Has The Lord’s Career Chart Been Filled Today? – Chapter 56
After speaking with the butler Fosse, Oliver summoned another trusted confidant—the knight captain Noel—to discuss strategies under the hypothetical scenario of “well-armed bandits invading the estate.”
Noel’s first reaction was one of shock.
“Bandits?” Noel furrowed his brow, his expression filled with disbelief and concern. “Your Highness, I just returned from inspecting the tower, and everything was as peaceful as usual.”
Oliver replied earnestly, “That may be the case for now. Last night, I received a revelation from the great Cat God in my dreams. He warned me of potential enemies approaching soon, so I need to know your defense plans.”
Upon hearing that it was an oracle from the Cat God, Noel’s expression grew even more serious.
Without hesitation, he responded, “Your Highness, as long as we hold our position within the castle, secure all entrances, and promptly send for help from nearby towns… unless the bandit group exceeds 500 men and is equipped with siege weapons, it would be impossible for them to breach the castle’s defenses before reinforcements arrive.”
Moreover, if a bandit group were to exceed 500 members, it would already be a formidable force capable of threatening any city below the capital. Such a large group could easily plunder and move between major cities, gaining ample spoils without needing to travel all the way to the remote Laina to raid.
No matter how dilapidated Laina’s castle may be, it is still a solid stone structure with far superior defensive capabilities compared to ordinary wooden houses.
Oliver shook his head.
“Simply hiding inside the castle and relying on passive defense is absolutely insufficient,” he pointed out directly. “Even if the bandits disdain killing slaves, they could easily destroy all our hard work in the fields with a simple fire. Their blades could also effortlessly slaughter the poultry and livestock we have so carefully tended to.” How would we survive the winter then?
Relying solely on reinforcements from nearby towns was also impractical.
Having served as the knight captain of the ducal family for so many years, Noel seemed to have forgotten a crucial point: Even if other town lords were obliged to send troops due to Oliver’s ducal status, there was a stark difference between proactive and passive rescue efforts.
If they were to send a few hundred old, weak, or disabled soldiers as a token gesture, it would technically fulfill their duty to assist—but the only one with the authority to hold them accountable, King Cameron, would likely not mind if Oliver met an unfortunate end at the hands of ruthless bandits.
Noel was left speechless.
He listened as his Lord continued, “Let’s not even discuss fortifications for now, as they cannot be built in a short time. Besides, we don’t have enough materials at the moment.”
Oliver glanced at the still-composed butler and said with genuine sincerity, “Noel, I need your strength. Only you have the ability to train more reliable combatants. The guards you temporarily trained for the Summer Market—though far from matching your skill—could perhaps serve as instructors, teaching basic combat techniques to all civilians capable of fighting.”
It may sound far-fetched, but as Oliver deepened his understanding of this era, he knew that even last-minute preparations would prove somewhat useful.
The more people lived in remote and impoverished areas, the more they valued basic self-defense skills—especially the few who had experience traveling.
Those who dared to venture beyond Laina City’s gates all possessed some degree of self-defense capability.
In these troubled times, even strong men traveling abroad could easily fall prey to roving bandits.
Learning a move or two of swordsmanship had become almost essential for travelers seeking to protect their possessions and lives.
For those with basic martial foundations, improvement came relatively easier.
Noel’s emotions were complex.
On one hand, he felt joy at being trusted by his young lord; on the other, he felt the weight of facing difficult tasks and perhaps imminent crises.
Only after Noel had accepted his orders and departed did Oliver turn to Fosse, revealing a somewhat helpless and weary smile: “More than warriors, what we truly lack are weapons.”
For Laina City with its empty storerooms, even a decent weapon counted as luxury—let alone protective gear like the leather armor or plate armor reserved for knights.
Throughout the vast expanse of Laina City, excluding those followers who had accompanied Oliver here, those possessing actual weapons like swords, bows, or long blades… probably numbered no more than fifty.
And these individuals had already been selected by Noel during the last screening to become Laina’s guards.
Oliver, who had just begun feeling gradually prosperous, was once again starkly reminded of his poverty.
He lacked not only weapons and farming tools, but also crucial raw materials like iron.
Had he known about the bandit threat earlier, he wouldn’t have let the merchants depart so quickly—he’d rather persuade Fosse and others to sell some assets to purchase weapons than face this current predicament.
No, that wasn’t right either.
Oliver quickly corrected his thought.
Even if they had gathered more funds a few days earlier, weapons—being relatively rare commodities—couldn’t simply be bought casually from merchants.
