Chapter 50: Chapter 49: The Uses of Black Iron Wood

Ronin returned to the castle with a few pieces of Black Iron Wood.

He had Macken cut off a small piece and told the Guards to test it with their longswords. They found that after several stabs, they could pierce the piece of wood, which was less than five millimeters thick. Chopping, on the other hand, merely left marks on the surface. A few strikes weren’t nearly enough to cut through it.

The Black Iron Wood’s tough Trait was a pleasant surprise for Ronin.

The Guards had a hard time piercing Black Iron Wood less than five millimeters thick. This meant Ronin could use it to craft simple Chest Guards, which could substitute for iron Armor to some extent.

Of course, this didn’t mean Black Iron Wood was truly the equivalent of iron. The armor made from it was nowhere near as strong or durable as iron-forged armor.

Mountain Forest Town had no iron mines. If Ronin wanted to arm his Guards, he would have to purchase the necessary equipment from elsewhere.

On the market, a common set of Chain Armor, a Helmet, Leg Guards, and a Shield would cost at least 20 Gold Coins altogether.

With Ronin’s current finances, arming all the Guards was simply impossible.

Moreover, Lords and nobles had little interest in arming commoners. They would rather spend the money to enhance the defenses of their Professional Knights.

Only a Transcendent could bring out the full potential of high-quality equipment.

Take Wushan Castle, for instance. The Guards in the Seventh Squad wore Linen Armor at best; only a select few had Leather Armor.

For Ronin, who lacked both iron equipment and the funds to purchase it for his ordinary Guards, using Black Iron Wood to make armor and Weapons was an excellent alternative.

Besides, he was certain he could sell items like these.

’This has real potential!’

In his study, Ronin became increasingly convinced that the idea was a sound one.

The only problem was that Black Iron Wood wasn’t easy to fell.

An ordinary person with a Stone Axe would have no chance of felling it. Only by equipping them with Iron Axe Heads could they possibly succeed, and even then, only with great effort.

Furthermore, processing the Black Iron Wood would be highly demanding of a Carpenter’s physical strength.

“Gallon!”

Ronin called out, and his personal manservant, who had been standing outside the door, entered at once.

“My Lord, what are your instructions?”

“Do you know if there are any carpenters in town?” Ronin asked.

“Yes, My Lord.”

Like Tom, Gallon was a native of Mountain Forest Town, born and raised.

Having lived here for over a decade, he knew a fair bit about the town’s various artisans.

“My Lord, the best Carpenter in town is Uncle William. When Princest had this building constructed, it was Uncle William who led the team that did it.”

’Uncle William.’ Ronin committed the name to memory.

Ronin nodded. “Very well. Take two Guards and ask him to come here.”

Gallon froze for a moment, then bowed in acknowledgment. “My Lord, I’ll take my men and go drag him over for you right away.”

’Drag?’

Ronin frowned. “I said, *ask* him!”

He stressed the word.

“Watch your attitude. Don’t offend the Carpenter.”

Although Carpenter William had worked for Princest, Ronin wasn’t petty enough to hold that against the man.

Besides, skilled artisans were a rare resource in any era, let alone in a remote, impoverished place like Mountain Forest Town.

’Ronin was counting on these artisans to make money for him, after all.’

Gallon broke out in a cold sweat.

He had only heard the first part of the sentence. When Ronin told him to take Guards, he had subconsciously assumed he was supposed to drag William over, completely missing the word “ask.”

Realizing how badly he had just misstepped, Gallon immediately dropped to one knee. “Forgive me, My Lord! It’s my fault, I wasn’t listening carefully!”

Ronin hadn’t expected such an extreme reaction. He waved a dismissive hand. “From now on, listen to everything I say and think before you act. Don’t be so hasty. Now go.”

“Thank you for your mercy, My Lord!”

Gallon bowed hastily before backing out of the study. He then led the Guards toward the Carpenter’s home.

On the staircase, he happened to run into Bella, who was coming up the stairs. “Why are you so flustered?”

Gallon sighed, looking deeply troubled. “I just misspoke.”

Bella grew nervous as well. She had been on her way to see the Baron, and if he was in a bad mood, she would have to be extra careful.

“Did the Lord reprimand you?” she asked nervously.

Gallon shook his head. “No, nothing like that. The Lord is very merciful. I’m just afraid I’ve left him with the impression that I’m ’hasty.’”

He shook his head, his expression full of worry. “Anyway, I have to go.”

Watching the manservant’s retreating back, Bella couldn’t help but feel a little apprehensive.

The new servants in the castle, including herself, were all extremely careful in their dealings with the Baron, terrified of making a mistake.

There were two reasons for their trepidation. First, they didn’t want to lose this wonderful job. In the castle, at least, they had new clothes to wear and could eat their fill. She could even sometimes have a bite or two of the Baron’s leftover white bread.

Second, they were still terrified of Ronin. The memory of the Baron leading his men into town was simply too horrifying—the cart had been piled high with more than twenty corpses!

Bella approached the door cautiously and knocked softly. “My Lord, the kitchen is about to prepare the evening meal. Mrs. Bandele sent me to inquire if you have any special instructions.”

Ronin looked up from his book at Bella.

’Today, the maid is wearing a dress left behind in the castle; it fits her quite well. Bella’s ’overall rating’ has gone up significantly since changing into this outfit, lending her a more youthful air.’

’He’d thought before that Bella, if dressed a bit better, could be more beautiful than Princest’s two lovers. Today proved him right.’

’In a remote mountain town like this, having a decent-looking maid around… if his predecessor were here, he’d probably be pulling her in for some ’in-depth exchange’ tonight and making some ’wonderful things’ happen.’

’But Ronin had no such plans.’

’It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy looking at beautiful women, but when it came to actually making a move, he wasn’t all that interested.’

’Marriage in this era was still strongly defined by class. Generally, a noble’s spouse could only be chosen from among other nobles.’

’Nobles and commoners rarely got together. Even when they did, it was usually as lovers.’

’Storylines from legends—a maid falling for a Knight, a noble abandoning his status for true love and eloping with a servant—were the stuff of chivalric novels.’

’The very chivalric novel Ronin was reading now, for instance, was about a Princess who fell in love with an Advanced Level Knight, forsook her noble station, and set off to wander the world with him.’

’What a load of crap.’

“I’ll be having dinner with Elron, Macken, and the other Transcendents tonight. Make sure Mrs. Bandele prepares plenty of food,” Ronin instructed.

Ronin usually ate dinner alone, mostly for the peace and quiet.

He was having them all join him for a meal today mainly to discuss his upcoming plans.

With the castle servants and the domain’s Civil Servant now settled in, and having completed a preliminary tour of his lands, Ronin needed to prepare for a trip to Pasture City.

He would use dinner tonight to have Macken and the others arrange the domain’s defensive deployments.

“Of course, My Lord. I’ll go inform Mrs. Bandele at once.”

Bella breathed a sigh of relief. The Lord had been silent for so long she’d thought she’d said something wrong.

After the maid left, Ronin went back to reading his Otherworld novel.

The novel, bound in over thirty pages of Sheepskin, had a very simple plot: kill some Magical Beasts, rescue people, and then describe their lovey-dovey affairs in great detail. It was full of filler.

Still, it was a decent way to pass the time during a break, so it had its value.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

The door was knocked again. This time, it was Chahar standing outside.

“My Lord, the squat toilet you ordered this morning has been set up. Would you like to see it?”

Ronin immediately closed his book and stood up. “Let’s go. Take me to see it.”

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