Chapter 153: Northern Fortress

‘Could they really hand over food supplies so carelessly to these unreliable vendors? Shouldn’t they be afraid of food poisoning or something? Besides, in this situation, the difficulty of maliciously poisoning the food seems far too low!’ After getting the answer, George was momentarily stunned. Quickly, he realized his thoughts might be wrong. ‘I almost forgot this is a world of magic. Concerns about detecting poison and detecting magic can be solved by simple tricks that aren’t even considered true spells. So, talking about the tools used to cast these two spells, their prices don’t seem too hard to accept after all! I’ll add this to my memo: if I ever get the chance to travel on the Continent in the future, I must remember to bring this.’

After shifting his gaze away from the vendors, George turned to the low single-story houses on both sides of the road. Although the houses in this area looked very simple, they were built with bricks and stone slabs. This was completely different from the first impression they gave. Most houses built with wood, canvas, and straw felt much better than these.

Except for a few houses, most walls only had palm-sized holes cut out for windows. George didn’t need to look inside to imagine how dim the lighting would be. However, the unique roof caught his attention. It was made of slightly silver-gray rectangular panels. They were nearly 80 centimeters long and about 30 centimeters wide. From the occasionally raised edges, George could see that the thickness of these panels exceeded 2 centimeters.

“That’s lead-coated wooden shingles. This makes the shingles last longer and provides some fireproofing, reducing the chance of fire caused by enemies throwing Fire Pots. After all, this is a Fortress. There are battles of varying sizes every winter. Making such preparations in advance is necessary.” Seeing George’s questioning look, Sir Ahuatan, standing nearby, immediately explained.

The so-called wooden shingles were thin, lightweight, and cheap tiles made by carpenters splitting oak wood and planing it into rectangles. Most of the time, wooden shingle roofs needed frequent replacement because the wood rotted easily, and the iron nails used to fix them rusted quickly.

Speaking of roofs, one had to mention the general environment of this world. Here, constant warfare had become the norm. Enemy armies or bandits often shot flaming arrows over the city walls during attacks. Their goal was to ignite thatched roofs or wooden shingles and cause fires.

In large-scale battles, Fire Pots thrown by catapults were an evolved version of that. To prevent fires, the roofs of Castles, Fortresses, and most Knight’s Mansions were made using fire-resistant building materials.

Among these, lead sheets made by pouring molten lead onto sand beds, and stone slabs carved from granite or marble, were the most common for the upper layers. Specialized clay tiles were also a suitable material, but the prices of the above few types were beyond the reach of most Commoners. Even the cheapest clay tiles cost between one-third and one-half of the price of pottery of the same volume.

However, the lead-coated wooden shingles just mentioned fully reflected the simple wisdom of ordinary people. Their fireproof effect was not bad. At the same time, the lead-coated wooden shingles did not rot easily, and the iron nails did not rust easily. From another angle, this extended the service life of the roof and further saved expenses.

Hearing about the effectiveness of the lead-coated wooden shingles, George’s eyes suddenly lit up as he thought of something. ‘Could this method be used for the construction of our Territory’s fleet? I should arrange for those craftsmen to try it! Even if this doesn’t work, mass-producing high-quality lead-coated wooden shingles seems like a profitable path. Even if it just extends the service life of wooden shingles, shingles are still wood. This kind of thing is still a consumable and can absolutely never be used for a lifetime. However, one must be careful about lead poisoning!’

‘Won’t rainwater flowing off these tiles contain lead? It will flow into the soil and eventually reach the wells. Eh! Isn’t this just slow, chronic self-poisoning?’ Thinking of this, George could no longer remain as calm as before. He hurriedly asked Sir Val, “Won’t the wells in Brandenburg all be open to the sky?”

“The wells used by Commoners are indeed open to the sky.” Saying this, Sir Val pointed to the roadside, where an open space had suddenly appeared between the row of single-story houses. “That is the well used by the Commoners, and it is also an important source of water for firefighting. There are about ten such wells in Brandenburg. Also, two large water jars are placed next to each well. As long as the fire is discovered in time, most fire situations can be handled.”

George looked in the direction Sir Val pointed and indeed found a well with a stand. The stone bricks around the well mouth were built very neatly. It was equipped with a convenient winch for lifting water, and the two large water jars next to it were about half the height of a person. It really gave a feeling that it could help with fires.

“I remember you just said these were wells used by Commoners. Are the ones we use different from theirs?” George stopped walking and raised his own question about what Sir Val had just said.

