Chapter 14
Three days had passed since Rodan came home with several bruises on his face. Telesia had asked him why he was bruised, but he hadn’t answered at all. He’d stayed silent, scowling.
However, Allen learned the reason for the bruises from Krena the next day. Apparently, Rodan had gotten into a fight with their neighbor, Gerda.
They never did find out what the fight had been about, but it had happened on the very day of the Appraisal Ceremony. Somehow, Allen felt as though he was to blame, since he had no talent and every one of his stats was ranked E.
He’d been clutching the Grimoire every day, trying to explain the circumstances and demand improvements by sheer force of will, but no message from the god had come through it.
Back when Allen had been Kenichi, equipment he’d spent a year making had vanished because of an obvious mistake on the game operator’s part: the game server had gone down. He’d kept demanding improvements from the Game Master—the operations staff—every day, and had managed to get his equipment restored from a backup. He was determined to keep sending his thoughts to the god every day until he got a response.
“Allen, are you ready?”
“Yeah, Mama.”
He didn’t think there was anything in particular to prepare. Just in case, he’d bring his wooden sword. Krena was having a bit too much influence on him.
“Come on, you’re coming too! You were awake just a moment ago, so why are you sleeping?!”
Telesia was pulling Rodan upright. He’d been lying down with Mash in his arms, and apparently he was still sulking.
Clang.
Clang.
Clang.
The bell announcing three o’clock in the Pioneer Village rang.
They were going to the neighbors’ house today. It was now late April. They’d finished a little less fieldwork than usual and were heading to Krena’s house.
(It’s been a while since I went to Krena’s house.)
Allen had been in this other world for five and a half years. He’d been playing with his neighbor Krena since he turned three, and she came over to his house almost every time. But of course, he sometimes went to her house, too.
They’d be sharing dinner, so they put some ingredients in a basket and left home.
It took less than fifteen minutes to reach the neighbors’ house.
“Hey, we’ve been waiting for you.”
A woman with pink hair and blue eyes greeted them cheerfully. Her short hair was wavy.
“Michilda, I’m sorry Rodan caused you trouble the other day.”
“What are you talking about? Gerda’s old enough to know better. He needs to grow up.”
This tough, big-sisterly woman was Krena’s mother, Michilda. She led all four of them to a house that was a step up from a shack. Of course, they’d brought Mash along, too.
They were staying at Krena’s house tonight.
“Allen, you’re here!!!”
Krena called out as soon as they entered. Perhaps because the whole family had come over, unlike usual, she sounded even more energetic than ever.
There was an earthen-floored entryway, then a room with a hearth and two more rooms. It was almost exactly like Allen’s home. In fact, it had the same layout.
“Hey, how long are you going to sulk?! You were awake until just a moment ago!!”
Michilda dragged Gerda, who was sleeping like a bear in the bedroom, into the room with the hearth with one hand. His face was bruised just like Rodan’s.
After that, Telesia and Michilda worked together to prepare dinner.
“Hey, hey, Allen, Lily’s gotten so big!”
While they waited, Allen was shown to the children’s room next door. Krena’s younger sister, Lily, was there. She had the same pink hair as Krena. Gerda’s hair was brown, so Lily had inherited both her hair and eyes from her mother. She smiled and reached out both hands, babbling away. When Allen offered her his hand, she grabbed it and squeezed.
(Wow, this is incredibly soothing!)
Krena’s younger sister Lily was one and a half years old. She’d been born around the time Allen turned four. He hadn’t seen her in a while, but he often heard about her from Krena.
Meanwhile, dinner was being prepared. Everyone gathered around the hearth. The meal wasn’t especially luxurious: the usual beans and potatoes, flatbread made without yeast, and vegetable stew with bits of meat in it.
(This feels like the birthday parties at the kindergarten I went to as a kid.)
It was a family hearth in a not-so-spacious house. With two families sitting around it, things were pretty cramped, but no one minded. The sight filled Allen with a warm feeling.
“Here, drink.”
“Huh?!”
Gerda still sounded a little combative. He shoved a brown, pottery-like container forward without much thought. Wondering what it was, Rodan held out an empty wooden cup, and Gerda poured the drink into it.
“Is this alcohol?”
“Yeah.”
“Where’d you get it?”
