Chapter 6

It has been a month since I planted the turnips. Thanks to the regular use of magic to promote their growth, they seem to be growing without any issues. In about two more months, we should be able to harvest them.

By the way, I’ve also been trying to make soy sauce and miso, but I haven’t completed them yet. I’ve been experimenting to see if I can use magic for brewing and fermentation, but it seems to take a bit more time.

"Just a little more..."

I’m starting to see some promising results, so I tried making a glaze with the fruit paste and a soy sauce substitute. It turned out pretty well. My parents even said it was delicious, so I think it’s almost complete after a bit more testing.

Once I can make sugar, I’ll give it another try. I don’t know how to make mirin, but I do know of some substitutes.

It would be great if I could find something suitable someday.

So, for now, I’ll put the seasonings aside. I’ve finished helping with the daily field work, and now it’s my free time.

By the way, recently, instead of using the well water, I’ve been using magic to fill the water jug, which has become one of my duties.

"From the last stealth bear, I learned that I’m still weak. I shouldn’t get too confident just because I can use magic. If I can’t protect anyone in an emergency, I need to at least be able to protect my parents and the fields."

This time, I’m practicing high-power magic and defensive magic. I’ll make several targets out of earth in the usual forest.

"Until now, I’ve only used single spells, but maybe I can activate multiple spells simultaneously like Light?"

I activate multiple Water Balls in parallel. I can manage about 20 at once... Hmm, actually, this might be pretty powerful. I think being able to create a bullet curtain is strong.

I’m not sure how effective it will be against monsters, but it should have its uses. My goal is to achieve 50 parallel activations. Since I’m only 5 years old, I’ll aim for 10 times my age in parallel activations.

In this Altria, even court mages can only achieve up to 50 parallel activations, so being able to do 20 at 5 years old is already astonishing. However, without a teacher and being self-taught, I haven’t realized how exceptional I am. I’ll realize my abnormality later.

"Alright, next. The bullet curtain is a good start, but I also need a single high-power spell for strong enemies. Which attribute should I choose...?"

I recently realized that while I can use any attribute, I have a particular affinity for "Wind, Earth, Water, and Lightning." I don’t know why, but they come naturally to me.

Even in this world, court mages can only use up to 4 attributes, but I can already use 9: "Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, Ice, Space, Void, and Holy." I haven’t realized how abnormal this is yet.

"Hmm, for pure power, I think Lightning is the best..."

My goal is to create a technique as powerful as "Railgun" from my Earth life. I hold a coin in my hand to use as a projectile.

"Railgun!"

*BOOM!*

...Huh?

The five-layered target was completely obliterated, and the trees behind it were knocked down so far that they’re out of sight.

...Well, I guess it’s basically complete? Yeah, with this, I should be fine for now.

I was thinking about creating strong techniques with other attributes, but I was so surprised that I lost my motivation.

"Alright, next is defensive magic. I think Earth is the best, but a Lightning electromagnetic field would also be cool. Can I create a barrier-like spell? Maybe I can just condense my magic power?"

After about 4 hours of trial and error, I managed to activate an electromagnetic field and a barrier spell. However, my visualization isn’t perfect yet, so I need more practice.

It was already evening, so I went home and had dinner with my family. By the way, my parents have been trying to get me to go to bed early lately. Is it because I look tired?

The next morning, my father looked tired, but my mother looked radiant. Why has she become even more beautiful recently? Is she using some kind of beauty serum? But that doesn’t exist in this world...

Beauty. Come to think of it, there are no baths in this world.

"Alright, I’ll build a bath."

With that decided, I quickly finished helping with the field work. This world has only two meals a day, so there’s no lunch. Therefore, once the work is done, I can play.

I went to the usual open forest and collected the trees I knocked down with the Railgun yesterday. I used wind magic to process the wood and prepare the materials for the bath.

I imagined a small but spacious enough for an adult to stretch their legs and started building it near the back door of the house.

In my previous life, I had a period where DIY was a hobby, so I could make something decent. Since there are no nails, I used wedges to join the wood.

My parents might be suspicious, but it’s too late now. They’re so doting that they don’t think my actions are strange.

After about 2 hours, the bath itself was complete.

"It’s done, but it’s no good without a fence or a roof... Ah, what the heck! I’ll finish it!"

In the end, I used full body enhancement and built a small hut around the bath without any restraint.

...Goodbye, restraint. Hello, comfortable life. I want to enjoy a comfortable poor farmer’s life.

That night, as I prepared warm water with magic and got into the bath, my parents looked at me curiously.

Eh, why is Dad naked? Is he going to get in? Together? No way, it’s too small. Eh? Mom is naked too? We can’t all fit, stop it, ah ah ah ah ah. The water is spilling...

"Hey, Owl, is this a bath? I’ve heard that nobles and royalty use them, but I never thought we could have one in our poor farmer’s home."

"Really, and it’s so comfortable. I want to use it every day. Right, Owl?"

...Mom’s eyes are scary. They’re sharp and leave no room for argument. They might be scarier than when the stealth bear glared at me.

"I’ll prepare a bath occasionally."

"Hehe, thank you, Owl. I love you."

Considering how my relationship with my parents wasn’t good in my previous life, having such a close family is great. Mom is beautiful, and Dad is reliable. It’s the happiest life I could have.

"Still, a bath is a good thing. It seems to not only clean but also relieve fatigue."

