I went straight to Caesar and told him everything I had been thinking.
Since he had been the one to bring up the topic first, he welcomed my ideas with enthusiasm.
“I had only considered distributing the crops—I never thought about timing. If we factor that in, the chances of success will be much higher than I expected.”
Even my father looked astonished after hearing my explanation.
“So that’s why the crops were always so fresh… I never realized.”
“If we encourage more farmers to cultivate crops on the mountain slopes and offer them proper compensation, the harvest will increase significantly,” I suggested.
Caesar nodded.
“We’ll have to be careful not to overproduce. If there’s too much supply, the value will drop.”
Then, my father hesitated for a moment before speaking up.
“There is… one more issue.”
“What is it?” Caesar asked.
“The biggest challenge to distributing Summerhill’s crops wasn’t just the small harvest—it was the difficulty of transportation. The region is completely surrounded by mountains…”
“Ah…”
I immediately understood his concern.
While Summerhill wasn’t far from the capital in terms of distance, the terrain was difficult. Transporting large amounts of crops would be challenging.
Of course, we could use magical transport devices, but the cost would be outrageous.
I fell into deep thought.
Then, suddenly, a new idea struck me.
“What if we changed our trade route?”
“Changed it?”
“The problem is getting the crops from Summerhill to the capital, right? But what if we sent them in the opposite direction instead?”
“The opposite direction?”
My father frowned in confusion.
“Evelyn, the terrain is more manageable that way, but if we go west… Wait, you don’t mean—”
I nodded.
“We could export them to another empire instead.”
Caesar’s eyes widened.
“You mean Wihafen?”
“Exactly.”
The Wihafen Empire bordered our empire to the west—meaning it was right next to Summerhill.
Unlike our empire, which had vast plains, Wihafen had coastlines and open seas.
This made them one of our biggest trade partners, as we imported seafood and exported land-based resources.
Caesar thought for a moment before nodding.
“That makes sense. Trade is already thriving between our empires, so introducing Summerhill’s crops shouldn’t be difficult.”
Even better, the crops grown in Summerhill’s mountains were rare in Wihafen.
We could likely sell them for even higher prices than we would domestically.
However, my father still looked uneasy.
“But agricultural export routes have already been established, haven’t they?”
“That’s true…”
Trade between empires was heavily regulated.
Export and import agreements were negotiated in advance, and the specific locations for each product were also predetermined.
For example, the empire had already decided which noble’s estate would supply potatoes, and which would supply carrots—each region had its own designated export specialty.
Being chosen as an official export hub was considered a great honor among nobles, as it meant significant profits and recognition for their lands.
Because of that, changing export sources was incredibly difficult.
Even if Caesar wanted to export Summerhill’s crops, he couldn’t just do it freely.
While my father and I pondered this issue, Caesar simply shrugged.
“Summerhill’s crops aren’t ordinary produce. If we market them as premium goods, we can push for a separate export designation.”
“Hmm…”
He had a point.
In my past life, many consumers had been willing to pay extra for organic, high-quality products.
If we branded Summerhill’s crops as exclusive and superior, we could bypass existing trade agreements.
But—
“The nobles won’t stay quiet about this.”
If we introduced higher-quality versions of their own export crops—and sold them at a higher price—they would definitely oppose us.
No matter how much favor our family held with Caesar, we couldn’t just force it through.
Instead…
“What if we controlled the timing of our exports?”
“Timing?”
The biggest advantage Summerhill had was its unique harvest season.
“Even if a noble’s land is the designated exporter for a crop, they can’t harvest it year-round.”
“True. Most crops have limited harvest seasons.”
Magic was used to preserve food, but it wasn’t perfect—fresh crops were always preferable.
And during off-seasons, supply was so low that even the empire itself struggled to secure enough for domestic consumption.
“For example, Summerhill can produce radishes and cabbage in the summer, while other regions can’t. If we export only during that season, the nobles won’t have any reason to object.”
Since they couldn’t export during those months anyway, our crops wouldn’t compete with theirs.
My father nodded.
“That makes sense. If we can consistently provide high-quality produce year-round, Wihafen’s reliance on our empire will increase as well.”
“And overall demand might even grow.”
But Caesar seemed unimpressed.
“Why go out of our way to accommodate the nobles?”**
I simply smiled at him in response.
It wasn’t about accommodating them.
It was about avoiding unnecessary obstacles.
Caesar had strengthened imperial power significantly since taking the throne.
With Duke Spiegel’s downfall, many aristocrats from the noble faction had been forced to step back.
But that didn’t mean they had given up.
‘I don’t want to give them any excuses to cause trouble.’
They were just waiting for a chance to undermine Caesar.
If we provoked them directly, they would do everything they could to fight back.
And beyond the noble faction, there were neutral nobles who weren’t actively opposing Caesar—but weren’t fully loyal to him either.
I didn’t want to alienate them.
Caesar sighed but eventually relented.
“Fine. We’ll negotiate it that way. Wihafen has been requesting more agricultural imports anyway, so that part shouldn’t be an issue.”
“The real challenge will be getting the nobles to agree.”
“That, too.”
Caesar then turned to my father.
“Send me a detailed list of all the crops that can be exported from Summerhill. We need to decide which ones to prioritize.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare it as soon as possible. Still… trade, huh…”
My father muttered, looking conflicted.
He had never been an ambitious man.
Despite his talent, he had willingly chosen a quiet life in Summerhill rather than competing for status in the capital.
And now, on top of the lottery business, this was another major responsibility…
After a moment of contemplation, I suddenly spoke up.
“Father, if it’s alright with you… could I take charge of this project?”
“What?”
Both my father and Caesar looked surprised.
“You’re already busy with your work at the palace,” my father pointed out.
“I’ll be fine! It’s not like I have to run around personally, and besides…”
I glanced at Caesar with a playful smirk.
“His Majesty will make sure my schedule stays manageable, won’t he?”
Caesar chuckled.
“That, I can do.”
My father hesitated.
But in the end, he nodded.
“Alright. I’ll leave it to you, Evelyn.”
“Of course! You can count on me!”
****
Of all the crops grown in Summerhill, radishes and cabbage were selected as the official export items.
They were particularly flavorful, and more importantly, harvestable in summer, making them highly competitive.
Another fortunate factor was that the noble who currently controlled radish and cabbage exports was Baron Gobet.
He was a neutral noble, someone who had never taken a strong political stance.
That meant he was more likely to be persuaded by our offer—since Summerhill’s exports would be limited to the summer season, they wouldn’t threaten his primary trade.
Caesar immediately reached out to Wihafen.
As expected, Wihafen was enthusiastic about the summer exports.
Negotiations went smoothly, and we secured favorable terms in our trade agreement.
The next step was convincing the nobles.
A formal meeting was arranged in the imperial palace’s grand conference room, bringing together all the nobles who controlled agricultural export territories.
Since the meeting concerned Summerhill’s new export status, I was invited as a representative of my region.
But the moment I entered the room and scanned the attendees—
I had a bad feeling.
Most of the nobles already seated at the table were members of the aristocratic faction.
‘This isn’t going to be easy…’
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