How to Use the Lord’s Future Diary-Chapter 36

Chapter 36
The season of harvest, autumn, had arrived.
Of course, we didn’t have much to harvest here.
We had only just managed to restore the farmland that had been ruined back in spring.
And even that was just in the vicinity of the territory’s castle—it was still far from being enough.
At least there were some vegetable patches in the open areas within the castle, but that was only a minor addition.
The grains we brought from outside were our main source of food.
There was plenty of meat, but people couldn’t survive on meat alone.
“—But at least you planted the seeds, right? Have a drink~”
‘Well, what else could I do?’
As the rabbit said, the seeds had been sown.
Autumn wheat, planted in autumn to be harvested before the next summer came.
This region was better suited for autumn wheat than spring wheat.
If the wheat could be harvested before summer, maybe we could plant beans or something else immediately afterward?
Of course, that was only possible if the harvest itself went smoothly.
‘Still, next year we should be able to actually harvest, right? After all, they’re the Rabbit Tribe.’
Could normal production even be possible on this land?
For now, we had no choice but to trust the Rabbits.
‘Still, the Rabbits were impressive.’
Speaking of the Rabbits, these guys were extraordinary in their way of thinking.
No matter how much the Rabbits farmed, it was natural for monsters to invade the farmland.
Our farming plan in the territory was simple: tend the fields, retreat to the castle if monsters appeared, and return once the soldiers cleared them out.
However, the Rabbit workers, who had taken refuge in the castle several times, had recently started digging shelters right next to the farmland.
‘Maybe they think it’s a waste of time to go in and out of the castle when it’s not really dangerous?’
When the warning flags went up, they immediately hid in the tunnels, and when it was quiet again, they came back and resumed work.
I was a bit shocked in a different way than the Johnson Territory farmers, who didn’t even retreat and fought the monsters directly.
The idea that retreating would waste time was something I could never have imagined.
“—So the problem is still ‘those’ guys, huh?”
‘Ah, “those” guys.
Well, not exactly a problem, but it was a bit surprising.’
The Rabbits were naturally born workers.
With the farmland we were preparing, we couldn’t accommodate all the Rabbit workers.
There were over 2,000 Rabbits, and more than half of them could work.
So some Rabbits had no work to do, and we borrowed their help in other fields as well.
Especially the slaughterhouse, which had recently required much more labor, was very welcoming of the Rabbits joining.
But every group has its mutants.
Some Rabbits, who had worked as laborers for the Level Merchant Group, began expressing a desire to become soldiers.
Rabbits wanted to stand on the battlefield.
It was unprecedented, as the Rabbit Tribe had never formed a regular army in their history.
‘Well, they had quite special experiences—slave life, a massive escape, and the great Raptor battles.’
After some thought, I accepted the Rabbits as soldiers.
There was no reason to stop them if they wanted to be soldiers.
The more troops, the better.
In a world where anything could happen anywhere, this region was especially unpredictable.
Still, I felt uneasy about putting the Rabbits in close combat.
It was, how should I say, awkward for them even to hold a sword or spear.
So I just sent them all to the Ranger side, and apparently, the results were better than expected.
Hiding and running was their specialty, and with their dexterity, strength, and decent eyesight, their archery skills improved day by day.
If trained properly, they could make a very competent Ranger unit.
‘Though it’s a bit much how they constantly talk about mana bombs and booby traps.’
“—Didn’t you request to add mana crystals as military supplies?”
‘That’s something we’d have to convince Peter of first.’
The problem was that these Rabbits, possessed by something, were constantly demanding mana crystals.
But we had none left.
All the remaining mana crystals had already been handed to the Rabbits, and we had used them during the escape.
On top of that, we had Peter, who absolutely despised mana bombs.
Even during the defensive battle, Peter hated mana bombs.
When I said that the Rabbits had used all the mana crystals during their escape, he almost tried to kill me.
He couldn’t understand how we could waste something so valuable like that.
I had explained that the Rabbits wouldn’t have escaped without the mana bombs, but he said if it happened again, he’d burn down the alchemy workshop.
‘In short, if the Rabbits want to use mana crystals as military supplies, they have to get past the mountain called Peter.’
Could it happen?
Whether the Rabbit Rangers could take mana crystals from Peter, the guardian of mana crystals, was something that would need to be watched closely.
‘Thanks to the Rabbits taking action, the residents also got some breathing room.’
With the Rabbits joining, the burden on the existing residents had eased somewhat, and the residents now busied themselves with preparing for winter.
From gathering firewood and food to making winter clothing.
In that sense, this year was much better than usual.
Thanks to the Horned Rabbits, we could stockpile a large amount of meat and use their hides for winter gear.
The most difficult task for the residents was making winter clothes, and the Horned Rabbit fur was perfect for that.
For reference, I also received a Horned Rabbit coat and winter clothes.
They were soft and warm, surprisingly good quality.
Good enough, I thought, to even sell elsewhere.
If we end up trading Horned Rabbit meat, we’d have to look into that too.
“—So, we’ve stockpiled plenty of jerky too, right?”
‘Right.’
“—But we’re still keeping it a secret from that lion, huh?”