Rodan gave Gerda a questioning look, as if asking what a serf was doing with alcohol. Gerda was serving him a drink they didn’t even get at the harvest festival. The last time Rodan had drunk alcohol was when he married Telesia.
“The village chief came by yesterday and left it.”
“...”
Somehow, that alone was enough for Rodan to understand. His brow furrowed.
Gerda then told them what had happened over the past three days. The village chief had left the alcohol before heading off to report to the lord. Gerda had also been told that he might have to take Krena to the city where the lord lived.
Rodan’s brow furrowed even more at the thought of Krena being summoned by the lord.
“That’s enough already. The village chief brought us alcohol because our kid’s a Sword Saint and he was trying to be considerate. Don’t sweat the little stuff.”
“It’s not bothering me. And I’m happy for you, too. It’s not just a position in the lord’s service—even becoming a noble isn’t a pipe dream anymore.”
Rodan wasn’t jealous of Krena for being a Sword Saint.
“Then why are you saying we should stop spending time together?! And all this time, we—gwah!!!”
Perhaps emboldened by the alcohol, Gerda roared. Mash and Lily were startled and began to cry.
Before he could finish, Michilda’s perfect right cross landed on Gerda’s right cheek. She was telling him not to shout because he was making the children cry.
“...If a noble associates with serfs, Krena might lose this chance. She’s a Sword Saint, for goodness’ sake.”
Perhaps afraid of Michilda’s fist, Rodan kept his voice low. More than half the bruises on Rodan and Gerda’s faces had come from Michilda, who’d stepped in to settle things by beating them both.
By then, Allen understood why they’d fought. In this other world, serfs only married other serfs, and commoners only married other commoners. The same was probably true of nobles.
Apparently, Allen’s lack of talent wasn’t what had caused the fight.
Krena’s talent was not merely that of a swordsman; she had the potential to become a Sword Saint. Her talent was great enough that simply entering service as a knight wouldn’t be the end of it—she might even become a hero. The village chief planned to go personally and report to the lord in two days.
Rodan had told Gerda that their families should stop spending time together. Gerda’s answer had been a fist.
(Hmm, I see. They’re talking past each other. Now, should one of the kids step in?)
“Come to think of it, the four of you came to the Pioneer Village together, right?”
He brought up something Rodan had told him long ago. Everyone’s attention turned to Allen’s innocent smile and voice.
“That’s right, Allen. The four of us came from the neighboring village. We’d been together since we were kids, just like you and Krena.”
Michilda shared some old memories. All four of them had been born into serf families and played together as children. Naturally, they’d been poor, but they’d had fun.
Rodan and Gerda listened quietly.
Ten years ago, word had reached their neighboring village that a new village was going to be established in the area. The lord’s messenger had said that if they came to the Pioneer Village and cleared the land to establish a village, they could use the fields indefinitely.
“The four of us talked about it just like this back then.”
Telesia joined in. It seemed the old days had come back to her.
Serfs couldn’t own land, but it was rare for their land to be taken away without warning. However, usually only the eldest son inherited his parents’ place. None of the four had been the eldest child or the eldest son.
Sixty percent of a serf’s harvest was taken as tax, regardless of how many children they had. If the size of their fields stayed the same, then as their children grew up, they would need more and more food.
All four had unanimously decided to go to the Pioneer Village and clear new fields.
“That’s right. The four of us came to a village with nothing and built two houses together.”
Gerda joined the conversation. The first thing they’d needed was a place to live, so the four of them had built each other’s houses. That was why the two homes had the same layout. At first, they’d built an earthen-floored entryway and a room with a hearth in each house. Then, when they had children, they’d added two more rooms to each.
“That’s right...”
Rodan closed his eyes, seeming to picture those days. He said nothing more, but memories of their childhood and the hardships at the start of the settlement seemed to have come back to him.
“That’s right, Allen. Rodan was amazing. Have you heard about the first time he took down a Great Boar?”
“Huh? No, I haven’t.”
“Hey! Don’t tell him that!!!”
Rodan clamped a hand over Gerda’s mouth. The two of them smiled and started playfully tussling.
(Good, looks like they made up.)
Memories from childhood and the hardships of establishing the Pioneer Village seemed to have brought them back together. Their conversation around the hearth continued late into the night.