HTLCCBFT Chapter 221

Has The Lord’s Career Chart Been Filled Today? – Chapter 221

Everything that happened next left Ixs and his companions utterly dazzled and bewildered.

First, they were sent to a steaming bathhouse for a thorough scrubbing—literally scrubbed, with layers of grime mixed with dirt from their skin and fingernail crevices turning the rinsing water pale brown. Gods, they had never been this clean before!

Their greasy long hair, a breeding ground for fleas, was trimmed by barber-surgeons into neat short cuts or clean-shaven heads, then treated with pleasantly scented water said to repel insects.

When they finally emerged from the bathhouse, scrubbed clean with steaming, dark-reddened skin wrapped in newly issued clothes, their minds were still reeling.

“Gods!” Proer widened his eyes, staring in astonishment at his friend Ixs, now beardless and clean-cut. “My good man, so this is what you really look like!”

His exclamation immediately drew the attention of the others, who had been feeling equally disoriented, all focusing on Ixs.

They deliberately huddled together, whispering among themselves.

“Really.” “So incredible!” “Are you really Uncle Ixs?” “Even your eyebrows look finer!” “Just a freshly grown lad!”

“Looks just like—”

Amid the good-natured teasing from his companions, Ixs flushed with embarrassment and retorted, “Hey, none of you look any better!”

Before he could find more words to escape the awkwardness of being mocked, the reserve guard who had mysteriously vanished after leading them to the bathhouse reappeared before them. “Ah, done.”

He calmly surveyed their discomfort from head to toe, satisfied. “Follow me.”

Although the order of procedures had been somewhat disrupted, completion was all that mattered.

The guard then led them to the newly assigned housing area, watched them set down their luggage, and took them to the cafeteria for a meal.

Upon seeing their allocated living quarters—spacious, bright new houses with a faint scent of wood—everyone’s first reaction wasn’t joy but tension.

This was completely different from the temporary accommodations they had planned for: the cheapest, dilapidated old rooms where just having a place to lie down was sufficient.

Everyone silently looked at Ixs. He took a deep breath, quickly mustered his courage, and spoke humbly to the patiently waiting guard, “Sir, the thing is, we don’t have much money and might not be able to afford staying here long-term… Would you be willing to let us look at other accommodations? Of course, there’s no need to trouble you—we can find our own way.”

Based on Ixs’s experience, the most well-informed ordinary people in the city were undoubtedly the children found in every town—those kids whose parents were too busy making a living, couldn’t afford to send them to the divine temple for education, and whom craftsmen deemed too young to train. They’d surely be willing to guide them for a coin or two.

As this thought surfaced, Ixs belatedly realized something.

Come to think of it, from the bathhouse all the way here… he hadn’t seen any children idling or playing in the streets, had he?

The reserve guard seemed puzzled and couldn’t help lifting his eyelids to glance at him: “Did you not finish reading that notice?”

Ixs grew increasingly nervous. Hearing the implication in the other’s words, he seemed to have missed some crucial information: “If you’re referring to those posted in Iron City’s market district, we’ve read them all.”

The guard’s expression grew even more perplexed. He pondered for a good while before realizing something: “Ah, you must have missed the fine print at the bottom – those supplementary notes.”

At this point, he suddenly took a step back and snapped his fingers toward someone at the other end of the corridor. Soon enough, another reserve guard dressed identically to him arrived, carrying a piece of paper.

Ixs could recognize it at a glance: it was the same notice that had been plastered all over Iron City’s alleys.

The guard unrolled the scroll directly and pointed at the bottom line that was always overlooked – perhaps because it was written below the astonishingly high remuneration – saying seriously: “Well, look carefully: ‘Any willing craftsmen who present valid identification will have their accommodation and travel expenses covered by Gregor City during the assessment period.'”

This served both to win people over and to facilitate centralized management, while also serving the purpose of epidemic prevention and quarantine.

After all, Gregor City currently had no shortage of new housing, and temporary accommodation didn’t need to be too elaborate – Gregor City’s workers could build them quickly and well within a few days.

Moreover, for those residents, the mere provision of free accommodation was surprise enough – they couldn’t possibly be greedy enough to nitpick whether the room materials were somewhat rough or whether the lighting was sufficiently ample.

The guard looked at the bewildered group and tried his best to maintain a pleasant expression: “Of course, specific salaries will be paid monthly only after you pass the technical assessment.”

When they were led to the cafeteria area, eating their fill of black bread and drinking fragrant wheat soup, they were still pondering the guard’s words – though the cafeteria offered far more than just these. If they were willing to pay, they could purchase desserts and more varieties of food, such as porridge.

Although Chart still didn’t fully understand the guard’s words and didn’t dare to ask for details, he at least knew that what was happening to them was an unprecedented stroke of good fortune.

He was initially somewhat reserved, but soon gave in to the temptation of food – people of his age were naturally big eaters, not to mention they had been exceptionally frugal with food along their journey, their stomachs remaining in a somewhat hungry state.

When he came to his senses, he was already chewing on his fifth piece of black bread.

He was thoroughly startled by his own displayed greed, then glanced around guiltily, afraid that he might be driven away for eating too much.

However, after looking around, he felt completely relieved: the cafeteria was large, and their group seemed to have been assigned to a specific area. The Gregor workers sitting in other areas were all busy eating heartily, with many having even larger appetites than his.

No one curiously stared or looked maliciously at their group of outsiders – their presence was naturally accepted as normal.

To be precise, those young cooks dressed neatly and holding large wooden spoons were far more eye-catching than them.

