CH 130

From Rice Planting to Harvesting. – i novels

()x11-14 minutes

Dolly was found to be able to grow rice, so we hastily prepared a paddy field and got seedlings ready. Today is the auspicious day of rice planting. The weather is clear, and it seems like even the heavens are delighted with the rice planting.

Oh, right, it doesn’t rain in the Land of Death. I inadvertently thought of something that would make you want to add a sarcastic laugh at the end. It’s a joke about the Land of Death. I can’t guarantee whether it’s funny or not.

“Yuta, will I help?””Kyuuu?.””Do my best, okay?””Kukuuu?.”

While I was thinking about trivial matters, it seems that Bell and the others have become tired of waiting.

“Sorry for making you wait. We’ll start now. Bell and the others, please work hard too.”

As I said that, Bell and the others gathered around eagerly, so I petted them all before starting to explain rice planting. Although it’s a simple explanation, I can only provide a brief one. We just need to take the seedlings prepared by Dolly, grab four to five of them, and plant them where the lines intersect.

With the simple explanation over, we begin rice planting. Bell and the others grab the seedlings and take off, diving into the spots where the lines intersect to plant them. It feels like some sort of dive bombing. No, it’s just a frontal assault since they’re diving into the ground, right?

While I think there might be an easier way to plant the seedlings using magic, it seems that Bell and the others are thoroughly enjoying the way they are planting them. Rain and Tamamo hold the seedlings with their short fins and short forelegs, creating a scene of suspense and cuteness as they dive into the ground. Well, Bell and the others seem to be having fun, so it’s not a problem.

Sara and the others… “Ahaha, my feet are sinking!” “Big brother, my feet are all slippery!”

“Marco, Kikka, be careful not to slip when you’re excited.” … Yeah, they seem to be having fun too, so it’s all good. Fukuchan, Uri, and Mame-chan are also helping, so I feel relieved.

It’s my first time planting rice since elementary school. I become one with the field, stepping into the rice paddies. My foot sinks into the mud with a squelching sound. Oh, right, I forgot about this feeling. Since I’m barefoot, the mud passes between my toes. Surprisingly, I don’t dislike this sensation.

While enjoying the slightly eerie feeling, I plant the seedlings where the lines intersect. Each of these will become rice and fill my stomach. I’m extremely excited.

However, even though I’m doing my best to plant the seedlings, I can’t keep up with Bell and the others’ pace at all. I never thought that being able to fly during rice planting would be so advantageous.

Well, when you think about it, it’s only natural that it’s an advantage not to have to walk through the muddy water. But I never connected rice planting with flying in my mind. I thought I had become quite accustomed to the fantasy world, but it seems that fantasy still has many depths.

While skillfully handling the classic accidents like Marco face-planting into the mud, we finish planting all the seedlings. As I leave the paddy field, saying “Ah~,” I cleanse myself and rub my sore back.

I was planning to convince myself that my back wouldn’t hurt next time I do agricultural work, but I completely forgot about it because I was dazzled by the rice. And of course, my back hurts. Next time, I have to firmly convince myself.

“That was fun!” “Kyukyukyuu!” “I love mud!” “Kukukuu!”

Bell, Rain, Turu, and Tamamo excitedly jump towards me. It seems they enjoyed the rice planting. Come to think of it, they were laughing the whole time we were planting the seedlings.

Bell and the others cling to me tightly and happily recount their enjoyable experiences. They are unbelievably cute. As a gesture of gratitude for their help, I pet them as usual. This is the second time today—quite a fast pace.

“Sara, Marco, Kikka, how was the rice planting? Was it tiring?”

“No, not at all. It was so much fun, Master.”

Oh, Sara seems different from usual. Her expression is more childlike, well, children will be children, but she looks even more childlike than usual. Maybe playing in the mud awakened Sara’s inner child. Making rice planting a regular event might be a good idea.

“If you had fun, that’s great. How about Marco and Kikka?”

“It was fun!” “It was interesting.”

Hmm, if all the children enjoy it, there’s no problem turning it into an event. We might end up with more rice than we can eat, but with a magic bag, storage is not an issue. If we have a surplus of rice, we can popularize it in this continent.

Although they say they had fun and aren’t tired, they have been working all this time. They must have accumulated some fatigue. Before asking Dolly to rapidly grow the rice, let’s take a short break.

I set up a table and take out some drinks and sandwiches. I let Bell and the others, as well as Sara, take a break while we relax and admire the completed rice paddies.

Although I didn’t have rice fields around me when I was in Japan, this scene evokes a sense of nostalgia. It feels like there’s information imprinted in the DNA of Japanese people that makes them feel this way. …Using fancy words like DNA makes me sound smart, it’s nice.

“Dolly, we’re ready soon.”

Instead of thinking foolish thoughts, let’s focus on the rice for now.

“Understood.”

Dolly waves her hand, and the rice seedlings start growing rapidly in the paddy fields. The frail stems and leaves become thicker and the paddy fields turn green as they grow with tillering. Oh, it stopped.

“What’s wrong?”

I thought it would progress all the way to golden rice ears, but it stopped. Oh, the rice is doing some unusual movements.

“The flowers have bloomed, so I’m pollinating them. Normally, it’s done by the wind, but this time I’m doing it directly.”

…I see, there are still steps to follow. Although she can create rice itself, I thought she could skip this part. Is it like fast-forwarding?

