"Asama Mao!" I heard an old burly voice call me. Judging by the grumpiness seething through the sound, there was no doubt that the source was the old man.

Everyone around the house called him JiiJii… Everyone but me. I didn't interact with him all that much. And when I did he wasn't all in for it.

For some reason, that grumpy walking monolith acknowledged everyone's existence but mine. I wasn't disheartened, but I did feel left out.

So it is understandable why I was so alerted when he called me out of nowhere.

"I-I'm coming!" I announced while heading down the stairs.

He stood right downstairs next to the gate waiting for me. It was 4 in the evening and being winter, the sun was about getting ready for setting.

"Did something happen?" I asked as I approached him.

"From today onwards… the evening duty is your's."

"Evening duty of what?" I couldn't possibly take another thing in this abusive scehdule.

"Hoeing."

"Hoe-ing? You can't mea-"

"Yes I do. Your hoe is in the shed… Get it and start going down the line. The sowing starts in spring... So you put in fertilizer and keep mixing up the soil. I need the field tilled once a day."

"Hey!" Was I being disrespectful treating him like that? Well, I did often treat older people like garbage in my previous life. Ageist courtesy was something new to me. "That is child labour." I put my foot down.

"Child labour my ass. Starting today, you're a student and under my direct jurisdiction."

"Why would I be under you-"

He pulled out a card.

'Faculty: Jii Jii… Sports Advi-'

"You're a teacher?!"

"I am a teacher."

"But that still doesn't mean that you can order me around after school. That's power abuse!"

"From what I heard, you aced the last year, huh? How would an F in sports look like next to 5 A's?"

"You wouldn't."

"I won't… if you till the fields."

"UGHHH!" I was on my last leg. "I AM TIRED!"

"I am old."

"UGHHH!!"

"Just do it already."

"Fine! I will! But that doesn't mean that I gave in, okay?"

"Whatever you say, kiddo."

I got forced into labour with my grades held hostage. That swindler. Conman. Only if he weren't my landlord!

Somewhat dejected and extremely exhausted... I headed to the shed behind the house and opened the door. It smelled like I inhaled dung straight from a cow's ass. I had to stop myself from passing out or throwing up. It was disgusting.

Nevertheless, I persevered until I found the hoe at the back.

'I should get it out of here quick.' After all, I didn't want a piece of this stench any longer. Walking up to, I grabbed it.

And lifted it up from the-

I lifted it up from-

I lifted it-

"AAAGGH!" What the hell was with this hoe? "OLD MAN THIS THING IS TOO HEAVY!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

"THEN GET STRONGER!"

.

.

.

Wow... Why didn't I think of that?

How come someone as old as him have this little wisdom?! It was his equivalent of saying-

'Oh so you're dying? Don't.'

MAO, YOU HANDSOME IDIOT! STOP MONOLOGUING! YOU'LL DIE OF METHANE AND BULLSHIT INHALATION OVERDOSE!

'Fugggg… this dude was getting on my last nerve.'

Maybe because of the adrenaline or because I was constantly getting called out as a weakling, I set my mind exclusively to getting the hoe to the field. My brain reprogrammed itself.

I put every muscle in my body to use. From clenching my anal sphincter to squinting my eyes out of pain.

I couldn't lift it very well, but I was more than capable of dragging it. Yes, this was no effort at all. Not at any point did I feel like my arms were going to pop off or that the veins in my head would blow.

The line running across the ground where the hoe dragged was rewarding.

It took a while and, dear lord, an indescribable amount of effo- I mean no effort at all. BUT I FINALLY GOT THE DAMN HOE TO THE FIELD!

I let out a sigh of relief. That was the hardest I had ever worked in my life.

"Good… now get to work." A voice rang from the little bench we sat on watching Yuuno and JiiJii work away.

There really was no pleasing him. I was getting sick of this.

There was a sack near where I was standing.

"Sprinkle that, and till!" I heard him shout.

'This geezer is actually tryna kill me.'

Showing every ounce of distaste I could, I put my hand in the powdery fertilizer and sprinkled it all over the soil.

"Screw this!"

Being in this body, I wasn't all that sure of how much objects weighed. In my previous life, I could probably lift a mountain if I wanted to. But in this one? I wasn't even sure about a hoe. Is a normal hoe this heavy? Was I just weak? Was the hoe abnormal?

All were questions that plagued my mind.

But there was one thing I knew for sure though, there was no way I would be able to pick it up without breaking my back. I mean, I could barely drag it here.

