“Thank you for inviting us this time.”
“Likewise, thank you for coming all this way.”
“Well then, we will be going now.”
After the guests invited to the party exchanged greetings with Frederick and boarded their carriages, the carriages set course for home. Caro and Frederick saw them off.
“Father, they’ve gone home.”
“Yes, we managed to pull it off.”
Frederick replied with a look of relief at Caro’s words. The day after the party ended, participants returned to their respective homes after staying one night in the prepared rooms. The party itself was a fairly common one held for lower aristocrats, with no particular surprises. However, the various vegetables and fruits harvested from the Sumput, served as dishes, were very well received by the attendees, and much of what was prepared disappeared into their stomachs.
“Father. We still have more to do, so please stay focused until the very end.”
“Ah, I know. But this is being handled by the mayor, so I’m just accompanying him. It feels less stressful than running the party myself.”
At this point, the participants had split into two groups. Those who had plans for other parties later or wanted to relax at the mansion left at this time, just like the aristocrats who had just departed. However, not everyone had left yet. Today, a tour of the agricultural sites in Sumput, which was currently attracting attention, was scheduled. The motivations varied, from some aristocrats who were interested to those who just wanted to fill their time with no other plans, but about 30% of all participants remained in the area. This tour was scheduled to end in the morning, and after lunch, the remaining participants were scheduled to return to their respective homes.
“Well then, we’re counting on you today.”
“Yes, understood.”
A little time passed, and it was time for the aristocrats participating in the agricultural tour to gather. Carriages that had brought each aristocrat were waiting in front of the mansion. It wasn’t a long walk to the farmland, but aristocrats often used carriages even for such short distances. The participants had not yet appeared, but Frederick, who had arrived early, encouraged the mayor, who would be the guide for this tour. The mayor, on his first major assignment, looked nervous and repeatedly checked the documents in his hand.
“Father, it seems everyone has arrived.”
When Caro said this, aristocrats participating in the inspection began to emerge from the mansion one after another.
“Everyone, thank you for participating in the inspection of the farmland in our territory. Now, let’s board our respective carriages and depart. The locations have already been communicated to the coachmen of each household. Thank you for your cooperation.”
Frederick gave a greeting in front of the assembled aristocrats. Afterward, the participants boarded their carriages and departed for the farmland, starting with those ready to go.
“Otsupain-san, this way.”
Otsupain, who did not have a carriage, seemed to be heading to the farmland on foot because it was close. Caro spotted Otsupain and called out to her.
“Ah, Caroline-sama.”
“It’s not Caroline-sama. We’re comrades now, so please call me Caro.”
“Gah! Do I have to say that in front of the Baron?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I have no choice. Uh, Caro-san, is there something you need?”
Otsupain seemed nervous in front of Frederick. While resisting Caro’s request, she felt she couldn’t defy her and reluctantly called her Caro.
“Otsupain-san, you’re planning to walk, aren’t you? If you’d like, would you like to ride in our carriage with us?”
(Haa! You’re not going to refuse my invitation, are you? If you say something so insolent, I’ll reach into your hole and make your back teeth chatter.)
“Hiii! Yes, I’ll ride. Thank you for the offer.”
Otsupain, feeling as if she could hear Caro’s inner monologue, answered with a pale face.
“Father. I have something to tell you.”
“Hmm? What is it?”
Caro and Otsupain, along with Frederick, boarded the same carriage and began their journey. Then, Caro suddenly spoke to Frederick with a serious expression.
“Actually, Otsupain-san here has started dating Kent-san.”
“C-Caro-san, what are you saying all of a sudden!”
Otsupain was flustered by Caro’s bombshell. She frantically tried to figure out how to explain the situation to Frederick, even though it was true.
“Haa, another one has joined, has she? If Caro is satisfied, then so be it. Lady Otsupain, please be kind to my daughters as well.”
“Y-Yes!”
