22 - Episode 20 Re-examination?

"What's wrong with you? As soon as he saw my face, he got all upset. I came here because you asked me to. I'm going home.

"Oh, wait a minute. I was expecting a beautiful spirit to come and I was disappointed. It's all my fault. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Please don't do this to me.

Bow your head at the right angle. No, no, no, no, no. I'm disappointed that I assumed the spirit that came was a beautiful woman when the dolphins came, too. No wonder he's angry.

Did you say Yuta?　Were you expecting a beautiful woman of the spirit?　You're dealing with a spirit, remember?"

The dwarf asks with a look of genuine surprise on his face.

"I've only met spirits in this world, and I can see and touch them normally, and I feel that they are just beautiful women of the spirit race."

"B ha ha ha. A beautiful woman. Sylphie. Deanne. Maybe spring will come for you too. Ha-ha-ha-ha."

Oh, man. I said something embarrassing about a beautiful woman. Sylphy looks a little embarrassed and angry. Deene is wiggling her arms, saying, "Sis, you're embarrassing me. Deene wants to say that she is a little different, but I don't want to, because I feel it would be dangerous.

"No, no. That's not what I meant. ...... Anyway, I'm sorry."

"Hmm. If you were expecting a beautiful woman, I can't help it. You were disappointed to see a bearded old man. Hmm. I'll give you a break for making me laugh. I am Nomos, the Great Spirit of the Earth. He's a lowly spirit. He has no name. Well, you'll have to make do.

I don't know what hit him, but he seems to have forgiven me. And they're not father and son. They're not the same size, but they're both very large, and I think they look like each other.

Nomos has a bigger barrel of sake, maybe a meter or 20?　He has a full beard. The lower class spirit of the soil is about 80 centimeters tall and thick, but he looks younger.

"My name is Yuta Morizono. Mr. Nomos. A lower class spirit of the earth. I look forward to meeting you.

"I don't need honorifics or "san" either. It's just too much trouble. I hear you. Let's see what you've done with the soil.

I'm glad I don't have to be so careful, but I guess spirits really don't like honorifics.

I get it. You can call me Yuta too. The field is this way.

When I show them to the field I made yesterday, Nomos and a lower level spirit of soil enter the field to check something. Belle and Rain are curious about the appearance of the new lower class spirits, and are about to start a flurry of activity, so I call them close to me. Stay quiet.

"Yuta! You are doing something interesting. But we can't stay here at this rate."

Oh, no. I was worried, but I wanted it to work out. I guess I got a red mark after all.

"I see. I'm sorry. Can you tell me what went wrong?"

"Hmm. That's about right. This soil has been mixed with a lot of other things, some of which will certainly enrich the soil. But there are no beneficial insects or even microorganisms in this soil. It is too good a soil to have microorganisms in the first place. We will lose our strength if we stay here.

......The land of the dead, be afraid. Even the microorganisms are dying. What can we do?

Is there anything we can do?

"If I bring some living soil and mix it in, will that help?　Nutritionally, it's not balanced, but with the right microorganisms, it could be."

Was it unbalanced, too? If you can bring me living soil or ...... soil, I'll have you bring me plants. I'm stuck. We'll just have to keep trying to level up.

"If we had some living soil, we could have made it. But there's no way to get living soil, is there?"

"Yuta. I just remembered that the soil near the bottom of the well was alive. You didn't store it?"

Sylphy gave me some unexpected advice: ...... I did store it, come to think of it. That soil looked like living soil.

"Nomos. Look at this."

He shows them the living soil he got from digging a well. If this soil had been good, we might not have needed the small fish and seaweed. We could have just brought the living soil and put it in the field. That would have been quite a waste.

"Well. Not a lot of microorganisms, but there are definitely microorganisms. If we mix in this soil and let it sit, we might be able to make it work."

Huh?　Just when you think it can't be done, it reverses itself?　I thought that a magic bag could not hold any living creatures. But microorganisms usually do. Bacteria and other very small creatures may be able to break through the magic bag's limitations.

"Is this enough?"

Take out the living soil obtained near the bottom of the well. There is only enough to make a small pile because it turned to sand immediately.

"Hmm. Well, we'll make it work. Mix this soil into the field and keep it lightly moistened every day, but don't let it dry out. Don't let it dry out. I'll be back in ten days.