‘Actually, that’s more of a problem.’
Among the busy Johnson Territory residents, one person seemed a bit distracted: the Great Warrior of the Lion Tribe, Leisha.
Even though we had secured enough extra jerky, not telling Leisha was a deliberate action.
We wanted to keep Leisha around to encourage settlement in the territory, but it wasn’t as easy as I thought.
“—Forming a group is the Beastman instinct.
It’s not an easy problem.
Especially telling a Great Warrior to abandon their tribe is basically an insult.”
‘I didn’t realize it would be that extreme.
Shouldn’t that have been mentioned beforehand?’
“—Given how beast-like the owner is, I naturally assumed you knew.”
Damn, if only they could talk.
Anyway, Beastmen instinctively form groups.
Even in the Forest of Illusions, the Rabbit Tribe lived scattered in family units, but they still maintained the large Forest of Illusions community.
It was possible for part of a Rabbit group to leave the forest and settle in a human territory, splitting a large group into smaller ones, but for only a few Beastmen to leave the group and settle elsewhere was virtually impossible.
Even a Great Warrior was in a position responsible for their tribe, so abandoning it to settle elsewhere was unthinkable.
It was heartbreaking news for me, as I didn’t want to lose Leisha no matter what.
“—So, what’s that female doing now?”
‘Same as always. Just spacing out while admiring the Horned Rabbits in the fields.’
Unlike the other female warriors resting comfortably under good treatment in our territory, Leisha always idled in front of the Horned Rabbit breeding pens.
Curious about why she did that, I asked Leon quietly.
“Probably because she feels regret? Actually, the Lion Tribe also tried raising Horned Rabbits.”
I learned the interesting fact that the Lion Tribe had attempted Horned Rabbit breeding as well.
‘Makes sense, I guess.’
The Lion Tribe was also located at the edge of the Fallen Yggdrasil’s territory.
Given the similar environment, it was a situation worth attempting.
But the result was a total failure.
They had raised the tribe’s expectations, only to suffer a crushing defeat.
And Leisha had been the Black Lion who most desperately hoped for the success of Horned Rabbit breeding.
—“That’s unfortunate. So, are you planning to just let that female go?”
‘If joining is difficult, we should at least get something out of her.’
—“I see. That’s how it’s going to be, huh.”
I had long thought I needed to further improve my abilities.
During the last battle of the territory’s defense, when facing the Variant Cyclops, I had put on a show against a Class 2 monster and barely survived thanks to the Mana Cannon.
It was then that I realized.
I had thought myself a rather skilled individual, but when a monster intervened, it wasn’t particularly impressive.
Leisha, on the other hand?
She had smashed a Class 2 monster, the Raptor Queen, into a pulp with a single blow.
The storm of black aura and the Furious Iron Fist she unleashed still remained vividly in my mind.
Of course, the Variant Cyclops had been a top-tier Class 2 monster, while the Raptor Queen was overestimated in rank as the leader of a monster group.
Still, comparing the two Class 2 monsters, the difference was striking.
In this world, to live confidently, one needed at least to be a Master.
‘The difference in skill was just too obvious.’
—“Hmm, certainly owed a lot to her.”
I had personally witnessed Leisha’s skill with my own eyes.
If she couldn’t be settled in the territory anyway, it made sense to use her as a stepping stone for my growth.
It would be a waste to invite a powerful individual like Leisha and gain nothing.
Yes.
I planned to request training from Leisha.
I intended to use this opportunity to lay the foundation for reaching Master level.
“Ho~ Training, you say.”
“Yeah, you’ve been free lately, right?”
“That’s right. I’ve been itching for action. If it’s a bear, he’ll make a good plaything—no, a training partner.”
“Did you just say ‘plaything’?”
“Misheard. I’ll turn a weak bear into a strong one.”
Today, I requested training from Leisha, who sat endlessly watching the Horned Rabbits in their pen.
Surprisingly, she agreed willingly.
Her usually dull eyes brightened, and a smile appeared on her lips.
Of course, it wasn’t a normal smile.
—A killing smile, indeed.
‘And a plaything at that. Did I just make a terrible mistake?’
But there was no choice.
Among the people I knew, only Leisha was a Master (Great Warrior), and now I had to rely on her.
“I’m afraid I have no talent for teaching.”
“Oh, really?”
“But those who trained under me improved in skill regardless.”
“That’s… impressive.”
“So start with your posture. Sparring it is.”
“…Sparring right from the start?”
“I don’t know any other training methods besides sparring.”
“Oh, I see?”
Leisha’s training.
It was nothing but indiscriminate sparring.
So this was it?
By taking hits repeatedly, you eventually learn something.
—Indeed, trials that cannot kill me only make me stronger.
This wasn’t exactly how that saying was meant to be used.
I thought something was seriously wrong, but for now, I had no choice but to follow.
“Don’t worry. I won’t use aura.”
“That’s a relief.”
Maybe I could handle this.
Even in my previous life, I had decent experience in one-on-one combat.
No matter how powerful the opponent, if they didn’t use aura, I could counter to some degree.
With that in mind, I gripped my trusted weapon, Unbreakable, tightly, determined to give it my all.