Blessings be Upon You*1
And so, the lovely bike rider who appeared before us—Laperesiana-sama—dismounted her bike at the village entrance and smiled at us, who could do nothing but stand there in stunned silence.
“It has been a while... Haha, did I surprise you?”
“Yes. Very much so…”
I was shocked. Of course I was! Can you even imagine it!? The graceful princess herself showing up riding a large motorcycle—something that shouldn’t even exist in this world yet! Think about that for a second!
“Recently, I saw the ‘bicycle’ that was developed in Panis Village. So I had the people at the castle improve upon it.”
“Ooohhh…”
Looking closely, it was clear that this large motorcycle was without a doubt based on the engine-equipped bike I’d been developing in Panis Village.
Except it was… big. And it looked expensive. Specifically, the base color was white, with gold and silver decorations. It looked nothing like a bike. It was a fantasy bike. But it suited Laperesiana-sama perfectly.
“Horses require feed and water. If brought to the battlefield, their lives are at risk. Their stamina is also limited when running long distances... Thus, we considered that improving this ‘bicycle’ and using it instead might not be a bad idea.”
“I see…”
When you think about it, it’s obvious—my goal was to develop horses and wagons for transporting supplies, but… this is huge from a military perspective.
Naturally, if you can transport more supplies faster with fewer people, nothing could be better. Supply lines are essential; battles can be won or lost by them.
… And this country was fighting wars up until a few years ago. They probably want to take military development seriously. In that sense, it makes perfect sense that the engine-bike drew the attention of the castle and was studied and improved.
… Honestly, I had hoped for this. Like this—people of this world improving bikes and wagons on their own. If I’m thinking about what will happen after I go home, then yeah, it’s best for bike and wagon production to take root as a technology of this world. And more importantly…
“You handle fantasy power better than I do… as expected of someone from the royal castle.”
“Fantasy… power…?”
“Ah, mana.”
… People from a fantasy world naturally have better fantasy affinity.
Yes! Meaning!
If I let the people of this world handle things… technological development goes so much smoother! Somehow that feels unfair!
But it’s fine. I got to see something cool anyway—a group of knights on motorcycles. And Laperesiana-sama looked seriously cool riding in on that big bike.
… Also, thank god it wasn’t a bicycle knight squad! A bicycle knight squad would’ve been too much!
“I truly thank you for creating something like this. Thanks to your efforts, we may be able to solve transportation issues across the entire kingdom.”
“Your words are far too kind!”
Laperesiana-sama smiled at me and offered me such gracious words that I could hardly handle it. And the big motorcycle wasn’t even my invention! That was all their achievement!
“It seems Panis Village has developed once again.”
“Yes. Asuma-sama keeps introducing new policies one after another.”
Now even Edele-san is praising me! It’s making me restless! Feeling awkward, I quietly hid myself behind Mishisia-san—the most reliable person in moments like this! Help me, Mishisia-san!
“So, Lapere, are you on break today? You’re not here for work, right?”
See? Mishisia-san talks casually even to royalty!… Though she did get permission to call her “Lapere,” so that’s just her negotiation skill. Impressive—though nothing I could ever imitate.
“Hahaha. Well, it’s half vacation, half work.”
“Really!?”
“Yes. The punishments for the church people have been completed. I came to report that as well.”
Ah… right. Laperesiana-sama is busy with those matters too. Must be rough. Truly rough…
“What has happened with the Church?”
Hearing that, Lisas-san perked up as well. Understandable. We all have thoughts about that matter.
“Mm. As planned. The fools who were in Panis Village at the time were exiled. They’re to be left to die somewhere outside the country. Their transport was completed the day before yesterday.”
Ohh… that proclamation came to Panis Village too. Something like: “Anyone who aids them will be punished.” …Yeah, basically a large-scale ostracism.
“Also, several other crimes committed by the church were uncovered. Those were punished accordingly. Some were added to the exile list. Some were demoted... The one who had been taking bribes and embezzling funds for many years was sentenced to death.”
Whoa, they went that far. Well, probably deserved. Hard to imagine calming things down without capital punishment in that case…
“It will be a public execution… but you are not invited.”
“No need to invite me, Your Highness. It’s too soon for Asuma-sama.”
“Too soon? Hmmm… I don’t think so…”
It’s not like I want to watch someone get executed. But “too soon”? I’m nineteen, you know? I can legally watch R18 stuff! Lisas-san never seems to properly register my age…
“It is too soon! Asuma-sama mustn’t see things like that! Honestly!”
