Chapter 817: Footsteps of Autumn 4
I do wonder about Fiona, who’s growing surprisingly tall, and Princess Ran, who mysteriously stakes her life on paperwork, but this autumn brings plenty to do. I’ll leave managing their health to Laila and Maia, so first, I’ll focus on my own tasks.
“Keiron! You working? Not slacking off, are you?”
“See for yourself. You help out too”
Task Number One: Helping with the town harvest. Autumn passes quickly in Polka, and snowfall begins much earlier than elsewhere. That means crops must be harvested early or they’ll get frosted. Every household in town has a field, big or small, and come autumn, everyone starts harvesting at once. Households growing troublesome crops pay wages to gather helpers and must finish everything in one go. Even folks like Keiron, Naris, Grandpa Harry, and the town kids—who usually just hang around—can’t slack off during this season. If they look idle, they get dragged out to the fields to pull up turnips and radishes or cut and dry beans.
“Last year around now, I was traveling back and forth with Renfangas. Had no idea Polka was this tough this time of year”
Keiron grumbled as he pulled up turnips and stacked them. I swung my sickle at cabbages, twisting them off and loading them onto the cart. Besides us, there were neighborhood wives and kids, plus a few elves—cherry blossom or white, I think. It’s customary for neighbors to tackle one field each; today we’re helping Aunt Lindsey’s field. Tomorrow’s Johnny’s place.
“There just aren’t enough young folks these days. ……Still, apparently the workload’s lighter this year because we’ve got elves and cat beasts helping out”
“So it’s usually way tougher than this? How’d everyone manage to work without complaining?”
“Anyone with complaints finds some excuse to head off to the capital or somewhere. Until now, staying in Polka didn’t offer much hope of making decent money, so we couldn’t keep them here”
“I don’t think life’s all about making money, though”
“You can say that after seeing the world. But spending your whole life in Polka until you die? There’s absolutely nothing here. It’s unbearable. Honestly, if I hadn’t met Apple, I’d have been pretty excited about going to the capital as an apprentice”
“I guess that’s how it is. ……Yeah, I suppose so”
Keiron worked his hands while wearing a complicated expression. He himself was originally from the dense jungle region northwest of Celesta, the Great Armonica River basin known as the fox beasts territory. It was rural, sure, but the riverbanks saw some traffic, so it probably wasn’t as utterly desolate as this place.
“Well, it’ll be over in a week at most, and then it’s the Harvest Festival. Let’s do our best”
“What’s the Harvest Festival like?”
“For Polka, it’s got a decent spread. Not just all salted vegetables like usual”
“Just the feast?”
“There’s the usual dance party too”
“……I might actually get good at dancing”
In Polka, besides meals, singing and dancing were pretty much the only festive pleasures. And the variety of tunes and choreography is pretty limited. But even so, it was something to look forward to. It only happened in spring, autumn, and New Year. Besides the sacred spring that kept us healthy, that was all we had. Such a very tiny town. But maybe things will change from now on. There are elves and cat beasts. Dragons protect us from monsters, and soon a new town will be built nearby. The idea of this being just a boring country town……might end with our generation.
———————–
Next task.
“Normally, it would be proper to use Laila and the others, but for now, we’ll gratefully accept your help”
“Don’t worry about it. If it’s a command from Maia’s master, it’s our pride to work above all else”
“Dragons have time to spare, after all”
Dianne, Emma, and Leda, along with Airi and Juline, volunteered to accompany us. Their task is preparing the groundwork for the new 「Immigrant City」 of Kalwin. For now, it’s leveling the land, but even just laying out the plots will be extra work once the snow starts falling. No matter how much dragon strength we have, clearing snow from such a large area isn’t easy.
“We need to level this section of the map as usable land by the end of the month—from here to here. 200 meters square, 4 hectares. That’s the minimum needed to build a settlement. Ideally, we’d expand it another 16 hectares, but”
“……Four dragons, a month, for that size?”
“Isn’t that too small?”
Leda and Emma tilted their heads at Dianne’s plan. No, it’s plenty big. We’re turning wilderness into completely level ground, after all.
“Working day and night digging might make it possible, but it’s not just about leveling the ground. We have to dig up rocks and roots underground too, making it completely suitable for housing. We can’t make overly rushed plans”
Dianne remained cautious. However.
“That’s true if we rely solely on brute strength……but we could blow it all away completely and then refill it, right?”
