It had been five days since my trip to Talbotton, and adding the day each way to travel, it’s been a week. The first row of uncommon carrots grew, but I had already changed my plans to focus on the masterwork side. Yet, the growing of carrots made stable income, so I went ahead and began that process.

  My fields were currently like this:

  81 Strawberries — 7/36 Days (Masterwork) (1x1) — 81 tiles.

  81 Potatoes — 7/20 Days (Masterwork) (1x2) — 162 tiles

  81 Peas — 7/23 Days (Masterwork) (1x2 — Trellis) — 162 tiles

  81 Carrots — 3/5 Days (Uncommon) (1x1) — 81 tiles

  81 Carrots — 2/5 Days (Uncommon) (1x1) — 81 tiles

  81 Carrots — 1/5 Days (Uncommon) (1x1) — 81 tiles

  9 Carrots in the Seed Maker.

  45 Uncommon carrots awaiting processing.

  I was currently using 648 tiles. When all the carrots were finished, I would be using 1,134 tiles of my farm. Pa would have used all of it, and would just have made it rows of carrots. Not even clover, which would have at least given the fields a break after the corn he planted from summer to fall.

  It was currently the 12th day of spring, and each season had 90 days.

  This was important information for me, since as an academic, I only really needed to care what tomorrow brought and when the next exam was. But now that growing speeds and timing mattered, I had a strict timeline. My ideal rotation would have all crops harvested by the 90th of the season at the latest—my carrots would instantly die when fall came about.

  Likewise, this helped me figure out what my profit margins would look like. I wasn’t creating any blood crops just yet. Ophelia couldn’t eat that many, and I just didn’t have anyone else who’d be interested in buying them.

  Another thing I’d been noticing, though, was how easy it became to work on the fields. My steps were easy, and compared to when I was at the goblin warrens, my head never seemed to feel distant, even as I used my necromancy to help me water and tend to the crops.

  Rattlejack and the Zombie Boys were doing fine as well, as the continued maintenance of the fields actually went to me. I had them till the fields and keep everything watered, which—at how many tiles I was currently using and the time it took to complete an action—I was glad I was getting help.

  For me, watering a crop took about 10 minutes. With 648 tiles’ worth of crops, that means if I was the one actually doing this, it would take 6,480 minutes, which is…

  108 hours.

  I was glad I was a [Farm Girl] since I could technically make more efficient systems and tools to water the crops—like a sprinkler system. I’d just need to pour water in the central thing and it would water all crops in a radius.

  Except that it cost money. It also required some ores that I just didn’t have a way to buy, unless I could convince Ophelia to go mine for me.

  I had a feeling she’d try to hit me, or at least do her creepy vampire thing on me again.

  I did try to get the Zombie Boys to mine, but when that happened, I returned to them just using their pickaxes to mine on the floor. The one they had finished mining when I left.

  And mines were dangerous. I couldn’t have Mirchie go there since she could honestly die. Likewise, she was a rabbit, and was happy to just have me back and farm. The stupid girl was getting fat and lazy, and spent most of her time in her little house that Ophelia made for her. I tried convincing her to come sleep with me, and she only accepted when she realized I was just “normal for Ashley cold” and not “[Necromancer] with [Cryotheurge] cold.”

  I’m glad to have her back!

  Anyways, that was beside the point. I was at 108 hours of farm work a day, and couldn’t afford the systems that most people generally assumed a farmer would have. That both hurt and worked to my advantage. No one would really be wondering how I watered my crops... but...

  Rattlejack, as a skeleton, took 20 minutes to do a single task. Each of the Zombie Boys—and I had four—took 30 minutes.

  Adding that together and dividing the parts, it led to the average time for my workforce to do a tile being 28 minutes.

  That was still far too slow, since even if I split the fields five ways, each person would be responsible for 130 tiles. 130, and at 28 minutes a tile, led to 3,640 minutes.

