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Chapter 250 – Winter Has Come
The season has passed, and it is winter.
Winter in this world is not like the deep snowfall like in my former world in Japan, but rather a chill breeze that blows like a cold wintry wind. Frankly speaking, as a Japanese born and raised in Japan, where the four seasons are clearly defined, it was quite unsatisfactory.
Well, maybe it is a good thing that it does not get too cold. Although it doesn’t get very cold, it doesn’t mean that there are no deaths from freezing since it gets cold enough to cause frost or a thin layer of ice to form on the water in the reservoir.
“Have you prepared for winter?”
Sylphy asked Melty with a serious look on her face as she entered the magic kotatsu I had created with my crafting ability. In this situation, a beautiful brown-skinned elf with a sharp expression is talking seriously in a kotatsu with citrus fruits like tangerines on it. The sense of mismatch is terrible.
“According to reports from various places, we have enough food and fuel reserves. Kosuke is doing a great job, especially when it comes to fuel.”
“Because I cut down so many trees to appear in my dreams before the winter…”
The Liberation Army, or the newly born Merinard Kingdom, which took control of the territory of the Merinard Kingdom after much hard work, hurriedly made preparations for the winter. It was to prepare for winter.
As I mentioned earlier, it doesn’t snow much in this world, or rather in the Kingdom of Merinard, even though it is winter. It is cold enough to freeze to death if you sleep outdoors without fire or blankets, but if you have a decent house, blankets, and a sufficient amount of firewood, you can pass the winter in comfort.
And who usually provided the firewood? It was the subhuman people who were used as slaves.
As you can probably tell from what I have said so far, the amount of firewood produced this year was far less than in previous years. The reason for this is the liberation movement of subhumans by the Liberation Army. Those who were liberated from slavery by the Liberation Army joined the Liberation Army, started farming on my farmland, worked as civil servants in the Liberation Army, or started a business. The number of people engaged in simple physical labor was greatly reduced compared to previous years.
As a result, there were a fair amount of problems on all sides. No one chooses a job that is hard and not very lucrative when there are other jobs available.
This is due to common sense under the rule of the Holy Kingdom that it is natural to use a large number of subhumans at a low price… In other words, the stereotype that ‘simple physical labor is the work of subhumans and the price of their labor is very cheap’ has taken root among people in the Merinard Kingdom today.
Melty is working hard to correct this, but so far, it has not yet had an effect.
“Next year will be fine. They’ll learn their lesson this winter.”
Melty has a dark smile on her face. I haven’t heard the details, but I hear she’s working something out by using the firewood I’ve produced in large quantities with merchants and influential local people who still try to use subhumans as cheap labor.
It is definitely not a good idea, so I’m not going to ask for details. I don’t want to poke around in the wrong place and get snakes out of fireflies. [T/n: Can’t find anything about this pun, so please let me know if someone knows about this.]
“…Suhh.”
Isla is lying down on my lap, propped up on the kotatsu. She has been very busy as of late. She is a genius mage, an excellent alchemist, and at the same time, an excellent magic tool craftsman. She is engaged in research and development of various magic tools, mixing new medicines and precious and difficult-to-mix drugs, serving as a court mage, and training her successors, performing hard work that would be out of place in a Japanese black company.
Frankly speaking, I am worried about her health, but she is so motivated that there is no way to stop her. I can only pamper her at times like this because her battery runs out every once in a while. Maybe I’ll force her to take a break next time.
“Can’t you guys live a little more peacefully and leisurely?”
“Even we don’t like to mess around with each other.”
Melty, who is covering herself with a blanket and putting her lower body in the kotatsu, refutes Grande’s statement with a pout on her lips. From Grande’s point of view, it must seem foolish for the human races to be fighting each other. There are many monsters in this world, and plenty of lands are controlled by them and cannot be used. If we want to increase our national power, we should cultivate such places.
Nevertheless, people cannot stop fighting with each other. Just when you think they have stopped fighting, they are preparing for the next conflict. It’s probably no wonder that Grande has a hard time with all of us.
“By the way, I’ve cleared my schedule for today…”
Sylphy is in the kotatsu, twirling her legs around mine. Well, in winter, when it’s cold, and you are free, it makes you long for body warmth, doesn’t it?
“The child is a gift from God. So I don’t think you should be in a hurry.”
Ellen muttered as she peeled a tangerine-like citrus fruit in front of me. The fact that she’s in the kotatsu in her usual gorgeous saint costume is surreal, but now that I’m used to seeing her, no one but me cares about that at all.
“Is that so? Winter is long, after all.”
“Yes, indeed, you’re right.”
Sylphy and Ellen look at me like that. That means you want me to work harder, doesn’t it? I understand, but please go easy on me. I’m not going to die without seeing my own children’s faces, let alone my grandchildren’s faces.
“Hmm? The sun is still high in the sky. If that is the case, I will join you.”
Grande, who had been lying still, looks up and smiles a radiant smile. No, I don’t think starting so early in the day is a good idea.
“Well… I’m almost done with work for the day. Isn’t that good?”
“Yes, that’s true…”
“Ah, come to think of it, I think I had an appointment to meet with Seraphita-san and Driada-san.”
Saying that, I put down Isla, who was on my lap, and I was about to run away… t-this is!?
“You can’t run away.”
Before I knew it, Isla had woken up and grabbed and held onto my clothes tightly. Yes, I’m stuck. I was deadlocked. No, even if Isla didn’t grab me, it would be impossible to escape from Sylphy and Melty at this close range.
“If Kosuke doesn’t want to, I won’t force you, but…”
“It’s not that I don’t want to.”
It’s not that I don’t like it. I’m just afraid of what will happen tomorrow at this hour. I wonder if I will be dried up and look like a mummy.
“If it comes down to it, I’ll just give you a little bit of my blood to drink.”
“There are also miracles of recovery.”
I wondered if that kind of doping method would be safe… but I didn’t waste any time resisting and was dragged off to bed.