Knock, knock, knock, knock.

The sound of peanuts being pulled from the roots echoed incessantly from all around. Stella, who demonstrated, as well as those who learned about the existence of sugar peanuts for the first time today, all concentrated on harvesting peanuts.

Although it was quite labor-intensive compared to other crops, it was strangely enjoyable.

Peanuts harvested from various parts of the field piled up abundantly. The earth fairies joyfully ran around, each holding a peanut. To those who couldn’t see the earth fairies, it might have seemed like the peanuts were rolling around on the ground. However, with everyone wholeheartedly focused on the peanuts, the presence of the earth fairies leaping around was entirely unnoticed.

Sugar peanut harvesting continued until the next day. Coincidentally, Crot, who visited Verdura Castle, enthusiastically joined the work.

“Wow, I can’t believe I get to try this!”

Until now, there hadn’t been an opportunity, and even if he wanted to, the nobility’s authority and honor, not to mention the opposition from family and friends, made it impossible. Given Crot’s personality, he probably wouldn’t have cared about their opposition, but when it came to practical action, there were many constraints.

Fortunately, he had the chance to experience farming in Verdura Castle.
Crot believed that the center of all things started with agriculture, thinking that the people of the empire should be self-sufficient in food. However, as the empire grew in scale and the number of people farming dwindled, especially in the capital region, there were very few people engaged in farming.

With Crot joining the work, the pace noticeably quickened. Despite being quite lean, Crot’s hands were incredibly fast, and he harvested even faster than Doodl, who was skilled in farming. The sugar peanuts, which were almost finished, were all harvested before lunchtime that day.

Crot looked at the peanuts piled up like a small garden with a deeply moved expression. If he could, he wanted to take some peanuts as a commemoration. However, Crot couldn’t bring himself to say anything and just gazed fondly at the piled-up peanuts.

“This is for you, Teacher.”

At that moment, Stella suddenly presented a large bag to Crot. Even though the entrance of the bag was tightly sealed, a sweet aroma permeated through.

“Princess, is this by any chance?”

“Sugar peanuts. I picked the ones with particularly large kernels that Teacher harvested personally.”

“Th-thank you!”
Until now, Crot had never received a gift-like item from a disciple, despite teaching numerous people. Whatever he received from disciples were all things he already possessed. Moreover, Crot, being a person fundamentally lacking in appetite, and even less so in material desires, felt burdened by the act of receiving a gift.

However, now, with a modest bag of peanuts in hand, Crot felt as if he had the whole world and became genuinely happy.

“Take that and dry it in a sunny place. If you leave it as it is, it might become inedible.”

When Stella gave him a warning, Crot nodded vigorously. He returned with an overwhelming sense of gratitude as if he had received a golden treasure.

After that, the process of drying the peanuts began. Since the peanuts could sprout again if buried in the soil, they were spread only on the flat stone-paved path around the castle. This made the path uncomfortably narrow for people to walk, but there was no other choice.

Berudura Castle, surrounded by sugar peanuts, was filled with a sweet fragrance, as if immersed in honey.

“How long should we dry them like this?”

The person most worriedly examining the peanuts was Rian, who took care of the castle’s household affairs. With peanuts spread all around, walking became difficult, and there was concern about insects attracted by the sweet scent.

“Just let them dry well for today. Don’t worry.”

“That’s really fortunate!”
Rian sighed deeply, wiping her chest. The ability to dry peanuts in just one day was thanks to the power of the earth fairy, Esta, who possessed the summer’s strength. Esta quickly made the sprouts that Ark had planted grow, momentarily intensifying the power of the sun that touched the plants in the process. Once people entered the castle, Esta planned to use her abilities to move around among the peanuts, ensuring they dried well.

As Stella had assured, the next morning, upon opening her eyes, the peanuts were hard and well-dried, as if they had been exposed to the sun for a week. Before drying, even getting close caused the sweet scent to vibrate, but once thoroughly dried, putting them in the mouth and biting down was necessary to make the sweetness explode inside the mouth.

Stella’s vegetable shop didn’t have specific opening days. Nonetheless, people often wandered around the store, hoping to catch a glimpse of today’s business.

When large peanuts were displayed on the counter, curious faces of waiting customers gathered.

“What’s this?”

“It looks similar to peanuts, but why is it so big?”