Volume 6 Chapter 8 The Toad Sage Of Toyota Village
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Early spring on a clear day. I sway gently on Ms. Claire’s back, enjoying a wonderful journey from the royal capital to Toyata Village.
The trees along the canal are sprouting new buds and flowers, and I can’t help but feel warm inside. Spring is almost here—no, it’s already spring now.
The tall wall barley fields have grown quite tall, eerily so, lush and vibrant green.
It’s a cheat plant brought by the Goddess, an essential staple crop that provides abundant blessings to people without any care. I understand I should be grateful.
Wall barley, even in whole grain bread, is incredibly delicious, isn’t it? There’s no point in removing the bran and making white bread. But, you know… it’s strange how it spreads uncontrollably like weeds everywhere. When something reproduces so vigorously, it kind of loses its value, I think.
I was fed up when the officials were slow at the city gate, delaying us for nearly half a day. In reality, the travel time was less than 2 hours. Well, Ms. Claire sped through what once seemed like a long journey at a remarkable speed.
* * *
After a long time, Toyata Village looks somehow smaller. I’m surprised at how tense the village atmosphere has become. The cold war between the Hero faction and the village head faction is obvious; we won’t even speak to each other.
Already, some people from the Hero faction are preparing to move. We haven’t yet decided on a new village site. Mr. Mauro told me not to leave because an important meeting will be held tomorrow. I’m a little scared of what tomorrow might bring.
Anyway, Mr. Zenom is quite busy with a series of orders from Ms. Mahal. Ninjutsu tools will have to wait. I’ll report about meeting Mr. Ginchi later, perhaps when my master is drinking.
And Mr. Ginchi has brought a delivery for someone named Aslink of Toyata Village. It’s not an official request, so there’s no reward, and no penalty even if I fail. I’ve been told I can burn the wooden box and its contents if it becomes troublesome, but that won’t do. Better to tidy it up before I forget.
It’s said Aslink is a man around 30 living in Toyata Village, but I’ve never even heard his name before. His house is near the village gate, so he’s probably Ms. Erin’s neighbor. Did anyone live around there? Well, asking the neighbors would be the quickest way.
”If it’s Mr. Aslink, he’s next door~desuwa.”
Ms. Erin said, pointing toward a dead-end alley. Come to think of it, there’s a dilapidated haunted house over there.
”What kind of person is he?”
”Well, I suppose he’s a hermit… like a sage~desuwa.”
Ms. Erin hardly speaks ill of anyone, so I can only gauge from her expression, but… a hermit, huh? Does that mean he’s an indoor type who doesn’t leave his house?
Sorry for the aside, but since it’s a good time, I’ll hand over a souvenir: an enamel water pitcher with a cute honeybee pattern. I thought it would suit Ms. Erin, so I impulsively bought it.
”Well, that’s lovely. Maybe I’ll use it to make tea? But it’s just the right size to give these kids some water candy.”
”These kids” refers to the precious hive-colored honeybees Ms. Erin cares for. In exchange for the honey received in summer, she gives them water candy during winter.
Water candy is said to be easily made with elven secret techniques. Since the Sugar Guild is noisy about it, and Ms. Erin dislikes trouble, she doesn’t buy or sell it.
Honestly, the Merchant Guild does nothing worthwhile. The new village we’re about to establish will become my territory, so it might be a good idea to use the lord’s authority to shut out the Merchant Guild. If that happens, even traveling merchants won’t come, and we’ll have to self-sustain… Wait a minute… maybe I should build two villages?
One village that accepts the Merchant Guild and another that excludes it, allowing free trade. In short, it’s about taking the best of both worlds. An image would be like Dejima in Nagasaki. While implementing national seclusion, they also trade.
I don’t understand much about the economy, but when in doubt, ask experts. Mr. Raoh is such a weirdo, but he’s actually a real monetary scientist with a Ph.D. in economics. People are not what they seem. He said he wanted to cheat at a free market and free seating. Let’s consult him about the Dejima Village idea.
Enjoying tea with Ms. Erin alone, elegantly, I then head to Mr. Aslink’s house. Why do happy times pass so quickly? The afternoon sun is already shining, and a day passes in the blink of an eye.
The haunted house we aim for is surrounded by a crumbling brick wall. The remnants of when it was built are only partially left around the gateposts now. It seems white mortar was once painted on the bricks, but most of it has peeled off, exposing the reddish-brown bricks. According to Ms. Erin, mischievous village children use it as a play area. They use the removed bricks as chalk and have drawn graffiti all over one side.
