I decided to take care of the field.
Whenever weeds sprouted, I would pull them out. Evilham, a large ogre, wasnโt fond of such meticulous work, but there was no choice.
โThis is a weedโฆ I have to be careful not to pull up the wheatโฆโ
I kept pulling out the weeds and discarding them. It was quite hard work, and I started sweating.
โEvilham-sama, what are you doing?โ
A small green goblin, a monster, spoke to me.
โOh, Iโm doing some farm work. If we do this, weโll get delicious wheat.โ
โEvilham-samaโฆ? Wouldnโt it be easier to just take food from the humans instead of doing this?โ
Hmm. It seemed like this way of thinking was not unique to Evilham but perhaps a common trait among monsters as a whole.
โNo, thatโs not okay. Humans are suffering from famine right now. If we take from them, theyโll starve to death.โ
โWhy should we care if humans starve?โ
What to doโฆ Maybe I should persuade the goblins like I did with Littleham.
โListen. If humans starve to death, their numbers will decrease. Fewer humans means fewer people to produce food.โ
โHuh? Isnโt food something that just grows on its own?โ
Before discussing ethics, it seems they need some basic educationโฆ
โListen up, goblins. Humans work hard to produce food. Growing wheat requires proper care, like pulling weeds and wateringโjust like Iโm doing now. Itโs tough work.โ
By emphasizing the hard work involved, I aimed to educate the goblins. If they could understand that, they might be less reckless.
โI see, thatโs how it is.โ
โExactly. Thatโs why we shouldnโt just take food from humans.โ
Even if I donโt steal food, it would be meaningless if my subordinates did. I need to properly educate all the monsters about this.
But how should I go about educating themโฆ? I suppose the best way is to have them experience farming themselves.
โAlright, gather all the monsters. Goblin, go and call every monster in the dungeon.โ
โUnderstood!โ
In the meantime, Iโll expand the farmland in the dungeon. I headed to the control room and placed my hand on the crystal, burning through DP (Dungeon Points).
[Remaining DP: 200]
โWow, I had 5000 DP at first, but itโs gone down a lot. Thereโs not much more I can do now.โ
But itโs all for the sake of educating the dungeon monsters, so it canโt be helped. As I headed back to my quarters from the control room, I ran into the goblin.
โEvilham-sama, Iโve gathered the monsters.โ
The goblin reported to me.
โAh, thank you.โ
I headed towards the gathered monsters. There were slimes, goblins, giant insects called Killer Beetles, and plant-type monsters like the man-eating flower.
These were the low-level monsters that usually appear in the early stages. Naturally, they were all weaker than Evilham, the boss monster.
They werenโt much in terms of combat power, but they might be well-suited for farming.
โToday, I have something important to tell you. Iโve decided that we will no longer steal food from the nearby villages!โ
The monsters started murmuring among themselves, especially the goblins and Killer Beetles.
The slimes, who could survive with just water, and the man-eating flower, which could absorb nutrients from the soil, didnโt seem too concerned.
โEvilham-sama, are you serious? Without food, weโll starve.โ
One of the Killer Beetles voiced their concerns. Well, that reaction was understandable.
โYes, but the same goes for humans. If we steal from them, theyโll starve too. Thatโs why we need to start producing our own food from now on.โ
My words caused more murmuring among the monsters.
โIโve already created a lot of farmland in this dungeon. From now on, all of you will work together to tend to the fields. Weโll grow wheat and secure our own food supply.โ
The monsters buzzed again.
โCan we really secure food like that? Can we even do it?โ
โWhy not just leave that to the humans?โ
โYeah, yeah. Humans are weak creatures. Whatโs wrong with taking from them?โ
โSurvival of the fittest, right?โ
Hmm. These guys definitely need some education. Iโll have to teach them through farming.
โListen up! Farming is hard work. Humans go through a lot of effort to get their food.โ
At least, the monsters were listening to me since I was their boss.
โYou should try to understand the struggles that humans go through. So, from now on, youโll be doing farm work yourselves.โ
โUgh.โ
โSeriously?โ
โAttacking humans is way easierโฆโ
These guysโฆ but maybe itโs because theyโre under Evilham that theyโve adopted this way of thinking.
โAnyway, everyone, focus on farm work to secure our food! Thatโs an order from me.โ
โOkayโฆโ
The monsters reluctantly agreed to start farming. They plowed the fields, planted seeds, watered them, and waited for the right time.
Of course, I didnโt just leave it all to my subordinatesโI made sure to join in the farm work myself.
โEvilham-samaโฆ Iโm tiredโฆโ
โFarm work is exhausting, but hang in there. If you really canโt do it anymore, you can take a break.โ
I encouraged a weary goblin.
โEvilham-samaโฆ Iโm thirstyโฆโ
โMake sure to stay hydrated. Thereโs a spring in this dungeon, and you can drink freely from it.โ
I offered water to a thirsty Killer Beetle.
Since a large part of the dungeon had been turned into farmland, the amount of work was overwhelming.
I continued the farm work while making sure the monsters didnโt overexert themselves.
โAlright, thatโs it for today. You can all rest now.โ
I couldnโt keep them working forever. They needed to rest when it was time.
โPhewโฆ Iโm exhausted.โ
โDo humans really go through all this hard work? Really?โ
The monsters were starting to understand how difficult farming was. Yes, this is what education is all about.
By understanding the struggles of labor, I aimed to help them empathize with othersโ pain.
โSomehow, it feels wrong to take food that others worked so hard to produce.โ
One of the goblins started to say that. Yes, this is a good sign.
โReally? Iโd rather let others do the hard work and just take it myself.โ
Another goblin spoke up. Sigh, thereโs always at least one bad apple.
Itโs true everywhereโmonsters are just as varied as humans in their personalities.
Well, you canโt avoid having a few bad apples. Even in human society, there are always some.
But even those types need to be kept in line when it comes to not attacking humans.
That meansโฆ Iโll probably have to create some rules and enforce punishments.
Itโs almost impossible to control othersโ actions through goodwill alone. Rules are necessary to maintain social order.
โEveryone, listen up. From now on, anyone who goes to human villages and attacks humans to steal food will go without meals for ten days.โ
โUgh!โ
The monsters naturally protested. But such punishments are necessary as a deterrent.
โEvilham-sama, why are you siding with humans so much? Everyone is dissatisfied, you know?โ
Littleham spoke up, criticizing me. Well, it made sense from a monsterโs point of view.
โListen, Littleham. Humans are living beings too. If we recklessly steal from them, they wonโt take it lying down. If they fight back, it could lead to war.โ
โWarโฆ couldnโt we just defeat the humans if it came to that?โ
Ugh, this way of thinkingโฆ itโs dangerous.
โIf war breaks out, weโll suffer losses too. Itโs not just about winning. I donโt want to lose any of you.โ
I pleaded with tears in my eyes. Hopefully, this would get through to them.
โWell, if I die, then I die. Iโve made my peace with that.โ
These guysโฆ seriouslyโฆ!