Go Get 'Em, Son!

"Fighting, son!"

Under the pale morning sun beating down, I could only step out of our cozy home with my mother's thunderous cheer ringing in my ears.

……School was upon me.

Clunk—

I'd slipped out through the front gate before dawn. The late-summer heat was at its fiercest, yet something felt distinctly different today. Was it because I was wearing a school uniform instead of my usual workout clothes?

"Ji-on!"

Just as I was slipping out of the yard, my mother came rushing over and pressed something into my hands.

"You nearly forgot your tie."

Ah, so this counted as part of the uniform too. In Seo Ji-on's memories, school uniforms had always seemed like comfortable, everyday wear—but to me, this was an unfamiliar get-up, and an uncomfortable one at that. Why on earth would children at the age of running wild need easily torn trousers and a noose for their necks?

My backpack felt heavy. Warm, too.

……I reached into the bag and grabbed the back of Bong-gu's neck.

"Oh my, Bong-gu! Why are you in there?"

"Kyoo……." (I want to come too.)

My mother, unable to understand a word of Bong-gu's speech, simply cooed at how adorable he was and stroked his head.

As for you, you'd better guard the field well.

Nothing could be allowed to happen to the crops while I was gone.

"Father will look after the fields just fine, won't he?"

"Your grandfather's been helping out nonstop, so don't you worry about a thing. Off you go."

Grandfather had wrapped up his zucchini harvest remarkably quickly. Apparently he'd been hovering over Father's shoulder, teaching him this and that—while also mulling over things like sweet potato packaging and promotional slogans for the farm. Well, I had no choice but to trust the two of them to handle it.

"Fighting, son!"

With my mother's voice fading behind me, I headed for the bus stop.

It was my first time riding a bus, and it was crowded. Very crowded. Between students heading to school and everyone else bound for town, it seemed the entire route's population had crammed itself aboard. I barely escaped the sweat-scented, swaying bus and arrived at the school gate.

The kids passing through it giggled and chattered, the very picture of peace. No matter where I looked down the street, not a single person bore the gaunt frame of long hunger. Everyone was plump, healthy, and full of life. I drew a breath and passed through the gate toward the building.

My destination was the teachers' ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠office.

Knock knock—

At my rap on the closed door, someone inside opened it and spoke.

"You could've just come in, you know."

A neatly dressed woman. She appeared to be a teacher here. She studied me for a moment, then seemed to realize something and greeted me warmly.

"Oh my, a new face. You must be the student who was supposed to transfer in today?"

Seo Ji-on had moved to the countryside last month—that is, during summer vacation. Which meant that as of today, I was officially a transfer student at this school.

"Yes. I'm Seo Ji-on."

At my brisk answer, the teacher smiled, told me to wait a moment, and disappeared inside—only to reappear shortly after with the class roster in hand.

"I checked, and Ji-on, you're in Class 4 of the second year. That's my homeroom. I'm Park Ye-ji—looking forward to having you."

"Thank you. I look forward to it as well."

"Quite the composed one, aren't you? It's assembly time now—shall we head up together?"

I followed the teacher up the stairs. Class 4 of the second year was on the third floor, and the whole way up, I kept my eyes open.

From kids racing up the stairwell to those strolling the halls with laughter, along with a handful of teachers—one and all, mana flowed around them. For now, everyone seemed to carry the same blunt, lumpy current of mana, but with practice, I'd eventually be able to discern how each individual's flow differed from the next.

While I was occupied with observation, we arrived at the classroom. When the teacher opened the front door and stepped in, the students quieted somewhat. The din that had been audible clear out in the hallway fell to a hush—or at least, what counted as hushed around here.

"Alright, everyone. We have a new student joining us today."

Setting the roster on the lectern, the teacher introduced me. In an instant, every pair of eyes swung my way.

"A transfer student?"

"Where'd he come from?"

"Holy crap……. He's stupidly handsome."

I can hear every one of your whispers, you know.

I cleared my throat a few times and spoke up.

"Hi. I'm Seo Ji-on. I moved to Jakgol-ri last month. Looking forward to being classmates."

The moment my introduction ended, applause broke out.

"Want to take the empty seat at the back for now? We'll switch seats after class today."

"Waaa!"

The class cheered at the teacher's announcement. Was changing seats really that exciting?

A little later, the teacher wrapped up the assembly and left the classroom.

"Where'd you move from?!"

"What are your hobbies?"

"I'm Kang Ji-hye!!"

"Me too—my name's……!"

The kids swarmed me like a pack of puppies.

"Escaping that scrum was honestly harder than anything else, you know."

Wearing work gloves, I was gripping the dirt and twisting each root free of its foliage, one hearty yank at a time. The fundamentals of weeding: hands moving deftly, with no wasted motion.

Because every crop grown on Mana Land grew at breakneck speed, the weeds did too. I grumbled as I plucked away at them, and Grandpa Choi, seated across from me pulling weeds alongside me, replied with practiced diplomacy.

