Ch.232Crop Rotation (3)

Just as the slightly early harvest festival was concluding, and precisely at the moment when the village crops began to be harvested.

From what I’ve heard, in the meantime, the four-field crop rotation system I introduced had garnered considerable public interest in the village, naturally becoming a subject of debate whether to implement it or not.

To what extent? Well, the entire village’s public opinion had become divided over whether to adopt it or not.

Some people were acting as if they had joined some kind of cult, believing it could bring innovation, and even beyond those extremists, there were quite a number of people willing to give it a try at least once.

On the other hand, among the opposition, only a small minority vehemently argued that it was an amateur’s armchair theory not even worth considering. Most simply held a passive resistance due to their general aversion to such newfangled farming methods.

Of course, the majority remained silent. Since they were all self-sufficient farmers who wouldn’t starve anytime soon, most were cautious types who preferred to wait about a year to see the results before making a decision.

And what was most surprising was that the support and opposition were almost evenly matched.

Unlike my initial expectation that the vast majority would oppose it with only a few reckless young people daring to try it, the fact that public opinion was so evenly divided was quite astonishing to me, someone well aware of farmers’ conservative nature.

Well, there are countless reasons for this outcome if I were to explain it all….

The main reason for this public opinion forming was that I hadn’t taken any particular stance regarding the four-field rotation system.

I neither forced nor mandated the implementation of the four-field system for the entire village, nor did I even recommend it. At the same time, I didn’t make a fuss about using it exclusively for myself either.

I simply spread the word in a straightforward manner that I was implementing this four-field rotation system on my farmland, and when people naturally heard about it and asked me, I answered by plainly explaining the method.

There’s a principle that strong reactions inevitably provoke equally strong counter-reactions—the Streisand effect, was it? Anyway, as that principle suggests, intense reactions tend to foster resistance.

While faster adoption would be nice, from the perspective of aiming for gradual implementation—ultimately leading to them naturally adopting the four-field system on their own—being too forceful wasn’t appealing.

Especially considering that this village had about five years left before transitioning from a pioneer settlement to a regular village that could collect taxes.

Since we couldn’t collect taxes until then according to Baron Alzar’s policies, it might actually be better this way if we wanted to establish a foundation for securing tax revenue by implementing the four-field system during that time.

…Though we might need to take some simple measures, like employing certain public opinion manipulation tactics to create a sense of falling behind, for things to work out properly.

Anyway, after finishing what needed to be done immediately.

‘…Is it time?’

Finally, I had some personal time and time for external affairs. At this point when I would normally engage in some simple hunting activities, I visited the golem armor storage facility according to a specially prepared schedule.

“Ah, you’ve arrived?”

“Yes. As I mentioned before, ‘that’ please.”

“Of course. We’re also… looking forward to it. This modification proposal, that is.”

Specifically, the modification proposal for my personal unit—the golem armor.

※ ※ ※

The golem armor, or more precisely, the modification proposal for my personal unit, is something that has been discussed several times already.

This unit was thoroughly designed to do what I cannot—it was completed as a gas warfare specialized unit capable of subduing multiple targets.

Since raw combat power is better without the unit than with it at this point, I determined that a combat-focused unit was unnecessary. Thus, it was designed with the concept of enabling me to do what I otherwise couldn’t.

I’ve actually used it quite effectively, and it has decent raw specs plus blade shield operation assistance functionality, making it very comfortable to use.

However… the problem is that there haven’t been many occasions to use it since then.

To be blunt, the probability of encountering situations requiring non-lethal mass suppression is quite low, and even if I were to replace the gas with lethal poison gas to increase utility, problems would still remain.

Gas is fundamentally very unstable and easily exploited by enemies, and what would happen if the wind blew in the wrong direction and our own forces were exposed to it?

Moreover, despite drawing on my aura as a power source, which gives it decent output but poor fuel efficiency, in combat situations, aside from sheer size and weight class, it’s actually stronger for me as a pilot to engage directly.

Therefore, to improve this somewhat awkward unit, I’ve exchanged ideas and submitted modification proposals several times….

And the results are the two proposals now presented before me.

“Is this Proposal 1?”

“Yes, it is. The so-called ‘Versatility’ proposal. It removes the specialized modifications and upgrades it to a modular form like the standard units.”

Proposal 1 suggests adding another standard unit like those typically used by Magni, similar to the versatile unit.

Since we’d need to take one of the two power sources currently used in the versatile unit and use it here, the output of both would decrease, but the benefits of adding another medium-class unit simply cannot be ignored.

Of course, as before, we’d have to refrain from the insane heavily-armored, heavy-firepower tank mode, but the advantage of having two medium-class units working together in coordinated operations is extremely appealing.

This is especially relevant considering the recent increased demand for these units at construction sites, logging camps, and even quarries.

With all sorts of equipment attached to the unit, it can perform most roles of decent heavy machinery, so being able to operate two such units would create medieval-standard incredible efficiency.

It could cut down a massive tree in just one minute that would take others hours with just one large saw attachment, or till vast areas of land in about an hour, making it more than sufficient for land development.

In other words, this modification proposal focuses on versatility for use in multiple fields beyond combat.

In contrast to this versatility-focused proposal is Proposal 2.

“Is this one combat specialized?”

“Yes. It’s a proposal to completely modify your personal unit into a full combat unit focused on Lord Alzar’s fighting style.”

This could be summarized as the combat specialization proposal, thoroughly modifying it into a combat-focused unit.

It would still use my magic power and aura as fuel and power source, but apart from that, the overall concept and aspects of the unit would be similar to mass-produced units.

That means it wouldn’t be fixed with specific armaments for a particular role, but rather would be operated by equipping appropriate weapons and equipment according to the situation and circumstances.

As a result, it could still be configured for crowd control with gas projection capabilities as before, and as shown here, it could take on other roles by changing a few settings.

The most representative configurations include: a lance with explosive warheads and a shield; a mortar setting on the back; frontal reinforced armor; and a siege setting with hovering functionality and additional rear thrusters.

There are also configurations for hunting large monsters by replacing the back-mounted mortar with a crossbow that fires harpoons, and a frontline assault setting with a large axe instead of a lance and a shotgun on the back.

Additionally, there’s an artillery setting with computational assistance equipment, a large-caliber howitzer, and an auto-loading mechanism for medium to long-range bombardment. There’s even a setting specifically for blade shield operation.

Honestly, from a rational perspective, Proposal 1 is more appealing, but emotionally, I can’t help but be drawn to Proposal 2.

Especially when considering the resources that Proposal 2 would consume, it’s certainly a bit concerning, but those configurations are just too tempting to resist.

Either way, making a clear-cut decision is never easy, and even if it seems a bit foolish, I need to give it some serious thought.

So as I was contemplating between the two modification proposals—conversion to a versatile unit versus combat specialization—

‘…Hmm?’

Startled by the bizarre signal my intuition suddenly transmitted, I unconsciously touched the nape of my neck and felt the basilisk amulet there. Recognizing it, I suddenly got an idea.

“…Lord Falten.”

“What is it, Lord Alzar?”

“I was wondering, does the operator of that unit necessarily have to be me? In other words… would it be possible to remotely control the unit from a distance?”