The nomos and the lower spirits leave after saying only that. It's happening so fast.

"Yes. "Yes. dig a hole and make a place with rocks to expand the field. No soil is needed. The area must be four times as large as it is now. Okay?

...... has flown away. What does that mean?

"Let's see, ......, do you think it's okay to re-examine it in ten days?"

"Right. Well, you'll be back, so you might as well do what you're told."

I have a feeling Sylphy is a bit skeptical, too.

"We had to mix the living soil with the soil from the field and keep it moist every day, didn't we? Rain. Can you please keep the soil moist every day?"　

"Cue."

Lane cried, raising his fins high in the air. I think it's a signal that I'm in charge.

"Thank you. But that lowly spirit didn't say a word. I wonder if she didn't like it here.

"I think she's just a quiet girl. I don't think she dislikes it, because she was observing her surroundings with great interest.

"Good. Well, first we have to mix in the soil.

The soil in the field is dug up and stored one after another. The soil is then mixed with the living soil in a mortar and mixed gently with a shovel.

I thought about using a hammer to stir the soil, but I couldn't do it because I was afraid that the microorganisms would be killed. I am worried because I have no idea what is safe and what is dangerous for the microorganisms. I repeatedly mixed the living soil with the soil from the field and stored it.　

"Finally, you have finished mixing everything. Put it back in the field and you're done."

All the soil is now evenly mixed. Yesterday I tried my best to get as much fertilizer as possible in the upper part of the soil, but ...... I can't help but cry.

When I approached the hole to put the soil back into the field, I found Belle and Rain chasing each other inside. They seem to be having fun in the small space.

"Belle. Rain. Come on up here so I can put the dirt back in."

"Yes, sir."

"Cue."

They're both very selfish, which helps. They're very good kids. The soil mixture is poured directly from the magic bag into the hole they came out of.

The mixture of living soil has made a small mountain of dirt. Let's surround it with rocks. Rain is watering the area as soon as possible. The sun is so strong in the land of the dead that we have to moisten it frequently. That's a big help.

Oh, we need to hang the dried clothes. I'll put them on the drying rack I made yesterday.

"Kawakasake?"

Belle asked me if I was ready for work. Her eyes sparkled.

"Belle. This fish doesn't need to be dried. I'm going to dry it slowly in the sun."

Ah. She's disappointed in a very obvious way. My heart aches. You'll have to do something to help.

"Ah. It's so hot. It's so hot. It would be great if someone could give me a gentle breeze.

I glance at Bell.

"I can do it, Belle."

"Oh. Oh. Belle is a wind spirit. Can I ask her for a favor?"

"Yes, sir."

With a big smile on her face, Belle shines a gentle breeze on me. So cute. I'm worried about Sylphy and Dine's gentle gaze, as if they were looking at something smiling, but I'd ruin it if I complained here ....... I'll hold back.

But it's a nice breeze. It would be quite cool if this wind were covered with Rain's mist. The question is whether my conscience can bear the sight of myself taking the coolness by using the spirit of a young girl and the spirit of a dolphin. ...... I'll try to bear it as long as I can.

"Phew. I feel so much cooler now. Can you do it again when it gets hot?"

I'll take care of it.

Satisfied with his help, he flew away to Rain in a good mood.　

"Yuta, you are a good boy. You're a good boy, Sis. I'm impressed.

"I think you'd make a good father."

It's terribly embarrassing. But I can't complain because I feel that both Dine and Sylphy are not malicious and are praising me with good intentions. I guess I have a dirty mind that I can't accept them honestly.

"Ha ha ...... Thank you. I'm off to expand the field next."

Let's see, I think you said more than quadruple. Fifteen meters. Ten meters wide. Five meters deep. That's six times the area, which should be enough. We'll have to dig an extra 50 centimeters to enclose it with rocks.

We decide on the area and dig away with the magic shovel. It's a task I'm completely used to. I can see the finished product as soon as I start. Maybe I've opened my eyes to something.

I check his status to see if he has developed any skills, but nothing has grown. Can't he just dig holes and lay rocks? Is there no skill for construction or civil engineering?

We keep digging holes and lining them up with rocks, thinking about stupid things. Drilling a hole for drainage with a hand auger. Two hours into the job. This is craftsmanship. Now you have done what Nomos asked you to do. Now we just have to be careful not to let the soil dry up.