Chapter 46

Hmm, morning? When I woke up on the sandy bed, I felt a slight weight on my chest. That's right. Tamamo had clung to me and wouldn't let go, so we ended up sleeping together.

After saying goodbye to everyone, I took the excited Tamamo to see the fields. Two out of the four types of seeds were almost ready for harvest, which made me happy. They should be ready to harvest by tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to it.

The forest site was also well-managed by Tamamo, and some of the plants had already sprouted. Even though I could eat vegetables in town thanks to the successful contract with Sylph, this is different. I have to enjoy the vegetables that Tamamo worked hard to grow.

Well, Dine sprinkled water around the base every day, thanks to my not-so-subtle acting, and it seems that Dory and Nomos also helped out in the background. But the main effort was definitely from Tamamo. We all praised Tamamo for her hard work.

Reunited after a long time and showered with compliments from everyone, Tamamo was overjoyed and ran around. Eventually, Bell, Rain, Tulu, and Tamamo tangled up like a ball of dough, rolling around.

Hmm? Did Tamamo notice I woke up? She started to stir. It's dark, but I can see her well with my night vision. It's nice to see her rubbing her eyes.

When she was fully awake, Tamamo playfully greeted me, so I carried her out of the bedroom.

"Hey, everyone, good morning."

"Good morning."

"Kyu-"

"Good morning."

We had breakfast with Bell and the others who had already gathered in the kitchen, and the day at the spring house began. Perhaps inspired by Tamamo's clinginess, Bell clung to my head. It's not heavy, so it's fine. Let's go outside. We met the Great Spirits in front of the spring, greeted them, and headed to the fields.

"Rain, please water the plants."

"Kyu-"

The plants in the field were growing tall and green, so Rain normally launched water balls to sprinkle them like rain. Rain, huh. If we develop the land of death, will it eventually rain? Well, that might be too grand a scale for me.

"Good job, Rain. Next is the forest site. Can you handle it?"

"Kyu-kyu-"

Rain, who usually has Bell on her back, was confidently raising her right fin, indicating she could do it. It feels a bit strange without Bell on her back, but she's clinging to my head.

"Wow, you're full of energy. I'll count on you, Rain. Next is Tamamo's turn. Do your best."

"Ku-"

Tamamo, full of energy, flew out of my arm and cast a spell in front of the crops. The lush leaves seemed to stretch a little. She came back looking proud, so I picked her up and petted her while asking Dory.

"Dory, those vegetables will be ready to eat by tomorrow, right?"

"Yes. Tomorrow morning is the best time for harvesting. The Forest Radish is delicious, so look forward to it."

...I thought the leaves looked like daikon. Is Forest Radish a giant forest daikon? Was there a transferer from an English-speaking country?

Well, daikon is a delicious vegetable that you can eat the leaves of. It would be great if we could make pickles. Grated daikon with grilled fish is the best. It really gets you excited.

"Harvesting tomorrow morning. I'm looking forward to it."

Excited, I moved to the forest site.

"I saw this yesterday, but it's still surprising to see this scene. With some sprouts, it really feels like a forest will grow here."

"Hehe. Yes, as a forest spirit, I'm very happy to be involved in the plan to create a forest in the land of death."

Actually, there was no plan to create a forest. I only did it because Nomos said to, so it's all thanks to Nomos.

"Will the climate of the land of death change a bit if a forest grows here?"

"I don't think it will work with just this area. Having a spring and a forest is great, but it's just a tiny space in the land of death."

"Guess it won't be that easy."

Indeed, the land of death is so vast that it takes a hundred days to walk to the town. Even if plants sprout here and there, the climate won't change.

"But it can be a trigger to increase nature. If plants increase from this base, it might eventually cover the land of death with a forest."

Impressive, spirits think on a long-term scale. I wonder how far it will progress in my lifetime. If the forest grows big, it might attract invasions from other countries, which would be complicated.

"If that happens, this place will become very valuable. By the way, will the trees here bear fruit?"

"Some trees will bear fruit, but pollination is necessary, so we need pollinators."

"Are insects that collect nectar the main pollinators in this world too?"

"Yes, that's the case. Whether the trees here will bear fruit depends on Yuta."

