"Ughhh... my back..."
"Good grief... my arms and legs..."
The shack was filled with groans the next morning.
Chilbok, Manseok, and I were all sprawled about like corpses.
The day before, we had spent all day plowing the 1,650-square-meter gravel field, hauling in foul-smelling leaf mold, and sowing seeds.
We had worked muscles we normally never used so hard that it would have been stranger if our bodies had not ached.
Manseok, who had played the role of a human plow, was in especially bad shape.
"B-Big Brother... I can't move my arms. It feels like someone put millstones on my shoulders."
"Stop being dramatic. Aren't you going to eat?"
"Food... I have to eat. Hyah!"
At the mention of food, Manseok raised himself like a zombie. His appetite really did defeat pain.
I groaned as I got up as well. My whole body throbbed as though I had been beaten.
But there was no time to rest.
"Chilbok, get up. We need to water the field."
"W-Water? Didn't you say the soil had plenty of moisture yesterday?"
Chilbok rubbed his eyes and grumbled.
"That's the soil. Seeds need plenty of water to sprout. Rice, especially, is a water fiend. Radishes need water early on, too."
The drawback of a gravel field was that it drained too well.
The leaf mold we had spread yesterday would help retain moisture, but under the spring sun, it could still dry out quickly.
"Get the water carriers. Time for morning exercise."
We took up the carriers again. This time, we carried water instead of shit.
Fortunately, a small stream flowed right beside the field. It was clear water branching off from the Nakdong River.
"One, two! One, two!"
Manseok carried water jars on both sides of his carrier, while Chilbok and I scooped the water with dippers and sprinkled it over the field.
SPLASH—SPLASH—
Water poured over the black soil.
The surface that had begun to dry out became damp again.
Then people began to emerge from the village, one by one.
They were farmers heading out for their morning work. As they passed our field, they clicked their tongues.
"Tsk. Just look at that."
"Looks like the noble young master lost his mind after getting thrown out."
"Thrown out? I heard he said he came here to recuperate."
"Good grief, you're so naive. Why would a noble from Gaegyeong come all the way out to the countryside? He got thrown out and made up that excuse because he was ashamed."
"True enough. If he came to recuperate, he would stay in Gaegyeong. If my own child did something like that, I'd throw him out too."
"But what did they plant in that gravel field that they're watering it?"
"I saw them yesterday. They spread a mountain of shit soil over it. The stench was terrible."
One of the women cried out, covering her nose.
"Hey! You young men! That smell is unbearable! What are you doing at the entrance to the village?!"
I straightened up, wiped away my sweat, and gave her a smile.
"The fertilizer has quite a rich aroma, doesn't it? This year's harvest is going to be huge, so please bear with us, ma'am."
"A huge harvest, my ass! You'll be lucky if grass grows in that gravel field. Stop wasting your energy, pack your things, and go somewhere else!"
The villagers passed by laughing.
To them, we probably looked like three foolish brothers doing pointless work.
Chilbok approached me with a tearful face.
"Big Brother... everyone is laughing at us. What if that woman is right? What if nothing sprouts..."
"Chilbok."
"Yes."
"Do you believe me, or do you believe that woman?"
"Well... I believe you, Big Brother, but..."
"Then use the energy you have for talking to scoop one more dipper of water."
I picked up the dipper again.
Laughter? I enjoyed it, if anything.
The less people expected, the greater the surprise would be.
That evening.
By the time we had finished watering, the sun had set.
Exhausted, we sat around a campfire in front of the shack.
Tonight's meal was grilled frog legs.
Manseok had caught them here and there while working in the field.
The golden-brown frog legs gave off a savory aroma.
"Wow, they taste like chicken!"
Manseok marveled as he crunched through the bones.
I tore off a piece as well. It was chewy and mild. It was a shame we could not season it with salt, but it was excellent for replenishing protein after labor.
The night wind was cold.
It was still early March. Though it was spring, the temperature dropped sharply enough at night for our breath to steam.
"Ugh... it's cold. Big Brother, won't the seeds we planted freeze to death?"
Chilbok curled up and worried.
Ordinary rice and radishes were easily damaged by cold. That was why the villagers were still delaying their sowing.
But I smiled calmly and pointed toward the field.
"Look over there."
"Pardon? What is there to see?"
Chilbok and Manseok widened their eyes and stared at the field sunk in darkness.
The 1,650-square-meter black field lay beneath the faint moonlight.