Or perhaps it was because they were too busy?

Chatt couldn’t help but think this, his originally somewhat nervous mood gradually relaxing. Chewing on his fifth piece of black bread, he kept glancing at the face of the guard sharing their table.

After he looked too many times, the sharp-witted guard noticed and met his gaze directly: “Chatt.”

Never dreaming the other would remember his name, he nearly choked: “Sir!”

The guard misunderstood the reason for his staring and naturally deduced one possibility: “Need to take a shit? Hold it in for now. It’s perfect—once you’ve all finished eating, come with me to the toilet.”

Though utterly confused, Chatt naturally didn’t dare say “no.”

The group silently quickened their eating pace, then—with bellies fuller than they’d been in ages and reluctant glances lingering on the bread pile—soon followed the guard’s footsteps.

When they reached the place called ‘toilet’ and saw the spotlessly clean washbasin, they’d already lost count of how many times Gregor city had stunned them—they just desperately absorbed the guard’s instructions, terrified that ignorance might lead to mistakes and get them expelled from this place.

The long half-day finally ended.

Four beds were arranged in one room, each with straw mats and linen mattresses—soft, comfortable, and spacious enough that even the tallest Proer could stretch out his limbs fully. With his broad arm span, he could just barely reach the edges when fully extended.

Luckily, Chatt was assigned to the same bedroom as the captain, vice-captain, and another team member.

Logically, having just arrived in a new place and settled in, they should have had much to discuss.

But perhaps the inner shocks had been too numerous—lying in their respective beds staring at the wood grain patterns on the ceiling, the group felt no drowsiness. Though uncertain what thoughts filled their minds, no conversation emerged.

Even typically chatterbox Chatt was no exception.

“Gregor people are truly blessed.”

Surprisingly, it was the calmest, most taciturn Captain Ixs who spoke first.

He turned over, looking at his friend Proer—whose eyes similarly shimmered with excitement—and they exchanged knowing smiles: “We must work hard to secure our stay here—I mean, permanently. I’ve heard that if one becomes a senior craftsman or wins the Outstanding Worker award, they’re permitted to bring their families over.” Failing those conditions, ordinary craftsmen could also bring their families once their total assets reached ten gold coins or they purchased a residence within the city district.

Thus becoming Gregor city people, living on this wondrous, dreamlike land.

Who could imagine? He’d been here less than half a day, hadn’t even started working—the guard had said they must first undergo a process called ‘isolation’ to ensure no hidden illnesses before being allowed assessments and working alongside other laborers—yet he was already desperately longing to stay.

What should have been an anxious, fearful waiting period had, thanks to Gregor city covering all food and lodging, become the most comfortable enjoyment he’d ever experienced in his life.

Doing nothing yet, wearing comfortable new clothes, lying in a spacious and clean house, and being able to eat one’s fill to the heart’s content!

“No doubt about it!” Proer grinned. “My dear friend, you have no idea how grateful I am that I listened to you back then and boldly joined you on this trip… God, I can hardly imagine how blissful life would be if we could stay here! And while we people of Iron may not boast about much, we certainly aren’t afraid of hard work!”

The more he heard and saw about Gregor City, the more anxious his heart grew.

How could he not desire it? He dreamed day and night of letting his wife and daughter live in such a safe, prosperous, clean, and bright big city—just the sight of it brought a contented smile to one’s face. Even the flowerbeds along the roadside seemed utterly charming.

After listening with surging emotions for a long while, Chart couldn’t help but interject, voicing the fantasy in his heart: “If only we had come earlier…”

Ixs and Proer, however, exchanged a glance and laughed. “Don’t even think about it. The old Gregor wasn’t like this at all. All of this was brought by that esteemed Duke, the new lord, His Highness Oliver!”

“Yeah, if I could live such a life someday, I’d gladly kiss the tips of His Highness’s feet—”

“Hey, don’t get ahead of yourself. Do you think that’s beneath you? Kissing His Highness’s toes is a privilege only noble lords are fit to fantasize about!”

They burst into laughter together.

In recent days, there were many others in similar situations: after arriving in the city with trepidation, they quickly shifted from disbelief to ease, and then to longing and anticipation for an infinitely brighter new life.

And in their hearts, they silently offered the highest reverence to the lord who had brought about all these changes.

As for the lord himself in the castle, he was sitting in an unusually lazy and relaxed posture at that moment.

His elbow rested on the table, his cheek propped against the back of his hand as he sat slightly tilted, listening to Spire—who had recently been promoted to his deputy intelligence officer with the unanimous recommendation of Fosse and others—present his report.

After distributing and posting so many recruitment notices in those three cities and successfully poaching a considerable number of people, Oliver naturally paid extra attention to the attitudes of their respective lords.

When Spire’s investigation confirmed that everything was calm on their end, as if they were completely unaware and had taken no measures, Oliver couldn’t help but smile and blink with amusement.

Oliver said calmly, “It seems they’re easy targets to squeeze.”

If only serfs had fled, it would be understandable for the three lords to pay no mind.

But now, even the most essential artisan resources in the mining cities were being lost, yet they hadn’t made even a token effort to obstruct or retain them. Everything had proceeded more smoothly than he had anticipated…

Since the targets were so easy to squeeze, the mischievous blond rogue clearly intended to squeeze a few more times.

“Yes,” Spire said bluntly after finishing his report. “They genuinely fear the foremost lord of the south, Your Highness. I suspect we may soon receive envoys sent by them to seek friendly relations.”

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