Lord: My Shop Connects to Modern Times

Two days later.

Gale stood at the entrance to the temporary army's barracks, looking out at the streets of Grayrock Town, somewhat dazed.

Two days ago, when Hank answered his question, he thought he had misheard.

"If that day ever comes and I am ordered to die, I will obey without hesitation!"

Hank's answer left him silent for a long time.

It wasn't because of Hank's loyalty, but because of what lay behind that loyalty—trust.

Hank trusted the lord named Lynn.

It wasn't out of fear or to curry favor, but out of genuine trust.

Gale had never seen this kind of trust in Frostfire.

Why did Earl Karl's soldiers fight? For pay, for fear, for habit. But to hear them say, like Hank, "I believe the lord won't let us die in vain"?

impossible.

If chivalry were disregarded, Gale would admit that he himself might not be able to do it.

But this guy named Hank, Gale felt, he could definitely do it, and not just him, but most of the other veterans here, Gale believed, could do it too.

It takes an incredible level of trust in one's lord to do this!

Gail felt a little lost. He pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked at what was in front of him.

Today is the first day he has gained "limited freedom".

According to the rules, prisoners who have passed interrogation can move freely in Grayrock Town after completing their training, except for being prohibited from leaving the territory and going to a few special areas.

He decided to go out for a walk.

He was now very curious about what the territory of these soldiers who had routed the Southern Alliance was like...

Gail met up with Vic, who had also finished training, and the two walked out of their usual training area together.

The sun was shining brightly, warming me comfortably. A gentle autumn breeze carried a faint scent of smoke and the aroma of freshly baked bread.

Gail took a deep breath.

This tastes... a bit different from Frostfire City.

Frostfire City also smelled of baking bread, but it was always mixed with the stench of horse manure, garbage, and sewage. This place, however, was different; the streets were so clean that he felt somewhat unaccustomed to it.

The two walked along the main street.

The road was bustling with people: civilians in coarse clothes, soldiers in uniform, craftsmen carrying tool bags, and young people hurrying by with books in their hands.

Nobody paid them any special attention.

"Look," Vic suddenly tugged at his sleeve.

Gail followed his gaze.

The street was lined with shops: blacksmith shops, carpentry workshops, tailor shops, general stores... Every shop was open, and people were coming and going in a constant stream.

The clanging of hammering metal echoed from the blacksmith's shop. Gail peeked inside through the window. Several anvils were set up, and seven or eight apprentices were busy at work, the furnace glowing red-hot.

This size is almost comparable to the largest blacksmith shop in Frostfire City.

"Let's go in and take a look," Vic said, starting to walk inside.

Gail grabbed him.

"Don't cause trouble."

Vic pursed his lips and abandoned the idea of ​​going in.

But Gail's gaze lingered in the blacksmith's shop for a few more seconds.

It wasn't because of the anvils, nor because of the apprentices.

It's because of the things piled up in the corner.

The objects were covered with burlap, with only a portion visible. The partially exposed portion appeared to be a dark, unidentifiable metal, and its shape was rather strange—smooth on the surface, resembling a sphere, quite different from the swords and farm tools.

Gale couldn't help but think of the dark figures that flew down the hillside at Dark Raven Pass.

His heart skipped a beat.

But he didn't look at it much and pulled Vic along as they continued walking.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, the two arrived at a relatively open area.

There were even more people here, bustling and lively, somewhat like a market. But it wasn't an ordinary market—no one was shouting, no one was haggling, only long queues moving quietly forward.

"What...is this?" Vic was stunned.

Gail shook her head.

He didn't understand either.

He saw that at the very front of the line was a row of windows, and people were sitting in the windows, writing something into a booklet.

The people in the group held coins in their hands, some more than others, some with several gold coins, and some with only a few copper coins.

Some people were even pulling a small cart that Gale had never seen before, and those people generally carried gold coins in their hands.

After the gold coins were given to the person behind the window, who wrote and drew on the booklet, some items were taken out and loaded onto the cart.

Of those things, only a small portion were things Gale had seen or heard of before—instant noodles, potatoes. Most of the others were things Gale was seeing for the first time.

A man pulling a cart full of people passed by them. Gail hesitated for a moment, then reached out to stop him.

"Hello, excuse me, what are you doing? Um... what are all these things?"

