Planting Potatoes

"I'll carry this too."

"Yeah, I'm counting on you."

We brought supplies into the Luido base.

Even a place we only used occasionally needed to be kept in good condition.

It would come in handy when we were in a pinch.

Things were hectic at first, but there wasn't that much we could help with.

The ledgers were complete, and the people we'd hired would update them going forward.

Farming itself had to be left to the tenant farmer representatives.

Finally, we had some free time.

The base was taking shape, so it was time to try planting those potatoes.

I was a bit worried since the climate and temperature were different from their original region, but we had no choice but to trust in the Earth Elemental Stone's blessing.

I'd asked someone who grew potatoes, but since it was a different variety, they said we'd have to plant them and see.

"That's everything."

"Phew. There was more than I expected."

"Sure was."

Azu and Alexia caught their breath, wiped their sweat, and refreshed their throats with fruit water.

With all the gifts from neighbors, we weren't short on food. If a famine occurred, coming here first might work out.

"Where's Elza?"

"She said she was going to the abandoned church."

"Again?"

Elza had been cleaning up the dilapidated abandoned church whenever she had time.

She'd said there was something on her mind, but dodged the question when I asked what it was.

"I'm back."

Speak of the devil, Elza returned.

She was carrying lots of vegetables in both hands.

"There hasn't been a priest in this city for a long time, so they asked me to pray for them. I got various things in return."

"They worship a harvest deity, don't they? Though they don't seem very devout."

"Faith is rooted in daily life. It's enough to remember it occasionally."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Simply being a place to turn to in times of trouble is enough."

While talking with Elza, Finn grabbed one of the vegetables Elza was holding and bit into it.

There was a pleasant crunching sound.

"There's nothing here, but I'll admit the food is delicious."

"That's unladylike."

"Oh, be quiet. She does it all the time too."

She pointed at Alexia.

When called out, Alexia scratched her cheek with a finger and looked away.

"What are you doing, Alexia-chan?"

"It was so good I couldn't help myself."

"Ahaha…"

Azu smiled wryly, unsure what to do.

I got one from Elza and bit into it like Finn.

The flavor was rich with a faint sweetness.

Proof it was fresh and nutritious.

"It's good."

"Yes. It's proof they're putting in the time and effort."

"If they can grow something this good, we don't need to interfere with their work."

After waiting for Elza to put down the vegetables, we all moved out.

We had potato seedlings that we'd gotten from a village we'd stayed at before.

Thanks to Alexia's magic, they hadn't spoiled.

We arrived at the cultivated area.

Since we didn't have many potato seedlings, we decided to plant them in the spot with the best sun exposure.

If they grew well, they would surely become a specialty product.

There was still unused cultivated land. Since wheat was being handled by others, I decided to plant buckwheat for now.

Buckwheat didn't sell for much, but there was demand.

It was popular as a staple cheaper than wheat.

Plus, it was more disease-resistant than wheat.

There was no downside to planting it.

"But who's going to take care of this place?"

Finn, wearing a straw hat with gloves on both hands, asked while sitting on a rock.

She looked the most natural like that.

Maybe she'd been a farmer's daughter before becoming an assassin.

At least, no one seeing her now would think she was an assassin.

"Once we started coordinating on the sales side, they ended up with some surplus manpower. I'm planning to have those people handle this area."

Consolidating the sales had various benefits.

First, it reduced the burden on the tenant farmers through efficiency.

The wives had apparently been mainly in charge, and many people expressed gratitude.

That was probably part of why we got so many gifts.

Some weren't used to selling and had struggled with low earnings.

By consolidating, there was no more problem of having goods but no buyers.

Division of labor was important. There were always those better or worse suited for tasks.

Leave the selling to us instead.

The people freed up from that would tend to our crops.

"Hmm. Well, I hope it works out."

Finn said that and wiped her sweat with the towel around her neck.

Winter had passed, and the cold had eased.

Working in strong sunlight made you sweat.

"Is that everything? I'm looking forward to this. Let's definitely come check on things between other work."

"That sounds nice, doesn't it, Master?"

"Yeah. We need to check on the Elemental Stone anyway."

Elza said she'd perform some ritual when the fragment returned to its original state.

Something about borrowing the power of a spirit.

Apparently it was related to Azu's Apostle power.

Honestly, I wasn't too concerned about that.

The Church of the Creator King was already a thing of the past. If Azu inherited that power, it would just make her more useful.

My feeling was that if she wanted to do it, I'd let her.

And if it helped Elza sort out her feelings, that was fine too.

"Well, it helps that we've made progress. We're going to be busy in the Royal Capital from here on."

"You were talking big, but are you going to be okay?"

"I'm still a merchant. Worst case, I'll sell it all at a street stall. Well, that probably won't be necessary though."

Alexia's concern was reasonable. But no problem.

After we decided to consolidate the sales, merchants from the Royal Capital had already reached out, having heard about it somewhere.

It was from the owner of a sizable food shop in the Royal Capital who'd apparently had his eye on the barley from here for a while.

But there was no unified supplier to buy from, and when he tried to set up proper distribution, the previous Luido upper management had gotten in the way.

Now that they'd been cleared out and a proper point of contact was established, he'd moved immediately.

Quick on his feet. Definitely a capable merchant.

I'd already arranged to meet him. I definitely wanted this to be a three-way-win deal.

"You look happy."

"That's the face Master makes when he's doing money calculations."

"Such a wicked expression."

"Does this guy have nothing else to enjoy?"

"Shut up. The more money you have, the more useful it is, so it's fine."

I yelled back at the heckling.

The other party was above my weight class. I had to make sure I wasn't looked down on.