"This is the Mochi-Maker."
Luke, the inventor, clapped his hands and whispered: "Don't you want to eat some sticky rice cake? So I invented this machine."
Invention: Mochi-Maker
Source: Doraemon World — Future Tech Company.
Many of the gadgets in Doraemon were invented by Future Tech Company and famous doctors.
As we all know, anything that can be sold on the market is within a controllable range.
"Invention? You call this sudden appearance of a machine an invention?"
Uvogin's eyes bulged. He wasn't completely clueless.
He understood the meaning of the word invention.
But… he had no idea that the so-called invention meant something like this!
"Don't worry about the details."
Luke waved his hand. "Having sticky rice cakes to eat is the most important thing, isn't it?"
"You're right..."
Uvogin nodded subconsciously, then froze.
This sudden invention had completely overwhelmed his thinking, leaving him somewhat unsure how to interpret it.
Uvogin instinctively glanced at Machi, only to find she was still staring intently at the Mochi-Maker.
Well, with this machine, there was no need to worry about anything else.
Uvogin could sense that the boy seemed to have become a little weaker after the machine came out.
"So how does this thing make sticky rice cakes?"
Uvogin's large hand clapped the maker, a dull thud.
"Sticky rice cakes, of course, are made with glutinous rice."
Luke gave him a curious look.
"So, this crappy thing still can't just conjure sticky rice cakes out of thin air, right?"
The function of this Mochi-Maker instantly became nothing more than scrap metal in Uvogin's eyes.
"I don't know what kind of machine it is, but if it needs glutinous rice..."
Uvogin looked it up and down. "Forget glutinous rice, we don't even have the husks of some brown rice."
"But if this thing is taken apart, these metal pieces might fetch a good price."
Uvogin's eyes were filled with obvious eagerness to try it out.
This special discovery immediately brightened his mood. He even turned around with interest: "How about this? After we sell it, I'll give you some of the profits... Huh?"
He stared at the object that had reappeared in Luke's hand and was slightly startled.
"What are these?!"
"Something for growing glutinous rice."
"... Did you invent that, too?"
"What else?"
Luke said matter-of-factly: "Without glutinous rice, you can't make sticky rice cakes, so naturally, you have to grow glutinous rice first."
Grow glutinous rice...?!
Uvogin felt that such a statement sounded out of place in Meteor City.
In a place like Meteor City, there was even such a thing as growing?!
And wouldn't growing something take a long time?!
"What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and plant some rice!"
Luke casually tossed the long green capsule at Uvogin.
The latter fumbled to take it.
"This is called a seedling capsule, and it contains the raw materials for growing rice."
Before Uvogin could ask, Luke explained.
Then, he pulled out another small green tube and gently pulled the cord at the bottom.
Whoosh… bang.
A fiery red artificial sun rose into the sky and blossomed.
Under Uvogin and Machi's intent gaze, the miniature sun took shape.
This is the indoor sun, which helps the seedlings grow.
Whether it was because this was his first time inventing, or not, besides the Mochi-Maker, Luke even conjured a bunch of additional supporting gadgets as freebies!
Pop!
Under the stunned gazes of Uvogin and Machi, Luke took out a bottle filled with cloud and opened the cap.
And the most important thing…
"Scarecrow, and also..."
Luke's hands spread out the soft mats on the floor again: "Super small rice field."
This rice field even had fertilizer already prepared.
"That completes the initial preparations..."
Luke wiped the sweat from his face and breathed a sigh of relief.
Well, inventing so many items was a bit surprising, and it took a lot of effort.
But then he thought Uvogin's request was for sticky rice cake.
And these things he invented weren't the machine that could just conjure sticky rice cake out of thin air.
They had to be planted, cultivated, and then fed into the machine to produce sticky rice cake.
These extra steps made it possible for him to afford the expense of inventing so many items.
"In other words, if an invention directly achieves its goal, the consumption will be greater. But if it requires some personal effort in between, then the consumption will be lower."
Luke's understanding of his own abilities improved.
"Even so, the consumption is still high. I need to find a way to use Vows and Limitations to reduce it..."
Although he was thinking, his hands moved without slowing down.
After paving a large patch of fertile land, Luke glanced at Uvogin and Machi, who were still standing there in a daze.
"What are you still standing there for?! Hurry up and plant the rice seedlings!"
