Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 414: The Village’s Source of Income
For several days, Tauro and his companions traveled among the villages near the territorial capital, helping Garde transport and sell produce.
Garde usually handled the negotiations, but Tauro was much faster at arithmetic, so he assisted from the side.
“You’ve saved me from a huge accounting error! I normally estimate each batch of produce by eye, so sometimes I hand over too much and the numbers don’t balance afterward. Hahaha!”
It was almost impressive that he had managed as well as he had until now.
Still, mistakes were inevitable when he had to sell such large quantities without a reliable way to calculate the totals.
Tauro drew a simple formula on the ground and taught Garde how to use it.
“I never knew there was a method like this! Oh, I see! So that’s how it works… The answer really does come out clearly!”
“If you write it on the ground with a stone or a stick, you can calculate the total quickly, right?”
“You’re incredible! Thank you! From now on, I’ll use this formula—or whatever it’s called—and make sure I sell everything properly!”
Garde thanked Tauro with genuine delight.
Zion had been watching the lesson.
“Tauro-sama, could you teach me too sometime?”
Apparently, Zion wasn’t very good at reading, writing, or arithmetic.
“Of course. I’ll be happy to teach you as long as you’re willing to learn.”
Tauro welcomed her enthusiasm. From then on, while Garde negotiated with the villagers, one of the party members stayed beside Zion and helped her practice reading and writing.
After several peaceful days on the road, they arrived at a mountain village some distance from the territorial capital.
“This is the farthest village on our regular route.”
Garde explained as he climbed down from the driver’s seat and led the horse forward.
Through [Presence Detection], Tauro sensed that the mountain villagers had noticed Garde’s arrival and were suddenly bustling about.
“What kind of village is this?”
The reaction was much stronger than it had been elsewhere, so Tauro asked Garde about the settlement.
“This is Keishi Village. The land around here isn’t very suitable for farming, so they always buy large quantities of our vegetables, wheat, and even animal feed. They’ve probably been waiting for me.”
“I see… Then what does Keishi Village rely on for income?”
“They often trade us meat and wild vegetables, but… now that you mention it, they’ve been paying rather well lately.”
Garde had probably never given the matter much thought. When Tauro questioned him, he found himself at a loss for an explanation.
While they were talking, they reached the village.
“Oh, Garde! You’re earlier than usual, so I was wondering who had arrived.”
The young chief of Keishi Village came out to greet Garde personally, which was unusual.
“Chief! I didn’t have to return to my village between deliveries this time, so I made it here much sooner.”
Garde smiled, though he seemed surprised that the chief himself had come to meet them.
“Well, since you’re here, let’s conduct our business at once.”
The chief tried to begin the transaction at the village entrance.
“Hold on. We always do this in front of your house. Since when do we conduct business at the village gate?”
Garde complained about the strange reception.
“Ah, well… there’s a great deal going on in front of my house right now, and it’s rather messy. It isn’t fit for guests. Please give us a moment.”
The chief hurriedly glanced toward the other villagers for support.
Under his silent pressure, they shook their heads.
Apparently, something near the chief’s house had to be hidden, and the villagers were frantically clearing it away.
Tauro’s [Presence Detection] also revealed people hurrying around at the rear of the village.
“What is it, Chief? Have we fallen out recently?”
Garde must have known the man well, because he openly questioned the chief’s unnatural behavior.
“…I’m sorry. Our livelihood depends on this, so there are some things we have to keep secret.”
The chief’s answer carried an ominous weight.
“Chief, we’ve finished cleaning up.”
A villager came to report.
“Good! Then, Garde—and your escorts—please come to the back.”
The chief wiped away imaginary sweat and led Garde and Black-Gold Wings deeper into the village.
“…That’s almost aggressively suspicious.”
Ankh whispered to Tauro.
“…Yes.”
Tauro nodded but said nothing more.
Everyone had secrets. Perhaps this one concerned the village’s new source of income.
Thinking it might be better not to pry without cause, Tauro reached the area in front of the chief’s house.
Then a leaf lying on the ground caught his eye.
“Hmm?”
Tauro casually picked it up.
“Ah! That—!”
The chief reacted at once.
Seeing his alarm, Tauro examined the leaf with [True Eye].
Magic Grass—a hallucinogenic herb harvested on a distant southern continent. Used as a raw ingredient in magic potions. Commonly known as “Weed.”
That was the appraisal result.
The chief hurriedly snatched the leaf from Tauro’s hand.
“What’s wrong, Chief? Why are you panicking over a leaf? Wait… Have you secretly begun growing a new crop? Is that what this leaf came from? That explains all the guards at the back of the village—and why you never let me come through here!”
Garde’s innocent guess struck surprisingly close to the truth.
“!”
The chief was visibly shaken. He didn’t appear to be a skilled liar.
“Garde, please keep this secret! Our impoverished village has finally found a way to support itself. The merchants who buy the crop warned us that if word spread, other people would imitate us. We’re strictly forbidden from telling anyone.”
Now that the secret had been discovered, the chief apparently chose to ask for silence rather than invent a lie.
“Is it really such a valuable crop? I thought the village had been doing rather well lately… Still, if it’s a secret, I won’t tell anyone. Besides, I couldn’t identify an unfamiliar crop from a single leaf anyway. Hahaha!”
Garde laughed away the chief’s concern and gave his promise.
Tauro, however, understood what he had seen.
This “Weed” was probably used to make narcotics—the illegal drugs of his previous life.
He didn’t yet know how much the chief understood, but as a territorial inspector, Tauro couldn’t overlook the matter.