HTLCCBFT Chapter 60

Has The Lord’s Career Chart Been Filled Today? – Chapter 60

Unfortunately, Oliver wasn’t able to indulge in the joy of petting cats for long before being forced awake prematurely by the sudden disappearance of his dream.

He didn’t know this was because the newborn deity’s control over divine power remained unstable, compounded by the overwhelming excitement after being petted, causing the golden temple sustained by his divine power to temporarily collapse.

Though it would soon recover, unwilling to risk injuring his beloved believer’s soul, he immediately sent Oliver out of the divine realm.

Huh?

As the golden temple around him suddenly crumbled like sand scattered by wind, Oliver woke from his dream before he could investigate the cause.

Outside the window, night still reigned, with only the faint silver glow of moonlight filtering through.

Sitting up, he glanced at the full stamina bar on his right, then turned to see the moon still hanging high outside, sinking into bewilderment.

This seemed to be the first time he had woken before dawn?

Had the game system’s control over his body gradually weakened because he’d been in this era longer?

Though Oliver couldn’t be entirely certain, this was indeed the first time he hadn’t been forcibly put to rest by the system.

Rediscovering the long-lost pleasure of staying up late instantly lifted his mood.

—Yet after just a short while, Oliver began to feel the boredom of staying up alone.

No electrical appliances, no internet, no entertainment devices, not even anyone to talk to.

“Oh, great Cat God.”

Oliver solemnly hugged the beckoning cat statue from his bedside, talking to himself with earnest gravity: “The diligent deserve protection—this must be the instruction you’ve given your believers.”

In the distant divine realm, the newborn deity—currently drooping its long tail in frustration while struggling to reconstruct the temple—clearly heard these words from his beloved believer.

He froze, then fell into confusion.

…..

….. No…..

….. It’s not…..

…..

 

But the beautiful Divine Messenger, having made up his mind through this monologue, carefully set down the Cat God who couldn’t defend himself.

As the saying goes, since he was already up… he might as well get to work.

The ever-efficient Lord Laina first collected the pickled corn from the eight pickle jars and swiftly refilled them with new ingredients.

After a quick wash, he changed into his most practical hunting outfit and quietly slipped out of his room.

The moment he pushed the door open, he immediately locked eyes with knight Kane, who had been assigned by Captain Noel to stand guard outside the lord’s bedroom overnight.

Oliver: “…..”

Kane, who normally showed little expression to outsiders, now revealed a very clear look of confusion: “….. Your… Highness?”

Since the Duke’s safety was paramount, from their first night in Laina, butler Fosse—who never fully trusted the castle servants—had established with Captain Noel the rule of “having one knight take turns standing guard each night.”

After the Lord retired alone to his bedroom, the knight would remain stationed outside the door until the candles burned out and dawn approached.

This was already Kane’s eighth rotation on duty, but neither he nor the other two knights had ever witnessed the Lord leaving his bedchamber in the middle of the night.

No, not just leaving the bedchamber… there had never been even the slightest unusual movement from within.

The moment their eyes met, Oliver guessed that Kane must have been stationed here under the butler’s orders.

He smiled faintly and said naturally, “You’ve worked hard, Kane.”

“At your service anytime, dear Lord.” Kane instinctively knelt on one knee in salute. “Might I ask if you…”

“Rise.”

The beautiful Lord nodded slightly and began speaking nonsense with a serious expression: “I just received instructions from the great Cat God in my dream, requiring me to quickly harvest the crops from the fields to prevent them from being corrupted by demons. If you’re willing, you may accompany me.”

The reason for bringing Kane along was both to avoid putting his loyal subordinate in an awkward position and as a precaution.

If the game system suddenly decided to trick him and forced him into mandatory rest midway, Kane would serve as ready-made labor.

Unfortunately, it was too late – the chicks were already asleep, so he couldn’t go pet them…

Of course, Kane had no idea that this noble Duke’s mind was completely occupied by whimsical thoughts.

Upon hearing that this was a new oracle from the “great Cat God,” fervor instantly ignited in Kane’s usually calm brown eyes.

After witnessing the Lord bathed in holy light, wielding an incredible great sword, effortlessly slaying enemy leaders with his majestic bearing…

Everyone in the vast Laina City had elevated their worship of the omniscient and omnipotent Cat God, as well as the kind Lord who enjoyed divine favor, by several levels.

“Yes! Lord!”

As the chosen one fortunate enough to follow the Divine Messenger, he felt deeply honored and knelt on one knee again, unable to contain his excitement as he lifted Oliver’s garment hem and kissed it uncontrollably: “The great Cat God shall forever protect you, my only master!”

Oliver’s eyelid twitched slightly, but ultimately didn’t stop his subordinate’s habit of kneeling excitedly and kissing the hem of his garment.