Uvogin: "...?"
Before he could react, Luke had already walked over to him and opened the seedling capsule in his hand.
Then he divided the seedlings into three, handing two portions to Uvogin and Machi, respectively.
"Just like this, plant the seedlings in the ground."
Luke even demonstrated, rolling up his trouser legs, stepping into the muddy rice field, and shoving the seedlings in.
Uvogin: "..."
They're really planting seedlings right there?!
Is there really such a thing in Meteor City?!
This completely contradicted Uvogin's lifelong survival strategies on Meteor City, and for the first time, it conflicted with his thinking.
So much so, he stared at the tiny seedlings in his hand, so small they could be grasped in one finger, and felt a bit lost.
"If you don't know what to do, just follow her and learn..."
Luke immediately noticed Uvogin's uncertainty and pointed at Machi beside him.
Machi…?
Uvogin instinctively glanced at his inseparable companion.
He saw Machi's thin figure already entering the rice field.
Although her technique was clumsy and unfamiliar, she imitated Luke's instructions and inserted the seedlings in her hand.
Uvogin was silent for a moment, then bared his teeth.
Isn't it just planting seedlings?!
If this silly boy and Machi can do it, why can't he, Uvogin?! Without hesitation, he stepped directly into the rice field.
"You're too big. Go plant over there."
"Plant accurately, don't plant them haphazardly!"
"Keep enough space between the seedlings, or they won't grow!"
Amidst Luke's scolding, Uvogin sweated profusely as he planted.
Under normal circumstances, if Luke had dared to speak to him in such a tone and manner, Uvogin guaranteed he would have twisted Luke's head off and shoved it under his butt.
But in this wondrous rice field, he simply obediently followed Luke's instructions and orders.
And so, despite the trio's crude and frantic work, the entire rice field was filled with... Relatively neatly planted seedlings.
"That will do for now."
Luke wiped the sweat from his face and turned to the two figures behind him, who were also covered in mud and looked like they had crawled out of a mud pit.
"In about two hours, it'll be ready to harvest."
Two hours...?
Machi, not even bothering to wipe the mud off her face, looked up at the artificial sun and dark clouds overhead.
Add to that the rice field and rice seedlings on the ground, and that strange sticky rice cake making machine...
This didn't seem like something a normal person could do.
Beside her, Uvogin, his back aching from bending over, stared intently at the rice field.
Although this kind of physical labor was nothing to him, it was his first time, especially under these strange circumstances, so he couldn't help but tense up.
However, the sight of the rice seedlings covering the ground and the fact that they would soon see results in two hours... Uvogin couldn't help but smile at the thought of planting the rice seedlings with his own hands.
For some reason, he felt exceptionally refreshed.
Though he didn't know the word sense of achievement, that was exactly what he was experiencing.
He and Machi both stared eagerly at the artificial sun and clouds above.
Thankfully, subsequent developments didn't disappoint them.
Originally, after Doraemon and Nobita had planted the rice seedlings, the seasonal control system malfunctioned.
The resulting rain from the dark clouds was minimal, and the heat from the artificial sun skyrocketed, drying the fields to the point of cracking.
While Doraemon was complaining about cheap goods, he ran downstairs and got a bucket of water from Nobita's mother, who was cleaning.
This finally resolved the drought crisis in the fields.
However, due to excessive watering, the dark clouds also released a large amount of water, threatening to rot the rice.
They also placed a sunny doll in the middle of the field, causing considerable trouble.
Now, with this set of farm equipment invented by Luke, such problems are eliminated.
The normal sunlight and the regular, moderate rainfall from dark clouds ensured the rice seedlings in the fields thrived.
This cycle continued for over an hour.
"They have grown taller?!"
Uvogin and Machi watched the rice grow at a visible pace.
Very soon, the green stalks began sprouting ears of grain, gradually ripening and turning golden.
Normally, before harvest, locust eggs hidden in the rice would hatch, requiring human intervention.
However, after Luke's invention, even the eggs were eliminated.
Well, if a swarm of locusts really appeared, Uvogin and Machi might not even need to eat sticky rice cakes, but roasted locusts instead.
Just like that, two hours flew by.
A golden sea of ripe rice stretched before their eyes.
The heavy, full grain heads bowed down, nearly bending the stalks under their weight!