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Transfer the slightly sweet, transparent sap collected in a large barrel into a ceramic pot and simmer it slowly.

According to memories from my past life, it took roughly 40 liters of sap to make 1 liter of maple syrup by simmering it down. So, by simple calculation… just simmer it down to one-fortieth of its original volume.

Considering that 39 parts of water would evaporate out of 40, this simmering process must always be done outdoors. You don’t want to do it inside, otherwise, your entire house would become sticky from the sugary vapor. Once the liquid turns an amber color, kill the heat, filter the hot syrup through a towel or cloth, let it cool, and there you have it, maple syrup—

“So sweet!”
“I didn’t think you could get a sweetener this easily!”
“This is good stuff.”
“But the injured maple trees need to be treated.”
“Well, she said the harvest period is only twice a year, so that’s not a problem for us.”
“If anything, it’s very likely that those beans would damage entire forests if they knew about this. We should keep them from learning this.”
“You do realize it’s a human who taught us about this, right?”

That remark seemed to slap them in the face with reality, as the elves all turned to us who were tasting the end product as well.

On the other hand, Eren and I were consoling Lana who was tearing up after she scooped the boiled sap—Maple Syrup with her finger and tasted it.

“…sweet. It’s a really sweet liquid. It’s the one my sister gave to me…”

Lana began to cry at that. Eren and I patted her on the head. Then, from beside us, Uranus spoke up a bit hesitantly.

“Jill, do you really want our village to monopolize the production of this ‘maple syrup’?”
“Yes. It was just a pastime activity for me, and if I were to disclose the recipe and announce that it is an industry from the northern region… people would just accept it as a product from the north, regardless if it was produced by humans or elves. Besides, I’m more comfortable leaving it to you, since elves are far more knowledgeable about plants than humans.”
“Umu. Leave mochi making to the mochi maker, and leave the sea to the fisherman. It is best to leave it to the specialist, indeed.”

With Bartholomew’s agreement, and likely because the elves’ pride and self-esteem as ‘plant specialists’ were tickled, the elves all around us confidently chimed in, saying, “Of course. We will make even more delicious maple syrup from now on,” as they wholeheartedly endorsed the idea.

Pryui watched her brothers and sisters’ reactions with a surprised… but delighted expression. Meanwhile, Ashimi wore a complex expression, seeming bitter and resentful as he sampled the maple syrup placed on a small dish.

“Wine and maple syrup, that will be sufficient for our village’s industry. The maple syrup production method is especially valuable. Considering she is willing to provide this for free, I believe we owe her ample compensation,” said Uranus with a warm smile. The people of the village nodded in agreement, resigned to the situation. However, Ashimi, true to his nature, opposed the idea without consideration of the atmosphere.

“Hold on! Don’t trust a damned bean, they’ll just betray us! Mark my words! They’re crude, barbaric, and vile! Don’t be fooled! —You, what’s your goal?!”

“Peace, dreams, hope, friendship, romance, and maybe some tasty snacks along the way.” Getting tired of that same question time and time again, I answered him with whatever I had in mind. “Furthermore, I’m aiming to significantly reduce the size and the population of the northern pioneer village, even considering emptying it, to put an effort into restoring the forest through reforestation. I am also here to represent my mother, in case you wish to see the heads of those responsible lined up, then I, along with my mother the Baroness, are ready to present ours.”

Eren and Lana instantly lost all color the moment they heard my words. They clung to me, urging me to change my mind.

“Wh-, what are you saying, Lady Jill?! The ones at fault are the villagers and their idiot chief!”
“You’re not at fault Lady Jill! Don’t die!”

So they said, but if you look at where the responsibility lies, I am the person currently in charge, and I am fully prepared to accept any demands from the elves.

“—ahem. Forgive me for putting a damper on your heartfelt resolution,” Uranus shrugged lightly, “but there have been no lives lost, and we’re not interested in anything bloody. All we want is for the reckless logging to stop. There is also no need to create artificial forests with reforestation. We will help with the effort, yes, but, well… in around 200 to 300 years, the forest will return to its normal shape anyway.”

When my determination was easily turned down by Uranus, to be honest, it felt pretty anticlimactic. Not to mention, their ability to easily see the challenges of reforestation, particularly the difficulty in restoring the underlying natural vegetation, was truly remarkable. Just as one would expect from the Fairy King.

In practice, when it comes to reforestation, there are different approaches: “simply reviving greenery,” “increasing useful tree species that have been cut down,” and “reviving a diverse forest ecosystem.” The most challenging of these is the last one, “reviving a diverse forest ecosystem.”

If the goal is to “simply revive greenery,” then the approach currently being used in the northern settlement is effective. You can just leave the cleared area untouched, and in 20-30 years, it will be difficult for the average person to distinguish it from the original forest. However, in such places, pioneer species that prefer bright sunlight tend to grow first. These species grow quickly but often don’t become large trees, resulting in a forest that doesn’t age properly.

On the other hand, if the aim is to restore greenery as a forest resource — initially, I considered promoting this method due to its value as timber — reforestation is efficient and effective. However, it typically leads to a uniform plantation of similar species, creating a homogeneous artificial forest.

Indeed, I was quite amazed by how easily and implicitly Uranus pointed out these issues. Counting centuries as if it were nothing when considering the necessary time for forest regeneration really highlights the difference in timescales between elves and humans.

“H-, however, we don’t know what these beans are up to beyond our sight…”

Ashimi continued to voice his concerns, clearly just being obstinate. Uranus, however, remained calm and collected, listening with a smile. After considering his words, Uranus clapped their hands, a look of satisfaction on their face, and simply stated, “I see.”