It was almost time for the spring harvest.
Since it looked like we were in for another bountiful year, I visited the shrine to pay my respects to the Creator God and the God of Agriculture.
While I was there, I also offered an apology. I had carved the God of Agriculture as a Statue of the Goddess, and I wanted to say I was sorry if that had been an act of disrespect.
Then again, since I’d never actually met the God of Agriculture, there was a chance that a female form was more accurate than a male one. If that were the case, had I been the one being disrespectful all this time?
There was no point in overthinking it. The most important thing was to never forget my gratitude. Besides, placing the Goddess Version of the God of Agriculture right next to the original wasn’t me being a coward—it was just being thorough.
With miso and soy sauce production now underway in Village Five, Flora was away from the mansion quite often. She seemed to be working hard in her role as a technical instructor.
She was also busy with her own research.
"My current goal is to ensure that the flavor remains uniform even during mass production," she told me.
I wondered if they couldn't just mix the batches together, but regardless, I felt like I was seeing more of Flora lately.
"Do you stay in your adult form while you're working?" I asked. Like Lu, Flora could change her physical age at will.
"If I don’t look a certain age, the workers don't really listen to what I have to say."
"Is that so?"
Now that I thought about it, Flora wasn't a familiar face to the people of Village Five. That was an oversight on my part. I should have thought of a way to help her out.
"It’s quite alright. Yoko-san has been pulling some strings behind the scenes to make things easier for me."
"I see. I’ll have to thank Yoko later. I’m sorry I didn't notice sooner."
"No, please don’t worry about it. More importantly, I’m concerned about our production volume. I believe we can sell everything we make, but if we flood the market, the value will plummet."
"I don't mind if the value drops. Don't let that stop you—just make as much as you can and sell it. Ideally, I want it to reach a point where anyone can afford to eat it."
"Are you sure?"
"Let’s not monopolize delicious things; let’s spread them around."
"...Understood. I will do my best."
I was counting on her.
Hakuren was teaching the children as usual. Nowadays, the group seemed to naturally center around Alfred and Urza as the leaders.
Given Urza's age, there had been a proposal to send her to the Demon Kingdom Academy, but the Beastman Boys who had returned for last year's martial arts tournament put a stop to it. They insisted that if she was going to attend, we needed to wait until someone could go with her as a chaperone.
They claimed that throwing Urza into the Academy alone would be far too dangerous. When I pointed out that they would be there, they practically begged me to spare them.
Just how much do they fear Urza?
Still, I understood their concern. If she needed someone to go with her... maybe Nart? That would mean waiting until next year. Since Urza herself didn't show much interest in the Academy, we decided to pass on enrollment for this year. This wasn't a world that obsessed over academic credentials, after all. If she didn't want to go, there was no reason to force her.
I was also a little worried about the possibility of some strange guy bothering her at school.
Speaking of which, I’d heard that Alfred was the leading candidate for Urza’s future partner... I wondered how that was going. I was curious, but I decided not to meddle. I'd let nature take its course. Yes, that was for the best.
Or so I thought until that night.
Hakuren approached me directly. "I think Alfred would be a good match for Urza. Would it be alright if I started moving things forward? Lu told me it was up to you."
"..."
I knew the reality, but apparently, marriages based purely on romance were rare in this world.
"Ah—isn't it a bit early for that?"
"Is it? Frau told me that for children their age, it wouldn't be unusual to have a fiancé."
"That’s only because Frau is a noble." Though, if I recalled correctly, I didn't think Frau herself had a fiancé.
"She said it’s better to decide on a fiancé early to keep 'strange bugs' from attaching themselves to the children. Besides, we can always break off the engagement if circumstances change."
"What kind of 'circumstances'?"
"Like if one of them falls in love with someone else."
"And if they don't?"
"Then they just get married."
So it was a way to mitigate the risk of them never finding a partner. I see.
"As Urza's mother, I’m hoping for an engagement with Alfred."
"I may be Urza's father, but I’m also Alfred’s father, you know?"
"Which means once you decide, it’s a done deal. No one will object."
"Hmm..."
For the time being, I told her I’d need some time to think and avoided giving an answer on the spot. I figured I should try to quietly ask Urza and Alfred about their feelings sometime.
...Actually, that felt like a pretty high hurdle for me. Maybe it would be better to have Ann or Ria ask them secretly? No, I couldn't run away from this as a father. I had to face them directly.
"By the way," I asked, "are you not worried about Hiichiro and Gural?"
I hadn't officially said anything yet, but their future was being treated as a certainty by everyone.
"Well, my father and Giral-sama are both in favor of it. And since my mother is training Gural so strictly, I’m sure she approves as well."
Raimeiren was training Gural? I hadn't heard about that.
"As a mother, I feel like they can just get married... whenever the time is right."
"Are you not as worried about him as you are about Urza?"
"He's our son, after all. Even if things with Gural don't work out, he'll manage somehow. But Urza... I feel like if we don't do something, she'll never find a partner."
"You think so? It seems to me like she and Alfred would end up together even if we did nothing."
"I hope so. But I don't think Urza is the type to settle down quietly in the village. I have a feeling she'll use that overflowing power of hers to go further and further out into the world. And then, before you know it, she'll be surrounded by plenty of comrades but no lover... I can see that future for her."
I—I thought she was worrying too much. Though, to be honest, I could see that image as well.
A few days later, I decided to test the waters.
"Urza, is there anyone you like?"
"Mama!"
"...What about Papa?"
"P-Papa too!"
Hahaha.
Yes, marriage was definitely too early for her. But I decided I should start giving the matter some serious thought.
Also, Urza. You forgot to mention one other person you like.
The Soil Doll.
Look, it’s sulking over there because you left it out.