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Chapter 291: Busy

Azure sky, cerulean sea.
I 【Teleport】to the island from the fortress city. Winter was fast approaching the fortress city, so the skies were perpetually overcast with dull, dark clouds. The stark contrast was liberating. The island’s summers are swelteringly hot, and even the winters are warm.

The scenery viewed on top of the tower is breathtaking. I wanna spend the day lazing in my room, but I’m still carrying the baskets holding the chickens, so I can’t. I found these while going around the fortress city. They look great, so I bought a male and two females, and I’m going to let them join the other livestock in the barn.

I locked eyes with a child the moment I stepped out of the tower.

He stood up, then he unfolded a handkerchief while facing the main building. What was that?

「MiLord. 」
「Did something happen, Auro? 」
I asked while staring at the boy who spread the handkerchief with a daunting pose and a somewhat victorious grin plastered on his face. Oh, I remember this kid, he’s quite clean now, but he’s the fisherman’s kid and I played with him before.

Auro abruptly appeared out of the blue and called out to me, but I’m already used to Ludere and the other spirits doing that so I let it go.

「Soleil-sama tasked that child to do that. Kiel will be here soon to get you — two priests dispatched by the temple are currently on the island. 」
‘Kiel will come to get me’, so Auro isn’t here to fetch me then? Plus he’s addressing Soleil with deference, does that mean outsiders entered this place?

「Is it a troublesome matter? 」
I want to entrust all the pain-in-the-neck stuff to Soleil as much as possible.

「They probably came to tell us that we should formally request a congratulatory blessing for the『Fae’s Bough』that has been placed here. The temples that worship the Sea God and the God of Commerce in the Talia Peninsula are in fierce competition, after all. 」
In short, they’re warning us not to arbitrarily place the Spirit Bough, huh?

「So it’s not Marina? 」
「The Spirit Bough there is genuine, after all. 」
Ah, come to think of it, the Boughs will be affected if the nation isn’t working hard to be united. Yeah, as expected, the ones fighting should be the humans.

「We might get dragged into their conflicts if we let them near the 『Fae’s Bough』 or the office, so I came here to inform you first. 」
「Thanks. Are things alright over there? 」
「Perhaps. No matter which side you choose, it will still be burdensome. However, it is only mandatory to choose sides if the Bough in question is fake because without a blessing, the Bough will only be treated as mere props. 」
I could feel that Auro must’ve confirmed that the bough I placed there is genuine. So he properly recognized it, huh? Although it’s true that I put it there, Auro’s keen sense is worrying.

「You came right at this timing, huh!? 」
Kiel briskly strode towards me.

「Ahh, yes yes. I’m about to shut myself in the barn so don’t mind me. 」
「Hmpf, so Auro told you, huh. But seriously, of all things, why the heck did you decide to put that stupid looking thing there, huh? If you didn’t have any black and white branches then you could’ve chosen something that could’ve bought us some time, something we can claim as just a temporary substitute… On top of that, the residents are starting to complain about it moving in the middle of the night. 」
Kiel rapidly fired away all he wanted to say before heading back.

You coming here is totally pointless, pointless, I say.

I crossed the bridge and made my way towards the barn after the encounter with Kiel. Auro followed after me. Hey, what about the priests? Oh well, if it’s genuine, the temple won’t have anything to take advantage of, so there shouldn’t be any problem, I guess.

The eastern end where the main building and tower are located is actually a standalone cliff made of rocks. All the buildings with the bare minimum essential functions are located here, and the rest is located in the area beyond the bridge. That area is also enclosed by walls, making it a part of the castle.

The castle walls are designed in a way that the top part also functions as a walkway. Various facilities had been established within the space enclosed by the walls and they all faced the courtyard. One of them was the livestock barn.

「Oh? They’re fewer than I thought. 」
「We provide feed for raising them, but they inevitably devour the surrounding greenery whenever they’re let out for exercise. Thus, we decided to limit and regulate the numbers until the trees have grown. 」

They have two methods of raising livestock in this world. One is to enclose them and give them feed to eat, the other is to let them loose and allow them to find their own food. Among them is the Canum style of letting the pigs run amok in the sewage…

The pigs were lying inside the fence enclosure attached to the entrance of the barn. The goats were in the fence enclosure beside that, while the chickens leisurely pecked the ground outside. The barn keeper must’ve taken the cows for a walk.

I set the basket I was carrying on the ground and released the chickens. They were different from the ones here in Nalluahdid; they’re more like game fowl, and they’re deliciously juicy. It’d be nice if they could multiply.

Livestock other than poultry such as chickens and ducks are restricted in the castle town and they obtain meat from Nalluahdid. It can’t be helped, the island has limited land area and we also have to grow more greenery after all.

I asked Auro about the matters regarding the island while we stood in front of the barn. The fields are doing well thanks to the black soil, and the various plots of land where we sprinkled the soil is now incomparable to how they had been in the past — the plants have taken root well and the grass is also growing nicely, apparently.

The people permitted to settle down in the castle town are the craftsmen and workers that are indispensable for the residents and their livelihood — although it seems that they either did the work themselves, or they go to Nalluahdid to get it done. The farmers and dye craftsmen, who contribute to the island’s industry, also settle there.

I kinda feel uneasy that the innkeepers who cater to tourists, the bakers who directly contribute to the folks’ day to day lives, and even the bathhouse proprietors are all Changelings, but it’s not my fault. Auro reported that he added more of his retainers with a smile, but again, it’s not my fault that he did this.

… Just where is this island’s future heading to? He told me that 「Please rest assured, there are also human followers 」, but what the heck am I supposed to be reassured with?

「It’s real…! It’s the real deal!! 」
「T-That’s…. That’s!! Unbelievable, there are even three of them… 」

I was about to explore the town when two well dressed folks — a man and a woman who seemed quite disoriented — emerged from the castle gate. Faramia was following them closely along with two others who looked like escorts.

「It seems like they’ve finally grasped that the Boughs are genuine. It appears that they should’ve been taken to the actual place right from the get go instead of negotiating in the room. 」
Auro said with a smile, but I could feel his contempt at their incompetence — those two must be the rumored priests.

「The senior high priests are in the reception room. Those two are like their own children respectively, so if the situation is favorable, they want to extort money and have those two settle on this island as priests. 」
Thanks for explaining, Auro, but can you please stop reading my mind?