Chapter 41

After finishing my usual morning routine, it's time for breakfast.

"Today we have vegetable soup, salad, mashed potatoes, and stir-fried meat and vegetables."

"Wow!"

Since the crops that Claire brought have started to yield, the variety of dishes has increased dramatically, making our meals much richer lately.

I got a bit too enthusiastic and ended up preparing a lot of dishes even for breakfast.

But, there's no helping it. With so many crops available now.

The ingredients from the forest and other crops are delicious, but we were getting a bit monotonous with the same kinds of dishes.

"Thanks to the crops Claire brought, we have more variety in our meals."

"I just brought them. The fact that they grew here is all thanks to you, Hashira-sama."

Still, Claire's efforts in bringing the crops, even though it took time at first, have been significant.

I need to be properly grateful for that.

"Let's eat, shall we?"

Once the food is properly served to everyone, the meal begins at my signal.

It's not that they have to wait for my signal, but somehow that rule has been established.

Well, since we're all together, it would be a bit lonely to eat separately, so I'm basically okay with it.

Even though I'm not really in a position of authority, it feels a bit embarrassing to be treated like I am.

I take a sip of the steaming vegetable soup.

The cabbage, carrots, onions, and potatoes are cut into appropriate sizes and have been simmered to bring out their flavors in the soup.

"Yep, it's delicious."

"It's great to have so many vegetables in the soup."

The balance of salt and pepper is perfect, and the flavors are well-balanced.

The one who's particularly happy about the increase in vegetables is Leidia.

This is all thanks to Claire. Without the seasonings, the taste might have been a bit lacking.

But now we have plenty of salt and pepper. With the trade with the Demon King, we can continue to get them regularly. Long live trade.

After drinking the vegetable soup, I reach for the stir-fried meat and vegetables.

"Hmm? The vegetables in this dish are really uneven, aren't they?"

The sizes of the cabbage, carrots, and bell peppers are all different.

The cabbage pieces seem too big to eat in one bite.

"No, no, that's not true! These are just the right size for one bite!"

When I voice my doubt, Carmilla loudly insists and demonstrates by putting a large piece of cabbage in her mouth.

I immediately know who made this dish.

"See, I told you they were big."

"Miss, next time, please cut them a bit smaller."

"Ugh..."

It seems that Leidia and Claire had already scolded her before this.

I was making the mashed potatoes alone and didn't notice.

Well, the taste is fine, but it's a bit hard to eat, so I hope you can cut them a bit smaller next time.

"How's the mashed potatoes I made?"

While it's a bit lacking without butter and milk, I'm proud of the perfect balance of salt and pepper.

"Yes, it's delicious. But, I prefer a bit more texture."

"I like it a bit more mashed."

It's impossible to cater to everyone's preferences individually.

After breakfast, everyone gets to work in the fields.

As usual, I walk around the fields, applying growth enhancers. I decide whether to give the magic stone fertilizer based on the conditions of the crops.

It seems that the effectiveness of the fertilizer varies slightly depending on the crop, so I'm keeping records on a wooden board.

I need to grow and harvest the crops multiple times to gather enough data, so it's a time-consuming and patient task.

While taking notes on the crops, I see the Insect Killer catch and swallow a bug with its vine, as fast as a frog or chameleon's tongue.

It's very helpful that it eats the bugs that come near the fields.

As a thank you, I give it a small magic stone, which it happily eats.

When I give the Insect Killer a magic stone, the Killer Plant stretches out its vine and pokes my shoulder.

I thought it was asking for food, but it seems it caught prey from the forest.

Next to the Killer Plant is a pig, bound by its vines.

It's breathing heavily and making sounds, but it can't move at all.

The Killer Plant offers me the pig, wrapped up tightly.

"We have plenty of meat now, so it's okay for you to eat it, Killer Plant."

When we don't have enough meat and can't go hunting, we sometimes take the meat from the prey the Killer Plant catches.

But now we have plenty of meat, so it's not necessary.

