Chapter 38: Out of Control 

The next morning, in the castle’s study.

Holding a quill, Owen was busy transcribing the detailed process of papermaking onto parchment.

Since he intended to implement a universal education plan, he needed cheap paper — after all, parchment was far too expensive for ordinary people.

As for which materials were best for papermaking, Winston had told him to figure that out himself. That was probably for the best — until now, he’d always just been handed the optimal solution outright, without any sense of experimentation.

Just then, a guard knocked on the door and entered to report,

“Marquis, there’s a young female priest at the castle gate who says she’s been sent by Bishop Flynn and would like to see you.”

“Let her in.”

This was expected — they had agreed to this yesterday. Without even looking up, he continued writing.

What he didn’t expect was for the visitor to be a familiar and beautiful young woman. She tiptoed quietly into the study, leaned slightly toward the desk, and spoke in a soft voice:

“Good morning, Lord Owen.”

The familiar and pleasant voice was so close that he instinctively looked up — and was met with a delicate, stunning face.

“Theresa? Why is it you?”

Theresa stepped back with a sweet smile. 

“Yes, it’s me, Lord Owen. Aren’t you happy to see me?”

“Of course I am” 

He replied quickly. 

“I’m more than happy to see you.”

After a short pause, he asked,

“Wait, are you one of the five teaching priests Bishop Flynn promised to send?”

As a high-ranking priest skilled in divine magic, Theresa could’ve been far more useful this winter helping to combat the undead. Wasn’t it a bit of a waste for her to just teach basic literacy?

“Hmm… not exactly.”

She raised a finger to her chin and tilted her head in thought, her long, glossy black hair falling naturally to one side.

“Because I’m not counted among those five teaching priests.”

“Huh? But didn’t you tell the guards at the gate that Bishop Flynn sent you?” 

Owen asked in confusion.

“I asked Bishop Flynn to assign me here myself. Since I just got back and don’t have much to do yet, I figured I might as well come early and help you. You may not know this, but I’m actually quite good at teaching!”

As she said this last part, Theresa mischievously blinked her bright eyes at him.

Owen shook his head with a helpless smile — the kind of smile that said, 

“You’ve got me again.” 

But this worked out well. At least now Theresa wouldn’t be stuck at the chapel all the time, and he’d get to see her more often.

“Alright then, I’ll leave the cultural training to you.”

He tidied up the desk, then opened a drawer. Pulling out a bundle of parchment, Irwin stood and spread the sheets across the table.

“Theresa, come here. I’ll explain what you’ll need to teach.”

Given the tight timeline, he didn’t expect the militia to become fully literate in just a month. He only wanted them to learn basic characters and numbers, just enough to read and understand orders.

Once they survived the winter, he would have them complete a full literacy curriculum. His minimum requirement was that everyone should be able to read and write.

“Alright.” 

Theresa responded softly.

He had assumed she’d walk over to the front of the desk, and had even adjusted the parchment’s angle for her. But to his surprise, she quickly walked around the desk toward him instead…

Her body was very close to him—nearly touching.

She was slightly shorter than Owen, and her fragrant hair lingered right in front of his nose. He could even catch a faint trace of her natural scent, which was quite distracting.

“Lord Owen, you may begin.” 

Theresa gently reminded him.

“Oh! Right.”

Steadying his wandering mind, he adjusted the parchment and began explaining things to Theresa.

“The goal of this cultural training is…”

Meanwhile, in a reception room inside the lord’s castle at Dongsheng Fortress…

The fat Duke Eddie sat slumped in an oversized custom chair, his short, pudgy fingers tapping irritably on the armrest, a trace of annoyance on his face.

As for why he was angry—

It all started a few days ago, when Victor returned by boat from Bianshu Town. At the time, he brought back only scattered bits of intelligence. The most laughable piece of news? That the northern city wall had already been repaired.

An utterly ridiculous claim. Without help from Dongsheng Fortress, there was no way Bianshu Town could’ve repaired that wall.

Duke Eddie had initially thought the same, just like Victor. But to be cautious, he still asked if Victor had personally verified this information.

The answer: no.

Duke Eddie was so angry he nearly slapped Victor on the spot. Why rush back here in such a hurry when a quick look would’ve sufficed?

For now, he assumed the wall had been hastily patched just to show progress, meaning its defensive capability was likely poor.

Later, the duke received small noble refugees from Bianshu Town. From them, he learned that the young Marquis Eisen actually intended to stay and lead his people to fight the undead.

The situation was starting to spiral out of control, and Duke Eddie felt a creeping sense of unease.

Where did this Marquis Eisen get the confidence to confront undead creatures? Was it because of that flimsy city wall? Or was he just putting on a brave front?

In any case, the situation needed to be closely monitored.

He ordered strict censorship of any letters sent from Bianshu Town and interrogations of anyone arriving from there.

Sure enough, Duke Eddie soon intercepted a letter addressed to the Captain of the Holy knights.

That Holy knight unit, sent for support, had been placed in a secluded military camp to focus solely on preparing for battle. As such, all their mail passed through Duke Eddie’s hands.

Trying to convince the holy knights to go to Bianshu Town? Not happening.

Moreover, Bianshu Town had submitted a request to post a bounty mission against the undead. At Duke Eddie’s command, the Adventurers’ Guild President hid the request.

Later, his men learned from refugee whispers that Marquis Eisen supposedly possessed a mysterious weapon as powerful as heavenly thunder.

Fake. That had to be fake.

Come to think of it, Bianshu Town had once recruited fire magic users through the Adventurers’ Guild. It was obvious what had happened—a magician must’ve staged a flashy attack in front of the public, casting spells behind the scenes.

The purpose? To create an illusion that “we are strong”, tricking civilians into staying and becoming cannon fodder against the undead.

Duke Eddie could see right through such a crude ruse.

To prevent the refugees from spreading these lies, Duke Eddie ordered them all rounded up, then publicly debunked Marquis Eisen’s “scam.”

Upon learning the “truth,” the refugees were all struck with sudden realization and privately rejoiced that they hadn’t stayed behind. Their gratitude toward Duke Eddie deepened even further.

Now that things had come to this, Duke Eddie was determined to watch how Marquis Eisen planned to survive the winter.

Perhaps, as the cold season drew closer, the young marquis would finally give up his pride, abandon Border Town, and come begging for refuge.

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