While I was busy with fieldwork, Aegis, the phoenix chick, often came to linger by my side.
"Is it almost time for the harvest?"
When I asked him, Aegis chirped back that the crops were currently at their absolute peak of deliciousness.
I see.
Wait—how did he already know what they tasted like?
...
His reaction was very telling.
Well, honesty is a virtue, I suppose.
"I’ll give you some if you just ask, so please don't touch the crops before the harvest."
"Chirp?"
"Ah, I don't mind if it’s a damaged one. I don't get angry with Zabuton’s Children because they make sure to prioritize the bruised ones."
Besides, Zabuton’s Children were a big help during the harvest.
...
"You’re a bird, so don't push yourself too hard. It’s enough if you just do what you can within reason. When it comes to pest control, you're every bit as good as Zabuton’s children, aren't you?"
Hahaha.
Now then, if they were at their most delicious, it was time to put our backs into the harvest.
"Aegis, I’m sorry, but could you call for whoever is free... No, that might be too much for you. Could you deliver this note to whoever is at the mansion instead? If you do, we’ll consider the matter of your snacking settled."
"Good. Be careful on your way."
With the High Elves, Mountain Elves, Beastmen, and Lizardmen joining Zabuton’s Children, the harvest officially began.
This was the second of our three yearly harvests. Since we were working in the height of the summer heat, it was quite an ordeal. I made sure to tell everyone to watch out for heatstroke.
Furthermore, because these fields had been tilled with the Universal Farming Tool, you might feel fine before you start, but the heat really hits you once the crops are cleared. I warned them to stay vigilant.
Lu and Tia’s Water Magic and Ice Magic were a massive help. I decided we should chill these watermelons and eat them later.
After five days of harvesting, I left the remaining tasks to the others and began plowing the cleared areas. This was all in preparation for the third harvest. Even though our yield so far was more than sufficient, I couldn't afford to be careless. I worked carefully and thoroughly.
Next, I headed over to the Fruit Area. To balance it out with the fields I had expanded earlier, we had decided to enlarge the Fruit Area as well. Since the North Side was occupied by the Bees' flower field, I expanded toward the west. The twelve-by-twelve section area doubled in size, becoming twelve-by-twenty-four.
Phew. It was vast.
Right now, I could see across the whole thing because it was freshly plowed, but once the trees grew... it would basically be a forest. I’d need to set up some signposts, or people would definitely get lost in there.
Hmm? The Bees offered to act as guides? That would be a huge help.
As a thank you, I decided to expand their flower field on the North Side.
"Are there any specific flowers you'd like?"
...They wanted trees?
Ah, I suppose trees produce nectar when they bloom, too. Even now, they were busy gathering nectar from the mandarin flowers in the Fruit Area.
"Understood. I’ll grow some trees in the flower field for you."
However, I wasn't particularly knowledgeable about those kinds of tree species—oh, they had already scouted some out in the forest?
"Got it. Lead the way."
Naturally, I called for my escorts. I wasn't about to do anything reckless. I’d only get scolded later if I did.
On another note, I officially renamed the Fruit Area to the Fruit Tree Area.
A few days later.
Since the numbers of our cows, horses, goats, and sheep had grown, we looked into expanding the Ranch Area. This time, we expanded to the east. I cleared the forest and plowed the earth to grow pasture grass while extending the log fence and the moat.
It went from twelve-by-twelve sections to twelve-by-thirty-six. It had tripled in size. I also made sure to provide watering holes and shaded spots at key locations.
During the work, the goats tried to headbutt me whenever they saw an opening. I couldn't tell if they were fond of me or just messing with me. Kuro’s Children tried to shield me, but the goats were surprisingly clever at slipping past them.
When an angry Kuro’s Child began chasing them while wreathed in lightning, they finally bolted... but they actually managed to outrun the wolf? That was impressive.
"Ah, right. I’m not angry, and the horses are getting spooked, so let’s call it there."
The cows, at least, remained calm.
But as for the goats' mischief... perhaps they were just stressed? Maybe it would be a good idea to build some kind of athletic playground for them.
"Don't spoil them?"
Well, it would just be a simple structure made of logs. Surely that much wouldn't hurt.
With the overall area becoming so much larger, the patrol route for Kuro’s Children had expanded as well. While they insisted it was no problem, it now took them longer to reach the scene if trouble broke out.
To address this, I built watchtower huts at the four corners of the village to serve as outposts for them. I designed them so that several people could stay there during emergencies, in addition to the wolves. I even put in diagonal wells. As expected, every well I dug with the Universal Farming Tool produced water.
I also stocked a cabinet with emergency rations. I assumed Kuro and the others wouldn't be able to open the door—oh, never mind, they could open it just fine.
The main supplies were dried meat and rice, along with a few kilograms of wheat flour. Considering I’d have to rotate the stock once a month, I wondered if it was really necessary... well, we’d try it for a while and see.
Kuro’s Children were already putting the watchtower huts to good use. Since the huts were close to the forest, they couldn't fully relax, but they were quite popular as a convenient place to rest. It seemed a few of Zabuton’s Children were also staying there on rotation. I was grateful for the help.
By the way, I found Urza hiding in one of the watchtower huts after she ran away from home. Maybe I had made them a little too comfortable.
The reason she ran away was a fight with Hakuren. Since Hakuren and the soil doll Earth were worried, I told her she had to go home immediately.
"Don't sulk."
...
"Fine, I’ll apologize to her with you. That works, right?"
"Good. It’s a deal."
"Ah, but tell me what the fight was about before we get back to the mansion. I can't very well apologize if I don't know what happened."
Hahaha.
"Don't be shy. Let me act like a father for once."
Yes.
"I mean, Hakuren is the mother and I am the father. Why act surprised now?"
"Come on, let’s head back."
"What’s this? Acting spoiled all of a sudden?"
"All right, I’ll give you a piggyback ride."
I ended up getting scolded by Hakuren right along with Urza. The cause of their fight turned out to be something completely trivial.
Even so, I felt like my bond with Urza had grown stronger. Hakuren glared at me, muttering about how unfair I was being, but I was satisfied.
And that led to my current situation: carrying Alfred on my back. It seemed he had spotted me giving Urza a ride. Tiselle was already standing by, waiting her turn.
Well, I supposed I didn't mind.
"Lilius, Rigul, Ratte, Torain—you don't have to hold back, either."
Whoops, carrying everyone at once was out of the question.
"One at a time, one at a time."
Being a father certainly required a lot of stamina.