Such were the customs of this era – he could only force himself to get used to it.

After patiently waiting for Kane to express his inner excitement, Oliver smiled gently and said, “Let’s go.”

With the stern-faced knight Kane leading the way, the other servants on night duty in the castle, though shocked to see the Lord who never appeared at midnight suddenly leaving the castle, saluted without hesitation and respectfully opened the doors.

“Do not disturb Fosse and Noel’s rest.”

After instructing these anxious-looking servants, Oliver relaxed and walked out of the castle gates, quickly overtaking Kane who was walking steadily ahead in just a few steps.

Kane couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

He watched as the young Lord maintained his elegant gait but moved incredibly faster and faster…

In the blink of an eye, the young Lord had already entered the dense cornfield that had just welcomed another harvest.

Kane only paused for a moment before immediately following him in.

—And then witnessed with his own eyes how the Divine Messenger, who appeared indifferent during daytime when wielding the sword of majesty and punishment against evil-doers, now…A soft, glowing halo once again enveloped the golden-haired lord, whose beauty rivaled the incarnation of moonlight.

Kane couldn’t help but hold his breath.

Oliver had refrained from using the [Cat God’s Ring] earlier for three reasons: first, he didn’t think he needed its attack-boosting function; second, he needed to save it for nighttime activities he had yet to complete; and third, he didn’t want to draw too much attention.

But now… since he had already used it once, he might as well go all out and use it freely whenever needed.

The tall corn plants, with their dense leaves, blocked the faint moonlight streaming down from the sky.

Finding the light in the field too dim for his upcoming task, Oliver decisively put on the [Cat God’s Ring].

He buried himself in his work, entering a state of single-minded, frenzied harvesting.

Swish went one stalk, swish went another.

Plump, golden corn, bursting with juice, was swiftly and elegantly plucked by those slender, fair fingers as if playing a musical instrument.

In an instant, the corn vanished from his palm and entered the system backpack.

The small number in the bottom right corner of the [Corn] icon in the game backpack steadily increased as Oliver efficiently gathered the harvest.

Kane was utterly mesmerized.

That dazzling silver light, like a star, resembled the moon goddess clad in a gown woven from the night breeze, brushing past the leaves and producing a continuous swish, swish, swish.

It was like an unceasing wind sweeping across a sparkling sea, with gentle waves crashing against the shore rocks one after another, shattering into snowy white foam.

It was also dense and tender, like the incessant raindrops on a spring night, carrying an indescribable, wondrous rhythm.

Yet, whether it was the wind or the rain, the entranced Kane unconsciously ignored it… Every field gracefully traversed by that noble and beautiful figure was stripped clean of corn with astonishing efficiency, leaving not a single stalk behind.

The moon slowly drifted eastward.

After executing the task of “picking corn” with the force of an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves, Oliver finally experienced the joy of staying up late.

Through practice, he had developed an extremely efficient method, almost akin to using both hands simultaneously.

With each step, his sufficiently skilled and swift hands minimized the delay of the harvesting action to near nothingness.

—Just like an emotionless, human-like harvester, advancing steadily forward.

He didn’t have to worry about others’ opinions or subordinates competing for experience.

Such a vast cornfield, so much corn—all his!

This undisturbed, unrestrained joy of late-night harvesting… truly brought unparalleled satisfaction.

Amid the addictive, satisfying swish, swish, swish, he soon reached the end of another row.

Glancing back in the gentle night breeze, he saw only the swaying shadows of the cornfield that had been swept clean—no, harvested clean.

The lord of Laina, who had entered the cornfield in the dead of night to harvest, worked with such fervor that he only called it a day when the horizon began to lighten with the first hints of dawn, just before the first bell tolled.

Looking at the over 800 ears of corn in his bag, he contentedly removed the [Cat God’s Ring] that had been serving as a searchlight, preparing to return to the castle with Kane who had guarded him all night.

But as soon as he pushed aside the layered corn stalks and emerged from the field, he found himself staring directly into a pair of familiar green eyes… with whites that had become bloodshot from lack of sleep.

Oliver: “…..”

The loyal butler appeared perfectly composed, as if those rabbit-red eyes didn’t belong to him, and calmly bowed: “Your Highness, may I serve breakfast now?”

Oliver blinked.

The Lord, who appeared pure and shy but was actually growing increasingly bold, now revealed an utterly unembarrassed smile: “Oh, my most reliable Fosse, you’ve arrived at the perfect time. I have something very important to discuss with you.”

Since harvesting corn had become familiar, mechanical repetitive labor for him, he could easily spare mental energy to think about other matters.

What currently counted as urgent was naturally the group of bandit captives temporarily imprisoned in the dungeon’s cells.

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