Upon closer inspection, a pale haze rose across the entire field.
"W-What? Big Brother! Isn't that smoke?"
Manseok shouted.
"Isn't the field on fire? Smoke is coming from it!"
"It's not fire."
"Then what is it? Is it ghosts? Are earth ghosts coming out?!"
Chilbok jumped in fright and clung to my arm.
"That's heat."
"Heat?"
"That's right. Remember the soil we spread yesterday? As it decays, it gives off heat."
It was the principle of compost.
When organic matter decomposed and fermented through microorganisms, it produced a considerable amount of heat.
The inside of an ordinary compost pile could rise as high as sixty or seventy degrees.
The leaf mold we had spread was already somewhat fermented, but after we plowed the field, exposed it to air, and watered it, active secondary fermentation had begun again.
It was as though the entire field had become one enormous heated-floor room.
"That soil is covering the seeds like a warm blanket. Even if it's cold outside, the soil beneath is warm."
"Wow... the soil makes heat by itself... Big Brother, can you really use sorcery?"
Manseok stared with his mouth hanging open.
"It's not sorcery. It's science. The principles of nature."
I looked at the crackling campfire.
By now, the little things I had worked on for ten years were probably waking beneath the earth.
Warm ground, abundant nutrients, and the right amount of moisture.
The three conditions had come together perfectly.
Ordinary seeds would take at least a week to sprout even under these conditions.
But my Great Peace series was different.
Perhaps because they carried the impatient souls of Koreans, they had no patience at all.
"By tomorrow or the day after, you'll be able to greet them."
"Greet who? Ghosts?"
"No. Your source of money."
I snickered and handed Chilbok the remaining frog leg.
"Eat plenty. Once they start sprouting, we'll be too busy to rest."
***
The morning of the third day.
"Aaaaaah!!"
A scream shattered the dawn sleep.
It was Chilbok's voice.
I sprang up. Manseok also jumped up in alarm.
"W-What's happening?! Bandits?!"
I grabbed the old sword and ran outside.
The sound had come from the field.
Chilbok was crouching in the middle of the foggy field.
"Chilbok! What's wrong?! Did a snake come out?!"
As I ran over, Chilbok looked up at me with a tearful face.
"B-Big Brother... we have a huge problem."
"What is it?"
"We're ruined. Completely ruined."
Chilbok pointed at the ground.
"Look at this. Weeds have taken over the field in just three days!"
I looked where Chilbok was pointing.
Pale green dots covered the black soil.
Like a green carpet had been spread across it, the entire field was lush and verdant.
"Until yesterday, there was nothing here... A ghost must've come in the night and scattered weed seeds. How are we ever going to pull all of these out... Sob..."
Chilbok grabbed one of the weeds(?) and tried to pull it out.
"Don't!"
I shouted and snatched Chilbok's wrist.
"You crazy bastard! Why are you pulling that out?!"
"Pardon? It's a weed, so I should pull it. If we leave it alone, the crops will fail."
"Open your eyes wide and look carefully. Does that look like a weed to you?"
I practically shoved Chilbok's head into the ground.
Chilbok blinked and looked closely.
Two cotyledons.
Plump, glossy, heart-shaped leaves.
And over in the section where we had planted rice, strong single cotyledon blades rose sharply from the ground.
"Uh... the shapes are all the same?"
"Right. They only grew where we planted them in rows."
"C-Could it be...?"
Chilbok's mouth fell open.
"Are these... what we planted?"
"Bingo."
I crouched down and gently stroked the tender leaves.
The feel of life beneath my fingertips sent a thrill through me.
"Great Peace No. 3. Radish sprouts."
"T-That's impossible! Only three days have passed, and the sprouts are already this big? Normally, it takes ten days just to sprout!"
"I told you. They're special."
Manseok, who had followed us over, rubbed his eyes in amazement.
"Wow... Big Brother. It looks like someone painted the field."
That was when it happened.
A murmur rose from the village.
"Hey? Look over there."
"What is that? What's wrong with that field?"
Villagers on their way to work stopped in their tracks.
It was obvious even from a distance.
While all the surrounding fields were still barren brown dirt, only our field shone a vivid green.
As though entranced, people approached the ridge between the fields.
"Are those... sprouts?"
"No, I saw them sow seeds the day before yesterday. The sprouts already came up?"
"What kind of miracle is this? Some goblin trick?"
The Village Chief also heard the news and came running over, chewing on a reed stalk.
