#54. Active Role (4)
Early morning.
Farmers heading to the fields stopped in their tracks as the faint dawn light broke.
Their eyes were caught by a most unusual sight.
“What’s going on there?”
They all stared at a plot of land that until yesterday had been nothing but weeds.
It was supposed to belong to a high noble,
yet it had been left unattended,
with villagers grumbling about the waste of good farmland.
But today, something had changed.
“Isn’t that a knight?”
At the field’s edge stood a tall man in gleaming black armor
that seemed to swallow the morning light.
His imposing stature, noble bearing, and the sword at his waist—
he was clearly a knight.
He was pacing back and forth, giving orders.
And men who looked like soldiers obeyed without question,
working the soil under his direction.
“Why would a knight himself be farming?”
“And in full armor, too, instead of making underlings do it…”
As people draw more people,
a curious crowd slowly gathered around the field.
Yet the knight and soldiers worked steadily,
undeterred by all the watching eyes.
They were none other than Andrei and his men,
acting under Sasha’s orders.
This should be enough to draw attention…
Andrei glanced around.
The field’s fence was now surrounded by villagers—
practically the entire little town.
He cleared his throat.
“This crop—was personally secured by Lady Alexandra,
acting in the lord’s stead!”
Normally soft-spoken,
Andrei raised his voice so it carried clearly.
“She has said this plant grows even in poor soil
and needs little care—but still!”
His words rang out so even those at the very back could hear.
“It is being grown under Lady Alexandra’s direct command,
and will be offered not only to her,
but to Young Lord Pavel and, when he arrives, the Grand Duke himself!
So handle it with utmost care!”
The farmers’ ears pricked.
For the lord himself to eat it?
Just what kind of crop was this?
Finally, Andrei swept the crowd with a stern glare.
“Only the lord may eat this—
no one else is to approach!”
Though meant as a warning,
it only stoked their curiosity further.
The crowd’s eyes gleamed as they watched Carto being planted.
Andrei went on, spreading more “information.”
“When it sprouts, it becomes poisonous!
Eat it then and you might die!”
He explained it as though kindly instructing them in its use.
“In two weeks it will be ready.
Then dig up the roots—those are the edible parts!”
He even gave tips.
“Not the leaves—the roots, fist-sized!
You can eat them raw, but they taste better boiled or roasted!”
The villagers might have wondered why he said such things aloud,
but since he had been doing it all along,
they merely assumed the knight had a habit of talking to himself.
Never suspecting he had a plan.
Only Andrei felt his face burn in embarrassment.
He wanted nothing more than to stop talking.
But—
I mustn’t fail the Young Madam. I can’t spread false information.
Every word he shouted was straight from Sasha.
She had made him memorize it all,
so he could seed it among the people.
So Andrei endured the shame,
calling out until his throat grew hoarse.
Meanwhile, the field was neatly sown.
The soil dampened with drawn water,
fertilized, cleared of stones and weeds.
Soon after the planting began—
“Will this really work?”
In a shabby wagon hidden nearby,
Yelena asked Sasha anxiously.
Sasha turned from the field,
smiling at Yelena and Ivan’s worried faces.
“It’ll be very effective.”
So effective, in fact,
that they might soon run out of seeds.
“Better gather more before that happens.”
She chuckled softly, pleased.
Behind her, Ivan and Yelena exchanged uneasy looks.
They could already see her hopes being dashed.
That night.
“You sure something valuable’s buried here?”
“Of course! Didn’t you see earlier?
The soldiers standing guard like hawks?”
“Ha, I saw. And that knight in black armor shouting orders—
said it was for the lord himself.”
The whispering farmers fell silent
as they spotted soldiers circling the field.
They waited, holding their breath in the dark.
Then the guards drifted together,
chatting idly instead of watching.
Far from the field,
they wouldn’t notice even if wild animals ravaged it.
The “visitors”—or rather, thieves—
slipped from the shadows.
Faces covered,
they hurried over the crude fence
and began digging up Carto in haste.
They thought they had gone unnoticed—
“We’re really supposed to ignore this?”
“Yeah. Sir Andrei said at night, no matter what, pretend not to see.”
“Still… feels like they’re treating us like fools.”
The soldiers grumbled.
After all their hard training and battles,
being told to guard a field was humiliating.
Worse still—guard it badly on purpose,
so thieves could rob it freely.
They could feel every rustle in the dark,
yet had to stand idle.
It was maddening.
“Just think of it as a rest.
Aside from missing sleep, it’s easy work.”
“True. Those doing the farming in daylight look about ready to drop.”
They chuckled.
But soon, more “visitors” crept in.
Clad in dark rags,
they whispered to one another.
“So there’s really treasure buried here?”
“My neighbor James swears the lord’s growing
something delicious and worth a fortune!”
“Is that so?”
Similar talk again.
New holes appeared beside the old ones.
And so, through the night,
holes multiplied across the field…
The next morning,
when Andrei arrived as usual—
“What in the…!”
He stared in dismay.
The field he had toiled over was ruined.
The plump Carto underground—gone without a trace.
“…Damn.”
He sighed heavily,
dragging a hand down his face.
He had expected this might happen
when ordered to loosen security at night,
but seeing it for real weighed heavily.
He had failed at the task Sasha had entrusted to him.
He longed to run to the battlefield
and swing his sword until death took him.
But his sense of duty held him fast.
He went to report.
With heavy steps,
he knocked on Sasha’s office door.
“Come in.”
He entered, face dark,
and reported stiffly:
“This morning, I found the field completely dug up.
The Carto we planted was all gone.”
Eyes shut tight,
he bowed low.
“My apologies.
I should have protected it,
but I failed in my duty.”
“No.”
Sasha shook her head.
“Sir Andrei, you did your part perfectly.”
“…?”
At his confusion,
she praised him again.
“Truly. Didn’t I say this before?”
Still unconvinced,
Andrei’s expression stayed grim.
So Sasha added,
“Thanks to you, everything is moving faster than I expected.
I’m grateful.”
Though still puzzled,
he eased slightly under her praise.
After he left,
Sasha leaned back in her chair, hands clasped.
She hadn’t spoken empty comfort.
The outcome pleased her.
Everything was going exactly as she had hoped.
Her plan was for the farmers to taste Carto.
Once they do, they won’t be able to resist growing it themselves.
And just as she expected—
her plan had taken root.
