The Abandoned Duchess Seems to Want a Peaceful Life - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Changes in the Serf Village

Three days after Sabbath, when Melfina visited the serf village again, Nid was perplexed.

In Nid’s life, nobles were nothing more than entities that took half of the harvest as taxes. Even during his childhood living in town, the sight of splendid carriages passing by on occasion was the closest he had come to witnessing nobles in actual life. So encountering one in the flesh for the first time was a novel experience.

“Let’s temporarily halt the forest clearing. It will take too long to resume, so let’s prioritize developing the barren lands for now, except for logging for timber procurement.”

After briefly explaining the village’s development situation, Melfina asked if there was a table available for writing.

Among the serfs, there were none who could write, nor were there any who sat at tables for meals. It was customary to lay out mats on the dirt floor of their homes and sit in a circle with their families to eat.

Indirectly conveying this, Melfina placed the parchment she brought on the ground and crouched down.

It was common knowledge that nobles never lower their heads. Even to Nid, who had never seen a real noble besides Melfina, it was clear that the princess before him was unconventional.

“For now, I plan to cultivate this area into fields from here to this range. We’ll designate twenty meters by fifty meters as one plot, as a unit of cultivated land. We’ll handle the surveying, so I’d like you to till the inside of the stakes.”

“But Lady Melfina, while clearing the barren lands is easier than the forest, the ground is hard, and crops won’t grow well even if tilled.”

Clearing the forest involves cutting down trees, digging up deep roots, removing rocks, and collecting stones, which is extremely labor-intensive. It’s common to only be able to cut down a few trees in a day, and further cutting them into pieces to carry and use as firewood is also heavy labor.

However, the soil in the forest is soft and black, so once it’s cultivated into fields, growing crops is relatively easy. That’s why all the landlords who employ serfs urge them to clear the forests.

On the other hand, barren lands are flat areas without trees, where thin, tall grass thrives. It’s not that trees don’t grow; rather, the land lacks the strength to support trees.

Even after strenuously removing the grass, the soil remains clumpy and hard, and without proper cultivation, vegetables and crops won’t grow well, eventually allowing vigorous weeds to take over again.

“Don’t worry, there are crops that can grow in barren lands, and we’ll also work on soil improvement.”

“Soil improvement…?”

“It’s about making infertile land more conducive to crop growth, rather than just planting crops in fertile soil. Ah, looks like we have visitors.”

Nid finally noticed the commotion near the village entrance.

During the day, both adults and children often ventured into the forest to gather food, leaving the village empty. Visitors were usually tax collectors or landlords concerned about the harvest for the year. Since most villagers didn’t possess anything that could be considered wealth, it wasn’t much of a concern.

As Melfina stood up and headed towards the village entrance, Nid hastily followed suit.

Outside the village, surrounded by minimal fences to deter animals, rows of roofless wagons were lined up.

“I placed an order before leaving the capital. Twenty cargo wagons and forty donkeys to pull them. Since it’s not worth sending empty wagons, we had them transport farming tools, seeds, and seedlings as well.”

Nid gasped. His eyes were drawn to the axes among the unloaded cargo.

Those axes looked incredibly sharp. With those, even large trees could be felled cleanly in a matter of moments.

Despite the purpose of the serf village being colonization and cultivation, they were not provided with decent farming tools. The worn-out axes often broke with too much force, yet replacements were scarce. Despite this, the landlords would still shower them with insults, questioning why colonization wasn’t progressing faster, accusing them of laziness.

It had become so commonplace that they had long stopped hoping for anything to change.

Driving such a finely sharpened axe into a tree would surely be satisfying.

“Tools are crucial for efficient work. We tried recruiting a blacksmith who could also handle maintenance, but we haven’t found anyone willing to come to the borderlands yet. I’ll inquire with the guild to see if they can dispatch someone, so please bear with us for a while.”

“Well, if it’s just basic maintenance, we can handle it ourselves, but… um, is it alright for us to use those?”

“Of course. Grapes grow relatively well even in barren lands, so I want to establish a vineyard as soon as possible. It’ll take a few years before we can harvest properly, so let’s expand gradually. The highlights for this year are beans and corn. I want to get the fields ready for them as soon as possible.”

“Why not wheat?”

“If we were to cultivate wheat fields, wouldn’t we have to pay taxes on them? We can think about that after we’ve established a foundation to feed everyone.”

It’s common knowledge that the abundance of wheat harvest also determines the value of the land. Wheat is in high demand for bread and ale, directly contributing to profits.

However, what mostly ends up in the serfs’ mouths is potatoes and beans.

Half of the wheat is given directly to the landlord as taxes. Then, from the remaining half, sixty percent is paid to the landlord as rent, with the rest being the serfs’ share. This often involves trading with the brokers hired by the ale breweries for goods like cloth and necessities.

Serfs typically store potatoes and beans grown during fallow periods to sustain themselves throughout the year.

“I’ve heard that corn is grown near the capital for livestock feed, but are we planning on dairy farming here?”

“We’re considering it for the future, but for now, we’ll stick to raising chickens and pigs. This year, our main focus is on food production. Besides, corn is delicious even for humans. It’s one of my favorites, too.”

Melfina laughed casually, then suddenly covered her mouth with her palm as if remembering something.

“Please keep that last part a secret. It’s not very dignified for a noble. It’s a bit late to mention it now, though.”

