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Vol 01 Chapter 04: Iron Farming Tools

Once the introductions were all done, it became clear that although the ways in which we were abandoned varied, we all were abandoned by our parents.

Everyone came from different places. It seems they had only become close in the past few days. This means there is room for me to fit in. That will make things easier.

The gender ratio is about even. Normally, girls are abandoned first, but for some reason, the numbers are mostly equal here. 

Not that it matters right now.

Let me introduce just the five key people for now.

Ron-kun, twelve years old and the oldest. He’s taller than I am currently. A bit confrontational, but responsible.

Soyon-chan, also twelve. She’s from the same village as Ron-kun. Quite cute. Their relationship will probably not end in just childhood friends in the future. She uses polite language with me, but her attitude is quite imposing towards the other children, including Ron-kun. Her keeping this business-like attitude against me makes me feel a bit lonely.

Roswald-kun, eleven years old. He was the number two before I arrived. More aggressive than Ron-kun. Seems like he doesn’t like me much.

Tetra-chan, ten years old. Taciturn. She usually doesn’t talk at all.

Gram-kun, also ten. Small and timid.

These five are the central figures of this group.

「I think we really have no choice but to start farming,」

I started the discussion with these five. Frankly, I don’t think listening to the opinions of children would be very meaningful, but starting anything on my own without their input would only alienate them. After all, I’m just a newcomer. The children under ten wouldn’t be able to even understand the discussion, so I decided to discuss this only with the elder group.

「But hey, isn’t making a field incredibly hard? What are we going to do about that?」

Ron-kun voiced his concerns. He was absolutely right.

Untamed land is incredibly hard to cultivate. Plus, cutting through the roots of plants makes it a heavy labor. The critical issue is that we are all children. Moreover, the only ones who are somewhat fit for work in the fields are me and the five other children over ten years old. It’s a reckless idea.

But it’s better than not doing anything at all.

「It’s impossible, just impossible. Let’s give up,」

Roswald-kun started to get up after giving his half-hearted opinion, then he glared at me.

「Listening to this guy won’t lead to anything good. You think the same, right Tetra?」

「…If we want a stable food supply, agriculture is our only option,」

Tetra-chan seemed to agree with me.

「What does Gram-kun think?」

「Eh! Um, well… I don’t know.」

Gram-kun hesitated. 

Well, it’s natural not to know. That’s how all children are.

「But how will we cultivate the land?」

「We’ll buy iron farming tools. With them, it should be much easier.」

「Buy? What do you mean by ‘buy’?」

Ah… they don’t have a currency system. I will have to explain.

「I mean we’ll exchange something for the tools.」

「If we had anything to exchange for iron tools, we would have already used it to fill our stomachs. Are you stupid?」

Roswald-kun interjected with a harsh comment.

Hey, the one who calls another stupid is the stupid one.

「We do have something to trade. Unfortunately, it’s not edible.」

My words made all five of them tilt their heads in unison. Kind of cute.

「Hey, I’ve brought them.」

I heard Griffon’s voice. It seems he brought what I asked for.

「Thank you. With this, we should be able to manage.」

I received a large number of swords and spears from Griffon. Seventy percent of them are made of iron, and thirty percent are made of bronze.

These weapons were all brought by the fools who tried to defeat Griffon. They are worn and rusty, but they are made of valuable metals.

「There’s no need to worry. I have no use for these fangs and claws. They don’t return to earth easily, and they smell, so I was troubled about how to dispose of them. Please get rid of them quickly. I will go fetch more since there’s still a lot left.」

Griffon said this and flew away. 

The values of beasts and humans are completely different.

「So, are we going to fight a war with these?」

Gram-kun asked apprehensively.

「No, not at all,」

I immediately deny Gram-kun’s question.

Gram-kun, your thoughts are quite extreme, aren’t they? And you looked so timid…

「Sure, they’re powerful, but there’s no way children can beat adults. An unarmed adult can easily defeat an armed kid, even more so if that kid doesn’t know how to use the weapon.」

In a fight between adults and children, the outcome is clear. I wouldn’t do something so reckless, not even if we were on the brink of starvation.

「So we’ll trade these for iron farming tools?」

「That’s right, Tetra-chan!」

I tried to pat Tetra-chan’s head, but she dodged my hand. 

Onii-chan is sad.

「Why don’t we just buy food with it?」

Ron-kun asked, and Tetra-chan answered Ron-kun’s question.

「Once you use it up, that’s it. We need a stable source of food.」

「Ah, that’s true,」

Ron-kun quickly conceded. 

His straightforwardness is one of his good points.

「But can we easily dig up the soil with iron tools? It looks incredibly hard.」

Tetra-chan pointed out.

「We’ll have to look for the softer areas. As a last resort, we could hire adults. If we offer them an iron sword and ask for a little help, they might agree, depending on the conditions.」

The backup of Griffon-sama is a great asset. But making use of it will be our last resort.

There’s also the option of asking Griffon himself for help. Trading some iron swords for food to extend our time limit is another possibility.

