As they traversed the halls of the manor, which still left a strong impression on Josh, he asked, “Leo, once we get back from visiting the villages, can you teach me how to read?”

  Or at least get me another hundred picture books.

  “Milord, I think it would be best to wait for the Guide’s arrival. The Guide will be better suited for a task like that,” Leo replied.

  Josh tsked in response.

  He followed Leo out of the study room towards the western gates of the manor, where a wooden carriage stood, accompanied by a pair of guards and two workhorses grazing on the grass. Leo introduced the two guards as Bart and Bert.

  The guards wore dirt-colored leather gambesons, which offered some protection as a light armor and doubled as protection against the cold. Each guard had a sheathed dagger on the right side of their belt together with a leather water flask and a small wooden shield strapped to their left arm, a long spear acted as their weapon which they held firmly in their right hand.

  Feels like I'm in some kind of medieval fair.

  It was already noon, and they had four villages to visit. Not wanting to waste any time, Josh climbed into the wooden carriage and instructed Leo, who acted as the coachman, to set off. The guards trailed behind them on foot.

  The horses who dragged the carriage amazed Josh. They were large and heavy with strong muscular builds. Their coats were leopard-patterned in a black and brown pattern which only enchanced their beauty.

  These horses look at least twice the size of any other horse I’ve seen before.

  As they rode on the uncomfortable dirt-trodden path towards the Daim Village, Josh couldn’t help but appreciate the sights and sounds of the spring coming and winter leaving. With serfs all around him preparing the fields for plowing and repairing bits and pieces around their farmlands.

  “Leo, what kind of crops will they grow here?“ Josh asked to satisfy his curiosity.

  “Milord, the serfs grow various grains, vegetables, and beans,” Leo explained respectfully. “Each of the serfs must provide between ten to twenty-five bushels of grain to fulfill their contractual obligations,” he quickly added on.

  If I remember correctly a bushel is around twenty-five kilograms.

  “And what is their total harvest if they are providing that much just to pay off their debts,” Josh asked.

  “It varies Milord, an average household of six people has around fifty acres of land to work. Each acre depending on the season yields between six and ten bushels of grain.” Leo explained before respectfully adding. “We boast one of the best yield rates in the west of the kingdom”

  That’s a lot of numbers that I have no references to, but it seems to amount to around four hundred bushels in total which leaves plenty for the farmers i guess. How I wish I grew up as a farmer now rather than a city dweller.

  Josh continued to study the serfs working in the fields, noting that for every field they worked on, another one was left unattended.

  “Why are they only working on every other field?” He asked Leo to satisfy his curiosity.

  “Milord, it’s to allow for the essence of the land to return. Next year, they will swap and work on the field that was left unattended this year.” Leo explained with his eyes still on the road.

  That’s hella inefficient. And it brings the number down to two hundred bushels. Which leaves not a lot for farmers to work with.

  “I think I know a way to implement my otherworldly knowledge, that would allow the farmers to work on all of their allotted land while also increasing the yields,” Josh commented.

  Leo raised his eyebrows. “Could you elaborate, Milord,” he asked.

  “It’s called Norfolk four-course system,” Josh reminisced about his old high-school history teacher Greg, who was fanatic about how much of the benefits that invention brought to 18th century England, allowing the industrial revolution to take place.

  “I don’t really remember the specifics of it,” Josh continued. “But from what I remember, the farmland was split into four parts, with each part growing a different crop every year. For the first year, you’d grow wheat then switch to turnips for the second year, before switching to barley for the third year, and then grow clovers for the fourth year, before returning back to growing wheat.” Josh took a quick breath.

  “The switches between the crops allowed for the required nutrients or as you call the essence of the land return to the fields, without wasting any space,” Josh explained the system that revolutionized farming back on Earth.

  “Milord, I believe it would be hard for farmers to switch to this method.” With his face creased with worry, Leo replied.

  Of course, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks…

  “That’s to be expected,” Josh sighed. “I still want you to find as many as possible of willing farmers, either brave enough to try out this method or desperate to improve their livelihood,” Josh commanded, before hastily adding. “We will provide with tax relief for those willing, of course, I have to look at our finances first to know how much tax relief we can provide for those willing.” Remembering the power of money, Josh gave the order.

  I mean it would take decades to see real results if i was still back on old Earth, but if I can implement some magic-fuckery to show results instantly, maybe I could switch half the serfs to being craftsmen rather than farmers.

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  “I’ll see what I can do, Milord,” Leo grunted in response, clear disbelief on his face not believing in the benefits this method may bring.

  It didn’t take much longer for the carriage to stop by the checkpoint of the Daim Village gates. The inspection itself was superficial, as a couple of words from Leo made sure that they were let through.

  “Milord, we have arrived at the Daim Village,” Leo announced. “Do you wish to explore the village or go meet the village chief?” He asked.

  “For now, let’s just explore the village and then meet the village chief. I want to visit all four villages today, so let’s not overstay.” Josh replied.

  With how bustling it is, it’s definitely more of a town than a village here. Josh thought as he eyed the bustling streets filled with vendors selling various goods from pies to salt. And kids running around.

