Return of the General's Daughter-Chapter 187: The Lenard Family in Town

When the Norse siblings visited Lara the next day, they were surprised to find that the newly built houses already had occupants.

Inside the multipurpose hall, a few women gathered around makeshift workstations, learning how to cut fabric and stitch pieces together under the guidance of a familiar figure—Lina, their uncle’s sister-in-law.

On the other hand, an old woman was filling clay pots with loamy soil while the ten-year-old Palos trotted back and forth, carrying each filled pot to a row of stacked shelves that would become Gabriella’s famous vertical garden later on. Lara intentionally did not surround the hall with walls because the vertical garden would do its job.

The brothers saw Lara at the side, frowning and looking unhappy. The three headed in her direction.

"Sis, what’s wrong?" Gideon asked, his tone light but concerned.

Lara sighed, her eyes fixed on the group of women clumsily threading needles and aligning cloth. "There has to be a better way to do this," she muttered. "At this rate, it’ll take forever just to finish a hundred backpacks—let alone a thousand."

"Then, do you have something in mind?" Percival asked.

Lara’s face lit up, the gears in her mind clearly turning. "Yes... Actually, I do."

Of course, why not? If there were already sewing tools in that era, then it should be possible to make those sewing machines powered by foot pedaling or hand cranking right?

An hour later, she unrolled a sheet of parchment covered in meticulously sketched diagrams. The drawing revealed a mechanical sewing device: a frame with a handwheel, a presser foot, a bobbin case, and a clearly labeled foot pedal, all situated beneath a flywheel system.

Bener looked at Lara in a new light. How could she come up with something like that? His eyes widened with admiration. "You drew this?"

Lara nodded.

Gideon took the sheet and studied it, his expression intense. "This is incredible," he said, his voice rising with excitement. He liked machines. If he was in the modern era, he could have been a mechanical or industrial engineer.

Lara chuckled, but her expression grew thoughtful. Could she say that she had seen many of those in the villages that she went to during missions, where women still preferred to make clothes instead of buying the store’s ready-to-wear ones?

Percival grabbed the drawing from Gideon and leaned in, pointing at the pulley system. "This is amazing. So you step on this foot pedal, and it will activate the machine? What do you call the wheel down here with a belt that connects to the smaller wheel at the top?"

"That’s the flywheel. It drives the needle and stitching process." Lara explained. The concept was actually simple.

Bener snapped his fingers when an idea hit him. "There might be craftsmen in the capital who can build this." His voice took on a playful edge.

Heh. I’m a genius, aren’t I? I just figured out how to get our sister back to the capital.

Lara nodded subtly. It was bound to happen eventually. The capital held tools, minds, and opportunities she couldn’t access in the town. "You’re not wrong," she said softly.

Lara’s gaze landed on Mona, the eleven-year-old orphan who decided to stay. She was listening intently to what Lina was teaching them. Her eyes have a sparkle in them that Lara found heartwarming and eased her guilt. She was still a child after all. In modern times, she would be charged with child abuse.

But here, children matured very early. Was it because life was difficult? Or was it because parents of the modern era pampered and protected their children too much?

"Sis," Percival’s voice pulled her back to the present. "Gideon and I are going back to the capital soon. However, before that, I would like to enter Mount Ourea. I’ve dreamed about it my whole life." Percival said, eyes hopeful.

Lara’s smile turned into a grin. She wanted to enter the mountain herself and dig out some of the rare herbs they planted on the plateau. Maybe she could also discover new varieties. The more people, the more they can carry.

"Why not?" she said. "I am planning to go anyway. How about tomorrow?"

"Really? That’s great!"

Percival’s face lit up. Finally, he will be able to see the fabled Mount Ourea with his own eyes.

...

Later that afternoon, before her brothers could leave to prepare for the following day’s trek, more visitors arrived at Lara’s door. It was their Aunt Delia, with her four sons and the two lively girls, Eva and Flora. The children’s laughter announced them before their feet reached the doorway.

She was too busy in the past few days to see them when they moved out of the village, but her brothers were there to help. They also left the village yesterday at the same time as Lina and Lucas.

The Lenard family was temporarily living in the house of the former captain of the town guards, who had been imprisoned by Prince Alaric. He would be sent to the capital to face charges alongside the mayor. Apart from evicting the captain’s family from the large house, Prince Alaric did not take any further action against them. He believed that innocent family members should not be held responsible for the perpetrator’s crime.

Lara rushed to greet them, her voice warm and inviting. "Auntie, cousins—come in!"

Her brothers greeted their aunt with nods, offering firm pats on the shoulders to their cousins.

Lara’s smile softened. "I’m sorry I wasn’t able to help with the move from the village, but I trust my brothers made it easier."

Delia waved it off with a graceful hand. "No worries. We don’t have many things to move anyway. The children pestered me to visit you, so here we are."

Now that Delia’s health had improved, Lara could truly see the beauty that must have once captivated Primo. Elegant and poised, her aunt looked far younger than she remembered. She must have been a noble lady before her uncle married her.

"We are grateful to Prince Alaric. Your Uncle did not expect that he would be offered such an important position." Delia said gently. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

"Uncle deserved it." The three Norse brothers said in unison.

"He contributed so much to the war," Bener spoke the rest of their words, and Delia could only nod and smile gently.

Lara’s eyes wandered to Darius, who shifted uncomfortably under her gaze.

"How’s your wound?" she asked gently.

"It’s already healed, cousin," he replied, his cheeks coloring with shy admiration. He hadn’t spent much time with her while recovering, but he’d heard enough from his brothers to form an impression of Kane Mendel.

Lara was not aware of how the Lenard siblings celebrated when they learned that Kane Mendel was Lara Norse —their sharp, capable, and unexpectedly kind cousin.