Chapter 291 Fluffy Is The Best
The next time Sara woke up was early the next morning.
While she was sleeping, the Grandchester territory had entered a time that should be called early winter rather than late autumn, and even inside her room, her breath turned white. Since she could move her body normally without using body enhancement magic, Sara slowly sat up.
When she got out of bed, she noticed a heavy feeling like after intense exercise, but it wasn't so bad that she couldn't walk, so she slowly walked to the window to look at the view outside.
From Sara's room, she could see the forest outside Grandchester Castle and the cityscape of the territory beyond it. The sky had a color that looked like a mix of dark blue and bright purple, and she could see smoke rising from cooking.
The noble families who had come for the hunting tournament had already left Grandchester, and the royal family had returned to the capital. It was already a time when the servants at the Grandchester main residence and the Jeffrey residence were bustling about, but Maiden's Tower was still wrapped in silence.
Alicia and Amelia mostly took care of things themselves, so they didn't need the help of maids. Because of this, there were only 5 human maids in Maiden's Tower, and one of them, Maria, was dedicated to Sara. The other 4 managed the entire tower, but the tasks that were considered menial work and the library duties were handled by 3 golems.
Actually, all the maids except Maria are Eliza (the head of the office maids (ninja))'s followers, so they have some combat ability. Recently, it seems that Maria has also started learning self-defense while training to be a Lady-in-Waiting. Since her master, Sara, often acts as Sophia, Maria has quite a bit of free time.
That said, during the ten days that Sara was sick, Maria was busy taking care of her. Despite sleeping so much, she was able to keep her body ready to move thanks to Maria and Amelia, who helped keep her muscles active with massages. Of course, it was Rihito who gave the instructions, and Amelia was taking detailed notes on these nursing techniques. In the near future, this knowledge will likely be published in a book.
The other maids were also working busily because a male guest named Rihito was staying with them. It's worth noting that there was never a situation where Sara was alone with the male doctor. There was always a "combat-capable" maid nearby.
Suddenly, a light sound came from behind Sara. She had noticed the presence of magic a little earlier, so she wasn't surprised.
"Good morning, Sedrick."
"Good morning, Milady Sara. How is your health?"
As she slowly turned around, she saw the butler with nearly 20 baby leopards behind him, bowing with his hand on his chest.
"I feel a bit sluggish, I guess. But I need to keep moving."
"Please don't overdo it."
"I understand."
Sara wrapped the entire room in soundproof magic.
"I'll listen to your report. A full ten days' worth. By the way, you've really increased the number of your followers, haven't you? It's impossible to give them all individual names now."
"If you think of it as all being me, that would be fine."
"That's the one thing I really don't want to admit."
As Sara stepped away from the window and approached the writing bureau, Sedrick pulled out the desk drawer and set up a chair beside it. When Sara slowly sat down in the chair, Sedrick immediately draped a blanket over her knees.
"You really act like an excellent butler, which surprises me. It's a bit suspicious, though."
"I'm honored by your compliment."
"Well, that's fine. Now, please give me your report."
Sara took out some paper from the drawer and prepared a pen and ink.
"First, right after Milady Sara collapsed, Milady leaked a huge amount of magical power."
"Ah, I thought it felt like that."
"We couldn't let the magical power go out of control, so we fairies drew out your magical power."
"And that's why there are so many followers? By the way, there were a lot with Pochi too."
"Yes. I have 18 followers, and Pochi has 10."
"I guess Sedrick's followers are scattered around gathering information, right?"
"That's correct. The newly added ones are mainly active in the Coastal Union countries. Meyer, who blended into the hunting tournament, successfully left Avalon and is currently in Sardinia."
"Got it. Don't take your eyes off Meyer."
"Understood."
One of the young leopards that had been behind Sedrick stepped forward and sat up straight in front of Sara.
"What information are you going to report?"
"King Avalon here. Last night, after a request from Crown Prince Gerhart, King Avalon has allowed the export of wheat to Roisen for the next 5 years."
"Oh, they approved it more easily than I expected."
"This decision was greatly influenced by Prince Andrew bringing back a letter from Marquis Grandchester."
"A letter from my grandfather?"
"This year has a good harvest, and Grandchester has plenty of wheat stored, so there's no problem."
"Well, it's true that the harvest is good, but I thought the storage was almost empty."
"...The current wheat storage is at 160% compared to usual. The storage warehouses are already full, and the Grandchester territory is borrowing space from the Sophia Merchant Guild's warehouses."
"Huh?"
"The wheat that isn't considered storage was bought by the Sophia Merchant Guild, so it's also stored in their warehouses. The excess that couldn't fit has, without permission, been stored in Milady Sara's spatial storage. That's enough for 5 years' worth of wheat that Roisen needs."
