Heading south from the fortress, the wheat fields spread out in the direction of the south. It was said that the farming village that has been severely damaged by the demons is located further on the road that passes between these fields.

　Since the road was maintained to some extent, we used a horse-drawn carriage to get around. Mr. Presha's men were acting as gosha, and the two captains were riding their own horses.

　Through the window of the carriage, I can see Deethe-san advancing side by side. As we approached our destination, she began to explain to us without us having to ask anything.

The farming communities in this area are governed by the great families who ruled this region. They were hostile to our kingdom at first, but after the construction of the Isle Rose Fortress, they accepted it without much resistance.
With that fortress, I don't think you'll be easily motivated to challenge it. ......
'That's partly because the Zirconia threat was looming across the canal. A militia of peasants armed only with a peasant militia would not be able to resist a trained knight. Knowing this, they came under the protection of the Royal Army.

　The Knights continue to fight off the Zirconia soldiers that the great tribes feared, as a matter of fact. However, if food production is falling in this rural village, it's possible that the impoverished great tribes are thinking about turning over - and that's what they think.

'Since Lady Astina became the guardian of the fortress, the people's feelings towards the Knights of the Order have improved. It's probably because they are not only against Zirconia, but also because they are protecting their territory from demons and brigands. However, if the demons that ruin the farmland are left unattended, the people's feelings will gradually worsen. Because the food produced in this area is shipped out to the entire western territory.
''I'd like to do something about ....... No, if we don't do something, it will exhaust the entire Order. And the drop in production of grains and vegetables means that it will also affect our cattle farming. If it's difficult to consume a lot of meat, it would be nice if we could consume some legumes.
'Our fields of beans have also been damaged. We used to produce them down the road, but now they're at .......

　Deethe stared forward as if she noticed something.

''What the hell, that shouldn't have been as bad as it was before ....... ......
Guys, look!　The color of the land over there has changed: ......!　

(...... The color of the ground has changed completely from the original soil color ...... to gray.)

　I look out the window and am left speechless by the sight. A border has been formed beyond the wheat field and the land beyond it has turned gray.

　Even the horses are slowing down their progress, as if they are feeling abnormal. And up ahead, from a house that must have managed the fields around here, a person came out on horseback from a house.

''Oh, you're the Knights of the Order, ...... I'm glad you came, but this land is no longer good. It will all wither away before the harvest.
'Why is it such ...... that this is happening?　I thought there were just demons out there?

　Even the man looked puzzled by Presha's question, and he pointed to the gray land behind him - and the forest beyond.

'Indeed, at first it was only the demons that came out. We were vulnerable to the flames, and burning them off was a temporary fix for the ...... Knights, and we had some help with that. However, a few months ago, the land around that forest turned gray and no crops could be grown normally.
''Wouldn't defeating a ...... demon like that help you get back on track?　It doesn't matter how many demons you slay, if your crops don't grow, it doesn't matter how many demons you slay: ......

　Raquel-san would have received the report and would have understood it to some extent. Unexplained, land contamination - no, this is 'erosion'.

　I got out of the carriage and listened to the plants in the area. It wasn't as clear as the voices I could hear from the elders, and the crops around here, which hadn't turned gray, had weakened.

(...... The wind is ...... that, you know, flows from the forest. What is this feeling ......)

...... Dr. Glass?
Mr. Glass, how can I help you?

　--The gray forest in the distance. As I looked at it, I was reminded of something different from the reality of the scene I was seeing.

　The forest was bathed in sunlight. A girl is looking at me, bathed in light.

　The girl's lips move. But I can't hear her voice - of course, I'm seeing an illusion.

　That scene I saw when I made a contract with the spirits. But it is rapidly fading and turning gray.

...... You're there. Am I ...... seeing a vision of that place ......?
Why don't you get your head out of your ass ...... and get your head out of your ass, what do you mean by a phantom?
Oh. Oh. Excuse me, I was wondering about that forest. What's in that forest?

　When I ask the farmer man about it, he, too, twists his head and says

'I heard that somewhere in that forest there is a place where the ancestors used to worship some kind of god in their generation. People stopped coming near it and ...... I've never been inside it since I was born. There are even rumors that it's 'cursed' ......
...... curse, is it? It seems to me that the withering away of the land would be a much more horrible thing to say .......

　Everyone would imagine that the cause of the demons is in that forest. The phenomenon of this land turning gray is because it is spreading from that forest.