vanished from Kate's face at once. She said gloomily, "How could someone of such lowly status as me dare attend a knight's knighting ceremony?" Her words carried a sharp sourness.

Roger realized he had struck a sore spot and coughed awkwardly.

Kate immediately gave another couple of coquettish laughs, putting away her lapse in composure. She said seriously, "Lord Roger sent someone with a generous gift yesterday. The porcelain bottle was beautiful, and that refined salt was even more precious."

"I have prepared a delicious lunch for you and your retainers, as thanks."

Yesterday afternoon, Roger had sent Baldhead and Ponytail to deliver the exquisite porcelain bottle seized from the pirate ship to Kate, as a return gift for that little porcelain potion bottle.

At Baldhead and Ponytail's strong urging, the empty porcelain bottle had been filled with the refined salt they had made themselves at Salt Beach a few days earlier. Roger had thought it utterly absurd, but Baldhead and Ponytail believed it was an even more valuable gift than the porcelain bottle, something they could absolutely present with pride.

The two had even begged him to give them some of that refined salt as funds for visiting the Red Mill.

Roger had tasted the refined salt he had made himself. Compared with salt from later generations, it still fell far short. The filtering apparatus could only remove insoluble impurities, so the fine salt was still not truly pure.

But to people of this era, it was already the purest sea salt.

"If you like it, I can give you some more when I make another batch." Roger used the opportunity to change the subject and avoid the awkwardness.

Kate looked delighted. "You made this refined salt yourself?"

Roger nodded. "Yes. I made it a few days ago when I had nothing better to do."

"Then could you sell some to the Red Mill in the future? If we had this fine salt, our food could sell for a higher price." Kate was always thinking of how to make more money.

Roger's heart steadied at those words. Over the past two days, he had constantly been considering how to resolve Milkhouse Manor's financial crisis. Given the current situation, producing valuable fine salt in bulk was an excellent source of income. But how could he achieve mass production, and which processes needed improvement? Those were matters Roger needed to think over carefully.

"Lord Roger?"

Kate's call roused Roger from his thoughts. "Mm. If Salt Beach can produce fine salt in bulk, I will sell it to you first."

Kate did not understand the term "mass production," but she still gave a slight bow in thanks.

With a gentlemanly raised hand, Roger yielded the stairs to Kate and walked down into the hall.

There were few people eating at the Red Mill at noon. The long table in the center was covered with all kinds of food, and Ma'en, Baldhead, Ponytail, and the others had been staring wide-eyed at it for quite some time.

On the table were salted pork soaked in almond milk and sprinkled with pepper; a capon fried crisp and brown, its belly stuffed with onions, mushrooms, and roasted chestnuts; snowy-white cod fillets coated in breadcrumbs and served with some delicious brown sauce; and mutton stewed with herbs, still steaming hot.

There was also yellow bread made with egg yolks, mashed peas and meat, buttered turnips, pungent aged white cheese, and several large cups of delicious barley beer.

The gifts sent to Kate truly had been valuable. This meal would likely cost half a year's income for an ordinary family.

Taking the seat at the head of the table, Roger swept his gaze over the group swallowing saliva and working their throats. "What are you waiting for? Eat."

The men exchanged glances, then immediately began wolfing down the food. Even Ma'en, who was usually so steady, ate until his cheeks bulged.

Roger sampled each dish as well. These foods had indeed been prepared with care, and they tasted even better than the food at last night's banquet in the Baron's residence.

Just as he was eating with great relish, a maid walked to Roger's side, bent down, and said softly, "Lord Roger, someone outside is begging to see you."

Roger was using a personal dining knife to tackle the roasted chestnuts on his plate. He asked casually, "Who wants to see me? Just let him in."

"Um... it is Master Gary from Rocklanza Village. He says he came especially to congratulate you and is waiting outside. He hopes you can go out alone."

The maid hesitated. "He also brought his daughter with him."

Roger stopped moving.

He remembered the entanglement between the original owner of this body and Gary. That absurd scene had even replayed in his nightmares several times.

But after Roger recovered from his injuries, he had either killed the bandit leader or wiped out pirates, then recuperated on the isolated island, followed by handling the funeral affairs and inheriting the territory and title.

Gary had dodged and hidden during yesterday's knighting ceremony, then slipped away in haste without even attending the evening banquet. Roger had not intended to pay him any attention in the first place.

Yet now Gary had come to him of his own accord. Roger wanted to know what the man intended.