Starting Today I'll Work As A City Lord

Helen curiously gazed at the white building ahead, watching as servants continuously cleared away layers of snow.

"Young master, what is this?" Helen asked curiously. She rarely came to the backyard; in fact, aside from Nicole, the other beast-eared girls seldom ventured there either.

"You'll understand once you come inside." Lucas replied with a mysterious smile. He pulled aside the thick straw curtain that blocked the entrance to the greenhouse and walked in.

Tilting her head in thought, Helen quickly followed suit, pulling the curtain aside to enter. Her first sensation was warmth, but what she saw next left her utterly stunned.

The entire greenhouse was a sea of vibrant green. The ground was filled with vegetables Helen didn't recognize, and wooden racks lined the space, covered in vines bearing green gourds.

"Y-Young master, how is this possible? It's winter right now! How can there be green vegetables growing? Is it magic?" Helen's voice was hurried, her tone filled with disbelief. She began to question reality—no, she wondered if the young master was secretly a sorcerer, like the ones in stories who performed experiments on people.

No, Helen thought, perhaps he's more like an immortal from 'Journey to the West', the novel written by the young master. Her mind was in a whirl, and she stood there, staring blankly at the green vegetables in front of her.

"Heh... this is a kind of magic called science. If you're interested in learning, I can teach you later." Lucas said with a teasing smile.

"Really? Can you teach me?" Helen's eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Lucas. Could he really be an immortal?

"Of course. Once you learn it, you'll need to teach it to the students." Lucas said, narrowing his eyes slightly.

Science would inevitably be passed on from him, and how many years that would take depended on how quickly Sedona City could cultivate talented individuals.

"I..." Helen was stunned. Did she hear correctly? Was the young master really planning to teach this 'magic' to students?

"What are you daydreaming about?" Lucas plucked a cucumber from the vine and tossed it to the rabbit-eared girl. "Here, try a cucumber from my hometown. You can eat it as a fruit or cook it as a vegetable."

The greenhouse had been maximized for efficiency, with Lucas planting a variety of vegetables: eggplants, leeks, celery, rapeseed, spinach, and small greens, among others.

He didn't bother worrying about whether the plants would adapt. He planted them all, using things like wood ash and organic fertilizer for nutrients. This first round of planting was an experiment, laying the groundwork for future crops.

"Crunch!"

Lucas wiped the cucumber in his hand and took a bite. The crisp sound echoed, though the taste lacked a bit of sweetness due to the limited sunlight in the greenhouse.

"Crunch, crunch..." Helen's eyes lit up with the first bite, and she quickly finished the cucumber in a few more bites.

Never before had she felt how wonderful it was to eat fresh vegetables in the middle of winter. 

"Young master, can I have another..." Helen suddenly covered her mouth, falling silent.

She looked at the cucumber and thought to herself that if they were to sell it, people would probably fight over it, even paying more than ten copper coins for just one.

"If you want to eat more, just pick it yourself," Lucas said nonchalantly after finishing his cucumber, glancing around the greenhouse. "It's our own stuff, no need to overthink. Of course, if you want to eat, just eat."

"Uh..." Helen was taken aback, her cheeks flushing a bit. His words had made her think too much.

"Aunt May? Are you here?" Lucas called softly toward the deeper part of the greenhouse, "Are you inside?"

"I'm here, young master. Come on in!" May's voice came from within the greenhouse.

May, Nicole's mother, was the head chef of the castle. She had become obsessed with the greenhouse ever since it started producing vegetables, spending all her time inside tending to the plants, either weeding or loosening the soil.

Nicole often teased that her mother had made the greenhouse her new home, treating the vegetables like they were her own children.

Lucas stepped deeper into the greenhouse, as if walking through a forest made of vegetables. He had taught some techniques to May, letting her experiment on her own, with the idea that she would later train others to manage the greenhouses outside the city.

"It smells so good!" Helen exclaimed in surprise.

The further they walked into the greenhouse, the stronger the fragrance became. After turning past a thick patch of tomato vines, they came upon a garden filled with all kinds of flowers, their scent filling the air.

"Young master, what brings you here?" May, wearing an apron and holding a small hoe, was weeding the garden. 

In the greenhouse, not only did the vegetables grow quickly, but the grass grew even faster. If the weeds weren't controlled, they would steal the nutrients from the vegetables.

"I came to pick some vegetables; it's Mina's birthday tonight." Lucas said softly.

He glanced around and noticed that while the flowers and plants in the garden were thriving, there were quite a few wilted ones as well. It seemed there was still room for improvement in their techniques.

"Young master, what do you need? I'll help you pick it," May said, setting down her small hoe. "I'm quite familiar with everything here, so it won't take long to gather it all."

"Pick some cucumbers and grab a few napa cabbages..." Lucas listed off a few more vegetables.

"Got it!" May, holding a small basket, disappeared into the greenhouse, leaving Helen standing there awkwardly. She hesitated, wanting to follow, but instead looked up at Lucas with a longing expression.

"If you want to go, then go," Lucas rolled his eyes. "You're still too reserved. If it were Annie and Ayesha, they'd probably already be running wild, eating everything they could."

"Pfft... hehe... Annie and Ayesha aren't 'that' bad," Helen giggled, but as she thought about it, she realized it was true. With their personalities, they'd probably be dashing through the greenhouse, loudly enjoying themselves.

"Go on." Lucas waved with a light laugh.

"Got it." Helen eagerly grabbed a small basket and darted into the greenhouse, heading off to find May and ask her for advice.

Lucas shook his head with a smile, then turned his attention back to the flowers and plants in the garden. Many of these were experimental crops, young seedlings being grown to gather experience for next year's large-scale planting.

Flowers had significant value, being used for things like perfumes and medicinal powders.

"With so many flowers, and the distillation process for alcohol already set up, it's time to start producing some perfume. That'll be a real money-maker." Lucas thought to himself, planning for the first shipment to the capital, which would definitely include some perfume.

The perfume of this era wasn't anything he had high hopes for—it was far too pungent, lacking the natural floral fragrance he was aiming to introduce.

.

.

.

.

You can read advance chapters and view R-18 images of the characters on pat reon page.

pat reon.com/GreenBlue17

250 Power Stones for 1 extra chapter.

5 New reviews for 1 extra chapter.

Goal refresh every week.