After planting the cherry blossom trees in the Royal Palace and leaving the matter of marriage proposals from the nobles of Valkyra Kingdom to Lord Simon, I decided to help out in the fields in the Sanctuary so I can empty my head a bit from the world.
The Sanctuary grows all sorts of crops.
Grains like wheat and rice which would be staple foods, vegetables, and fruits. Additionally, there were also nuts, berries, and mushrooms which were blessings of the forest and copses, and even bamboo shoots from a bamboo forest.
Thankfully, there were no issues with crop cycling because of Dryas and Gnome.
We don’t even need to pay too much attention to the fertilizer. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t need any fertilizer, but it doesn’t take much time for Gnome and Dryas to condition the soil.
The Great Spirits and their familial spirits helped to make it possible for the few residents of the Sanctuary to work the fields without being overwhelmed.
I stepped into the somewhat tepid water covering the rice fields, and the feeling of the soft ground was strange.
「Kyahahaha! This is so fun!」
「That’s amazing, Kaede.」
Kaede yelled at the texture of the rice fields.
The eight spiders of the Arachne were the strongest on the rice fields.
Few of us have any experience with working the land. Only Marnie and Laeva had experience doing farmwork in their hometown. They’ve grown potatoes and wheat too, but this will be their first time with rice because it came from my place.
It’s everyone’s first time, so we’re having fun planting the seedlings.
「When you level up and stats rise, farmwork is easy peasy.」
Akane and Lulu-chan were all muddy as they planted the rice.
Today, the residents of the Sanctuary are planting rice together, so the Cat Sith family Mappo, Poporo, Miri, and Lala, the Catkin siblings Wappa and Sara, and the Human sisters Colette and Shirona, the Elven family Melty-san and her daughters Melanie and Malorie. The residents sheltered when the Sanctuary first came to be seemed to be enjoying themselves planting rice.
Melty-san’s family normally manage the orchard for work, and apparently only come to help during the rice planting and harvesting periods.
We should have helped sooner.
In this continent, bread made from wheat is the staple food in many regions, and only a fraction grow rice.
When the Sanctuary was first established, it started cultivating wheat, barley, and corn for grains, but it began growing rice because I wanted to eat rice.
In spite of that, I had never helped out with planting or harvesting it…… I was too busy. I couldn’t help it, now could I?
「Takumi-sama, everyone, let’s have lunch!」
「Yaaay! I’m hungryyy!」
「It’s already that time? Let’s take a break for lunch.」
The rice fields were vast and a lot of the residents were helping, but it wouldn’t end that fast. The amount we’ve planted since early morning today doesn’t even total to one third of everything.
Just when I wanted a break, Maria came with house maids carrying lunch.
「Everyone, gather on me. Okay 『Purification』!」
I used purification on everyone who had become covered in mud once they gathered near me.
Light engulfed us, we became clean, as if being covered in mud was all a lie. Fınd the newest release on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⟡𝕗𝗂𝗋𝖾⟡𝕟𝕖𝕥
「Oniichan, thank you!」
The Cait Sith sisters Miri and Lala clung to my waist and said thanks.
Unlike the Catkin whose parts were mostly still human, cleaning off the mud was normally difficult for the Cat Siths Miri and Lala. But with purification magic, even the dirt that penetrated into their fur was cleaned.
The maids began laying out carpets and arranging the food, and the residents helped out.
If this was when the maids first came, they would have said that this was their job. They would have refused our help, but now we have a relaxed relationship as a default in our house, so they’re now just having fun arranging things together with the residents today.
「Everyone, there’s a lot that’s been prepared so please eat as much as you like!」
Maria presented containers filled with food, and the children cheered and scrambled for the food.
They prepared a variety of foods that were deep fried, boiled, some side dishes, rice balls, and sandwiches for people who like bread.
The residents of the Sanctuary also brought their own food and we all enjoyed lunch together..
Under clear skies, things are nice once in a while.