Chapter 36

"Hey, Yuta. Shouldn't we go on an expedition soon?"

It had been about ten days since they planted the seeds in the forest space. Sylph suggested the next level-up plan.

"I want to level up too, so the expedition is fine, but can we go two to three days later?"

"That's up to you, Yuta, so it's fine, but do you have any plans?"

"Not exactly plans, but if we go on an expedition, we won't be back for a while, right? Dolly said the vegetables should be ready for harvest soon. I want to harvest them at their best and eat them."

"Oh, that's a bit earlier than expected. Is the soil okay?"

"Yeah, Tulu and Tamamo discussed it and managed it well, so there's no problem. They've taken good care of it every day."

"Hehe, that's good. If you're looking forward to the vegetables, you should eat them properly before you leave, or you might be distracted."

That's true. When I was in Japan, I was a meat lover, but being in a place with no greenery, I've started to long for vegetables. I think not craving meat is because I encounter zombies almost every day. Even if I want to eat meat, there's no meat, so in a way, it's a relief.

Well, I do plan to eat a lot of meat when I go to town, but right now, it's all about vegetables. Every morning, we all walk through the fields together, water the plants, and watch Tamamo's magic. The vegetables we've tended with care are now sprouting and shining green.

The first vegetable to sprout has grown day by day and is now lush with green leaves. If Dolly hadn't said to wait a bit longer, I would have already eaten it.

This vegetable looks like komatsuna to me, but it's called oil leaf. I want to make it into a salad, but I don't have any granulated dashi, so I'm already worrying about how to eat it.

"Hey, Yuta. Were you listening to me?"

Sylph's voice brought me back to reality. Sylph looked a bit puffed up... I felt like I saw something good.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Sylph. I was daydreaming about how to eat it."

"Phew. It can't be helped. Well, if you can't concentrate now, let's go on the expedition after you eat the vegetables."

"I'm sorry for being so demanding, but it's for my sake."

"For us spirits, two or three days is nothing. Don't worry and take good care of the vegetables."

"Hehe. I think it's better to leave it to the spirits. They'll grow better without me."

Sadly, I tend to overwater or crush the sprouts, so lately, I've been watching from a distance. Especially in the forest space, there are no ridges, so it's quite dangerous.

Well, it's a bit lonely to not be involved at all, so I'm allowed to water the plants nearby carefully.

"Well, they are spirits, after all. It's natural that they can take better care of the plants than Yuta."

"Hehe, that's true. They are spirits, after all."

Somehow, the atmosphere became awkward. Let's change the topic.

"By the way, if we go on an expedition, we might level up to the required level for the contract in one go. You said the contract with a Great Spirit would be spectacular, but do we need anything special?"

"There are many enemies that give experience points, so the possibility of leveling up is quite high. The contract process is just a bit longer, but there's nothing special you need. The spectacular part... is a surprise."

You're teasing me! It's scary not knowing the scale of the spectacle when you say it's spectacular with a Great Spirit.

"A surprise, huh? I'm curious, but I'm looking forward to it."

"Maybe you shouldn't be so excited. A calm mind is best."

"Is that so? Since a Great Spirit said it's a surprise, I think I should be mentally prepared to avoid making a fool of myself."

"You still don't really understand how great a Great Spirit is, do you, Yuta?"

Indeed, I don't really understand. I haven't seen them use great power, so it's hard to judge.

"I kind of get that they're great, but when I see Dine, I think... something about Great Spirits..."

"What do you mean? Did Dine do something?"

"It's not that she did something, but the other day, I woke up early and went for a morning walk, and I saw Dine floating in the spring, fast asleep. I was quite shocked and thought, 'This is not right.' Spirits can disappear, right?"

"Yes. It's more like they merge with their element... but I'll keep that in mind."

"Did you talk about me?"

Dine suddenly appeared. I don't understand how she can surprise even Sylph, who has excellent detection skills. Can she teleport or something?

"O-oh. We were talking, but did you hear us?"

"I didn't hear you. I just had a feeling."

"S-so, that's it?"

Dine is naturally innocent but has a wild sense... It's hard to describe.

