Your Majesty, Wonders are Harmful to the Country!

Master, what do you want to build this time?" Lister was clearly startled by Bruno's words.

He had good reason to be scared the Citadel of Namur and the southern road were still under construction. If another major project were to start now, the Idar Territory simply couldn't afford it.

"Master… you must be cautious..." Lister trembled as he spoke.

"Where did you even learn this from? Just build a few thatched huts. However commoners build their houses, have them build the orphanage the same way," Bruno said.

Bruno would have loved to build a grand wonder for the orphanage, but he knew that Idar Territory simply didn't have the resources for that right now.

Besides, if the orphanage was built as grand as the lord's castle, Bruno could guarantee that by the next day, a flood of so-called "orphans" would be sent in by their own parents.

After all, times were tough for everyone!

So, in Bruno's view, making the orphanage a bit shabby was actually a necessity.

As for the name "Starting Point Orphanage"… that was just Bruno's little joke.

The deeper meaning and hope behind it? Only those who had lived through his past life and had extensive experience might understand.

The orphanage, however, was just a small side event in Bruno's otherwise uneventful noble life.

Lately, with nothing much to do, Bruno had been overeating fried chicken.

And it was all the castle chefs' fault!

Ever since they learned how to make fried chicken and breadcrumbs from Bruno, the usual menu of roasted, charred chicken hearts and wings had completely disappeared.

Instead, golden, crispy fried chicken drumsticks, wings, and breasts took their place. Paired with corn and mashed potatoes, it was practically a KFC family meal.

To be fair, the castle's chefs were quite skilled!

The golden fried chicken alone was mouthwatering.

And they used refined salt!

Sun-dried sea salt couldn't be consumed directly.

After some simple processing, it could be turned into coarse salt, which commoners used daily.

Using his high school knowledge, Bruno further refined the coarse salt into fine salt, making it almost identical in taste to the salt from his past life.

However, in his past deal with the merchant Cario, Bruno hadn't rushed to sell fine salt.

Unlike sugar, which had long existed as a luxury for nobles, fine salt had never been seen before. So, Bruno was extremely cautious about its trade.

At that time, his standing army wasn't fully trained, so he didn't dare expose the existence of fine salt too soon.

Besides, salt was a necessity for commoners' lives, and even just selling coarse salt brought in massive profits.

A quart of salt could sell for at least two silver shillings in Idar. In the empire's inland regions, the price would be even higher!

With stable profits from coarse salt and sugar, Bruno wasn't in a hurry to sell fine salt.

Since fried chicken was a high-calorie food frequently served at meals, Bruno had to find a way to exercise.

He needed to maintain a healthy physique and a handsome face—after all, he had to make this new life feel as real as possible.

But entertainment and cultural activities were severely lacking in this world.

Given how difficult it was to even obtain books like The Romantic Mage's Love Quest or The Mage's Erotic Hunts, one could only imagine how barren the sports scene was.

As for physical activities, hunting was pretty much the only option.

Then again, most commoners were struggling just to eat, so it was no surprise that cultural and recreational activities were practically nonexistent.

After much thought, Bruno finally came up with football!

Leaving aside his past life's disappointment with his national team, Bruno had always loved watching football matches.

And once he had the idea, he had to act on it—so he ordered the craftsmen to make a football.

The first challenge? There was no rubber in this world yet.

Luckily, Bruno wasn't picky. As long as they could make something that resembled a ball, its bounce didn't matter.

Following Bruno's instructions, the craftsmen replaced rubber with cowhide and stuffed the ball with all sorts of miscellaneous materials.

Watching them work, Bruno's mouth twitched—the craftsmen of Idar were truly full of "creativity"!

When Bruno finally saw the completed football, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

This was probably the most expensive football he had ever seen!

Still… after a few test kicks, he found it acceptable.

The ball felt a bit dull when kicked, but it exceeded his expectations.

Of course, attempting a header might not be the best idea…

With his newly crafted football in hand, Bruno dragged Lister along to the military camp.

The soldiers trained brutally hard.

Even just the frog jumps were terrifying to watch, not to mention the other grueling training drills.

"Earl, what brings you here today?" Seeing Bruno arrive at the camp once more, Sam Layton quickly approached.

"The soldiers train too hard every day, so I brought them something fun!" Bruno pointed at the football he had just set down.

"What's this...?"

Sam Layton stared at the round, leather-covered object, unsure what kind of strange thing his lord had come up with this time.

As for whether a cow was slaughtered for the leather, Sam Layton didn't even think about it. His lord had built fortresses and gardens without hesitation—what was one cow in comparison?

"Gather up!" Sam Layton shouted.

The moment his command rang out, the soldiers, scattered across different training grounds, quickly assembled.

"Great training!" Bruno praised sincerely.

Training a disciplined, well-drilled force in this era was no easy feat.

The soldiers stood in formation, their skin tanned by the sun. With their nutritious military diet, they looked strong and full of energy.