So I need to bring insects. Are there bees? I hope they're not huge monsters.

"I'll do my best to make it happen."

"Yes, I'm sure Yuta can do it. I'm looking forward to it."

...It seems that politician-like ambiguous answers don't work in this world. It was understood as a completely positive statement. Well, I can't go back on a promise to a cute girl. I have to try my best or I'll be punished.

While watching Rain's watering and Tamamo's growth magic, I tried to imagine this place as a forest. ...I can't really imagine it. I can feel that it will become a forest, but the impression of the reddish-brown land is too strong.

"Yuta, can we make a forest?"

"I'll try my best to make a forest, but how about it? Will you be happy if a forest grows, Bell?"

"Yes, flying in the forest is fun."

"Is that so? Then let's try our best to make a forest."

"Let's make it!"

Bell, who was playing on my head. As a contractor, this is where I need to put in effort. Dory's expectations and Bell's expectations. If I have the ability, I should do it. I secretly made a resolution and put in some effort.

"Yuta-kun, I've been thinking, I want to change the conditions of the contract."

Just as I was putting in effort, I heard a voice that took the wind out of my sails. What's she suddenly talking about?

"Um, since Dine is in the position to choose whether to contract, it's Dine's decision, but what's suddenly up?"

"Yes, as an older sister, I think it should be me who contracts second, even if Sylph is unavoidable."

"...Nomos, does the order of the contract matter?"

Maybe the one who contracts first is more important or there's some kind of ranking.

"There's no such thing."

Nomos firmly denied it.

"Then why is Dine so particular about the order of the contract?"

"How should I know! Besides, that guy's mysterious theories don't have any answers. She acts on her mysterious obsessions and feelings. It's a waste of time to think about it seriously."

Dine... She looks perfect on the outside, but why is she like that? It makes me sad.

"Ah, I kind of get what Dine is saying. She wants to change the conditions to be able to contract second. What kind of conditions?"

"I'll think about it now. So, Yuta-kun, please wait a bit."

"...Okay, but if you don't decide the conditions before we go to town, there's a possibility we won't be able to respond."

"You're right. I'll go think about it at the spring, so see you later."

"Ah, okay. See you later."

All the effort I put in was completely gone. I can't read Dine's character.

"Hey, Sylph, Nomos, Dory, how is Dine as a spirit? She seems a bit special."

"Well, I think she has a special personality. But there are all kinds of spirits. It's not that Dine is particularly strange, you know?"

Sylph answered hesitantly. They seem to get along well, but she has a resigned air about Dine. Can't be helped, I guess.

"As a humanoid spirit, I think she falls into the special category. Her way of thinking is more like that of an animal spirit. Well, it's a waste of time to try to predict her actions. She acts on instinct."

Nomos cut her off bluntly. But Nomos is right. She has a kind of wild intuition. There are people who, for no reason, go right instead of left, which is clearly the shortcut, and avoid a cliff collapse that happens on the left. It's not logical.

"Dine is a good girl. She just has a different way of thinking from everyone else. But her different opinions often lead to good results for everyone, so she's a very useful girl."

It's a compliment, but it doesn't really sound like one. From everyone's opinions, it seems she does things that are hard to understand, but somehow produces results... The line between a fool and a genius comes to mind.

While talking with the Great Spirits, Rain and Tamamo finished their work and came back. That's all the work we need to do today.

"Yuta, what are you going to do now?"

"Hmm. I want to make specific plans to go to town with Sylph tonight, so I'll expand the base during the day to meet Nomos' conditions."

"Got it. I'll organize information about various places. Let's talk after dinner."

"Okay, thanks. I'll probably become an adventurer, so it would help if you could pick a town that's suitable for adventurers and has a low chance of war."

"I'll look into it. Yuta, work hard on expanding the base."

After parting ways with the Great Spirits, I started the base expansion work with Bell, Rain, Tulu, and Tamamo. This time, Tulu's help is a big plus, but it's not a job for the others.

Tulu and I marked off the space to be expanded with rocks and diligently dug holes and laid rocks. We have to make as much progress as possible.

After all, to meet Nomos' requirements, we need a total of 250,000 square meters of space. Oh, reclamation tools. With you, achieving the goal will be a piece of cake.

Thank you for reading.