Planning What Comes Next

With Azu gone, I left the sugar and cart cleanup entirely to Alexia and Elza.

"I'll leave the rest to you."

"Of course. Consider it handled."

Alexia's reply was reassuring.

I stopped by the shop to show my face to Kaimol and the others.

I'd delegated operations and had no intention of butting in, but regular communication was still necessary.

That way, if Kaimol ran into a problem he couldn't solve, he'd feel comfortable coming to me right away.

Staying in touch meant something on its own. Neglect alone wouldn't fulfill my responsibilities as the one in charge.

Fortunately, there'd been no trouble and the shop was doing well.

Burning stone was apparently selling briskly.

On my way back to my room, I passed Finn in the hallway. She'd already bathed and come out.

I told her not to wander around in just her innerwear, and she called me a nag.

Once I sat down in my own chair, I finally felt like I was home.

In the end, Iefuda and those brothers had gotten in the way, and I never got to see the face of the drug ring's mastermind.

Given that they'd incurred the wrath of royalty, I'd probably never see them again. No point dwelling on it.

I would've liked to throw Iefuda in with them, though. Thrill-seekers like him were a real nuisance.

He stirred up chaos and probably enjoyed every moment of it.

And now he had a bodyguard named Jill, making him even more of a headache.

Jill. Probably around the same age as Azu.

Alexia estimated her to be roughly as strong as Azu, but where on earth had Iefuda found her?

The same could be said of Azu. That kind of strength at that age was anything but normal.

Azu was as strong as she was because of a grueling schedule of monster hunts and some mysterious power she'd acquired along the way.

I let out a breath. No use thinking about it.

I lit the hearth and added firewood.

The stockpile was running low.

I had firewood to spare, since we sold it, after all. But that stock was for customers.

There were unsplit logs available, so I could just have Azu and the others chop them.

As the room warmed up, my hands loosened with it.

I flipped over a scrap of paper I'd used for something, exposing the blank side.

Uncapped the ink, took up the quill, and started organizing what needed doing.

Azu had told me to rest, but I wouldn't be able to sleep in peace until at least this much was done.

My father had taught me to organize my thoughts this way.

The list of things to do only ever grew. It never shrank.

So the key was to sort them properly and decide the order of priority, keeping your head from spinning into a panic.

First: Kazusa and her brother.

They'd have their own wishes, but they should probably stay at that inn through the winter.

I'd pay them wages in the meantime and have them start preparing for the renovations.

The furniture and fittings needed for running the place as an inn would be commissioned from craftsmen, so for now they could handle the groundwork: receiving deliveries and arranging everything in place.

I could put them up at our house, but Kazusa would undoubtedly feel on edge.

After just a brief conversation, I could tell she was a conscientious girl.

While Azu and the others were around it might be fine, but if something came up and the adventurers had to go out, things would get awkward.

The siblings would be more comfortable having a place to themselves.

I jotted down Kazusa's situation first, then added the inn renovation arrangements.

Craftsmen tended to have lighter schedules in winter.

If I placed orders now, I could get favorable rates. That was part of the calculation.

Second: Finn, and what to do going forward.

I wouldn't mind if she stayed on with us. She was young but capable, and by now we knew each other well enough.

The room I'd prepared for Azu and the others was spacious enough for four to live comfortably.

If she wanted her own room, she'd have to lodge elsewhere. Maybe at the inn where Kazusa was staying.

We had a means of communication, so her disappearing on a whim was very much Finn's style.

But I wanted to confirm her intentions at least once.

Third: activating the Earth Elemental Stone and finding a suitable location for it.

This was something I really wanted to pursue.

If it worked out, the returns would be even more guaranteed than the inn business.

I'd made inquiries with the Agricultural Guild, but the cities around Kassad were all spoken for.

An acquaintance who ran a large farm had gotten hold of some noble-grade fruit stock, making it unlikely he'd sell me any land.

And the fallow land I'd been hoping to lease was already being tilled by newly hired tenant farmers.

Establishing farmland outside the walls from scratch would take enormous time and money.

Having Alexia, a brilliant mage, certainly made it more feasible than doing it by hand, but even so, there was no telling how long it would take.

And the whole time Alexia would be stuck there tending the land, cutting deeply into her earnings as an adventurer.

If only there were a large, already-developed plot of farmland somewhere.

Secure the land, hire workers, and just oversee things.

I chuckled to myself. If such a place existed, someone else would've already claimed it.

That was about it for now.

There were other items, but none that needed my attention today.

I wiped the quill tip clean and returned it to its holder.

I placed a weight on the memo and left it on my desk where I'd always see it.

When I stretched, maybe because my thoughts had come together, I felt some of the tension leave me.

I stifled a yawn.

My mouth felt empty, so I looked for a snack before bed, but the sweets were all gone.

I fished around in my pocket and found a few leftover candies.

The blue, translucent sphere let the hearth's fire glow through it.

I popped one in my mouth.

Sweet. The candy, made from nothing but sugar and medicine, was just right for a bit of energy.

Once it dissolved, I crawled into bed, and sleep came naturally.