Chapter 62

As the campsite was dyed in the twilight, Marie was peeling potatoes with a tense expression.

Marie's hands, holding the knife, were trembling due to her nervousness, and the peeling work was progressing very slowly.

On the makeshift table in front of Marie, several vegetables were placed.

She was supposed to chop these vegetables a little and cook them together with the ingredients Ichirou had prepared.

Next to the table, a makeshift hearth made of clay bricks brought by the unit was set up, and on top of it, a small bronze pot was placed.

Inside the pot was the vegetable stew Ichirou had prepared.

"You don't have to be so nervous. I'm not asking you to make a feast. Just chop the vegetables a little and cook them together with what's in the pot."

Ichirou, who had been watching Marie from nearby, couldn't bear to see her so tense and spoke to her.

"Y-Yes! Ah!?"

When Ichirou spoke to her, Marie became even more nervous and almost dropped the potato she was holding.

Her hand holding the knife was also too tense, and she might get hurt if this continued.

"I'm sorry. I usually do this more efficiently..."

Seeing Marie so tense, Havel, who had been watching her cooking with bated breath, apologized to Ichirou.

Havel was worried that if things went wrong now, all the previous talks would be in vain.

He wanted Marie to show her skills and leave a good impression on Ichirou.

"Hmm... Do I make you nervous just by watching?"

"N-No! N-Never such a thing!"

Ichirou smiled wryly at Marie's clearly nervous response and lightly patted Havel on the shoulder.

"I'll take a walk around. Havel, I'll leave it to you."

Ichirou said to Havel and walked away.

Havel watched Ichirou's retreating back and sighed deeply.

"Come on, please... We finally got permission from Lord Kazura..."

"I'm sorry... But, being watched directly by a noble like Lord Kazura..."

Marie, who seemed to have relaxed a bit with Ichirou gone, apologized to Havel.

Even though she had talked with Ichirou in the carriage during the unit's movement, Marie still saw Ichirou as someone far above her.

Moreover, just being allowed to ride in the carriage was already a great honor, and now she had been suddenly chosen as Ichirou's personal cook.

Her heart wasn't strong enough to remain calm in such a situation.

"By the way, isn't Lord Kazura a noble as great as Lord Nelson? Is it really okay for someone like me to be his personal cook... Besides, my cooking skills are still far behind those of everyone in the mansion..."

"Marie."

Marie, who seemed to have doubts about her status and cooking skills, whispered weakly to Havel, who looked at her with a worried gaze.

Havel looked around to make sure Ichirou and Zirconia weren't nearby, then spoke to Marie in a low voice.

"I understand your concerns, but this is a great opportunity for you to leave the Rousseau family. You don't want to stay there forever, do you?"

"That's... Yes. But, it feels like I'm deceiving Lord Kazura and Lady Zirconia... And there's also the promise you made with Lord Noor..."

"Don't say such things. You're not deceiving Lord Kazura or Lady Zirconia, and you're not lying. If this works out, my father will have no choice but to give up on your ownership, but I don't intend to break the promise. Don't worry about unnecessary things; focus on your role. Try to make a dish that Lord Kazura will like as soon as possible."

"...Yes."

Marie nodded, but her expression remained cloudy, indicating she was still anxious.

Even though this was a good opportunity to leave the Rousseau family, she was clearly unhappy with the method.

Havel felt a bit frustrated at Marie's reaction but didn't show it on his face.

He took a deep breath and decided to explain the agreement he had made with Ichirou to Marie.

"By the way, don't let anyone else eat the ingredients I gave you. Lord Kazura has strictly ordered this."

"Yes, of course... But, is it okay to taste it?"

"Tasting a little should be fine. It would be unreasonable to ask you to cook without tasting."

"That's true... I should taste it before adding the vegetables..."

Marie put the potato and knife on the table, took a small wooden dish and a ladle, and approached the pot.

She scooped a little of the vegetable stew into the dish, brought it to her mouth, and took a sip.

"...Delicious."

Marie, tasting the vegetable stew for the first time, opened her eyes wide at the flavor she had never experienced before.

The rich and smooth taste in her mouth was so exquisite that she almost forgot her original purpose of tasting it.

She tried to focus on how to reproduce the seasoning, but she had no idea what ingredients were used to create this flavor.

The vegetable stew Marie was tasting was from a can of stew that Ichirou had bought from the high-end gift section of a department store.

It was apparently made under the supervision of a famous hotel and cost 8,000 yen for a set of five cans.

The price was worth it, as the stew was well-prepared and delicious.

"Just one more taste..."

"Hey, it's just a taste, okay? Don't eat too much."

Havel hurriedly warned Marie, who was about to take another taste from the pot.

While Marie was about to take her second taste, Ichirou was wandering around the campsite, checking on the servants preparing dinner.

Seeing a servant tasting the stew from the pot,

"Damn, I completely forgot about the tasting."

He stopped and held his head in frustration.

Late that night.