The princess, laughing mischievously as she said this, was unbelievably charming, as if she didn’t belong to this world.

As Nid acknowledged the vast difference between their worlds, he couldn’t help but find it curious, yet he didn’t feel any discomfort with the princess laughing in front of him.

***

The weather was clear and dry, with hardly any wind—a perfect day for slash-and-burn agriculture.

The rainy season would come soon, bringing more rain, but for now, the dry conditions caused by the current season made the barren lands scattered with dead branches burn well.

“It seems like the fire has finally reached the edge.”

“Yes. We thoroughly weeded the boundaries of the fields, and the areas near the forest are surrounded by stones, so I believe the fire will naturally extinguish after burning out.”

“After the fire is completely extinguished, let’s wait a few days before tilling. Nid, can you also assign a few people to keep watch at night just in case? Sometimes embers can be reignited by the wind even after we think the fire is out.”

“I’ll assign some of the faster ones.”

“Please make sure to carefully till the ashes of the weeds into the soil. Mixing ashes and charcoal into the soil where tall weeds grow will improve crop growth. Marie, did the items we requested from Enkar Village arrive?”

“They’re stacked next to the fields.”

“Then, Nid, I’d like you to make something like this near the fields. For now, twenty of them. Each should be about your stride wide and five strides long.”

Handing over the parchment with the drawing, Melfina received a confirmation from Nid, who then promptly went off with several serfs.

“Hey, Lady Melfina, are we not growing potatoes in these fields?”

“We won’t be growing potatoes this year. Do you like potatoes, Rod?”

“It’s not like I particularly like them, but I heard they fill you up, so I thought we might be planting potatoes, but it seems not.”

“Both the corn and beans we’re going to grow will be delicious. Look forward to it.”

While corn is a fairly popular crop in this world, it’s mostly recognized as livestock feed. In the previous world, the majority of corn grown worldwide was indeed for livestock feed.

However, it’s not completely unused for human consumption. Poor farming communities sometimes eat the kernels and use the rest as goat feed, and highly processed foods like corn soup occasionally grace the tables of nobles.

With tomatoes and eggplants also present, it’s unclear whether these crops were discovered in the New World or if they were originally native to this land and underwent selective breeding. Since corn seeds are sold for feed, they were purchased in large quantities.

In this world, taxes are paid with wheat, and the common people’s diet consists mostly of potatoes. Potatoes grow relatively easily with minimal effort and provide sustenance. Especially now, the varieties being cultivated are mostly high-yielding ones.

What would happen if a disease specialized in this particular crop were to spread?

Similar outbreaks occurred in history in my past life. The Great Potato Famine, as it’s known, caused devastating effects in Ireland, where a significant portion of the population died of starvation, and the population didn’t recover even after two hundred years had passed.

Two years before Maria’s story begins in the Kingdom of Hearts, the potato blight that occurs in this world before the potato harvest would cause significant damage not only to the Francesca Kingdom but also to neighboring countries.

In my previous life, it’s said that one-fifth of the population died of famine, and it’s likely to be a similar situation in this world as well.

While the disease itself would eventually be mitigated by the arrival of Saint Maria two years later, the extent of hunger and loss of life within those two years, was not mentioned in the game.

If famine is imminent, it’s wise to produce a large quantity of crops unaffected by the disease. It’s a simple approach, and while its success is uncertain, it’s better than doing nothing.

“Melfina?”

“…It’s nothing. Let’s do our best, Rod.”

“Yeah!”

Smiling at Rod’s energetic voice,

—Ah, I hope everything goes well.

The management of the territory was initiated because I wanted to secure Melfina’s position, even if Maria entered the Alexis route when the game started.

In my past life memories, I was just an ordinary working woman. I didn’t have ambitions like becoming rich or starting a successful business. In fact, there were times when I even gave up on voting during busy work periods.

Unlike the feudal system in this world, where every citizen has the right to vote, it’s common for more than half of eligible voters to abstain from voting. Even though politics and economics directly affect their lives, many people refrain from getting involved because it seems “complicated” or “beyond their understanding”.

Even in my previous life as an ordinary woman, the sentiment was somewhat similar.

Meanwhile, Melfina is undeniably a member of the ruling class. For her, commoners and serfs are merely numbers who pay taxes, and while she may learn the necessity of environmental adjustments, it’s difficult to consider them as targets of goodwill or relief.

The current Melfina is different from both of those perspectives. As she interacts with the leader Nid, as well as Rod, the other children, and the women of the village who cooperate with a hint of reluctance, during her visits to the serf village, she has developed a strong awareness as a lord that she must not let them starve.

Particularly, what significantly changed her values was when her handmaiden Marie ceased to be under the protection of the ducal household and became Melfina’s secretary.

In the game, “Maria of the Kingdom of Hearts” that I played in my past life, naturally, this world revolved around the heroine Maria.

Secondary characters other than the love interests were rarely explored deeply, and even the existence of Melfina’s handmaiden did not appear on the game screen.

Even in my past life, where I thoroughly played through all character routes, there was no room for speculation about Melfina’s handmaiden being Alexis’s half-sister and harboring resentment due to her position.

Through Marie’s situation, I realized that there are many people living in this world, each with their own circumstances.

As I try to change Melfina’s position, I feel like I myself am changing.

I don’t know what the future holds, but for now, Melfina is the lord of this land.

Let’s do what we can for the people of the territory.

Feeling myself changing in this way didn’t put me in a bad mood.