Brain bloom

Isn't this all true from beginning to end?

"In short, if the ham looks good, it means you can make food look beautiful. That means you have the ability to make food taste good. Hurry up and cook for me, I want to go have some afternoon tea and relax."

"That tone...tsk tsk tsk."

It was difficult for Sen Shi to explain all this to Dandelion. Normally, she would just accept it and make some strange dishes to make Dandelion vomit, have diarrhea, and have a high fever for several days to teach her a lesson.

But considering that we are at war, if everyone were to eat the terrible food and fall into a deep sleep, they might never wake up again.

To avoid this terrible situation, Mori stubbornly and responsibly refused to cook, even if it earned him a disapproving look from Dandelion and a barrage of harsh complaints.

Having escaped this responsibility, Mori quickly retreated into the house and silently wrote a reply to the old wildcat, expressing his gratitude for the old wildcat's help and his intention to play matchmaker for Melia. This letter was then sent out by the world's most reliable messenger, Fufu.

But as soon as she finished that task, Dandelion came over, suddenly threw a fishing rod at Mori, and dragged her fishing with her.

The two headed to the area around the small pier. Before Sen Shi's identity caused any problems, Dandelion had already prepared the menu for dinner. The winery had never had so many guests before, so preparing the ingredients was a time-consuming and laborious task; she needed a helper.

"Let's have grilled fish outdoors tonight," Dandelion said, listing the options one by one. "We'll catch a dozen or so fish, clean them up quickly, prepare some dipping sauce, vegetables, and soup, and then the guests can grill them themselves. Anyway, I'm too lazy to cook anything too complicated."

"Outside? It's late autumn, a bit chilly outside. You'll be in trouble with the gods if you slack off like this."

"There's nothing I can do. I'm happy to cook if the guests are willing. But then some random people's daughters, some people's believers, and so on, come out of nowhere. There are quite a few of them. Poor Siji, we're really poor, and we don't have enough tableware and chairs at home."

"Then I can make these things now."

"Why don't we use this time to explain Melia's situation? You still have a human body, don't you?"

"Because of the strong need for magic and combat... your guess is correct, but I am a Four Seasons Person."

"Okay, that's fine then. I won't insist on anything else."

Sen remained silent, genuinely unsure how to explain, but thankfully Dandelion didn't force her to. The two simply walked side by side, silently reaching the gap where they were fishing, threading earthworms onto their hooks, and then casting their lines as far out to sea as possible.

Dandelion sat cross-legged on the ground, while Sen Shi leaned against a tree.

Fishing requires patience, and Mori instinctively thought of taking out Fukufu to catch fish in the sea, but the little guy wasn't there. Thinking of this, she took out a pocket watch, wondering if the device inside had a similar function.

"Shan".

"16:22:31," a time sprite timidly said from inside the broken pocket watch.

"That's not what I'm asking. Can you go into the sea to catch fish?"

"Ha... Time spirits wouldn't do such a thing! You have a serious misunderstanding about spirits!"

"Wait, why does Fufu's voice sound so nice? Oh, it's not Fufu." Dandelion looked over curiously and immediately widened her eyes. "Where did you find this? Isn't this the Time Sprite... But it's so small."

Mori said, "I found it at the Thundercloud Worm before. You also know about the Time Spirit?"

“Yes, I know.” Although Dandelion was surprised, she quickly turned her gaze back to the float made of withered leaves and recalled, “In the history of the Four Seasons, there are many records of such spirits. It’s a good thing.”

"It's a pity this little guy can only tell the time. Were the time spirits in history more useful than this?"

"No, but it's already very useful for telling time, so let's treat this little guy well. At least... this way we can get accurate reminders and be mentally prepared no matter what happens."

"A reminder? Oh right, an alarm clock." Mori thought to himself, an alarm clock is indeed an indispensable thing.

As she spoke, she felt a tremor in her hand, and with a mighty pull, she hooked a plump-looking, unidentified fish. She tossed it into the water tank she had brought and baited it with fresh bait.

