The oranges were a sorry sight as they’d been left to rot on the branches over winter. Their skins were wrinkled and mottled with brown spots, indicating they were far out of season.
When I’d left the hut earlier, I had noticed peeled skins left here and there on the ground. I doubted there was anything else to eat in this orange grove, considering the grove itself was obviously tended to by human hands. There was no way the prince would have had rations on him either.
He must have gathered these remaining oranges himself to fill his empty stomach while I lay asleep.
“Prince Wald, please put the oranges into this basket.”
“Huh, a basket? You have one?”
“Yes, one I’d kept in my Pocket Dimension. Now I’ll show you the true power of a transmigrator!” I jokingly declared.
I’d been careful not to use my abilities too much in front of NPCs up until now, but since we were alone together, I figured it was fine.
I manifested a wooden table on the spot and then placed the basket of oranges on top. After that, I withdrew a matching chair from my interdimensional storage, giving Prince Wald—who was astonished, to say the least—a place to sit.
“Just in case, here’s a recovery potion that’ll cure adverse status effects. Go on and have some.”
I conjured a bottle out of thin air and placed it in front of the youth.
But, of course, a single potion wouldn’t be enough to fill a stomach.
Since he’d had nothing to eat for the past few days but fruit, it’d probably be best not to feed him anything solid right away.
The next thing I withdrew was a bowl of porridge made from a variety of grains from my personal hammerspace. I’d crafted it all the way back from when I was living in Gaelius, so I could only hope that it’d be agreeable enough for the prince’s palate...
I summoned a small pot—it landed on the table with a thud.
My Pocket Dimension was almighty as it stopped time. When I lifted the lid of the pot, the porridge inside it was still steaming.
Next, I manifested a wooden bowl. I filled it with porridge, placed it before the prince, and gave him a spoon.
Sorry for making you use old dinner utensils. By the way, I made all of these too.
“Make sure you eat slowly so you don’t upset your stomach,” I told him. “Oh, let me make some tea as well.”
After adding some dried tea leaves to a wooden mug, I filled it with hot water I conjured with magic. I made sure to keep the liquid at a pleasant level of warmth so he could drink the tea all at once if he wanted. Having a B-tier proficiency in water magic made me the perfect human percolator, complete with adjustable temperature control.
Once he finished drinking the potion, the prince began munching on the porridge as best he could while keeping his bites small. Honestly, the sight was pretty cute.
Actually, now that I really looked at him as he ate, his eyes were wet with tears.
Nothing hits the spot like a warm meal. I totally get it.
But most of all, thank goodness the flavor is tolerable. Seriously.
“Feel free to have more if you like, but don’t force yourself too hard. While you eat, I’ll go draw a bath.” I moved a short distance away, leaving the prince at the table.
“K-Kariya?!”
When I heard the forlorn way he called my name from behind me, I abandoned my plan to set up the bath a little ways off. I pulled out a massive tub on the spot instead.
“I’ll fill this tub with hot water, so once you finish eating, come over here.”
Since we were outdoors, I fetched a partition from my storage as well. I doubted there was anyone in these woods aside from the two of us, though, so the risk of a Peeping Tom was pretty low.
I hung a towel on the partition so he could dry himself off later and put a bar of soap and shampoo into a small bucket. I made sure to choose nice ones I’d made with essential oils.
I also had a set of silk clothes that had been given to me at Tachyrinn. They were probably a little too big for him, though. Even so, I took the set out of my storage anyway and laid it out.
That was when I noticed a presence behind me—the prince had drawn near. He must’ve finished eating as he was now staring in blank amazement at the bath accommodations I’d set up for him.
“Are all of these yours, Kariya?” he asked.
“Yes. I made a lot of things while I was roaming the mountains. I didn’t want to have to worry about everyday necessities out in the wild. It was worth spending all that money on the cash shop—I have so much storage space!”
Not to toot my own horn, but I was just as omnipotent as a certain blue cat-shaped robot from the future. I could pull almost anything out of my Pocket Dimension. This was, arguably, a hacker-level skill. A stockpile hack!
It was absolutely nothing to write home about when it came to combat, though. I mean, just a few days ago, I had been basically stuck in an instant death loop and had died three times in a row.
“Do you need help with your bath?”
“No,” he said quietly. “I’m fine.”
“All right. This is the water heater,” I said, gesturing to a contraption nearby. “If you turn this knob, hot water will come out from over here. Anyway, take it easy and enjoy your soak.”
I gently shepherded the prince behind the partition. Then, I walked over to the table to the chair the prince had been sitting in during his meal. After sitting down, I drank a potion myself.
I checked the remaining porridge in the pot, and I realized I should probably make a new set of eating utensils.
Oh, right, I only have one chair... I should probably make a second.