  He suddenly gasped as he gazed upon the only building that definitely didn’t belong with the vibes of the village. Its marble building alone looked more expensive than his manor. You could even add this whole village to the value of his manor, and the building would still come out on top. A golden sun was engraved upon its entrance. As it towered above the wooden houses of the village.

  “What kind of place is that?” Josh asked, gesturing towards the marble building.

  It’s so out of place. It’s like putting Taj Mahal in the suburbs of Birmingham.

  “That would be the church of Sol, Milord.” Leo kindly explained. “It’s one of the main religions in our kingdom, and also the only religion with a church in our lands.”

  Religion is one of the cornerstones of civilization, I definitely need to visit it once I have more information.

  With his curiosity satisfied they continued rattling along the cobbled roads, they entered the artisan area, where a smithy, pottery, and a mill stood, looking in much better shape compared to the serf houses they had passed before. The people living in this area even had some color to their clothes as they were wearing shirts of yellow, blue, and red instead of the dull brown or gray of the serfs.

  You could feel the wealth disparity between the citizens and serfs just by looking.

  “Leo, I think we should go meet the village chief now,”Josh said, aware of his limited time.

  Thinking about his limited time“As you wish, Milord,” Leo replied, shifting the carriage’s direction

  Only minutes later, they were in front of a large stone house, its size rivaling the manor. As they disembarked from the carriage, Leo told the guards who accompanied them to keep the carriage and horses safe, as they stepped inside.

  Another building completely out of place, a stone village hall in a wooden village. Whoever designed this place definitely needs to get fired...

  As they walked through the stone halls, Josh noted various citizens working on paperwork, commanding serfs to do their bidding and other kinds of bureaucratic work.

  “Milord, Daim Village Hall is responsible for all four villages' taxes and reports for the manor,” Leo said, seeing that Josh’s gaze was filled with curiosity.

  Great, it’s easier to strangle corruption if it’s centralized.

  He just nodded to confirm that he appreciated Leo’s comment.

  Josh looked at the plump frame of the village chief that was approaching them, his small beady eyes darting around nervously, his outfit black and red portraying the status of a wealthy individual, his fingers adorned with various rings from silver to platinum.

  The chief bowed as he stood by Josh and introduced himself.

  “Gaius, the chief of Daim Village. It’s my pleasure to meet you, Milord,” he wiped the sweat off his face with a handkerchief after he finished introducing himself.

  “Pleasure to meet you, Gaius; I’m your new Lord Joshua Brookes,” Josh replied.

  As they entered the Village chief’s room, a woman hurriedly exited, her body half-exposed and filled with bruises with her dirty clothes showing that she was a serf. With a glance of displeasure, he turned to the village chief.

  “Care to explain?” Josh asked, his voice cold.

  “Pardon me, Milord. If I knew about your visit, I would made sure that no rats would intrude on your way,” The village chief replied.

  Rats? Josh thought. That’s a fucking human being… Calm down Josh there’s nothing you can do right now…

  “Was nice meeting you Village chief, as I still have plenty to do. We will be taking our leave now,” Josh said formally, his voice barely concealing the contempt he felt for the man. “Thank you for your time.”

  The village chief, oblivious to contempt, gave a curt nod. “Safe travels, Milord,” he replied as he bowed slightly to bid farewell.

  Leo didn’t react at all to the woman exiting the village chief’s room. Also, the rings on this fat chief's fingers alone showcase that he’s probably skimming the money. I can’t wait for the Guide to get here…

  With deep thoughts, he left the village hall and embarked on a journey to see the rest of the villages under his command.

  Josh was surprised by how roundabout the roads were. Even though all four villages fell under the same command, barely any trading was done between them. You had to take a road for twenty miles to travel the required ten miles to the village in the south. Whispering Woods Village.

  Just direct roads alone would boost the economy by miles.

  As they entered the Whispering Woods Village. Josh noted that the serfs lining the streets, seemed to be in a much better shape, even though the houses of the village showed that the Village even with their export of magical trees wasn’t as rich as the Daim Village.

  The village chief of Whispering Woods Village left a much stronger impression on Josh. The man was a retired lumberjack who had done his trade for thirty years. Not only he was a staunch old man, but he even had fourteen children who are doing his trade now that he has retired.

  The few citizens that he saw were also more closely related to serfs than in the Daim Village, with no clear discrimination to be seen.

  It was crazy to see how much difference existed between those two villages with only two hours of walk separating them.

  Since they still had two more villages to visit. Josh didn’t waste any more of his time and embarked on a journey once more toward the Blackthorn Village to the northeast of Whispering Woods Village.

  The road, once more stretched out which made the journey take much longer than needed. By the time they arrived, the sun was already only a couple of hours away from setting.

  Since he was snacking on tasteless dried jerky. Josh wasn’t hungry, but hours of riding in a carriage for sure took a toll on his bullocks. To not waste any more time.

  Josh took a quick look around the village, noting that it was just a carbon copy of the Whispering Woods Village, with their trade being in livestock instead of lumberjacking. The village chief has died only a week ago, so they had no one of importance to meet. The serfs seemed to be in a similar position as the ones in the previous village: poor but content.

  While they were riding towards their last visit spot, Shallow Lake Village, A guard whose name was Bert, or was it, Bart? Started shouting.

  “Goblins! Protect the Lord.”

  Goblins?