  Or, about 61 hours.

  If I added my own time in, the average became 25 minutes. That made each person responsible for 108 tiles, and I didn’t need to do mental math to realize that would still be over a day.

  If I wanted them to be able to finish by the midnight cut-off time that defined a new day, I’d have to make that final result 1,440 minutes. Realistically, I wanted it to be done by 600 minutes.

  So, that led me to a conclusion I couldn’t ignore. I had to make more lower-end minions just to water the crops. Even if they were slow, dividing how many tiles each one was responsible for eventually made it a non-factor.

  But I didn’t have any bodies to convert outside of Cadence’s, and I had left that in the crypt to keep its quality. I was more concerned with having stronger undead with the one body I had than to add another worker that wouldn’t solve the issue.

  Right now, though?

  I figured I really had two choices on how to handle my problems.

  One.

  I could ask Ophelia, again. I’ve seen how fast she was, and she’d be able to water all my crops in no time. In fact, she alone could probably handle this field better than any normal [Farm Girl] could.

  But she’s Ophelia, and she’s been dealing with her house being lost and figuring out where her servants went. I don’t know how to help her, but I do know she’s making progress. She had recently asked if the few vampires she found could stay in the forest or near my farm. I had no problems with this, but informed her I didn’t have any blood carrots.

  She didn’t care, telling me I was worrying about the wrong thing, and that Bazerie was going to have to be dealt with.

  Apparently, Bazerie also made a bid on Elias’ land, and offered Ophelia another contract with her. Ophelia refused, which—good on her. From what Madeleine told me, contracts with Bazerie just mean becoming a slave—and for me and her? That’s worse than death.

  Anyways, I’m also sure Ophelia would try to hit me for suggesting such a thing, but would acquiesce. But I’m friends with Ophelia, so I don’t want to make her do something she doesn’t want to, just because I needed help. I don’t like people doing things for me since they think I’m weak and helpless, and if I asked Ophelia—who was homeless and owed her freedom to me—I’d be denying her the freedom she so wanted.

  So, I can’t do that.

  I considered asking her for bodies, since that wouldn’t be her going out of her way, but with the goblins moving into Lyrelle Forest, the goblin population seemed to overtake the bandit ones, and I don’t think Wizex would enjoy me raising his goblins.

  Oh right, the group is going to meet properly in a few days. I should probably remember that. When I brought Noel in to meet Madeleine since he wanted to kill Bazerie too, Madeleine AND Noel freaked out.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  Apparently, she’s part of a coven called the “Darkmire Witches,” and had caused a big mess in Darkmire. Well, not her, but her sister—something involving a goat or something? One of them tried to make a “GOAT OF A THOUSAND YOUNG” or something like that in the black forest, but I stopped paying attention after that.

  Anyways, Noel had to handle that, and basically crippled Madeleine’s sister. That’s the biggest reason Madeleine needs money: Noel forced a judgement from Danu on the sister, and cancelled out her connection to Mother Willow. Now, whenever that girl thinks, her mind’s lost in the world of the Fae, running in infinite mazes away from something called a [Sidhe].

  So, to cure it, she needs a massive benediction from Danu, which alone would cost 600,000 gold. When I pointed out that meant that all of her crimes basically had a price, and that they put a value on human life, they both immediately dropped the subject.

  I don’t know why that worked.

  Noel won’t apologize though! Or try to fix it. Says the only way he’d intervene and undo the judgement was if Madeleine helped him kill Bazerie.

  I again pointed out the obvious, and told them both this was already what Madeleine wanted to do. Both Noel and Madeleine glared at me, and then suggested I formally introduce everyone to each other so nothing like this happens again.

  I then told them I don’t think I wanted to have Adrian meet any of them. Madeleine’s smile shook at that sentence, but then told me to stop fooling around and have my “coven” meet at my farmhouse.

  I realize now she meant my criminal friends, the ones who know I’m a necromancer. No wonder why they both began to laugh.

