Chapter 3

"Welcome back, Lord Noct."

"Yes, I just got back."

As soon as I finished visiting the graves and returned to the mansion, Mea greeted me.

Now that the family and retainers are gone, only Mea and I live in this mansion.

If Mea weren't here, no one would greet me when I come home.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, I was just thinking how glad I am that Mea is still here."

"R-Really? I'm happy to hear that!"

When I expressed my sincere thoughts, Mea blushed but seemed pleased.

My words must have been quite embarrassing, as Mea, still flustered, tried to change the subject.

"Um, what are we going to do next?"

"Well, first we need to secure water and food. Have you checked the supplies in the mansion?"

"The situation is not very reassuring. The well is fine, so there's no problem with water, but the stored food will only last us about two weeks, even if we conserve it."

"Hmm? I thought the food storage had enough to feed the villagers for a month?"

My father had stored enough food to feed the villagers for a while in case of monster attacks or famine.

So, if it only lasts us two weeks, something must have happened.

"Some of it was used in battles with monsters, and the retainers took some when they left..."

"I see, that's what happened."

Hearing Mea's hesitant words, I understood.

It seems that most of the remaining food was distributed to the villagers by the retainers as they fled.

"I'm sorry!"

"Don't worry about it. It couldn't be helped."

It would take a considerable amount of time to walk to the neighboring territory. The villagers, whose homes and fields were destroyed, had no choice but to use the stored food.

"But..."

"I think we'll face many such situations. It's not your fault, Mea. Instead of dwelling on the past, let's focus on the future."

"...Yes."

Mea nodded, but she didn't seem entirely convinced.

This is more about emotion than logic. It's hard to switch gears immediately.

"If the water is fine, let's focus on food. Mea, can you check the fields?"

"Understood."

Even though the fields were ravaged by monsters, there should be some surviving crops, vegetables, and seedlings.

If left unchecked, they might become inedible, so we need to recover and check them first.

"What will you do, Lord Noct?"

Mea asked, looking somewhat anxious.

We are the only two left in this territory, and we don't know when the monsters might return.

It's dangerous to be separated, but I understand her concern. Being together is better for our mental well-being.

"I'll go outside and check my skills. Whether I can use them or not will greatly affect our future."

"Understood. Let's go then."

Mea smiled, looking relieved to know I would be nearby.

◆

Mea and I left the mansion and headed to the village where the villagers lived.

Most of the houses near the Great Forest were damaged, crushed by huge rocks.

The wheat and vegetables that the villagers had cultivated were trampled and destroyed.

"...It's worse than I thought. What kind of monsters attacked the territory?"

"A large group of orcs. I only heard about it since I was evacuated, but there were a lot of them, and there were higher-level orcs among them..."

If there were higher-level orcs, it could have been a high orc or an orc general.

"How did they retreat?"

"Lord Wisheart injured the higher-level orc and forced them to retreat."

I could easily imagine my brother cutting through the large group of orcs to create a breakthrough and then engaging the higher-level orc.

That's right. My brother always took the lead in facing dangerous obstacles. My father supported him, often at great risk.

It's impressive that he repelled the large group of orcs. I'm proud of my brother.

"Given that, there's a possibility they might attack again soon."

"But would they attack a place where only we are left?"

"It's possible, but it's better to prepare for the worst."

"...You're right. That was just a hopeful wish of mine."

Everyone tends to find hopeful wishes when faced with sad situations, just like I thought that even with a failed skill, my father and brother would somehow manage.

"Then, I'll go look for any usable fields or food."

"Alright, I'll be around here. If anything happens, call out, and Mea, call me immediately if you need help."

Mea smiled happily and headed to check the fields.

"Now, let's check my skill."

The skill I received is [Enlargement & Reduction].

According to the temple knight, it's a skill that can make objects larger or smaller.

When I think of enlargement and reduction, I imagine something similar.

In my previous life, I often adjusted the size of graphs and images on my computer to make them more visible, struggling to get the right balance.

I can probably think of my skill in a similar way.

First, I want to try making something larger.

Looking around for something suitable, I found a hoe on the ground.

It's a tool used by the villagers to cultivate the fields. It's not mine, but since the owner is gone, I can use it to test my skill.

"Alright, enlarge."

Holding the hoe, I chanted, and the hoe in my hand grew larger.

It went from about a meter to about two meters in length, and its width increased significantly.

"Whoa!"

The weight increased as well, and I had to use my other hand to support the hoe, which I could previously hold with one hand.

"Wow, it really did get bigger."

While it's impressive that I could enlarge the hoe, it's too big to use properly.

But this skill should also allow me to reduce things.

"Reduce."

Imagining the original size of the hoe, I chanted, and the hoe returned to its original size.

This is kind of fun.

However, the skill makes everything larger when enlarged, which isn't ideal. Can I enlarge only a part of it?

"Enlarge."

Imagining only the length of the hoe being enlarged, I used the skill, and only the length increased as I imagined.

I now have a hoe that is two meters long.

The center of gravity is quite far forward, making it unbalanced, but I managed to partially enlarge it.

The width didn't change significantly.

Swinging the unbalanced hoe, I managed to dig the soil without any major issues.

It's quite difficult to use, and I need to do more testing, but the enlarged tool doesn't seem to degrade.

The weight increased, which means the mass increased as well.

"...So, if I use this skill to enlarge food, we might be able to save more of it?"

If that's true, this skill could be very useful! Inspired by this idea, I ran to where Mea was checking the fields.