“Of course, we cannot use the water from these wells here. Open wells like this are very easy for enemies to poison. About 100 years ago, during the southward invasion by the Barbarians, something like this happened. At that time, some scum from the civilized world was actually bribed by those Barbarians. They did something absolutely unforgivable.” Although Sir Val spoke with an indignant tone, his expression remained exactly the same, showing no change at all.

On the other hand, Hiren, who was further back, breathed harder and harder as Sir Val’s tone changed. George, who was quite sensitive to the changes in the other’s breathing, felt something was wrong and turned around to look. Immediately, it was as if he saw two balls of roaring fire burning in Hiren’s eyes.

‘I say, wasn’t Sir Val’s speech just now that stirring? Is Hiren’s reaction a bit too much? I must test this sometime to see if only Sir Val’s words can have such an effect on Hiren, or if everyone’s righteous speeches have the same effect. If it’s the latter, Hiren really has a very difficult future. Unless this problem is completely solved, Sir Val will never let him travel on the Continent. No matter how strong his sense of justice is, he must stay rational! Hiren’s situation is too easy for others to use as a tool.’ George hid nothing this time; he wrote all his worries on his face.

A father knows his son best. How could Sir Val not notice Hiren’s behavior? However, in such a public place, he really couldn’t just scold the overgrown child Hiren directly. But this didn’t mean Sir Val wouldn’t do something.

“Cough! Cough!” He lightly coughed twice and stomped his foot. Hiren suddenly felt as if his legs went soft, and he was about to fall. Fortunately, Hiren was well-trained. His whole body tensed, and he immediately adjusted his center of gravity. Then he spread his feet slightly, took a big step with his left leg. After swaying a couple of times, he finally managed to steady his body and didn’t fall completely.

Meanwhile, Sir Ahuatan on the other side began to look at the father and son with a strange look. He displayed the smile on his face without any concealment in front of the few people, as if to say, “I know everything, but I won’t say it.”

In fact, George knew it was definitely Sir Val who had done something, because his behavior just now was definitely sneaky. If he just wanted to remind Hiren to be careful, a simple cough would have been enough. Why bother stomping his foot? Moreover, Hiren was definitely not the kind of obedient son who would be terrified by Sir Val. Just because of the other’s reminder, his legs went soft and his stance became unstable.

As for which aspect Sir Val had tampered with, it was nothing more than the sound of the cough and the vibration caused by stomping the foot. But exactly what happened was beyond George’s ability to figure out.

Whether Sir Val himself would explain depended on his mood in the coming period. Whether Hiren himself knew the reason was still uncertain. Even if he knew, he wouldn’t casually talk about such an embarrassing thing. As for Sir Ahuatan, he might know the reason. But if Sir Val didn’t agree, he probably wouldn’t leak the news either. This must be some kind of tacit understanding between Knights.

“Oh! There’s a stone here. It almost made me fall.” Hiren quickly spoke up to try to cover up the truth of the matter.

Just then, such a voice suddenly came from behind George: “Pfft! That’s too funny. Hiren, you almost tripped over a stone? How did you even become a Squire? And where did that stone that tripped you before go? I’d better take a good look to see what kind of stone could trip such a big guy as you.”

After Chrispian’s distinctive voice reached everyone’s ears, Hiren’s face immediately turned bright red. To be honest, the excuse Hiren found for the situation just now was really terrible. One didn’t know what he was thinking. If he wanted to cover it up, he should have found an excuse that was at least passable. Didn’t Sir Val’s forehead twitch after hearing it? Although not entirely fitting, it could be said that without rubbing it, it was fine, but the more you rub it, the darker it gets.

Although a few people had reminded Sir Val in the past few days to not scold Hiren in public, it seemed that although he had reined in his actions, his substance hadn’t changed. He had just changed from those naked, unhidden big moves to hidden small moves that wouldn’t attract too much attention. In fact, if Hiren’s excuse hadn’t been so clumsy, this matter could have been easily swept under the rug. As for being caught by Chrispian, that was completely an unplanned emergency. It could be said that Hiren was just asking for trouble!

Seeing that Chrispian seemed to be preparing to say more, George immediately took a step forward. He grabbed Chrispian’s shoulder and turned him around. Then he put his arm around Chrispian’s neck and whispered in his ear, “This is Hiren and Sir Val’s daily routine. You’ve seen it before. Now don’t add fuel to the fire.”

