DWBS 22: New Year

This is machine translated, and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.

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This time, they were gone for a little longer.

「That’s why I, Aisha, became Haruto’s fiancee. Best regards in the future!!」

Aisha said so soon after arriving home.

「Wha- !?」

Haruto was confused, not understanding the meaning for a moment.

「Haruto-san!! What does this mean!!」

Roa yelled with a crying face.

「No, I don’t know what’s going on either……」

「Did you cheat on me!! Is that why you want to throw me away!! I don’t want to. Don’t throw me away!!」

Roa hugged Haruto while crying. For the time being, he asked Aisha while stroking Roa’s head.

「What do you mean? I don’t understand. It’s not funny if it’s a joke.」

「No, it’s not a joke. Grandpa said that he told you I would come here to get married. In short, it’s for buying soap and Haruto.」

「Will my will not be respected?」

When Haruto asked, Aisha answered.

「If you say you want out, then I can only go out, but it’s inevitable that your relationship with my grandfather will worsen, right? Besides, if Haruto refused me, there would be no one who will receive me.」

「Didn’t you run away because you don’t want to get married?」

This was putting the cart before the horse.

「If it’s someone I don’t like. I just hate the idea of marrying someone whom I haven’t even met, but it does not mean I don’t want to get married. I like Haruto, so it’s okay. Haruto also likes me, right?」

Aisha’s a beautiful girl. He didn’t feel bad when a beautiful girl told him that she liked him. It’s just that this was another issue.

「I certainly don’t dislike you. I may even like you. But I have Roa, you know?」

He looked down at Roa who was still crying. He couldn’t abandon her.

「Nn~? You just have to marry Roa. I am still Roa’s friend. Isn’t it a good idea?」

When he was suddenly told to get married and just as he was planning to say he had Roa to refuse, he was confused for a moment.

「Didn’t you want to marry me?」

「That’s right. So let’s get married.」

「Nn?」

「Nn?」

Their talks didn’t mesh. He thought, so Haruto asked Aisha.

「Do the desert people allow polygamy?」

「Polygamy? What’s that?」

「Having multiple wives.」

When Haruto explained, Aisha tilted her neck.

「It’s a regular thing that is forgiven.」

Haruto held his head. He guessed that this was probably a cultural difference. After all, Claris didn’t allow bigamy.

「Eh? What’s up with that? Strange. So the rich and the poor only have one wife? Then the wealth cannot be redistributed. What about the widow who lost her husband?」

According to Aisha’s story, it seemed common sense for men, who have a lot of money, to marry many wives. So for a poor woman, the rich man had to support that woman’s family. Rich people married many wives, and by producing a lot of kids, many children would receive a higher education. This also prevented the wealth from being consolidated into one by distributing it to many. It seemed like an excellent system to him. But they’re in Claris.

「Unfortunately, Claris has banned polygamy.」

When Haruto said so, Aisha answered after a bit of thinking.

「Then Roa is your wife, so how about I become the mistress? In the desert, people living together and giving birth is not a problem since they’re a couple. Problem solved.」

「Such a thing!! It’s the opposite. Being a mistress is condoned!!」

Roa raised her face and shouted.

「That’s right. I never intended to make you my mistress……」

The moment Haruto tried to synchronize with Roa, Aisha pressed her body against Haruto. With her chest hitting his arm, Haruto involuntarily stopped his words.

「No problem. I’ll take care of that. Besides, Roa, aren’t you also not officially engaged with Haruto? And you see, love is not in quantity.」

Roa glared at Aisha while grinding her teeth.

「That’s why it’s okay. Haruto.」

「Eh? Ma~, best regards……」

「Please don’t lean on Haruto-san like that!!」

Roa shouted in a loud voice.

＿＿＿＿＿＿

「Roa, I have a gift for you.」

When Haruto said so, Roa stared at Haruto’s face.

「I’m not going to fall for that.」

「Well, I don’t need this ruby necklace.」

Haruto took out the ruby necklace from his pocket, hanging and swinging it in front of Roa’s eyes。

「I-I do!!」

Roa said so and raised her neck a little bit.

「Please put it on me.」

Haruto put the ruby necklace on Roa’s neck. Roa happily stroked the ruby attached to the necklace, then made a turn with her skirt following. The necklace shook at Roa’s movement. Roa looked at Haruto’s face.

「How is it? Does it suits me?」

「Ah, you look nice.」

When Haruto said so, Roa fiddled with the necklace again.

「By the way, where did you get this?」

「The Patriarch gave this to me as a gift for protecting Aisha. Your eyes and hair are like rubies, so I thought it’d look good on you.」

「Is that so? It can’t be helped. I will forgive you for today.」

Roa then happily went outside. She drew water from the well, planning to see her own appearance.

