Volume 1 Chapter 15 Caravan
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It had been 2 and a half years since we arrived in this village. One early spring day, a caravan from the Border Patrol Tax Collector came to Tokura Village.
A few horses were pulling large carts, and behind them were several wagons.
The Tax Collector comes every year, and I guess I didn’t remember much during my first spring here. Last year, I should have known better, so I wondered why I didn’t remember such a big event. I realized I probably wasn’t in the right mindset back then.
At night, there was a welcome party for the Tax Collector at the Village Head’s house, and Puruun and I were invited.
We planned to talk to the Tax Collector about our situation. There were about 50 important people from the village and the caravan, and of course, we were sitting at the back.
I caught the eye of the person sitting next to me, and I felt a strange chill. The woman next to me had brown skin, curly hair, and sharp eyes like a bird of prey. She was tall and fit, wearing something like a leather jumpsuit. She looked more like a tough fighter than a lady, so I quickly said hello, but she ignored me.
Eventually, the main guest, the Tax Collector, entered the room with the Village Head, and the party started. The woman walked over to the Tax Collector and stood behind him, holding a greatsword like a bodyguard.
”Yuuta, that person is a dark elf. Look at her ears.”
Puruun said.
”Dark elf? Is she different from a regular elf?”
”Are you blind? They’re totally different! The skin color and body shape are not the same. I’ve heard that dark elves are half-elf, half-demon and have amazing strength and magic.”
”Wow, really? But Puruun, in my old world, we’re told not to judge people by their skin color or background. So, don’t stare too much.”
”Oh, okay. Got it…”
Soon, the Village Head called us, and Puruun and I went to the front of the party.
”Let me introduce you. This is our village’s Tax Collector. Mr. Jin from Agohige.”
The Village Head said. The person he introduced was a friendly-looking dwarf with a nice beard.
”Hey, Village Head, these kids are meeting me for the first time, so tell them my full name. Haha, I’m Jin Euler, and I’ve been the Tax Collector for this village for over 30 years. I heard a little about your situation earlier. We can discuss things more later, but since I just got here, I’ll be busy tomorrow. Can you come to the caravan the day after tomorrow in the afternoon?”
”Sure, Tax Collector Jin. Thank you.”
”Oh, you don’t have to be so formal. Just call me Mr. Agohige.”
After chatting with Mr. Jin, I felt really uneasy because of the dark elf woman’s intense presence.
Two days later, since we mostly needed to talk about travel costs, Puruun went to meet with Mr. Agohige, and I decided to take a part-time job with the caravan. They set up a temporary job application area in one corner of the caravan, and anyone in the village could apply if they had free time.
The caravan was delivering orders from villagers to the royal capital, kind of like a delivery service during the holiday season. They said if they waited for the customers to come pick up their stuff, they would never get it done.
In the morning, ten of us pulled 2 big carts to that sho. In the afternoon, the packages got smaller, and the one I picked up was a pretty big box but surprisingly light. I thought I was lucky, but when I checked the order, it was for Ellulu. I remembered that Sodon used to work this job too, and I looked around, hoping to switch with him, but he was already out on another delivery.
So, I had no choice but to take it to Ellulu’s house.
”Hey, it’s Yuuta delivering!”
I shouted loudly at the front door.
”Oh, it’s Yuuta! What’s up? That’s funny!”
Ellulu came out from inside.
”Okay, can you sign for this package?”
I said in a business-like tone.
”What’s with that? You’re so cold… Oh, wait! Yuuta, can you come in for a bit?”
”Uh, but I have more deliveries to do…”
”Don’t worry! It won’t take long!”
What’s going on? Did I have that close of a relationship with her? Oh, maybe she wants to show me something weird… I shook off those strange thoughts and figured I didn’t have a good reason to refuse, so I went inside.
”I’ll make some tea, so just sit anywhere. Oh, my parents are at work, so don’t worry!”
That actually made me more nervous.
Ellulu made me some herbal tea and told me to wait while she went to the back with the package I brought. She came back a little while later, but this time she was wearing a white dress with lots of frills, different from what she had on before.
I had never seen Ellulu this close before, and looking at her again, she had big eyes and a nice nose. She was tall and slim with long legs. She really looked like she could be a teen model, which made sense since she was the prettiest in the village. But now, she was standing in front of me in a dress that was a bit too short, about 15 cm above her knees.
”What do you think?”
”Yeah, it’s really pretty. Cute…”
I replied, feeling a bit flustered.
”Oh, good! If you say it’s okay, then it’s fine. I asked Mr. Agohige to get this for me from the royal capital. I drew a picture of what I wanted and gave it to her last year. Well, it turned out quite different, but they got the basic idea right. But you know, the guys in this countryside village will probably only notice the hem and my thighs.”
As she said that, Ellulu grabbed the hem of her dress and waved it up and down.
Oh no, did I just see her underwear…?
”But I might not be that different… Maybe my eyes are glued to that area too…”
”No way. I think you’re different. You know, about a year after you guys came to this village, I asked Puruun to show me your clothes. Oh, of course, they were washed first. But I was shocked.”
She leaned in conspiratorially, her eyes sparkling.
”Your underwear is made of some material I don’t really understand, but it stretches well and absorbs moisture while still being breathable. And Ms. Akari’s shorts have such a unique design, with lots of tiny frills and cute patterns. I thought people who wear stuff like that must have great fashion sense! So I figured you’d have a good eye for this kind of thing!”
Haha, Ms. Ellulu. That was just a cheap 2-thousand-yen sweatsuit from Uniqlo.
But it’s true, compared to this village, our world is a fashion superpower. Even shorts here are just basic, ugly ones tied with strings since they don’t have elastic.
Then, Ellulu moved closer to me. I tensed up a bit, but she confidently sat next to me and said,
”You guys are going back to your world soon, right?”
”Yeah, that’s the plan, but honestly, I don’t know when…”
”And you know…”
Ellulu suddenly leaned in close to my face and whispered in my ear,
”When that time comes, can you take me with you? I want to study fashion.”
Oh, I get it. Ellulu steps away from me, probably noticing my face is super red from her getting so close.
”I’ve been saving money because I want to go study fashion in the royal capital. So, I thought maybe they’d have pants like yours and shorts like Ms. Akari’s, so I ordered this dress along with them. But look at this!
Well, I wasn’t expecting much anyway…”
As she says this, she shows me a copy of the order form that came with the dress. Oh, I see. There’s a big red X next to the pants and shorts section.
”Well, if that’s the case, we have to go to the main store!”
”Got it, Ellulu. I think that’s a great dream. We won’t know for sure until the time comes, but if it’s possible, I’ll take you to my world with me.”
”Ah, thanks, Yuuta!”
Saying that, Ellulu jumps on me and gives me a kiss on the cheek.
Later, after making a few deliveries, I come home late to find Puruun and Ms. Akari looking serious while facing each other.
”Welcome back, Yuuta. You’re late. What’s up? I can smell Ellulu on you.”
Wow, beastfolk really have strong noses.
There’s no way I could cheat with that kind of sense.
”No, I just took a package to Ellulu from the royal capital. So, what’s with the serious faces?”
I try to change the subject.
”Really? Just taking a package made you smell like that? Well, whatever. Yuuta, we have an emergency!”
”What happened?”
”We’re short on money!”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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