Chapter 24

After getting out of the pool, I collected the dried fish I had left out to dry. I felt a bit more relaxed after enjoying a slightly elegant atmosphere.

For dinner, I thought I’d try the dried fish and maybe have a premium beer. Oh, and I also planned to have some coffee. I’m getting excited.

……No good. I’m completely feeling too relaxed. The scorching land of death. Building the pool wasn’t a mistake, but it’s wrong to let my guard down.

I’m still living like a fish, and my magic power hasn’t even reached C rank yet. It’s not the time to be talking about having a beer and raising my spirits. I need to grasp the situation firmly.

At this rate, when will my magic power reach B rank? Hmm. If I can raise my level even a little, I’ll dive into the nests of zombies and skeletons. They said there are stronger versions of zombies and skeletons, so my level will probably go up.

I put some wood into the stove and lit a fire. I placed a shovel on top as a makeshift frying pan and divided the dried fish that had been soaked in seawater into three groups: ten minutes, thirty minutes, and one hour.

If the dried fish turns out well, it will add a bit of variety to our meals, even if it’s a small difference. If I can gather more driftwood, I might even try making smoked fish. I’ll improve my life bit by bit, starting with small things.

Belle and Rain said they would eat the dried fish too, but I asked them to wait until I finished the taste test.

I placed the grilled dried fish on a plate and tasted each one carefully. I tried the one soaked for ten minutes. …I can faintly feel a bit of saltiness. The salt didn’t really take. It’s good it didn’t go bad.

The one soaked for thirty minutes… Compared to the previous one, the flavor is still light, but the flesh is firmer and it feels more like dried fish.

The one soaked for one hour… It’s less salty than the reduced-salt version, but the umami is concentrated due to drying, and the light flavor isn’t bad. It would be nicer if the flavor were a bit stronger.

In the future, I’ll increase the salt concentration of the seawater or extend the soaking time to about an hour and a half. For the next batch, I’ll try extending the soaking time.

“Yeah. Belle, Rain. Try the one soaked for one hour. It’s delicious.”

“Yay!”

“Quack!”

Belle and Rain said it was delicious. Sylph and Dine said they don’t need fish for a while. I’ve started to envy them for being able to go without food.

After dinner, to avoid becoming complacent, I postponed the coffee I had planned to have. I’ll channel this sadness into leveling up.

“Sylph, I’ve made most of the things I can. I want to try extending the time for the nighttime level-up sessions as you mentioned before.”

“I don’t mind. How long do you plan to push yourself?”

Hmm. There’s really nothing to do during the day until the fields are ready. I’ll just avoid the heat in the pool, so I’ll focus on leveling up.

“I’ll go level up after dinner and continue until dawn. I’ll wake up in the afternoon, which will change my daily routine, but is everyone okay with that?”

“We’re spirits, so it’s no problem for us. But is Yuta okay? It could be dangerous if you get sick.”

“I’ll stop if it gets too much, but since I’m just shifting my active hours, my sleep time won’t change, so I think it will be fine.”

“Alright. But don’t overdo it.”

“Yeah. To survive, I need to level up, but it would be meaningless to die while leveling up. I’ll be very careful.”

＊＊＊

From then on, I started a life of sleeping in the morning and waking up in the afternoon. I felt hesitant about making Belle and Rain follow such an irregular schedule, but Sylph and Dine assured me that it wasn’t a problem for spirits, so I decided to go with it.

But working with young spirit girls and a dolphin spirit in the middle of the night might look like child abuse to outsiders.

I leveled up from dinner until dawn, then came back to rest. When I woke up in the afternoon, I checked the fields, cooled off in the pool, or created something I had in mind.

The biggest commotion was caused by a bamboo helicopter. I found a broken bamboo stick while preparing dinner and made and flew one out of boredom during the day. It drew the attention of all the spirits. It was quite a scene.

“Hey, Yuta. What did you just do? You didn’t use magic, right?”

“Huh? Just now? This is an old toy from my hometown. I made it and it worked well. Isn’t it fun?”

“A toy?”

Why are you so surprised? But it’s kind of unfair that even when a beautiful person is surprised, they still look beautiful.

“Yuta, do it again. Do it again.”

“Quack quack.”

I showed Belle and Rain when I flew the bamboo helicopter, and they were very excited. They tried to pick up and fly the fallen helicopter, but it didn’t work.