"Move aside! Step aside!"
The Village Chief pushed through the crowd and looked down at the field.
His eyes widened as though they might pop out.
"Gasp...!"
The Village Chief had farmed his entire life. He could tell at a glance whether these were weeds or crops.
And he could tell just how absurd this rate of growth was.
"Y-Young Master. What kind of seeds are these?"
The Village Chief pointed at me with a trembling hand.
I stood with my hands behind my back, feigning arrogance. I lifted my chin.
"I told you. I brought them from Gaegyeong."
"Even if they're seeds from Gaegyeong, how can they sprout in three days and unfurl leaves like that? Did you perhaps use a spell?"
The villagers whispered among themselves.
"He used soil from the haunted land, so a ghost must've attached itself to him."
"No, perhaps he truly can use sorcery."
Their gazes held fear and awe.
It was exactly the reaction I wanted.
"What sorcery?"
I grinned and patted Manseok's shoulder.
"Manseok."
"Yes, Big Brother!"
"Bring water. The children are thirsty."
"Understood!"
Manseok happily went to take up the water carrier.
Chilbok finally seemed to understand what was happening, and his mouth stretched from ear to ear.
"Big Brother! This is incredible! Everyone is so shocked they could fall over!"
"It's too soon to be shocked."
I looked at the field that had turned green and muttered inwardly.
This was only the beginning.
The truly frightening thing about these little ones was not their initial growth rate.
From here on, they would swell in size day by day with monstrous growth.
Everyone would witness it.
"Ma'am!"
I called to the woman from yesterday, who stood among the onlookers.
"Y-Yes? Me?"
The woman flinched and stepped back.
"You said yesterday that we'd be lucky if even grass grew."
"W-Well, that was..."
"The grass grew very well, didn't it?"
At my words, the woman's face turned as red as a radish.
The people around her snickered.
"This isn't just grass. Come back in a month. I'll show you something that'll make your eyes pop."
I declared it with complete confidence.
"By then, I'll charge admission."
From that afternoon onward, the mood around our shack changed completely.
Until yesterday, Chilbok had constantly said things like, "We're ruined," and, "We're going to die." Now he hummed cheerfully.
"La-la-la~ Our field is a golden field~ Money sprouts and grows~"
Even while pulling the real weeds from the field, he could not stop smiling.
Now that he had seen the sprouts with his own eyes, he seemed to realize my words were not empty boasting.
Whenever he had the chance, Manseok spoke to the field.
"Radishes, rice. Grow quickly. Your big brother will eat you deliciously later."
...It was a statement that ruined one's innocence, but I decided to think of it as an expression of affection.
I sat on the ridge between the fields and organized the ledger.
Since we had no paper, I wrote on a broad leaf with charcoal.
[Assets]
Silver on Hand: 19 silver taels
Food on Hand: Two sacks of mixed grains—millet and barnyard millet—and one small measure of salt. (Exchanged yesterday for one silver tael at the merchant house in town.)
"Hmm."
I closed the ledger and nodded.
It was a good thing I had sent Chilbok to town yesterday.
Silver taels were not money commoners used. Chilbok said that when he presented one silver tael, the merchant's eyes had gone wide and he had begun fawning over him.
As change, we received two sacks of mixed grains—roughly 160 kilograms—and salt. Rice was too expensive, but this was enough to keep the three of us from starving until the harvest.
"Big Brother! Look over here!"
Chilbok called urgently.
When I went over, I saw one of the radish sprouts had been gnawed by a bug.
"Bugs! A bug ate this precious thing!"
"Of course. It's delicious."
I answered calmly.
"Then what do we do? Should we use medicine or something?"
"What medicine do we have? We'll have to catch them by hand."
"Pardon?"
"You two. From today onward, you're hunting bugs. If even one more radish leaf gets eaten, I'll deduct it from your dinner."
"Gah! Understood! Hey, Manseok! Open your eyes wide and look!"
The two of them buried their faces in the field and began hunting bugs.
I looked up at the sky.
Blue sky. Warm sunlight.
Spring in Goryeo was ripening.
And beside the marshland, in that foul-smelling black field.
My ambition was growing lushly along with it.
'Wait for me, Gaegyeong. Wait for me, Father.'
'The son you threw out for being a fucking idiot will return as the richest man in Goryeo.'
I brushed charcoal soot from my hands and rose to my feet.
"I'll help too. You bugs are all dead."
Our battle farming had only just begun.