Chapter 2 : Horseshoeing, A Genius in Horse Rearing
Chapter 2: Horseshoeing, A Genius in Horse Rearing
The steward Burton rubbed the emerald gold ring on his thumb.
This heavy lump of gold was one of the gifts Arthur’s family had sent to smooth things over.
In fact, among this batch of squires, every family had prepared a rather valuable greeting gift for him, the chief steward.
Only this Leo Laide from Blackwater City—his family had sent nothing more than a shabby pouch of silver coins.
He did not understand why the renowned Knight Laforin would agree to let the son of such a poor minor lord become his squire.
After all, Blackstone City was a cradle that had trained many knights for the kingdom.
Burton suddenly stopped mid-step and pointed toward the distant castle gates. “Hurry along. I reckon Lord Laforin must have found a legendary peerless steed, which is why he’s in such a rush to have you go.”
“Oh, alright!”
The castle gates slowly opened, and Luka’s figure hurriedly disappeared through the entrance.
……
On the other side, after Burton and Luka left, Leo quickly began studying his panel.
【Skill: Mount Control (White) Level 2 → Level 3 1/100 (Spirit +0.3, has proficiently mastered methods of caring for horses, can issue commands to horses with weaker Spirit than oneself)】
“My Spirit increased by another 0.1—now it’s reached 1.2.”
Leo felt as though his thoughts had become sharper, like gulping down an icy soda in the peak of a scorching summer—an invigorating sensation surged straight to his mind.
This was not his first level-up, and Leo carefully sensed the changes within himself after this one.
“It seems… some memories that were originally blurry are gradually becoming clearer. Kanasi Tulusi Mengduopaxi Dokade Laimeng… Kalasi Weiduo…”
Like reciting the digits of pi in his previous life, Leo rattled off nearly a hundred characters in one breath.
Everything he had repeatedly read several times, he could now almost completely recall. Only the latter parts, which he had only read once, remained beyond his memory.
With his Spirit raised to 1.2, his memory had improved so dramatically.
It felt that as long as he returned to his quarters and read the entire knight’s handbook a few more times, he should be able to memorize it in full.
Leo felt a surge of excitement.
Then, he looked at another change on the panel.
【Can issue commands to horses with weaker Spirit than oneself】
Stop!
Leo attempted to issue a command to the horses before him.
To his surprise, in the next moment, the six horses that had been burying their heads in feed all stopped simultaneously.
They turned their heads and stared blankly at him, each still holding a mouthful of fodder.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Go on eating.”
Leo watched as the horses turned their heads back in unison and resumed eating from the trough.
It seemed this skill required his full concentration.
The commands he issued were temporary and compulsory—they had to obey.
But in an actual battlefield, he wouldn’t be able to maintain full concentration on controlling horses at all times.
It was more of an auxiliary skill for horse rearing; he would still need to raise Mount Control to a higher level.
“I wonder what effects it will have at Level 4 and Level 5.”
With Luka reassigned these past few days and Burton ordering him to continue caring for the horses,
Arthur and the others were busy flirting with maids and would not come to the stables to interfere with him.
This was the perfect time to grind more Mount Control experience.
Thinking this, Leo placed his hands on his hips and sized up the six horses before him.
For the moment, there didn’t seem to be any work left to do.
“How about I replace your horseshoes?” Just after the skill upgrade, some knowledge about horseshoeing had appeared in Leo’s mind.
He had never done this before, yet it felt as if he had done it countless times—it had completely fused into his muscle memory.
However, at that moment, the two guards who had been standing like statues at the entrance suddenly moved.
They exchanged glances, then both looked toward Leo.
One of them finally could not hold back and spoke, “Young Master Leo, replacing horseshoes isn’t something one person can do. It’s quite dangerous—if you get kicked, it won’t be a joke.
I think it’s better to wait until Luka comes back.”