“That’s true, but when you say blow it away……”
“Using the 『Jewel』 would make it easy”
“……What? What do you mean?”
Dianne looked puzzled at Juline’s words. ……Ah, maybe. Could it be that Dianne didn’t know about the dragon jewel producing an abnormal shock force when thrown?
“Since we’re here, let’s demonstrate. I happen to have the 『Jewel』 on hand”
Juline smoothly produced the 「Dragon Jewel」 from somewhere. Three on her palm.
Then, landing Airi’s dragon form on a mountainside far enough away from Polka, Dianne leapt into the air from a decent height while still in human form……and threw them. Seconds until impact. ……A thud, a sound carrying mass, bounced back up to the sky. Three massive holes, as if punched by an Anette Hammer, appeared on the ground, perfectly spaced in an equilateral triangle.
“……………….”
“Dianne-san?”
Dianne, who had been standing on Airi’s hand with me, was speechless. She slowly looked up at the sky and sighed.
“……That dragon was hiding a far more terrifying ability than dragon breath, wasn’t it……”
“Ah……emm”
“Breath requires flying at a certain low altitude. That’s why we could offer some resistance during the Fire Dragon War. But this……”
“……That perspective”
Indeed, if they’d just spammed this instead of breath, humanity would’ve been completely helpless. According to Broll-san, they did use this for some attacks too, but…….
“But it’s a material that doesn’t get damaged at all. Now that you mention it, if it has a property that completely resists impact, that would explain the insane destructive power……no, but if this gets out carelessly……”
“Dianne, Dianne, calm down a bit. For the dragons, this isn’t really something they’d hide in the first place. And while the jewel is forbidden, it’s not like it doesn’t exist in the world. Information control is pointless here”
“Ugh……I, I mean, well, maybe you’re right……”
Though her words suggested she’d regained her composure, Dianne couldn’t fully hide her agitation. To me, it was just a recent revelation, and I was merely impressed that such a use was possible……but I suppose for those who lived through the Fire Dragon War, this destructive power must be a shocking truth.
“……Sorry, I need to calm down. Let me rest at the Spirit Spring”
Seeing Dianne’s unusual reaction, Emma and Leda, who were on the other hand of Airi, exchanged glances. They looked confused too, thinking, she reacted like this……? Especially since Dianne was a fierce warrior who had stood her ground against the Silver Dragon Legion. They probably never expected her to react like this now. But Dianne’s confusion surely wasn’t the pragmatic 「What if this tactic were used against me?」. It was likely something far more complex, born of her experience in the Fire Dragon War. I can only imagine her feelings, but I get the gist. The horror of realizing something that should never have existed in history, something that would have changed everything if actively used, was just casually lying around. The terrifying realization that she existed on something far more precarious than she’d ever imagined. It’s not something you can dismiss with a simple 「Well, history didn’t turn out that way, so it’s fine」 and just toss aside. Compared to her, my life is pitifully short, but I can imagine that much.
Things to do. ……Right, I have work.
“Come to think of it……I really had to make it”
At Jackie-san’s workbench, I stared at a beautifully sparkling 「Jewel」 no bigger than the tip of my thumb and groaned. It was the one Broll-san had given Princess Ran during our recent visit to Misty Palace. I had to set this into Princess Ran’s jewelry. I’d been holding onto the actual gem, but kept putting it off. Still, it was the kind of job that would just sit forever if I didn’t start. Princess Ran probably isn’t rushing me either. But what should I do? Making accessories fit for royalty is, when you really think about it, a task beyond my station. And to use the 「Dragon Jewel」 while also keeping it from being too flashy……that’s borderline unreasonable. But……refusing isn’t an option, right?
“……This is definitely the best chance ever”
Literally, it’s a chance to make a name for myself as a craftsman. But creating jewelry with the 「Dragon Jewel」 itself is also a chance to test how well I can handle an unknown material and venture into new territory. Above all, it’s a chance to get closer to those two from Saint Gardo and learn about whatever troubles they carry. Throwing that away would be unthinkable.
“……I’ll give it a shot. Nothing ventured, nothing gained”
Anyway, it’s only half-baked. Trying to look cool has its limits. I just have to give it my best shot. Steeling myself, I set my face and began the crafting.
That night, as expected, I got so absorbed I was staggering. Maia came to check on me and dragged me off to the secret hot springs.
“You won’t be able to lecture that princess if you overdo it, so take it easy”
“……Yes”
I’m putting her through trouble. Sorry.