"Wise and great God, have you considered this carefully? How should we face this war?" Dandelion asked abruptly.

"...It would be terrible if a real fight broke out, right? I don't want to see that."

"The merciful side of the true God? But I have no objection. If you want to stop it, go ahead, as long as... it doesn't hurt us." She was still worried about the two of them, so she would look at Mori every now and then, needing to find solace in his resolute face.

"I thought you would insist on seeing such a tragic scene."

"I really want to, but don't forget, the Kingdom of Flowers also experienced war. I am a princess of a country that was destroyed after the war, so I can still understand how heavy it is for those ordinary people to die tragically." What she said calmly was also the truth.

"Hmm... I'm thinking about how to maximize the benefits for the Four Seasons without going to war. I've been thinking about it but haven't come up with any answers. On the contrary, I think maximizing the damage is quite simple... just stir things up as much as possible."

"For those who possess power, destroying things without regard for the consequences is indeed the easiest thing to do."

Mori once again picked up his fishing rod; only when he witnessed the catch could he temporarily forget the worries he needed to think about.

In the end, they only caught ten fish, far too many for one large tank. They even had to eat some on the spot and preserve them in seawater. Among them was the fish that Dandelion had been eagerly anticipating: an incredibly ugly, fish-shaped monster, supposedly some kind of top-grade seafood.

They returned home with their catch, but Fufu was still not back. They were worried about where to get the salt to pickle the fish.

But they happened to run into an elderly man and a young boy, two very unexpected visitors, who knocked on the winery's door.

Volume 1, Chapter 197: Visitors to the Winery

The unexpected guests at the winery were an unusual father and daughter.

Mori knew them because he had interacted with them twice, and each time he had a good impression of them.

The gold coins scattered carelessly in their bags as a price for the true god were mostly earned from them. Moreover, Mori also purchased large quantities of high-quality materials from their general store, using them to influence the course of events.

The grocery store they ran had an even more interesting name: "No Poor People Allowed."

So when he saw the two of them, Mori wanted to put up a sign at the winery that said, "Don't come in if you're not going to pay."

An elderly man dressed in thick adventure clothes and wearing a monocle called himself Old Man Fultz.

The girl dressed as a traveling merchant, who was with old man Fultz, was his daughter. Mori vaguely remembered that her name was Anil.

Several speculations arose in Mori's mind about why they had come.

For example, if war is about to break out, he could procure a large quantity of magic scrolls for Lord Balzac. This is the most likely outcome, and it wouldn't be bad for Mori.

By working overtime for a short period and creating a dozen or so magic scrolls, you can legitimately earn a large amount of gold coins.

Anyway, war is unlikely to break out.

As for the possibility of it being used against oneself? A little manipulation will suffice. Magical formulas offer a great deal of freedom. In her writing, these magical structures are like childhood toys, which can be molded at will.

So, in order to prepare for the upcoming business conversation, Mori handed the fish to Dandelion, cleaned his hands by himself, used magic to get rid of the fishy smell on his body, and then stepped forward to greet her with the attitude of a wealthy landlord.

But Mori didn't give them a friendly look. When they went to the general store, the two of them wore hats the whole time, and even deliberately created a powerful and profound background, so they shouldn't have revealed their identities as Four Seasons People.

But back then, the old man Fultz, who kept telling his daughter not to investigate the guests' backgrounds, has now come knocking on their door.

"Tell me, old man, how did you know we were Four Seasons People?"

"I'm here for no other reason than to do some business related to personal connections... I'm sorry, I did investigate you."

Fultz glanced around and continued to answer in a low voice.

"I'll be frank, it was through my connections, after all, you had a remarkable record at the melon gambling convention and even left your accommodations... But my investigation into my business partner's identity was by no means out of any impolite intent."

"What kind of business are you interested in?"

"War—the war with the Peda Empire is about to begin!" Behind the monocle, the not-so-clear eye revealed a deep sadness. "In just one afternoon, this damned news spread throughout the city... The Peda Empire's army is about to breach this peaceful city."