Though they were merely ordinary guards, they both felt that this young master—who smiled at them every time he passed by—was somewhat different from the others.
Out of goodwill, the younger guard, Charlie, chose to warn him.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Charlie. Thank you for your kind reminder.” Leo had already taken out horseshoes and tools from the wooden box in the corner.
With confidence, he looked at the chestnut horse nearest to him. “Let’s start with you, Little Red. I’ll trim your hooves—lift your leg.”
Hearing Leo’s command, the horse showed no hesitation. It obediently raised its left foreleg and placed its hoof before Leo, then froze like a statue.
The two guards stared at the scene. “This…”
……
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and the crimson sunset slowly sank below the horizon.
Guard Charlie looked at the six large horses in the stable—each one sleek, spirited, and standing proudly on brand-new horseshoes.
“That kid really is a damn genius at raising horses.” Charlie had been stationed at the stables for years.
He had seen Luka shoe horses countless times.
Though Luka was a seasoned veteran, he still required assistance from another person, constantly soothing the horses and working with extreme caution.
Yet over the past two days, that teenage boy Leo had methodically shoed all six horses by himself.
Horseshoeing wasn’t simply about nailing iron shoes onto hooves—cleaning, trimming, shaping, fitting, nailing, polishing—every step was both highly technical and inherently dangerous.
In his view, Luka, with over a decade of experience, didn’t seem as efficient as this young boy.
Just as he was thinking this, Charlie’s ears twitched.
He suddenly straightened, his posture rigid and upright.
From the direction of the castle gates, the burly Knight Laforin strode toward the stables with large steps, while the elderly steward Burton hurried behind him.
“Sir Laforin, why have you come here first? The madam and the young lady have already prepared a banquet and ball in the hall—they’re all waiting for you.” Burton was panting.
Laforin ignored him, continuing straight toward the stables. Only after seeing that all six of his beloved horses were in excellent condition did his expression slightly ease.
“I didn’t expect those four pampered youngsters to have done a decent job.”
“These six horses are your treasures. The young masters have all been quite diligent—especially Young Master Arthur. He put in quite a bit of effort taking care of your prized horses.”
“Oh?” Laforin’s brows knit slightly. He stepped back two paces and looked at the stable before him. “In that case, call all four of them over. I need to clear out this stable.”
“Ah?”
“Go, quickly.”
“Yes, sir!”
Guard Charlie saw Burton signaling him with his eyes, urging him to go deliver the message.
But when Charlie turned his head, he found that Arthur and his two followers had apparently already received the news and were now at the entrance.
“Young Master Arthur, Sir Laforin is calling for you—” Before Charlie could finish, the three of them walked straight past him into the stable as if they hadn’t seen him at all.
Watching their hurried backs, Charlie silently quickened his pace and dashed toward Leo’s quarters at full speed—he had to bring Leo over as soon as possible.
“The work was clearly all done by Leo.”
Meanwhile, inside the stable behind him—
Laforin sized up the three youths dressed in formal attire. He pressed his lips together, and his gaze ultimately settled on Arthur, the tallest among them. “Arthur, I’ve heard that you’ve all performed well during this period. Go—help me lead these horses to the back courtyard.”
“Ah?” Arthur and the other two froze for a moment, looking at Laforin, who stood like a small mountain before them.
He didn’t dare say more and could only agree. “Oh… alright.”
The three of them steeled themselves and moved toward the gigantic beasts in the stable.
Laforin, meanwhile, began examining his stable.
He stroked his chin, constructing something in his mind.
Suddenly—
Neigh!!!
An angry horse’s cry erupted from behind him.
One of the white horses that had just been pulled out by the three squires suddenly went out of control.
With a forceful jerk, it broke free of the reins and charged toward Arthur.
Another shrill neigh rang out—the horse stomped its hind legs and reared high, its front hooves raised.
In the blink of an eye, the hoof—large as a human face—was about to come crashing down onto Arthur’s head.
“Ah!”