Chapter 670: Service
“…”
For some reason, Haulon is utterly dejected.
“About the sweetness of the fruits we’re ultimately aiming for, since you’ll be satisfied with just a little, I’m thinking it might be better to go in the direction of making them special gifts and giving them scarcity value.”
I think Japanese fruits are too sweet to just gorge on.
After coming to this world, among the fruits meant for processing that are bland or sour, when I occasionally come across something really “Delicious!”, I get the urge to eat my fill. But Japanese fruits aren’t like that.
“…”
With his head down, Haulon’s shoulders are trembling.
“Yeah, sweet fruits are quite a shock, aren’t they?”
I get it. The sour apples and stuff here were a shock to me too.
“…But it’s a shock… even so…”
A voice escapes from Haulon, whose expression I can’t see.
“Hmm?”
What’s a shock? The sweetness?
“Even the watermelon was a shock, so don’t you dare bring out even stranger fruits!!! Think about doing things in stages!!!!”
Haulon jerks his face up, glares at me, and shouts.
“The watermelon is even sweeter, you know. It’s in the fruit platter, so go ahead.”
Lycopene, an abundant nutrient in watermelons and tomatoes, is extremely effective against the active oxygen that promotes melanin production. This watermelon, with its dramatically expanded red area, is highly recommended for deserts with strong sunlight.
The watermelons here, when you cut them, have far more white parts—or rather, while some are a little red, they’re mostly pale yellow or white, making you feel like, ah, watermelons really are gourds. Lycopene is a type of red pigment, you see!
Also, yellow watermelons are apparently yellow due to xanthophyll, a yellow pigment. This also has antioxidant properties and cuts out the harmful blue light in ultraviolet rays, so it’s said to be good for recovering from eye fatigue and preventing eye diseases like cataracts.
Though, there are no yellow watermelons in the “Food Storage”.
“Your stages are skipping more than the Giant’s Stairway!! Match the pace of ordinary humans more!!!”
Haulon shouts.
“I thought it would be fine with you, Haulon.”
Though I do sometimes worry a little about his blood vessels, I had a Spirit discreetly check, and it seems his blood vessels are softer than Dean-san’s, so there’s no problem.
Well, even if he collapses, there’s [Healing]. If he collapses right in front of me, I can heal him, and then maybe I won’t have to worry about his health afterwards.
“It’s not fine! Be gentler with me!!!”
“That’s where you, as the Great Sage, have to do your best! Research, research the culture of another world.”
“Uuuu…”
Haulon, you’re weak to the word “research,” aren’t you?
Among everyone I know, Haulon is the best at understanding my stories, adapting them to this world, and spreading them. Please give up.
Retze and the others also understand what I say, and if I consult them, they’ll think about various things, but I’m ultimately the one who has to spread them. If it’s Haulon, he’ll spread them, and on top of that, he seems like he’d create things tailored to the residents’ needs.
I want to spread various things, but I’m a little uneasy about whether the Japanese things I think are good will actually fit the lifestyle and culture here.
The long-standing history and customs, as well as the terrain and climate, will probably have an influence too. Just looking around a little, there are so many things I don’t understand.
Moreover, here there’s also the influence of Spirits. Things that I would have dismissed as ridiculous theories when I was in Japan can become “true things” because of Spirits. And it’s common for that to only be the case in the region where that specific Spirit resides!
Truthfully, it’s probably better to spread things slowly, in stages, like Haulon says, but the world is probably stagnating in some way. That’s likely why Shulm performed the Hero summoning.
And I have a feeling that whatever is stagnating is separate from the balance between Spirits and matter.
If some entity somewhere thinks, “This is wrong,” or “Not again,” they might erase the powerful Spirits that shape the world, or the civilizations of the Material Realm, or both, and it’s like a do-over, though not exactly starting from scratch.
It’d be fine if I’m just overthinking it, but I can’t help but feel that civilizations are collapsing too abruptly. There are probably cases of being caught up in accidents caused by a reversed “King’s Branch” or Spirits that became too powerful.
Considering the reactions of the people from Mail, it makes me wonder if the “King’s Branch” and other powerful Spirits aren’t being guided to go mad?
I’m a little uneasy about building the same country as the Fire Country that was destroyed once…? Since I was summoned and told to increase various things, I’d like Karn’s Country to please head in that direction as well.
That’s why, Haulon, do your best!
I speak to Haulon in my mind as he tearfully bites into the watermelon.
“For now, please take it easy and regain your strength.”
“Don’t think I can take it easy with this.”
“Shall I call Spirit Note for service?”
“I’ll be even less able to take it easy, so stop it!”
“Would the real Note be better?”
“You’re just casually dragging him into this!? He probably wouldn’t shout, but he’d just freeze up mentally, you know!?”
It seems it’s no good.