It seemed someone had leaked the information—Mori immediately thought of the assassin Yuan had mentioned. Clearly, she had taken over the work within the chaotic city, and in this world without the internet, her efficiency was commendable.

But Mori still had to pretend he didn't know.

"What if it's just a rumor?"

“…No, someone is dead.” Although he was emotional, he forced his voice to be very soft. “The symbol of Silvermoon City, one of the three heroes of that era, Man, is dead.”

"What? That guy was really good at fighting, he's dead just like that? Is the news confirmed?"

“Indeed, that’s why I investigated my business partners.”

Mori was also surprised for a few seconds, but then realized that this was not news he could easily handle, so he invited the father and daughter into the winery and even asked Melia to listen in.

According to old man Fultz, this was only a secret information known to the higher-ups in Silvermoon City.

It seemed that he had been pierced through the throat with a sharp weapon by an extremely skilled assassin, his life, including his very soul, torn apart. Therefore, he was convinced that the impending war was not a rumor, which is why he hurriedly sought out Mori.

For just one thing—

"I'd like to buy a few magic scrolls, healing spells and those advanced spells."

"You want to use it to support Silvermoon City? If so, my price will be very high. Perhaps you don't know, but Lord Balzac abandoned the Four Seasons and ended up shooting himself in the foot."

Old man Fultz shook his head: "I just want to get myself some weapons so I can survive this war as long as possible. These weapons won't kill the enemy, but at least they'll allow me to die with dignity."

“I’ve heard…” her daughter, Enel, spoke for the first time, her face filled with fear, “that the men of the Peda Empire are terrifying, that they will ravage anything they conquer…”

Mori raised his hand to interrupt them.

"Alright, I'll go prepare a few more for you. Gold coins will skyrocket during wartime, so I'm doing you a favor. Keep the money for other things; you can trade with equivalent items."

"Thank you... My daughter might waste that magic scroll from last time on saving someone, so I'm asking for another one for her. I'll also buy some healing spells, just in case."

The old man's actions were realistic, rational, and even ruthless, which left Sen Shi speechless.

As for himself, he must have already made other preparations.

Mori got up and left temporarily, while Melia, who had been listening in all along, slowly walked down from the second floor, her questioning voice loud.

"If that's the case, why don't you escape? It's not too late."

“Hometown,” he said simply. “So, I stayed and fought to the death.”

"So that's really the reason? I thought the affluent life in Silvermoon City would only breed more weakness... I should learn something about this kind of cohesion among the people. It's interesting."

At this moment, Sen Shi was making magic scrolls in the small room next door. Having done it more than once, she was already quite skilled at it. She also had the leisure to think about and understand the attitudes of these merchants and citizens, the pillars of Silvermoon City, towards the war.

And the sounds of communication continued—

Anier, clearly not inheriting the rationality of old man Fultz, showed considerable fear.

"Dad, are you just going to leave me to die like this? Heavens, it's just winter coming! Why don't you give them the pseudo-techniques of Silvermoon City! With that, the whole country could stay warm all winter..."

“That won’t work,” Melia retorted casually.

"Because they can plunder themselves and then take our wealth with them?"

Melia denied it again.

"If there were something that could solve the winter all at once, these pirates would definitely be happy, since that's what they came to plunder for. They would inevitably stay home with their wives and children, or protect their country against the Evil Fog. The problem is that the artificially crafted warm lamps are destined to be turned off periodically, so that won't work."

Volume 1, Chapter 198: An Unexpected Goods

After hearing Melia's explanation, the father and daughter were dejected for a while, but the daughter, Anil, seemed to have grasped at a straw and came to a conclusion.

"Then we'll just pay them to keep them warm... just like the rumors say, and they'll withdraw their troops."

“This is war, not mutual aid. The amount they want is definitely enormous, not just for combating the cold. Lord Balzac cannot accept this figure. Knowing him as I do, he is probably mobilizing forces everywhere, preparing for a brilliant defense of Silvermoon City.”