The morning after the harvest festival in Toka village, Jin and his friends had breakfast at Licia's house and relaxed.
All that was left to do was to return home by .
The villagers are cleaning up the mess from yesterday, but Jin and the others are just watching. When we tried to help them, Licia stopped us, saying that she could not make her guests do such a thing.
Licia is now treating them to a juice that she says may become a new specialty of the village.
"Yes, this is delicious. It has a refreshing aftertaste.
"It's delicious. I think it's going to be a hit.
"This is delicious!
It's delicious. It will please adults and children alike.
"It's delicious. It's very nutritious.
"Very tasty."
Jin, Elsa, Hannah, Giebeck, Sally, and Ru each gave their own comments, and Licia smiled happily.
"Really? Thank you! I feel more confident."
"What kind of juice is this?"
Elsa asked curiously, saying that this was her first time tasting the juice, but that it seemed somehow familiar to her.
"This is the juice of the lambel fruit.
Licia showed a basket full of lambel fruit juice.
"They're not cockadoodles....... It looks like one.
It looked just like the cranberry on earth.
Despite the similarity in name, the moss and the crane are two different plants.
To be precise, they belong to the same azalea family and the same genus, but the moss is found in mountains and the vine grows in marshes. The cranberry is easier to cultivate.
<. The berries are very acidic and are made into jam or juice rather than eaten raw.
"This is the fruit of the lambel. They grow in marshes and swamps in the mountains, and it turns out that if you grow them well, you can harvest them all year round."
During last year's famine caused by a fungus, he had his staff look for edible wildflowers and wild plants, and they found these in a small marsh in the mountains to the north of the country.
"It seems to grow in a cold environment, and when we tried growing it on the outskirts of the village, it flowered even in winter and bore fruits in spring," he said.
"Wow, isn't that amazing?
Jin was impressed. Licia has the power of action.
It seems that these < ripen to a reddish-black color and become quite sweet.
"I also make jam.
Licia produced a small jar of jam.
"Try some."
Jin opened the lid and tasted the jam with a small spoon.
Elsa and Hannah also tasted it,
"Delicious. The aftertaste is refreshing and not too strong.
"I love this taste, lady!
They praised it highly.
Giebeck and Saly also tasted it and commented on how delicious it was.
"I think this will definitely become a local specialty.
"Yes."
Jin and Erza gave their assurances.
"I'm glad you all said that."
Licia smiled happily.
"Licia-san, you're good."
Erza opened her mouth somewhat abruptly.
"What?"
"She found the problem by herself and is trying to solve it. I'm trying to do it myself first."
That's a very difficult thing to do. You are doing it as a woman, that's great."
Sally affirmed her words.
I really think so, too. I think you are a good lord, even though you might have been tempted to rely on someone else, to put your trust in someone else.
"Oh, no."
The unexpected compliment made Licia panic and she turned red and looked at Jin.
(...... Is this the same Licia? ......)
"Jin-san?"
<>Licia, who had looked so anxious, had found her own way.
"Oh, um...?"
"......Oh, I'm sorry. Licia is walking her own path.
"......Oh, I'm so embarrassed."
At that moment, for some reason, Erza looked at Jin with a slightly puffy face, but Edgar was the only one who noticed it.
"If you are going to make jam, you might want to cook them slowly to make them last longer, or cook them a little shorter if you want to enjoy the aroma as well."
Jin gave him some advice on how to cook strawberry jam.
Jin recalled his days at the facility, when he used to buy cheap strawberries that were out of season and unevenly priced, and cook them in a large pot on a charcoal stove to make strawberry jam.
"Jin-san, I will use the pressure cooker you gave me and report back on how it works.
"Oh, that would be great.
As a manufacturer, it would be great to hear the feedback from the actual use of the pressure cooker. Jin expressed his gratitude to Licia for suggesting this idea.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Around 10:30 a.m., Jin and his group returned to the village of Kaina by .
As expected, the people of Toka village were surprised to see the airship.
After returning to the village of Kaina, Jin headed for <>, i.e., across the street from Martha's house.
Martha's maid golem, Sarah, cleans the house every day, so there is not a speck of dust on the floor.
"Welcome home, Jin, Elsa, Hannah.
"I'm home, Auntie."
I'm home."
Jin and Erza decided to have lunch with Hannah and the others. Erza went to help Hannah get ready, so Jin was left alone.
So they decided to look around the neighborhood.
Specifically, he checked the pumps on the wells and the hot springs.
"Yeah, it's in good shape, no wear and tear.
No problem with the pump. The pump is made of bronze, which has been subjected to Jin's best efforts of <, so it is very strong.
"The hot spring water should be fine, too."
The hot water jets were not clogged with hot water spouts, and the settling ponds where the dirty water is temporarily deposited for purification were also in good condition.
I also took a look at the snow chamber, which was filled with plenty of snow, and vegetables and meat were stored in between.
(Yes, that's right. (Oh, yes, what if we bring Milowina to the hot springs?)
) Jin returned to Martha's house just as lunch was being prepared.
"Oh, onii-chan, just in time. Lunch is ready!"
"Fresh bread!"
"Oh, that's nice!"
I can try the lambel jam that Licia gave me right away.
"Oh, it goes well with bread. It's delicious.
"It tastes good when you eat it like this!"
Elsa and Hannah seem to like it immediately.
"Yes, it really is."
Martha also said it was delicious, so Jin decided to consider the possibility of growing it on Hourai Island.
Lunch time went by happily, enjoying the taste of maple syrup and Wylie jam as well as Lambel jam.