「It’s a choroin.」

(T/N: CHOROIN = A heroine who seems hard to get at first but is actually easy.)

「Totally.」

Haruto and Aisha were amazed.

＿＿＿＿＿

「By the way, it’s almost January, which means it’ll be New Year.」

Removing the necklace, the now calm Roa said that.

「It’s certainly nearing as you said. Many things have happened this year.」

Haruto had a faraway look in his eyes. Thinking back, things happened in the blink of an eye. He was thinking the same thing a few days ago.

「How do you spend the first day? In my hometown, it’s basically eating a delicious meal and spending time with your family」

This was how Haruto spend his New Year. Not all Japanese spend it sleeping.

「It’s also like that in here. You can eat delicious food with your family. It’s like a feast on the day before the New Year…… in other words, there is a festival on the last day of the year. It’s to appreciate being alive and healthy for one year.」

Haruto turned to Aisha, so she answered with a laugh.

「It’s the same in the desert.」

It seems like it’s normal to spend one day with your family in any country.

「For me, I don’t have a family, so what should I do?」

「What a coincidence, I don’t have one either.」

「Why are you making an air like you’re at a funeral? Shouldn’t it be a fun story right now?」

Aisha screamed to disperse the heavy air. Haruto and Roa apologized to Aisha for the heavy atmosphere. Haruto said he’d be careful when Roa spoke.

「By the way, what is a festival?」

「Right. It’s when street stalls are lined up. Basically, you spend your time drinking and singing until morning.」

After saying so, Roa made a dark face.

「Ma~, it’s a story that had nothing to do with me. I have trouble with what to eat that day, shaking from the cold, and the singing was too loud…… Are you alluding to me!! I watched a girl of the same age as me, who wore fashionable clothes, and her whole family ate something that they bought from the stall. I was wearing tattered clothes while I’m holding hard bread alone. It’s not such a fun image……」

The air froze again, so Roa tried to disperse it in a panic.

「But, it’s a story of the past! I am looking forward to it now. Haruto-san also got me a ruby necklace, so I am really looking forward to it!!」

「I-I see. It’s fine because you have us this year!!」

「That’s right. Aren’t we like family!!」

Three people were forced to raise the tension.

「So, are there other customs?」

「Now that you mention it…… we should decorate. I’ll make a decoration out of a bundle of wheat straw. It seems like an offering to God, so please leave this to me because my mother taught me how.」

After that, Roa was gone on her own world. Haruto raised his voice before the air froze again.

「Alright, I’m leaving you to decorate. The production of soap is also closed, so let’s give the children some vacation. Also, pass some pocket money. I’m looking forward to it!!」

Haruto then forcefully laughed. Roa was also lured in and laughed.

「Uhm, about that…… it’s bad to change the topic, but I wonder if I can?」

Aisha had an apologetic face as she raised her hand.

「So, am I set to be Haruto’s mistress? But if you’re bothered to live together with me, I think I’m going to live on an inn somewhere. Because I don’t have a job…… I wonder if you’ll hire me officially?」

Roa and Haruto looked at each other. Aisha was working unpaid until now, but that would be unethical after this.

「I understand. I’ll hire you as a mercenary and a laborer. It’s the same work as what you’ve been doing up to now, but you’ll fight against enemies once they come. Is it okay if the salary is the same as Pudding?」

Haruto proposed employment conditions to which Aisha easily nodded. Aisha’s work of carrying the barrels was equal to the work done by 10 slaves, so Haruto thought that giving a higher salary than Pudding’s would be fine if she asked for a raise. After all, Aisha’s naive.

「Haruto, you’re grinning. What happened?」

「No, it’s nothing.」

Haruto lied.

_________

「It looks like a shimenawa, isn’t it!!」

(T/N: Shimenawa = sacred rice straw festoon decorating most front doors of houses and businesses during the New Year holidays. It makes a boundary between this side and the other side where the Gods live, and hanging it on the door means welcoming the Gods and keeping out the evil.)

Haruto shouted involuntarily.

It was a shimenawa. Some details were different, but the basic structure was the same as a shimenawa. The difference was whether the straw was rice or wheat.

「Eh? So you do know it. It’s a shimenawa」

Moreover, the name seemed to be the same.

「Did this came from the Empire’s first Emperor?」

「So it has been told. It did originate from the empire, and with the expansion of the empire, this shimenawa was also introduced to the region.」

The first emperor who founded the empire, King Almus I, was an inventor. Many inventions made by Almus I developed the empire into the world’s largest country. Even Haruto only knew some of it: pudding, magic, secret medicine, and others.

