Canned Food
I turned ten today.
Nine was a whirlwind of constant work — even for me, it was a busy year.
At this rate, I’ll burn myself out early, so I really need to slow down.
It’s about time I seriously look for someone who can take on some of my work.
While renewing my resolve on my birthday, I received gifts and letters from Brother Chris and Brother Gerald.
Brother Chris’s letter said he had shown the idea for our territory’s exhibition to the royal castle’s committee for the capital’s exhibition.
I don’t need to get involved, but it seems Damian and Rosetta want to hear about the planning and post-event review directly from the royal castle, and they did so once — with Brother Chris present.
As for our family’s benefit, apparently I’ve been getting a fair number of marriage offers from other nations, asking to take me in as a son-in-law, but the royal family has agreed to turn all of them down on our behalf.
High-ranking nobles and royalty from other countries, huh?
No, thank you. I don’t want to go anywhere abroad.
Sigh. Well, it can’t be helped. Since it’s hard for us to refuse such proposals directly, I guess this works as fair compensation.
I didn’t expect he’d prepare such a card to play.
Still, if it means I don’t have to go to the royal castle myself, then that’s good enough.
Brother Gerald’s letter said Lady Diana was delighted with the hair ornament I sent her.
However, she’s apparently been quite worried, wondering if I’ve come to dislike her since I involved the Southcourt family in the royal exhibition without telling her in advance.
He told me to write her a letter to clear up the misunderstanding.
I thought I’d managed to balance things a bit with Duke Clondale and Uncle David, but I forgot to send any follow-up to the Southcourt family.
I should have spoken to Brother Gerald about it too.
Since it was a profitable venture, the criticism is reaching them as well. I dragged them into it, so I’ll hurry and send a letter of apology.
Then Maria sent word that she had finished a magic tool for hatching cocotte eggs, so I headed to her workshop.
When she opened the lid to show me, the inside was divided into sections shaped to fit cocotte eggs so they wouldn’t bump into each other — large enough to hold twenty eggs.
There was a handle on the side, so I pulled the drawer open. Inside was packed full of warm stones she’d apparently taken from near a cocotte’s nest.
The bottom of the drawer was made of mesh, and beneath that, copper wires ran all around.
"What’s this copper wire for?"
"It regulates the temperature to keep the warmth of the stones steady."
On the back of the box were a dial for adjusting temperature and two buttons labeled “ON” and “OFF.”
"And these buttons?"
"Those are for turning the eggs."
"Turning the eggs?"
She said she’d come up with the idea of having the eggs vibrate and rotate slightly, thinking it might not be good for one side to stay heated constantly.
"So it’s already finished, then."
"Actually… the eggs won’t hatch."
"Isn’t that just a matter of time?"
"I don’t think that’s it..."
So that’s why she came to me.
Now that I think about it, the eggs I got in Eins Town for checking fertility — I ended up eating them as hot-spring boiled eggs in the new district after a while because they were getting old. I completely forgot.
"These eggs — are they from hens that live with roosters?"
"I’m not sure. I got them fresh from the kitchen. They said they were laid the day before."
"You should test both: eggs from hens that live with roosters and those that don’t."
"I’d like to get both types at the same time."
"In that case, we should ask Father. That’ll be quickest."
"The lord, you mean?"
"Yes. He’s the one who commissioned the poultry project in the first place."
"Please take care of it, Reinhardt."
I knew she’d say that.
Following Father’s directions, I headed for the cocotte farm.
To my surprise, it was right next to the capital city.
I often travel north or south to places like Lux Village or Helios Village, but I hadn’t gone west much — it’s closer to the great forest, and I assumed there weren’t any villages there.
Thinking about it, though, a cocotte farm being near the forest actually makes sense. They’d feel more comfortable there.
Just outside the capital, there were wheat fields, vegetable fields, and orchards — apparently the area responsible for feeding the city.
Maybe these fields are managed by the townspeople themselves.
Looks like there’s still a lot I don’t know.
Even with Magic Bags, it’s important to have a supply of fresh vegetables and eggs close by. If something happens, you can’t always rely on long-distance transport.
After a while, fences came into view — must be the cocotte farm.
As I got closer, I saw barns, large warehouses, and what looked like houses.
Apparently Father had already sent word ahead, and they had prepared two kinds of freshly laid eggs for me — one from hens kept with roosters, and one from hens kept separately.
Since they might be fertilized, I stored them in a Magic Bag without time-stop functionality to bring them back.
Living creatures can’t go into a time-stop Magic Bag, but eggs went in just fine, so it should be okay.
Just as I was about to head back after receiving the eggs, I heard a series of clattering noises.
When I looked around, someone told me, "We’re processing canned goods."
"Canned goods?"
"Yes, we’re making tomato soup cans — we crush tomatoes, simmer them with cocotte bones and vegetable scraps to make broth, then mix it together."
So there are canned foods in this world too.
"Mind if I take a look?"
Let’s take a tour of the factory.
What do you think about this chapter?
