It was now March of the twenty-second year of the Empire. The snow covering Morland Castle had gradually begun to melt, though the process might still take a long time.
The thaw had also affected the land-clearing efforts. Although Goer Castle had only recently come under Reiner's command, it had still followed his orders and begun cultivating farmland in the wastelands.
Clearing land in winter was no easy task. The snow had to be removed to expose the hard frozen soil beneath, after which heavy steel plows had to break up the earth before the desolate permafrost could become arable farmland.
The melting snow had made the land somewhat muddy, but on the other hand, the frozen soil had also softened somewhat.
By now, the newly cultivated land around Morland Castle had reached roughly ten thousand mu. The farmland directly under Reiner's control had increased by two-thirds, reaching twenty-five thousand mu.
His grain output would probably double next year. This was the most difficult period to endure. The melting snow had made the weather damp and bitterly cold, unlike the dry cold of midwinter.
Even with a fireplace blazing in Reiner's room, this damp chill was impossible to ward off. The pervasive cold air crept recklessly through every crack in the castle, leaving Reiner's bed and bedding clammy. They stuck unpleasantly to his body.
He had already paid out one month's wages, and the date for the second payment would arrive in another twenty days. He still had no idea how Sir Cord and the others were doing or when they would return. He truly did not want to be unable to pay them when the time came.
In the Empire's interior, spring had already arrived in full bloom. Although there was still a slight chill in the air, greenery