NOVEL WEB Chapter 222.1
Chapter 222.1. Magical Plants
Hana, the head of the agriculture department, stretched her arms up high. Feeling a bit tired, she moved her body, counting, “One, two, three, four.”
She no longer felt the intense heat. The wind, no longer carrying the heat, felt cool against her cheeks, making the recent days much more comfortable.
Just a bit more of August left. It seems the lingering heat this year won’t be too harsh. Raising her hands again, she stretched and looked around.
“Ah, no matter how many times I see them, magical plants always feel mysterious.”
She murmured in a relaxed tone as she gazed at the scenery before her.
This was the northeastern district of the Amatsugahara Corporation. Once a vast plain covered with lush greenery, it had now turned into a large agricultural area with abundant crops being harvested.
Recently, they started growing [Balloon Flowers]. These flowers were blooming all over, covering the entire field. Each flower could generate a gentle breeze around it, causing the field to be constantly swayed by these winds.
Moreover, as the breezes collided, the flowers swayed erratically, and petals scattered, dancing in the air, creating a mysterious, fantastical scene.
These flowers hardly ever wilt, so the breezes never cease, and the petals never fall to the ground.
If one were to dance among the swirling petals in this flower field, they might feel as if they had become a fairy. Such a mischievous thought crossed Hana’s mind. After all, she was a girl too, prone to such daydreams.
But these flowers were for sale. So, she couldn’t just trample them for fun. They would turn into today’s dinner money and savings for tomorrow.
So, with a cute smile, Hana called out.
“Mitoko-chan! No playing in the flower field!”
She warned the girl who was spinning and dancing joyfully in the flower field.
This petal-dancing flower field, much to her dismay, was extremely popular with the children. Hana understood because she was once a child herself. It was only natural for a girl to want to dance in such a field at least once.
That’s why the field was closely monitored. One reason was to keep the children out. If they sneaked in, they would get scolded harshly, but that only made the field an enticing playground for them, where they could prove their bravery by entering undetected by the adults. This could be exhausting.
Just like now.
“Hah, huh, this flower field is fitting for the most beautiful girl, Mitoko. Behold, this elegant dance. If you witness Mitoko’s dance, you’ll be so captivated that you’ll sit and watch until it’s over, without even thinking of stopping it—hebu!”
Her dance in the flower field, as she claimed, was indeed skillful. Her side-tail bounced as she extended her arms and floated with light steps, dancing like a fairy, her small frame adding to her cuteness.
But her feet crushed the flowers, and eventually, she tripped over one, falling. She rolled over, creating gaps among the blooming flowers. The carefully nurtured flowers were ruined.
This was a moment that called for anger. Hana walked over, grabbed Mitoko by the collar, and lifted her up. With Hana’s high stats, Mitoko was as light as a feather.
“Geez! How many times do I have to scold you? Should I make you skip dinner today?”
“My achievement value wasn’t enough. I should level up my Sage skills. I’ll make the GM calculate everything based on Sage level and force them to accept it.”
“We’re having curry today, though.”
Hana brought her face close to Mitoko’s, pretending to be angry at her nonsensical excuse. But it seemed Hana’s face wasn’t scary enough, so she deliberately made an angry face, going “Mmmm.”
Realizing that Hana was genuinely angry, Mitoko flapped her hands in a panic.
“It’s okay! The crushed flowers were scheduled to be harvested today. These will be used to extract the essence, so it doesn’t matter if they’re crushed. Mitoko considered everything properly. Will there be potatoes in the curry? Oh, rice is better than naan.”
“If you work hard, maybe. Come on, let’s do it.”
Hana let go of her and playfully flicked her forehead as punishment. With a soft sound, Mitoko held her forehead, crouching down, saying it hurt, but it shouldn’t have hurt that much. Hana then directed her to pick the flowers.
“Hana-chan, it’s about time to start harvesting!”
One of the people who had been watching them called out with a laugh in their voice, so Hana bowed her head repeatedly.
“Thank you. Let’s give it our all today too.”
“Yeah!”
“There are so many flowers!”
“It’s work, you guys!”
With a cheer of “Let’s go!”, they raised their hands and began harvesting the flowers. Indeed, as Mitoko said, extracting the essence from the flowers meant it was okay if they were crushed, but they had to be careful to only take the petals.
Picking the flowers stirred a slight sense of guilt. But it was part of the job. Interestingly, once the flowers were picked, the plant would wither within a few hours. That was probably part of what made them magical plants.
“Let’s harvest them. Hum, hum, hum~”
Next to her, Mitoko hummed a cute little tune as she picked the flowers. The girl, who had beautiful, shiny blonde hair tied in a side-tail, had recently traveled all the way to Amatsugahara Corporation. Her sparkling blue eyes were enviable.