60 — 6 (10)

It seemed like something had to be done.

Louis, angry, spoke.

“Stand up.”

By now, he had grown so accustomed to the Charisma Skill that emotions slipped into his words naturally, and Enneu clearly realized Louis was angry.

‘Huuuuh…..’

Like a cat basking in sunlight, Enneu shuddered and trembled, savoring Louis’s anger. She wanted to be crushed by him even more. Yet she felt deep guilt for harboring such feelings. She could not deny that Louis had saved her from hell. Enneu’s dream had been to kill the Bald Slaver, or at least to witness his death. She had seen him suffer horribly, and even if only by hearing the news of his death, her dream had been fulfilled. But after such a long time, her body and mind had been twisted into something strange.

‘What on earth did I just say…. I need to stand up… if I don’t… I’ll die.’

Twitch.

At that last word, Enneu felt a peculiar pleasure, shocking herself, and she slowly began to rise. She should have stood up quickly to avoid death, yet instead, she moved slowly, watching Louis’s expression.

Louis stared blankly, as he had never encountered a woman of this type before.

“………….”

‘I’ll need to recondition her.’

She was too valuable a rough gem to discard. She had to be retrained thoroughly. But first, he realized pressing her too hard would not work. It was simple—this kind of woman… actually liked it.

‘Hoo…’

Louis placed his hand on Enneu’s shoulder as she stood.

“You are not livestock. ……… Though you are a slave, you are still human.”

Because Enneu truly believed she was nothing more than livestock, Louis’s words struck her with immense shock. Louis was none other than a noble among nobles. His words did not carry ordinary weight. Her former master had treated her like a dog through and through. But her current master was seeing her differently. That difference cracked open her sickened heart, even if only slightly.

“I don’t know how to do anything…”

“No, you are a raw gem. You are material to become a great Metallurgist. You have talent. Use that talent to help me.”

Until now, Louis had always spoken to groups, but this was the first time he addressed her one-on-one, and because of that, she could no longer deny herself. Louis was someone of far higher status than her former master. The words “talent” and “raw gem” that Louis had spoken kept ringing in Enneu’s head.

“M-me? I have talent..?”

“I guarantee it. You will display genius-level talent in this field. If you can fully bring out your talent and greatly aid me, I will free you from slavery and keep you close, trusting you.”

Louis’s long declaration made Enneu’s heart sway like scales weighing her soul. Two selves collided within her head.

‘I’m livestock. Talent? That’s impossible.’

‘He says I have talent. Genius-level talent! I might even become free!’

While her inner selves fought desperately, silence filled the room. Louis watched her closely, but when she did not answer, he prepared to try another approach. Then, suddenly, large tears welled up in her eyes and fell.

Even if she was a slave, the tears of a young girl could unsettle a man.

“……….Th-this is……. the first time. I’ve ever heard words like that….”

At last, tears streamed down Enneu’s cheeks.

The attendants nearby rushed in, startled, to comfort her. Louis rubbed his chin in thought.

‘It seems it worked.’

It was clear some change, some crack, had formed in her heart. Normally, ordinary people moved only when struck with the whip. But he realized that for others, the opposite approach was needed. It was not always about using hard measures.

“So, will you learn?”

Enneu nodded repeatedly.

“…….Yes… I’ll learn.”

Judging it to be a good sign, Louis told the attendants:

“Wash her, feed her well, and send her back to Ten.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Louis separately summoned Hansen, ordering him to make the slaves’ quarters more humane. Of course, it was for Enneu’s sake. If she caught an illness and died, it would be a huge loss.

‘By the time Enneu builds a proper foundation, large amounts of iron will start coming in.’

Jerome came running, panting, to report results to Louis. His hair was unkempt, his robe dirty, but no one stopped him. Jerome was the only magician in Proia, and above all, he enjoyed the Consul’s absolute trust. The reason he was called this time was because of Louis’s new idea—an invention called the stirrup. Jerome had been buried in the library, devouring books at a frightening pace, as a mage should. Adding his teacher’s knowledge to the mass of texts, he could now wield knowledge on par with mid-level magicians. This was all thanks to the Great Mage buff, but still, Jerome had recently begun to feel firsthand that he was not of ordinary talent.

As he came out, Jerome saw Enneu leaving the office in tears. Though shabby, her delicate features immediately caught his attention. For Jerome, who had grown up in the slums, such a woman appeared even more attractive….

‘Beautiful.’

But she passed in an instant. Snapping out of it, Jerome hurried into the office. Louis was on the terrace, gazing down at the city.

“My lord.”