(T/N: For those who don’t know, Almus is the protagonist in the Otherworld Nation Founding Chronicles. It’s from the same author.)

（I guess if it’s a shimenawa, it should be black……）

Almus I should be from Earth…… it wouldn’t be wrong to think that he’s from Japan in particular. He might have even transferred here the same way as Haruto, but it’s also possible that he’s a reincarnated person.

（There might be a lot of transmigrators aside from me.）

Haruto might even meet other transmigrators that came from another world. Maybe there’s even a method to go home.

Thinking that far, Haruto shook his head. There’s no time to do that now. Even if he knew how to go back home, he didn’t feel like going home. Haruto looked at Roa, who was happily laughing.

（Although there are some inconveniences, it’s more fun here.）

Since transmigrating to another world, doing his business, falling in love, and becoming a diplomat, he had become more motivated here than in Japan.

「Haruto-san!! Incidentally, I tried making this.」

Roa called out to him, so he stopped thinking. He transferred his line of sight to Roa.

Roa had a big white bread. The bread was flat, and there were two stacks of it with citrus fruit on top.

「It’s a Kagami bread」

Haruto had a pained expression. She probably meant to make a Kagami cake, but because there was no rice cake, they substituted it with white bread. The developer’s anguish came to his mind.

(T/N: Kagami Cake (lit. translation: Mirror Rice Cake) = It is often said that its shape resembles a bronze mirror which was considered a treasure by the ancient Japanese. It is believed that by double-decking such noble items, your fortune will also double. The orange on top is called dai-dai, and it is supposed to give hope and prosperity to the following descendants.)

(T/N: I feel so wrong at posting this when it’s not New Year)

「But there is no such thing as Kagami bread. Isn’t it strange? Don’t you feel that there should be more?」

Haruto thought about the name. Even the developers had trouble coming up with a name and just wonderfully named it Kagami bread.

「Is that so? Isn’t it normal?」

On the other hand, Roa didn’t feel uncomfortable. However, Haruto knew the origin, so he felt uncomfortable. But this was normal for Roa and the others.

「Well, alright. I also have some time to become familiar with it.」

Haruto gave a bitter smile.

＿＿＿＿＿＿

「I think that bed is good though?」

Roa pointed to the bed, which was at a discount.

「The price is good, but…… it should be a little bigger. Haruto might also sleep on it.」

「W-What are you saying!!」

Roa shouted. The surrounding clerks’ eyes landed on Roa, so she shrunk her body.

Aisha’s new house was bought early on, but there was no furniture. Of course, people couldn’t live a cultured life without furniture. Aisha’s personal belongings were left in the desert, so she had no choice but to buy new ones.

「Generally speaking, for an unmarried man and woman to sleep on the same bed, aren’t you ashamed? What! You mistress!!」

「Even if it’s not recognized as a marital relationship in Claris’ registry, in the culture of the desert people, they’re married. If they slept together, they’d become a couple once they made a child」

Roa blushed at the words child making. It reminded her of the 『how a baby is made』 incident.

「You guys, be a little quieter. This is a public place, so don’t say child making out loud!!」

When Haruto reminded them, Aisha was somewhat proud.

「Because Roa-」

「It’s Aisha, who said it first!!」

Haruto stopped the quarreling girls and managed to stroll around, looking for furniture. Because it’s the end of the year, most of the products were discounted, so Haruto and Roa also bought some furniture. It was somehow a pity.

「Then how about this? The price is also okay.」

「Isn’t it good? Ma~, Haruto-san will not come to Aisha’s place forever.」

It seemed to have been decided.

「Haruto, let me pay by getting an advance on my salary.」

Haruto bitterly smiled, passing gold coins and silver coins one by one.

「This is your salary for January. Use it well since you won’t be paid until the end of February. And don’t forget to pay tax.」

「I know. I bought a chain to keep my wallet from being stolen.」

Aisha showed her wallet with a chain.

「If you lose your money the next time, you’ll become a slave without complaints. Please be careful.」

「Yes, yes.」

Aisha replied noncommittally to Roa, who raised a brow.

「What, that’s not a proper answer!!!」

「Roa, be quiet.」

Haruto’s attention went to Roa, who raised a loud voice to which Roa blushed in a heartbeat.

「I know. This is a public place. You have to be careful about what you do before you pay attention to me.」

Aisha inflamed Roa while grinning, so Roa embraced Haruto.

「Haruto-san. Aisha-san is bullying me. Please comfort me.」

Haruto stroked Roa’s head. Aisha narrowed her eyes at Roa and said.

