The food's good. That's my first thought.
The stew thickened nicely, the flavors settled. Donny finishes early, licks the bowl clean, then flops onto his back in the grass like the world has personally satisfied him.
Jyne watches him for a moment. Amused. Then her tone shifts.
[Jyne] "The world is unstable."
She says it like she's announcing an unavoidable tragedy. I take another bite.
[Wright] "It always is."
Sylphaeris pauses mid-spoonful.
[Sylphaeris] "If this is another speech about that stupid human kingdom, I'd suggest having a dragon burn it all down."
I cough into my bowl. Jyne doesn't blink.
[Sylphaeris] "Then nature can reclaim the land."
[Jyne] "Focus."
Sylphaeris sighs dramatically but complies.
I set my bowl aside and lean back, folding my arms.
[Wright] "Alright. Walk me through it."
Jyne exhales through her nose.
[Jyne] "The human kingdom borders the demon lord's territory. Even though the demons kept to themselves, they declared it an existential threat and demanded resources from every nearby nation."
Sylphaeris scowls.
[Sylphaeris] "Like a thug."
[Jyne] "Exactly."
She continues.
[Jyne] "Food. Materials. Labor. When those demands were refused, they invaded. Slaughtered or enslaved the people. Stripped the land bare."
[Wright] "For the war?"
Jyne lets out a short laugh. There's no humor in it.
[Jyne] "No."
Sylphaeris waves her spoon sharply.
[Sylphaeris] "The nobles eat it. They gorge themselves, throw feasts, waste half of it, then blame demons for the shortages. The people starve."
Her expression hardens.
[Sylphaeris] "It's disgusting how wasteful they are."
Jyne folds her hands.
[Jyne] "Starving people don't return energy to the world. Wasted food doesn't either. The world weakens. Quietly."
I lean back.
[Wright] "So they're just being awful."
[Jyne] "Yes."
Sylphaeris nods and gestures at the trees.
[Sylphaeris] "The forest still grows, but it's uneven. Animals are cautious. Plants recover slower. All because someone wanted a third banquet."
I scratch my cheek.
[Wright] "What'd you try?"
Jyne hesitates.
[Jyne] "Blessings. Chosen heroes. People who genuinely wanted to help."
Her lips thin.
[Jyne] "But they became tools. Used by the very people who should've been overthrown to hoard more resources. All under the pretext of helping the common folk."
Sylphaeris clicks her tongue.
[Sylphaeris] "Humans are great at twisting things."
The silence that follows is heavy.
[Wright] "Then stop sending them."
Jyne looks at me.
[Wright] "You can't prop them up forever. Let them trip over their own ego."
[Jyne] "And the people suffering under them?"
I pause, thinking.
[Wright] "Make a proclamation. Denounce the bad kingdom, bless the neighboring ones. Let people know where to go for a better life."
Jyne blinks.
[Wright] "They'll migrate. Leave the nobles with nothing. Kingdom collapses on its own."
Sylphaeris grins.
[Sylphaeris] "I really like that."
[Wright] "And for the migrants... we grow food here. Offer it to the other kingdoms for cheap."
They both look at me.
[Wright] "A lot of it."
Sylphaeris stares, then giggles.
[Sylphaeris] "Yes!"
[Wright] "I can use magic to accelerate crop growth which will feed mana and miasma back into the world." I shrug. "Buys time until things balance out."
Jyne studies me.
[Jyne] "You'd do that?"
I shrug again.
[Wright] "Was planning to farm anyway."
Sylphaeris leans back, smiling.
[Sylphaeris] "Saving the world with farming. I like this plan."
Jyne exhales, tension easing.
[Jyne] "Alright. Let's do it."
[Wright] "Good. We can start after lunch."
I pause, looking at the forest around us.
[Wright] "Though growing food for several nations... that's a lot of work. Could use more hands."
Sylphaeris perks up.
[Sylphaeris] "I can gather my followers. There are some nearby who'd love to help."
She grins.
[Sylphaeris] "They're quite good at making things grow."
[Wright] "Perfect."
Jyne smiles.
[Jyne] "Then let's begin."
And just like that, the problem's solved over lunch.