… And the cause is definitely Mishisia-san. Yeah. To someone over a hundred years old, nineteen and seven probably feel the same… and so I get treated like a kid! And everyone who sees her treating me like that just follows her lead!
“Well, such bloody events do not suit this village. I will soak in the hot springs tonight and forget about it all.”
“Oh! Laperesiana-sama! In that case, please enjoy the strengthened Panis Village hot springs! The beauty effects have increased dramatically!”
Yeah, the hot springs are more important. Definitely that.
… So, we enlarged the bath a little. As a result, we now allow twelve slimes to bathe simultaneously.
Thus, the hot springs almost always have a dozen slimes floating in them… and the slime’s beauty-enhancing mana dissolves into the water, essentially turning the entire bath into a kind of potion.
We can now have more slimes at once, and they can stay longer, which boosted the beauty effects. Please enjoy them thoroughly!
“That sounds delightful. Haha…”
“Please enjoy the meals as well. We have begun raising Mewmya recently. You may enjoy dairy products too.”
On top of that, the meals are even better now. Cheese, butter, and cream made from Mew milk… and the Mew milk itself—please savor it!
Now then.
“This village truly has remarkable development. If only the whole kingdom could be like this…”
Laperesiana-sama said this as she looked around the village. Then she let out a small sigh… and turned to face me. Eh? Me? Really me?
“… I did not come only to report. We must finally unravel the mystery of the ‘Blessing.’ And so, I would like to borrow your power, Asuma-sama.”
“Mine?”
“Yes. As a kingdom, we can no longer base our policies on the church’s ‘Blessing.’ We won’t sit idly by while the people suffer. Therefore, we wish to discover a way to efficiently grow crops without the ‘Blessing.’”
… I see. Laperesiana-sama has decided to take decisive action.
“They will not cooperate?”
“Well, something like that. Those fools seem convinced that as long as they control the ‘Blessing,’ we cannot act boldly... It seems they believe their exile will be revoked soon.”
“Woooow…”
That’s… optimistic. And they must believe the ‘Blessing’ is irreplaceable. Meaning they expect to use it as leverage to return to their former positions eventually…
… There’s no way the royal family will allow that! Laperesiana-sama is already acting like this! Their optimism is way too naive!
“So we must produce an alternative to the ‘Blessing.’ Fortunately, we already have a village that prospers without it… so I came to learn how this prosperity was achieved.”
“Eh—no, I’m not really doing anything impressive, um…”
Because Laperesiana-sama treated me with such sincerity, I only felt more unworthy. A princess shouldn’t be speaking so politely to some kid like me… I feel like I’m going to explode from the pressure.
“Um, this village’s fields are almost entirely slime fields now. When you plant things in slimes, all kinds of crops grow vigorously!”
Meanwhile Mishisia-san remained absolutely unshaken by reverence. Her mental fortitude is unbelievable. I wish I had it. Actually, no, I don’t. That kind of fortitude isn’t for people like me…
“I see… Slimes. But why plant crops in them…?”
“Well, they came in flowerpots, so I just… kind of…”
… Slime farming was honestly full of coincidences. A slime just happened to show up, happened to crawl into a flowerpot, and then I, having mentally checked out, stabbed a shovel into its head and planted seeds there… Thinking back now, that might’ve been kind of awful…
“Um, and the seeds we use are a little special. They’re seeds that have received the blessings of the dungeon…”
That part matters too.
After all, environment matters—but so does everything that’s already determined before planting… that is, genetics. Modified seed varieties vs. ordinary seeds—that’s night and day.
“Seeds blessed by a dungeon… How are they made?”
“Ah… without dungeon power, it would take decades. So the best option is to use the seeds we already have.”
“Or share the plants! The ones growing in slimes are super healthy!”
Maintaining genetically modified plants without dungeon power might be tricky, but… there are ways to increase the number of seeds. Well, except for the F1 hybrids—those can’t be propagated…
“And we use fertilizer too.”
“Fertilizer, hm. What kind?”
“Umm… also created using dungeon power…”
… And fertilizer as well. I’ve been reconstructing chemical fertilizer left and right, but they probably can’t keep making that kind of stuff on their own.
Yeah…
We really need to set up ways to make all this without dungeon power. For the sake of the kingdom’s peace!
What do you think about this chapter?