"Wait, did I create that wheat with the magic power I overflowed?"
"I apologize for doing it without permission. It was the only way we could think of that consumes a lot of magic power."
"What about the alternative plants?"
"We cleared some land."
"Are you talking about that area where the ergot fungus incident happened?"
"Yes. I thought it would be hard to keep it a secret, so right after Pochi arrived, I showed myself in front of the representative Jade and his wife Elsa, and declared, 'Following Milady Sara's request, I will develop the land with magic'."
"They understood that well. Developing the land is so they can own it, right?"
"By the order of Marquis Grandchester, the land they developed will be rented out at a low price for ten years. The crops will belong to the renters, and there will be no taxes as a special measure."
"So, if they just pay the rent for the land, they get to keep everything?"
"That's right."
"What will happen after ten years?"
"The developed land will be owned by the developers. In other words, Milady Sara will be the owner. Marquis Grandchester said, 'Since it's Sara's land, she can do whatever she wants with it'."
Sara felt a slight headache but wrote down the report on the paper in front of her. Her handwriting was a bit messy because she was flustered.
"Well, I understand that the wheat problem has been solved. Is there anyone who can report the exact amount of wheat Pochi produced, sorted by type?"
Then Sedrick handed over a bundle of papers tied with a string.
"There is a report written by Thomashiina, so please check the details later."
"Oh, okay."
Sara took the report and placed it on the desk.
"Actually, Pochi realized they made too much wheat, so they are increasing Elma as well."
"Um... is that just the fruit?"
"Some of the land people have developed has become an Elma field. Because the climate is a bit different, the Elma grown here is slightly different from the one at Harlan Farm. We've already harvested it about 3 times, and store them to Milady Sara's spatial storage, so we want you to taste it if you feel like it."
"Who manages that Elma field?"
"For now, we've left it to Jade, but we've received a request to send an expert who knows a lot about Elma if possible."
"Well, I guess we have no choice. Let's go talk to Tonia later. By the way, how big is it?"
"...It's bigger than Harlan Farm."
"Huh!?"
Sara writes down on a piece of paper, 'Consult Tonia about the Elma farm.'
"Oh, also, Pochi talked to Rihito and made some plants that Milady Sara would probably like, and they tossed them into the storage. Rihito also said, 'With her skills, she should be able to use some basic magic to keep track of the storage contents soon,' and he was laughing."
"Ah, yeah. I feel like I can use it. I'll try that later. So, how's Pochi doing? I saw them last night before bed, but we didn't talk much, so I'm curious. I wonder how Mike is doing too."
The moment Sara raised her voice, Pochi and Mike appeared with a pop.
"Oh, good! You two are doing well!"
"It seems like Pochi made an incredible amount of plants."
"We were all busy with the followers too. Sara, you have amazing magic power!"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble. I was prepared for a magic power shortage, but waking up to find everything done is the best! There were so many surprises. Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome. Thanks to you, Sara's magic power has become incredible."
"I never thought it would surpass a Dragon."
While gently petting Pochi's floating head, Sara called out to Mike.
"By the way, are you okay, Mike?"
"I'm not really good at increasing my followers, so instead, I focused on aging the Elma brandy. If I can get it ready for shipment, I think I can start the next barrel. I've explained everything to Tonia, so it's all good. When I told her it was to suppress the magic power berserk, she quickly opened all the storage rooms. Also, since Pochi used magic to grow more Elma, she should be busy preparing the next batch right now."
"I need to thank and apologize to Tonia later."
"Oh, and I made 2 barrels of the 30-year-old stuff. I thought it would be for Robert and Rebecca's wedding."
"Hmm. As expected of Mike. You really understand the feelings of drinkers!"
"I hid it in Sara's spatial storage so Will wouldn't find it."
"Ahaha. So you know that part well too."
"I had a little taste, but it's super delicious!"
'Yeah, I really like Mike's personality like this.'
Sara hugged Pochi and Mike tightly and whispered.
"I love you both. I'm so glad to see you again."
"Yeah, I love you too, Sara."
"Of course, I do too."
Then Sedrick, who was standing next to them, cleared his throat to make his presence known.
"Milady, aren't you going to do that for me?"
"Hmm. Well, that's a bit..."
When Sara looked up at Sedrick with a troubled expression, Sedrick transformed into a small leopard, just like his follower, and jumped onto Sara's lap.
"You're still so sly, aren't you?"
"I know you don't actually dislike me."
"I hate that I can't deny it!"
Sara, who was petting Sedrick on her lap with all her might, murmured with a satisfied expression.
"Fluffy is the best!"
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