Vol. 1 Chapter 1.6 – Early June, 1565

The seasons gradually shifted from spring toward the rainy season.

By then, the sweet potato seedlings had already been planted and the remaining work mainly consisted of weeding.

The sweet potatoes, pumpkins and tomatoes they were currently cultivating could obtain sufficient water from rainfall.

Since there was no need to water them manually, all they had to do was remove the weeds.

As intertillage and earthing up only needed to be performed about three times before harvest, there was no need to carry them out frequently.

The sugarcane was also an improved variety, so pest control was hardly necessary.

Sweet corn was the only crop that required large amounts of water, but they had managed to secure a sufficient supply from rainfall and the river.

At present, there was very little major work left to do in the fields.

Their main tasks had shifted to constructing waterwheels to automate agricultural work and implementing measures against wild animals.

However, besides traps, they had acquired a secret weapon for dealing with the deer.

“Whoa…You actually managed to tame a wolf…That’s our village chief for you!”

“Yeah! You’re seriously amazing, Village Chief!”

“A-Ahaha… Th-Thank you.”

Overwhelmed by the villagers’ admiring gazes, Shizuko gave a wry smile.

When she glanced beside her, she saw a wolf with sharp, dignified features—the very reason she had earned the villagers’ respect.

The wolf that had been lured over by venison that day had initially seemed likely to leave after finishing its meal.

Contrary to Shizuko’s expectations, however, the wolf showed no intention of leaving her side.

Wolves are the ancestors of dogs, a view on which experts generally agree.

In other words, most canine behavioural traits have been inherited from wolves.

Thus, the wolf had probably come to regard Shizuko as its pack leader and decided to become a member of her pack.

“Well, I guess that’s fine.”

Having owned a dog before, and believing there was no need to think too deeply about the matter, Shizuko took it all in stride.

More importantly, a renewed survey of the surrounding mountains had revealed the possibility that there were nearly 1,000 deer in the area, by her estimation.

To her, this was a far more pressing concern.

The reason the deer population had increased so dramatically was simple.

The mountains had been partially cleared, allowing sunlight to reach the forest floor.

Thanks to this, the mountains had transformed into an environment where undergrowth flourished.

Furthermore, there were no carnivorous predators, such as wolves, to prey on them.

With farmland nearby and an abundance of food, it was practically the ideal environment for the deer population to explode.

Moreover, deer were highly prolific and were said to double their population in approximately four years.

They were also polygynous, meaning that even if the number of males decreased, their reproductive capacity would remain unaffected.

‘Even in modern times, the increase in deer populations is attributed to factors such as the extinction of their natural predator, the Japanese wolf, the depopulation of mountainous and hilly regions, the increase in abandoned farmland and reduced winter snowfall due to global warming’

Although Shizuko thought this, the circumstances behind the population increase were somewhat different from those of the modern era.

In her original era, deer populations were increasing primarily in mountainous and hilly regions.

These regions, where flat arable land was scarce and agricultural conditions were unfavourable, already suffered from poor crop productivity.

On top of that, since they were rural mountain communities with low population densities, there was no shortage of farmland left abandoned.

There were no natural predators and only a handful of people engaged in culling them.

Modern-day mountainous and hilly regions could therefore be described as the perfect environment for deer to multiply.

Nevertheless, whether in modern times or during the Sengoku period, deer remained troublesome pests.

Once an environment favourable to their proliferation had been established, reversing those conditions would require an extraordinary amount of labour.

Even if they attempted to plant trees, the deer might devour the young shoots before they had a chance to grow.

Considering the damage deer inflicted upon vegetation, a certain amount of population culling was necessary.

However, she had absolutely no way of securing the manpower required for such a task.

Since it was a small village, there were only about twenty people capable of working, ten of whom were constantly occupied with tending the fields.

Another five were engaged in blacksmithing and wood processing, while the remaining five specialised in producing compost.

In other words, the village had virtually no spare manpower to devote to hunting deer on a regular basis.

“Hmm, in that case…If I want to prevent their numbers from increasing for the time being…I suppose that’s the way to go.”

Resting a hand against her chin, Shizuko considered various possibilities but ultimately, there was only one practical solution.

It involved concentrating their efforts on targeting fawns and juveniles to prevent the population from increasing.

