CH 24

We followed Raquel’s directions and moved on to other places, not the royal capital. Raquel said it was almost time to start sowing wheat, and all the adults, whether commoners or nobles, were in the fields. Raquel wanted to go there. In this country, the hierarchy involved in agriculture are mainly commoners without titles.

Does that mean that in this country, nobles are also engaged in farming?

I couldn’t help but wonder, but anyway, let’s proceed to where Raquel wanted to go.

The kingdom of Ernia can be divided into two zones. The urban area, where buildings, houses, and administrative facilities stand side by side, and the plain area, where wheat fields are spread out. Incidentally, the urban areas are densely built on high ground, while the plains are on low ground.

In any case, we are heading for the plains where fields spread out.

After an hour of driving, we see men plowing the fields here and there as we load the three of us onto the back of the wagon and leave it to the wagon. Just in time, Raquel peeks out from the back of the wagon and opens her mouth.

“It’s almost there!”

“Yes!”

As we continue on with Raquel’s directions, we see one large building, where a group of young, healthy men and women are gathered.

“There it is!”

I parked the carriage nearby and moved with Sera, Sophia, and Raquel into that crowd. After some sort of meeting, when we arrived, each of the many people stepped toward the field with a smug look on their face.

“All right! I’m gonna work hard this year!”

“I’m going to work so hard, I’m going to break their noses in the kingdom of Ilas!”

“We’re gonna do just fine without the Shining Stone!”

“Yes, we will! I’m sure that the cheeky prince who said those horrible things to our idol, Mandane, will be bowing down to Mandane and begging for forgiveness!”

“Yes, yes! By the way, Mandane-sama really looked beautiful today, didn’t she?”

“Just looking at her is so soothing.”

“I’m going to go look some more!”

“No, you’ve got work to do. I heard that Mandane-sama will be in charge of everything at the site again this year, so show her your good side.”

“Hahaha! All right!”

……I don’t know why I’m so uncomfortable here. ……

Or rather, I have too much of a bad reputation here. …… Well, it’s not surprising, considering what Eric has done in the past.

I chuckle, and both Sera and Sophia chuckle as well. Anyway, is it just me, or did those people just now sound as if they were talking as if Mandane was right next to them?

I am a little nervous, but for now, let’s just follow Raquel’s lead.

Raquel is walking steadily toward where the big building is. As I was making my way through the human heat, a familiar voice struck my ear.

“By the way, I can’t see Raquel, do you know where she is?”

“I don’t see her, by the way. Isn’t she in the forest again to listen to the words of Gaia-sama, the god of the earth?”

“I hope so. ……”

” Is something the matter?”

“Raquel chan, she looked very distressed, so I thought something …… might have happened to her.”

Her voice sounded as if she was worried about Raquel. Even without seeing her face, I could easily tell who it was.

“Mandane sama !!! I am here!”

“Eh? Raquel chan!!”

Raquel ran up to her, unable to contain her excitement. I finally broke away from the herd to see her.

And there it was,

As I had expected, Mandane was there.

The girl who will be the next queen of the Kingdom of Ernia. She is one of the three most beautiful women on the Orient Continent. Long orange hair, and emerald eyes, a pretty face. Sophia’s face is generally on the well-rounded side, but Mandane’s is a little rounder and more relaxed.

As soon as I saw her face, I remembered what had happened that day.

The events of that day.

The old Eric was having a conversation with Mandane in her room when he visited the Kingdom of Ernia.

“That beautiful beauty and body of yours exist only to give me pleasure. So, become my slave maid and serve me for the rest of your life. Then your country will prosper.”

“I will not belong to a violent and unkind person like you!”

“Hahaha! I’ll give you a little spanking for saying such a thing.”

“Eric, pride precedes destruction, and a proud heart precedes a fall!”

“Is this from the legendary King Solomon the Great, who is said to have united the Orient into one nation?”

“I hope you are on the right path!”

“The Right Path ……”

Back then, Eric was a very arrogant and unmitigated tyrant. Of course, he would never have listened to the words of Mandane back then.

“The right way for me is to take the light away from your country.”

He let loose such terrible words without feeling any guilt.