## Chapter 342 – The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated Into The Baek Family
I pointed to the clothes hanging on the wall. They weren’t the fancy, fine clothes we had been wearing originally. They were old, shabby clothes that farmers would wear.
“…It can’t be helped. We have no choice but to wear those.”
“Can you put them on by yourself? Shall I help you?”
“You underestimate me too much. I can put on clothes by myself.”
I handed Elain what looked like women’s clothes, and I also put on my clothes. There were more clothes to put on than I thought. Or rather, there were many layers of cloth to put on.
First, you put on underwear, then a thin layer of clothing, and then a thick layer of clothing. You put on a coat that seemed to be made of leather, and then you put on damp, unpleasant-feeling shoes.
After quickly putting on all my clothes, I looked at Elain. She was struggling with the step after the underwear. Having been born as a noble’s daughter, she had always been helped by maids to put on her clothes, so she didn’t know how to put on farmer’s clothes.
“I will help you, Mother.”
“…Thank you.”
“There. Now you just have to tighten the strings.”
“Weren’t you also putting on farmer’s clothes for the first time? You know how to put on farmer’s clothes well.”
“I’ve always been curious about many things since I was young. I looked into farmer’s clothes before.”
I lied without batting an eye.
The reason I knew how to put on farmer’s clothes was because I had taken them off a few times myself. There were some beauties among the farmers who, after being washed, met my standards.
‘If putting them on is the opposite of taking them off, then it’s easy.’
Men’s clothes are all pretty much the same anyway.
“Mother, what do you think about this situation? I’d like to hear your opinion as a mage. Were we kidnapped? Or…”
“The possibility of being kidnapped is low. If someone had kidnapped us, they wouldn’t have left us so free. Eugene, can you use mana?”
I tried to use mana once. But I couldn’t feel any mana.
“…No. I can’t feel any mana. It’s like the mana has disappeared…”
“Me too. Let’s think calmly. We were attacked by a giant boar that seemed to be a monster, emitting a black aura, while we were taking a walk in the village.”
“Yes. It was a monster I had never seen before. And the monster boar had wounds on its body. Three knights used their auras, but they couldn’t stop it and were instead blown away.”
“My magic couldn’t stop the boar either. It’s a monster that could easily wipe out a village. Putting aside why that monster was wounded… the monster tripped and fell hard while rushing at us.”
“It was an amazing sight. I never imagined such a huge monster would fly so high.”
“The important thing is what happened next.”
“The boar fell headfirst to the ground. And there was a wooden doll on the boar’s head. I couldn’t see it clearly, but it seemed to be in the shape of a farmer. Light burst out as the wooden doll broke… and I lost consciousness. Ah, I tried to hug you to avoid it.”
“The wooden doll is probably an ancient artifact. If it were magic, there’s no way I wouldn’t have noticed it…”
“But why was the boar wearing an ancient artifact on its head?”
“There are two hypotheses. One is that the boar was fighting another monster and the ancient artifact happened to get stuck on its head, or someone put the ancient artifact on the boar’s head.”
Elain opened the wooden window and looked outside. Her eyes, looking out the window, were coldly calm. In front of us was a farm we had never seen before, and in the distance, we could see a small city built of stone. It wasn’t the Erenchir village we knew.
“Which one do you think it is, Mother?”
“The latter. Someone wounded the boar and made it target us. That’s the most likely possibility.”
“Then who is the culprit…?”
“…I don’t know. There are quite a few nobles who are at odds with our family, but none of them would be so bold as to do something like this. And if they had the ability to control a monster boar to their will, it would be more certain to just move directly and kill us…”
“Hah. Anyway, where is this place? I hope it’s near Erenchir village, but…”
“If it was the power of an ancient artifact that swallowed us… we could be on the opposite side of the continent, or in a completely different space like a dungeon.”
“Either way, it’s certain that we’ll suffer.”
We were talking when it happened.
There was a loud knocking on the front door, along with a man’s loud voice.
“Hey! Told! How long are you going to sleep when the sun has already risen?! You were supposed to help with the potato harvest today!”
Elain and I looked at each other. I put a cloth over her head. I thought that her beauty might cause unnecessary trouble.
“I’ll be out now, so wait!”
I shouted loudly.
First, we had to figure out the situation.
‘Well, it’s all part of my plan.’
***
The wooden farmer doll.
It was indeed an ancient artifact, as Elain had said. It also appears in the original story. But its effect isn’t as great as one might think.
The farmer doll is a one-time use item that invites people into a virtual world. Even if you die or get injured in this virtual world, you’ll be fine when you return to the real world.
‘Looking at the description of the farmer doll in the original story… it’s an item that a certain noble made to punish his children who looked down on commoners and farmers, and to teach them a lesson.’
In short, it’s roughly a ten-day farmer experience. It’s ten days here, but only about three hours pass in the outside world.
‘If we just endure for ten days, we can return to reality. But Elain doesn’t know that.’
The boar was due to Yuria’s power. I don’t know exactly how, but she controlled the boar using magic. She was also an Archmage, after all.
The reason why mana can’t be felt in this world is because of the ancient artifact creator’s intention to make us live a proper farmer’s life.
For reference, Elain and I were set up as a poor farmer couple. My name in this world was Told, and Elain’s name was Tiel.
We were led by Panres, the farmer from next door who came to our house in the morning, to go work in the fields. I was naturally going to refuse, but following Elain’s suggestion to go along with the situation, we ended up working in the fields.
“Told, why is your wife so bad at working?!”
Panres glared at Elain, annoyed.
We were squatting in the field, digging and harvesting potatoes. It was my first time harvesting potatoes, but my physical abilities, excluding mana, were the same as in reality, so it wasn’t difficult at all.
