Chapter 14: Spring Planting

"Not only are the houses not fully repaired, but now the spring planting season is upon us."

Leon rubbed his temples.

"You're saying we don't have enough grain seeds, and many fields have been left fallow, so this year's harvest might be lower?"

"Yes. The beast tide came too suddenly. Many villagers didn't have time to save their grain or seeds. Our granary has some reserves, but not enough."

Walter continued explaining:

"As for the abandoned fields, most are on the outskirts near Glowfern Forest. They were badly damaged by the beast tide, and the villagers are too afraid to work them."

After hearing Walter's explanation, Leon felt another headache coming on.

Food was a critical issue. If the villagers didn't have enough to eat, they would lose faith in him as their lord, and it might even lead to riots.

"Can't we buy seeds from other territories?"

"That's unlikely. Our relations with neighboring territories aren't good, and they were also hit by the beast tide. They probably don't have extra seeds to sell."

"With the current seed supply, how much will the harvest decrease?"

"At least 30 to 40 percent. If no one dares to work the outer fields, it'll drop even more."

Walter answered.

"30 to 40 percent… How much do we have in the granary? Can we make up the difference?"

"There's still some grain stored, but most of it must be loaned to villagers who lost their supplies. We also need to set aside a portion for taxes to the Count."

"So the only solution is increasing yield per acre."

If there weren't enough seeds, they had to grow more grain with fewer seeds.

This wasn't actually too difficult. Leon might not know how to increase crop yields, but the players definitely would.

Players from BlueStar, just like those from Earth's China, loved farming.

He could assign the outer fields—the ones the villagers feared—to the players. Their farming methods could then be adopted by the territory to boost overall production.

Thinking this, Leon felt much more at ease.

"Don't worry, Walter. I already have a plan to solve this. It's getting late, you should rest."

"Of course. You should rest early too, don't overwork yourself."

Walter looked at Leon with concern. It couldn't be easy for someone not even twenty to bear the weight of an entire territory.

"I will."

Leon was exhausted. Between dealing with players and updating the game, today had worn him out.

When he entered his bedroom, he found Bounsweet already asleep on the bed, mumbling something in its sleep. It looked unbearably cute.

"This little thing really knows how to be adorable."

Leon chuckled at Bounsweet's silly expression.

"But being cute is a talent too. At least it lifts my mood. It's not like I can expect it to solve my problems."

"Wait…"

A thought flashed through Leon's mind like lightning.

"Bounsweet can't, but other Pokémon can!"

Leon suddenly remembered a fanfiction he'd read in his past life, where the protagonist used Pokémon for farming and increasing yields.

One line had stuck with him: "Pokémon are the ultimate productive force!"

Leon realized how true that was. The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. He burst out laughing.

"Ahahahaha! In a way, you really did help me after all!"

Overjoyed, Leon picked up Bounsweet and spun around.

"Bwee?"

Bounsweet blinked sleepily, confused by Leon's excitement.

But it sounded like Leon was happy because of it. Heh, it was pretty amazing.

Bounsweet puffed up proudly. If it had arms, it would've put them on its hips.

"Sorry, sorry, I woke you up."

"Bwee bwee~" (It's okay~)

Leon stroked Bounsweet's calyx before settling down to sleep.

Morning came quickly.

The five players logged in on time and gathered in the lounge, discussing their stats.

"My Strength and Stamina are both 6, which seems decent. But my Intelligence is only 3? I, Dylan, refuse to accept this!"

Ethan Carter facepalmed at Dylan's accidental real-name reveal.

"With your IQ, you're lucky it's not zero! What are your stats?" Dylan shot back.

"Mine are pretty balanced."

Ethan focused on the mark on his hand and opened his status screen.

[Game ID: SilentTongue

Level: LV.0

Attributes:

Strength: 4

Agility: 6

Stamina: 5

Intelligence: 6

EXP: 0/100]

"Everyone's total attribute points are probably similar, just distributed differently."

"I wonder if level-up points are self-assigned or random."

Dylan shrugged.

"Doesn't matter. Any stat boost is good. Besides, this game's combat is Pokémon-based. Our stats won't matter much anyway."

Ethan disagreed. His instincts told him these stats would be important.

Before he could think further, a servant knocked and summoned them to the study.

At the door, the players straightened their clothes.

With the favorability system in play, they wanted to make a good impression on Leon, the game's protagonist.

Knock knock.

"Come in."

Leon was momentarily surprised by how much more serious the players looked today compared to yesterday. Then he realized it was the favorability system at work.

Good. It meant the system was effective.

"After a day of adjustment, I trust you've grown familiar with this world. I won't waste words. Keep working hard on your tasks."

"To motivate you further, the person who cuts the most wood won't just receive the special reward I promised yesterday—they'll also gain the right to use a farmland plot."

The players' eyes lit up.

"You mean we can do whatever we want with the land? Build a house on it?"

"Any restrictions on what we plant? Where do we get seeds?"

"Do we keep the harvest?"

They fired questions rapidly.

"Farmland is for farming only. You can plant whatever you like, but we're only providing grain seeds for now."

"After harvest, aside from the territory's tax, the rest is yours."

Leon answered each question patiently.

"Alright, you haven't earned the land yet. No need for so many questions. Go chop wood. Heracross should be waiting."

"Let's go! That farmland is mine!"

"With those twig arms? Dream on!"

"Shit, Wind already ran ahead! After him!"

Watching the players' enthusiasm, Leon nodded in satisfaction.

Simply giving them land would make them happy, but they might not value it.

Making it a reward changed things. They'd treasure land earned through hard work.

"Tch. I'm starting to feel like a greedy capitalist. Damn system, corrupting me!"

Leon unhesitatingly blamed the quest interface.

"The players are working hard. I shouldn't slack off either. Time to find Pokémon that can help with farming."

"Bounsweet, go get Scyther. We're off to find some farming experts."

(End of Chapter)