Licia Faalheit is the eldest daughter of the Faalheit family. Her father, Niklas Faalheit, served for many years as the chief of soldiers in the Kingdom of Klein, and was knighted as a Ritter for his efforts in resolving a dispute on the border with the Kingdom of Selroa to the south without any casualties.

Originally, knighthood (ritter) was an honorary title for one generation only, but since the number of nobles was insufficient in the Kingdom of Klein, as a special exception, the same title was given to his children if they also achieved success.

"Ah, it's not easy being a noble, after all. ......"

A sigh escaped from Licia's mouth. She had been educated as a noblewoman since she was over 10 years old, so her consciousness as a commoner had already taken root in her mind.

The door opened and the village headman appeared,

"Well, well, you must be the new tax collector. I am the village head, Mr. Giebeck. I look forward to working with you.

He greeted them. Licia dismounted from her horse and answered,

My name is Licia Faarheit, and I am in charge of the Kaina village area from this year. It is a pleasure to meet you.

"Well, well, first of all, please make yourself at home.

Licia was urged by the village head to tie her horse to the stables and entered the headman's house.

As she sat down at the table, her niece Barbara came in with a cup of tea. Licia was thirsty and drank it in one gulp. Barbara immediately put in a second cup. This time Licia drank a little at a time.

As soon as she took a sip,

"Well, then, Mr. Mayor, how is the crop this year?

and set to work. The mayor is a serious man, I thought,

"Well, I guess it's about the same as a normal year.

"Then, you will pay the tax we decided on last year, won't you?

"Yes, that will be fine.

This is all about this year's tax payment.

Now let's see the village and the fields.

"Oh, you're just getting started?"

Licia raised her eyebrows when she heard this,

"Is there something wrong with that?"

She is trying to appear dignified as best she can, but the fact that she is biting is no longer good enough.

"No, Mr. Farheit, I thought you might be tired. In the past, he did nothing on the day of his arrival, but made his rounds the next day.

"I see. But I am me. Please show me the way.

"Yes, I will."

So the chief showed him around the village and the fields.

"Here is the wheat field. The autumn wheat has already sprouted.

It seems to be doing well.

And the other crop fields.

"I see that you are also harvesting vegetables."

And finally, the warehouse.

"Hmmm, with this much wheat, we should be able to survive the winter even if we have to pay taxes."

Yes, I'm sure that will be fine.

I'm relieved. Can you start tomorrow?

"Oh, from tomorrow?　I can do that, but aren't you tired, Mr. Fallheit?

The village head asks Licia, who is looking somewhat tired,

"Don't worry. This is my role."

She smiled a little too hard, and a ball rolled at her feet.

"What?　What's this?"

Licia picked up the ball,

"Oh, thank you, girl! That's my ball!

She said to Kurt who came running to her,

"Here, take it."

She handed the ball to him, but his eyes were glued to the ball rather than to Kurt.

"Mr. Farheit?"

The village chief, who was suspicious of Licia, called out to her,

"......Mr. Village head, what is that round thing the girl was playing with?"

"Oh, is it a ball?"

A ball?

Yes, it's a plaything that Jin made for me.

When you say Jin, you mean the one from ......?

Yes, he is the one who just escorted Mr. Fahlheit to our house.

He's the one with the ball?

Yes, he was not originally from this village, but wandered into our village in the spring. He seems to be a magecraftsman from a distant land and has done a lot for the village.

"He is?　A magecraftsman?

Yes.

"Is that so? ......"

Licia, a little interested in Jin .

"I believe a merchant named Roland is dealing in his work."

"Roland? I've heard of him. I think there was a merchant by that name in the Raglan Trading Company, which has been growing recently.

Maybe that's him.

I see. I'll check it out when I get back to King's Landing.

With that, the matter of the ball was settled, and the two left the field and returned to the village.

"Mr. Mayor, that's the pump, isn't it?"

On the way back to the village, Licia stopped at the well pump.

"Yes, that's right. Jin made that one too."

"!!!!"

Licia was surprised again. This pump is now spreading at an astonishing speed, not only in King's Landing, but also in the surrounding villages. This is the driving force behind the rapid growth of the Raglan Trading Company, but I had no idea that it was made in this village. What's more, a magician from a foreign country named Jin (Magi) is also a member of this group. I had never realized that they were made by an exotic magical craftsman (magi craftsman) named Jin. Licia was becoming more and more interested in djinn.

"Well, please take a break from your work today and relax.

With these words, the chief takes Licia to a hot spring. His niece Barbara was already waiting there.

What is this place, Mr. Mayor?

"This is a hot spring."

Hot spring?

"Well, you can take a bath. Barbara, take care of the rest.

Yes, Uncle.

The mayor left Barbara in charge of Licia and went back to his house.

"Come this way, Mr. Fahlheit."

He invited her into the dressing room and asked her to take off her clothes,

"Why are you undressing?

Licia's reaction was quite natural, as she had no idea what was going on. Barbara laughed,

"I'm sorry I didn't explain myself better. This is a hot spring, you know, with warm water. The villagers come here to soak in the hot water and relieve themselves.

Is it different from a bath?

Yes, the water here comes from underground. According to Mr. Jin, there is a mass of heat under the mountain of death, and the underground water that touches it is heated and turned into hot water, but I honestly don't understand it.

"Is this Jin-san's story, too?"

Yes. He is the benefactor of this village.

From that point on, we talked while soaking in the hot water.

"Oh, this feels so good.

Licia finally relaxed and stretched out in the hot water with Barbara.

"Isn't it?"

The tax collector is bathing now, so the villagers are quiet, except for Barbara, who is shut out. The two of them lie down in the hot water and relax with their heads on the edge of the tub. They look a little like old men.

"......"

"Mr. Farheit?"

Licia gazes enviously at the two bulges on Barbara's chest as she stretches out next to her, but then changes her mind and says she has more important things to worry about right now,

"Where in the world did you come from, Jin-san?"

I asked,

"Well, I heard that you were caught in an outburst of an ancient relic (artifact) and were sent to this place. He said that his country is Japan. Do you know it?

"Nihon, no, I have never heard of it. I'm not familiar with the geography of this continent.

Licia tells Barbara that she is a new noble and that this is her first job as a tax collector. 16 and 15 years old, they are only one year older than each other. They became good friends through their nakedness.