Dad also seems to have become a bath enthusiast. I thought about spreading the benefits of baths, but since I can use magic, it’s easy for me to prepare one. Normally, it would require multiple trips to the well and a lot of firewood to heat the water, which is a lot of hard work.

After the bath, I suddenly felt sleepy. I must have been tired.

"Emilia, you look even more beautiful after the bath."

"Ah, you..."

Ah, I can’t. I’m sleepy. Good night.

The next morning, I woke up feeling more refreshed than usual. It must be the effect of the bath. Maybe the magic-infused water made it even more effective.

Mom was singing while making breakfast. She seems to be in a very good mood. Did something good happen?

"Good morning, Mom. You seem to be in a good mood today. Did something good happen?"

"Good morning, Owl. Eh, what? Nothing special, just the usual. Breakfast is ready, so go wash your face."

I feel like she’s trying to avoid the question, but maybe it’s just my imagination. As I was washing my face, Dad woke up with dark circles under his eyes.

...Hmm, I thought the bath would have relieved his fatigue. What’s wrong?

"Good morning, Dad. You look really tired. Are you okay?"

"Eh? Oh, I’m fine. No problem."

He went to wash his face, looking unsteady. I’m a bit worried, so I subtly cast "Refresh," an original magic that’s probably a type of holy magic.

"...?"

Dad seemed to notice he felt better but didn’t say anything, so I left it alone.

After finishing the turnips and helping with the field work, I was wondering what to do today when Mom said we were running low on meat, so I decided to go hunting for the first time in a while.

"Well, just hunting would be boring, so I’ll also gather mushrooms and herbs."

This world has herbs. The last time Reblanc came, he had something called a potion, which heals injuries when drunk or applied. One of the ingredients is herbs.

He also showed me what the herbs look like, so I can gather them. They grow in clusters in this forest, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

Oh, this is it. Actually, this whole area is full of herbs! Amazing, I’ve found a cluster.

The village of Oren doesn’t have an adventurer’s guild, so adventurers rarely visit. The monsters here are weak, so the herbs are left untouched.

"This is a stroke of luck. I don’t know how to make potions, but with herbs, I might be able to make a medicinal shampoo. Oh, right. I should also make soap. We buy it from peddlers, but it’s expensive and not very good quality."

I gathered herbs while using presence detection to find prey. There are a few Horn Rabbits, but they’re not very good for eating, so I won’t catch them. They’re tasty, though.

After gathering a decent amount of herbs, I faintly detected a presence I hadn’t sensed before, so I activated far-sight to look in that direction.

(That’s... a bee? But it’s huge... about 15 cm?)

By the way, at this point, Owl was in the middle of the forest, where his mother had told him not to go, but he had become so accustomed to the forest that he wasn’t being careful.

(Honey...!)

Normally, Owl would be more cautious with an unknown monster, but his love for sweets made him think only of honey.

He was so excited that he didn’t even realize this was a dangerous monster that shouldn’t be in this forest. However, his love for sweets led to a miracle. He instantly came up with a plan and executed it.

He surrounded the area with a barrier and created a Fireball inside. The burning flame in the enclosed space used up all the oxygen, creating an oxygen-free environment.

The bees, unable to breathe, started to come out one by one but died as soon as they emerged. The last one, the queen bee, was tough but eventually fell to the ground after flying weakly.

When he removed the barrier and approached, the queen bee was still alive. Thinking it was dangerous, he was about to finish her off when he suddenly felt a presence in his head.

Looking at the queen bee, he sensed a strong will to become his subordinate.

"Do you want to come with me?"

*Shake, shake*

She weakly moved her wings, indicating yes. She was cute, and the idea of getting honey regularly made him consider taking her as a subordinate.

"I might give you honey occasionally, but is that okay?"

*Shake, shake*

It seems she’s okay with it. If she’s okay, I have no objections.

"Alright, from today, you’re my familiar. Your name is Queen. Nice to meet you."

The name "Queen" is a simple derivation from "Queen Bee," but she seems happy, so it’s fine.

"Still, I’m sorry for killing your companions. I’ll revive them. 'Ex-Heal.'"

Ex-Heal is an advanced version of Heal that I created. It uses a lot of magic power but can instantly heal fractures. I haven’t actually used it on a fracture, but it should work.

After storing the nest and the dead bees, I thought about bringing Queen home but remembered I still needed to get meat, so I put her on my shoulder and continued searching for prey.

By the way, Queen is about 30 cm long, quite large. She’s on my shoulder, but since I’m only 5, it might look like I’m being attacked from a distance.

...Mom might faint again.

With a slight worry, I continued searching for prey and found the presence of a Forest Boar and a Tree Deer. I used Wind Cutter to instantly decapitate them, drained the blood, and stored them. I also stored the blood in a jar made with earth magic, thinking it might be useful for something.

Recently, my magic has been getting stronger due to practice. I might be able to handle a stealth bear now, but I’m still scared, so I don’t want to go to the mountains.

When I got home, as expected, Mom fainted and scolded me. However, when I told her I could get honey regularly, her anger visibly subsided, and she even started praising Queen. Women are quick to change their minds.

I was wondering where to build Queen’s nest when I received a message from her. Hmm, interesting.

In summary, she made her subordinates larger to survive in the forest, but she can also use normal-sized bees. I told her I’d build a simple hut for her tomorrow, and she flew around happily, looking very cute.

For now, I’ll get some honey. Mixing honey with alcohol can serve as a substitute for mirin.

I’ll update this bit by bit.

I’d be happy if you could rate and bookmark it.