Lord: My Shop Connects to Modern Times

Inside the council chamber of Ironstone Castle, the fire blazed, yet it could not dispel the chill and unease in Viscount Gavin Hossman's heart.

On the oak table in front of him lay a rough sketch, roughly outlining the conspicuous gray-white walls surrounding Grayrock Town, along with several menacing symbols representing ballistae and hunters.

He repeatedly scratched the edges of the sketch with his fingernails, leaving deep marks.

Several days have passed since that humiliating defeat, but the wound on my arm from the flying debris still aches faintly. However, what hurts more is my face.

More than 150 people were defeated by a newly formed refugee camp, suffering over 100 casualties. Many of those who escaped were terrified, and the private army that Count Karl supported was completely wiped out!

This is utterly disgraceful!

Although he tried his best to suppress the news, nothing stays hidden forever. The gazes of several neighboring nobles in the southern border region toward him already carried an undisguised subtlety.

However, more than the shame, Gavin was worried about the accountability from Carl.

Several days had passed since the incident, and he had described it to Earl Karl in a letter long ago, but the other party did not ask a word about anything other than the details of troop deployment, including the process of the defeat.

This made Gavin even more panicked.

What bothered him most was the wall in Grayrock Town, the arrows, and that terrifying giant crossbow.

The wall was stronger than he had imagined. He never expected that even the full force of his soldiers' attack would only leave a small pit or even a white spot on it. The grayish-white material seemed to have grown into the stone.

The bows used by those hunters were even more peculiar, with a long range, great power, and the ability to fire in rapid succession. His soldiers' iron-clad wooden shields were completely suppressed and unable to advance an inch.

As for that giant crossbow... thinking of the terrifying scene of the shield array being instantly cleared in the center, Gavin's hand trembled uncontrollably, knocking over the silver wine cup beside him.

The crimson wine flowed like blood onto the table, soaking a corner of the sketch.

Gavin didn't wipe it; he just stared at the stain with a gloomy look in his eyes.

A deep, clear voice announced from outside the door: "His Excellency Earl Karl has arrived."

Gavin snapped out of his daze, took a deep breath, quickly straightened his clothes, forced a calm and composed expression onto his face, and stood up to greet the door.

Count Karl Booth entered.

He was about ten years older than Gavin, with a thin face, slightly high cheekbones, and a pair of gray eyes that always looked at people with a nonchalant scrutiny, as if everything was being weighed.

He wore a deep purple velvet suit with a sable-trimmed cloak over it, and walked with a measured pace, exuding the composed demeanor of someone who had long held a high position.

"Lord Karl," Gavin said, bowing his head.

"Garvin." Count Carl nodded, as if to say hello.

His gaze swept over Gavin's still-present bruises and disheveled appearance, then over the mess and stained sketches on the table, his eyes showing no emotion.

"Lord Karl, you've finally arrived." Gavin stepped aside to lead him to a seat, waved for all the servants to leave, and closed the heavy hall doors tightly.

The fire crackled in the stove, and only the two of them remained in the hall.

Count Karl sat down at the head of the table at the other end, leaning back slightly, his fingers tapping lightly on the smooth surface: "I believe you've seen it."

He cut to the chase, his voice calm: "The losses are considerable. None of my men have returned... Is that wall really that troublesome?"

Gavin sat down opposite him, his face flushed with embarrassment at the direct question, but he still nodded through gritted teeth: "It's more troublesome than described in the letter. Sir, that's not an ordinary stone wall. The material used is something I've never seen before; it's as hard as iron when it dries, and the seams are almost invisible. The light battering rams we brought are completely useless. And their bows and arrows..."

He described in detail the range and power of the composite bow, as well as the devastating blow of the ballista.

Count Karl listened quietly, his face remaining expressionless, though his grey eyes narrowed slightly, occasionally flashing with thoughtful intent. Only after Gavin finished speaking did he slowly begin to speak: "Cement... composite bow... heavy ballista..."

He repeated these unfamiliar words: "Where did a young viscount, exiled and almost stripped of everything, get these unheard-of things? Craftsmen? Alchemists? Materials? Or... is there some other mastermind behind him?"

Karl wasn't unaware of the novelties Lynn had been working on, but at first, his knowledge was limited to the peculiar wall his "master" had mentioned, which had stopped several waves of monsters.

But now, how long has it been? Lynn has researched and invented so many strange objects, each one more practical than expected.

Even the well-informed Karl couldn't help but feel secretly alarmed.

"I checked. When Lynn Cole was exiled, he had almost nothing except a few personal servants and one official knight. Grayrock Town has almost nothing. These things seem to have appeared out of thin air."

This was also what Gavin couldn't understand. He paused, leaned forward, lowered his voice, and asked the question that had been on his mind for a long time:

"My lord, I do not question your decision, but... why are we so fixated on Grayrock Town? It's a barren and desolate place, and Lynn Cole himself has lost power. It will hardly have any impact on the situation in the South. Why is it worth going to such lengths, even..."

He hesitated for a moment, "Could it even attract unnecessary attention?"

This is Gavin's real confusion and the source of his unease.

At first, he thought that Earl Carl wanted to annex neighboring territories, or that he was targeting Lynn, an easy target, because of his feud with Earl Lehman.

But the unusual resistance shown by Grayrock Town and those strange new weapons make things complicated and dangerous.

The investment is increasing, but the returns are not visible. In fact, this kind of unwarranted attack on other noble alliances may attract the attention of other forces.

Earl Karl has a much larger power behind him, he vaguely knows, but why would that power be so "caring" towards a down-on-his-luck viscount?

Count Karl was silent for a moment, his gaze fixed on the leaping fire in the hearth, as if he were carefully choosing his words.

The air in the hall seemed to freeze, with only the sound of flames burning.

"Gavin." After a long silence, Earl Carl finally spoke, his voice several decibels lower than before:

"Some things are better left unseen. All you need to understand is that Lynn Cole, or rather, the Cole family, is... trouble."

He emphasized the word "trouble".