Looking up from the information screen, Louis greeted Jerome warmly. He handed him the design for the stirrup at once. Louis demanded that Jerome secure experimental results as quickly as possible.

“The results are successful. I can only marvel at how you came up with this idea.”

So production could begin at once. The design was simple enough that it would not take long to manufacture. They could start fitting them to horses immediately.

‘They’ll love it.’

Louis gave Jerome the stirrup designs and passed horsemanship knowledge to Boromir. True to his rank as centurion, Boromir quickly grasped what Louis taught. Whenever he got stuck, he would come to Louis. When Boromir once asked, Louis explained he had acquired the knowledge of horsemanship at the Aiwood black market.

“But my lord. Who was that girl who just left in tears?”

“Ah, you saw Enneu.”

“Enneu?”

“A slave I purchased in Aiwood. If she grows well, she’ll handle equipment production.”

“………But she’s a girl.”

“Jerome.”

“Yes.”

“Have you ever been to the Mage Tower?”

“Not yet.”

“There are many women mages there. Talent knows no gender—keep that in mind.”

“…………Still, surprising. Metallurgy is hard even for men.”

Boromir curiously examined the tool attached to the horse. It was a shape he had never seen in his life. Louis was about to demonstrate. The 500 soldiers stood at attention as Louis stepped forward.

‘What is that?’

‘It looks ridiculous.’

‘Even barbarians don’t use something like that…’

‘Wouldn’t it be dangerous?’

‘What if Lord Louis falls off the horse?’

The soldiers respected Louis, but that did not mean they respected his inventor’s streak. To them, the stirrup looked like a clumsy, useless contraption that would hinder combat.

Even Boromir felt the same. Yet he voiced no complaint. Having received horsemanship training from Louis, he did not believe Louis was ignorant of such matters.

Louis grasped the reins and spoke.

“I will now demonstrate. It is simple, but you must see it once to avoid mistakes. Understood?”

The soldiers responded in unison, their voices booming. Their discipline was far sharper than ordinary troops, especially since they had been selected for talent. They were men among men.

Louis held the reins, set his left hand on the saddle, and with one swift movement, stepped into the stirrup and mounted the horse.

The soldiers gasped all at once. He had mounted the horse safely and more easily than ever before. Horses were sensitive animals, and even experts could fall if they slipped. But with the reins pulled and the stirrup used to climb, the risk of mishaps visibly plummeted. Then Louis urged the horse into motion. Even though he was riding in a simple circle, the speed was impressive, and his stability was undeniable.

He stopped before Boromir. The horse halted with a threatening snort.

“Try it.”

Boromir and the 500 soldiers mounted their horses as Louis had shown. A few stumbled at first, but since all had excellent balance, within five or ten minutes they all succeeded. The very soldiers who had mocked it earlier were stunned by the sense of stability.

‘Unbelievable…. The balance just holds itself.’

‘I won’t have to worry even at full speed.’

‘On the battlefield, with this… the breakthrough power would be tremendous.’

Many thoughts ran through Boromir and the soldiers’ minds, but none of them were negative. The effectiveness was overwhelming.

Boromir, repeatedly awed, thought as he looked at Louis:

‘Perhaps… this man… could become a king.’

Of course, he could never say such a thing aloud. Even in the weakened Duchy of Eron, simply entertaining that thought was treason. Yet the speed at which Louis was gathering strength, seen closest by Boromir, was nothing short of miraculous. How fortunate he had begged to serve Louis back when his own life was in shambles.

Meanwhile, Louis smiled as he watched the clumsy cavalry of 500 charge across the grasslands.

‘With just a little time, they’ll gain experience at an incredible pace.’

Thanks to the stirrup, the birth of a cavalry trained at an abnormal speed was now within sight. And if iron smelting could be completed, they would go beyond cavalry to field heavy cavalry.

Jerome tried to forget her, but he could not erase the brief glimpse of Enneu. Though still technically of common birth, he now enjoyed the treatment of a near-noble. For him to fall for a slave was self-defeating. Yet even while reading, every page turned into Enneu’s face. Finally, Jerome slammed his book shut.

The book floated briefly in the air before crashing to the ground, and Jerome leapt to his feet.

‘Just once. I’ll go see her once. Maybe I imagined it.’

Jerome dashed madly toward the blacksmith workshop.

The blacksmith workshop, once a place synonymous with men’s sweat and bulging muscles, had become an unexpectedly alluring place.

Because of the heat, more than half of the women inside wore only garments barely covering their chests, diligently learning their craft. Ten and his twenty men, who at first vehemently resisted, now found themselves praising Louis. For the first time, they realized the workshop could be a place of joy.