I give the Killer Plant growth enhancers and water for Leidia, but it seems to love this kind of prey as well. I don't want to take it away unless necessary.

Saying that, the Killer Plant opens its large mouth and swallows the pig whole.

The sound of crunching echoes, but I don't mind.

They ensure the safety of the fields every day.

◆

Recently, I've been so focused on growing crops that I haven't explored the forest much.

With the new crops settling in, I think it's time to explore again.

It's important to establish a solid foundation by growing crops, but there are still many mysterious ingredients in the forest.

There might be something like a chewy fruit that could serve as a staple food. It's worth exploring.

When I ask Rento, who was guarding the perimeter of the fields, he nods and follows me.

I was thinking of bringing one more person, and Leidia, who was working in the fields, looked at me with an expectant gaze.

"Leidia, I'm going to explore the forest. Do you want to come along?"

"I'll go!"

When I ask, Leidia eagerly agrees.

She quickly returns to the house and comes back with her exploration gear.

Leidia, who came here because she was curious about the forest, loves this kind of exploration.

But, she doesn't have the skills to explore alone, so she always wants to come with me or Rento.

"Can Carmilla and Claire continue to take care of the fields?"

"Sure, no problem."

I thought Carmilla would be the first to volunteer, but surprisingly, she doesn't.

Once she gets focused on field work, she seems to want to immerse herself in it.

She's currently engrossed in removing weeds from the small spaces.

"Leidia, be careful."

"Okay."

"… Claire, what about my safety?"

It's not just Leidia going; I'm going too, so I think she can worry about me as well.

"I don't think you need to worry about Hashira-sama."

"That's harsh."

"Just kidding. Please be careful, Hashira-sama."

When I say that, Claire smiles wryly and waves.

It would be nice if she saw us off.

With Claire's farewell, we start walking away from the house.

"Which way are we going today?"

"Let's go east of the house. We've never been that way before."

We've explored the north, south, and west, but we've never been to the east.

"It's a new place. I'm excited."

"I hope we find some good ingredients."

Ideally, we'd find something like a chewy fruit that we can grow in the fields.

Leidia, Rento, and I head east together.

The eastern part of the forest is generally humid, and mushrooms are growing everywhere.

It seems this area is rich in mushrooms.

Approaching a nearby mushroom, I see a unique orange-colored one.

"What is this mushroom?"

On closer inspection, the cap looks like a human face and is quite grotesque.

Can such a mushroom really be edible?

"Even you don't know about mushrooms, Hashira?"

"I'm not an expert in this area."

Unfortunately, the knowledge from Elphira's blessing doesn't include mushrooms.

Since she's the goddess of fertility and plants, maybe mushrooms, which are fungi, are outside her domain? It's unclear whether mushrooms are classified as plants or animals.

If I try to cultivate it, it might be recognized as one of my crops, and I might learn more, but at this stage, I don't know if any of these mushrooms are edible.

"I can identify some, but I have no idea about these unique ones that only grow here."

So, Leidia also doesn't know if the mushroom in front of us is edible.

"Let's ask Rento."

"Sure."

Rento, being a Gaia Note spirit, might have knowledge about mushrooms.

To be safe, I put on gloves and pick one.

"Rento, is this mushroom edible?"

When I show him the grotesque mushroom, Rento nods.

"Really? This mushroom is edible?"

"It looks so grotesque and poisonous..."

Hmm. I trust Rento, but I don't really want to eat this mushroom.

"Maybe Carmilla or Claire know, so let's take a little bit back just in case."

It's important to share the knowledge. However, since Rento can't speak, he can't provide detailed cooking instructions.

If the two of them also don't know, we won't eat it this time. It might need a specific process to neutralize any toxins.

"Right. Let's also pick some safe, edible mushrooms."

There are other safe, edible mushrooms, so we don't need to take unnecessary risks.

The rule when picking mushrooms is not to pick anything you don't know.

I decide to only pick the mushrooms that Leidia indicates as I walk along the path.