Lord: My Shop Connects to Modern Times

Before the hustle and bustle and smoke outside the north wall had completely dissipated, a group of about forty people quietly set off from the west gate of Gray Rock Town and headed northwest.

At the heart of the team were twenty musketeers who had undergone preliminary training, led by Leon himself. They carried flintlock muskets and a small amount of ammunition, and their expressions showed fatigue, but even more so, excitement after their initial victory.

In the middle of the procession was a simple carriage, on which was bound Viscount Gavin Hossman, whose face was ashen. His mouth was gagged with a strip of cloth, and he could only utter muffled sobs.

Leah walked at the front of the group, acting as a guide. Her steps were light and quick, but when she occasionally glanced back at Gavin's figure in the carriage, a complex and inscrutable light would flash in her amber eyes.

Lynn rode his horse at the rear of the group, his gaze calmly fixed on the gradually emerging outline of Ironstone Castle ahead.

Just as Lynn had predicted, Gavin's all-out attack left Ironstone Castle with pitifully weak defenses.

The towering stone castle stood in the morning light, but the drawbridge was only symbolically half-suspended, and the city gate was half-open, with only a few listless guards patrolling at the entrance.

When the guards saw the procession from Greyrock Town, and especially when they saw Viscount Gavin bound tightly in the carriage, they were terrified and scrambled back to the castle to report the news, forgetting to even close the city gates.

They encountered no significant resistance. Lynn's group practically swaggered into the Ironstone Fortress square.

Ironstone Castle appeared even more dilapidated and somber inside than from the outside. It fell far short of Lynn's expectations for a viscount's estate.

It's much better than the original Gray Rock Town.

Withered grass grew in the cracks of the stone slabs, garbage was piled up in the corners, and the air was filled with a musty smell and the stench of animal manure.

Hearing the commotion, servants emerged from all directions, along with a small number of elderly and weak private soldiers who remained behind, as well as some artisans and farmers from the territory. They all huddled timidly at the edge of the square, watching the unfamiliar procession with terrified, bewildered, and even numb eyes as their former lord was dragged off the carriage like cargo.

Their faces were mostly sallow from long-term malnutrition, their clothes were tattered, and their eyes were empty, forming a stark contrast with the lively and hopeful eyes of the townspeople in Grayrock Town.

Several skinny children hid behind the adults, peeking curiously and fearfully at the strangely shaped flintlock guns.

This was the first time Lynn had seen the territory of a noble of the same rank. As his eyes swept over these faces, he felt not much of the joy of a victor, but rather a sense of heaviness.

This was the norm under the rule of an ordinary minor nobleman in this era: exploitation and apathy coexisted.

In this environment, ordinary people don't even care who owns the land; survival and having enough to eat are their biggest concerns.

Lynn had Gavin taken into the main hall of the castle. The fire in the fireplace had long since gone out, and the room was cold and empty.

Lynn ordered Leon to guard the door, leaving only himself, Gavin who was tied to a chair, and Leah who stood to the side with her arms crossed and a cold expression.

Lynn walked up to Gavin and reached out to pull the gag out of his mouth.

Gavin coughed violently a few times, then looked up, his face a mixture of fear, humiliation, and a remnant of aristocratic arrogance:

"Lynn Cole! What...what do you want? I am a viscount officially appointed by the Empire! You have no right to..."

"Lord Gavin," Lynn interrupted him, his voice flat and emotionless, "is there any point in discussing this now? When you led your army, commanding monsters, and twice attacked my territory, did you ever consider the meaning of 'powerless'?"

Lynn leaned forward slightly, his eyes fixed on Gavin: "Don't tell me you're really here to hunt down the so-called fugitive—Lia."

Lia, standing to the side, narrowed her eyes slightly but remained silent.

Gavin's momentum faltered, and his face paled.

"I ask, you answer." Lynn straightened up, pulled over another chair, and sat down opposite Gavin, his gaze calm yet carrying an undeniable pressure.

"Why are you targeting me? Is that wasteland in Grayrock Town worth you and Earl Karl going to such lengths, even resorting to... inhuman forces?"

Gavin's lips trembled, his eyes darting around. "It was... it was Earl Karl's order! I was just following orders! He... he wants to annex the small territories in the south and expand his power..."

"Lying." Lynn's voice turned colder.

"If Karl wanted to annex, he had plenty of targets. Why me, a newly exiled viscount with nothing to his name? You who have lived in the Southern Territory for years can't possibly be unaware of how dilapidated Grayrock Town is. And what about those messengers with their eyes glowing red last time? Were they also Karl's men?"

Upon hearing the word "messenger," Gavin's body trembled noticeably, and a deep fear, tinged with a hint of hatred, was revealed in his eyes.

Gavin hadn't forgotten how the messenger had abandoned him and run away.

"No...no...they...they were sent by Lord Karl's superiors...I only know they are terrifying...Lord Karl is very respectful to them..."

"Who's in charge?" Lynn pressed. "Who is it? What organization? What's their purpose?"

"I don't know! I really don't know!" Gavin was almost in tears, his previous arrogance completely gone, leaving only fear.

"Lord Karl never said it explicitly! He only said... only that the people above are... very interested in your Cole family. It seems... it seems they're looking for something, something that only someone with the Cole family bloodline could possibly have... Beyond that, I know nothing! I'm just an accomplice!"

Is it the Cole family bloodline?

Lynn's heart skipped a beat. The real reason they attacked him was because of some secrets of his own family?

This was completely different from Lynn's initial guess.

He had assumed it was retaliation and silencing of the last remaining members of the Cole family by their former political enemies and adversaries.

The truth, however, was quite something.

What exactly does the Cole family, such a small viscount family, possess that would be coveted by a power capable of commanding earls at will?

Lynn's thoughts were racing, so he reached up and pressed his forehead to interrupt his thoughts.

Now is not the time to delve into this.

"Fine, even if you don't know who's behind it all." Lynn changed direction.

"Your entire army has been wiped out, and you yourself have become a prisoner. According to the rules among nobles, what do you intend to use to ransom yourself, your territory, and your soldiers?"

This is the real problem.

Killing Gavin may have been satisfying, but it would have had far-reaching consequences. It would have broken the unspoken rules among the nobles, leading to more intense retaliation and even intervention from the kingdom's laws. Although the constraints on the borderlands were limited, they were not entirely nonexistent.

Demanding ransom and profits is the standard practice.

A glimmer of hope ignited in Gavin's eyes, and he hurriedly said, "Ransom! I can pay the ransom! I still have savings in my castle, and my territory still has produce... Name your price!"

"Your savings?"

Lynn chuckled. "Once you pay the ransom, what will Ironstone Castle have left? Most of your soldiers will be my prisoners, and you'll have suffered heavy losses of able-bodied men. How much will your territory produce this year?"

Gavin's face fell again.

"How about we try a different approach?" Lynn leaned forward slightly, his smile widening.