A heavy wooden rapping-like noise, followed by Nathan's pleas, urging me to get up, jolted me wide awake. ''Come in'' I said while trying to force myself out of the bed, yawning uncontrollably.
''I feel like a new man, I truly needed the rest'' I continued, watching as Nathan opened the door, trying to see whether I was okay or not.
''Is everything alright?'' I said, wanting to understand why Nathan was behaving so weirdly.
''You have been sleeping for two days straight, Sir. I tried to wake you up numerous times, only to be greeted by your snoring. I was thinking of contacting your esteemed father if you were to stay that way. I was worried sick,'' Nathan said with relief written on his face, observing me as a hawk, ready to clash if I were to show any signs of sickness.
''Sorry for worrying you Nathan, I hope I didn't cause you any trouble,'' I whispered apologetically, trying to hide my slight embarrassment.
Realizing I had slept for over two days, I immediately got up and dressed, spending a good chunk of my morning convincing Nathan I didn't need any assistance regarding what clothes to wear.
''I truly need to have a talk with him for that'' I mentally noted, ready to busy myself with my barony responsibilities.
After having a hearty meal, I summoned Nathan to the office that used to belong to my father, to discuss the files he organized for me.
''Nathan, what I need is a good summary regarding our barony. I want to know how many people we have, how we earn money, what we produce, and what options we can afford to take to have even a slight chance of bettering our situation. What is the average education level of our citizens, starting with the adults? What skills do they have? how much of our land is usable? how many types of animals do our barony host?
Leave nothing out, Nathan'' I stated quite thoughtfully, knowing that whatever was the reason for me being here, it had to wait. Right now I didn't possess the means or the knowledge to figure it out.
After receiving his orders, Nathan headed towards the stables to grab a horse and visit the village located down the hill. If he was to give me a detailed report concerning the stuff I asked, he first has to question and check for himself.
'' That will keep him busy for a while'' I mused, deciding it was an excellent opportunity for me to wander around the mansion without any prying eyes. It wasn't that I didn't trust him, I just needed some time for myself to truly understand my position.
''If my memory serves me right, there is a library in this estate, and if I am lucky, the books may contain some knowledge regarding this world.''
Even though the original Ciaphas was the son of a baron, his education was that of a peasant's. Even though he had some knowledge regarding our fief, whether that was farmland, production, routes, and neighbours, that was it. Thankfully when he was young, his parents hired a teacher for him to learn how to write and with it, some basic history lessons entailing long forgotten tales of this kingdom's heroes. Thanks to that, I can at least read the books here and find out more about this world.
After scanning tens of books, I finally found the one I needed.
''Continent of Istvan and its marvels'' a children's book written to help your young child comprehend the world!
''Well, I can't be too picky I guess, this is the only book that will at least give me a glimpse of this earth.''
Reading the book ended up being a real chore. having wasted almost all of my afternoon, reading about how incredible our Kingdom is as compared to the rest, made me think a lot about their entertainment and way of learning.
The only thing I managed to get out of this foolish book was that the continent we lived on was known as Istvan and that our Kingdom named Tirisea, was one of the best...
''Well, that was a waste of time,'' I blubbered, settling for a hot cup of tea to ease my mind. Despite being dirt-poor as a barony, we still have luxuries such as tea, I murmured, understanding that something as cheap as a cup of tea is considered a luxurious item to the rest of the world...