There was only one way. I needed to use the bare minimum amount of internal mana in my system and use it for strengthening my body.

Mind you, I did use internal mana before, multiple times actually. Most notably when I did thought transmission, and that little illusion thing. But I never used it for body strengthening. With my level of internal mana, I risked opening my pores upon excessive usage. And if my pores actually did open I would end up being OP again.

And then get forced into war once more.

A normal person hates the idea of war, you couldn't expect me to be any different!

'But if I only use a little it should be fine right?'

I let the slightest amount out and mana started to flow in my veins. And it was enough.

Body strengthening is an internal mana spell that causes your muscles to regenerate immediately after being torn. It was the spell that Yuuno used to get her body to that high of a level of physical strength.

In my context using it would mean that my physical abilities would skyrocket if I used this in anything more than short bursts. Luckily I didn't need to do it for extended periods of time.

I strengthened my body as I lifted the hoe up in the air and stopped to let gravity pull it down to that ground. Then I dug it and pulled it back. One cycle.

And again around the whole farm. Multiple cycles.

By the end of the venture my arms were burning. It wasn't because the process itself was impossibly hard. But because my mana sped up the rate at which muscles were built. I got slightly stronger. It would take a normal human a day of tilling to gain as much strength as I did in three hours.

My growth potential, while slowing it down to its absolute limit was 5 to 8 times a normal human's.

Which in all honesty was still much lower than Yuuno's and this body did have its natural limits. But it was still an amount I should be concerned about if I wanted to remain weak.

Whatever.

I was too tired to think about this for long.

Not only did I lose all sense of heaviness in this new body of mine, but the curveball weight of this hoe was disorientating.

It was night and the only thing illuminating the field was the artificial light.

The cold wind rapidly cooled my sweat. I felt a chill run down my spine.

It was still winter.

"Mao-kun are you done?" Obaa-chan was outside with a ladle in her hand.

"Yep… Just finished." I wiped the sweat off my forehead.

"Then keep the hoe in the shed… I have a warm bath ready for you."

Thank god. I might've caught a cold at that rate.

###

Usually, I wasn't big on baths. If I was going to be in all day, I might as well just not bathe at all for a day or two. It wasn't lazy or dirty! It was economical!

My body was usually always clean anyway!

But now- after sweating my entire body water content out, it was clear that baths were for the best.

I was probably not the first one in, so the water was a little 'not the cleanest'. But the bath bomb hid any grime in it. Plus it was cute girl bathwater… You could probably sell this online and some sick fucks would buy it.

Well, it was fine.

Luha was family and Yuuno was Yuuno.

Rather I believe that her sitting in the bath probably cleaned it.

'PURIFICATIONNN!'

Hahaha.

I blew bubbles underwater.

Getting out of the bath, I headed back to the room.

My eyelids were heavy and my body heavier.

"Oh, you're here already." Yuuno turned around from the desk.

!!!

My eyes opened to their maximum, and my attention was centred instantly.

It was then that the biggest shock in my entire happened! All of a sudden my jaw dropped. And so did my towel.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" I shouted.

I would expect anything to happen before this did. It was blasphemous. Her actions were simple perverse.

"Why are you shouting?! I'm just studying."

"ON YOUR OWN?" I rushed towards her buck naked and put my palm on her head. She didn't seem to have a fever. "Is there a surprise test tomorrow?!" She slapped the hand off.

"Of course not. They only conduct tests once a year."

"THEN HOW ARE YOU STUDYING ON YOUR OWN?!"

"IT'S ONLY NATURAL THAT I DO THAT! I DON'T WANT TO BE INDEBTED TO YOU ANYMORE!" She yelled. Somehow her argument almost seemed convincing. "Also put on your towel, I don't wanna see your little boy anymore."

"OI! First of all, it's not little, it's average. Second off, it's because I got right outta the bath."

"Yeah yeah whatever you say, t** incher."

{a/n: for anyone hopeful that it says ten... there's a wo behind the **. not standing tall btw.}

"Shut up or I'll sue you for sexual harassment."

"Says the flasher."

"For fu-

###

After that, I changed and then ate dinner. And slept. Sleep came early, and my body felt cradled. There was nothing quite like sleeping after working your ass off without any pay for some old man in the middle of nowhere as a child.

It was great that I didn't need to study anymore having learnt while teaching Yuuno a couple of weeks ago.

If I were to study after doing all that I did today, I'd actually die.

But that ended the first day.

And then the second and then the third.

Time started to flow again in the same monotonous manner that it had been doing so.