For the time being, the plan to exchange these weapons for farming tools was accepted by everyone. In the end, no one objected. Well, opposing something without offering an alternative will only cause problems for everyone.

「The problem is where to make the trade… Does anyone know the geography around here?」

While saying this, I looked at Ron-kun, who shook his head at an incredible speed.

「No way, no way. I only know about the area around my village. What about you, Soyon?」

「I’m sorry… I don’t know either.」

「What about you, Roswald-kun?」

「Uh! Me? Well… I know, but… I mean… I can’t say…」

「So, you don’t know. What about you, Gram-kun?」

「I’m… I’m… I’m… I’m sorry…」

Well, it can’t be helped. They come from a society that doesn’t even use money. It’s unlikely that children of peasants poor enough to abandon their children would know anything beyond their village…

「What about you, Tetra-chan?」

「I know.」

I thought as much… Wait, what!?

「You know?」

「A little.」

Saying so, Tetra-chan taught us about the surroundings of this forest.

This forest is apparently called the Romalia Forest. To the east of the forest is a country ruled by a king called Rosais. To the northwest is a large country ruled by a king called Gilbed, and to the northeast is another large country ruled by a king called Domorgal. And north of the countries ruled by Kings Gilbed and Domorgal, there is a country ruled by a king called Faldam.

「King Rosais’ Country is not very large. They don’t have any decent iron farming tools, nor do they have many iron weapons. The countries of King Domorgal and King Gilbed are quite large, so I think they have iron farming tools. Also, the current famine has triggered a war between the countries of King Gilbed, King Domorgal, and King Faldam.」

「I see. So now is the best time to exchange these weapons. On the other hand, if we don’t move quickly, the farming tools might be melted and turned into weapons. We need to hurry.」

I want to ask why she knows so much, but now’s not the time for that. It would be rude to pry too much when we’re not close. I’ll ask when we’re better acquainted.

「If I were in the adults’ shoes…」

Tetra-chan looked straight at me and continued.

「…I’d just steal the weapons. If they try something, what do you plan to do?」

Well, that’s true. 

It would be rare to find an adult who wouldn’t try to take advantage of us. In peacetime, we may find some kind soul, but now, in this state of emergency, it’s even more unlikely. Besides, for them, winning the war is important, but so is next year’s harvest. They won’t easily give away iron farming tools.

「Don’t worry. I’ve thought this through. We’ll use this,」

I showed them a large feather, a beautiful feather shimmering like gold.

「Is that… from Griffon-sama?」

Gram asked, his voice trembling.

「You, you stole it?!」

Roswald raised his voice in alarm.

How rude. I merely found it lying around.

「What are you going to do with that?」

Soyon asked, tilting her head slightly.

Soyon-chan is the most obedient and cute.

「We’ll show this and say we are emissaries of Griffon-sama! That should work, right?」

「Wouldn’t that incur divine punishment?」

Ron-kun asked with a worried look. 

Griffon might be impressive, but he’s not a god. There’s no way divine punishment would come down. At least, that’s what I think. But it seems the children, except for Tetra-chan, are very anxious. 

I didn’t think this through enough; the difference in our perspectives caused them distress.

「I got permission,」

When I said that, the four of them looked relieved. 

Sure, Griffon is scary, but I don’t think he’s something to be that frightened of. Despite everything, he’s quite caring.

「Let’s go right away. For now, we’ll trade ten iron swords and six bronze swords. Trading them all might leave us in trouble if we need them later.」

For now, we’ll trade only these. Farming tools are urgently needed, but there are other necessities as well.

「It’s dangerous for everyone to go. Who wants to come?」

As I said this, Gram-kun and Roswald-kun raised their hands.

「Alright, let’s go! Tetra-chan,」

I took Tetra-chan’s hand. She looked puzzled.

「I didn’t raise my hand.」

「What are you talking about? There’s no one else who knows the area around here. Your participation is mandatory.」

Upon hearing my words, Tetra-chan let out a big sigh.

◇

「So, we’d like to make a trade.」

When I asked for a trade, the village head looked suspicious. 

Of course, if a child appears suddenly, claiming to be an emissary of Griffon, and asks to trade iron and bronze swords for farming tools. I would be suspicious too.

The village head alternated his gaze between the swords we brought and the feather of Griffon. He seemed to be in a dilemma.

「Village head! I’ve brought the blacksmith!」

Two people came running over. One of them, presumably the blacksmith, began examining the swords we brought. Surprise showing on his face. These swords were brought by people who intended to defeat Griffon. They are rusty, but all of them are of fine quality. Wouldn’t it be a great deal to trade these for farming tools?

「What do you want?」

「Let’s see… How about ten hoes, three axes, and eight sickles?」

Although we are calling them iron farming tools, they only have iron at the tips, while the iron swords we brought are made entirely of iron, except for the handles. Technically, we could ask for more based on the amount of iron, but we’re just kids. It’s better to ask for a modest amount.

After much thought, the village head agreed to the trade.

Well, if the war situation worsens, all iron farming tools might be converted into weapons, so this is a good trade for them too.

Hinting that we might come back for more trades in the future, we left the place.