Chapter 21 Predicting Harvest Yields And Newcomer Training
The next day, Sara headed towards the office building after finishing her classes, where an unfamiliar bureaucrat was waiting near the entrance. Pollux stood up and called out to the bureaucrat.
"Miss Sara, this person is a subordinate who will predict the harvest yields for us."
"Ah, you've arrived quickly."
"I'm Wasato. I'm a commoner, so I might make some mistakes, but please forgive me."
"Don't worry. I'm also a commoner whose grandfather is great. I used to work at a small shop until recently."
The maids around them were shocked by this statement.
"Milady, what are you saying!"
But Sara didn't change her attitude.
"It's the truth. As a member of the Marquis family, I won't forget my manners, but I also won't put on airs just because of my grandfather's influence."
"Yes, but..."
The maids looked at each other in confusion, and Wasato's face turned pale.
"Mr. Wasato, do you dislike talking to a commoner girl like me?"
"No, not at all. In fact, I'm relieved."
"Then let's start our conversation right away."
Wasato took a deep breath and began explaining the factors involved in predicting wheat harvest yields.
"Wheat harvest yields are greatly affected by the weather. Rainfall and sunlight hours are important, but the main thing to check when making predictions is temperature."
"Do you use the weather records from the Astronomical Bureau?"
"Yes, that's basically correct. However, my family is a wheat farm, so we measure the temperature in the middle of the field, and my brother records it regularly."
"That's amazing! It's real-world experience. By the way, what's the predicted harvest yield for this year?"
"Based on current predictions, it should be around average or slightly higher."
"That's great!"
However, when Wasato showed them the data, it was just a table with numbers and no graphs or formulas, making it difficult to understand. Sharing this with others would certainly be challenging.
"I think it's a loss for the territory if only Mr. Wasato can use this knowledge."
"Ah, thank you very much."
"But if we leave it like this, it won't be conveyed to others. Let's create a regular harvest forecast report and make it public. In the future, I'd like to make it possible to forecast harvests for crops other than wheat as well. And to make it easy to compare with previous years' values, I propose using a 'graph' as a way to present the data."
Sara lectured on how to create line graphs, bar graphs, pie graphs, and composite graphs, addressing Wasato. Robert, Rebecca, the bureaucrat, and even the maids were all listening with great interest.
Although it was something she had done before, Sarasa was extremely skilled at creating materials. Reports and presentation materials were her specialty. As she began explaining how to write in a way that's easy to understand, create tables and graphs that are easy to see, and how to write materials, not just Wasato but others started taking notes as well.
'It reminds me of when I was in charge of onboarding new employees.'
Wasato, who had received the lecture on graphs and material creation, declared that he would quickly create a report on harvest quantity forecasts and hurriedly returned to his office.
Incidentally, the "How to Draw Graphs" textbook created based on the notes taken by Rebecca and the maids during this time became a highly acclaimed textbook used in the Academy's math classes.
Similarly, Benjamin, who immediately recognized the usefulness of graphs, incorporated them into the basic format of the documents he was drafting. This would later become known as the "Grandchester-style" and be used in the royal palace and other territories as well.
However, what caused an even greater sensation than these 2 was the harvest quantity forecast report submitted by Wasato a few days later, along with the paper explaining the calculation method. Although it had been kept secret as a Grandchester territory technology for several years, it was made public at the king's request and spread throughout the country in an instant. The Astronomical Bureau established a dedicated department for harvest forecasting, and it would eventually target various crops beyond just wheat.
Mostly, Sara didn't expect things to become such a big deal, but with the maids urging her to hurry, she was making preparations to return to the main residence in a fluster.
As Sara was in a rush, James and Benjamin approached her, telling her that they had arranged for her to meet with the representatives of the Alchemist Guild and the Adventurer Guild the next day.
"Which representative will you meet with first?"
Benjamin asked.
"Uh, I understand about the Alchemist Guild, but what's the Adventurer Guild?"
James answered.
"The Adventurer Guild is in charge of requesting the extermination of monsters around the mine area."
"It's not like we're sending the Knights, right?"
"That's considered a last resort, I think. They exist to protect the territory from external enemies, after all."
"There's a division of labor even in jobs that use force, you know," Benjamin added.
"That's right. When requesting help from the Adventurer Guild, we need to decide beforehand what range we're targeting, and so on," James explained.
"Is that so? Then, please call both representatives at the same time."
""Huh?""
Both James and Benjamin tilted their heads.
"Miss, why do you want to call them together? Refining liquor and exterminating monsters are completely different, aren't they?"
"I want to hear about herbs from the alchemist."
"But isn't it the pharmacist who creates medicine from herbs, not the alchemist...?"
'Huh? Are pharmacists and alchemists different professions? I've been relying too much on my knowledge from Sarasa-era light novels...'
While Sara was inwardly confused, she thought it was important to understand each profession correctly and decided it would be better to hear from each of them separately.
"Then, please call the pharmacist as well. And, Mr. Pollux and Mr. Castor, please participate in the meeting. Since it's going to take a long time, please wrap up your morning work at a good stopping point."
She called out to Pollux and Castor, who were working at their respective desks.
""Understood.""
Both of them briefly looked up and responded, then immediately returned to their work. This kind of rough treatment would normally be scolded by a noble lady, but for the bureaucrats who were used to dealing with Sara, it was normal.
Robert's voice called out to them.
"Are we not needed?"
"Uncle, Mr. James, Mr. Ben, you all can participate if you want, but you have a lot of work piled up, so I'm not sure if it's okay to ask..."
"I think Sara's going to do something interesting, and I'm getting distracted, so I can't focus on my work."
Then, the bureaucrats and maids nearby all nodded in agreement. Some of them were looking at documents, and Sara was reminded of the "red-faced" expression she saw during her Sarasa days.
"Do I look like that?"
"You totally look like that!"
"That's so mean!"
It seems Sara is getting along smoothly with the office members. Or rather, it's the office members who are getting used to Sara.
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