“No way! Hiren wouldn’t have used such a clumsy excuse before! I thought he really almost tripped over a stone. I was just about to make fun of him properly!” Chrispian immediately showed a strange expression.

George sighed and said, “That was before because he never had a chance. In the past, Sir Val always acted directly. It was obvious to a fool that there was no excuse to find. Did Sir Val’s method become more hidden today, and the result… Sigh!”

“His excuse was really too clumsy!” Chrispian’s expression really became quite strange. After a while, he finally spoke, “Why is the strongest among our generation like this?”

What Chrispian’s words represented was probably not just him. In this generation of the Duchy of Nohan, there should be quite a large group of people who hold this contradictory yet complex thought about Hiren. As the strongest among the younger generation of the Duchy of Nohan, and the most likely candidate to become a Formal Knight before his 21st birthday coming ceremony, this would naturally become an object of envy for everyone in the Duchy of Nohan, a country that values Military Merit above all and puts strength first.

If his behavior and conduct were standard and he had some leadership qualities, becoming the leader among the Squires of this generation would be a very simple matter for him. However, things often go against one’s wishes. In the past ten-plus years, Hiren’s performance in front of people was not just disappointing. At many times, he did things that made people laugh and cry at the same time. It gave people the feeling that apart from his strong strength, he was good for nothing else.

In this case, other people’s emotions would become very complex. Some might even have the thought, “How can I lose to this brainless guy,” without knowing if it was right or wrong. Recently, George had been wondering if the reason Sir Val let Hiren practice the Secret Art with side effects was to prevent the tree that stands out from being struck by the wind. But I don’t know if this Secret Art was just too compatible with Hiren or for some other reason. In any case, the final result created a existence that even he himself found headache-inducing.

“This should change, it just needs time. Hiren’s mind in the past probably had nothing but cultivation. Maybe all his talent was solidified into cultivation!” Although George’s tone was quite certain, he didn’t dare to say everything at once. Although he knew Hiren’s intelligence was recovering quickly, even Hiren himself didn’t know how much time it would take to recover. Plus the required adaptation period, this was indeed a torturous process.

After dealing with Chrispian, Sir Val also solved the problem there. He seemed to be trying to change the subject and said, “George, aren’t you very interested in the water sources of us soldiers? Then come with me and take a look quickly!”

Following Sir Val’s footsteps, George turned left a short distance down the road. Then the group went up some steps. George, who still had doubts, looked at the people on both sides who seemed used to the sight. Not finding anything abnormal, he confidently walked up.

Very quickly, George saw rows of stone houses at about the second-floor level. He looked there curiously, but Chrispian beside him quickly said, “That is the Fortress’s material warehouse. Didn’t you notice that the thresholds there are very high? That is to prevent rainwater and other liquid life from flowing inside. Materials like grain must be kept dry. Next comes a relatively flat road.”

After passing the rows of stone houses, George finally saw several rows of neat holes in a cliff. Corridors, arched tops, and pillars were visible between the holes. Could it be that the living quarters of the people here were actually carved out of the cliff face? It really seemed to require a lot of effort and manpower!

The inner side of the rock wall was carved into a relatively wide corridor. However, due to the high difficulty of carving, this road could at most accommodate three adults walking side by side. On one wall of the corridor, holes about the size of a human head were carved out at intervals of about one meter. Besides sunlight, mountain winds blew in one after another from the holes. The wind direction was a bit messy, sometimes coming head-on, sometimes blowing from behind.

The entire barracks was built relying on the mountain and carved directly into the cliff. According to Sir Val, when this place was built, craftsmen from the entire Dwarf tribe were invited, and it took nearly five years to complete it all.

Relying on the Dwarves’ unique mountain-penetrating beasts, they first carved two caves perpendicular to the cliff face as footholds. Then, along the horizontal direction, they carved rooms one by one inside the cliff wall. The rock separating the rooms became natural walls and pillars.

Compared to the places George had lived in the past, this place seemed even more simple. Stone walls, stone pillars, stone floors, and stone steps, with no decoration at all. Originally, it was probably just simply polished, but after so many years of use, it had become quite smooth and shiny.

Inside this corridor, there was a sentry responsible for standing guard about every 200 meters. After encountering about three sentries, George and his group walked into a room with a stove. Judging from the furnishings, this should be the kitchen in the military camp.

Sir Val pointed to a wooden window-like position on a wall inside the room and said, “Open it, and you will know where most of our drinking water comes from in the coming period.”