kscans

Chapter 95 - The Two Sisters 3. The Famine

The sisters, Saya and Sena, had lived in a remote, cold village in the neighboring country of Fulst. There, the entire village had been involved in growing Papas Potatoes. It seemed that not only their village but also all the surrounding villages relied on Papas Potatoes for their livelihood.

"There are a few things to be careful about when cultivating them, but they’re a nutritious and easy-to-grow crop. They grow reasonably well even in narrow, barren land unsuitable for wheat cultivation, and they don’t require special farming equipment. In many ways, they must have been an ideal crop."

There had been times when people who went to sell them in another country, apparently here in the Rivairein Kingdom, came back unsuccessful, but the villagers had been carefree, thinking there was no need to force a sale. As long as they had Papas Potatoes, they could survive. Why would they need wheat or other cash crops?

...This utopia collapsed a few years ago.

"According to Saya, in a year with long rains and a cold spell, the Papas Potatoes suddenly started to wither. They turned black and rotten, and it happened in the blink of an eye."

In an instant, the village’s fields were wiped out, and the villagers, who had grown no other crops, began to starve. To make matters worse, this plague had spread throughout the neighboring area, causing a large number of people to abandon their villages and become refugees.

Adon and Old Man Audel listened with wide eyes, but Yuri, a former Earthling, had a case in mind. The Great Famine in Ireland, where a potato blight caused a large portion of the population to starve to death. At that time, the potato blight had spread throughout Europe, causing a large number of deaths in Ireland, which was particularly dependent on potatoes. Yuuri from his previous life had read about that story.

"They were forced to eat even their seed potatoes, so they couldn’t plant the following year, and with their bodies weakened by malnutrition, they couldn't even work the farms properly..."

"They abandoned their villages... is that what happened?"

"They headed for the towns in scattered groups, but the towns, suddenly overrun by a large number of people, had trouble coping. They ended up competing with the original inhabitants for jobs that weren’t particularly plentiful to begin with, the food situation worsened, and resentment towards the refugees grew... The rest is a common story. What was different was the scale."

As food became scarce in various towns, the pressure to exploit the surrounding farming villages increased, which in turn caused more people to abandon their villages...

"With more refugees and less food production, society can’t continue to function. The strain of that is felt everywhere..."

"Wait a minute, Yuri-kun. The food shortage we are currently facing is..."

"It stems from the poor harvest in the neighboring country... at least, it’s possible that’s one of the causes."

Hmm... Adon crossed his arms and fell into thought. This was quite a big story. The information itself could be useful in various ways, depending on how it was presented. But... was this the lucrative business proposition he had mentioned?

That suspicion must have shown on his face. Yuri gave a wry smile and continued.

"Well, the story so far is, so to speak, just the prelude."

He said this suggestively, then glanced at Adon as he continued.

"I’ve tried to piece together the situation of the famine from Saya’s story. It seems she figured it out from what the adults were talking about when she went to town, and from the accents in bits and pieces of their conversations."

She’s a smart girl, isn’t she, Yuri said as he summarized the points...

As far as Saya could see, she hadn’t spotted any refugees from regions other than their own. The refugees all spoke of the Papas Potato blight, but said nothing about poor harvests of other crops. This was the same for non-refugees as well. As far as Saya knew, Papas Potatoes were supposed to have been cultivated in other regions as well. The village had been cultivating Papas Potatoes since before Saya and her sister were born, but a plague like this had never occurred. This seemed to be the same in other villages as well. The year the Papas Potato plague occurred was a year of unusually long rains and a cold summer.

"Next, here’s what can be inferred from this information..."

The scope of the famine seems to be limited, and it is highly likely to end soon. Therefore, one should be careful not to misjudge the timing for buying and selling food products from now on. The failure of the Papas Potato crop alone turned a considerable number of farmers into refugees. Conversely, this means that Papas Potatoes alone were supporting that many farmers. Although Papas Potatoes are unpopular in this country, they are commonly distributed in the neighboring country of Fulst. It will only be a matter of time before this fact spreads from the stories of the refugees who have flowed into Rivairein. Right now, there is a possibility of obtaining disease-free Papas Potatoes from other regions of Fulst.

"...That’s about it, I suppose."