Chapter 193

Omen (3)

Title: I’m Thinking of Farming

Wild Grylls

(A picture of Wonmo sitting down)

Does anyone have any advice?

└ Heavenly Demon: Wonmo is adorable whenever I behold him. I wish to hold him in my arms.

└ SwordMaster: I know, right? Couldn’t you have something like a plushie made?

└ Grylls must provide one Wonmo to every person!

└ I’d rather have a plushie. I don’t think I could afford to feed a real Wonmo.

└ Why are you suddenly farming? Is there an emergency?

└ Wild Grylls: I have more mouths to feed now, and the holy knight mister says he wants to do it.

└ Now you’re making a man with an amputated foot work as a farmer?;;

└ Are you even human? That’s seriously too cruel, lol.

└ Wild Grylls: No, I’m letting him do it because he said he wanted to. I’m not forcing him.

└ Put your hand over your heart and think carefully. Have you really never made him work?

└ Wild Grylls: He already helped me build the house, so don’t worry.

└ ...

└ He was even worse than we imagined;;

└ "I’m already making him work, so don’t worry," lmaooo.

└ Still, Grylls is the landlord, so he has to listen to him, lol.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: Is there enough land there for farming? A small vegetable garden might be one thing, but proper farming requires a large area.

└ Wild Grylls: We have plenty of labor, so I think it’ll be fine.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: In that case, it shouldn’t be a problem. Normally, though, you need to spread compost or lime over the field two or three weeks beforehand.

└ Wild Grylls: Two or three weeks beforehand?

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: That gives the nutrients time to properly seep into the soil. The same applies to a vegetable garden.

I needed to learn how to farm for Ludwig’s sake.

When I posted on the Gallery, quite a few people shared their knowledge with me.

One particular registered user was especially helpful. Their explanations were detailed, so I decided to follow their advice.

I didn’t know you had to start preparing two or three weeks in advance.

I knew farming wasn’t easy.

People often said they would retire and become farmers, but in most cases, they were thinking of it as more of a hobby.

In other words, it was nothing like farming for a living.

Moreover, this place was far less developed than the world I had come from, so there would probably be many tasks that could only be done through physical labor.

I already felt as though I had hit a wall.

└ Since that’s the Forest of Four Seasons, isn’t the soil probably rich in nutrients to begin with?

└ That’s what I think too. Fully grown mandrakes can be found there, so there should be no shortage of nutrients...

└ Honestly, wouldn’t the crops grow perfectly well even without fertilizer?

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: I think so too. The crops will probably grow well enough if you simply plow the field and sow the seeds.

└ Wild Grylls: That’s the best thing I’ve heard all day.

But this was the Forest of Four Seasons.

It was a place where rare medicinal herbs and all kinds of plants grew.

Simply plowing the field should be enough to grow ordinary crops.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: By the way, what are you planning to plant? The way you prepare the field differs depending on the crop.

└ Wild Grylls: Give me a moment.

After reading Grow, Grow, Grow’s comment, I turned toward Ludwig.

"Come here, come here."

"Groan?"

"#$%%. Come here, come here."

"..."

Had he wanted to hold the fluffy Wonmo at least once?

Ludwig beckoned to Wonmo, calling him over.

Although an entire day had already passed, Wonmo still hadn’t approached Ludwig.

It wasn’t because he was wary of him. He simply saw no reason to go to Ludwig when I was already there.

On the first day, Ludwig had probably been too overwhelmed and confused to pay attention to anything else.

Conversely, this meant that he had now regained some peace of mind.

He was trying to befriend Wonmo.

"Kyuuu!"

Perhaps Wonmo sensed Ludwig’s feelings, because he toddled over to him.

Wonmo soon nestled into Ludwig’s arms and began rubbing his face against him.

The stern expression Ludwig always wore vanished without a trace, replaced by the doting smile of a father.

"Kyuu. Kyuu."

"Uhohohoho."

He reminded me of a father who threatened to throw out any dog his children brought home.

Yet after the dog arrived, he would cherish it even more than his own children.

My father had even made a fuss about being the one to take our dog for walks.

He used to tell me to stay home and play on the computer.