On the other hand, Elain, who was a mage, was just like an ordinary person without mana. Having been a noble since birth, she couldn’t do farm work properly.
“She was raised very preciously.”
“Raised preciously? We grew up together in this village since we were young, what nonsense are you talking about.”
“I’m just kidding, she’s not feeling well. I didn’t let her sleep last night.”
I smiled lewdly as I said that, and Panres swallowed hard. Panres was still a bachelor.
“Ha, well, if Tiel is your wife, I would too…”
It seems that Elain looks like a beauty in Panres’ eyes as well. Well, having seen her face up close, what man wouldn’t think she was beautiful?
‘The protagonist in the original story was fascinated by farm work and found it fun… I don’t see what’s so fun about this. Seriously…’
I glanced at Elain from time to time while working in the field. She sighed, exhausted from the field work.
***
Afternoon.
We went into a small city with the potatoes we had harvested from the field. Since people can’t live on potatoes alone, we had to sell them.
“Buy potatoes! Potatoes! They’re freshly harvested, so they’re fresh!”
Panres shouted in the market. He wanted to sell the potatoes at a high price. Elain pretended to help us while looking around.
Later, the sun set. We received our share from Panres.
“Told, let’s go to the tavern for a drink.”
“Ah, sorry. Let’s do it next time. It seems like my wife isn’t feeling well.”
“Tch… It can’t be helped. Don’t forget that you promised to help me tomorrow too.”
I returned to the shabby farmhouse with Elain.
On the way, Elain staggered. She seemed very tired from the hard labor she was doing for the first time in her life. I picked up Elain in a princess carry.
“W-what are you doing?!”
“You seem to be having a hard time, so I’ll carry you.”
“I can walk. Put me down now.”
“I don’t want to.”
“What…”
Elain struggled to get out of my arms. But when I held her tightly and didn’t let go, she soon gave up. She couldn’t shake me off with her strength.
“…Do as you please.”
“Yes. I will do as I please.”
It wasn’t my imagination that Elain’s cheeks were slightly flushed.
After returning home, we boiled and ate potatoes and talked about the current situation.
“This is a completely different world from where we were. I asked a merchant about the date and the country, and he mentioned unfamiliar dates and countries.”
“…How do we get back?”
“…Well. There’s so little information that it’s hard to even guess. In the worst case… we might not be able to go back.”
“……”
The atmosphere became gloomy.
Elain spread out her hands and looked at them. Her beautiful, slender hands had wounds from the field work she had done that day.
“Mother, you look tired. It’s late today, so let’s go to sleep. I’ll sleep outside.”
“…I know there’s no place to sleep outside. Let’s sleep together. After all, you and I are not mother and son.”
“If that’s what you say, Mother…”
Elain and I lay down on the hard bed wearing only thin clothes. Despite the sound of insects outside the window, Elain fell asleep quickly. She must have been extremely tired from the physical labor she was doing for the first time.
I waited until Elain was fast asleep. And then I carefully pulled Elain into my arms.
A few hours later.
Elain opened her eyes while still in my arms. I desperately pretended to be asleep. My right hand was touching her butt, and my crotch was erect, so it might not end with just a scolding.
“……”
Elain sighed softly, removed my right hand from her butt, and woke me up.
“It’s morning. Get up.”
***
The second day was the same as the first day. This time, after finishing work, I explored the city with Elain. I was hoping there might be some clue. But there were no clues.
The third day. We worked in the fields in the morning, but went to the plaza in the afternoon. A farmer’s family was executed in the plaza. The charge was insulting a noble. From the stories of the commoners nearby, it seemed they had stood up to a noble.
Elain didn’t say anything, but she looked depressed. She must have thought that we might not be able to go back. Her steel-like heart was starting to waver. Maybe it was because she couldn’t use mana.
A mage who can’t use mana. That’s a terrible nightmare.
The fourth day. It was a holiday. Elain and I just stared blankly at each other in the house. We didn’t know how farmers spent their holidays. So we spent time having pointless conversations. All we could do was chat.
I felt that we had become much closer. Perhaps it was because we had no one else to rely on in this world.
The fifth day. In the morning, a loan shark came and demanded that we repay the money.
“If you borrowed money, shouldn’t you pay it back?! Huh?! 340 Nelpi! Pay it back now! Pay it back!”
“You’re saying that the 100 Nelpi I borrowed a month ago has become 340 Nelpi?! Are you kidding me?!”
“Look at this contract! Told! It’s a contract you put your thumbprint on! Pay back the money now! If you don’t have money, sell your wife!”
“You bastard!”
I fought with the loan shark and his gang, throwing punches, and ended up bedridden. Elain worried about me and nursed me.
Of course, being bedridden was an act. There’s no way I would be defeated by those guys.
“What are you going to do after fighting like that?”
“Mother, those guys crossed the line first. They told me to sell you, how could I stand by?”
“Thank you. I’m glad you’re here with me. If I were alone…”
“I feel the same way. I can endure this because I’m with you, Mother.”
Elain stroked my head. I deliberately snuggled into Elain’s arms like a spoiled child. Elain didn’t push me away.
The sixth day. I got up from bed, my body not used to the life of a farmer, and went to work in the fields. As I swung the pitchfork in the field, the thought of becoming a thief instead of farming crossed my mind.
‘I’ve gotten closer to Elain, but she still thinks of me as a son rather than a man. Still, if there’s a decisive opportunity…’
It was in the afternoon.
The loan shark I had beaten up yesterday came back with a noble. The ugly noble, with a greasy face, raised his head and asked me with a boastful attitude.
“Where is the woman named Tiel?”
