After Ryutaro picked up the hoe, he suddenly felt a brief tremor coming from inside the house.
"Woah! What's happening?!" Ryutaro exclaimed in shock.
As he stepped outside, he was startled to see that what was once an ordinary yard had transformed into farmland the moment he picked up the hoe. Suddenly, the hoe in his hand began to tremble violently and spoke about the land.
"Hahaha, no need to panic, Ryutaro! This place was once the home of the Hero Farmer. Whoever wields me will have this farmland appear. So, what are you waiting for? Let's start planting!" the hoe explained.
"Hmm, alright then, let's plant something first. But wait… how am I supposed to plant anything if I don't have any seeds?" Ryutaro asked.
The hoe responded, "Hahaha, don't worry! Just think about what you want to plant, and the seeds will appear on their own."
"Hmm… okay then," Ryutaro said.
He thought about planting bananas, a fruit from his world, and to his surprise, the seeds had already appeared in his hand.
"Woah! So, this is how it works! Alright, let's plant these bananas!" Ryutaro said excitedly.
He scattered the seeds across the land, unaware that with every strike of his hoe, a seal buried beneath the soil was weakening. This seal had been used to imprison the Demon Queen for 500 years.
"Hohoho… After 500 years, the seal is finally weakening. Hahaha! Just wait, Celestia Kingdom—I will have my revenge!" the Demon Queen cackled from beneath the earth.
Back to Ryutaro—he continued planting his bananas.
"Phew, finally done! Now, I just have to wait for them to grow," Ryutaro said, sitting down to rest.
But shortly after, the seeds he had planted began to sprout banana trees, shocking Ryutaro.
"Eh? Huh?! Aren't they supposed to take months to grow? How are they already sprouting?!" Ryutaro exclaimed.
The hoe in his hand spoke again. "Hahaha, don't panic, Ryutaro! One of my skills is accelerating plant growth!"
"Oh, I see. In that case, let's harvest them!" Ryutaro said enthusiastically.
He grabbed a basket from the kitchen and started harvesting the bananas. As soon as he plucked the first banana, a system notification rang out.
BEEP!
YOU HAVE LEVELED UP TO LEVEL 2!
"Eh?! How?! I only picked one banana!" Ryutaro said in shock.
BEEP!
BECAUSE OF YOUR JOB, EVERY TIME YOU HARVEST A CROP, YOUR LEVEL WILL INCREASE BY ONE.
"Oh, I see. Got it," Ryutaro said.
He continued harvesting the bananas, while the system kept ringing repeatedly as his level skyrocketed.
30 minutes later
"Phew… finally done. Since the system has been going off non-stop, I should check my status. System, open status!" Ryutaro said as he rested.
A status window appeared before him.
BEEP!
NAME: RYUTARO
LEVEL: 50
EXP: 123,432 / 200,000
AGE: 18 YEARS
HP: 70,000 / 70,000
MP: 1,000 / 20,000
"Woah! What is this?! This feels like a cheat! I only harvested crops, yet my level got this high. Wait… but my MP is almost drained?! No wonder I feel so exhausted after harvesting just a few fruits!" Ryutaro said in disbelief.
Meanwhile, beneath the farmland, the seal restraining the Demon Queen continued to weaken.
"Oh? The seal is weakening again? Hahaha! Good! It won't be long before I am free. Just wait, Celestia Kingdom—I'm coming!" the Demon Queen declared.
3months later
"Phew, I finally finished harvesting everything. Time to relax," Ryutaro said, wiping his sweat.
As he was about to rest, the ground beneath him began shaking violently. Suddenly, a system warning popped up.
WARNING! WARNING! A DANGEROUS ENTITY IS APPROACHING! HOST, PLEASE BE CAREFUL!
"Huh? A dangerous entity? Is that why the ground is shaking so much?" Ryutaro muttered as he checked his system.
The farmland cracked open, and from the depths emerged a terrifying presence—none other than the Demon Queen, who had been sealed beneath Ryutaro's land for centuries. Ryutaro gripped his legendary hoe tightly as the figure emerged from the fissure.
"Hahahaha! After 500 years, I am finally free from that cursed prison! Celestia Kingdom, your doom is near!" the Demon Queen laughed.
"Hey! Who are you?! Do you think it's okay to destroy someone's farmland?! Do you know how hard it is to plant crops?!" Ryutaro shouted.
"Oh? I didn't expect a human to be living and surviving in this cursed forest. Pardon my rudeness, human. I am Grace, the Demon Queen. I was imprisoned beneath this land for 500 years, and I have no idea why the seal has weakened," Grace explained.
"Weakened? How?" Ryutaro asked.
"I don't know either. For 500 years, the seal remained strong, but for some reason, it started weakening over the past three months," Grace said.
"Three months? Wait… isn't that exactly when I moved here? Don't tell me this is all because of me…" Ryutaro thought to himself.
"Enough chit-chat, human. As a token of appreciation for my freedom, I shall give you a small gift," Grace said.
"A gift? What kind of gift?" Ryutaro asked, curious.
"Hahaha, a gift indeed! That gift is… I shall devour you to restore my lost power!" Grace declared.
Sigh. "Ha… I knew this was coming. This is such a typical scene in isekai novels," Ryutaro muttered.
"Good! Then you understand! Now, stay still and become my meal!" Grace declared.
As Grace lunged at Ryutaro, his legendary hoe suddenly emitted a golden light, stopping her in her tracks.
"What?! What is this powerful force?!" Grace exclaimed.
Sigh. "You attacked without even checking first… This is a legendary hoe. It protects its wielder," Ryutaro explained.
"No way… That's a legendary weapon from ancient times! How does a mere human like you possess it?! Who exactly are you?!" Grace asked, her expression now showing unease.
"Me? I'm Ryutaro. I was summoned to this world by the Celestia Kingdom to defeat the Demon King… but that was before I discovered my job. Now, I'm just a simple farmer who wants to live a peaceful life," Ryutaro said.
"Hah? So, you also hold a grudge against Celestia Kingdom?" Grace asked.
"Yeah, pretty much," Ryutaro shrugged.
As they were talking, Grace's stomach suddenly growled.
"Hmm? Are you hungry? Wait here, I'll get you something to eat," Ryutaro said as he walked toward his harvested crops.
5 minutes later
"Here, take this. It's called a banana," Ryutaro said, handing her a banana.
"Huh? A banana? What is this? You're not trying to poison me, are you?" Grace asked suspiciously.
"No, it's a fruit from my world. It's sweet and soft—I'm sure you'll like it. And don't worry, I have no reason to poison you," Ryutaro assured her.
Grace took a bite of the banana and was instantly surprised.
"Woah! I didn't expect it to taste this amazing! Eh? What's this?! Why is my power increasing?!" Grace exclaimed.
A golden light surrounded her as she leveled up. Then, she suddenly said something outrageous.
"Ryutaro, right? I've decided—I'm going to be your wife!" Grace declared, her eyes sparkling.
"Ha?!!!" Ryutaro shouted in shock.
And so, Chapter 2 ends! What will happen to Ryutaro now that he has gained a Demon Queen wife? And what will the Celestia Kingdom do when they find out? Stay tuned for Chapter 3!
*If I made any minor mistakes that might be distracting, I sincerely apologize. I have done my best for this novel, and if you enjoy it, please consider giving it a like and sharing your feedback, suggestions, or criticism so I can learn and improve. Thank you for reading, and see you in the next chapter!*