  So yeah, Ophelia is going to meet Wizex and I don’t want a similar situation. That was a long-winded way to just say “I don’t want those two to fight already either.” Ultimately? No bodies for me.

  Oh! That also leads me to the second solution I thought of.

  I could ask Noel! Madeleine can’t cast rain since she can’t create it—she does have potions and scrolls that could do it, though—but Noel could do it at no cost to himself—he was a druid.

  Noel was bemused when he saw my farm. I told him that’s all I was doing, and when he finally decided to come around, he legitimately thought it was a well-made illusion. Except when he entered my hovel, and said his servants had better quarters than these.

  I asked him what druid had servants, and he brushed me off. But he was also impressed I wasn’t growing anything illegal, but I told him no one around here is buying any since my… brother? I still didn’t know what my relationship with Adrian was anymore.

  Anyways, after my “brother” killed the [Vampire Lord]. Noel paled when he heard that, and asked who that man was. I told him Addy—I mean, I said Adrian in front of him, of course. Then he asked me if I was insane that someone I was so close to was an inquisitor and this was my chosen profession?

  I shrugged, and told him I wasn't currently doing anything illegal. Except for the undead working the fields, but I could hide those.

  He said I was missing the point.

  I didn’t see how, but he decided to stop trying to explain it to me, and go talk to Adrian. So those two are friends now, and Adrian knows Noel knows me. Apparently I, a mighty [Cryotheurge], had aided the legendary Noel Birch in clearing the Underhill Tribe and destroying the Dread [Goblin Boss] Wizex.

  Very typical first adventure according to Adrian. I was smart enough to not want to tell him that isn’t really what happened.

  Except Noel also gave a very good reason why my witchmark calmed down, and people could touch me. Apparently Nyla has blessed me proper, and gifted me the ability to make mundane medicine as miracle. So, she gifted me [Chirurgeon], and told me to make that my role. Since the goddess had required me to heal people by touching them, it wouldn’t do if her blessing made it impossible.

  Couldn’t do anything about the hair, though.

  I glanced at Noel as he explained all of that to Adrian, since he was far better at lying than I gave him credit for. Nice man, I’m glad he’s also willing to keep my secret. I don’t get why, but I think we have a strange kinship.

  But now it makes it awkward. If I ask Noel to water my crops, I’m basically asking for help. Except Noel also needs my help to kill Bazerie, so it’s not really the same situation as me asking Ophelia. We’re two equals asking for different things, so I can ask him.

  But then I could also ask Adrian. I’d have to hide the zombies, of course, but Adrian and I working together would be able to solve it in no time.

  So, when I asked Jasmine for her counsel, she asked me if I was a proper nutter. If I even asked Adrian to come over to help me water crops, he’d see how stupidly large my fields were. I pointed out this was the problem.

  If I asked Noel, but didn’t ask Adrian, he’d come by to check it out. I’m not “underneath” Adrian anymore, and he knows that. So I can ask him for help, and he can ask me. And the fact I didn’t ask him would make him annoyed?

  Jasmine balked at that thought. She basically told me that Adrian doesn’t think in debts, and would just figure you respected his time and knew Noel could cast [Rain]. Also, Ophelia, while weird, isn’t someone I had to protect; she was the one watering my fields for me when she realized that I forgot to factor in the time the expanding operation would take.

  Ophelia liked me; her vampire thing was strictly business. Jasmine told me that Ophelia enjoys her company too, but she just doesn’t really like mixing her business persona with the coven.

  That did remind me of the afternoon I was with her in the carriage. I still don’t know if she was trying to stab me or not.

  Anyways, Jasmine snapped me out of that by telling me I was being silly, and I could continue relying on Ophelia. Or I could ask Noel since Noel was the one she knew the least about and would love to have spent more time with him.