「Wait a minute, isn’t that sly?」

Aisha unintentionally raised her voice. Roa removed herself from Haruto, then said so after laughing naughtily.

「Please be quiet. This is a public place.」

Aisha’s face distorted from frustration. Roa seemed to be the better player.

「Sheesh, be nice. Let’s go.」

Haruto pulled apart Roa and Aisha, who continued to quarrel.

＿＿＿＿＿

It was New Year’s eve. The main shopping street had many stalls set up, so it’s very crowded.

「Haruto-san. I’ll be shooting over there.」

Roa ran while holding her skirt. He only saw her white skirt before she disappeared.

「I feel blessed.」

「Haruto……」

Aisha looked at Haruto with white eyes.

(T/N: White-eye = A look of displeasure or annoyance displayed by maximizing the white of one’s eye; simply put, exaggeratedly rolling your eyes)

Haruto and Aisha hurried to catch up to Roa. When they looked at where Roa’s finger pointed at, there was a stall with dolls lined up side by side. When they looked closely, they could see something like a crossbow.

「You shoot the doll with the crossbow, and the doll you knocked down is yours. One round is 200 Doria. How about it?」

The shopkeeper, who was an older woman, told Haruto. Haruto looked at Roa and Aisha. Both of them have sparkling eyes.

「Then, two please.」

Haruto then gave the money to the older woman. The old woman handed six arrows to Haruto. It should mean that one round was three tries. Haruto passed three arrows to Roa first.

「I’m going to hit all three.」

Roa was so enthusiastic as she took the toy crossbow.

The first one made a swish sound, and it flew in the wrong direction.

「W-well, the first one is a trial shot.」

「I thought you said you’d shoot all of them?」

「N-noisy. Everyone fails.」

Roa released the second arrow while saying that. The arrow passed right beside the dragon doll.

「A little more to the right. Hang in there.」

Roa readied the third arrow with a nervous face. The arrow scratched the right side of the doll.

「You shot too far to the right.」

Roa dropped her shoulders in disappointment.

「Then the next one is me.」

Aisha received an arrow from Haruto.

「I am a genuine hunter, so I’m good with bows. I won’t be defeated.」

Aisha said she’s good, but she shot the arrow with a tense face.

The arrow pierced the ground.

「Aren’t you a genuine hunter?」

「Noisy. It’s because it’s different from a real bow!!」

Aisha shot the second arrow while saying so. The arrow touched the roof made with cloth, and fell.

「This time, it’s too high. Hang in there.」

Aisha didn’t answer to Haruto’s cheering as she released the third arrow. The arrow flew in the wrong direction.

「It’s regrettable, isn’t it? Are you sure you’re good with the bow?」

To Roa’s words, Aisha raised her voice.

「I’m not as bad as you. This is a broken thing.」

Aisha glared at the toy crossbow to which Haruto laughed.

「You guys are terrible. Don’t blame the tools.」

When Haruto said so, Roa and Aisha glared at Haruto.

「I missed it since it’s noisy on my side. Just a little more to the right, and I would have gotten it!!」

「That’s right. Because of Haruto, my concentration was broken. If you say so much, then Haruto should be able to do it, right?」

Roa and Aisha drew closer to Haruto. When it’s said so far, Haruto also couldn’t back down.

「It can’t be helped. One more round, please.」

Haruto passed the money to the older woman, then picked up the toy crossbow.

Releasing the first one, the arrow passed through the side of the dragon doll.

「Haruto-san, just a little bit more to the right~」

「Yay~, yay~, I called it!! You’re really bad at this.」

Roa and Aisha respectively inflamed Haruto. However, with that one shot, he got the hang of it. Haruto got a little frustrated but still calmly shot the second arrow.

The arrow released from the toy crossbow hit the dragon doll’s head, and it fell back.

「Here you go, dear customer.」

The older woman handed the dragon doll to Haruto. Roa and Aisha approached Haruto while praising him.

「As expected of Haruto-san. I believed that Haruto-san can do it!!」

「As expected of Haruto!! Ikemen!!」

Haruto looked at the two people’s changed attitude with a bitter smile. Haruto thanked them for the compliments then handed the dragon doll to Roa. He didn’t hand it to Aisha because it was just flattery.

「Thank you very much!!」

Roa held the dragon doll happily. Aisha seemed to be dissatisfied.

「Next is to take Aisha’s. Which one do you want?」

When Haruto said so, Aisha smiled happily.

「That one. That sheep is nice!!」

Aisha pointed at a sheep doll with a foolish face. Its expression looked like it’s mocking him. Haruto shot the arrow toward its face. The arrow hit the corner of the sheep, making it stagger.

