kscans

Chapter 43 - Chapter 4: Investigating the Cause of the Bees' Deaths - Part One

"Ricardo Vinder-sama? Is that you?"

The village chief glanced back and forth between the letter of introduction I handed him and my face. The letter stated that I was the developer of apiculture. A boy of sixteen is hardly what you would expect. Besides, I have asked the villagers dispatched from Leylia to keep quiet about my role.

Since I am here on the lord's authority, I should be firm.

"I hear a particularly large number of bees are dying, but only in the hives set up on the east side of the village. I trust you have not eaten any of the honey from there?"

"No, sir. However, before we received your instructions, one of the village children... well, no harm was done. He only licked a bit that was on his finger. He is as lively as ever today."

The chief spoke sheepishly. It seemed it was not a poison that took effect in small doses. I felt a small sense of relief, but I still needed to consider any long term effects. This was a matter of safety. I had to proceed with the utmost caution.

"So, is it possible to solve this? The village has high hopes for this venture."

"At the very worst, we will introduce new plants for the bees to use as a nectar source."

Milk vetch, for instance, grows quickly once the seeds are sown. I explained that our terms remained unchanged. While we were in the trial phase, I would cover half the cost of growing the plants, and for the remainder, they could repay us in kind once full scale honey production began.

"So please, make sure to report any future abnormalities with complete accuracy."

"Understood."

The chief nodded deeply, his face clearly relieved. It is difficult to get people to try new things without these kinds of guarantees. Showing that you are willing to share the risk is important.

Most importantly, it would be a disaster if they hid inconvenient information. This business trip has a much greater significance than simply getting honey production on track.

"Now then, I would like you to show me the animals that died after eating the bees."

The chief led me to one of the larger houses in the village. He said it was the residence of the villager dispatched from Leylia. I see. So their high hopes were genuine.

Let's see, what was his name again...

I mentally reviewed the information on the person I was about to meet. Pedro was the third son of a farming family in Leylia village. He was an oddball who had been the first to volunteer for a mission away from his home.

Apparently, he had just been making his rounds to check the hives. A smart move. Any problem, no matter how small, could become a disaster, and his presence was also an effective way to calm the villagers' anxieties.

"Ricardo-sama. This is it."

Next to the house, in what used to be a barn, he showed me the carcass of a bird about the size of a pigeon. He said several had been found dead a short distance from the hive. They had even cut them open and confirmed the presence of dead bees. Impressive.

"Only birds? Have no other animals died? Frogs, lizards, or... mice?"

"We have only found dead birds. Actually, one of the dogs in the village gnawed on a dead bird, but it seems to be fine."

That was valuable information. So it affects bees and birds, but not mammals? No, perhaps the effect is just weaker on them. It was also curious that two completely different species, bees and birds, were being affected.

"This has been a great help. Tomorrow, I will take a look at the hives myself."

There was a lot to think about, but I was impressed by Pedro's unexpectedly thorough response. The room they had prepared for me was on the second floor of the village chief's house. It was practically VIP treatment.

"If the dog and the human, a child no less, were fine, then perhaps there's no need to worry too much... Still, that combination of bees and birds bothers me. I'm sure there was a pesticide that worked like that."

I murmured to myself while lying on the bed, which was made of straw covered with cloth.

I think it was called fenithion. I remember it being toxic to a wide range of animals from insects to mammals, but it was especially potent against bees and birds. I doubt that exact substance exists in this world. But it's common for plants to produce toxins to keep from being eaten.

It's possible that some kind of chemical substance, a so called alkaloid, has traveled up the food chain from the plant to the bees, and then to the birds. This is even more likely when you consider that bees, by their nature, tend to gather nectar from flowers blooming in the same area.

If by some chance it is a chemical similar to fenithion, then it would be harmful to humans as well. I have heard it is a neurotoxin that some people use for suicide.

"Then there's the question of potency."

Asking whether a substance is toxic in the strictest sense of the word is meaningless.

To put it in extreme terms, every substance we take into our bodies, including food, is a poison. Carbon dioxide is a toxic gas that can suffocate humans, but a certain amount of it is present in the atmosphere. The famous example of water comes to mind, too. And spices, that kick they have is a warning not to eat them.

So, poison is a balance between the effect per unit and the concentration at which it exists.

I had no intention of testing it, but if you diluted a lethal dose of poison a hundredfold and drank it once a day for a year, you most likely would not die. Of course, there are some chemicals that accumulate in the body instead of being processed, and there are cases like salt where excessive intake over decades leads to serious illness, so I cannot let my guard down.

"By the way. How are you settling in here?" I asked the next morning as we walked toward the hive in question.

"Hahaha, asking about that after a full day. That's just like you, young master," Pedro laughed, amused.

"Well, to be honest, this suits my personality more than farm work. Though I will admit, this whole affair gave me a bit of a scare. Mainly when I heard you were flying over here yourself, young master."

"Hey, you should be worried about other things."

Unlike me, he possessed the advanced communication skill of asking about a person's well being to start a conversation, but he was still an outsider in this village. If word got out that he was the one who spread a poison, it would not be surprising if he got mobbed.

As we neared the hive, I put on my protective gear, which was basically a three layered net worn over my head, and followed Pedro. The silk production techniques of this world mean it's quite heavy. Perhaps I should use something a little thinner and finer for the eye area. I will think about it later.

"This is the hive."

"I see. They're definitely dead."