Now, all of that was merely a memory.

My parents had passed away, and the dog we had lovingly raised had eventually reached the end of its lifespan as well.

In any case, I asked Ludwig what kind of crop he wanted to grow.

Ludwig thought for a moment before drawing a picture and showing it to me.

"...Bread? Flour? Wheat?"

He had drawn a loaf of bread.

Bread was made from flour, and flour was made from wheat.

I roughly sketched some wheat and asked whether that was what he meant. He nodded.

I immediately told Grow, Grow, Grow the name of the crop.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: Wheat? Wheat has difficulty growing unless the soil is fertile. The climate needs to be dry too.

└ Wild Grylls: We’ll give it a try. We’re planning to start tomorrow.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: Understood. First, to prepare the field...

Grow, Grow, Grow explained how to prepare the farmland.

I had assumed we could simply run a plow or pitchfork through the soil, but that wasn’t the case.

We had to create raised beds for planting and drainage channels for excess water.

There was far more work involved than I had expected.

I recorded the user’s instructions in my notebook.

We weren’t starting today, so it was better to write everything down for tomorrow.

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: After plowing the field, you’ll need to sow the seeds. Do you have any?

└ Wild Grylls: No. Aren’t there any in the auction house?

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: Most of the varieties sold there are terrible. I can give you some wheat seeds.

└ Wild Grylls: Ooh... Thank you. Is there anything you need?

└ Grow, Grow, Grow: Could you give me some soil from the forest? Since it comes from the Forest of Four Seasons, I think I could use it in place of fertilizer.

That made perfect sense.

The Forest of Four Seasons was capable of growing even fully matured mandrakes.

Its soil might be more than merely fertile.

I purchased a bucket from the auction house and filled it with soil.

All that remained was to exchange it for the wheat seeds from Grow, Grow, Grow.

[Grow, Grow, Grow: For reference, wheat has difficulty growing when it rains heavily, so be careful. If it rains often, you may be better off planting rice instead.]

[Wild Grylls: Thank you.]

They continued offering advice even during the exchange.

What a wonderful person.

I examined the wheat seeds I had received.

They were contained in a bundle about the size of a fist, and there were quite a lot of them.

We weren’t planning to farm on a massive scale, so this should be enough.

"Mister, here are the wheat—"

"Kyuuu!"

"Hahahaha."

He seemed to be having fun with Wonmo.

I decided to leave him alone and let him continue playing.

Only a day had passed, so his emotions were probably still in turmoil. He deserved some time to heal emotionally.

Moreover, we already had a mountain of work ahead of us.

Starting tomorrow, we would be especially busy.

It really has been a month.

An entire month had passed since I began living in the Forest of Four Seasons.

Time had dragged unbearably slowly during the first two weeks, yet the rest had flown by before I realized it.

It was probably because my days had settled into a repetitive routine.

Conversely, that meant time would probably begin crawling again tomorrow.

Ludwig had arrived, and all sorts of things were bound to change.

I also need to show him all the places I’ve visited.

Someone might ask why I couldn’t simply show him the map, but my map was based on rough estimates and didn’t reflect the actual distances. It wouldn’t be particularly useful.

The only way to learn this place was through firsthand experience.

Even the sun rose from a different direction every day.

I never realized how damned irritating it would be for the sun to rise from a different direction every day.

If it had consistently risen from one direction, I could have roughly determined the cardinal directions.

But today it had risen to the right of the cave, while yesterday it had risen to the left.

Just as the area across the river changed in real time, this place must have been constantly shifting as well.

Let’s get ready for bed.

I prepared a mat for Ludwig too.

Thanks to his thorough bath, he no longer smelled bad.

The only remaining problem was his clothing.

I had given him something to wear, but...

That deer looks like it’s about to die.

Perhaps because he was a soldier, the clothes didn’t fit him properly.

The deer emblem was stretched so far to either side that it seemed to be screaming for help.

I therefore asked Cheonggu Princess whether she could acquire some larger clothes.

She readily agreed and said she would send them soon.

[Cheonggu Princess: You know how you’re supposed to repay me, right?]

[Wild Grylls: I wish Chaemess United every success.]

