Let's Make a Farm!
Having gathered gold apples and returned to the cabin, I found a hoe leaning against the back.
To tackle the long-term issue of food, I immediately started tilling the soil to grow vegetables.
"Here we go, here we go… Alright, this should be about the right size."
In no time, I tilled a plot about ten meters long and six meters wide, then made ridges about a meter wide for planting seeds.
I have no knowledge of farming.
In my previous life, I worked in IT, and most of my part-time jobs as a student were in restaurants, so I barely had any chance to touch soil.
Plus, in this world, there's no convenient tool like the internet, and there are no farming guides in the place I'm living now.
So, I was making the farm completely by trial and error.
I chose a spot next to the cabin that gets sunlight all day and has good airflow.
I pulled out weeds, removed small stones and sticky clay soil, and tilled repeatedly to create soft, fluffy soil.
The soil was slightly moist, and the drainage seemed decent, at least by my guess. So, I made five ridges and, after about an hour, completed the farm.
"For my first try, it's pretty good… maybe? But it's surprisingly fun."
Since I never interacted with nature before, farming is tough but unexpectedly enjoyable.
It might be because I don't tire no matter how much I swing the hoe, and my arms don't feel fatigued, but creating something from scratch like this is, indeed, pretty fun.
Then, I took out some plant seeds from my pocket that I'd found in the closet.
"Let's see… round seeds, teardrop-shaped seeds, star-shaped seeds, really flat seeds, and diamond-shaped seeds. Five types, perfect for one type per ridge."
Even looking at them closely, I can't tell what kind of vegetable seeds they are.
They seem vaguely familiar, yet not. But since I won't know until I plant and grow them, there's no point in overthinking it.
I sorted the seeds by shape and planted them, managing to plant all of them. I spaced them out roughly since I don't know the proper spacing, but as long as they're not too close, it should be fine.
"Now I need water… Oh, right, I don't have a bucket."
I searched inside the cabin, in the closet, and around the cabin, but I couldn't find a bucket for watering.
There's a pond nearby, so making a wooden bucket could be an option… It sounds interesting but also like a lot of work.
"Hmm, if only I could use water magic or something. Like, 'Water!' and then enough water for watering would—"
As I thrust out my hand and...
Suddenly, a droplet of water fell at my feet.
"W-what!?"
Looking up, water was pouring from my outstretched palm, wetting the farm's soil like a shower.
It was versatile—when I focused on increasing the force, it came out like water from a pinched hose; when I softened it, it turned into a mist.
It seems I was unconsciously able to use magic.
"Amazing…! So this is magic. Then maybe… Hah!"
Wondering if I could produce something powerful like a water jet for hunting, I pictured it in my mind and focused. (T/N: ウォータージェット, a high-pressure water-cutting tool, therefore a water jet!)
But the water only reached the pressure of a pinched hose. No matter how far I tried to shoot it or how much I tried to produce, I could only manage the amount you'd get from a typical hose.
"I thought if I could use water like a jet, I could hunt with it… But this magic should solve the water problem. Still, doesn't magic use mana or something? How much mana do I have…?"
I kept using water magic to wet the farm's soil for a while, but my body felt no different.
In isekai stories, overusing mana often leads to physical strain or even death, but no matter how much water I produced, my body showed no changes.
I didn't feel my mana depleting or get sick. It's a strange sensation.
"If I can use water magic… maybe… Fire!"
Following the same process as with water, I tried fire magic, and a flame the size of a lighter's flickered at my fingertip.
Like the water, I could make it as strong as a lighter's maximum flame, but I couldn't shape it into a ball or use it for attacks.
"…It's like I can use the bare minimum magic for daily life. Still, it's way better than nothing."
Honestly, I wanted to try some grand, powerful magic, but that's not necessary for a slow life.
The god probably gave me just the minimum magic I needed, understanding my wishes.
Too much power can corrupt, so this balance is a nice adjustment.
"Yeah, yeah. It's not isekai without magic—wait, whoa!?"
I hadn't noticed while experimenting with fire magic, but only a few minutes after watering the farm, tiny, cute green sprouts were poking out from where I planted the seeds.
All the seeds were growing similarly, and upon closer inspection, they were steadily getting bigger, showing astonishingly rapid growth.
"As expected of an isekai… I should stop expecting my old world's common sense to apply. Uh, what now? For now, I'll stick some branches next to the sprouts."
I stuck fifty-centimeter-long branches, collected on my way back with the gold apples, next to the young sprouts.
I don't know why. I just remember farming shows on TV where farmers put stakes next to sprouts, so I'm doing it without understanding the reason.
I don't get it, but the old farmers did it, so there must be some benefit. I want to believe that.
◆
In my second life, I was facing my first night.
I'm lying on the bed inside the cabin.
Thanks to airing it out for over half a day, the bed is fluffy and no longer musty. It's still a bit dirty, so I should wash it eventually, but it's good enough to sleep on for now.
I completed the farm today, but there's still so much to do in this world.
I want to expand and improve the farm. There's a decently large pond nearby, so there might be fish, and I'd like to try fishing.
Eating only gold apples and vegetables will get old, so I'll need meat. That means practicing with the bow to hunt eventually.
It's unclear if animals live around here, but making traps could be fun.
But the absence of insects is a mystery. There are no birds in the sky, and the forest shows no signs of animals disturbing it.
It's like a forest isolated from the world. Maybe I've wandered into a strange place.
"But it's surprisingly fun."
It's only the first day, but I feel oddly fulfilled.
My previous world was so stifling.
Blending into crowds, always mindful of others' eyes, forcing fake smiles despite boredom, being excluded.
If an incident happened, it'd be exposed on SNS (Social Networking Services). If a scandal occurred, it'd be exposed on SNS. Even when someone died, it'd be exposed on SNS.
In a world hijacked by a rectangular slab called a smartphone, Japan turned phone cameras into gun barrels aimed at each other. A single mistake could shatter someone's life as fodder for outrage.
A world full of lies and deceit. Helping others was labeled hypocrisy, and doing anything different marked you as abnormal, ruled by conformity pressure.
Just thinking about it is exhausting. It makes me nauseous.
Remembering it makes me want to cry. Makes me want to die.
That's why people yearn for isekai reincarnation or isekai transfer, a convenient fantasy where you can live freely as yourself.
Wanting to be a hero or a savior is ultimately about being genuinely thanked and fulfilling your need for validation. Feeling good about yourself is enough.
I'm the same. I want that too.
But when you're so exhausted you can't even think about that anymore,
You just want to live quietly, alone, in a peaceful place. Undisturbed, unresented, living tranquil days.
That's what I end up thinking.