Chapter 74

In such a manner, I continued trading while leveling up.

My income has steadily increased over the week.

The day when we can all have full metal turtle equipment, including armor and shields, is not far off.

Incidentally, my level has risen to 25, and I have obtained a new expansion ability.

It's called Damage Transfer, an ability to transfer damage received to another location.

It takes about 10 minutes to activate.

This ability can also be used on defeated monsters, and it can be used for pseudo-recovery.

If you receive a fatal injury and don't die, it might help... but 10 minutes is quite a long time.

I think it's an ability that won't be used much.

In a world where healing magic exists, it's not very practical.

Continuing to fetch trade goods, I was then invited to the workplace by the class representative, who had something to ask of me.

Mashin, Hagizawa, and Jitsu are all busy with their respective jobs, so it's just me.

"Hey, Hashibashi-kun. Thanks for coming."

The class representative's ability is Cultivation.

Therefore, the fields at the edge of the town are the class representative's workplace.

He is not suited for combat, and his strategy is to use his ability to rapidly grow plants and sell them to stores.

Incidentally, I provide seeds like vegetables from Japan.

It's a hassle to buy ingredients for cooking and tool-making every time, so he is mass-producing and cultivating them cost-effectively.

The class representative hands a radish he has grown to Kumako.

"Gauu"

Kumako starts eating it right away.

It seems that bears in this world are omnivores, eating both meat and vegetables.

They seem to have a slightly healthier tendency, but they also like sweet things.

According to Ramures-san, it's not a problem for them to eat human food, unlike in Japan.

"Do you have something for me?"

"Yes, not just you, but everyone is working together to earn money and points, right?"

"Yeah, to help Ito and the others."

Ito and the others, who were acting like they were in the forest, have completely changed their attitude and say they can't look us in the eye every time we meet.

Apparently, the efficiency of the valley's governance is unprecedented.

Someone said it felt like we were doing a bondage play.

Because of this, plans are underway to level up the group heading to the base soon.

Well... considering the examples of Mashin and Hagizawa, it's clear that leveling up will be convenient.

I've been asked to take on the task of hunting metal turtles, which are difficult for combat-oriented people to defeat.

"About that, I thought I could help Hashibashi-kun as well."

"Do you have any good ideas?"

"Are you aware that new plant species can be profitable?"

"Did you get an expansion ability for breeding or something?"

Shaking his head in response to my question, the class representative said:

"No, while that is a possibility, it's an ability that can also manifest in the people of this world."

Cultivation seems to be a broad category, but it's different, right?

It seems that the people of this world also have specialized abilities.

"That alone is not revolutionary. Can't you see that there are trees that bear money lying around?"

"Well, I'm at a loss with such roundabout expressions."

"Gauu?"

He's smart, but he's indifferent to games... What is he trying to say?

I guess he has a perspective we don't have.

"Recently, you've been making a profit by selling spices to the nobles, haven't you? Those spices are mostly plants, right?"

"Yeah... you're also helping us with that."

We're getting mint, watercress, and other herbs cultivated by the class representative.

The quality is quite good. As expected of someone with the Cultivation ability.

"If Japanese spices are selling like hotcakes, I think we can expect the same effect from plants."

"The situation has changed since last time."

When we talked a while ago, there was an opinion that plants wouldn't sell that well.

Bringing in plants and monsters unique to this world wouldn't make much of a difference... but since spices are selling so well, it depends on how we approach it.

"Indeed. In a world with a culture similar to the Middle Ages, I have an idea of something that could sell for a high price."

"What is it?"

He might be smart, but I wish he would stop using roundabout expressions and just tell me directly.

"Hashibashi-kun, have you heard of the profession called Plant Hunter?"

"In games, they specialize in plants. Is it an expansion ability you might learn? Or maybe Mashin could make a weapon with such an effect?"

Oh, the class representative stumbled.

I must have said something off the mark.

I knew it wasn't in that direction.

I think I've heard of it somewhere.

"No, no. Not in Japan... but in the world we originally came from."

"Such a profession existed?"

The class representative nodded in response to my question.

"Yes. They were mainly active from the 17th to the 20th century, collecting trees and flowers from around the world."

"So that's why they're called Plant Hunters."

"Indeed. Even cedars and cypresses are said to have been collected by these Plant Hunters from China."

"Wow..."

"The most famous example is the Tulip Mania, where the price of tulips skyrocketed. Well... it wasn't a good thing economically, and it's dangerous to go too far, but I think it can be a way to make a lot of money."

"Tulips exist in this world, don't they?"

There are flowers that exist as monsters.

We fought a monster with tulips in that forest.

So they're not particularly rare.

However, the class representative doesn't seem to be backing down.

"Hashibashi-kun, you're jumping to conclusions. It seems that nobles in any world have similar tastes. There are many who come to my fields directly for transactions."

"Noble tastes?"

I think I heard about this in a world history class, but it's a bit vague.

It changes with the times, but I think it was... gardening, fishing, and shooting?

Was it a school lesson? Maybe I learned it somewhere else?

In any case, I remember that maintaining these hobbies required a lot of money.

Apparently, even nobles with excess money and land couldn't afford them.

In Japan, during the Edo period, hobbies called "gold-eating insects" included antiques, gardening, and fishing.

They all seem to have similar hobbies.

Fishing and fishing, gardening and gardening... they overlap.

So... gardening?

"Indeed, many of the nobles in this world spend their excess money on hobbies. Some are into gardening as well."

According to the class representative, the hobbies of the nobles in this world are gardening, magic, and hunting.

Hunting, of course, is monster hunting.

Moreover, it earns points, so the ratio is skewed towards hunting.

It might be closer to a lifestyle than a hobby for nobles whose job is to manage the land and politics.

Hunting also includes fishing.

It seems that specialized equipment and tools for fish-type monsters are expensive.

Magic, as the name suggests, is about magic.

There are practical ones and impractical ones.

Some are researching unique magic techniques.

High-cost intermediaries, magic books, and magical tools... it's close to collecting antiques.

In other words, the class representative thinks it's like collecting antiques.

It seems that getting seriously into magic can be quite expensive.

"In other words, if we bring plants from Japan, we can make a lot of money?"

"That's right. Even plants that can be obtained at a garden store should be fine. While there is the example of tulips, those who are into plants will jump at the chance to get new species, even if they are similar to those in this world."

I see.

Even with tulips, there are different colors and varieties, so the rarer they are, the more appealing they are to enthusiasts.

Japanese plants are definitely different from the ecosystem of this world.

At the very least, there's no way tulips will attack.

"By the way, how much do you think we can make?"

"Even a single tulip is different from the tulips in this world. I believe it will definitely sell for a high price."

The class representative has been to the gardens of the nobles for work.

After checking various things, he concluded that they would sell.

"Can a single flower make that much of a difference?"

"Yes. We need a lot of points to become stronger, right? Hashibashi-kun, can I count on you?"

"Alright. It's something rare and a bit dreamy."

What I can do is basically bring things from Japan.

Even if I go leveling, the amount of money and points I can earn as an individual is limited compared to the trade I'm doing through transfer.

So there's no reason not to do it.