"Bwuther! Let's play!"
"Of course! What should we play today, Elisha?"
Three years passed quickly, and now I'm four years old. Elisha, my cute little sister, is three. Since we're basically the only ones in this age range in this small fief, we always play with each other.
What? I'm an old man playing with a kid? What's wrong with that?!
Cuteness is justice!
"Uhm... uhmmm! That! That one where I go zooom~!"
"Oh? Then you'd better not tell Mother or Father later, okay? Or I'll get in trouble!"
"Awwrite! I pwomise!"
Of course, I know that promise will be broken easily. She's a kid, after all. But I can't refuse her cute request.
"Then, brace yourself!" I said as I stretched my hand toward her. "Dominator's Hand!" I activated my skill.
The same skill that sent the pervert priest flying before. But compared to back then, its level had risen considerably. My control was now refined enough to do something like this.
"Waaah! I'm fuwaying!" Elisha cried in joy as she flew overhead.
But what I was doing wasn't simple at all.
I wasn't just moving her like a toy plane.
I used Appraisal—which had reached max level long ago—to read the direction she wanted to go and followed her wishes. In short, it felt to her like she was controlling the speed and direction herself, making it "exciting" and "enjoyable!" And I always adjusted things for safety, avoiding any overspeeding or collisions.
"Y-Young Lady! Young Master!!!"
"...Ah."
Naturally, flying around the backyard meant the maids could see us through the manor windows.
Elisha was happily waving at them, but I could already feel the hour-long scolding waiting for me.
…Well, it's all worth it to see my little sister smile!
---
After years of implementation, the fief's farms were already producing beyond their previous averages. The method was now used by all farmers in the territory, boosting the barony's annual income and adding points to Father's "Royal Task" progress set by the king.
Court Mage Krystal even went as far as asking Father for permission to apply this farming method to other pioneering fiefs like ours.
Who would've thought that an old ha—no, a beautiful lady like her would go so far for others?
Anyway, we agreed, but not for free.
It was in exchange for a 5% reduction in our annual taxes.
Well, 5% might sound small, but with annual taxes sitting at 25% of yields and income, that was basically cutting a fifth off our tax burden. We could use that extra money for other projects.
Of course, 25% was only the standard rate for pioneering fiefs like ours. Taxes for established fiefs could reach 50% on average, or as high as 75% at worst.
And with the spread of the Four-Category Crop Rotation System, Father's name spread alongside it.
Between that and the small bits of advice I fed him here and there—which he took credit for, by arrangement—he turned into a genuine asset to the kingdom.
Things like the buddy system for soldiers, double-entry bookkeeping, personal hygiene practices, and methods for handling the sick. Especially the last one—it had been the main cause of death in the territory.
Though I had no specialized medical knowledge, just knowing the difference between a cold and the flu, and how to handle each, was enough to bring winter casualties down to near zero.
With fewer deaths, the populace grew livelier and their work improved. A positive cycle began, and things snowballed from there.
In just a few years, the size of our land and population more than doubled.
The taxes we had to pay tripled in amount—but we had more breathing room than ever.
Lastly, Father's contributions to the kingdom grew so substantial that the king had no choice but to recognize him. His rank rose from Baron to Viscount in one go!
With a higher rank, our cap on soldiers increased.
And with more soldiers—combined with the buddy system and improved tactics—the yearly culling of magic beasts in the forest became far more manageable.
Oh, right. I haven't mentioned that yet.
Each pioneer village bordered a Magic Beast Forest, and their royal task was to reclaim that land.
In the forest, monsters like goblins and such—common in fantasy stories—roamed freely. Sometimes dungeons even appeared, causing the entire kingdom to mobilize.
Not because they were dangerous, mind you.
Rather, because dungeons were treasure troves of resources. Each kingdom guarded its dungeons closely, ensuring no one else could exploit them.
Well, it had nothing to do with us directly. Dungeons were rare, after all.
Mining was the higher priority.
After thinning out the monsters, we reclaimed enough land to reach the foot of a nearby mountain. A mine was planned there.
"From the survey, there's a high chance of finding iron and silver, and a low but solid chance for mithril," I said, reading from the report I'd written myself.
Of course, I was the one who "found" the traces in the first place.
Appraisal, at max level, was incredibly convenient. It could even tell me the composition of soil and rock samples without any laboratory equipment.
The mountain showed roughly 10% iron content, 0.3 parts per million of silver, and 0.001 ppm of mithril. Those were averages across multiple samples, but each one hinted at the possibility of ore veins.
"Mithril, huh…" Father sighed, leaning back in his chair. "If there really is mithril there, it'd be great…"
I understood his excitement.
If we found a mithril vein—even just a few kilograms—it would be enough to raise his rank by one more, to Count.
It was just that precious.
But even if we couldn't find a vein, it wasn't as though mithril was entirely out of reach… this jar of soil in my hand was proof enough of that.
Huhehehe!