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Chapter 12
“Is there nothing else besides that?”
“Yes. The Grand Ducal Castle originally pursues frugality as a virtue. Perhaps Madam also wishes to have her birthday celebrated?”
“No! Not at all!”
I shook my head vigorously in denial.
Well, of course—if they were to celebrate my birthday too, that would mean preparing a banquet for that as well. Just recalling the rough preparation process made me sick of it in imagination alone.
No, other noble ladies apparently hold small banquets twice a month—how do they do such troublesome things every time?
When I was studying the procedures for preparing banquets, that was the first time I thought it was truly fortunate that Kaien had no interest in empty formalities.
“If that is what you wish. Ah, that reminds me—quite a few invitations have come in. They are mostly from noble families belonging to the Grand Duchy.”
I answered without even thinking.
“Those, can I just refuse them all?”
“Do as Madam wishes.”
I already had plenty to do, and I did not particularly want to go out frequently as Grand Duchess. There would be nothing good to come from having my face widely known later on.
In the original work, monsters begin appearing in earnest roughly two years from now. Since it was an important event in the original, I remembered the timing precisely.
Once monsters begin to appear, movement will be severely restricted in many ways, so I had to do everything I could to prepare before then.
First of all, the first item.
“That reminds me—if you go straight east from the Grand Ducal Castle, I believe there is a forest.”
They say the most important thing in war is supplies.
“You mean the Floren Forest?”
“Yes.”
I smiled cheerfully at Ollendo, who asked with a puzzled look.
“Is it alright if I go there for a bit?”
Floren Forest.
A vast forest located to the east of the Grand Duchy. By the time the main story begins, it had already become a place swarming with monsters, making it a location few dared to approach.
In truth, it was one of the most brutal dungeons, with creatures that bewitched people—at least ten people went missing there every month. In the original work, Alek also visits this forest to search for a missing child.
“Wow…….”
Of course, that is only in the original work.
Bright sunlight poured down on leaves glowing softly in blue-green. The grass, the bushes, and even the trees—the forest, tinged with blue-green throughout, exuded a mystical atmosphere in itself.
Birdsong came from far away, and insects resembling crickets hopped across my path.
So the forest before being corrupted by demonic energy was this beautiful.
Walking with servants behind me, I could not stop marveling as I looked around.
Who would think that such a beautiful forest would become a gloomy monster den in the future?
Ah, this is no time for that.
I scanned the surroundings with hawk-like eyes. And soon found one of my targets and bent my knees.
“There it is!”
As soon as I saw the flame-shaped grass sprouting, I found myself humming.
That’s right.
This is one of the reasons this place becomes a monster den in the future. It is because Peilance, a mana-infused herb, grows here. Monsters love places dense with mana.
‘Wow, Lubran, Silakio, and even Mondrewood?!’
That was not all. This place was a hotbed of herbs that are among the most frequently used in the original worldview. Their appearances were so distinctive that they were easy to recognize.
Peilance absorbs mana floating in the air to grow. And it was common knowledge that the richer the mana in a location, the more precious herbs grow there.
It is just that their efficacy is not yet properly known.
“Madam?”
After bouncing around inside my head for a while, I turned to the servants waiting with large baskets, wearing a prim expression.
“Could you dig up this, this, and all of these? Please be careful not to damage the roots.”
As I said again, war is first and foremost about supply.
The future world where monsters begin to proliferate in earnest is chaos itself. The empire, blessed by the guardian dragon, was relatively better off, but even that suffered more damage the farther one went from the capital, the center of the blessing.
The servants, though looking bewildered, began digging up the herbs and placing them in baskets following my words.
After collecting herbs while walking around the entrance of the forest for quite some time, I carefully planted them with wide spacing in the field I had prepared in the back garden of the Grand Ducal Castle.
In the future, all these herbs grow in dangerous zones, making them difficult to obtain easily. The Floren Forest alone is one of the top dungeons in the original work and a highest-level danger zone.
That is why Alek and his companions also sought methods to gather, cultivate, and propagate herbs, spending about a year through repeated successes and failures.
“Water them three times a day, and replace the magic stones stuck here once a month. Use only the fertilizer I give you. I will vary the amounts slightly for each section.”
It is truly a shame I do not have Rekio’s bone powder. I heard it is so good as a growth accelerator.
“Yes, Madam.”
Of course, since I had read the original, I knew the methods roughly. However, there were ingredients I could not yet obtain, so some trial and error seemed necessary.
I felt a little guilty, as if I were stealing Alek and his companions’ efforts, but in the end, this is all for your sake.
Once I succeed perfectly in cultivation and leave records behind, Alek will make good use of them on his own, right?
I nodded to myself at the perfect plan. Help them without getting entangled with Alek, and I can quietly escape from the original story.
Thus, I repeated going to the forest in the morning and tending the field in the afternoon for over a week.
Seeing myself still only slightly tired after all that, I realized anew just how healthy this body is. When I was an office worker, all I did was work all day and collapse onto the bed the moment I got home.
“What on earth are you doing?”
As I crouched in the herb field, planting herbs and patting down the soil, a shadow fell over my head. Looking up, Kaien, dressed impeccably, was looking down at me.
“A hobby!”
When I answered brightly, Kaien narrowed his eyes.
“A hobby?”
“Touching soil puts my mind at ease. Ah, I have almost finished the tax organization!”
When I insisted I had absolutely not been slacking off, Kaien was silent for a moment before speaking.
“I heard you organized it quite thoroughly, as it happens.”
“Ah, you are thinking that is unexpected right now, aren’t you?!”
Seeing him subtly avoid my gaze, I must be right. Honestly, for someone who talks so little, he is surprisingly transparent.
“You seem not to know, Your Highness, but I am much—much smarter than I look? I also have a good memory.”
“…….”
“While we are on the subject, I was thinking we might overhaul the tax collection system this time. I noticed while organizing that it is far too haphazard right now. If you do not mind, shall I take charge of it?”
“You?”
“Yes!”
It is not just because of my memories from when I was Joo Ha-yeon—I have always been good with numbers. Back then, I never thought I would have talent in this area, though.
“Anyhow, is the scale not too large for a hobby?”
Kaien gestured with his eyes at the enormous field occupying the entire back garden. Even I thought it was a bit excessively large, so I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
“It is just as well—I am also taking responsibility for the household affairs of the Grand Ducal Castle.”
“Huh……?”
“Please look forward to it, Your Highness the Grand Duke. I will make the Grand Ducal house the richest in the empire!”
Kaien, who had been looking down at me as I declared cheerfully, shrugged his shoulders lightly.
“A fine ambition. I shall look forward to it.”
I am serious, though.
The words “Do you know how much these herbs are worth?” rose to the tip of my tongue, but I barely held them back. Frankly, if I succeed in cultivating them, they will be worth an enormous sum in a few years.
Well done, Wendy!
After sending Kaien off, I continued quietly tidying the herb field with the servants.
Having entered summer and being midday, sweat dripped down my chin as I suffered under the sun despite wearing a straw hat.
Ah, it’s hot!
“Madam, I brought water!”
“Ah, thank you.”
As I took the water bottle Fiona handed me and wiped my face with a cloth, a pure white object crossing the sky caught my eye.
