The farmlands were probably the most peaceful place Snowflake had ever been in this town but it had been apparent to her from the beginning that Marigold itself was a serene and a beautiful town. The Blue Pegasus mage seemed to be enjoying the town more than she had expected – she loved how everything was at peace and how amiable the citizens were. The crops that grew around her swayed onto each side back and forth as if they were a group of children as a cool breeze blew through the lands of Marigold. Despite the changing seasons and the approaching summer, the weather was still to her liking – not to warm or too cold.  

The youth closed her eyes and unveiled the cloth that was wrapped around her eyes before extending her arms to the side and threw herself on the ground without any care in the world. Her back laid flat against the ground albeit, the weight of the crops prevented her body from getting harmed. Thick, dark eyelashes fluttered open and was immediately greeted by the empyreans above as she watched the clouds raced through the vast empty space. The skies were so blue, almost like the colour of her eyes which was the brightest part of her body, apart from her hair. As rare as it could be seen to anyone else, a small smile curved upon the line of her lips, content with the beautiful sight she had been granted with.

There was barely anyone within the fields and even if there was someone, it would be impossible to find the said person due to the crops blocking their vision. Farmlands were characteristically empty and silent and it was not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it was the sort of silence that she preferred and how her body came to crave tranquillity somehow. Her arms were still stretched wide beside her and strands of silver hair were sprawled messily on the ground, attracting dust and sand on her hair. An unexpected yawn escaped her lips and the girl would soon find herself beginning to feel drowsy and the harsh gales that blew across the land easily put her to sleep like how a mother would read bed-time stories to their child.

The seconds passed by, each separated by an eternity and before she knew, she had already fallen into a dark abyss of sleep. The sounds within the surroundings were completely blocked until there was nothing but silence around her. Hours later, she was forced awake by the sound of footsteps approaching towards her. Now, who in the world would dare to disturb a young lady’s precious sleep? The android sprung to sit on her hips and glanced around frantically as if she was expecting for something to leap onto her through the crops, until her eyes fell upon the sight of a rather old man staring at her in awe with confusion written on the features of his face. Stunned by the sudden entrance, the girl was unsure as to how she should react to the elderly.

Those were the first words that came to her mind upon seeing the old man staring at her, as if he was questioning her why she was here. The man appeared to be in his late fifties however, he seemed able enough to be working in the farmlands by himself. Her eyes grazed over the features of his figure and somehow, she was reminded of a pear by his appearance – short and round. A grin made its way onto her lips as the elderly observed her from head to toe.

”Actually, yes. You’d be a big help.”

Her head was tilted to the side at a small angle in confusion and wondered about the meaning behind his statement. The old man requested her to follow his lead and so she did, curious as to what he might be asking her to do. They would soon reach a field where numerous cabbages grow as well as other vegetables such as carrots and lettuce. Beyond the fields were a variety of other crops that were outstretched over the entire farmlands.

”I’m Jim. I know it’s quite sudden but I was wondering if you could help me with crating these cabbages and deliver them to the cabbage vendor.”

The youth did not hesitate to offer her help for the Farmer Jim, who ended up flashing her a big smile and the corner of his eyes would crinkle. The man was old after all and it would be rude to deny the offer when she had nothing else to do for the rest of the day, apart from taking a nap in the fields. The most productive thing she could do for the day was to help this old man to crate his cabbages. Farmer Jim would begin to tell the instructions to crate the cabbages but the first thing that they needed to do was to collect the cabbages from the fields.

Cabbages were lined up in many rows over the entire field, waiting to be harvested. According to Farmer Jim’s information, cabbages were not supposed to be plucked out right away from the soil but required necessary examination to make sure the cabbages were healthy and big enough to be harvested. Hours later, the two of them completed harvesting the cabbages and next step was to put them in crates before they would be shipped off to the market to be sold. Crating was not as easy as she had expected since they were required to set up the crates themselves.

Gathering the wooden plates, Snowflake would begin to hammer away the wood together while Farmer Jim sawed off the wood after calculating and setting the lengths to his desired measurements. She noticed how Farmer Jim was very able of doing such activities despite his age. Beads of sweat cascaded down her temples and neck while she struggled to hammer the nails together. Her cheeks were flushed from the heat and clothes clung onto her body due to her sweaty back which was resulted from the hard labour. After all the work was done, she rested her hands on her hips and leaned back while she exhaled a lengthy breath. The mage was rewarded afterwards although she had not intended to accept them but since the farmer kept insisting she had no choice but to return home with a bag of jewels in her hands.