TMDWS 7

Chapter: 7

“The remaining roots,” Brisa said calmly, giving her instructions.

“They’re hard and very dense, so if we dig them up properly, they’ll sell for a decent price. If the guild gives us the rice bran or wheat bran they still have in their warehouse, we’ll allow them to harvest the roots as well.”

In any case, the roots had to be pulled out in order to plant seed potatoes.

By using manpower the guild master could mobilize, we could obtain rice bran and wheat bran while also conserving our own labor.

There’s going to be an endless amount of work ahead. We need to save manpower wherever we can.

The guild master asked with an uncertain expression, clearly unsure whether he could trust all this.

“Miss… where did you learn all this?”

At that, the maids burst into chatter once again.

“Our young lady is a genius!”

“She could read letters at three, and spoke five languages by the age of seven!”

“The princess herself personally taught her history, culture, refinement, and etiquette! She graduated first and second in rank at the Capital Academy!”

Amid their noisy praise, Brisa replied dryly.

“There’s a book called Basic Understanding of Soil that covers a lot about soil properties and farming methods. Volume seven of Types and Uses of Fruit Trees deals with olive trees.”

The guild master took out his notebook again, but Brisa continued.

“They’re books from the Capital Academy library. Both are original texts written in the language of the Kingdom of Sernin, so they’d be difficult for you to read.”

The maids’ praise was useless—but it was more than enough to earn the guild master’s trust.

“Old olive trees have especially beautiful growth-ring patterns, so they’re quite popular as decorative lumber,” Brisa said, gazing thoughtfully at the wood.

“But drying and processing them isn’t easy, so when you take them to the west, don’t ask for an excessive price.”

“Is that so?”

The guild master’s eyes sparkled with confidence.

“The Nogen Ducal House in the west has been purchasing various materials lately. Selling it to them would be perfect. Thank you for the advice.”

“In that case, make sure you give us plenty of rice bran and wheat bran.”

“That’s not something people eat anyway,” the guild master laughed. “It’s piled up in the warehouse, so of course we can give you a lot.”

“Really? Then just give us all of it.”

“Yes! That’s possible! But… what do you plan to use it for?”

“Somewhere it won’t make you money.”

Rancy quietly looked down at Brisa.

She’s sharp.

Knowledge and execution.

Despite her young age, she more than possessed the qualities of a true lord.

Still, one question lingered.

But why keep those maids around her?

Wasn’t it natural for capable people to gather around someone capable?

Why were only such unrealistic maids surrounding her?

At the very least, shouldn’t she discipline them for saying useless things? Why doesn’t she?

Rancy decided he would ask her when the opportunity arose.

Thanks to the knights’ sword energy, the logging was finished quickly.

I stayed at the site the entire time.

By the time the roots were thoroughly pulled out and the soil overturned, it was already afternoon.

The guild master left the marquisate grinning broadly, his carts loaded with timber.

“Let’s see…”

I examined the seed potatoes the potato squad had brought back.

As expected from people with farming experience, the seed potatoes were all in excellent condition.

“Alright. Now make the ridges and plant the seed potatoes with the sprouts facing upward. Philip, show them how it’s done.”

“Yes! Everyone, watch carefully!”

Philip demonstrated how to plant the seed potatoes himself.

At that moment, a snort of laughter came from among the knights. It was a female knight with a rough-looking demeanor.

I looked at her quietly.

She spoke up, sounding defensive.

“No, it’s just… kind of funny, isn’t it?”

She was a woman with red hair tied into a ponytail.

“Of all things, potatoes… going through all this over something like that.”

I sighed inwardly.

I had expected something like this might happen.

They were all people of Alphiers.

Given how irritated they already were because of the maids, it would have been stranger if no one objected at all.

“What’s the point of making us do this kind of pointless work?” she continued. “Is this supposed to make us look ridiculous, Miss? If you think we’re a joke, then just ignore us like before. We’re busy enough just keeping up with our training.”