Kent already had several women around him. Frederick was not surprised that one more had joined now. Otsupain was so taken aback by the swift turn of events that she couldn’t quite process her thoughts and blurted out a strange response.
“Speaking of which, Otsupain-dono, you were a title holder, weren’t you? I see, so that’s why.”
Frederick understood the reason for bringing Otsupain into the fold and was convinced.
“Today, I will be your guide for this agricultural inspection as the mayor of Sumput. I appreciate your cooperation.”
Each carriage arrived at the assembly point, and as the aristocrats participating in the tour gathered, the mayor gave a greeting in front of everyone. In such cases, applause would usually follow the greeting, but since the speaker was a commoner, there was no applause, as it was taken for granted that he would guide them.
“Now, a viewing path has been set up. Please proceed carefully, watching your step.”
Paved roads had been created in the farmland to allow transport carriages to pass through. These were used as viewing paths to guide the visitors.
“First, we have the sweet potato fields, which have become familiar even in the Royal Capital recently.”
“Ooooh.”
Voices were heard from some of the aristocrats as they were led to the sweet potato fields. The mayor dug up a sweet potato nearby and showed it to the participants. It was large enough to be harvested, and although covered in soil, the participants looked with interest at the sweet potato, which had the familiar shape of a baked sweet potato.
“I have a question. Is this the harvest season for sweet potatoes?”
“No, there is no specific harvest season for sweet potatoes or any of the produce grown on this farmland.”
“What!?”
Everyone was surprised by the mayor’s explanation.
“The plot next to this one is scheduled for harvest next month, and the one next to that is scheduled for the month after. There are five such plots in total, allowing for harvest every month.”
“In other words, sweet potatoes can be cultivated regardless of the season?”
One of the aristocrats leaned forward and asked the mayor.
“No, it is peculiar that crops grow on this land regardless of the season. I cannot explain why, but that is how it is. If you were to cultivate it outside of this land, it is said that you would plant in spring and harvest in autumn.”
“…Strange land. The former lord, Kuroizei, never mentioned anything like this.”
One of the participants, who had been acquainted with the former lord Kuroizei, muttered.
“Now, for the next location…”
The mayor guided them through more fields where a wide variety of vegetables were grown. Despite it being the middle of winter, the leaves were vibrantly green and laden with fruit. The temperature, despite being mid-winter, was inexplicably not cold in this area, feeling rather warm instead. The participants took off their coats, and with sweat beading on their foreheads, they listened intently to the mayor’s explanations.
“It’s like a completely different world here.”
“Yes. Actually, Kent and Al created this farmland. Isn’t it amazing?”
“What? Kent was involved in creating this strange farmland?”
“Shhh, Otsupain-san, you’re too loud.”
“Ah, sorry.”
As Otsupain gazed at the peculiar farmland with curiosity, Caro quietly revealed the truth.
“I also only learned about the existence of fairies after joining the Holy Knights, that they are beings that bring wealth to the country. It truly is as I’ve been told.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. We Holy Knights don’t have enough magic power to use spells, but we apparently possess a small amount of magic. I don’t fully understand it myself, but I heard that the Queen herself conducted investigations in the knight order to find those with magic power. That’s how we were chosen.”
Otsupain explained to Caro how she came to be chosen as a Holy Knight.
“Based on how you’re speaking, you knew Al was a fairy, didn’t you?”
“That’s right. I didn’t hear it directly, but I can faintly see wings. Fairies are said to have wings. I’ve heard they vary depending on the type, from insect-like to bird-like. Unfortunately, with my abilities, I can only confirm the outline, so I called it wings, but it’s so unclear I can’t distinguish it from feathers.”
“That’s amazing. I wouldn’t know unless I asked Al to show me.”
Caro was amazed by Otsupain’s story.
“There’s another fairy hiding in Marie’s Bakery. There must be something that attracts fairies there. At first, I wondered why they built a sanctuary in a place like that, but I suspect that’s one of the reasons.”
“By the way, who is the other one?”
Caro asked with a slightly mischievous tone.
