The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 487

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 487   Heading to the holy city…

“This, to this extent…”

Upon hearing my words, Canon muttered while turning her gaze back to the village. After hearing the conversation with Canon, it seemed like I could finally regain my composure. This time, the hero approached me with a surprised expression and spoke up.

“Huh!? What’s… Hey, that’s…”

The hero seems to be shouting something, but I don’t know. Why do I have to talk to you? Even if you have something you want to ask, I don’t have anything I want to ask you.

Therefore, I ignored the hero and returned to the carriage, deciding to close the door that I had left open. The hero seems to be complaining about something, but time is already tight. If you have something to say, at least do it during the break. Well, the fact that time is tight is because I moved on my own, but I shouldn’t worry about that.

Well, even if he came to ask during the break, it’s a different story whether I’ll listen to him or not.

“—Announce it to the residents! That food is our charity! However, it will wither in a week. If you want more, go to Karakas. If you have the confidence to survive, you can live there without starving!”

As I leaned back in the chair and took a breath, a voice with a familiar tone reached me from outside.

That’s why I hesitated about getting involved, but Granny suggested sending the villagers to Caracas as a solution, providing them with a choice for a viable long-term solution, not just temporary relief.

Even if the villagers choose not to go to Karakas, it’s their own decision. If they reject the offered option here and die, discarding the chance to live that was given to them, I can accept it without feeling particularly troubled.

It’s not a capricious temporary semblance of hope but a real hope to sustain life.

I can’t thank Granny enough for understanding without me saying anything. …Or maybe Kyle went to ask her? About what to do.

Because, for a moment, it would be unnatural for Kyle to move away from the escort. So, it’s more natural to think that Kyle asked Granny how he could help me and then carried it out.

Glancing at Kyle, he briefly flashed a smile that seemed to say, “How about that?” then immediately averted his gaze, so my assumption is probably correct.

However, while it’s the result I hoped for, it’s dissatisfying or something. There’s one bad thing. That is…

“The Holy Maiden and the Shield Guy are giving us a really intense stare, you know? Won’t you take care of that?”

“I don’t know? I just shouted because the old lady told me to. It’s not the job of the guards to handle that.”

As people from the Holy Kingdom, it’s understandable that they wouldn’t feel good about being recruited and having people taken away. However, if they could make their citizens happy, they wouldn’t be in a situation where they could lose them. I hope they realize it’s their own doing and give up.

…Or rather, the initial cause was the anomaly caused by you guys cutting down the Sacred Tree. It’s really just reaping what you sowed.

Well, with this, the population of Karakas will increase again.

In the so-called ‘City of Criminals, Karakas,’ the capital of Karakas may not see an increase, but the surrounding suburban cities might get confused with the additional influx of people. I should send someone later and write a letter to Dad or something. Well, Granny has probably taken care of it already. After all, she sent spies to the village.

…But yeah, I should send someone too. With that, I could go around other villages and guide them like, “There’s plenty of food in Karakas~.” It’s both strengthening my own country and weakening the enemy’s. If I can aim for both, there’s no reason not to do it.

After that, a few more days passed.

We reached about halfway from the border to the capital.

During that time, the Hero persistently confronted me, but I ignored everything.

Well, I can understand his feelings, right? Given that I created such greenery in this desolate land, the power he desires is undoubtedly something he would want as a “Hero actively working.” With that power, he could save a lot of people even in the midst of this anomaly.

“Traveling is long, huh?”

“We’ll arrive at the Holy Capital Alfreya in about two more days, so please bear with it until then.”

The Holy Capital Alfreya is, well, as you might guess, the capital of the Holy Kingdom. It’s a bit lacking in taste to put “Holy” in front just because it’s the capital of the Holy Kingdom… but it’s straightforward and, as a symbol of religion and headquarters, it might have some effect.

But if it were up to me, would I name it something like the “Demon Capital”? … Nah, I don’t really like that.

While I was contemplating such trivial matters, Lilia, who had been peacefully sleeping until now, suddenly woke up, jumped to her feet, and shouted.

“What’s wrong, Lilia?”

“…What’s this? Huh? Why is this happening?”

Even though I asked what happened, there was no response. However, judging from the current situation, something abnormal had undoubtedly occurred. I decided to stop the carriage for now.

“Hey, what happened?”

“Don’t you get it? It feels really creepy and unpleasant here.”

After grabbing Lilia and making her face me, I asked her what happened. Lilia, with a grand frown on her face, spoke in a genuinely uncomfortable tone.

But I don’t know why Lilia ended up like this.

However, it’s certain that something abnormal is happening. Just as I was about to check how other elves might be affected if she’s like this, I remembered Flora’s existence.

“Where’s Flora!?”

“Ugh…”

Like Lilia, Flora was usually lying down and sleeping in the carriage. But now, she seemed to be having a bad dream.

“Hey, Flora! Wake up! Are you okay!?”

“Ugh… Naa…?”

When I shook her to wake her up, Flora murmured softly and clung to me.

It wasn’t the usual clinginess but rather an urgency born from fear or loneliness.

“Are you all right?”

Before I could hear from Flora, the group led by Canon, including the Hero, showed up. They seemed to have come to inquire about our situation because our carriage had stopped.

“The condition of our companions seems strange. They sensed some anomaly.”

“Anomaly, you say. Is it related to those plants again?”

“It might be, but we’re not sure. It could be something else.”

“Is there anything we can do? If they’re unwell, I can use healing magic, and if it’s a curse, I can dispel it with light magic.”

Canon proposed that, but I had no intention of borrowing their help. It would create an obligation, and if they tampered with something under the guise of treatment, it wouldn’t be pleasant.

Besides, I had Lilia. She’s both a “Light Mage” and a “Healing Mage,” so what Canon could do, Lilia could do as well.

Although she looks unwell right now, using her skills to some extent should be fine, and if it heals when she uses it on herself, she can use it on others.

If Lilia can’t heal herself, Canon doing it won’t make a difference, so there’s really no need to ask for their help.

“No need. We have someone who possesses both.”

However, when I said that, Canon’s eyes narrowed. I noticed the reaction but told myself that it wasn’t the time to be concerned about it and ignored it.

“Is that true?”

Even so, Canon seemed quite intrigued and asked again.

What’s up with this person? Is she so curious about someone possessing both “Healing Magic” and “Light Magic”?

Indeed, both are rare vocations, and having both at the same time would make it even more exceptional.

Oh, right, I heard a story that candidates for the saintess were chosen based on having both, among other things. I heard about it not from Canon but from his subordinates’ reports.

In that case, is it envy or hostility? Is her pride hurt because we, who possesses two rare vocations, exist?

If that’s the case, this saintess is quite mundane. Well, I already knew that.

“What’s the point of lying? You guys go back to your carriage and stay prepared in case something abnormal happens.”

“Understood.”

There might have been more she wanted to say, but she understood that persisting would only worsen my mood. Canon returned to their carriage with the Hero and the others.