"Kids these days are all like that, aren't they? You're the odd one, if anything."

Kids these days…… Compared to them, of course I seemed odd. How could I not? My manner of speech, my whole way of thinking—no way did I resemble those giddy little gudgeons.

School life had been even more chaotic than I'd expected. The kids who'd swarmed me after assembly scattered to their seats once class began, and I'd barely breathed a sigh of relief before they came charging back the instant the bell rang. Several of them had even invited me to eat lunch together.

Amid the milling crowd, I'd tried to train myself in reading mana currents by glancing this way and that—until my head nearly split open. Analyzing multiple people's mana at once was apparently still beyond me. This body needed a while longer to grow accustomed to mana.

I was dreading the thought of dragging my exhausted self onto another crowded bus home, but somehow Jang Woo-jin appeared right on cue to pick me up. You can imagine my surprise at the sight of a black sedan ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠parked before the school gate at dismissal hour, when it was packed with students.

Truthfully, I was a little glad to see it.

"It's still an adjustment, though," I said, idly patting the quiet patch of dirt at my feet. And there—bumping up from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the soil—were the carrot tops.

……Wait, aren't these a bit big? No—a lot big, actually. The circumference of those leafy crowns looked to be about the thickness of my own leg.

Sure enough, they were ready to harvest. Could this muscle-deficient Grandpa Choi actually pull something like that out of the ground? Was there any lightweight spell I could cast right now?

Just as I was racking my brain—

"Chairman, allow me to lend a hand!"

Jang Woo-jin had already rolled up his sleeves behind me. In a truly interesting ensemble.

"Khhm…… hahaha! It suits you splendidly."

Grandpa Choi couldn't hold back his laughter. The reactions were unanimous. I asked, as delicately as I could manage.

"You didn't dress this way on purpose, did you?"

"I did, sir. This is fashion built entirely around efficiency."

Efficiency. What a beautifully hollow word that was.

I gazed at Jang Woo-jin's outfit with pity. He hadn't changed his top—a crisp formal shirt, still buttoned to the throat. As for the bottom half…… it was dazzling. Airy mompe work pants patterned with flamboyant purple flowers, paired with navy rubber boots that he must have unearthed from somewhere. A masterpiece, truly.

"……They certainly look comfortable."

Comfortable is all they look.

I turned away, forcing my gaze elsewhere. Jang Woo-jin had marched over with such confidence, but after a moment of taking in the field, he faltered.

"……We're supposed to harvest that?"

It was a carrot, all right. Carrot in color, carrot in shape. Just not carrot in size. I could read his thoughts as plain as day—he'd stepped up to help with the harvest in high spirits, and had clearly never imagined the carrots would turn out like this.

I handed the two of them the transplanting trowels lying nearby.

"To finish the harvest today, we'll all need to move briskly. They'll be heavy, so please mind your backs when you pull."

Crouching beside the nearest carrot, I demonstrated the harvest myself.

"Gently brush the soil away like this—then a little more, until the body is almost fully exposed. Then you pull it out carefully."

The key was pulling straight along the direction the carrot had grown, so it wouldn't snap halfway out. If you tugged on the leafy top, it would tear off without fail—so you gripped the orange crown with both hands and pulled.

Heave—

Heave—

"They're quite heavy, aren't they."

I wrapped both arms in mana and tried again.

Shunk— rat-a-tat—

As the carrot slid free, I heard the clatter of soil raining off its body. And when Grandpa Choi saw the carrot laid bare to its very tip, he murmured:

"No wonder it was heavy."

"Whoa……."

Seeing the real thing up close made it all the more absurd. It looked to be the size of an adult man's calf. Crops like this actually grew?

I clapped for the two men staring in a daze.

Clap clap—

"Snap out of it, you two. Now you have to pull them. They won't be as heavy as you think."

Actually—having just thought it through—I realized there was one spell perfectly suited to helping these two harvest the carrots with ease. It wasn't a lightweight spell, but if it produced a similar effect, that was all that mattered.

Flowing Ground—a spell that softened the surface of the earth until it flowed like water. With the tension of pulling the carrots greatly reduced, the task would surely become far easier.

Watching the two of them settle in front of their respective carrots, I took up position as if harvesting another, pressed my palm to the garden plot, and worked my mana. I felt it travel down through my fingertips and spread across the land, taking hold. The ground went soft, as if the soil itself were breathing.

Slither—

Grandpa Choi's trowel, brushing soil away beside me, quickened its pace. After a week of practice, his posture was surprisingly deft. And before long, a shout rang out, hoarse with elation.

"Got one!!"

Grandpa held the carrot aloft. To think he could lift a carrot that size without breaking a sweat! His first harvest—and his very first crop was a whopper of a catch!! Who would have guessed we'd be pulling carrots this enormous?

"I had no idea the soil was this fine. It's soft as can be! Well then—easy picking makes for a happy farmer, hahaha!!"

Buzzing with excitement, Grandpa brushed the remaining soil from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the carrot's body. And against that backdrop, the system window began listing its lines.