Furthermore, they would have to prioritise culling females over males.

“Come to think of it, Wittmann needs to establish a pack as soon as possible… Have you ever seen a female wolf around?”

She crouched down in front of the wolf beside her, now formally named Wittmann.

Naturally, Shizuko herself had given him the name, though she couldn’t help questioning why on earth she had chosen a German name.

As she stroked Wittmann’s head, she posed her question.

Of course, there was no way she could expect a proper answer.

Wittmann merely wore a blissful expression as she petted him.

“Well, I suppose you haven’t. At first, I thought you were a Japanese wolf, but you’re actually a gray wolf… Finding yourself a wife isn’t going to be easy, huh?”

She took another careful look at Wittmann’s appearance.

Gone was the emaciated figure he had initially possessed. His head-and-body length now approached 140 centimetres, and his weight exceeded 50 kilograms.

With a tail measuring nearly 40 centimetres, he had regained the appearance of a magnificent wolf boasting an imposing physique.

Since the Japanese wolf was estimated to have measured only slightly over one metre in body length, it seemed unlikely that one could grow to nearly 140 centimetres.

That being the case, someone must have brought a gray wolf over to Japan from the continent.

‘It’s not like there were any laws regulating animal imports during the Sengoku period. Someone probably just brought one over as they pleased.’

Someone from Europe or China must have brought a gray wolf to Japan as a tribute.

They had probably then presented it to the Shogun, a prominent local lord or perhaps a wealthy merchant in Sakai.

However, the wolf must have seized an opportunity to escape and fled straight into the mountains.

Shizuko suspected that this was how Wittmann had ended up there.

“Maybe there are other gray wolves still alive somewhere. Who knows? They might even be hunting deer around here.”

Gray wolves live in packs of seven to thirteen individuals, centred around one male and one female.

A group of wolves is known as a pack. Their social structure follows a strict hierarchy, with every individual assigned a particular rank.

The highest-ranking male is called the alpha male, while the highest-ranking female is known as the alpha female.

Generally, the alpha male and alpha female form a mating pair, while the other females do not give birth.

Although rare exceptions exist, this is essentially how wolf social behaviour works.

“Well, I guess things will work themselves out.”

After all, overthinking the matter wasn’t going to solve anything.

Having reached that conclusion, Shizuko left the agricultural work to the villagers and headed into the mountains with Wittmann.

Even if she intended to target young deer, encountering them would not be so easy.

After all, they were wild animals and were extremely wary of their surroundings.

Even if she was fortunate enough to encounter one, merely being upwind of it would allow the deer to detect her scent and flee.

Shizuko lacked the skills of an experienced hunter, such as positioning herself downwind and spotting her prey before it noticed her.

Then what exactly had she gone into the mountains to do?

“Hmm, I suppose this area would make a good feeding spot.”

Her objective was to locate the deer’s feeding grounds.

It wasn’t as though the entire mountain provided an abundance of food for the deer.

Rather, patches of land where the undergrowth grew thickly enough to serve as food were scattered throughout the mountains.

In that case, there was a very high chance that the deer would visit these areas rich in undergrowth whenever they needed to feed.

“I can set up the ropes here this time. Wittmann, stay still for a moment, okay?”

Crouching beside Wittmann, Shizuko began untying the ropes wrapped around his abdomen.

The ropes had not been wrapped around him to restrain the wolf, but for an entirely different purpose.

Once she undid the knots, the ropes came off easily, eventually separating into four long lengths.

She tied one end of a rope around a suitably sturdy tree and secured the other end to a nearby tree.

“Well, it’s better than nothing. Ropes soaked in the scent of a natural predator.”

After finishing tying all the ropes, Shizuko murmured with an expression of satisfaction.

Her plan was to place the scent of a carnivorous predator at locations where the deer gathered to feed.

The deer would likely fear the scent and avoid approaching those feeding grounds.

However, Shizuko suspected that the ropes would not be particularly effective.

“Once they realise there’s nothing actually here, I’m sure they’ll come into the feeding grounds anyway.”

If the deer discovered that the scent was present but the predator itself was nowhere to be found, they would eventually enter the feeding grounds.

In other words, it was a temporary deterrent whose effectiveness would inevitably wear off.