[Cheonggu Princess: That’s not it! Ludwig has to say it himself! I’ll be looking forward to it!]

[Wild Grylls: ...;;]

It appeared Chaemess United would gain another fan today.

I received the uniform from Cheonggu Princess and handed it to Ludwig.

Ludwig accepted it with his usual stoic expression, seemingly quite pleased with it—

"Kyuu?"

"No, mister. That’s meant for a person to wear. Don’t put it on Wonmo."

"#%%$"

He was putting the newly acquired uniform on Wonmo.

Wonmo already had clothes of his own, yet Ludwig was fussing over him like an overindulgent parent.

Thus, a considerably noisier night than usual passed, and the next morning arrived.

The first thing I did that morning was prepare breakfast.

...Why do I feel as though I’ve become everyone’s personal cook?

I pushed aside the strange feeling and decided to begin working immediately.

Today’s task was to travel downstream and collect sand.

It would also be a good opportunity to show Ludwig the route.

He really does treat a giraffe like a horse.

Just before we departed for the lower reaches of the river, Ludwig naturally climbed onto Largo’s back.

It was an extraordinarily bizarre sight.

Still, I was glad Largo obediently carried him.

"Let’s go."

"Mm."

The day began.

***

The true birth of human civilization began with agriculture.

Humanity had originally lived a nomadic existence sustained through hunting and gathering, but agriculture made communal settlements possible.

However, farming unintentionally produced a side effect.

That side effect was social class.

Agriculture created surplus produce, and surplus produce created trade.

In a world where food was necessary for survival, produce represented both survival and power.

The land from which that produce originated also became a source of power.

And so two groups emerged:

Those who farmed, and those who controlled the farmers.

Social classes naturally developed from there.

For that reason, some scholars called agriculture both humanity’s greatest achievement and its worst mistake.

└ So are you saying we shouldn’t farm?

└ Historically, countries that oppressed their farmers were destroyed.

└ Without farmers, the entire country would starve to death, lmaooo.

Farmers were so important that they formed the very foundation of a nation.

No matter how powerful a country might be, a famine could easily place it on the path toward destruction.

An empire that fell to foreign invasion could be rebuilt, but an empire that collapsed from within was destined to disappear.

A wise ruler therefore did not oppress farmers, but instead granted them numerous benefits.

A prime example of this policy was Robert, the former emperor of the Messiah Empire.

Robert had granted farmers tax reductions and various other benefits, increasing their sense of accomplishment.

Many nobles initially objected, but as the abundant harvests continued year after year, even they had no choice but to fall silent.

In that sense, the farmers of the Messiah Empire must currently have been tending their fields with smiles on their faces—

"Ah, fuck. This is so goddamned exhausting."

"I really hate farming."

"What good is having an ox? We still have to bend over in the end."

—Or perhaps not.

No matter how many benefits the farmers received, agriculture remained a primary industry.

In other words, it required an enormous amount of labor.

The work was inevitably physically grueling.

Even with oxen, people still had to plant the seeds themselves.

However, the rewards were undeniable, so they continued planting while grumbling all the while.

"Hey, Roy."

"What exactly have you been spreading around this whole time? Is it fertilizer?"

A middle-aged man planting seeds frowned as he asked the question.

Roy, a sturdy-looking young man, answered with an awkward smile.

"Um... Something like that. It shouldn’t matter, should it?"

"As long as you aren’t spreading poison. Still, be careful."

"Yes, sir. Underst—"

Roy was just about to answer.

Fwoooooosh!

Vegetation suddenly erupted from the places where Roy had scattered the soil.

The same thing happened everywhere else. Plants shot upward from every patch where Roy had spread it.

"W-What the hell is that?!"

"What in the world is happening?!"

Everyone recoiled in shock and watched.

Before long, the explosive growth finally stopped.

The crops now towered far above a person’s head.

Roy stared blankly up at them.

They looked like wheat.

Yes—on the surface, at least.

"Hey, Roy! What the hell did you spread?!"

At the old man’s furious shout, Roy answered uneasily.

"S-Soil."

More precisely, it was soil from the Forest of Four Seasons.