Especially since he needed to make bulk purchases: he’d likely have to go to major cities like Gregor, where merely finding blacksmiths wouldn’t suffice—he’d need to negotiate with local lords too.
One could imagine that both the purchasing and transportation processes would be extremely costly in terms of money and energy.
Though he didn’t know when the bandit threat foreshadowed by his sixth sense would materialize, he somehow felt…
As Oliver was pondering, he heard hurried footsteps approaching from outside the door.
Two sharp knocks sounded, and without even waiting for the duke’s permission, the visitor was already pushing the door open while uttering “Please forgive my intrusion.”
It was Noel, returning unexpectedly.
“Your Grace.”
Noel’s expression was grave, showing the vigilance of facing great danger yet remaining completely unflustered.
His deep gray eyes held a faint awe, as if witnessing another divine miracle: “The bandits—they’ve truly come.”
Oliver’s eyelid twitched slightly.
…What kind of absurdly accurate premonition was this? It had manifested far too quickly.
Never mind.
At least with the enemy’s arrival, everything would depend on improvisation—he wouldn’t need to worry about long-term battle preparations anymore.
Finding bitter amusement in the thought, Oliver exchanged a glance with the still-composed butler before rising to his feet: “Send someone to the bell tower. Ring the bell ten times, ordering all slaves to hide. None may emerge until they hear ten bell strikes again.”
Noel bowed: “Yes.”
“All civilians with combat capability should bring their weapons. Those without weapons should bring farming tools. Those without even farming tools should remain in the rear.”
Although the specific situation remained unclear, they couldn’t possibly send civilians unarmed to their deaths.
“Kane will lead them to assemble at the square…” Oliver took a deep breath and smiled at Noel. “Noel, for now, take me to the watchtower’s lookout.”
When the rapid succession of bell chimes rang out, the slaves working in the fields were bewildered.
What was happening?
They froze in place, gripping their farming tools and looking around in confusion.
But all they saw were faces as lost and bewildered as their own—no one knew what to do.
However, it didn’t take long for further instructions to arrive.
It was Knight Kane, who had come to Laina with the Lord and quickly became familiar with everyone during the Summer Market.
He was still wearing the knight’s attire that many envied, riding a black steed as he galloped swiftly along the ridges, shouting along the way:
“Invaders! All slaves return to your homes and take cover!”
Everyone was stunned.
What had Knight Kane just said?
Invaders…?!
They couldn’t even remember how long it had been since Laina City last faced invaders.
After all, Laina was far too poor.
Most merchants avoided the place, and even bandits had no interest in plundering it.
Before they could fully process this sudden news, Knight Kane had already raced off.
Soon, they witnessed with their own eyes the civilians, who usually stayed within the city limits, emerging from the town in a panicked stream, carrying various so-called “weapons.”
Their instructions were clearly different from those given to the slaves: anyone with a “weapon” was heading toward the square.
Enemies were truly coming!
The slaves quickly realized this.
…Why would anyone come here?
Seeing them still standing there dumbfounded, the second group of knights who rushed out grew impatient.
“Hurry back and take cover!” they roared. “This is the Lord’s command!”
The slaves exchanged uncertain glances, knowing there was no time to hesitate.
Instinctively, they obeyed and began running toward their homes.
“Drop your farming tools!”
The knights shouted again.
With a series of clattering sounds, the slaves obediently set down their tools, glancing back as they jogged homeward.
Then they saw some civilians without weapons anxiously picking up the farming tools—no, the weapons.
Were they really supposed to hide?
The slaves returned to their homes but left their doors open.
None of them knew what the right reaction should be in this situation.
Reason told them that, no matter the circumstances, they must obey the Lord’s command.
But they had only ever known a Lord who, in times of trouble, would send fierce knights and stewards wielding whips to force them to their deaths.
They had never imagined that the Lord’s first command would be for them to return home and take cover.
By this time, Oliver had reached the watchtower.
From this elevated position, he could see a dense mass of people—over two hundred, nearly three hundred—advancing relentlessly toward Laina from the western hills.
The more troubling aspect was that the advancing formation maintained a relatively orderly state, indicating a certain level of discipline within that troop.
Judging by their silhouettes, most of them seemed to be holding longswords or similar weapons, while wearing an assortment of mismatched armor.
Regardless of the actual defensive capabilities, their formation alone made them appear far more like a proper military unit compared to the hastily assembled Laina civilians, who wore ordinary linen clothes and were pressed into battle.
“Your Highness.”
Fosse, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke.
Exchanging a glance with the stern-faced Noel, they nodded in tacit understanding. Fosse then knelt on one knee and said, “Please remain in the castle and await our victorious return.”
