37 - Thirty-five episodes of harvest

Harvest time!

"I'm getting a new house!"

Cue.

"Neck."

"Coo-ooh!"

The belles responded to my soul's cry. It feels good.

When I woke up in the morning, Dolly appeared and told me that the oilleaf was ready to be harvested. My sleepy head was suddenly awakened, leading to my first cry of the morning.

"Dolly. You don't mind if I harvest them all, do you?"

"Yes, oilleaf grows very fast, and if you miss the harvest time, it will soon grow too big and lose its taste. It is better to harvest them all and store them in Yuta's bag.

"Yes, sir. Should I leave some for seeds?　It's my first vegetable, and I'm hoping to make a connection."

"Yes, that's right. If you leave a few plants, the tamamos will do well, so it's good to leave them."

It's sad that we will have less food, but we have about a hundred plants, and if we go on an expedition, we will be able to go to the city, so it won't be a problem.

"Then let's leave them here.

"I think it's enough."

"Then let's leave three plants and harvest them. Belle. Rain. TULU. Tamamo. Please."

He heads for the field with light steps. The greenery that greets me is pleasing to the eye. I'm sorry, but I have to harvest. But the lack of insects is a problem for pollination, but the vegetables turn out beautifully, don't they?

The other three plants I buried at the same time will take a little more time. I wonder if I can eat one of them when I come back from my expedition.

Now we will start the long-awaited harvest. We'll put the harvest into storage soon, so please bring it back to me."

"Put it back!"

Bell is reacting to bring it in with a bang. Bell is not a collector.

She's the one who's going to pick it and bring it back.

"Yes, sir."

Do you understand?　Well, it looks like fun. I'll start picking.

I grip the lush, healthy leaves firmly at the base so as not to damage them, and exert myself carefully so as not to tear them off. Oh, it seems to come off pretty easily. Gradually, the soil rises up and the plant comes out with a thud. Oh! I'm impressed. The roots are firm and I feel like I've done a good job.

"Yuta. I got it!"

"Cue."

"Shukaku."

"Coo."

I was so impressed that Bell and his friends were standing in line behind me before I knew it. I guess I was so impressed that I took too long. They hand me the oil leaves they have harvested, and I thank them one by one and pat them on the head. I thank them one by one and pat them on the head. After handing them over, they charge towards the oilleaf like they are ready to move on to the next one.

It's kind of inefficient, but it's only about a hundred shares, so it won't take long. I pick up the oilleaf from Bell and the others, and in between, I harvest the oilleaf myself.

It doesn't take too long, and the harvest is done. It's a little sad, but it's not like we're going to ship them, so the quantity should be enough.

"Cue. Cue cue.

"Hmm?　Rain, what's going on?"

Rain is complaining about something, but I can't make it out. Does he have telepathy skills or something?

"Rein wants to wash the vegetables..."

"Oh, you're going to wash the harvested oilleaf for me, aren't you? Thank you Lane."

I took out a rock and put the oil leaf on the rock, and Rain wrapped it in a ball of water. Oh, that's something amazing... the water ball is vibrating slightly?　　

Only the soil on the vegetables sinks neatly under the water ball. It looks like craftsmanship. When Rain squeals, the rocks are washed clean by the water. The washed oil leaf is placed on the clean rock. ......

Checking the oilleaf, I see that even the soil between the roots has been perfectly washed away and the oilleaf is shining. It looks delicious. How shall we eat it?

"Cue."

"Thank you, Rain. You've made it look cleaner and more delicious."

Rain's cheeks?　I rub my hands around the area around the eyes. This is Rain's favorite skinship these days. His sloppily open mouth is cute.

"You've really made it look delicious. You're the first to harvest here in the backcountry instead of in the shallows of the dead lands. You should be proud."

Sylphy's cool-beauty expression relaxes and she offers her compliments. It's a great achievement, but I'm not sure how I can be proud of it, since I only grew it in a desperate situation.

"I'm sure you're right. It is very difficult to grow plants in the land of the dead. Even with the help of the spirits, we should be proud of this achievement.

Even Dolly joined in. Then of course .......

"Yuta. That's great. My sister will give you lots of compliments.

I'm sure Deanne will be along for the ride. As she pats my head, I feel both the joy of having a beautiful woman near me and the humiliation of having Deanne pat my head. Every time, I have a hard time deciding whether to shake it off or accept it.

