On August 4, Jin, accompanied only by Reiko, first visited the village of Kaina.
They did not go to Nido Castle, but to the Warp Gate in the basement of the workshop.
Incidentally, this is the only time Jin uses this gate as a .
"Welcome home, my dear. Lako, it's been a long time!"
Hannah greeted me with the same, if not slightly more mature smile as usual.
"I'm home, Hannah.
"Hannah, it's been a while."
Jin smiled back and Reiko replied.
Jin and Reiko walk to the village head's house. Hannah followed closely.
"Hey, I heard that the wheat crop was good again this year!
"Well, that's good to hear."
Hannah tells me many stories as we walk. Most of them are topics that Jin would be happy to hear.
"We've got a lot of snow in the snow room, so the vegetables are well preserved, and we've had a decent amount of rain this summer, so everyone is saying the crops are doing well.
Her speech, which used to be faltering, is now pronounced with a firm accent, and I can feel Hannah's growth in this way.
Her height has also grown to the point where she is a little taller than Reiko before I knew it.
Her hair has grown to about waist-length and has a sheen to it that I would call rather than .
"I picked a lot of wileys the other day," she said, "and I made jam with them.
"I see, everyone is doing different things.
The villagers of Kaina village have been able to buy sugar through Eric's store as they have been able to earn various foreign currencies.
They use it to make jam.
While we were talking about this, we arrived at the house of the village headman, Guy Beck.
"Ah, what a nice clinic you have here!
The clinic is run by Sally, who became Gibeck's wife.
It was originally a log cabin, but has since been renovated into a nice, clean-looking building.
"Well, there's someone unusual here, isn't there?
Sally peeked out from the clinic just in time, and Jin greeted her.
"Hello, Dr. Salie.
"Hello, Dr. Saly. ...... Giebeck is out of town right now.
"I see. Well, let's ask him.
"Well, you can ask me anything if you like. I can't answer what I can't answer.
With these words, Sally invited Jin and the others into her house, not into the clinic.
"I can only offer you some tea.
Jin offered Reiko a persica nut that he had given her.
"Here, as a souvenir," he said.
"Oh, I'm sorry about that."
Sally accepted the berries with a smile, peeled them quickly, cut them into pieces, and put them in front of Hannah and the others.
Hannah immediately took a bite of it and her face broke into a smile at the deliciousness.
Looking at her sideways, Jin asked Sally, "What did you want to ask the teacher?
"What I wanted to ask you is about the neighboring village of ...... Toka.
Sally goes to Toka village about three to four days a month for medical treatment. So Jin decided to ask Sally about it.
"Hmm, Toka village. Yes, that's right. ......"
According to Sally, the situation in Toka Village is generally good.
In particular, the stable weather during the spring and summer of this year has allowed for an above normal harvest, and the damage caused by the famine at the end of last year has been alleviated, so the village is breathing a sigh of relief.
In addition, the spread of sanitation under the leadership of Sary has led to a sharp decrease in stomachaches and poisonings, and almost no infectious diseases have been reported.
"My lordess Licia is working very hard," says Szary. She is very studious and is usually with me when I am treating her, helping me with things and studying.
"I see. ......"
Licia is a good student, Jin thought. And she is always working very hard.
"However, there are many limitations to being the lord of a village, let alone a region. He seems to be having some trouble lately."