Asuru, the former prince

As the young man, now a new resident and former slave, operates the tablet, a spherical drone emitting floating light follows its instructions and positions itself above the rice fields. He carefully assess the drone’s position… and eventually seem satisfied. When he starts tinkering with the tablet, a viscous liquid sprays from the drone.

This liquid is none other than an ultra-concentrated liquid fertilizer made using ancient technology. Once the fertilizer is evenly distributed, it’s time for the fully automatic tractor to take over. Guided by the tablet, the tractor enters the rice fields as if it has a mind of its own… quietly moving around, mixing the soil as it goes. By doing this, the sprayed fertilizer mixes well with the soil, and the planted rice seeds also have better root growth.

Initially, I didn’t see the need to go that far, but it was due to the earnestness of my wife, Uruka, and the others. In fact, when compared to simply planting seeds in regular soil, there is a noticeable difference in taste. After all, being royalty, I am not knowledgeable about farming, but Uruka and the others have lived a life not much different from farmers during their time in hiding.

They have quite the expertise when it comes to rice cultivation, which also applies to the improved rice varieties left by our ancestors. Once the land is well-tilled, I send the tractor back and switch the attachments.

From the soil-tilling attachment to the seed-planting attachment resembling a robot hand with millipede-like appendages downward… These robot hands, lined up neatly, have a pair of claws that deftly grab the seeds loaded into the attachments and plant them in the tilled soil. These robotic hands, lined up in a row, have a pair of claws attached, skillfully grabbing the seeds loaded into the attachment and planting them in the cultivated land.

After planting the seeds, we release the water from the channel drawn from the spring for irrigation. This is where the show begins.

It’s as if time fast-forwards… I can see the seeds that were planted germinating and developing roots rapidly… Meanwhile, sensors attached to the mechanical water gate measure the optimal water amount and temperature, autonomously adjusting to conditions like partially drying out, warming, or cooling the water as needed.

After observing for just about an hour… There stand rows of rice plants hanging heavy with golden ears.

No need for vast lands. Moreover, they yield astonishingly bountiful harvests in a short time… All thanks to the ancient farming method obtained from ‘Mamiya’.

By the way, focusing on rice cultivation is a response to my beloved wife’s request. Since the day I had rice porridge, I have been completely hooked.

Now, as incredible as it may seem… yes, it’s an incredible ancient farming method, no other way to put it. However, everything has its flaws…

Ente and I are currently facing those flaws together.

“Argh! No matter how many times we pull them out, these darn weeds keep growing back! Wasn’t this place supposed to be the Land of Death in the first place!? Where on earth are these weeds and bugs coming from!?”

After hours of weeding, my back is completely aching… Rubbing the spot, Ente raises her voice, full of resentment towards the sky.

Now, she has transformed into a miniskirt-wearing figure, perhaps embodying her father’s determination… She must have been concerned about the weird glances from the perverts pushing for those old-school swimsuits in her hometown. Without hesitation, she agrees to the makeover suggestions from Uruka and the others and begins to modify the sleeveless women’s uniform provided by ‘Mamiya’ for her own use. Unlike Eve and Uruka, she opts for bare legs instead of tights. Well, it’s not really suitable for doing farm work and all.

Anyway, I answer her with a smile.

“Well, it just shows they are desperate to survive. If they find a more fertile land, they would definitely sniff it out and relocate, right?”

As I say that, I pull out another weed along with its roots. It seems like this task will still take a while.

“Doing this with a machine would be so much easier, though.”

“Using an attachment to crush the soil just tangles the roots, and it’s proven that robot hands can’t pull them out entirely. In the end, it seems human hands are the most effective.”

“Tch.”

Ente, who stops muttering complaints, goes back to weeding. Yes… this is the unexpected downside of the super ancient farming method. The power to grow plants contained in the ultra-concentrated liquid fertilizer is truly outstanding, as seen in rice cultivation scenes. But of course, these powers also prove effective on weeds that pop up from anywhere…

After the harvest, the weeds grow rapidly. For the newly acquired slaves, the most crucial task is to get rid of these weeds… But this is tough when you actually try it.

Training in martial arts uses different muscles. I can feel it. Unlike other samurais, I still haven’t won against Banho in combat training… Perhaps this kind of lifestyle has further sharpened his strength.

“Anyway, Ente… don’t just complain. Actually, I have a plan.”

“A plan? Could it be to prevent weeds from growing?”

“Exactly. Haha… Haha… the time has finally come to put into action the idea I have nurtured since my time at the palace.”

“So, it’s not ‘Mamiya’ technology!? Amazing!”

“Hahaha! As a prince, I have always been interested in agriculture!”

Flattered by Ente, I laugh heartily. And the next day, I immediately set out to execute it.

Without any particular reason, I put on the sunglasses I wore as the disguise the other day… Standing in front of the rice field with a bag filled with a massive amount of that stuff… Now, all that’s left is to grab it in my right hand and scatter it across the rice field with unnecessarily sexy gestures!

Here goes nothing!

As I energetically grab the bag, someone grabs my hand.

“Huh… Uruka, what’s wrong?”

When did she get here…? Before I knew it, my wife was grabbing my hand with a pale face. She must have rushed over here in a hurry… She is out of breath and sweating profusely. And as I look into the distance, I can see Ente and Eve running towards us…

Haha, did Ente hear about my grand plan and brought Eve? So, they hurried over to watch my brave figure. How endearing… and lovely, isn’t it?

“Asuru-sama… What is in this bag…?”

“This? It’s written on the bag, you know? Salt.”

I reply to my wife’s question with a smug expression.

“Lately, I’ve been quite troubled by the weeds… But! With this, I can relax! Once I sprinkle the salt I prepared here, those weeds will be no match for me! I’m simply too much of a genius, huh!”

It’s a well-known fact that salt has the power to inhibit plant growth. So, I’ve been thinking about it since my time at the palace.

“If I sprinkle salt, would it get rid of the weed problem?”

…And so. Despite never having done farm work, I come up with a revolutionary idea. This is what they call the nature of a genius.

“I see… salt, huh? You were planning to spread a large amount of salt in the rice fields…?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

I respond to my beloved Uruka with a smile. In the next moment, her fist plunges deeply into my solar plexus.

And then, I have a dream. In the dream, my deceased grandfather, the Lombard XVII, is standing in a flower field…

“You seem to have lost your mind, lad,”

He utters only one sentence to me. It is a very lonely dream…

By the way, when I ask Eve out of curiosity, she tells me about herbicides, weed removal attachments, and lots of useful stuff.