And above all, I have no idea where the flowers are blooming. When I approach and observe closely, I see small, whitish flowers blooming on the green rice ears. Rice flowers are incredibly plain. Bell and Sara seem to struggle to react to them.

“Let’s continue, then.”

“Yeah, please.”

The growth resumes, and the rice ears start to droop as they become heavier, changing color.

“Yuta-san, please ask Dyne to drain the water and dry the soil.”

“Drain the water?”

“Yes.”

…I don’t quite understand, but let’s do as Dolly says.

“Dyne, can I talk to you for a moment?”

“What is it, Yuta-chan? Do you need something from your Onee-chan?”

I call Dyne, who was playing with Bell and the others.

“Yeah, I need you to drain the water from the paddy fields. It would be helpful if you could dry the ground as well.”

“Hehe. It’s Onee-chan’s turn, huh? Leave it to me.”

Dyne happily waves her hand, and water shoots up like a fountain from the paddy fields, flowing into the final destination, the spring.

Come to think of it, creating paddy fields allows us to create a rich ecosystem! That’s what I thought, but if we finish planting and harvesting rice in a day, there’s no time to create a rich ecosystem.

As the water settles back down, moisture rises from the mud of the paddy fields like mist. Bell and the others, who were watching it, couldn’t resist their curiosity and start flying around above the rice ears.

It’s quite a fantastical sight. Mist enveloping the rice ears while a young girl, a boy, a dolphin, a fox, boar, and owl fly around. The fusion of Japanese aesthetics and fantasy. It’s magnificent.

“Yuta, why are you nodding?”

Silphy asks me curiously. It’s hard to say that I was indulging in self-satisfaction, trying to exude an artistic vibe.

“It’s because the rice I’ve been longing for is right in front of me. I was moved, so I nodded.”

Is it hard to understand?

“Is that so? Well, that’s fine then.”

…I don’t quite get it, but if she’s satisfied with that explanation, then it’s fine.

Once the water is drained, Dolly accelerates the growth of the rice. The paddy fields quickly turn golden, and it’s time for the rice harvest.

I feel like the growth video of rice that I saw during elementary school lessons was easier to understand. It’s a strange feeling to witness the actual growth process live.

“Yuta-san, it’s done.”

“Oh, yeah. Thanks, Dolly. Can we start harvesting now?”

“Yes, it’s okay.”

Finally, the harvest… It’s exciting to have rice in hand, but it feels like the time from planting to this moment went by in a flash. So, next… We’re supposed to harvest the rice and then do the “hanging and drying” process, which takes over two weeks, if I remember correctly.

It’s heartbreaking to have rice right in front of me and have to wait for over two weeks. Should I ask Dyne to remove the moisture or have Silphy use hot air to dry it? Or should I patiently wait for more than two weeks? It’s an incredibly difficult question.

When I discuss it with Silphy, she suggests, “Why not try everything?” Well, she has a point. Let’s prepare for all the options.

First, I take out the wood that Dyne had drained the moisture from in the forest before and, with the help of Sara and the others, assemble a structure to dry the rice, securing it with ropes.

Since I don’t know how much rice we’ll end up with, the more structures we can assemble, the better. It’s the essence of agriculture—harvesting. Even though I haven’t put in much effort, I still feel excited just because it’s rice. So, there’s no problem.

“Alright! Everyone, let’s start harvesting. Watch closely as I show you the demonstration.”

Approaching the rice plants, I grab them at the base and cut them with a magical saw. Then I tie them with straw… tying them… it’s difficult. In a hurry, I ask Dolly to grow some vine plants and use them as makeshift ropes. And then, um, we hang them on the structures.

“This is the sequence. Does everyone understand?”

“Master, it seems difficult to cut with a knife. What should we do?”

Sara is still naive. Very naive. She lacks practical thinking. Well, it’s understandable since I cut them with a saw right in front of her.

“Sara, you’re a spirit magician, right? If you can’t cut them yourself, what do you think you should do?”

“…Should I borrow Fukurou’s power?”

“Correct! Sara, Marco, Kikka, all of you can borrow the power of spirits. Be careful not to get injured.”

“Yes!”

They rush to the rice plants and start harvesting. Sara… grabs the rice and Fukuchan cuts it cleanly. They tie the rice with vine ropes and hang them on the structures. Yes, no problem.

Marco… ties the rice first, and Uri moves the soil, pulling out the entire root. He’s clever. But I wonder if it’s okay to leave the roots attached when hanging them? …Well, whether we cut them or pull them out, it shouldn’t make much of a difference, so it should be fine.

Kikka… seems to be struggling a bit. It’s not a problem for Mamechan to cut the rice, but tying it seems to be difficult for her. Her progress is slower, but she manages to complete the task, so there’s no problem.

The children are doing well, and it’s time for me to resume harvesting as well. I squat down, grab a bundle of rice, and for some reason, Bell and the others line up next to me.

“Bell, can you do the first one?”

Bell swiftly cuts the rice I’m holding with a swoosh of wind. I see, they think that cutting is their job after watching Sara and the others. …The magic saw’s role disappears, but I can’t let Bell and the others’ smiles fade away.

“Thank you, Bell.”

After expressing my gratitude, I tie the rice, and Bell extends both hands. It seems she’s also willing to help with the drying process. Bell flies to the structure with the rice in her hands, and Rain excitedly appeals, “Kyukyu!” Turu and Tamamo are waiting for their turn behind them.

Hmm, they’re helping one by one. This could be a fun harvest. While admiring the adorable spirits, we happily harvest the rice. It feels great.