Chapter 270 - Chapter 239: Sweee-t Time
"Thanks."
"~~~♪"
The ripened vegetables were harvested carefully.
With the help of the Fairies, who swiftly pulled out weeds and watered the plants, the field work was done in no time.
"~~~♪"
"No, Sweee, you just watched."
I couldn't help but retort to Sweee's smug face, and the mischievous queen replied with a tehepero.
[Kiral]: "Good setup, good punchline, and a tehepero."
[Satener]: "The Queen is just so cute~♪"
[Manen]: "She can even play the fool... Impressive w."
[Shakeena]: "Saved it 1,000,000 times~♪"
etcetc...
Sweee really is popular.
She's mischievous and charming, and she never does anything genuinely unpleasant, so it's no surprise, I guess.
Shou-kun, rewards for the Fairies.
"Okay. How about some snacks?"
"~~~!"
We sat in our usual spot in the shade of a tree, and Lupi settled into her usual place on my lap.
From my inventory, I first pulled out some blue warabi mochi.
[Utagete]: "Ooh? What's that?"
[Jont]: "It's warabi mochi."
[Nireno]: "Huh, but it's blue..."
[Master Chef]: "Oh, that's... impressive."
etcetc...
"Um, warabi mochi is correct. It's made from potato starch extracted from Odapra. The topping is Glycine kinako, and this blue syrup is made by simmering Sky Sugar from Bluegaris."
It looks incredibly delicious.
The Fairies' gazes were intense, so it was about time...
"Here you go. Thanks for your help."
"~~~!"
[Shakeena]: "So calming~♪"
[Messerin]: "The island really is a source of healing~"
[Subrock]: "Nice! I've gotta try making that soon!"
[Daytron]: "
etcetc...
Huh? Sweee... it's unusual for her to just sit on my shoulder and wait. She usually rushes to eat first.
"Sweee, aren't you going to eat?"
"~~~♪"
She gestured with her palm up, come here, come here.
Ugh... she noticed the new item.
"I made the blue warabi mochi a little while ago, but this is what I made today."
I pulled out green warabi mochi, kneaded with Greenberry Fruit jam. This one didn't have the blue syrup yet.
"Queen, please try it plain first."
"~~~♪"
She took a small piece and popped it in her mouth...
Yeah, I can tell it's delicious from that face.
"Woof!"
"Yes, Lupi, you too."
[Turban]: "Is that green stuff jam?"
[Master Chef]: "Greenberry Jam, perhaps?"
[Linley]: "Wow..."
[Garisone]: "We got the Queen's ecstatic face~"
etcetc...
It looks delicious...
"Greenberries don't actually exist in real life, though. But I guess it tastes like a slightly tart wild strawberry jam?"
The tartness of the Greenberry Fruit fades moderately when cooked, so it's delicious enough that I'd want to eat it on toast even plain.
"~~~!"
"Yes, yes. But not too much blue syrup."
I drizzled a small amount onto the edge of the plate, to her preferred quantity, and she dabbed at it a few times before taking a bite...
It makes me happy to see her eat so deliciously.
Ugh...
[Honsho]: "Mion-chan's gonna explode, lol?"
[Gafugafu]: "Oh no, oh no!"
[Shakeena]: "You have to make some for Mion-chan too, you know (grinning)."
[Mii]: "Is the island's Goddess angry?"
etcetc...
It's fine, I'll make it with him next time!
Alright, alright. I'll "explode"...
.........
......
...
After snacks, I started making a wheelbarrow.
Lupi didn't seem to mind the sawing and hammering, relaxing beside me.
Sweee and the Fairies didn't seem interested in that, happily flitting around the flowers and fields.
We were taking it at a leisurely pace, so I decided to take questions while I cut the lumber to size.
I'm making a simple one, like a ladder with a wheel on one end and handles on the other.
Beyond that, I'll need guides to keep the load from sliding off and support legs for parking.
Shou-kun, your first question: "Tell me about pepper."
"Ah, hmm, do I have any right now...?"
I vaguely remembered having some Perilsense Fruit left in my inventory... I found it!
"This is it."
[Perilsense Fruit]
*Perilsense Fruit. The processing method differs depending on whether it's ripe or unripe, but in either case, it becomes a spicy seasoning.
Material Processing: Raw material for spices.*
[Galeso]: "Pepper fruit!"
[Donden]: "Where did it grow?"
[Imanity]: "Worth its weight in gold! (There's no currency on the island!)"
[Master Chef]: "Did you make the White Pepper yourself?"
etcetc...
I was surprised as the comments, which had been in a relaxed mood, suddenly started flooding in.
"Uh, it was on the south side of the island. There were red berries on a vine wrapped around a tree. I wondered why I hadn't noticed it before."
You probably found it because you have the Botany skill, Shou-kun.
"That's right, it might be thanks to that. But I think if you look carefully for red berries, you'll find them."
The comments were turning into "It might be over there," "No, it's this way," and so on, but I'll leave that to them.
I guess because I explained it in more detail to Bell-buchou and Nat, they seemed to find it quite easily. No, Dimaria-san probably has the Botany skill.
You made the White Pepper yourself, right?
"Yeah. I looked it up a bit in the real world, and it said you should soak it in water and then remove the pulp. I tried it, and it worked out."
Thanks to that, I could use the ripened red fruits too, which was great... wait?
Is it true that only Black Pepper is available on the mainland? My [Appraisal] results said 'before and after ripening,' so I wonder if that's related to the Botany or Material Processing skills.
While cutting the wood, I answered several questions — mostly about cooking.
Once the basic frame was assembled, I dry-fitted it to confirm there were no issues with balance or size.
I paused the questions for a moment and quickly fixed it with nails.
"Alright. All that's left are the wheels and axle."
[Susugi]: "It's taking shape!"
[Galeso]: "Looks fun. Maybe I should get Woodcraft too..."
[T.S.]: "Is Woodcraft the recommended production skill?"
[Doumin]: "What level is your Woodcraft skill?"
etcetc...
"I think my Woodcraft skill is level 9 now. Wooden boxes, chairs, handles for various tools, and even the loft bed. It's a lot of fun, so I recommend it if you're into production skills."
In terms of usefulness, Material Processing is the best, but on the mainland, NPCs can do that for you anyway.
Will you finish it during the livestream?
"Hmm, just barely, I think? It'd be great if I could even do a test run."
Making the axle and wheels round is the hardest part.
Well, if I work hard on sanding, I think I can make a good one...