Chapter 21 - 21: Announcement
The applause had not yet died down when the mayor, cheeks flushed from wine and excitement, waddled up to the judging stand with both arms raised. A hush fell over the crowd like a curtain. Eren stood rooted to the platform beside his colossal, unusually fragrant pumpkin—glossy, plump, and somehow radiating a faint aura of smugness.
"Ahem!" Mayor Rhun cleared his throat as if he were about to announce the second coming of farming messiahs. "After rigorous judging, cross-verification with the botanical council, and a surprising lack of bribery this year... I hereby declare—"
Eren's heart was punching his ribs.
"—that Eren has taken first place in this year's Verdant Bloom Competition!"
Cael frustrated "I lost?"
This can't be. Right?. I always win I never lost. I never lost to anyone.Anyone...Eren I'm gonna take my revenge just wait I'll crush you into pieces. Eren
The roar was deafening. Confetti—made of real shredded cabbage, for some reason—burst into the air. Children screamed. Mira squealed next to him, leaping up and down.
"You did it! I told you planting in moonlight might be genius!"
Eren blinked. He'd actually won.
The mayor slapped him on the back with the force of a small earthquake. "As promised, for our glorious winner: a reward of 100 gold pieces, a certified Verdant Bloom Trophy, and a personally endorsed Soil Tier Elevation to Tier 2!"
The crowd gasped. That was no small jump. Eren swallowed.
[SYSTEM UPDATE]
Congratulations. Title Earned: "Champion Cultivator." New Skill Unlocked: [Greenthumb Lv.1] – Slightly increases plant growth rates and fertility when tending crops manually.
"Nice," Lira giggled. "You're finally starting to look like a hentai farming protagonist. All that effort... and only slightly better growth."
"I'll take it," Eren muttered. Even a one percent edge could be the difference between surviving winter and going back to eating bark soup.
The other competitors began to approach, and each carried a different vibe entirely.
Cael the Rootmaster strode forward like a general surveying a battlefield. Cloaked in red and brown, the man had a beard long enough to be tucked into his belt and eyes as sharp as hoes. He eyed Eren's pumpkin like it had betrayed him personally.
"Tch. You trained under whom, boy?" Cael asked, voice low and rough. "Because no unblooded farmer from Hillford pulls that off without a mentor."
Eren straightened. "Self-taught. Just trial and error. And manure. Lots of manure."
Cael's eye twitched. Then he gave a short, grudging nod. "You're lucky. I would've crushed you... Next year I will win.."
Before Eren could ask what the hell that meant, Helena of Hearthglen floated in. Literally. Her elegant green dress shimmered like leaves under rain. She didn't walk—she glided. The scent of mint and starlight followed her like a perfume ad.
She gave Eren a long look, her finger twirling a glowing sprig of moonherb between perfectly sculpted fingers. "A simple pumpkin beat my glowing dusk-lavender tulips? Hmm. Either the judges have no taste... or you, farmer boy, are far more interesting than you appear."
Eren blinked. "Uh. Thank you?"
She leaned closer. "If you ever want to cross-pollinate our methods, my greenhouse is open."
Mira rolled her eyes. "Oh wow. She used the old cross-pollinate line. Classic."
Then came Brudo the Beardless, stomping up with the intensity of someone who'd just lost a drinking contest and a bar fight in the same minute. He was shorter than Eren's waist, rounder than a turnip, and covered in cabbage bits.
"Rigged! All of it! My crop was alive this year! ALIVE! And it sang!"
Eren blinked. "What did you grow again?"
"Doesn't matter! These backwater judges don't understand artistry!"
He threw a radish at the mayor, missed, and stormed off.
Then came Mila of Suntrail. Short, sun-tanned, lean, and smiling like she knew something Eren didn't. She spun a sunflower stalk like a baton.
"Congrats, Hillboy. I like a man who can handle his seeds."
Eren's face flushed. Lira actually choked.
Mila winked. "You'll be hearing from me. I wanna dance my crops around yours sometime. Could be fun."
"S-Sure."
[SYSTEM NOTICE] You have gained +3 Charisma with the following individuals: Helena, Mila, and Lira (jealously suppressed).
The post-ceremony feast was a chaotic joy. Barrels of cider were rolled out, roasted squash with honey, candied yam skewers, pumpkin pies with mysterious purple sprinkles—it was a farmer's heaven.
The mayor presented Eren his golden sack of 100 coins in front of the whole village. The coins were heavy and warm in his hands.
"You've earned your place among the topsoil elite, lad," Mayor Rhun bellowed. "Next year, we expect fireworks from your plot!"
"You'll get more than fireworks," mira whispered beside Eren. "You'll get genetically engineered firefruit."
Eren turned toward his prize pumpkin, now being worshipped by three small children.
He looked down at his hand, where the system icon flickered faintly.
[Champion Cultivator: 1st Title] [Greenthumb Lv.1] – Grants +10% growth speed when tending by hand. Slight increase to soil health retention. Chance to produce rare sprout during harvest.
His heart pounded with something close to... pride. It had started with rotting cabbage and questionable seeds, but now?
He was someone here.
Eren grinned.
"Next year," he said aloud, mostly to himself, "I'm growing a fruit that moans when you touch it."
Lira blinked. "Your Finally—"
Eren cut it. "I'm just Joking"