The other person seemed to be taken aback for a moment. He looked Gail and Vic over carefully, as if he thought they were unfamiliar faces, and explained enthusiastically, "I'm getting some stock. Our family's grocery store is almost sold out, so I'm coming to the public warehouse to get some."

He pointed to the cart: "This is soap, this is cola, this is fertilizer... these are all things the lord researched."

After patiently explaining everything to Gale and his companions, the other person left, leaving them standing there in a daze.

Public treasury? Soap? Coke?

And it's all stuff that the lord has been researching?

Gail was completely confused.

But he noticed something—those who left through the window all had satisfied smiles on their faces. Not forced smiles, but genuine, undisguised smiles.

Gail looked at the people in line, a mix of emotions churning within her.

What are the common people like in Frostfire City? Pale and emaciated, with listless eyes, they hide from anyone. When the tax collectors arrive, they're like mice before a cat. Every day, people starve and freeze to death when winter comes.

But here...

Are these people the same as the people of Frostfire City?

"Gail," Vic's voice trembled slightly, "you mean... what we used to live, was it even a real life?"

Gail did not answer.

He didn't know how to answer.

After leaving the public warehouse, the two continued walking.

After walking through several streets, a neat row of houses came into view. They were larger and newer than ordinary houses.

There was a wooden sign hanging at the entrance with a few words written on it.

Vic leaned closer and read it aloud.

"School?"

He wasn't very literate, and it took him a while to recognize those three characters.

"What is a school?" he asked.

Gail shook her head.

All he knew was that noble families had private tutors who taught their children to read and write. But that was a privilege reserved for nobles.

Speaking of which, when he first arrived at the temporary military barracks, he saw Hank reading a book, and Hank mentioned...night school?

Could this be the place?

Just as Gail was reminiscing, a middle-aged man came out. He was holding a book with the title "Complete Guide to Basic Literacy" on the cover.

He saw Gail and Vic, paused for a moment, and then gave them a gentle smile.

"Are you two... new here?"

Gail nodded.

"Those two have arrived a bit early. This is still the time for children to have classes; adults should come in the evening."

"Huh?" Vic was a little confused. "Class?"

Gail seemed to understand something, and he gently tugged at Vic.

"Hello, we're not here for class, we just want to confirm something..."

Galton paused. "Is this... a school?"

"Yes," the middle-aged man said. "It was organized by the lord. Anyone from the territory, regardless of status or age, can come and learn."

Regardless of social status or age?

Gail was stunned.

"What do you study?"

"Literacy, accounting, and a few other things." The middle-aged man smiled. "I teach literacy. There's someone next door who teaches arithmetic, and someone else who teaches science."

He paused, seemingly considering his words.

"Everyone who comes here studies very diligently. Especially those who didn't have the opportunity to study before, they wish they could spend all day here."

Gail peeked through the crack in the door.

Inside were rows of long tables, with notebooks and pens on them. Several children were hunched over the tables, writing intently. One boy made a mistake and scratched his head in frustration. A little girl next to him leaned over, pointed at his notebook, and said something.

The boy suddenly realized what was happening and buried himself in writing again.

Gail stared at it for a long time.

He recalled his childhood, when he came from a commoner family and had no opportunity to learn to read and write. If he hadn't become a knight, he probably would never have been able to read in his life.

But the children here...

They can learn these things without spending money or asking for favors.

What kind of people will they become in the future?

Gail didn't know.

But suddenly he felt a little envious.

……

As I left the school, it gradually grew dark.

The two walked back.

No one spoke the entire way.

When they were almost at the military camp, Vic suddenly stopped.

"Gale."

"Um?"

"You said... if Frostfire City were like this, would my father not have died?"

Gail looked at him.

Vic had his head down, so his expression was not visible.

"That winter, I was still young, and we didn't have enough food at home. My sister, me, and my mother were all waiting for my father to come back, but then..."

His voice trembled slightly.

"In the end, my father didn't come back. To ensure we had enough to eat in the winter, he braved the snow to hunt, and he was killed by monsters..."

Gail listened in silence, the words of comfort on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't utter them.

He had seen far too many things like this during his years in Frostfire City.

He also thought of Emily, who was far away in Frostfire City, and wondered if she was hiding well.

After a moment, Vic seemed to have calmed down. He looked up at Gail and said, "Gail, I've made up my mind. I'm going to reform myself here. In the future, I'm going to bring my mother and sister here to live."

Gale looked at him in surprise, then smiled with relief: "Okay, I'll bring Emily over too, and we'll live here together."

……