"So, what were you talking about? Something about my good points?"

What's with that confidence? Why is she smirking?

"No, we were talking about Dine's troublesome points."

"Eh? I don't have any. That's rude."

"The other day, Yuta said he saw Dine floating and sleeping in the spring, like a corpse."

"Yuta, it's bad manners to look at a lady's sleeping face."

Why am I being blamed?

"I'm not saying you should sleep dissolved in water, but if you're going to sleep, do it in a less conspicuous place. You know Yuta can see spirits clearly, right?"

"I don't think it's strange for a water spirit to sleep in water. In this case, it's best to pretend we didn't see each other."

"Why are you phrasing it as a question? Dine didn't even realize she was seen. She was just seen unilaterally."

"That's mean."

"Why are you glaring at me? Normally, if someone was floating in water without moving, you'd be worried and check on them."

"There are only spirits here, so Yuta must have known it was a spirit. You were just curious about me."

I do think Dine is beautiful, but she's the type of beauty that leaves a bad impression. I don't have any illusions about Dine anymore.

"Hmph."

"Oh, Sylph. Did Yuta just laugh at me with his nose? Did he laugh at me with his nose?"

"That's right. Yuta, even if Dine is... well, it's not good to laugh at her with your nose."

"Sylph, what do you mean by 'well'? I'm starting to feel sad."

Oops. Did I tease her too much? I'll shift to comforting her with a glance at Sylph.

"Well, it's because Dine is liked that she gets attention and concern. I was very worried when I saw her floating in the water (mainly about her head)."

"That's true. If it were someone you didn't care about, you wouldn't pay attention."

Dine left in a good mood.

"Sylph, I don't really understand what a Great Spirit is."

"That's fine. Just thinking they're pretty amazing is enough."

Sylph sighed. Well, I know Dine is a bit different, so I want you to feel reassured.

"Understood. So... what were we talking about again?"

"Ah, right, the contract. What do you want to do when you go to town?"

I'm thinking about things I can't talk to women about, but I don't think that's what you're asking.

"Well, I don't know what I can do, but I want to eat vegetables first. Next, I want to eat meat. And I want to sleep in a soft bed that's not sand."

"That sounds modest. Is that all?"

"The simplest desire is what I just said. I also want to travel, become an adventurer and excel, or become a merchant and make a fortune. I have various desires."

With Sylph and the others, I think I can do well as an adventurer. Depending on the civilization, becoming a merchant with knowledge as a cheat is also possible.

"Adventurer and merchant. I don't know about your talent for being a merchant, but I think you can excel as an adventurer. Your equipment alone is powerful physically, and you have contracts with multiple spirits, so your magical abilities are also considerable."

The ability to see and talk to spirits is the biggest cheat. The development tools are amazing, but they're a bit mundane...

"Speaking of magic, should I learn spirit magic when I go to town? I'm a bit unsure because I've been doing it my own way so far."

I think it's better to learn special techniques and ways to communicate with spirits. I might get a backlash from being ignorant.

"Hmm, that's a good point. I don't think you need to learn anything, but it's good to confirm the differences between a general spirit mage and yourself. It seems you don't quite get it even when we explain. I think just observing will be enough. Also, spirits use magic, and humans use sorcery, so when you go to town, say 'sorcery.'"

Not getting it? I think it's a great cheat ability, but maybe my understanding is still lacking? And magic and sorcery are distinguished, which is a bit embarrassing.

"Huh? But what about life magic? It's magic, right?"

"You're not wrong. Life magic is a fundamental thing that anyone can learn with magic power, so it's magic. Sorcery uses techniques to use magic power, so it became popular among humans because it can produce high efficiency with little magic power. However, it has much less flexibility."

Sorcerers seem like professional skilled workers who handle magic power. They feel elite.

"There are many distinctions. Well, I'll confirm them when I go to town. The common sense in another world seems quite different."

"That's good. Think about where you want to go. I'll try to guide you to a place that meets your wishes as much as possible."

"Thanks. I'm looking forward to it."

I need to plan carefully to reach my destination. Thank you for reading.