The memory of that dawn gathering lingered somewhere still. That night, Lucian had bowed before the farmers. Misaki could still vividly recall the moment his broad shoulders slowly folded in the stone building. Crying while laughing, clinging to Mina until everything became a blur——and then morning came. And today was the day to turn the soil. The farmers of Halbert Village gathered in the northern field had been moving since dawn. Redigging drainage ditches, replanting seedlings, driving hoes into the clay soil with poor water drainage. It wasn't just about restoring the plots that Julius had ravaged. There was momentum to complete the basic crop rotation system they'd planned from the start all at once. Misaki stood at the edge of the field, surveying everything. Her bright chestnut-colored semi-long hair swayed in the morning breeze. Her deep indigo eyes tracked the farmers' movements swiftly. The silver leaf-shaped earring on her left ear glinted as it caught the morning sun. "[excited]Let's advance three plots simultaneously! Block A is drainage, Block B is planting, Block C is soil improvement!" She was aware her voice had become rapid-fire. It always sped up when she got excited. That couldn't be helped. The farmer Hans wiped sweat from his forehead and answered, "Understood, young lady," then headed toward Block A with his hoe. Corne declared, "Use all our seeds!" and Thomas silently began carrying materials. Mina ran along clutching seedlings in her small hands, her pale green short bob bouncing, her freckles clearly visible in the morning light. Then unfamiliar footsteps approached. Everyone naturally turned around——or rather, the presence felt different. The footsteps were clearly not those of farmers. Hard leather shoes. Methodical walking. It was Lucian. Black hair with a single red streak running through it. A small scar on his left cheek. At one hundred eighty-five centimeters tall, he wore something close to work clothes today, which was rare. He held a single hoe in his hand. "[cold]……The documents can wait until afternoon" With just those words, Lucian took his place at the field's edge. He tried to position the hoe. All the farmers stopped working. Hans exchanged a glance with the woman next to him. She covered her mouth. Thomas turned his whole face away——his shoulders trembled slightly. Lucian's grip on the hoe was clearly wrong. He was holding it near the top, just above the blade. That completely wasted the shaft's length. No power, no leverage from the hips. It was the textbook example of a grip that would exhaust you in one swing. Lucian raised the hoe with a serious expression. He swung and missed. The hoe didn't pierce the ground; it just slid across the soil. Lucian stumbled. He steadied himself and tried again. "[gentle]My lord, it's the reverse grip, reverse grip" The woman said it while barely suppressing laughter. She wasn't suppressing it well. Thomas wordlessly walked over to Lucian's side and began silently demonstrating the proper grip with his own hoe. Grip position. Shoulder usage. Knee bend. Not a single word. Just showing. Warm murmurs spread among the farmers. Before that night, the air would have been different. The lord came to the field——tension, wariness, anxiety about what to do. But not now. Lucian had bowed and said he'd do this together. The farmers' bodies still remembered those words. Misaki felt her chest grow warm as she watched the scene. As if remembering she should be doing something too, she started moving. As she approached Lucian, her mouth moved before she could think. "Um, if you hold the grip a bit lower……" As she said this, she tried to place her hand over Lucian's. They touched. Her fingers overlapped with his. Just for a moment. But they definitely touched. Both of them froze simultaneously. Lucian's silver eyes looked at Misaki beside him. Misaki's indigo eyes looked at Lucian. Both their faces turned bright red. At the same time, they both jumped back a step. "T-that concludes the grip explanation!" She spoke rapidly and spun around. She started walking. She hadn't decided where to go. She just walked. A short distance away, Mina had grabbed Gilbert's sleeve tightly. "[whispers]Did you see, did you see" She was chattering in a small voice, her eyes sparkling. Gilbert was an elderly butler who had served Glesia Manor for many years, always maintaining perfect posture and appearance. That man smiled quietly, but unmistakably. "[gentle]I did indeed" With just those words, he faced forward. Lucian silently repositioned the hoe. This time he held the grip properly lower. He put his hips into it and swung. The hoe drove firmly into the soil. The farmer woman clapped and said "Ooh!" Hans laughed and said, "Not bad for a lord!" Lucian didn't answer, but swung again. This time it went deeper. --- The morning's work proceeded smoothly. The basic drainage line was becoming visible, and Misaki's estimate of "basic plots complete in three days" was becoming realistic. Mina carefully arranged seedlings and reported to Misaki, "At this pace we might finish in two and a half days," and Misaki's voice brightened with "Really!?" It was just past noon when it happened. The sound of hooves came from the direction of Halbert Village. Multiple horses. Then the sound of wheels. One of the farmers looked up. "That crest……" A carriage decorated with gold ornaments stopped before Glesia Manor's gate. The driver opened the door. The golden hair of the person who descended gleamed in the afternoon light. It was Julius De Sorel. The twenty-six-year-old young lord had his usual refined features. Enchanting proportions, clear azure eyes. Golden hair loosely tied back, wearing a well-tailored coat. Even from a distance, his elegance stood out. But——the temperature of his smile was different. The "sweet neighbor" atmosphere from his last visit wasn't here today. He was smiling. The smile was