About ten bees lay on the ground in front of the hive. One of them was still twitching convulsively. The bees that die inside the hive are supposed to be thrown out. For a death toll of roughly one day, it was certainly high, but it was only a tiny fraction of the whole hive. Should I be glad the poison was limited, or worried that it would be hard to analyze?

"Alright, first, let's find out what is different between these dead bees and the living ones."

At my words, Pedro deftly covered the hive entrance with a net and caught about ten returning bees. I took out the magnifying glass I had borrowed from Fulsy, an ultra high end model, I might add, and began my observation.

"I do not see any difference... What do you think, from the perspective of someone who's always looking at bees?"

I handed him the magnifying glass.

"Let me see. To my eyes, they do not look any different either......... wait a minute."

Pedro pointed to the leg of the dying, twitching bee.

"Is not the color here strange?"

"Is it? It does not look......... no, you are right, it is a little different."

I stared at the dead bee. There was a ball of pollen stuck to its leg. The living bees had normal yellow pollen balls. This one's was a faintly bluish yellow. It was a detail you would not notice unless you were looking for it. As a result of co evolution with pollinating insects, pollen is almost always yellow regardless of the plant, so this was rare.

Just then, a bee trying to return to the hive fell to the ground. I brought it under the magnifying glass. Sure enough, there was a difference in color.

"That's right. Bees do not just get nectar from plants, they get pollen, too."

I remembered aconite. It is famous as a poison in period dramas, and the entire plant, right down to its pollen, is toxic. The honey mixed with that pollen becomes poisonous.

"Pollen?" Pedro tilted his head.

"For bees, nectar is like bread, and pollen is like meat."

Though a comparison to milt is probably more accurate. Incidentally, in my former world, it was called bee pollen and sold as a health food. I have no idea if it actually worked.

"But, if that is the case... can we look inside the hive?"

"Understood."

Pedro skillfully removed a part of the hive's outer frame. Inside, wooden frames were lined up. The idea of these frames is the cornerstone of modern apiculture, but let's set that aside for now. I peered intently at the hexagonal cells within.

"Just as I thought. The larvae are dead in this section and this one."

Larvae eat pollen to grow. If the pollen was the cause, they would take more damage from the poison than the adult bees. Of course, many poisons only affect adults depending on their type, but this did not seem to be one of them.

"So you are saying this colored pollen is the poison."

"Yes. Now we just need to find the source... Since bees are only dying at this hive, the plant must only be in this area. Is there anything special about the surrounding terrain..."

"Hmm, the only difference from other places is that there is a small thicket of shrubs over there."

"Let's go have a look."

A vine like plant was wrapped around the shrubs, bearing purple flowers. Their venomous looking color made me hesitate for a moment.

Even with aconite, just getting near the flower should not be harmful. Besides, if it were that potent, there would be dead birds all around. The birds that died had eaten a large amount of pollen that the bees had packed together.

I was wearing gloves, so I should be fine. I plucked a stamen from behind the five petals. Taking out a piece of white paper, I pressed it against it. Yellow pollen stuck to the paper. Looking at it with the magnifying glass, it had a faint bluish tint.

"This is probably it. Let's feed it to some birds to be sure. Help me collect some pollen. Also, I am taking one of these plants with me."

"Collecting poison, huh? Haha."

Pedro made a face, but he helped me properly.

"Just as I thought."

"So that was the culprit?"

The next day, we found a dead bird at the spot where we had left bread crumbs sprinkled with the pollen.

"Does that mean the honey from the hives without this pollen is safe?"

"Yes. We now have a clear criterion to go by."

In reality, even the honey from that one hive probably contained only a minuscule amount of the toxin. It was probably at a level where overconsumption of salt would be more harmful.

But even knowing it was an unfounded worry, I could not get the thought of fenithion out of my head. When it comes to safety management, I want to do everything I possibly can. In this world where information travels slowly, if a rumor about poison were to spread, it could take decades to overturn.

Pedro was explaining to the village chief that they could resume apiculture by not placing hives near the shrubs, and that if they found a lot of dead bees, they should check the color of the pollen balls. Further confirmation came from the chief's words, "Oh, that plant? My grandfather told me it works as a bird repellent."

"This got sorted out faster than I expected," I said after the chief left, having clapped Pedro soundly on the shoulder.

"Honestly, young master, your wisdom always impresses me."

"No, this is all thanks to you, Pedro. You are so dedicated to the bees that you could spot such a tiny difference in color."

Besides, I was lucky this time. We had a clear indicator like the color of the pollen.

Still, seeing his relationship with the village chief just now, Pedro might have reached the answer on his own eventually. That was a reassuring thought.

"I will have to give you a special bonus once we have confirmed the solution."

"You do not have to do that. You went to all the trouble of coming here..."

"Do you not need enough income to start a family?"

"Well, haha..."

I teased Pedro, who was apparently close with one of the village girls.

"You do not need to worry about it. This is important for the company, too."

Pedro's personal achievement was one thing, but it was crucial to foster an organization where people do not hide dangerous signs when they find them. This case is the stuff of legend for our beekeeping business.

"For now, I will take one of these plants back to the Royal Capital for analysis, just to be safe."

"See? You are the one who is far more meticulous, young master."

Pedro laughed. It is only because I have knowledge from another world. If I did not know about a poison that specifically affects bees and birds, it is possible I would not have even given it a second thought.

If I work with Fulsy and Dalgan, I might learn something. Who knows, if we flip this on its head, we might be able to develop this world's first pesticide.