Chapter 25
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Chapter 25
"I'll come back again at night."
Dale wiped the dirt from beneath my fingernails with concern.
"I waited until night, but it was useless. They seem to appear at dawn. Or perhaps they're watching when I disappear from the Herb Field."
At that moment, Dale's expression grew grave as he cleaned my hands.
"The culprit isn't targeting you, are they?"
"I doubt it."
"...Ah."
I cut through Dale's serious concern with clarity.
'But the culprit does have eyes watching.'
I gazed across the vast expanse of land where fresh herbs sprouted abundantly. The herbs of Grunvalt truly grew with remarkable speed.
It was all thanks to the fertilizer.
I had ground a mineral found only in Grunvalt and crafted it into a special fertilizer.
'At this rate, four times a year? No. I could even manage cultivation twice a month.'
The rotation rate of cultivation accelerated. Which meant, in other words.
'Rapid accumulation of wealth in a short time.'
My escape funds grew increasingly comfortable.
'I've earned The Lord's trust, gotten along well with the villagers, and now I have money.'
I counted on my fingers and trembled with excitement.
Perfect!
And this man beside me was naturally perfect as well. On his days off, Dale came to my side and helped with the work.
Working day and night, assisting me at dawn and morning.
"Aren't you tired...?"
I murmured while gazing at Dale.
His beauty was flawlessly perfect twenty-four hours a day.
And The Emperor's schedule must have become even busier around the clock. After all, I had created work in Grunvalt for him.
I placed one foot on the plow and surveyed the vast land.
The moment money came to Grunvalt, Yurta began cultivating the land with remarkable speed, as if she had been waiting.
A cool breeze swept across us.
"You'll catch a cold."
"This much is fine. I'm quite hardy."
Dale regarded me with a skeptical gaze.
"I heard Kidland sold a great deal of his territory."
"It was the only way to survive."
Kidland had lost considerable wealth.
Compensation for breaching the agreement, the loss of mining rights by returning the mine to its original owner, and the penalties incurred from contract terminations with the merchants he had been trading with.
To manage all of it, I had no choice but to cede a portion of the land to the neighboring fiefdom.
"You brought all of this yourself, didn't you, my lord?"
"You're pulling my leg."
In any case, everything had been resolved smoothly.
I scraped at a section of uncultivated field with a large farming implement.
"Dale, would you spread some fertilizer for me?"
He followed me around and helped with the fieldwork.
When I explained that we'd grind ore into powder to use as fertilizer for growing medicinal herbs, The Lord wept, but he understood.
In return, I shared a strategy with The Lord.
Since Kidland would soon attempt to sell their land, I suggested negotiating with them instead—pretending to absolve them of their crimes.
The condition would be that they transfer their merchant connections and a portion of their territory to us.
'Otherwise, Hexagon will attempt covert contact.'
Since Hexagon was a core force of the Old Nobility Faction, even with their momentum broken, they still commanded many followers.
They had countless ways to raise funds.
The moment neighboring nobles purchased Kidland's territory and created even the slightest opening for Hexagon to infiltrate, this land would fall under his grasp.
Kidland was a territory with supply routes and a strategic crossroads.
Even as a frontier region, it was land with a major passage leading to the sea.
For the future of The Empire, this region had to be defended at all costs.
The Lord followed my counsel, and ultimately, Hexagon appeared to have withdrawn from the weakened Kidland.
Judging by how Kidland still hadn't made any moves and was struggling.
'It would be troublesome if Hexagon carelessly provoked The Emperor.'
They had to remain as silent as mice.
If they provoked The Emperor, he would hasten a marriage alliance with our house for the sake of The Empire's stability.
"I really wonder what The Emperor's ideal type is..."
I murmured while tapping at the soil.
The Emperor was a man who would choose a political marriage, but in the original story, he had romantic tendencies—a man who might make reckless choices if someone matched his tastes.
