Another World Metal Factory

Chapter 42

Timothy Ellamein roughly spurred his horse and drew his bow. Aiming at the stag fleeing ahead, Timothy held his breath, entrusted his body to the swaying horse, and released the arrow.

However, the fired arrow missed the stag and fell far away.

The stag leaped and disappeared into the thicket.

“Damn it!”

Timothy stopped his horse and cursed. He was angry that the arrow he thought he had aimed properly had missed. However, there was no one to blame.

Another person rode up to Timothy, stopped beside him, and spoke.

“Your mind is elsewhere.”

His friend and most trusted subordinate, Roger, who had followed him, asked, and Timothy could not deny it. Because his words were true.

His mind was elsewhere and he couldn’t concentrate. That’s why the arrow didn’t fly properly.

Seeing Timothy still frowning, Roger spoke.

“The previous Lord said…”

“An arrow follows the mind. I know that well, Roger.”

Timothy replied and sighed. And he recalled the morning’s events.

******

After a rough breakfast, Timothy had begun preparing to go hunting. He put on his hunting clothes, grabbed his hat, and챙겼다 his bow and arrows.

“Prepare the horse.”

“Yes.”

After instructing the attendant who managed the horses, Timothy strung the bow and examined it.

If the bow malfunctioned at the hunting ground, the hunt would fail. Therefore, Timothy carefully examined the bow, pulled the string, and checked for any defects.

Meanwhile, the door opened and someone entered the room.

It was a noblewoman in a dress. Not young, but boasting captivating beauty. However, her face was heavily frowned, making her beautiful appearance frightening.

The woman approached Timothy, linked arms with him, raised an eyebrow, and spoke.

“Honestly, you’re too much! Hunting again?!”

“Ah. Penny. You’re up early.”

Timothy said that to the angry woman, put down his bow, approached her, and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

Penny pushed Timothy’s hand away and sighed.

“It’s a day off, and you’re always hunting!”

“I’ve been overworked until yesterday, so shouldn’t I be able to rest for a day?”

“After going to the Lord’s castle, it’s work and hunting! It’s hard to even see each other’s faces as a family, you’re really too much! Am I even your wife?”

Timothy held his breath for a moment and shouted.

“I’m not playing around all the time! I’m finally trying to catch my breath after being overworked!”

“Do as you please!”

Penny turned sharply and went out the door, and Timothy angrily packed his hunting gear.

******

Timothy sighed deeply as he thought of the morning’s events. The fight with his wife that morning was distracting him.

“I’m sorry, Roger. Because of my wife…”

“I understand. Why didn’t you cancel it today? You’ve just returned after being in Yeongdo for a long time.”

Timothy sighed and shook his head.

“You’re acting like your father, Sean, did to my father.”

“I can’t help it. The late Lord Ian also didn’t pay much attention to household matters and always went out. So my father made a fuss. I know very well how much my father struggled to take care of the territory.”

Timothy nodded at the words of Roger, who was both a butler and his closest friend.

“Damn it. I hated my father doing that, and I’ve become the same.”

“It’s good that you know. Then let’s wrap up today’s hunt.”

“Alright. Penny will be waiting too.”

Timothy put his bow on the saddle and turned his horse, and Roger followed. The two talked loudly as they rode through the forest.

“Will only Lady Penny be waiting? Young Miss Kara has been waiting so long too. You came back from Yeongdo and immediately finished the backlog of manor work, and as soon as that was done, you went out hunting. Ah. How pitiful.”

“I worked day and night in Yeongdo for almost two months and finished the manor work, can’t I even do something I enjoy for a little while!”

Timothy got angry at Roger’s sarcasm, and Roger shrugged and replied.

“Yes. And now you’re back at the manor. It’s been almost a month since you came back, how much have you talked to your daughter, Miss Kara? And how many times have you slept with your wife?”

“Roger!”

Timothy shouted, but Roger shrugged and continued.

“For your information, I can still easily manage four times a week.”

“I don’t want to know about your marital affairs. And I’m still good! I can do it all night long!”

Roger burst into laughter at Timothy’s words.

“It seems you have that much energy. Then use that energy for your wife and family.”

“Look, Roger. Two months. I haven’t been able to rest properly for two months and have been working.”

“And during those two months, Lady Penny took care of the manor. And Miss Kara, who hasn’t been able to see her father properly for two months, is only eight years old. They need a husband and a father.”

Timothy couldn’t say anything. It was true.

******

Timothy had been very busy for the past few years.

Shortly after his only daughter, Kara, was born, his father, Ian, died and he inherited the manor. The manor was not poor, but not rich either, a small countryside with few people.

It was not easy to manage such a small rural manor. Taxes had to be collected according to the harvest, and taxes had to be paid to the Lord accordingly.

If there was a famine, food had to be provided and taxes reduced so that the people of the manor would not starve. Then, such parts were directly linked to the Ellamein family’s deficit.

It was a truly pitiful rural life, where only after racking his brains from morning to night and struggling with documents could he afford to manage the household.

And he also had to take care of Yeongdo’s affairs for a couple of months a year at the Lord’s command.

That was the duty of Timothy, the vassal of the regional Lord whose name was at the end of the noble list, the head of the Ellamein family, without a title.