  I asked her if that meant she was over Nathaniel or something, but she found that idea insulting! She said while she enjoyed the eye-candy, she knows how to separate that! But the actual issue was that I don’t bother caring for my “social circle,” and since we’re sisters now, she’s making sure I have friends.

  That thought was weird, since I didn’t need her help. Madeleine snickered and told me in her ridiculous accent—“CHERRY, OF COURSE YOU DO.”

  So, I asked Noel, if only so Jasmine would stop bothering me. Noel smiled at me and said of course, and was more than happy to help.

  I told him I didn’t have anything to give him, but he just looked at me strangely. I guess he wants me to figure out what he wants? I don't know what druids like? Normally I’d ask Madeleine, except I can’t talk to her about Noel at all without her going cold and silent.

  So Noel complicated my group of friends, but I think it was pretty necessary. Hopefully Madeleine and Noel could get along, since after we kill Bazerie, they won’t have any real reason to be annoyed?

  Yet, Ophelia doesn’t think so. See, she saw Noel come and cast [Rain] on the crops, and Ophelia asked me if I was upset with her. I was confused, but I was already getting myself internally ready for another round of this nonsense.

  Ophelia asked me if I was annoyed, since she had been watering my crops, and if she did something to displease me.

  So, I, carefully trying to avoid my own personal drama with her, explicitly explained—I didn’t know she was watering the crops, but then I found out, and I didn’t want her to think she was indebted to me. We were friends, and I wanted my friends to be able to make their own choice if they wanted to help me.

  And she said she knew that. It was her choice to water the crops, even if she found it annoying. If she didn’t want to help me, she just wouldn’t have. I gave her freedom, but that also meant that she could make her own choices.

  So, I think she’s mad at me since I thought that asking her for help would be slavery was an insult to her freedom to begin with? Or, as Jasmine tried to explain to me—I didn’t see her as an equal, and she didn’t need to be managed. She said 'It’s not as if you wonder if you have to return the teabags I gave you, or the price of the tickets to Talbotton.'

  I told her I do, though, and she frowned. She patted me on the shoulder and told me that was very, very sad. She told me I was vastly overthinking this, and all Ophelia meant was that she was doing it because she just assumed we were friends, and she chose to be friends with me. She said that Ophelia’s not even mad, she just finds it funny.

  But that doesn’t make much sense.

  So, I think Ophelia’s mad at me since she thinks I assume she’s a slave, Noel and Madeleine are mad at each other, and Adrian hates Madeleine, but Madeleine doesn’t care about Adrian, and somehow Noel and Adrian are best friends! Oh, and I think everyone likes Jasmine? I think that ones true.

  Anyways, that’s how I solved the watering problem. Noel’s [Rain] spell lasts the season, and Ophelia apparently already realized that I completely forgot about the weed growth on the unused land and among the plants. I wouldn't be able to handle all that just by myself, and that whole overthinking I did before about how to water my crops didn’t even matter because I forgot about crop maintenance!

  So, I realize now that she was already doing that for me as well. I don't get her.

  My meeting is tomorrow night, and there’s already so much to keep track of. Like, I didn’t even mention Wizex, but he wasn’t remotely involved with my farm’s problems.

  However!

  Noel isn’t happy he’s alive even though Wizex waved him off. Apparently one goblin looks like another, which was gravely insulting! ALSO, NEITHER of them are happy that I blighted the forest!

  I just wanted to farm. Finding a broker and purchaser is giving me a headache. I am so glad I am a doctor now too, but I need to start learning [Herbology] if I want to make my preparation room.

  That, and also needing to raid the church for a holy object to defile, makes this entire situation even worse. And then there are my role quests. I didn’t even look at [Reaper] or [Chirurgeon] since I was already juggling a lot!

  How was fighting for my life less stressful than this?

  Rhyvesta’s Gaze, tomorrow is going to kill me. Would it be easier if I just went and killed Bazerie myself? Maybe some other time—I still have crops to maintain now.