Ann gave birth.
It was quick. Not long after she announced it was time, I heard the cry of a newborn. Both Ann and the baby were healthy. There weren't any complications.
It was a girl.
Ann looked ready to return to work immediately, but I insisted she stay in bed for at least a week to recover. I told her she could think of names while she rested. There had been so many people eager to name the baby when Torain was born, after all. Dos even brought a list of candidates, but I told Ann she didn't need to worry about those. She should choose whatever name she wanted.
As for my suggestion? Well, I have a reputation for poor naming sense, but I offered "Sakura." I made sure she knew it was just an idea, not a requirement, but she decided on Sakura immediately. I hope she grows up healthy and strong.
In the courtyard of the Village Head's Mansion, I set up a Floating Garden that would serve as a large water tank. I wasn't using its flight capability, which felt like a waste of the feature, but it made tasks like changing the water much easier.
First, I had to wash the stones, sand, and soil for the substrate. Once that was done, I began filling the tank. It was massive—the floor area was about the size of a four-and-a-half-tatami mat room. It felt like an entire room in itself. I know they say bigger is better, but this was a lot of work to set up. Still, I persevered.
Next, I planted the river weeds I had gathered. I carefully poured water into the tank so the new plants wouldn't be uprooted. For now, I filled it just enough to submerge them completely. I figured I'd leave it alone for a while until the weeds took root. Since I planned to stock it with river fish, I didn't think I'd need to adjust the pH levels. It was river water, after all. Besides, even if I wanted to, I wouldn't have the first clue how to measure acidity.
It would be a process of trial and error.
"Oops," I realized. If I left the tank like this, the chickens in the courtyard would turn it into a toy. They were already eyeing it from a distance. I decided to activate the floating function after all. If it was suspended in the air, even the chickens couldn't reach it.
I initially set it at a height of three meters, but then I remembered that chickens could fly that high. I’d learned that when I made a bathing area for the Phoenix Chick Aegis at that same height. To be safe, I raised the tank above the mansion roof. It would be a hassle to ask the Angel Race or Harpy Race to lower it whenever I needed to work on it, but that was better than having the chickens ruin it.
The next day, the Angels lowered the tank for me, only to find Aegis using it as a pool. With summer approaching and the village pool opening soon, I suppose he wanted to show off his graceful swimming form to everyone. He had apparently tried practicing in the bath, but the High Ogre maids scolded him, so he moved his training here.
He was certainly a hard worker. I had to wonder about a bird doing the crawl stroke, though. I suspected the Pond Turtles had taught him. Personally, I would have preferred if he floated on the surface like the White Swan or Black Swan, paddling with his feet, but it seemed Aegis had trouble floating.
Wait, did he? I’d seen him floating in the bath many times. Ah, I see. When he floats, his feet heat the surrounding water. He was adjusting the heat to create convection currents, using the temperature difference to propel himself.
"Oh! He's moving around freely!" I marveled. It was impressive, but Aegis seemed frustrated, feeling that this didn't count as "real" swimming. He clearly had his own standards.
I told him he could use the tank until the pool opened. I didn't mind that all my river weeds had been uprooted or that the water was now scalding hot. I decided to think positively and consider the water weeds a sacrifice for heat-sterilizing the soil. I told the apologetic Aegis not to worry and just retrieved the weeds so they wouldn't die.
Speaking of Aegis, seeing him reminded me of the White Swan and Black Swan. The two of them had left the village after the parade ended. I thought they might not return until next year, but they had actually settled at the Village Five Shrine. They had even built a massive pond at the base of the mountain—a feat that would have taken me several days even with the Universal Farming Tool.
Kon, the leader of the Silver Fox Race who manages the shrine, asked if it was okay to let them stay. Since the Silver Fox Race had already accepted them, I had no reason to refuse. Still, if they were capable of making a pond like that, I wished they had offered to help me with a few things. They claimed they couldn't just build ponds anywhere because the conditions had to be exactly right.
Even now that they were living at the shrine, the swans were reportedly still having their usual bickering matches. Apparently, the shrine visitors found it entertaining, so I could only hope they weren't being too much of a nuisance.
I looked up at the sky. It was time.
As planned, silhouettes began jumping one after another from Village Four. A moment later, parachutes blossomed. The jumpers were Village Four residents, including members of the Devil Race and Dream Demon Race. Now that Village Four had its Floating Gardens, we were conducting an evacuation drill in case of an emergency. While the Devil and Dream Demon races can fly, they could be injured or suppressed by magic. We couldn't let them become complacent just because they usually had wings.
We had equipped parachutes throughout the Floating Gardens, and the Angels were flying nearby to assist if anyone ran into trouble during the descent. The target landing zone was the forest on the west side of the village. The Kuro pups had already cleared the area of monsters and magic beasts to ensure it was safe.
However, despite checking the wind direction, the jumpers were drifting all over the place. Fearing they would land in uncleared parts of the forest, many of them aborted the parachute descent and began flying under their own power.
In the end, the majority failed to reach the target zone. Parachute operation was harder than it looked.
Then there were the slimes. They hadn't landed at the target zone either, but they had descended gracefully into the mansion's courtyard. This wasn't supposed to be a game, but the slimes had become so proficient at parachuting from playing with them that I began considering whether I should promote it as an official sport in Village Four.
By evening, my water tank was filled with fish. They were fish from the nearby river, caught by Aegis and the spiderlings. I suppose it was their way of apologizing for the mess earlier. I’d told them not to worry, but they had gone ahead and done it anyway. The water had been properly cooled down, and the river fish were swimming energetically.
I thanked the spiderlings as well. I asked if they had used their silk to make nets, but apparently, they had actually fished them out. It was quite the haul. I promised to take them on a proper fishing trip soon. I’m well aware that I’m not the best fisherman—in fact, I’m quite bad—but that just means there’s plenty of room for me to improve. I’ll show them the results of my growth next time.
Fufufu.
It was almost time for dinner. Tonight's meal featured fish sent to us by the Goroun Company and the Dalfon Company. I thought about Sakura as I ate. I wanted her to be able to enjoy this too, but for the time being, she would be sticking to breast milk.
Well, she’ll grow up soon enough.