HTLCCBFT Chapter 7

Has The Lord’s Career Chart Been Filled Today? – Chapter 7

Oliver only kept the tools he truly needed in his portable game backpack. Thus, when heading out, all he had to bring along was the butler who refused to trust his self-sufficiency.

However, after witnessing Oliver’s sudden fainting spell yesterday, Fosse had come fully prepared—besides Johan, he brought along three personal male servants from the castle and even the few knights that had remained after Cameron’s forceful opposition. ¹Reminder: Cameron is MC’s brother, the current King

Exiting through the castle gates and walking straight ahead for about three miles would lead to the river flowing through the forest outside Laina City.

As they made their way through the dense, leafy woods, Oliver was captivated by something and instinctively slowed his pace.

In his eyes, the berries and wild fruits scattered across the ground resembled glowing “foraging” experience points.

Although the easiest way to gain experience points for the “foraging” skill was through logging… seeing so many wild fruits lying before him made it hard to resist the temptation.

After a brief hesitation, Oliver decisively cast aside his embarrassment.

Fully aware that he was under the indulgent and affectionate gazes of Fosse and the others, he blushed slightly, dismounted, and patiently began gathering the fruits.

Fosse was somewhat surprised but couldn’t help smiling, his light brown eyes reflecting the image of his adorable young master.

With the loyal and imposing knights standing guard nearby, he had no reason to worry about his young master’s safety.

Moreover, in his view, ever since the old king’s sudden death and the hypocritical elder princes’ relentless infighting—which even targeted the least threatening youngest brother, cruelly driving Oliver out of the capital—his young master had grown noticeably quieter.

The beautiful profile he displayed while lost in thought now carried a mature and melancholic air, no longer resembling the carefree, innocent boy Fosse knew so well.

Witnessing Oliver’s decisive actions just now, Fosse felt both relieved by his young master’s rapid growth and deeply pained by it.

Though picking wild fruits off the ground was hardly a noble pursuit… as long as his young master was happy, it was all that mattered.

So, as Oliver bent down to gather the plump berries one by one, Fosse obligingly took them and placed them into the empty bamboo basket he had prepared beforehand.

The forest was vast—even though Oliver avoided picking fruits still on the branches, merely collecting the ripe ones that had fallen within a small area quickly filled three baskets.

Oliver had only been momentarily tempted by the experience points right before his eyes and had no intention of greedily stripping the entire forest of its fruits.

Once he had gathered all the visible fruits and estimated he had enough experience points to level up, he wisely decided to quit while he was ahead.

As he accepted the damp cloth thoughtfully offered by Fosse and carefully wiped the residual juice from his fingers, he casually asked, “With so many wild fruits in the forest, why does no one come to pick them?”

Fosse replied nonchalantly, “Whether it’s fields, forests, or rivers, everything in Laina City belongs solely to the lord.”

Only after the lord had taken his full share could the freemen on the estate, upon paying seasonal taxes, gain the right to enter the forest and gather limited resources. For the serfs, this was a blessing they wouldn’t even dare to dream of.

In fact, during the coldest days of the recent winter, a desperate serf had secretly ventured into the forest at night to cut down trees belonging to the lord, unable to bear watching his six-year-old daughter suffer from the bitter cold any longer.

The flickering flames represented their hope of surviving the freezing night, yet they were also undeniable evidence of their crime. Ironically, before he could even warm his daughter’s stiff, purple-tinged body, another serf had braved the cold wind to report him, hoping to curry favor with the supervisor.

Upon learning that the lord’s property had been stolen by lowly serfs, supervisor Andison—who had been leisurely sitting by a warm fireplace savoring beer secretly bought from the steward—flew into a rage.

Whether fearing the brutal lord would hold him accountable or simply angry at having to punish a wretched slave in such freezing weather… Andison stormed out with a horsewhip. Without even asking a single question, he cursed and rained blows upon the hated offender.

Knowing death was inevitable, the serf had only managed to secretly push his dying daughter Lucy into the hands of a sympathetic neighbor when he heard Andison’s approaching footsteps.

Before Lucy’s feverish, weak eyes—too pained to even shed tears—her father was brutally beaten to death.

The other serfs watched with uniformly numb expressions.

This was their fate as slaves.

Scenes even more tragic than this were neither the first nor the last during winters of food shortages and harsh climate.

Fortunately, Lucy’s cries were too faint to further enrage Andison. After cursing while flicking the remaining blood off his whip, he returned to his warm quarters without a backward glance.

—Just another audacious slave dead.

Though Fosse remained indifferent to the slaves’ miserable conditions, he couldn’t possibly be unaware of them.