Dale gazed at me intently.
"What is it?"
"..."
Dale looked at me as though he had much to say each time, but often ended up saying nothing at all.
"Doesn't it get boring being with just me, Dale?"
"...Do you dislike me, Enya?"
"That's not what I was asking."
Dale's face flushed as he lowered his voice.
"I have no friends."
"I see..."
That made sense. Dale seemed to be cautious about forming friendships.
'For someone like that, he accepted my proposal quite readily.'
He was like a broken automatic door.
As I struggled to till the field with a large plow, Dale, unable to watch any longer, took over the work for me.
"Dale goes to the Capital sometimes, doesn't he?"
"...."
"Ah, The Lord mentioned it. When he noticed Dale was missing, he said Dale had probably gone to the Capital."
"...."
Dale's atmosphere seemed to darken subtly.
"Am I wrong?"
"No, you're not."
"Is that so? I was thinking of asking you to bring back something delicious when you go to the Capital next time."
"I do go occasionally."
Dale stared directly at me.
"Madam Longbaren's confectionery?"
"Ah, that's delicious too."
"Pasholter's cake shop."
"It's been such a long time! That place is truly delicious!"
How does he know so much about this?
Does Dale like desserts too?
"Knowing fine establishments is my hobby."
"Really? Surprisingly, we share similar tastes in food."
It was curious that a man who normally drank either green tea or at most slightly sweet black tea would enjoy sweet desserts.
"Ah, I see! So Dale likes sweet things, which is why he drinks bitter tea to balance it out, right?"
Dale smiled ambiguously in response to my grin.
By then, he had already tilled the remaining land that had been postponed for reclamation, preparing it well for planting herbs.
But there was an inconvenience.
The spade was too large, and the herb seedlings were small.
Even when sowing seeds, I could only dig large holes.
While I could manage planting with a smaller spade, when it came time to harvest the crops we'd planted together, the small spade was too blunt and required twice the effort.
"I wish the tip were sharper like this."
"Shall I sharpen it for you?"
Dale asked if I'd like him to sharpen the end.
"No, then it might look too much like a weapon, don't you think? And it would still be inconvenient to grip."
I gazed at the soil and remembered something.
"Dale, could you make something like this?"
I drew a picture in the dirt with my finger.
"Something small, sharp, and that doesn't require much wrist strength. Do they have these here?"
"I've never seen one."
Dale tilted his head in confusion.
"Is it a farming tool? It's unfamiliar to me... Could you tell me the name of this implement?"
"This?"
I pointed to the drawing and smiled brightly.
"This is called a 'hoe.'"
* * *
This world had no hoe.
With only large farming implements available, delicate work like planting herbs proved inconvenient.
'Grunvalt doesn't cultivate crops on a large scale anyway.'
This small tool would surely find purpose.
The following afternoon, I paused mid-weeding in the field, struck by sudden doubt.
"But how would I even make one?"
I visited the Blacksmith near the estate, but most of the craftsmen couldn't grasp my explanation.
They seemed to have no idea how to construct it.
Naturally, I'd never made a hoe before either.
"I can draw pictures, at least."
Where could I find a blacksmith worth employing?
I carried the farming implement I'd borrowed from Lord's Castle back to the Storage Shed.
"Cough."
The dilapidated Storage Shed lay thick with dust.
Wait?
It looked somewhat organized?
"Cough, cough, cough!"
"Cough!"
The stale air kept triggering my cough. But just now—I could have sworn I heard another voice besides my own?
Rustle!
Then came a scraping sound from the floor.
Not a rat. The sound was far too loud.
"There!"
I swiftly tripped the passing figure with my foot.
Crash!
"Ugh! What in the—"
A voice groaned in pain.
It wasn't anyone I knew. The voice sounded younger than the men I'd encountered.
"What are you doing?!"
As the dust cleared, what emerged was—
A young man I'd never seen before.
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org