180 - - Episode 178 Please

I have completed the table on which the magic wand will be placed. All that remains is to go to Nomos to receive the wand and we are ready. We are ready to welcome the spirit of fire.

When I returned to the distillery, Nomos had already begun distilling. Not only Dine but Dolly has joined him and is staring at the distiller. The passion of the Great Spirits for alcohol is clearly evident in their eyes, and for some reason it makes me sad.

"Ah, Nomos, have you finished modifying the magic wand?"

"Hmm?　Yuta. Well then... I made it so that if you hold the wand and use the seed fire of life magic, it will be lit, so even Yuta can use it. It's a big fire, so be careful not to burn yourself.

"That's very helpful, thank you nomos. Once the seed fire is started, can I leave it alone and it will not go out?

"Hmm?　Yes, that's right. The fire will remain lit until the power of the magic stone is exhausted. If you want to extinguish it, just remove the magic stone and it will go out.

...... your attention is completely focused on the distiller. Even when you're facing me, you're glancing at the distiller as if it's bothering you. It's like a boy in puberty who is glancing at the girl he likes because he is curious about her. Awkward. If it weren't for the booze and the bearded dwarf.

Dineh, who usually joins in the conversation, and Dolly, who is looking at me with a gentle smile, are also looking at the distiller. Oh, Sylphy, who was supposed to be by my side, is by the distiller. .......

If you have the talent of a spiritist, and can get the best wine in the world, it would be relatively easy to make a contract with the Great Spirit.　It seems to me that alcohol would be more effective than rituals.

If you keep asking questions to Nomos here, he will just think you are a guy who can't read the air. In Kyoto, ochazuke (rice with green tea) would have been a good choice. The problem is Sylphy who is staring at the distiller...but it's safe enough for him to act alone... He was disappointed that he couldn't be involved in the last distillation. I thank Nomos and quietly leave the distillery.

You return to the pedestal with your modified magic wand. Yes, looking at the pedestal again, it seems too simple. I should really make a stone statue of it. He inserts the wand into the hole in the pedestal and performs a seed fire life spell with the wand in his hand.

"Atsu!"

As soon as the seed fire was used, a huge fire lit up on the wand. Are your bangs scorched?　The fire was bigger than I had expected, even though I had followed Nomos' instructions to keep my body away from the fire. In a way, it was defective.

I step down from the cobblestones and check its appearance from a distance. Well, this is something, but I still feel a little sad. I'll ask Marie to introduce me to a craftsman next time.

The flame coming out of the magic wand looks like a flame or a candle flame. The size of the fire is quite large, about 1 meter 50 centimeters long and 1 meter wide.

......It's kind of cool, but I'm sad that I don't have anyone around to share my thoughts on it. I knew I should have asked Sylphy to follow me.

The sun is getting high in the sky and it's almost time for lunch. Sylphy and the others probably won't leave the distiller even if I tell them it's lunchtime, so I'll leave them alone. Sara and the others have probably finished guiding Gina, so they are probably training at their usual place...

"Okay, Tamamo, if the pumpkins and burdocks in the field are ready to eat, move to the right, or to the left if you still want to wait."

When I went to the training site, I found Bell, Gina, and the others practicing communication. Now Tamamo is happily moving to the right in response to Gina's question.

Is it time to eat that pumpkin and burdock? I mean, I didn't know what kind of vegetable one of them was, but it turned out to be a burdock. Hmmm, pumpkins and burdocks. ...... How should I eat them?

I'm not confident that I can make simmered or kinpira well, and the only thing I can think of is grilled or steamed pumpkin. Oh, burdock and pumpkin are good for tempura, I'll try tempura.

If I harvest tomorrow, I'm planning to grow a lawn and move the field from the center block to the next block, just in time. We can't harvest the tomatoes yet, but we'll make do with Tulu and Tamamo.

"Oh, Yoo-tah!"

Belle notices me and rushes toward me, and then she falls into my arms with a thud.

"Hi?　Dinner?"

She looks up at me with her big eyes and asks if it's time for dinner. A little later, Rain, Tulu and Tamamo flew in and asked me if it was time for dinner.　Dinner?　They make a fuss. You still love to eat. It's a blessing to be able to look forward to every meal so much.

"Yes, it's time to eat."

While I was admiring the happy belles, Gina and the others came over to me.

"Master, are you finished with the preparations?"

"Yes, I'm done. Did Sara guide Gina well?

"Yes, we went to all the places except for the place where the ball rabbits are." "I explained about the rice fields." "We also walked around the forest!

Not only Sarah, but also Marco and Kikka told us what they had done. It seems that we were able to show them around the base without a hitch.

"Gina, how was your walk through?　Do you think you could live here?"

"Oh, great!　I had heard that the land of the dead is a really dead land with nothing but spirit trees, forests and springs... I thought I was dreaming. You are a great master!　I miss the lack of people, but other than that, I don't have any problems."