「……」

「……」

「……」

Haruto, Aisha, and the old woman stared at the sheep doll. By the way, Roa was rubbing her cheek against the doll dragon, not noticing that Haruto already shot the third arrow.

Since the sheep was shaking, it slowly fell down from the platform. The older woman then picked up the sheep doll.

「Here you go.」

The old woman handed the sheep doll to Aisha, and she happily hugged it. Haruto couldn’t understand why the goofy faced sheep was good.

「That’s good. It’s about time for us to meet Rusk and Pudding. Let’s go.」

The three people hurried towards Undine.

＿＿＿＿＿＿

「Oh! Haruto-kun!! You’re late.」

When they arrived at Undine, Rusk and Pudding had already arrived.

「Let’s drink. Aisha, is there something you don’t like?」

「No. I will leave it to everyone for now.」

Pudding called the waiter to order. It was Maria who came.

「Onii-chan, Onee-chan. Welcome!! Nn? Who is the new Onee-chan?」

Aisha stood up to introduce herself.

「I’m Aisha. A desert citizen.」

Knowing that Aisha was a desert citizen, Maria had shining eyes.

「Then, have you ever killed a dragon or something?」

「Of course, because we’re dragon killers.」

「Amazing!!」

Maria made her eyes shine more. Aisha tried to brag further, but Haruto lightly cleared his throat.

「Ah, I’m sorry. So what’s your order?」

Pudding ordered some food and alcohol from Maria, and she went away with a trot.

After a while, the food and drinks were brought out. Pudding raised the alcohol and said.

「Cheers to the coming New Year!!」

＿＿＿＿＿

「Haruto-shan. You’re warm……」

One hour after the party began, Roa was sitting on Haruto’s knee. She had a delighted face as Haruto caressed her head without thinking.

「Haruto!! Here you go.」

The red-faced Aisha tried to pour alcohol into Haruto’s cup, but he grabbed Aisha’s hand.

「If I drink more, I’ll get drunk. Who do you think would bring you home?」

「What~ *hic*, are you saying that you can’t drink!!」

Aisha was completely drunk. Aisha had a stronger alcohol tolerance than Haruto, but she quickly got drunk and couldn’t even support her own weight.

「Oi, don’t be so intimate. I’ll take your sake.」

Haruto tried to pull Aisha, but Aisha’s grip strength was too great.

「Desert people can crush a walnut with their thumb and forefinger. Can’t you just give up?」

Pudding told Haruto while laughing. Pudding was already drinking twice as much as Aisha but didn’t look drunk.

「Why are these guys so drunk!!」

Haruto lamented. Just then, the sound of the bell rang.

*dong dong dong*

「Ah! It’s the Joya bells. The New Year should be near.」

There seems to be a bell for New Year’s Eve.

「Who is Joya?」

Haruto tried asking.

「Who knows? It’s been called that since a long time ago. That’s just the way it is. Isn’t it because Joya is the one who started it?」

He still didn’t understand and wondered if it’s really like that. This custom was bizarre, Haruto thought.

*dong dong dong*

The bell continued to ring. According to the story, Joya’s bells rang 108 times in the same way as the night bell.

*dong dong dong*

Listening to the sound of the bell, Haruto looked back on his otherworld life and thought.

（I’ve probably been looking back too much recently……）

He laughed in spite of himself. Haruto closed his eyes and counted the sound of bells.

(98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107 …108!!)

Haruto opened his eyes and looked around. Four people were drunk, and only Haruto was awake.

「Mother……」

Haruto felt sad.

---

Income: About 19,500,000（39,000 soaps）

Expense Total: 15,610,000

• 2,000,000（slave maintenance cost）
• 100,000（store rent and maintainance fee）
• 60,000（horse-drawn carriage rental fee for 4 carriages）
• 1,040,000（olive oil, 1500 barrels）
• 1,250,000（seaweed ash, 1250 barrels）
• 450,000（mercenary）
• 10,000（firewood）
• 10,000（salt）
• 580,000（sales tax）
• 1,950,000（income tax）

Income － Expense ＝3,890,000

Liability: 20,000,000

Balance remaining: 6,780,000

Real Property: -13,220,000

Other Property: 60 Slaves

Employees:

• Accounting Officer and Slave Director: Roa Samaras
• Mercenary: Rusk & Pudding

Warehouse 1 (warehouse attached to the store): 300 pieces soap

Warehouse 2 (warehouse attached to the slave residence): 17 pots, 20 olive barrels, 15 barrels of seaweed ash

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Last Edit:     2010-10-13     5:44 AM

This is machine translated, and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.