“Alright. Let me show you, ‘Yuta, show me a bit.’”

The bamboo helicopter was snatched from my hand. Even though they can fly, why are they so surprised by a bamboo helicopter? Sylph is examining it from all angles, tilting her head.

“Why does this thing fly? Dine, it definitely flew, right?”

“Yes, it definitely flew. It’s strange. It’s just a board with a stick inserted, so maybe the secret is in the carved part of the board?”

While Sylph is one thing, I was honestly intimidated by Dine’s serious expression as she examined the bamboo helicopter. Sylph and Dine continued their serious discussion.

“Yuta…”

“Ah, Belle. Sorry. They’re having a very serious conversation, so let’s wait a bit, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Quack.”

Belle and Rain looked very disappointed. It hurt to see them like that. I wanted to snatch back the bamboo helicopter and fly it for them, but I held back because of Sylph and Dine’s serious expressions.

After a while, Sylph and Dine turned to me, and I almost wet myself.

“Hey, Yuta. This is a toy, right? Is there anything else, like a flying vehicle for people, that isn’t a toy?”

“Yuta, this is important. Please be honest with me.”

“I’m not sure, but there were propeller planes in the past that might have been inspired by something like this. The principle is similar, right? I don’t remember where the Wright brothers were from, but did they have bamboo helicopters? But what’s the big deal?”

“Yes, they did. Yuta, can you promise not to use this toy outside of here? I don’t want anyone to see it.”

“I don’t mind, but why are you so serious about it?”

“Yuta, this might be a toy, but it definitely flew. If someone gets the idea to develop a flying device from this toy, it could cause a lot of trouble.”

“I don’t think they could make a plane just by seeing it…”

“Yuta, even if that’s true, it’s possible with time. I don’t want even a small possibility. Please.”

“Well, if Sylph says so, I’ll make sure no one sees it. I won’t share the knowledge either. But why would it be bad if people could fly? They can already fly with magic, right?”

“You don’t seem to understand. Without a contract with a high-level wind spirit, it’s impossible to fly freely. And it’s extremely difficult to even make a contract with a high-level spirit. If you can make a contract with a mid-level spirit, the country will bow and welcome you.”

Wait, Sylph and Dine are greater spirits, above high-level spirits. This makes me feel like my TUEEEE might be real.

“I understand that flying is very difficult.”

“I’m glad you understand. Even now, humans are fighting wars everywhere. If they could fly, it would be even more troublesome.”

…Ah, I see. Now I understand why you wanted to keep this a secret, even if it’s just a toy. On Earth, planes were used in wars and caused a lot of damage. I need to be careful with my knowledge cheat to avoid getting in big trouble.

“Yeah, in my world, planes were used in wars. I understand what you mean, so don’t worry. I’ll keep it a secret.”

“Thank you.”

“Yuta, I believed in you.”

I’ll ignore Dine and keep my promise to Sylph. My sleeve was tugged. Looking down, I saw Belle and Rain tugging at my sleeve, tired of waiting.

“You can play with it here, right? Belle, Rain, I’ll fly it now, so watch carefully.”

“Okay.”

“Quack.”

I flew the bamboo helicopter for them and showed them how to do it. Belle and Rain played happily, though it was hard for them because their hands were small.

I didn’t expect the bamboo helicopter to create such a serious atmosphere.

Despite the unexpected events, I spent my days like this and leveled up at night. I continued this life until the day the great earth spirit Nomos arrived.

Name: Yuta Morizono

Level: 25

Health: C

Magic: C

Strength: C

Intelligence: B

Dexterity: A

Luck: B

Unique Skills:

Language Understanding

Pioneer Tools

Skills:

Life Magic

Hammer Technique

My stats have risen overall, and my most important magic power has reached C rank. If I can raise it one more rank, I can make a contract with Sylph. I can make a contract, but my level has stopped rising.

At this level, the monsters wandering the land of death don’t give me any experience. It’s time to seriously consider invading the monster nests… more like it’s almost certain. I’m really blue about it.

I’m happy that my dexterity reached A rank, but I don’t want to believe it’s due to construction and crafting. By the way, I was ecstatic when I learned Hammer Technique, but I was really disappointed when I realized I could use the techniques without the skill.

Well, it’s fine. Right now, welcoming the great earth spirit Nomos is the most important thing. I’ll forget about the sad things.

Thank you for reading.