Fortunately, only one maid remained by my side. The others had returned to the marquis’s residence to prepare dinner.

The maid raised her hand, frothing with rage, about to slap the female knight.

“How dare you speak back to the young lady—!”

I quickly stopped her.

If the two of them actually fought, the maid would lose her life.

In the meantime, the female knight—Wendy—turned with a flourish and shouted at the other knights.

“We’re people who shared life and death with Lord Alphiers! This is turning our lord into a laughingstock! Don’t you get it? Unless you’ve gone insane like your mother, why would you suddenly dig up a perfectly fine olive plain just to plant some damn potatoes—!”

The surroundings fell silent.

The maid collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. She had gone into respiratory distress.

Philip muttered,

“…That was too far.”

The other female knights standing behind Wendy clicked their tongues.

“She brought up her mother.”

“Look at her character…”

The atmosphere turned ice-cold, and Wendy flinched, seemingly realizing she had crossed a line.

I asked calmly,

“What’s your name?”

“W–Wendy Haight.”

“Wendy. From now on, you don’t need to plant potatoes. You’re excused from all future knightly duties if you like. Train privately as you see fit.”

In the frozen silence, Wendy’s eyes shifted quietly.

“However, even though I really didn’t want to go this far…”

I spoke solemnly, then paused.

Before speaking the next words, hesitation was unavoidable.

Was it right for one person to give another such an order?

Was it truly acceptable to be this cruel?

But a superior had to be cruel when necessary.

“Since you didn’t plant potatoes, from now on you—”

My voice trembled with conflict until the very end.

Still, I delivered my judgment firmly.

“You are forbidden from eating potatoes from now on.”

At that moment, I saw everyone in the garden barely suppress their laughter, faces drained of strength.

Even Wendy.

She even seemed to forgive her young lord internally.

Hah… why am I even getting into a power struggle with a child…

It was as if I could hear her thoughts.

Philip, still holding a seed potato, spoke quietly.

“Um… seeing a grown adult lose their temper in front of a twelve-year-old lady… doesn’t look very good. I only realized that once I stepped back.”

He looked genuinely pained.

“I apologize again for my disgraceful behavior during our first meeting. It’s truly shameful. I hope everyone can forget it.”

“It’s fine,” I said generously, nodding.

“I’m going to record it in the history books anyway.”

Of course, that realization would come much later.

Much later, everyone would understand just how cruel my punishment truly was.

After planting the seed potatoes, we arrived at the marquis’s residence.

“Um, Miss… would it be alright if I spoke with you privately once we arrive?”

Rancy asked hesitantly.

“There was something I wanted to ask you directly while reviewing the budget…”

“That’s fine.”

I followed Rancy into the office.

It had once been my father’s space, and now it belonged to Alphiers.

I thought I’d be the one to inherit it…

I swept the room once with lingering eyes, then pointed at the documents piled on the desk.

“What are all those?”

“I was整理ing the marquisate’s budget. Five years’ worth—but not a single thing was properly organized, so I had to check everything one by one…”

My lingering regret vanished immediately.

I had been ten years old when I left the marquis’s residence, too young to know the details of the budget.

But according to the original story, this household had already become a disaster to inherit.

I sat proudly in one of the chairs in the office.

“So you’re in charge of the marquisate’s finances now?”

“I handled all matters involving money and documents back in the mercenary corps as well.”

Rancy sighed and sat across from me, then spoke carefully.

“Miss… there’s actually one question I’d like to ask, and one favor I’d like to request…”

“Ask the question first.”

“Yes. It’s about one of the budgets from five years ago… There’s an allocation labeled ‘Personal Top-Secret Matter – Related to Brisa.’ It amounts to two full years of the marquisate’s budget.”

Flipping through the papers, Rancy pointed to a specific entry.

“This is an enormous sum, yet there are no receipts, no detailed breakdown at all. I have no idea what it was used for… and the maids just keep saying they don’t know…”