Chapter 69 Loyalty To Grandchester
"Right, right, Mr. Alexander. You said 'it's not a medicinal garden' earlier, didn't you?"
"Yes, I did."
"Actually, I want to plant medicinal herbs too, but can I ask you something? I'll call the fairies now."
Theofrastos showed interest in this.
"Lady Sara, what kind of herbs are you considering?"
"First, I want to plant potatoes and marigold together with flaxes."
"Together, you say?"
"Yes, because potato and flax have a good compatibility, planting them together can expect to repel pests."
"Is that the wisdom of the fairies?"
'Ah, companion planting is just a memory from my past life, though...'
Then, Pochi suddenly popped out from between Sara's hair and whispered in her ear.
"You can say it's our wisdom. We're going to talk about it anyway."
"Yeah, thanks."
Next, Mike led the fairies from the garden into the tent, and they deliberately made their bodies glow. It was a bit dazzling to Sara's eyes.
"Wow, are these the fairies?!"
"Mr. Theofrastos can see them too, right?"
"I can see many faint lights, but I can't make out their clear outlines."
As she looked around, she saw the fairies flitting about. It seemed that others could see the light too.
"Can you hear their voices?"
"No, unfortunately."
"Then, if I try this, can you hear them?"
Sara thought that he might be able to hear the fairies' voices using wind magic. To activate the magic, Sara imagined tuning into radio or TV frequencies.
"Ah, I can hear a faint rustling sound!"
Theofrastos exclaimed loudly, and the fairies, startled by his voice, quickly hid behind the maidens.
"Father, aren't the fairies startled? Please don't shout suddenly."
"Ah, sorry."
Alicia the Alchemist Girl scolded him, and Theofrastos slumped his shoulders in disappointment. Pochi, who saw this, spoke to Theofrastos.
"It's okay. We just got startled, that's all~."
As if this was a signal, the hidden fairies began flying around inside the tent again. It seemed that the magic had been successful.
"Now everyone can hear the voices of the fairies, which is the best part!"
Then, while chatting with the fairies, Sara told them about her plan to divide Jade and the others' fields into sections and cultivate various plants other than rice. The fairies, who had knowledge of "crop rotation," agreed to help, suggesting that they plant different crops in each section and rotate them regularly.
As Companion Plants, they taught about herbs like Marigold, Rosemary, Flax, Chamomile, and Basil, which could also be used as medicine. There were many herbs that didn't exist in Sara's previous lives, and the fairies' knowledge was extremely useful. Among them were the herbs that Theofrastos and Alexander had been looking for, so they planned to cultivate them in larger quantities.
Flax, also known as Linseed, is a plant that produces linen fabric and linseed oil from its seeds.
In this country, cotton is the dominant fabric, followed by wool and other animal hair fabrics, and then linen fabrics. Silk, which is imported from other countries, is a luxury item that only the wealthy can afford.
Sara wanted to introduce flax fabric into this textile market. Of course, flax fabric wasn't entirely nonexistent, but it was rare to find because few farmers cultivated it in this country. For now, they would focus on experimental cultivation, but they planned to make soft, comfortable bedding and underwear using flax fabric.
'And, Flax is a Companion Plant for potatoes, isn't it? This is like killing 2 birds with one stone, right?'
Since it's already too late in the season for spring crops, they'll have to skip them for now. But considering the combination of tomatoes and basil, it's clear that Sara is a foodie. Her brain is probably filled with memories of caprese, pizza, and pasta from her Sarasa days.
They're also planning to plant soybeans, and some of them will be suitable for edamame. It's hard to deny that Sara loves sake, too. Honestly, she wants to plant corn as well, but it's a type of grass, so it's not possible for now.
For now, Jade and her parents' farm cultivation plan has been decided. They'll also be growing herbs needed by the Alchemist Guild and Pharmacist Guild, which will guarantee a stable income if successful.
'Ugh, one year is too short. Depending on next year's results, we might even consider re-signing the contract...'
Sara got so caught up in the cultivation plan that she started thinking about it unintentionally. As a result, she ended up planning for the next 4 years, but of course, it's up to Jade and the others to accept the plan.
'If that doesn't work out, we can always try it in a different region. Being a contract farmer for the Merchant Guild isn't so bad either.'
"Then I'll cut off the magic for communicating with the spirits. My magic is running low, so..."
"Have you been using it continuously?"
"Of course. If I don't, you won't be able to hear them."
"That's an incredible amount of magic power!"
"No, it's not that much..."
Sara tried to be humble, but in reality, even if she maintains the magic continuously, her magic power doesn't decrease that much. It's better to keep up this misunderstanding.
* * *
"Well, I'll help with the outdoor reaping while using magic to instantly cultivate the planned crops. It would be a shame if we didn't know what we're growing, so I'll show you a successful example of cultivation first."
"Can Lady Sara use wood-attribute magic as well?"
"Yes, I can, but this time it's more about the spirits' power. I think my role is just to lend them my magic power."
Sara stepped out of the tent and used her earth magic to dig a large hole at the planned point on the map. Next, she looked around and used her wind magic to gather the harvested wheat bundles, dumping them into the hole.
Then, she loudly called out to Jade, who was reaping nearby.
"Mr. Jade! From now on, I'll be using magic to harvest the wheat and weeds in this area, so could you please tell the others to keep their distance?"
Jade looked puzzled, but followed Sara's instructions and had the people reaping in the surrounding area stop and move away.
Once Sara confirmed that everyone had retreated, she used her wind magic to harvest the wheat and weeds in one go. Of course, she dumped the harvested crops into the hole. In about 20 minutes, the entire field was cleared of wheat and weeds.
"Ms. Sara, are you okay on magic power?"
Rebecca approached, looking worried.
"It's completely fine. It seems that my magic power has increased significantly, probably due to the rebound effect from using up all my magic and collapsing."
'Isn't that the standard cheat in isekai, using up all your magic and passing out?'
It's unclear if that's really the case, but with magic like this, she doesn't feel like she's using up any magic power at all.
"If you're okay, that's good, but don't overdo it, okay?"
"Yes, Miss Rebecca."
As Sara glanced around, she saw that all the farmers were staring at her and Rebecca. It was only natural. From their perspective, they had finished a task that would normally take days in just half a day.
After a brief silence, a loud cheer erupted.
"Thank you, Lady Sara!! Loyalty to Grandchester!"
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