Chapter 3 (2/2)

Liszt smiled and shifted his eyes from the thick book to the weary butler. “Mr. Carter, have you inspected all the rooms?”

“All the rooms have been locked except those where servants are still working.”

“Very well. Let’s have a drink.” Liszt noticed the wine in Carter’s hand. Most nobles were alcoholics. It was even a ritual that the master of a castle would have a drink with the butler and chat about the castle before they went to sleep.

Liszt was not fond of liquor, but his former self loved it. So, his body still had needs for wine.

The alcohol here was not very strong. He could barely get drunk unless he gulped it like beer.

The butler poured them wine, and they tapped their cups together.

After swirling the wine, Liszt sipped it. “Is the money in the castle enough for the rest of the year?”

“I’m afraid it’s difficult. You haven’t brought much wine from Tulip Castle. There isn’t much flour left. Few merchants are willing to come to Flower Town, so we can’t buy anything with coins. However, the good news is that there are many fruits in Tulip Castle.”

Being an unappreciated son, Liszt was not offered much during the separation.

As he recalled, his sister had thirty wagons of items when she left the family, and he had nothing but a few horses to carry his luggage.

His former self had been angry, but for him, it was not a big deal. After all, he was not the earl’s real son. Actually, it could be quite tricky for him to show intimacy to his fake father.

“We can’t live without wheat.” Liszt put down the cup and said, “To develop Flower Town, roads must be built!”

The main food here was bread.

Without the white bread made of wheat, Liszt would have to eat rye bread. If Liszt lost smooth white bread after losing his hometown cuisines, he would starve.

“It’s not easy to build roads. Thorn Hill is too dangerous.”

“Rest assured about that. I’ll take care of it. The future of Flower Town will not be limited by poverty, and the castle will have a name,” Liszt said solemnly.

Only splendid castles bore names. Liszt’s place was too shabby to be even called a castle. Other nobles would laugh at him if he gave it a name.

“Are the elvish insects taken care of?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“That’s good.”

They finished their drinks.

Carter bid farewell. “My lord, have a good night.”

“You, too, Mr. Carter.”

After Carter left, Liszt read the book that introduced Archduchy Sapphire. It was as thick as a dictionary, but there was actually very little content, because the paper was too thick.

How was paper invented? Liszt remembered the procedure to make thin paper. When I have more time, I have to invent the paper I know… Industrial revolution doesn’t seem to be an option, but there’s plenty of ways to become rich.

He was somehow absentminded again.

As he expected, the misty Ophidian words appeared again.

Mission: As a liege, you need to understand everything in your territory. Please inspect Flower Town, get to know the crises of the place, and make preparations for future development. Reward: sublimation of combat aura.