Chapter 3

"Ah, um, well."

I find myself at a loss when I step outside the mansion.

In front of me are Rumburg and Bartholomew, and behind me are the two maids.

Just how much of a serious security setup do they have... I didn't ask for protection, did I? In fact, I said to stop it, right?

"There's no need for you to adjust your pace. We will adjust to you."

Rumburg says this casually without even turning back.

The distance between him, Bartholomew, and me remains perfectly in sync, a testament to his formidable butler skills. Or, is Bartholomew a gardener?

I guess they noticed I was having trouble walking, but that's not it. I'm not confused by the walking speed.

"Please leave it to me. I will protect you from whatever happens behind you."

"Um, yeah..."

Erie. That intense gaze is unnecessary, I think. This isn't a battlefield; it's just the garden of our house. We're just walking through an empty garden with a clear view, right?

And we're walking straight from the mansion's entrance, so there's nothing behind us...

Just how much are you on guard, really?

Then, as we start walking, next comes—

"Master Joshua!"

"Your Grace!"

"Our Duke! Lord Roder!"

The cheers are so loud I almost want to cover my ears.

I try to suppress my expression, thinking it would be rude to show any discomfort in front of the people who are cheering for me.

"Master Joshua, here."

Startled by Rumburg's voice, I look up to see a platform, no, a podium.

When did they bring this out, and from where?

"This is a gift from the former citizens, no, those who will now become citizens."

"R-Really? Haha. Well, I'll gratefully step up, then."

"Yes. Your face will be clearly visible to everyone."

What kind of embarrassing setup is this?

It feels like I'm the principal giving a speech in the schoolyard.

I glance back, and Erie is blushing and giving me an intense look, while Arle is also blushing, her ears and tail perked up, looking excited.

What? The gathered people? Yeah, they're in high spirits.

I just need to step up, right? I just need to step up.

As I climb the podium, the crowd's enthusiasm reaches its peak.

The cheers don't stop, it's amazing how they can keep it up. Even some of the older people are here.

Ah, I see some familiar faces too.

Looking at the audience's reaction, I guess I have no choice but to give a speech.

As soon as I raise my hands, the crowd falls silent.

Everyone seems to be holding their breath, waiting for my next words.

"Citizens of the Duchy of Roder. Have you followed me here to this land, 'Cumberland,' where I was exiled?"

I pause and look around.

Wow, hold on. Some people are crying... Rumburg, you too?

"Did you choose to come here instead of the prosperous Duchy of Roder, to support me, this me?"

"Our master is only Your Grace!"

"Long live Duke Roder!"

"Long live Master Joshua! Our Joshua!"

Aaah.

There's no way I can say something like, 'Forget about me, return to the duchy' in this situation.

"Citizens, do you wish to stay with me in this land? There is nothing here. I hear it's barren. Even so, do you wish to stay with me?"

---A huge cheer erupts.

I see. Got it. I'll commit myself. I'll do it.

"Three years. In three years, I will ensure that none of you will go hungry. At that time, I will step down as a symbol and entrust everything to you."

"In just three years! What a feat!"

"Truly, our wise ruler!"

"Our future is secured! This land will soon become a utopia!"

Did the people in the back hear that?

Did they only focus on the three years part?

It's okay. I'll finish it quickly. Then, I'll indulge in a good sleep.

"Right away, while we still have food, let's get moving. Please form lines according to your areas of expertise. Rumburg, please have the mansion staff take charge."

"As you wish."

Without wiping away his tears, Rumburg gives instructions to Bartholomew and the others.

"Just roughly, agriculture team, construction team, and crafts team. Please separate the children and the elderly as well."

Ideally, I'd like to divide them into more specific groups like blacksmithing, mining, and gathering, but there are only about a hundred people.

First, we need to broadly categorize them and then assign roles within each group. I can't manage everything alone since I'm delegating tasks to Rumburg and the others.

We need to roughly categorize them, choose leaders, and further divide them... to establish a clear command structure.

It's just for the beginning. Eventually, things will naturally fall into place.

As a result, 80% of the people joined the agriculture team, and the remaining 20% were divided into construction and crafts teams, along with the children and the elderly.

From the agriculture team, we selected those skilled in hunting and gathering to join Rumburg and Bartholomew's exploration team.

The others will focus on preparing the fields. We haven't decided what crops to plant yet, but we need to cultivate the land first.

The crafts team will work with the construction team to focus on logging. We can't build houses without wood.

◇◇◇

---That evening.

In the mansion's large room, Ellie and Arle laid out the plants they had gathered on a cloth.

"Ah, you even pulled out the roots."

"Yes, some plant roots are edible. Master Joshua taught us that."

"Did I?..."

Arle, who had been listening to our conversation, interrupts.

"In my homeland, Master Joshua helped us live without hunger. So, here too—"

"Haha. Leave it to me. If there are no suitable crops around, we'll bring them from elsewhere."

But I'm pretty confident that there's something around here.

If plants are growing, there must be animals too.

It depends on the information from the exploration team... but if there are no animals at all, we'll need to reconsider.

"Anyway, action is better than thinking. There must be something."

"Master Joshua will surely find it."

Ellie smiles at me as she places the last plant on the cloth.

We have gathered twenty-five types of plants, fruits, and seeds. Let's see if any of these are useful.

If they grow naturally here, they should be easy to cultivate. It would be great if we could find something that can serve as a staple food.

"Can you step back a bit? I'm going to use my ability."

People born in this world sometimes have innate abilities—Gifts.

Not everyone has them, but I was born with a Gift. Combining this ability with modern knowledge, I can excel in agriculture.

My Gift is called "Plant Appraisal."

You might think it's a bit mundane, but appraisal Gifts come in various forms, from those that can appraise anything to those that are specialized, like mine.

My appraisal is specifically for plants.

But, it provides detailed information.

Let's start with the first one. Here we go.

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