“Well then, shall we head back?”

There was no point worrying about what might happen later.

As though trying to drive unnecessary thoughts from her mind, Shizuko deliberately raised her voice.

During the rainy season, once the rain began falling heavily, almost all outdoor work would have to be suspended.

In other words, with nothing left to do, the villagers, including Shizuko, would find themselves with plenty of free time.

Although there were still a few minor tasks to attend to, Shizuko decided to take the opportunity to relax completely.

In short, she was lazing around.

However, Shizuko’s leisurely idleness came to an end shortly after noon.

“Forgive me for visiting without prior notice.”

That was because Mori Yoshinari had arrived at Shizuko’s house shortly after midday.

At the time, Shizuko had been munching on dried venison while drinking tea brewed from dokudami (fish mint).

Thinking about it calmly, her appearance and behaviour were exceedingly discourteous but Mori Yoshinari did not seem particularly bothered.

“Ah, no…I apologise for presenting such an unseemly sight.”

Her cheeks reddening with embarrassment, Shizuko cleared her throat once to dispel the awkward atmosphere.

“By the way, what brings you here today?”

“Hmm. First, there is the matter of that hot spring you constructed, Shizuko-dono.”

“Yes? Um… What about the hot spring?”

“His Lordship has taken quite a liking to it. He wishes to undertake a major renovation of the hot spring. Accordingly, he would like you, Shizuko-dono, to personally oversee the project.”

Upon hearing those words, Shizuko nearly spat out the dokudami tea still in her mouth.

Fortunately, she managed to hold it back and swallow. Nevertheless, some of it apparently went down the wrong way, causing her to cough slightly.

“Keh, keh…Um, when you say a major renovation of that hot spring, what exactly does His Lordship intend to do?”

“His Lordship naturally wishes to use it himself, but he is also considering granting access to it as a reward. That does not mean he intends to take it away from you, Shizuko-dono. Essentially, he wishes to have the hot spring divided into separate bathing areas: one for those granted access as a reward and another for your everyday use.”

“I see… Well, if that’s the case, I suppose it’s fine. But that would require quite an extensive renovation. We’d have to divide the hot spring into four sections.”

“His Lordship wishes you to take command of the project, including overseeing such arrangements. Naturally, he has also stated that you shall receive a reward upon its successful completion.”

Although Mori Yoshinari said this, Shizuko ultimately had only one choice.

However, accepting the task was easier said than done. After all, she would have to increase the volume of hot spring water available.

The hot spring’s system was relatively simple. Water from the hot spring source merely passed through a rudimentary filter to remove impurities.

Once filtered, the hot water was transported to the bathing area through wooden pipes.

Judging by the fact that the hot spring showed no signs of running dry despite flowing continuously, twenty-four hours a day, Shizuko suspected that an enormous quantity of groundwater was being heated by some form of thermal energy.

That was her theory, at least. However, she had absolutely no means of verifying it.

“Understood. I shall accept the task.”

“I see. You have my gratitude.”

With those words, Mori Yoshinari bowed his head slightly. Shizuko thought that he was as humble as ever.

“Also, regarding those materials you requested, I somehow managed to gather them all.”

“Ah, really? That’s wonderful news.”

“However, what in the world do you intend to use such things for?”

“Well, various things…Since it’ll take at least three years before I can produce any results, I can’t tell you the details just yet.”

“Very well. But allow me to ask you just one thing. Will it be of benefit to His Lordship?”

Shizuko nodded without the slightest hesitation.

If everything went well, it would be something that not only Oda Nobunaga but virtually every provincial lord throughout the country would eagerly desire.

Furthermore, it was something generally believed to be unobtainable in Japan.

‘Information that wouldn’t amount to much in modern times would be treated as a closely guarded secret in this era. I can’t afford to reveal it so easily. The materials I requested will only allow me to produce around thirty kilograms of it… But even that should be more than enough.’

“Very well. In that case, I shall place my trust in you, Shizuko-dono.”

“Thank you very much.”

At Mori Yoshinari’s words, Shizuko bowed her head deeply.

[Dried venison is a lean, preserved deer meat prepared either as quick-drying jerky, air-cured whole muscle (like bresaola) or slow-smoked chipped dried beef]