I Grow Crops with a System

Although he had decided to head south, Ethan couldn’t leave right away.

Besides the wheat already harvested, other crops still stood in the fields, he had to wait until the last of them came in before he could leave with a clear conscience.

On top of that, he only knew a village of Ape Beastmen existed somewhere in the south, its exact location was a mystery, heading there blind would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.

At the very least, he needed a guide.

”Do you guys know the route to the Ape Beastman village?” he asked the Minotaurs, figuring it was worth a shot.

No luck, the Minotaurs ranged widely through the surrounding area, but the Ape Beastman village lay far to the south — well beyond their territory.

”There should be very few people around here who know how to get there!” a Minotaur said.

”You can ask those guys who like to run all over the place,” Draugor suggested.

’Guys who like to run all over the place...’

A figure surfaced in Ethan’s mind at once.

”Good idea.” Ethan nodded and accepted the fruits the Minotaurs had brought.

”I’ll accept these, thank you.”

”Will you make bread for us to eat in the future?” a Minotaur asked.

”Of course, no problem.”

”Then it’s a promise!”

The Minotaurs, it seemed, had all taken a real liking to his bread.

Ethan bid them farewell and headed back to his shelter, he was about to hitch the handcart and set off for the Canine Beastman village to find Vargan when Draugor called after him.

”Be careful on your way south, I heard a long time ago that a giant dragon lives at the southern border.”

”A giant dragon?” Ethan’s heart skipped a beat.

’Could it be like the young one from before?’

That encounter had been with a mere hatchling, and even that had terrified the Minotaurs. a true adult giant dragon was another matter entirely.

”Although giant dragons are proud, if anyone dares trespass into their territory, they show no mercy,” Draugor said, his expression grave.

”I’ll be careful.” Ethan nodded.

’The Ape Beastmen managed to travel this far, so there must be a safe route south.’

He reassured Draugor with a few words, then drove his handcart away from the Minotaur village.

”I hope everything goes smoothly for him...” Draugor muttered, watching Ethan’s back shrink into the distance.

...

The next morning, Ethan prepared breakfast for Zharok and Walter as usual.

”Have you been to the south before?” he asked Zharok, setting a plate of Scrambled Eggs with Moonlight Tomatoes and bread on the table while Zharok wolfed down his food.

”The south? Yeah, I’ve been there. Why?” Zharok answered between bites.

’As expected.’ Zharok wandered everywhere, of course he had been.

Walter, who had been sipping his tomato juice at a leisurely pace, set down his bread. His face turned serious.

”You plan to go south? Hmm... I know a fellow who lives over there, you should go find him.”

That caught Ethan off guard. He hadn’t expected Walter — who never seemed to leave the cursed lands — to have an acquaintance in the distant south. Pearl’s eyes went wide, staring at Walter in open surprise.

”What’s with your reactions? It’s not as though I’ve stayed in the cursed lands my entire life,” Walter said, a note of displeasure in his voice.

”A vampire’s friend is probably another vampire, right? Is it really wise to send a human looking for one?” Ethan asked.

”He is no ordinary vampire, kind hearted and very intelligent — nothing like those low level vampires who only know how to suck blood,” Walter explained.

”Who is he?”

”My younger brother,” Walter said flatly.

”Ah...”

Walter pulled a ring from his pocket and held it out, it looked plain — nothing like the Blood Jade Ring — with no attribute bonuses that Ethan could see.

”Take this, he will understand your intentions,” Walter said.

”Thank you.” Ethan took the ring.

”No need to thank me, just come back safely.”

’Because if something happened to me, there would be nobody left to make his tomato juice.’ Ethan knew the old vampire well enough by now, a glass every morning had become as much a part of Walter’s routine as breathing.

Warm sunlight spilled through the doorway, a new day stretched ahead.

”Time to get to work.”

Ethan scooped Pearl up, set it on his shoulder, and walked toward the fields.

A few days later, Leon arrived at the shelter with the goods for their next trade.

”I heard you’re setting off for the south?” Leon asked.

”How did you know?” Ethan loaded the harvested Honey Sweet Potatoes, Sweet Beets, Vitality Cabbage, and Moonlight Tomatoes onto the handcart.

”Zharok told me, he said you were going south to look for something?”

”Haha, yes, I want to find some fruit seeds.”

”That’s wonderful! If you find anything good, make sure to contact us, we’ll purchase it at a high price,” Leon said, his excitement plain.

”Thank you for the offer, but I’m still not sure if I’ll succeed...”

He had already stockpiled a large quantity of Sun Stones and planned to build a greenhouse, but the climate gap between the south and the central forest was massive, whether southern fruits could grow here remained an open question.

”What a pity, I thought we would be able to make this trade soon,” Leon said, a trace of disappointment in his voice.

”If I do succeed, I’ll notify you right away,” Ethan said with a smile, then pointed at the goods.

”By the way, is this the glass?”

Among the goods the elves brought was a stack of transparent glass panes, thick and solid looking, they were perfect for building a greenhouse and fitting windows.

”Eric made these for you, he even went out of his way to enchant them, sturdier and lighter.”

Leon picked up a stone and slammed it against a pane, the glass held without so much as a scratch.