They stare at me with their eyes that sparkle so much. I'm a little embarrassed to be stared at by a beautiful woman, notwithstanding her tone of voice. But it's okay if I can live without any problems. Now I just have to see if I can survive the battle against the undead.

"I'm glad to hear your compliments. I'm going to continue to develop this place, and I'd appreciate it if you could help me.

"I don't know what I can do, but if there is anything I can do to help, I will try."

Thank you Gina, it's nice to meet you. Well, I guess it's time for lunch.

I head for home with Gina and the others, equipped with bells that are clinging to me for food.

"Master, it's burning!" Wow ""......"""Master, the fire is out!""

Gina and the others are amazed to see my masterpiece in front of them. The belles are so curious that they fly up to the fire and observe it happily as they fly around it. I'm sure I won't get burned because I'm a spirit, but it's not heartbreaking from a pictorial point of view.　

"I built that for a place for the fire spirit to stay. The fire is burning all the time so that the fire spirit can stay in this place calmly. Be careful not to burn yourself. I'll ask the fire spirit to come after lunch, and Gina will be able to make a contract with him in the afternoon.

"I see, I'm going to have a partner like Sarah and the others. I'm so excited!

Gina, it's good that you're willing to make a contract with a spirit, but "partner" ...... isn't wrong, but I question your choice of words. But if I think about what is the right word,...... family,...... friends,...... what?　I can't see the right answer. It's harder than I thought.

"Well, I'm sure Sylphy will bring a girl who seems to be a good match for you, so I'm sure you'll get along well with her. I'll explain about the contract with the spirits over lunch.

At my mention of lunch, the belles who had flown away came back, so we reequipped ourselves and headed back home.

**

"Speaking of which, would Belle and the others be happy if I made a contract with a lowly fire spirit?"

We enjoy our lunch while explaining to Gina about the spirit contract and chiding the children who are getting excited about the wai-burn katsu. I remember something important and ask Belle and the others about it.

"I'm so happy to have more friends!" "I'm so happy!

Apparently, he's happy. I expected this kind of reaction from him, but it was to be expected.

"Well, I'll ask Sylphy to bring a lower class spirit to make a contract with me.

This means there will be three new members in the Fountain House. Bell and his friends are happy to have new friends. Fuchu and the others are happy to have more floating spirits. I'm sure Sarah and the other contracted spirits will join them eventually, and the house will become more and more crowded.

After a lively lunch, we all head for the distillery. I ask Sylphy to bring the fire spirit to the distillery, but what if he doesn't want to leave the distiller? Can we do it tomorrow?

"Master, what does this distillery do?　Sarah and the others explained it to me, but I didn't really understand it."

As we approach the distillery, Gina asks about distilling. As expected, Sarah and the others did not seem to know much about distilling. I took the opportunity to explain it to them.

"Wow, you can get a strong spirit from distillation in such a way? Does it taste good?"

"Well, Dineh liked it, but I'm not a fan of freshly distilled liquor. I like it when it's aged in the barrel."

"Well, adventurers will be happy to hear that it's strong and tasty, but if it takes that much effort, it's not something you can serve in a diner. It's a pity."

Whiskey for adventurers...they sure seem to like it. I have a feeling there will be a lot of adventurers who get drunk and go wild, though.

"Maybe the spirits will drink it all, so it won't be out there until we can produce it in large quantities."

...... in the first place, Sylphy and his friends would rather drink it than sell it. If we can make good sake, I'd like to wholesale a few barrels to Marie and ask her about her reputation, but can we get it?　It would be fun to spread the distillation method and create delicious sake in various places.

Gina is convinced that this is a problem before the price. Perhaps because she had seen three barrels emptied in the morning, she easily agreed with me.

When we entered the distillery, the spirits were discussing various things while looking at the distillers. They seemed to be having a lot of fun, discussing the pace of distillation, how much to distill, how many times to distill, and so on.

They are also thinking about what kind of wood to use for the barrels, how to scorch the inside of the barrels, and how to act based on what I have told them. It's hard to talk to him. I stare at them for a while, but I don't think they'll notice me at this point. I make up my mind to talk to him.

"Sylphy, may I?"

"Oh, Yuta, it's okay, what's wrong?"

What's wrong with you?　He asks me. Normally Shirphy would have known most of the things without me saying anything, but she is completely absorbed in her drinking.

"Yeah, we're ready to go, and I'd like you to bring a spirit that Gina and I can contract with.　Also, I heard that Belle and her friends would be happy to have more friends, so it would be great if you could bring some lower level spirits as well."

"Oh, that's right. ......"

Sylphy glances at the distiller. I wait for an answer with bated breath. I'm ...... subtly nervous.

"Okay. I'm off then.

Sylphy nods easily. I'm a little relieved.

"I'm sorry I'm in the middle of distilling.

I apologized, and Sylphy smiled bitterly and waved me off, saying she would be right back. Maybe I should have delayed the call for the fire spirit to come to me after all.　Well, I think I made a bad choice to be a considerate man.