Chapter 129: Cold-Resistant Wheat and Oliver's Concerns

(This time, the perspective switches to a third party halfway through.)

The heat of the day has softened, and the mornings and evenings have become cool. The cold-resistant wheat I made earlier was diligently multiplied over the summer and has reached a reasonable amount. I had been increasing it little by little in between exploring the undeveloped lands, but thanks to Theo‘s hard work, we secured the quantity faster than I expected.

Let’s go report to Father. “Ooh, so you have secured the quantity of the new wheat? Cold-resistant wheat is a godsend for the northern part of the Kingdom, which is suffering from poor harvests.” “Thank you. Theo worked hard to increase the amount.” “I see. It seems Theo-kun is doing a good job as well.”

We decided to keep enough for our family to plant and send the rest to the Sheffield Duchy in the north. As always, I left the pricing to the Levant Company.

After a while, a letter arrived from Lord Lucas, the eldest son of Duke Sheffield. He wrote that they were already greatly helped by the Pomte, and on top of that, he was deeply moved that we had developed cold-resistant wheat as well.

I hope this means the people in the north won’t have to worry about food anymore. Although, I think writing “You are the benefactor of our Duchy, and we will never forget this debt” is a bit of an exaggeration.

I also reported to His Majesty King Edgar II by letter and received words of praise in his reply. He mentioned that he would prepare a new reward by the time the wheat I sent bears fruit in the north, but he also wrote something like this: “I am simply amazed that there is no end to William-kun’s talent. If possible, I would be grateful if you could tell me in advance what you plan to develop next so that I can mentally prepare myself.”

I wonder if I should report more frequently. I used to think writing letters to His Majesty was presumptuous. But lately, I feel like I’ve gotten used to it.

Just around the night Will read His Majesty’s letter, at the workshop in Northernford, Oliver was making a difficult face after hearing a story from a merchant he had known for a long time within the Levant Company. “So, the Vandle Empire‘s intelligence service is asking around about Lord William in both the Royal Capital and Northernford.”

“Yes. They pretend to be Imperial merchants, but they are Intelligence Department personnel. Hearing there were suspicious characters, I tried talking to them myself; when I hinted that I had information, the look in their eyes changed, and they immediately produced money.”

“I see. A real merchant would assess what kind of information you might have and only pay after deciding it was necessary for them.” “Exactly.” “The Empire, which has looked down on the Kingdom as a backward nation until now, shouldn’t have been interested in the Kingdom’s situation. The fact that they are sending spies to gather information means…”

“There is information that the Empire has a poor wheat harvest again this year, and even the cold-resistant rye is failing.” “If that’s the case, it’s natural for them to investigate whether the Albion Kingdom has a bumper crop.” “Indeed. Since the Kingdom hasn’t hidden the developer of the drought-resistant wheat, the Empire must have known immediately that it was Lord William. I believe that is why they are asking around in Northernford too.”

“In that case, we should assume they also know that Pomte was created by Lord William.” “Yes. Our company sent a large amount of Pomte from this Fairchild territory to the Sheffield Duchy in the north. We haven’t hidden that fact either, so they will find out immediately.”

“The problem is how the Empire will move.” “Lord William is likely a talent they want desperately. They must be thinking of how to somehow bring him into the Empire. Although I think the possibility of a sudden abduction is low.” “Yeah. Lord William is the son of a high-ranking noble, and His Majesty favors him, so if it were discovered that the Empire kidnapped him, it would become an international incident.”

Oliver wore a grim expression. “But we should be careful. Lord William has also developed cold-resistant wheat, after all.” “Cold-resistant wheat following the drought-resistant wheat? That is amazing.” “Lord William‘s talent is truly wonderful. That is exactly why it wouldn’t be strange for scoundrels with bad intentions to appear. I will inform His Excellency the Margrave to be wary of the Empire’s movements. Ah, I should also have my father inform the Royal Family.”

“You aren’t going to tell Lord William himself?” “No. I want Lord William to craft freely and uninhibitedly. I don’t want to cloud his talent by increasing his worries. He is still a child; it is enough for those around him to be prepared.” “Ooh, the Young Master is quite kind to Lord William, aren’t you?” “Stop teasing me, Joachim. He is my lifesaver, after all. Also, could you stop calling me ‘Young Master’?”

“I apologize. It seems old habits are hard to break.” Joachim, a head clerk of the Levant Company, has known Oliver since he was a child. Since Oliver has been taken care of by him for so long, he can’t speak too strongly against him. Oliver put on a resigned face, realizing he probably wouldn’t stop calling him Young Master.