perfect. Yet that very perfection made it seem cold. Julius walked toward the field, and with just a glance at the farmers who tried to continue working, several of them stopped. "[sarcastic]How industrious. However——I cannot approve of a remote minor territory engaging in conduct that disrupts the kingdom's order, Misaki" His voice was soft. But the content was different. Julius brought up the Pelvant Nobility Council directly. The political faction formed by twelve powerful noble families of the central Fortina Kingdom——the moment the farmers heard that name, Misaki could see their complexions change. "I must ask that you cease operations immediately until the council's decision is reached. Otherwise, the Nobility Council will record this as inappropriate conduct by a remote territory lord" The farmer Hans froze, hoe in hand. The woman next to him grabbed her neighbor's arm. Corne looked at Misaki. Anxiety wavered in his eyes. Misaki understood what Julius was aiming for. "The center moves"——she understood how those words had seeped into the farmers' bodies. A week ago, that phrase had made this man ravage the field, and now he was playing the same card again. Lucian quietly stepped forward between the farmers and Misaki. His silver eyes fixed on Julius. His mouth hadn't opened yet. Misaki drove her hoe into the ground. A small sound reached the soil. Then she walked toward Julius. --- Misaki was smiling. A bright, cheerful smile. The usual one. But her eyes weren't smiling——or rather, her eyes were very serious. She pulled a folded parchment from her pocket and spread it before Julius. "[serious]This is an official royal decree of the Fortina Kingdom, isn't it" It was the official application for the Land Reclamation Encouragement Edict. A kingdom law issued fifty years ago——if wasteland was converted to farmland within three years, the annual tax would be halved for five years. A document jointly submitted with Lucian this morning at dawn. "If the Nobility Council orders a remote territory lord following kingdom law to cease land restoration——wouldn't that itself be an act of ignoring the kingdom's legal order" Julius's smile cracked slightly. "The council has audit authority over remote territories……" "Audit authority is for investigating improper territory management, isn't it" She spoke over him. Misaki's voice was gentle, but it didn't yield an inch. "If you classify legitimate farmland restoration based on the Land Reclamation Edict as improper——wouldn't that deny the kingdom's own judgment in issuing this law fifty years ago? Have you confirmed the legal interpretation" Mina had stopped working. "[whispers]Misaki is so cool" She said it quietly, but clearly. The farmer woman whispered to Corne. "That girl's smart, huh." Corne nodded with tears in his eyes. "That's why I didn't want to let her go from the start." Julius tried to maintain his perfect smile and failed. The corner of his lip twitched slightly. It was the first moment the farmers could see it. A presence approached. Lucian quietly stood beside Misaki. She felt the shift in the air's center of gravity the moment he did. Just Lucian's presence changed the weight of the space. "[cold]If you pressure my territory's prospective lady with coercion, I will file a formal protest with the central kingdom as a remote territory lord" His voice was ice-cold. Not emotionless——rather, all emotion compressed and transformed into words. A kind of stillness. "I will simultaneously attach documentation of how Sorel territory used the Nobility Council's name to obstruct legitimate land reclamation in a neighboring territory" Misaki glanced at Lucian's profile for just a moment. The scar on his left cheek. Silver eyes seeing only Julius. "[gentle]Please give it your consideration" Misaki bowed. Julius's expression truly crumbled. His teeth clenched. A light appeared in his azure eyes that Misaki had never seen before——not anger exactly, but the cold light of a calculation gone wrong. "……Remember this" Low, brief. With just those words, Julius turned toward the carriage. The driver opened the door. He climbed inside. The door closed. The sound of hooves faded into the distance. Cheers erupted from the farmers. --- By evening, people had gathered at the village tavern "Lantern House." Lantern House was the village's only tavern and inn, and while the owner Yorg was said to be a former mercenary, tonight he looked more like a festival organizer. He kept shouting "I haven't seen a night this lively in ten years!" while pouring beer. Corne declared, "Forget the seed payment!" and applause broke out. Thomas came wordlessly to Misaki and offered her a cup. He bowed slightly. That was all, but it was enough. Mina had begun performing in the center of the room. "That gold-haired mean person, his face looked like this!" She acted out an exaggerated grimace. Furrowed brows, twisted mouth, fingers at her temples. The place erupted in laughter. Hans clutched his stomach. The old woman had tears in her eyes. Yorg asked, "Do it again!" Lucian stood near the entrance, leaning against a pillar, drinking alone. One of the farmers invited him, "Won't you join us, lord?" Lucian answered, "……Noisy." But he didn't move. He didn't refuse and leave. Realizing this, someone laughed again. Lucian drank silently, his gaze fixed beyond the crowd. At Misaki laughing with Mina. At Misaki talking with Hans. At Misaki being patted on the shoulder by Corne and laughing——always. Gilbert appeared beside Lucian at some point. "[gentle]A most pleasant evening, isn't it" "[cold]……Yes" A short answer. But he didn't deny it. Then Misaki's voice reached them. "Don't make that face!" Apparently Corne was trying to spread something. "When you shut down Julius, your face looked like this, so I thought we'd call it the Sorel face in the village" "Show that face and anyone would shut up, definitely" "I wasn't making an