Despite having been at the castle for only two days, his sources of information were remarkably well-established: after all, the castle was filled with old servants eager to demonstrate their loyalty to the new lord’s confidant.

According to the estate’s never-strictly-enforced laws, the slave who dared steal the lord’s property—even if just by cutting down a small tree—shouldn’t have been whipped to death, though he certainly would have faced severe punishment.

But such bloody, terrifying events would surely make the soft-hearted, kind-hearted lord feel pity for the slaves, perhaps even shock him.

After some thought, Fosse decided it would be better not to mention it unless His Lordship asked first.

Oliver naturally knew nothing about the tragic fate of Lucy’s father and the other slaves.

After hearing Fosse’s reasoning, though somewhat frustrated, he wasn’t particularly surprised.

However, past rules no longer mattered.

He was now the lord of Laina City—in this wilderness even the royal tax collectors disdained to visit, no one could stop him from making sweeping changes to existing “traditions,” no matter how radical. “‘Did the benevolent God take such pains to bestow rain and dew, making them blossom and bear fruit, only for me alone to appreciate His generosity?'” Oliver said without blinking, speaking offhandedly, “‘Since it is God’s generous gift, then before they return to the earth’s embrace, let everyone in the territory come and freely gather them to eat.'”

Allowing ripe wild fruits to rot on the ground while forbidding the sallow and emaciated slaves from picking them to satisfy their hunger—though Oliver’s understanding of the nobility’s moral limits had been repeatedly lowered since his memories merged, he still felt intense hatred for such inhuman behavior.

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Fosse had already anticipated how things would unfold the moment Oliver began speaking.

Calmly accepting the order, he kept his gaze fixed on the Angel Duke, who had smoothly mounted his horse, while stopping Johan, who wanted to take the fruit basket from his hands. In a stern voice, he said, “The benevolent and generous Duke has given his instructions. Shouldn’t you hurry to carry them out?”

Johan was momentarily stunned, then quickly replied, “I understand, Mr. Fosse.”

Fosse coldly watched him dash off toward the castle and snorted disdainfully.

The fruits that His Grace had personally picked and placed in the basket he held were a unique favor bestowed upon him alone.

—How could he allow this ambitious young man to covet them!

Accompanied closely by his attendants, Oliver had only ridden a short distance before arriving at the river that was the destination of this trip.

The water, tinged green by moss, couldn’t be described as turbulent. Occasionally, lively little fish leaped out of the surface, and the sparkling white splashes reflecting the sunlight made one instinctively squint.

Even without the cheating fishing rod provided by the game system, this stretch of the river could still be considered quite suitable for fishing.

As soon as Oliver took out the basic fishing rod from his game backpack, he couldn’t help but freeze.

After he had repeatedly displayed miraculous abilities, his already rather gullible servants were only slightly surprised by his sudden production of a fishing rod and quickly adapted.

But… he hadn’t expected to forget to prepare bait!

Before Oliver could feel annoyed, Fosse—far more capable and considerate than he had realized—like a magician, naturally had other footmen bring out a jar of worms that he had, at some unknown time, had the children of the territory dig up from the ground.

Oliver watched silently as a footman unblinkingly took out what looked like an earthworm from the jar and eagerly attached it to the hook—Fosse obviously wouldn’t tolerate his angelic young master touching such filthy things with his own hands.

— Fosse, forever a legend. ²——福斯，永远滴神。internet slang, a more literal translation would be: “Fosse, the eternal god.”

Oliver sighed inwardly, no longer dwelling on the meticulous care he received, and calmly cast the fishing line.

Among those present, the ones who could truly be said to be closest and most familiar with Duke Oliver were, of course, the butler Fosse and the knight captain Noel.

Despite their vastly different ages, the two shared a surprisingly consistent attitude toward Oliver: even at the cost of their lives, they would absolutely fulfill the Angel Duke’s wishes.

Whether it was Oliver’s sudden whim to personally pick fruits earlier or his impulsive decision to take everyone out fishing now, both wore nearly identical indulgent smiles and did their utmost to help make it happen.Yet they were equally convinced that even with the blessing of the gods, as absolute beginners, it was utterly impossible for them to catch a fish in the river—

“Splash, splash—”

While this thought still lingered in their minds, a series of crisp, startling sounds reached their ears, making everyone widen their eyes in disbelief.

As the float abruptly sank, a plump, dark-gray fish fiercely clamped onto the hook and engaged in a fierce struggle with Oliver, who stood ready and resolute!

• 1
  Reminder: Cameron is MC’s brother, the current King
• 2
  ——福斯，永远滴神。internet slang, a more literal translation would be: “Fosse, the eternal god.”