“Alright. I’ll try to make more time…”

“I’ll help as much as I can. Or how about accepting more competent people? I have quite a lot of work to do too.”

Roger, who was walking alongside, said, but Timothy shook his head.

“You know, don’t you? We can’t afford to hire smart people in our family situation.”

“A life of deficit.”

Timothy sighed as he listened to Roger’s answer.

He recalled his younger days when he ran around the battlefield on behalf of his father. He didn’t have to worry about money, the manor, or anything else, just sat around the campfire singing songs, and when a battle broke out, he rode his horse and swung his sword.

During that time, he fell in love with Penny, the daughter of the Knight Commander of another territory at war, and Timothy risked his life to win both love and victory.

It was the most glorious time of Timothy’s life.

“The calluses on my palms from holding a sword are now filled with calluses from holding a pen…”

“It’s a time of peace. Peace is good.”

“It’s strange to hear Red Knight Roger say that.”

Roger blushed slightly and waved his hand.

“It’s the folly of youth. I also came to cherish this peace after having a wife and children.”

As they were talking and walking, something strange caught Timothy’s eye.

It was a peculiar object with an iron windmill on top of a tall wooden tower. At least, it was something Timothy had never seen before.

“Roger. What’s that?”

“Hmm? I don’t know either. It’s the first time I’ve seen it.”

Timothy squinted his eyes and rode his horse towards it. He had to find out what it was and deal with it if it was dangerous. That was the duty of a nobleman who managed a manor.

As the sight of several buildings came into view, Timothy asked.

“What is this place? Roger, do you know?”

“I know this place roughly. It’s an inn that hasn’t been able to pay taxes for the past few years because of the deficit.”

“An inn… There was such a place in my manor.”

Timothy moved his horse into the inn.

Seeing Timothy and Roger entering on horseback, Shellen, who was drawing water, greeted them warmly.

“Welcome. Are you here to stay?”

“This is Sir Timothy Ellamein.”

At Roger’s words, Shellen was startled and bowed in greeting.

“It’s an old inn.”

“Yes… It’s been in my husband’s family for generations. About 100 years.”

Timothy nodded and looked at the tower. It was a surprisingly tall wooden tower.

Timothy moved his horse and walked towards the tower. There was a windmill on top of the wooden tower, and a well below it.

Timothy asked Shellen, who had followed him, at the unfamiliar sight.

“What’s this?”

“It draws water from the well. When the wind blows and the windmill turns, it draws up the water.”

Timothy nodded and looked around the inn. The old inn was very quiet. It was so quiet that he couldn’t hear any human sounds.

Timothy looked at Shellen again and said.

“Are there any guests?”

“There are a few people here now.”

As Shellen answered, the door opened and the Factory Manager walked out.

Timothy looked at Shellen as he watched the Factory Manager stretching his shoulders and neck.

“It seems he’s a guest.”

“Yes. He came from Yeongdo. He built this tower too.”

“Is he the only guest?”

“There are five people in total, including those who came with him.”

Timothy nodded and said.

“Roger. Do you know how many years this place has been behind on taxes?”

“I’ll have to look at the documents for the details, but it must have been at least four years since they paid taxes.”

“I see… I’ll get rid of this inn.”

“What?!”

Shellen was startled by Timothy’s declaration and looked at him.

It was so sudden that Shellen clasped her hands to her chest to calm her pounding heart.

“What the hell, suddenly coming here and saying that. You’re not even the owner, what are you talking about!”

The Factory Manager, who heard the conversation, got angry and rushed to Shellen’s side and shouted, and Roger blocked his way with his horse and shouted.

“Insolent!”

“Leave him. He’s not one of our manor residents. Look here, traveler. Our manor isn’t affluent enough to leave an inn that can’t collect taxes because business is bad.”

Timothy said as he looked around the inn.

Actually, Timothy thought it wouldn’t be a problem to leave it as it was. However, leaving an inn that couldn’t pay taxes as it was could set a bad precedent for other residents.

It was because there could be objections like, ‘That inn doesn’t pay taxes because business is bad, so why should I pay mine!’, and if that spread from person to person, it could become a bigger headache to manage the manor.

He needed to set an example.

“Four years is enough time. If business hasn’t been good during that time, it won’t be good in the future either. It’s not something for someone who’s not a resident of our manor to worry about.”

“Bullshit. If business is bad, then you should make it good, why are you saying you’re going to destroy a perfectly good inn?”

Timothy spoke politely, but the Factory Manager, whose pride was already hurt, blurted out.

Timothy was a little angry. The blunt tone of the black-haired man with the unusual face was getting on his nerves.

“Oh! So you’re saying you have a way to attract guests to this failing inn?”

“The scenery here is good and it’s quiet, so if the facilities are improved, many guests will come to rest!”

Timothy smiled faintly.

“Alright. I’ll give you one month. Make this a good inn during that time. My family and I will come to rest here!”

“Alright! One month from now! Shellen! Make a reservation!”

“I’ll look forward to it.”

Timothy smiled and turned his horse, leaving the inn.

Roger, who followed Timothy, asked.

“Why did you say such a thing?”

“Isn’t it interesting? They’ll struggle hard, but who would visit such an old inn? As you know, our manor is not on a major road, nor is it a historic holy site that pilgrims would visit. No matter what they do, it won’t work.”

Timothy answered Roger’s question with a smile.