Chapter Two

Pico brushed off the sweat on his forehead using the palm of his hand. Working on the poultry farm was arduous, since he had to take care of hundreds of chickens. Peeping sounds filled the air as the younglings pecked the ground, eating soil, worms, and insects every now and then. 

At first, Pico was hesitant of planting the Loi plants in this farm, since those things were known to attract pests. But after heeding the advice of the Young Master and incorporating the plants into his farm, he was stunned by the results. 

The Loi plants indeed attracted insects, even large ones, but those pests simply became prey for the hundreds of chickens roaming around freely in the poultry farm. Of course, Pico would still need to supplement it with lentils obtained from the Mansion.

Near the first coop, several others were being built by the workers. The speed had slowed down considerably since the production of cement couldn't keep up with the rate of the town's development, but the speed was still far greater than those in the cities. 

As Pico was feeding the chicks, two carts stopped right at the fence's entrance. He stiffened when he saw the Young Master come out of it. 

Immediately, he wiped his face with a towel and dried his sweat-filled hands. He ran and went out of the fence, and while panting, greeted the Lord of Blackstone Town. "Young Master! I didn't know that you've returned already!"

Had he known that the Young Master was coming, he would have prepared at least some refreshments and a seat. 

Lark waved a hand. "It's fine." He looked around, eyes inspecting the coops and the chickens roaming around. He nodded. "It seems that the poultry farm's doing well. Good job."

Pico felt proud after hearing that. He pushed his chest out and broadly smiled. It was a really refreshing feeling. 

Bleating sounds were heard. Upon looking, Pico saw some servants pulling tethered goats out of the second cart. There were exactly eight of them. 

"Two males, six females," said the Young Master. "I know you already have your hands full with managing this farm, but I want you to take care of these guys. In the future, once I've secured the treasury, I'll buy several more."

Taking care of goats was a fairly easy task, especially since there was a vast field of grass in this area. Furthermore, they produce a lot of milk per day. As the one managing this farm, surely, it wouldn't hurt to taste goat milk every now and then. Pico tried concealing his excitement after this thought. 

"I'll do my best, Sir!" Pico was enthusiastic. 

Lark liked the eagerness within his voice. "About the Loi Plants." The Young Master entered the fence and was immediately surrounded by numerous chicks. Before Pico could protest that there was no need for the young Lord to personally enter the coop, Lark had already arrived at the barricaded area where the Loi Plants grew. 

"Only a few of them have grown fruits," he said. He plucked out a fruit, about the size of a pebble. "It'll take probably a month more before we'll be able to produce enough Umami Salt."

After plucking out a handful number of fruits, Lark said, "Pico, have you tasted these fruits before?"

Pico shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Young Master."

Lark peeled open one of them and handed it to him. "Try it."

A bit hesitant, Pico put the fruit inside his mouth. He cringed as the bitter-sour taste permeated his mouth. He coughed and spat the fruit out. Even the innumerable chicks around refused to touch the fruit fallen on the ground. 

"Nasty, isn't it?" chuckled Lark. 

He handed the rest of the fruits to the still cringing Pico. "Peel them off, then soak them overnight in water. After that, take the fruits and dry them out under the sun. You'll be surprised of how delicious it'll become after that."

Pico stared at the Young Master in disbelief. Tasty? These fruits tasted horrible! He would not eat a single one of them even if he was offered a month's worth of his salary. 

"After drying them… are you going to… ask me to eat them again, Sir?" Pico shivered upon the thought. 

Lark amusedly looked at him. "Of course."

Pico remembered the nasty taste. His stomach churned and he resisted the urge to vomit. 

"But, Young Master!" Pico's voice was hysterical, pleading. 

"It's fine. I'll eat them together with you." Lark tapped his shoulder. "Just do what I say. The reason why no one knew of Umami Salt until now's probably due to the lack of knowledge on how to remove the bitter taste of these fruits. Believe me, once you've tasted Umami Salt, every other food will turn bland in an instant."

Pico shuddered but nodded regardless. "Yes."

"I'll be back here tomorrow, at the same time," said Lark. "Be sure to have the fruits ready by then."

After the Young Master left, despite his reluctance, Pico soaked the peeled fruits in water. According to the Young Master, he needed to do this overnight then dry them under the sun afterwards.

An entire day passed. True to his word, Lark came back to the poultry farm at the exact same hour. This time, he came here alone, without any servants or guards. 

"Did you dry them up?" said Lark. 

Pico nodded. "I did everything as you've instructed." He showed Lark the fruits dried during the morning. 

Lark took one of them and, without hesitation, threw it inside his mouth. Pico was momentarily taken aback. He remembered the nasty taste as he grimaced. 

Pico was expecting the Young Master to cringe, belch and puke on the ground. But instead, the Young Master delightfully chewed the fruit and swallowed. 

"It's been a long time since I've eaten this stuff," said Lark. "Now, you try it."

Was the Young Master playing with him? Pico was not sure. But since the Young Master himself ate the fruit, he had no choice but to comply. 

With trembling fingers and ready to vomit any time, Pico slowly placed a fruit on his mouth. 

"Wha—" 

A surprised voice escaped Pico's lips.

The abhorrent taste was gone!

Instead, there was an indescribably good taste in the fruit that made his body beg for more. It was neither salty nor sweet, but a different taste entirely. 

If he was asked, he would say that the closest taste would be probably the word "meaty." It was as though he was eating meat grilled to utter perfection, soaked with several herbs and spices. 

This taste was simply phenomenal!

Without him noticing it, Pico actually ate all the remaining fruits. 

"How's it?" Lark was almost laughing after seeing the stunned expression of Pico. "Tasty, isn't it?"

Still overwhelmed by the unexpected taste of the Loi fruit, Pico simply nodded. 

"The first batch of merchants will be coming here soon. I've ordered several Loi plants from the Merchant's Guild. They're fairly cheap, since the people in this Kingdom do not really have a use for it." Lark looked at the coop being constructed nearby. "Same as before. Plant them in the coops. We'll use them to attract insects which will serve as food for the poultry, then use the fruits to make Umami Salt."

It was hitting two birds with one stone. 

"But this time, after drying the fruits, I want you to grind them into smaller pieces," said Lark. "I'll provide you with an equipment for that."

"From now on, aside from Kalranes, we shall export Umami Salt to the Kingdom."

Although the amount of salt they would be able to produce was not much, just the taste alone would be enough to make great impact in the entire Kingdom. The salt itself might even become more popular than Kalranes in the near future.

Lark smiled at this thought.