Chapter 112: Leca’s Harvest (III)

“Come to think of it, what happened to everyone in the Samarelli family? With the exception of Zora, who will be living at the mansion, and where did everyone end up?” Vio asked as he headed towards the reception room.

Gary would normally have been the first to press the issue of a stranger living at the mansion, but he hadn’t brought it up.

Jill promptly reported.

“Mr. Confield had no issues and has already been settled into his house. Dawn and Yuan have moved into town and are helping the townspeople for the time being.”

“That’s good. In that case, let’s tell them to stay in town until Gary leaves. It would be horrible if Gary ran into Yuan and bullied him.”

Vio easily predicted the possibility of this disaster, and just the chance of it happening weighed heavily on his mind.

“Then we should tell Mr. Rourke… But do you really think he would take such a tone with even a small child?”

Vio and Jill nodded deeply in response to Legion’s doubtful question.

“He has no sympathy, not even for a small child.”

“It’s the opposite. The weaker they are, the less restraint he has. I’ve often seen him in that way in Nada. The only solace is that since he is a seneschal, he spends most of the year out of town traveling around to perform tax reviews and audits.”

The words of the two were enough. Legion was convinced.

“If that’s the case, it really would be better for them to stay in town.”

“They’ll have to see him at least once, but it would be much better than them running into him over and over.”

“Yes. The botanist and magician you worked so hard to find would run away,” Jill said with a bitter smile, but the smile didn’t soften the blow. Vio was horrified at the thought of all his hard work going to waste.

“―Listen, you two. Mr. Zora and Dawn both cherish little Yuan greatly.”

“Yes, we will prioritize protecting Yuan over anyone else.”

“Leave it to me.”

The two understood Vio’s thoughts before he could voice them, and then bowed.

＊＊＊

“Send a message for the Samarelli family? Certainly.”

Vio immediately asked Rourke for this to be done as they entered the reception room. Rourke made a painful face.

“The seneschal cannot be allowed to disrupt the development of Leca. This way, we can carefully provide some protection from him.”

“As long as Yuan is protected, I think the two of them should be able to fend him off. Aren’t the villagers still very accepting of them?”

“That’s right. I’m not very well liked when I come to collect taxes, but… The seneschal is absolutely despised. Everyone hates him. How can you be a seneschal if you act that way…? No, I should stop talking. I shouldn’t be rude.”

Rourke’s strong display of distaste was unusual for him and left Vio laughing.

“No, it’s fine. I feel the same way, but he’s very good at asset management. Furthermore, he’s completely obedient to my father, so my father trusts his work.”

Vio chose the words “trusts his work” and not “trusts him” because he didn’t think there was anyone his father trusted other than his mother.

“Yes. I understand. I wouldn’t want to be friends with that man, not even for 1,000 gold ingots.”

Rourke was quite candid in his hatred of Gary. He cleared his throat and regained his composure as he slid the report onto the table.

“Let’s stop talking about the seneschal. If you speak of the devil, the devil appears.1

“Ah, yes…”

Vio nodded and glanced at Legion, who stood diagonally to the left behind the couch. Legion responded with a pained smile and a shrug.

“As you saw yesterday, the walls are projected to be completed within the next ten days. A breakdown of the harvest that happened in your absence is also in this report. Taxes are being stored in the village’s warehouse, as usual, and will be brought to the mansion once the seneschal confirms them.”

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Rourke explained rapidly.

Vio read the stock and inventory as he asked questions about Amade village while they chatted. Yesterday, Vio had seen it for the first time, but Rourke usually traveled to and from the village and was much more knowledgeable.

“How are preparations for the harvest festival going? Are the villagers going to be traveling into town?”

The villagers of Amade celebrated alongside the townspeople in Leca. The harvest from the village was carried in on carts and brought to the town square in front of the town hall. The harvest was then blessed by the priests from the temple.

After the priests prayed to the Great Green Spirit Yuglena for a safe winter, the celebration would then kick off, and the people would feast and drink.

It was one of the few times that commoners would eat meat.

“Yes, everything is going according to plan. As the harvest festival approaches, the apple trees along the road should begin bearing ripe fruit, which can be a snack for those who are traveling into the festival — Oh, come to think of it, have you already met with Carlson?”

“No, I haven’t.”

Vio shook his head at Rourke, who had just mentioned one of the three supervisors of the tax administration.

Legion explained to him what had happened, “Actually, we went out for a long-distance ride to the Alpe mountains yesterday but got stranded due to a severe thunderstorm. We slept overnight in a cave at the base of the mountains. Lord Violant and I actually just returned earlier today.”

“Is that so? Well that was definitely a predicament for both of you. Are the both of you okay?”

Shocked, Rourke looked at them anxiously.

“Oh, I took a long soak in an herbal bath, so I’m fine. Anyways, what happened to Carlsen? Isn’t he in charge of all of the Leca region right now?”

Rourke had a look of hesitance before answering Vio’s question.

“Uhm, so if I tell you this, could you not be angry with me… Uhm…”

“What is the problem?”

Legion responded with a grim-looking face, and Rourke hurriedly explained that there was nothing untoward going on.

“It seems some of the townspeople have made a liqueur that is infused with Leca flowers.”

“Liquor…? That is a problem; you need permission from the lord before liquor production can occur.”

Vio quickly turned pale, realizing the severity of the situation. The production of liquor in the region was regulated by the feudal lord. Without permission, it was considered bootlegging and a felony.

“Yes, I know it’s a problem, but it’s a little different. The liqueur isn’t being brewed. It’s a commercially available liquor. They are just infusing2 the alcohol with the flowers for personal use, they aren’t selling it. Since it’s just for personal use, it doesn’t necessarily violate the law. So it’s not being reported.”

Rourke apologized for startling Vio.

Vio was relieved and pressed Rourke to continue.

“The flower liqueur looks so beautiful. It was thought that if it were served at the festival, people would think it was something interesting. So a test batch was made.”

Vio and Legion spoke out in unison against Rourke, who seemed to have put on airs.

“Something interesting?” 

Rourke nodded and grinned. “Ask Carlsen if you want to know more.”

It didn’t seem like the situation was a crisis, but it definitely seemed vexatious.

Vio suppressed the urge to ask Rourke to elaborate and just told him to prepare another report instead.

Translator’s Note (Adel): Sorry for putting out this chapter late. A lot of things have happened over the last week that has been pretty crazy. And things that are coming up that are keeping me busy. Last week I was at Otakon, an extremely large anime convention in Washington, D.C. While I was there, I got was told I got my dream job, and the contract was sent over. Then had to make my resignation letter! I will be hosting an exchange student, and he’s coming soon, so I’m preparing for that. Thank you for your patience. Welp, now I can say it was worse. My kid had COVID, and I had to leave the translation group we were in and build an entirely new website to host on. So… here we are!

1 Translator’s Note: The actual phrase that the author uses here is “gossip casts shadows.” The idiom basically means that if you talk about someone, they will show up behind you with their shadow cast over you. Speak of the devil is the closest idiom to it.

2 Translator’s Note: Infusing is the act of taking a fruit or leaf and adding its flavor to the liquor. It will add flavor to the alcohol, and can make it super fragrant and delicious! I do it all the time!

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