“A stylish woman who often stands at the register.”
“That’s Emily-san! She’s very close with Catherine-chan.”
“Is… is that so? Close with the Saintess, you say? Alright, that’s good to know.”
Unexpectedly learning about her boss’s human(?) relationships, Otsupain wore a satisfied expression.
“Now, finally, this is the orchard.”
Caro and Otsupain hit it off and became so engrossed in their conversation that they didn’t notice the mayor’s serious explanation of the farmland. Before they knew it, they had arrived at the last venue, the orchard.
“Here, as you can see, various trees are planted. And all of them bear fruit regardless of the season. Please pick one and confirm the taste.”
The mayor explained in front of a tree laden with many yellow mandarins.
“Hmm. This is quite something.”
“Wonderful. I’ve never heard of fruit being grown in such abundance at this time of year.”
The participants picked the fruit from the trees in the orchard and tasted it. Though it felt wasteful to see them throwing away perfectly good fruit into the provided trash bins after a single bite, there were so many fruits that their consumption had no impact on shipments. Judging by the comments from the attendees, there were no negative opinions about the taste; everyone ate them with apparent enjoyment.
“Caro-san, it’s wonderful to have all-you-can-eat delicious fruit like this. I might eat too much.”
“Otsupain-san, please don’t hold back.”
Otsupain ate various fruits with a happy expression. Caro watched her with delight.
“Now, the tour concludes here. I’ve hurried through the explanations, but I will take any questions you may have.”
The mayor finished his explanation, and it was time for a Q&A session. Incidentally, Otsupain was still rummaging for fruit in the orchard. Caro was accompanying her, so they were a little distance away from the main group.
“Now, let me ask directly. We heard you were looking for ways to improve things. Could you please tell us the secret behind the ability to harvest vegetables and fruits regardless of the season?”
One participant asked a question, and it seemed other participants had similar inquiries.
“I don’t know. This situation began after Lord Frederick became the lord of this territory. Before that, nothing like this happened.”
“In other words, Baron Frederick knows something?”
The aristocrat who asked the question pressed the mayor.
“I apologize, but I also do not know the reason for this. However, it seems to have happened after I commissioned someone for the reform of the farmland. I only heard that person was responsible for procuring fruits and vegetables cultivated in other countries.”
Frederick tried to help the troubled mayor, but it wasn’t very effective.
“Everyone, I will now speak about something that you may choose to believe or not. Please listen with that understanding. You are aware that a temple was built here not long ago. This was built to worship God. God bestows various blessings upon the country. However, these are not given unilaterally. Your prayers will be answered through faith and prayer. Pray with a pure heart, not for selfish gain. This is what is important. After my father was granted this land, I brought the person my father spoke of here. I asked that person to introduce new technologies and procure new varieties of vegetables and fruits, and I simply prayed to God for a bountiful harvest. And behold, this is the situation you see. Our family has shown great respect to the temple, which worships God, as a token of our gratitude. As proof of this, we have invited Otsupain-sama, who holds the second-highest position at the temple.”
“Eh? Me?”
Otsupain, naturally addressed by Caro, was flustered with her mouth full of fruit.
“Ngu, uh, hello.”
She hastily swallowed the contents of her mouth and gave a greeting that clearly didn’t befit someone in a high position.
“I see. So that’s why Viscountess Otsupain was invited to this party.”
“We should also make a large donation to the temple to receive blessings.”
“Alright! Let’s gather money!”
The participating aristocrats began talking about donating to the temple. Incidentally, Caro never mentioned spending money, and the Baron Frederick family had never donated even 1 G to the temple.
“That’s good, isn’t it? Otsupain-san.”
“It’s not good. Donations are welcome, but if they ask for something in return, we can’t grant wishes mired in selfish desires.”
“That’s fine, that’s fine. Just say that you still need more prayers, and the money will keep coming in. Since you donated on your own, you can’t ask for refunds from the temple, which is headed by the Saintess.”
Caro said with a smile.