"Well, it's certainly something to be proud of. But wind, water, earth, plants. The place is quite well prepared. A precious place born in a dead land. Perhaps we can turn it into a sanctuary in time."

Even Nomos joined in and started talking nonsense. Isn't a sanctuary something great?

"Oh. That's nice. But if it's going to be a sanctuary, there's still a lot of things missing.

Sylphy is on board. Deanne and Dolly joined the conversation, and a serious discussion began at the Great Spirit.

"Hey, hey! What's a sanctuary? I don't know what it means.

I'm not talking about us. I'm not ready yet. I'll explain when I am. Yuta, you should cook the vegetables you've taken the trouble to get.

Nomos said this and returned to the discussion. I could hear some troublesome things in the overtone, such as getting a ball from the Spirit King and a little more forest area.

I get it. Now, something troublesome is going on, and I'm going to get involved sooner or later. The details sound scary, so I decide to taste the vegetables as much as I can, just like Nomos said.

Now, how should I eat them? I don't have granulated soup stock, but I'll just eat them simply in hot water with soy sauce. Or, since Rain has washed all the roots clean, should I fry them?　

I can eat komatsuna with its roots, but what about oilleaf?

"Dolly. I'm sorry to interrupt you, but just tell me if the roots of the oil leaf are edible."

"Roots?　It's not poisonous and you can eat it."

After saying that, he immediately returned to the discussion. Was it really that important?　I'm scared.

...... Well, whatever. Now we need to focus on the cooking. First, we need to prepare the roots. Carefully scrape off the fine beard-like bits with a survival knife. Then we just fry them with salt. That's easy.

If I had enough seasonings, I would make kinpira, but let's not be extravagant. The leaves are also boiled quickly and put a little soy sauce on them.

Boil water, add a little salt, and blanch the stems. The leaves are boiled quickly and done. The roots are also easily stir-fried with salt.　

"It's done!

Oil leaf boiled vegetables. Sauteed roots with salt. It's too easy and looks shabby, but it looks shiny to me now. The belles soon gather around, but the Great Spirits don't move.

"Hey, Sylphie. Hey, Sylphie. Hey, Sylphie... Dene... Nomos... Nomos... Dolly... We're about to harvest our first crop, and it's not a big one, but please share it with us.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, Yuta. Of course I'll take it.

Yuta's first vegetable. I'm so excited.

I'll take one too.

Hmm. "Bon appétit, Yuta-san."

Finally, we are all here, and we taste our first harvest. I thought dolphins and foxes would eat the vegetables, but they are spirits and it's a little late for that.

"Well, let's eat!

First of all, the leaves are blanched in hot water. The leaves are lightly blanched, so they have a crunchy texture and a unique vegetable flavor.

Hmmm. I don't think I like the taste that much, but my body seems to be happy to have the nutrients it lacked.

How about fried roots with salt?　Shak?　Gori?　It's more like burdock root or radish, with lots of fiber and a nice texture. Salty and crunchy. This is good.

"Yes. It's well done. Yuta. You did a good job.

YUTA. It's delicious!

"Yuta-san, the seasoning is simple, but the vegetables taste very good."

Sylphy, Dine and Dolly are pleased with the food, but the other spirits are not so sure. Nomos ate it up with a bite, thinking it wasn't a vegetable. The lower level spirits are .......

"I like fish better!"

Belle's pretty eyebrows are in the shape of a "C". I'm a little shocked.

"Cue."

Rain looks devastated. He was expecting a lot from me because I was so excited. My heart aches.

"Gai!"

Tulu simply frowns and tries his best to digest the vegetables. Sorry about that.

"Coo."

Do I have to eat the tamales?　He's looking at me like... It reminds me of a Chihuahua commercial.

I don't think it's well-received. Well, it's not a taste that kids like, so I guess it can't be helped, but I wonder if the spirits of the earth and the forest don't like vegetables either.

Haha. I guess it wasn't a hit with Belle and the others. I'll try to make more delicious food when we get to the town, you can count on it.　

"Pact."

Cue.

"Delicious food."

"Coo."

The lower class spirits are clinging to me, verbally confirming their promises. I pat them on the head, assuring them that I will keep my promise. For God's sake, I hope there is food in town that they like.

But I'm quite happy with the vegetables. Maybe I didn't have to work so hard to grow vegetables since we can go to the town if the expedition is successful, but it's all good because it's a result and it gives me emotional support...