Chapter 30 - Field Life
After that, I spent my days living as a hunter while also working in the fields.
Tilling the soil, spreading fertilizer, sowing seeds, and watering them. That was the gist of the busy work I did at first.
"Ah, they've sprouted!"
When I left the house early in the morning to check the field, I saw small green dots in the field.
Rushing over, I saw small sprouts that had popped their heads out from the soil.
Without caring about getting dirt on my knees, I knelt down and gazed at them from point-blank range, poking a sprout. It was a tiny sprout only a few centimeters long, but it was certainly a living thing.
Thinking that this was life that had sprouted from the field I made, I felt deeply moved. They really were growing.
It was just a Radish sprout growing from nothing but soil, but it seemed strangely adorable.
I had been skeptical about them being harvestable after twenty days, but at a pace where they germinated in two days, it must be true. If they grew at this rate, they would surely get big soon.
There wasn't particularly anything to do, but I went out of the house many times that day to gaze at the Radish sprouts.
Three days later. Around the time the Radish sprouts had grown even larger.
"Let's thin them out."
I felt terribly depressed when Flora told me to thin out the Radish sprouts.
Apparently, they wouldn't grow well otherwise.
I understood the logic, but this was life I had caused to sprout for the first time. It was painful to pluck them so soon.
Flora seemed to understand the feeling since she had gone through it herself, and she patted me on the back, but about three minutes later, she said with a smile, "Now, let's pull them out."
For a moment, Flora's smile looked like an ogre's, but since she had been doing field work for many years, she must have already come to terms with it.
It couldn't be helped because if I didn't pull them, the other sprouts would also go bad. Telling myself that, I pulled out the Radish sprouts.
Pulling out the sprouts I had doted on so much was quite hard to bear. It was the first time my heart had been worn down just by pulling out some plants.
By the time I had cleared a certain amount of space, quite a few Radish sprouts had been pulled out.
When I was grieving over it, Flora said the sprouts were also edible, so that day I grilled some meat and ate the sprouts as a side salad.
The Radish sprouts had a slightly crunchy stem and were juicy.
I thought the first thing I would harvest and eat would be the bulb part of the Radish, but I never thought I would end up eating the sprouts first.
Once a week had passed since sowing the seeds, the sprouts of the other vegetables came out one after another.
I took care of the field before going to the mountains, and I took care of the field after returning from the mountains. Until now, I only had to look at one thing, the Radish, but perhaps because that had quadrupled, I had become busy.
Of course, the types, growth speeds, and points of caution were different, so I had to pay attention to each of them. It was hard work.
Thinking about it, I thought Aisha and Ina, who managed and grew a vast vineyard even if it was just one type, were amazing. I could somewhat understand why Aisha found it troublesome.
After all, they had to care for each and every one of those many grapes, so the hardship must be no ordinary thing.
While I was taking care of the sprouted vegetables, weeding, and exterminating pests, the Radishes grew rapidly.
During that time, Flora made time to come over many times. I had gotten used to the Radishes, but I didn't know how to care for the other vegetables like carrots, snap peas, and Sheil, so I was very happy.
Of course, Flora herself was busy with things to do, but she still showed her face almost every day.
The way she showed her face every day and asked, "Are the vegetables growing?" must be because she, who grew them with me, also had an attachment to the vegetables.
Flora's tongue became smoother than usual when it came to vegetables, and her expressions became richer.
I decided that I would harvest the Radishes, which grew the fastest, with Flora and be the first ones to eat them together.
I was looking forward to the harvest time.
◆ ◆ ◆
"Hello, Aldo-san."
On a rest day with no hunting. While I was taking care of the vegetables, Flora came up from behind.
"Hello, Flora."
When I stood up and returned the greeting as usual, Flora was standing there with a happy face.
She wore a white blouse and a navy skirt; her clothing itself was the same as usual, but she held a basket in her hand, and perhaps because the sunlight had become stronger, she wore a straw hat on her head.
Exchanging greetings like this had become a matter of course between us.
Probably, because I called out like this every time I visited Elgis-san's house, Flora had imitated it.
Before, when I sensed Flora approaching and called out first, she had sulked considerably. Apparently, the person on the side doing the field work must not be the first to greet, even if they notice the other person.
Since I could sense her by her footsteps even from a considerable distance, it was itchy to wait until she got close, but since Flora looked happy when I did, I didn't feel bad about it.
It was a strange interaction, but I liked it now.
After exchanging smiles, Flora approached me as usual.
"How are the vegetables doing?"
"They're doing well. The Radishes' roots have gotten big, so isn't it almost harvest time?"
When I crouched down and pointed to the Radishes with large leaves at my feet, Flora also crouched down next to me to observe.
Suddenly, a sweet, soft fragrance wafted from her, making me feel a bit flustered.
I also frequently took baths using the same soap as Elgis-san's house, but I didn't have this kind of scent. Was this what they called a scent unique to women?
"Ah, you're right! With this, they can be harvested in another two or three days."
While I was thinking about such things, Flora said with an innocent smile.
"That's good."
My cheeks also loosened when I was told they could be harvested in two or three days.
There seemed to be no problems with the Radishes, and after this, they could be harvested even if left alone.
"They really can be harvested after twenty days."
Twenty-two days since planting the seeds. Even if the harvest was in three days, it would be twenty-five days until harvest. It was surprising that they could be harvested in such a short period.
Since I was planting seeds every week according to Flora's advice, those would also be harvestable next week. If this continued for a while, I would have all the Radishes I could take for the time being.
"It depends on the season and weather, but if the care is poor, it can sometimes take longer. The reason such healthy Radishes grew in such a short time is because your care was good, Aldo-san."
I see, it was true that if the rain continued, or they were eaten by pests, or if hilling was delayed, they wouldn't grow healthily.
"It's thanks to Flora caring about an inexperienced person like me and giving me detailed advice. Thank you."
If Flora hadn't shown her face many times to check on them or taught me by summarizing what could happen concisely, they probably wouldn't have grown safely this far.
"N-No. Not at all."
When I said my thanks with a smile, Flora's white cheeks turned red and she became flustered.
It seemed her shyness toward me had disappeared, but she remained as bashful as ever.
"Ah, more importantly, I brought a lunch today... would you like to have lunch together?"
As I watched the bashful Flora with a smile, she thrust the basket forward and looked up at me.
Indeed, the sun was already in the middle of the sky, so it was lunchtime. She must have made it while coming to see the state of the vegetables. I was also just getting hungry.
"Yeah, I'd love to. What should we do? Since it's a special lunch, shall we eat outside?"
It was a special lunch. It wouldn't be interesting and would be a waste to just eat in my house as usual.
When I asked, Flora smiled brightly.
"Let's go to the flower field!"
I might update one more chapter at 22:00.