“Conpayo? Near the market?”

A familiar name came up, and Stella felt unexpectedly pleased. Without realizing, her voice had risen, and she quickly composed herself, continuing to gaze at him.

“What’s your name?”

“D-D-Dudul, Your Highness.”

Even the heavenly royalty asking for his name made Dudul feel oddly flustered. He had never felt his name so insignificant as he did today.

“Dudul?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“I’ll be counting on you, Dudul.”

Stella smiled widely, extending her hand. Dudul, looking at Stella’s outstretched hand with a slightly agitated expression, hesitantly took it with his plump hands.

Stella grasped Dudul’s hand again and shook it up and down. It felt as if she had met an old friend, just because he was a gardener. Stella wasn’t the only one happy to see Dudul.

“I like that human. He really loves the land.”

“True. Just seeing that man makes me feel good.”

“He’s making a fuss.”

“Then Oton, you’re not a fan?”

“He’s not bad. Just that much.”

When Ark and Esta started making a fuss, Oton reluctantly acknowledged it with a short snort. Stella, listening to the conversation of the earth fairies, was convinced that Dudul was a highly suitable person for the gardener of Verudra.

“Currently, we have five varieties of saplings and five varieties of seeds that Darun obtained from the market. First, organize them by section and plant them.”

“Yes, Your Highness. If you provide the seeds, I will examine them and plant them in suitable places.”
“No. I’ll decide the location. Dudul, you just need to plant them where I tell you.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Dudul replied but found it intriguing. Most nobles would entrust garden landscaping to others, and the explanations were usually given by stewards or the household staff. After the landscaping was done, nobles would come out, roughly inspect it, and then go back inside. Sometimes, if it didn’t please them, they would order it to be redone, or some wouldn’t pay.

However, no one had ever brought a hoe themselves, especially not like Princess Stella, who even carried it.

“Give me that hoe. It’s too heavy for you, Your Highness.”

Dudul extended both hands politely toward the hoe Stella was holding, saying. However…

“Absolutely not. Darun will give you one.”

Dudul didn’t understand what was going on.

“Your Highness doesn’t let anyone touch this hoe. It’s a very precious item to her.”

“Precious?”

A farming tool, not even a jewel? Stella wondered if they were teasing her, but it didn’t seem like that.

To the bewildered Dudul, Darun handed another hoe as if it were a significant secret.

After a while.

“Oh, my! This soil is really good. Anything planted here will grow well.”

He marveled at the soil, forgetting for a moment that he had been planting seedlings. It was the first time he had encountered such rich and good soil since he was born.
Stella worked on planting seeds she bought at the market. Interestingly, the seeds she bought from the old man were all related to noble farming techniques. The book not only listed the names of the seeds but also detailed the planting season and cultivation methods.

“Princess, what kind of seeds are these?”

Breen asked, marveling at the round and large seed he held.

“They’re sugar peanuts. Have you heard of them?”

“Are there such things? If they’re sugar peanuts, are they sweet peanuts?”

“Well, I don’t really know. We’ll find out once we plant them.”

As Stella attempted to plant them according to what she had read in the book, Ark, who was standing nearby, was surprised and quickly intervened.

“Stella! You shouldn’t plant sugar peanuts like that.”

Stella, unable to ask why Breen was standing next to her, only widened her eyes.

“You need to dig the ground deeper with the hoe and plant peanuts at wider intervals. You have to dig deeper than what’s written in the book.”

Stella nodded understandingly and grasped the hoe again.

Thunk!

The hoe’s blade plunged deep into the soft soil.

The cold iron of the hoe delved into the soft earth, enveloping Stella’s hand, caressing her arm, and warmly embracing her entire body. The indescribable warmth of the soil warmed Stella’s body gently.

Dudul, who was planting seedlings in the distance, frowned as he watched Princess Stella wield the hoe. It was evident to anyone that she looked like someone farming for the first time, with her awkward form and haphazard way of holding the hoe.
“If you hold it like that, you’ll get blisters on your hands quickly.”

Dudul was concerned that the delicate hands of the princess might get injured. Since she wouldn’t pay attention to the hoe, he thought he should tell her how to hold it to minimize the pain.

However, this thought shattered into pieces before Dudul could take a few steps.

“Oh my.”

It was just hoeing, but what Dudul saw in Stella’s hands was the pulsating vitality of the earth and the perfectly beautiful figure of Princess Stella. She wasn’t dressed up, nor was she wearing a pretty dress, but the sight of Stella Princess digging the ground with a hoe made Dudul’s heart swell as if witnessing a goddess.