I Thought It Was a Healing Farming Game - Chapter 56

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I thought it was just a healing farming game.
56

‘All done!’
I’d finished reading the diary, and now it was time to move on to the questionnaire.
I took a deep breath and flipped to the next page. Question one was about first impressions.

[What was your first impression of the other person?]

I opened my eyes wide at the densely packed answer written below.
Bracing myself as if preparing for a blow, I began reading from the very first sentence.

[I still remember vividly the time I first met Miel. The moment you saw me climbing down from the tree as usual, your surprised expression is crystal clear in my mind.]

As I read Priam’s words, those memories surfaced in my head, fresh and vivid.

[Your hair flowing in the breeze, those golden eyes up close—everything seemed so strange and wonderful. I’d never seen anyone with features quite like ours before.]

‘So I seemed strange to Priam too, then.’
I nodded, thinking of the other residents with hair and eye colors as unusual as mine.

[I got so lost in amazement that I collided with you, and you fainted right there on the spot. I was really startled by that…]

I paused mid-sentence and lightly ran both hands over my face.
How embarrassing—passing out in front of him at our very first meeting.

[After I laid you down on the bench and waited for you to wake up, I worried about what would happen if you got angry with me or resented me.
But instead of being upset, you greeted me so brightly that I was truly happy.]

Unlike I’d feared, there wasn’t a single unkind word written down. It was quite the opposite.
‘There’s nothing but kind things here.’
I felt oddly unmoored, unable to make sense of it myself.

[But because I flinched and pulled away at that moment, it seems Miel became overly cautious with me afterward.
It’s all my fault.
Miel is such a good person—that shouldn’t have happened.]

The neat handwriting scattered and became chaotic.

[Why am I like this?]

The moment I finished that last sentence, my breath caught.
Of course, given Priam’s nature, I’d expected he wouldn’t write out anything truly negative.
‘But to blame himself for everything?’
My heart ached even as something twisted inside me.
He was so kind that he seemed to take all the misunderstandings that had piled up between us—born from neither of us knowing each other well enough—and lay them entirely at his own feet.
I sat quietly for a moment, thinking it through, then carefully began writing my response below.

[We were both in exactly the same situation!
I did a lot of blaming myself too.
But I think it would be good for you to be a little more honest about your own feelings, Priam.
It’s wonderful that you always think of others first, but I wish you’d check on your own heart a little sooner, just as carefully.]

After I finished writing my response, I looked up slightly.
Priam had apparently finished reading my diary and was now bent over, writing out his own answers.
I watched quietly as he wrote with such concentrated focus.
And after some time had passed, we exchanged our diaries once more.
“So? Is it manageable? Not too tedious?”
“I love it. I want to do it every single day! Reading your entries is so much fun.”
Priam was delighted by this novelty, so I answered his joy with a warm smile.
“Me too. I’m glad we have this time to spend together.”
After Priam left for home, I opened my diary again.
As I read through each of his written replies, a smile never left my face.

[I wish Miel would stay in Node forever.]

My eyes lingered on the final sentence, written with visible pressure on the page.
Caught in a strange swell of emotion, I gently traced my finger across those words.

* * *

A week later.
It was my turn to visit Priam’s house, but he suddenly changed his mind and said he’d come to mine instead.
‘Is something wrong?’
Having no real reason to refuse, I told him that was fine.
Knock-knock.
The moment I heard the sound of knocking, I dashed to the door and yanked it open.
“Hi, Pr—”
Flap-flap!
The instant the door swung open, a chicken burst forth with a violent flurry of wings.
“Oh goodness!”
A boy with the bird held firmly in both hands peeked his head out from behind.
“Hello, Miel.”
“Priam? What is this?”
“I heard you built a new chicken coop, so I brought you a gift.”
Buck-buck-buck!
The chicken clucked loudly and flapped about, but Priam stroked it with practiced hands.
The bird soon settled down, letting out a soft little cluck. I couldn’t help but laugh at how endearing it was.
“Aha! It’s adorable.”
“She’s a hen, so she’ll lay eggs too.”
Priam made his appeal with bright, eager eyes—the look of someone hoping for praise.
“Thank you. It’s the first time I’ve ever received a chicken as a gift.”
I’d been thinking of raising chicks from the beginning to get eggs eventually, but I never expected to receive a fully grown hen.
‘But how did Priam know I built a chicken coop?’
I’d never mentioned it to him.
Cradling the chicken, I smiled and headed toward the coop.
“Let me just get her settled in the coop. You go inside first.”
After ushering Priam into the house, I put the chicken in the coop and hurried back.
Creak.
“I’m back. Should we do the Diary Exchange?”
Priam, who had been sitting in a chair, turned to look at me. In his hand was the mascot doll I’d left on the table.
“You were looking at the Cat Doll? It’s cute every time I see it.”
“Um… do you leave the doll here when you come?”
“Oh, yes. If I took it outside, I might lose it, so I keep it at home.”
“Even so, please take it with you. It might feel lonely.”
He poked the cheek of the Cat Doll—now transformed into a cat with cheese—with his fingertip.
“It was made to keep you from feeling lonely.”
“Really?”
Had Priam made the doll himself?
Just as I was about to ask carefully, Priam spoke up in his clear voice.
“By the way, there’s going to be a tomato sauce-making event in the village soon. Do you think you’ll participate?”
“Of course! I’ve been waiting to hear when it would be held.”
“The schedule was posted at the Village Community Hall today.”
“Really? I haven’t seen it yet. When is it?”
“In two weeks.”
“We’re harvesting tomatoes this week, so the timing works out perfectly. We’re lucky.”
“That’s right. The rainy season will be here soon, so go ahead and set up supports for the crops beforehand. We don’t want them washed away and ruined by the rain.”
“Sure thing.”
Smiling brightly, I took a seat and we exchanged diaries.
After pleasantly reading through Priam’s diary—as always, bright and refreshing—we moved on to the question section.

[What kind of person am I?]

Beneath the question, Priam’s answer was written in neat, careful script.

[I like people.
I hate being alone. I need to be with someone to feel at ease.
I don’t like loneliness, and I don’t like anxiety.]

‘So Priam gets lonely too, just like me.’
I was struck to find so many similarities between us.

[I wish someone would stay by my side all the time.
Someone kind and gentle, someone I could share my heart with.]

‘I wrote that I love meeting people too.’
As I read, I glanced up at the figure across from me.
My eyes met Priam’s green gaze directly.
“Do you get lonely easily too, Miel?”
The question came swiftly the moment our eyes locked.
Realizing we’d been thinking the same thing, laughter rose unbidden.
“Yeah. I don’t really like being alone either. I love playing around in a lively crowd with people.”
“Do you like having someone nearby?”
“Of course. When kind and gentle people are beside me, my heart feels at ease.”
“So you’re okay even when people get really close to you?”
“Mm? If they’re close friends, it’s fine. I like it when the Twins cling to my arms, and I don’t hate it when Siard pats my head.”
“……I see.”
Priam’s voice grew quieter.
“I envy you, Miel.”
“Why? Don’t you like that sort of thing?”
“I… I used to be fine with it too, before.”
Priam’s gaze fixed on empty air.
When his words suddenly trailed off, I tilted my head and asked again.
“Used to be?”
He lowered his head, staring down at the table.
I was just beginning to reach out slowly to stroke his soft hair when—
“Now it’s… uncomfortable.”
At the words that spilled from Priam’s lips, I quickly withdrew my hand.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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