The group arrived in Isteria under the cover of darkness and quietly unloaded their cargo in the quiet courtyard of the Nelson mansion.

The sun had already set, and the courtyard was quite dark except for the areas lit by torches.

The streets they had passed on the way to the Nelson mansion were no exception, with only a few houses lit up.

Despite the darkness, the guards moved briskly, working with the servants to quietly stack the cargo in a corner of the courtyard.

Isaac and Havel were with the carriage carrying Ichirou's personal belongings, keeping a close eye to ensure they were not mishandled.

As Ichirou and Zirconia watched the work, Nelson appeared from inside the mansion.

It was already past 2 a.m., but Nelson seemed to still be awake.

"Lord Kazura, welcome back from your long journey. Did everything go as planned?"

"Yes, all the items we planned for are ready. There are a few additional items as well."

"Additional items?"

"Yes, they're a bit unusual, so I'd rather not draw too much attention... Also, they're quite bulky, so please prepare a larger room on the first floor facing the courtyard."

The reason Ichirou specified a room on the first floor facing the courtyard was that he planned to use gasoline and hydroelectric generators.

The generators would be installed just outside the room, and it would be inconvenient to have long wiring if the room was on the second floor or higher.

Additionally, to use the hydroelectric generator, the courtyard would need to be modified to include a water channel.

There were several water channels for water supply and drainage within the mansion grounds, so one of them could be branched off to serve as the water channel for the hydroelectric generator.

"Also, regarding the work schedule for tomorrow, I'd like to take a break in the morning and start the reconstruction of the grain fields surrounding Isteria in the afternoon. Can you prepare the necessary manpower?"

Ideally, he would have started work first thing in the morning, but Ichirou was exhausted.

He had dozed off in the carriage, but the rough ride made it impossible to get a good sleep. He kept waking up from the jolts and couldn't get much rest.

The carriage's wooden wheels and lack of shock absorbers made it extremely bumpy, and even small bumps or stones could cause the entire carriage to shake.

Marie had to keep using her anti-nausea essential oils, and Ichirou himself felt a bit queasy by the time they arrived in Isteria.

"I'll instruct the families managing the grain fields to send personnel. Some of their slaves will also be included. Is that acceptable?"

"Slaves, huh."

The word "slaves" made Ichirou frown.

He had learned from Valeria that slavery existed in this country, but hearing the word again made him feel uneasy.

"Then, let's use our private soldiers instead of slaves. The First and Second Corps of the Guard have 600 men, excluding reservists, and I will mobilize all of them."

Seeing Ichirou's reaction, Nelson offered an alternative.

For Nelson and his people, slaves were a common and essential part of daily life.

However, Nelson was aware that treating humans as property was not right.

He hesitated to discuss the existence of slaves in front of Graciel, the god of mercy and abundance, but he also thought it would be wrong to use slaves without mentioning it.

However, Nelson regretted mentioning slaves when he saw Ichirou's reaction.

If Ichirou had demanded the liberation of all slaves, Nelson would have been in a difficult position, even if it was an order from Ichirou.

Such an action would collapse the economy, and the nobles and people within the territory would be furious, leading to civil unrest.

"No, the original plan is fine. The guards have other duties, don't they?"

"The guards are responsible for patrolling the same areas as the police and conducting surveillance outside the town..."

"In that case, let the guards return to their duties. The work we will do will take more than a day or two. We can't rely on the guards every time."

Ichirou's practical suggestion surprised Nelson, but he was also relieved.

He had been thinking about how to persuade Ichirou if he had demanded the liberation of slaves.

"Understood. I'll gather the personnel outside the town walls in the afternoon. We'll start with the northern grain fields, which are in the worst condition."

"That's fine. Also, how is the production of the parts I instructed?"

"About 30 sets are already complete. The production efficiency will improve as the craftsmen get more familiar with the work."

The parts Ichirou referred to were the components of the water wheel he had instructed Zirconia to prepare.

He had hoped a few would be ready by the time he returned to Isteria, but it seemed more had been produced than expected.

"Wow, that many. If we have this much production capacity, we shouldn't have to worry in the future."

Zirconia, who had been listening to the conversation, also looked relieved.

She had been concerned about the progress of the part production while in Grisea Village.

"That's good. I gave the craftsmen a little extra money, so they must have worked hard."

"Indeed, when you get something, you can't help but work hard... Well, I'm getting tired. Can I rest now?"

"Of course. I'll have a room prepared for you. A bath is also ready, so you can use it while the room is being prepared."

"That would be great."

They wrapped up the conversation, and Ichirou followed Nelson to the mansion.

"(Hmm, I feel like I'm forgetting something.)"

Suddenly feeling like he was forgetting something, Ichirou scratched his head as he walked to the mansion.

However, his mind was too tired to recall what it was, so he gave up and headed to the bath.

Behind Ichirou's retreating back, a large pile of cargo.

In one of the large coolers, the last piece of dry ice, which had been packed with frozen food, was about to finish its job after nearly 12 hours.