CH 40

Words : 1198 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

I was told the advantages of having a medicinal plant trade agreement with the Duke’s house “Nobles owning a business. It is like its own brand.” “A brand…” “When a landed noble owns a business, the people who live on the land will often buy it, because it’s a product from their landlord. Obviously, this would only happen in cases where there is mutual trust. And so a landlord who is loved by the people will have an easier time selling something than the average merchant.” “Well, the quality of the product will also matter. But people trust that a noble would not sell something of low quality, because that would quickly affect their reputation.” “In other words, a business that is based on trust between the landlord and the people becomes its own brand?” “Exactly.” Brands sold by nobles…would they be like luxury brands? I suppose that being sold by a trusted noble was part of the brand as well. Ms. Claire’s family business brought in great profits, so that must mean they had the people’s trust. “What I am thinking is this. The medicinal herbs that you make, Mr. Takumi, will be sold as a branded product of the Liebert house. By having a duke’s house manage things, people will trust that the product is of good quality. And of course, Mr. Takumi, you will be properly compensated for your work.” “Hmm.” “So in order to avoid disrupting the market, this family will handle things while you make the medicinal plants, Mr. Takumi. As it would not be wise for you to just make anything and in great quantities, we will have to organize things with the stores, and then have you cultivate them.” So they would be sold in stores owned by the duke, and I would get orders for the amount to produce…was that right? “Of course, if you would rather not rely on us and start your own business, I will not try to stop you. While I mean to pay you properly, it’s possible that you could make more of a profit if you did it all alone.” “Hmm… Well, that’s not something that I’m concerned about. And I don’t have any desire to be the central figure in the business either.” From my point of view, receiving the order, producing the amount, and leaving the rest to the family. If I could make enough money to live by doing that, then I had no complaints. This was still a world where I barely knew right from left. And so it felt wise to leave the actual selling to them. While it could not be helped that less of the profits would go to me, this was just a power I was suddenly able to use. It’s not something that I had worked hard to attain. And so I would be making money very easily. These were very favorable conditions. “I think that I will leave it to your family, Ms. Claire. …Besides, I surely do not have the same talent for trade.” “Very well. That being said, it is just an early idea. My father is still the head of this house. And so we will not be able to add the medicinal plants to our stores without permission, nor can we ask you to cultivate them as an employee.” “So, Ms. Claire… We won’t be able to do it immediately?” “Yes. I must speak with my father first. However, I doubt that he won’t give his permission… Though…” She had grumbled about him for a long time yesterday. He must bring it up with her a lot… She said that it had been nearly every day. Ms. Claire was living away from her father now, and they would be meeting after a long while. And so it was very likely that he would start trying to find her a match once again. I felt a little sorry for her. “I’ll think about the terms of the contract and other details before I meet him. Mr. Takumi, you must also think about it very carefully and decide whether to do it or not. …And I must also think of ways to turn those marriages down…!” “…Of course.” She sounded the most determined during the last part… I would try to avoid bringing the subject up with her from now on. After that, I looked through the book and tested to see what other plants I could make with Weed Cultivation. While I was able to make most of the plants in the book, there were also some that I was unsuccessful with. There was one called ‘Neegi,’ which was like a Japanese green onion. “What kind of folk medicine is…” Regardless, I was not able to make it through Weed Cultivation. When I asked Sebastian, he said that it was commonly sold as food. If it was considered farm produce, then that would explain why I am unable to make it. It did make me wonder who exactly decides if a plant is part of agriculture or not, but I decided to not think about it too deeply, as there would be no answers. “…Phew.” I continued to try to grow different plants until lunch time. A great variety of plants were now growing in the back garden so that it looked like a little field. However, out of all of the plants that were there, there was one single plant that was not in the book. And I had no memory of ever seeing such a plant before. A plant had been made when I had no knowledge of it at all. “…I thought plants were only supposed to grow after I imagined them?” What had I been thinking about when making this? I think…I had been thinking vaguely about how Leo and Tilura were running around and playing in the garden, and how tired I would be if I joined them. After that, I thought of energy drinks, and wondered if there wasn’t something here that would give me energy. And then I touched the ground. And before I knew it, a single purple leaf with no stem had sprouted from the dirt. I had then plucked it. But I wouldn’t dare use or sell something if I didn’t know what effect it would have. I showed Ms. Claire and Sebastian, but neither knew of the plant either. And so I decided to take it back to my room. “I’ll put it here for now.” I placed the unfamiliar plant on the desk in my room, and then I headed to the dining hall. By now, I knew how to reach it, and did not need Ms. Lyra to show me the way. For lunch, we had pasta. It wasn’t the thick, long type of spaghetti often eaten in Japan, as the noodles were flat a few centimeters wide. Everything that Ms. Helena made was delicious, so this should be no different. It was with such thoughts that I picked up the fork that lay next to my plate.

CH 40

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