The main house, which must have been a splendid mansion originally, has its second floor completely destroyed. It’s like a ruin after a bombardment—I’ve seen such scenes in war dioramas before.
However, it doesn’t seem to be war wounds. The residents probably destroyed it themselves to avoid taxes. Houses of more than two stories are subject to heavy taxation. In other words, the residents of this house used to be wealthy but have fallen so far that they can no longer pay taxes.
The area that was probably a splendid garden is now overgrown with wild roses. They resemble Japanese wild roses, but the petals are pink and about twice as large. In late summer, they bear many hard cherry-like fruits. Making tea from them gives a pleasantly tart flavor.
It may look like weeds at first glance, but since wall barley isn’t rampant at the base, someone probably tends to it regularly.
”Mr. Aslink. Are you there?”
Standing on the site of the broken gate and calling out loudly, my movement startles the presence inside the mansion. I wait for a while, but they stay silent and still. It seems they intended to pretend to be away.
”It’s a delivery from Mr. Ginchi!”
Oh, the presence moved. It seems they are hurriedly putting on clothes.
After waiting for a while, the mansion’s door slightly opens. They are peeking out nervously and cautiously.
Since we are in the village, my weapons are stored in the magic bag. What could possibly cause fear? Even though they might look down on me, they’ve never been afraid, so somehow I feel happy. Do I seem a little stronger now? No, probably Mr. Aslink is just more cowardly than others.
Should I wait a little longer? I could leave my belongings here and go back, but if possible, I want to hand them over directly. I’m not scary, you know── I smile warmly. See, I’m not scary.
Seeing my smile probably eased their vigilance. The door opens halfway, and a pale blue hand beckons invitingly.
I carefully approach, passing through a garden overgrown with Nibara, trying not to scare them.
”Stop right there.”
”You must be Mr. Aslink. I’ve brought this box from Mr. Ginchi.”
I hold up the box, revealing a large, dormant frog inside.
The contents are in a state of hibernation. It has a faint aroma reminiscent of sanshō (Japanese pepper), but not quite a scent of a salamander. It’s not an unpleasant smell. It looks more like a pet for companionship than for eating. In Japan, it’s not uncommon for people to keep amphibians as pets, and owning frogs doesn’t make Mr. Ginchi or Mr. Aslink strange people.
”You’re too familiar with Sir Ginchi. Are you friends?”
Did I make him angry by mentioning Mr. Ginchi? He seems particular about words. His nervous-looking, thin eyes glare at me.
”Yes. I am friends with Mr. Ginchi.”
”No way, to be friends with someone so great…”
”You’re also friends with Mr. Ginchi, aren’t you, Mr. Aslink?”
”Friends? Me? Did Sir Ginchi say so?”
Huh? Maybe I was mistaken? Come to think of it, I might not have said we were friends after all.
”You’re a good person. Come inside.”
I don’t really understand, but he suddenly became friendly. Could it be that a friend of a friend is a friend? When I carefully hold the wooden box I handed over, he invites me in.
The interior of the house, so well-organized that it’s hard to imagine from the outside, is tidy. There are ceramic-like tanks stacked in the corner of the corridor—probably for frog breeding.
Near the back door, it’s half-buried in crumbled bricks. Moving aside some rubble and peeling off a tattered carpet reveals a door leading underground. Could it be a secret basement?
It’s like a ladder──steep stairs. They go quite deep underground.
Since underground storage doesn’t incur taxes, merchants like to build large underground warehouses. The stable temperature makes it ideal for booze breweries. Mr. Zenom even stores a massive amount of booze there, enough for trade.
”This underground warehouse was originally a cheese storage room. In the past, you could raise as many livestock as you wanted, and there was no Merchant Guild. Our ancestors ran the village’s top cheese workshop and were very wealthy.”
”Before the guild was formed, how long ago was that?”
The biggest trouble in understanding the history of this world is that there’s no straightforward chronological system like the Gregorian calendar. Even in history books, only the names of the kings at the time are recorded. In small countries, turmoil is frequent, and even in famous large nations, records of the kings’ reign periods are often missing.
Among Stargazer’s records about planetary luck, there are some that seem to specify certain years, but the records themselves are too scarce.
They might be stored somewhere, perhaps. Since there are races like high elves and dragons that live for thousands of years, people may not have noticed the need to record and keep track of history carefully. Schulz’s memories are quite unreliable, and Ms. Hóa quickly forgets events that don’t interest her.
”It’s a story from before my grandfather’s grandfather was even born.”
As expected, it ends up being one of those stories. In this world, teens having children is normal, so even great-great-grandfathers aren’t a century old. Well, it’s a way to convey “a long time ago,” I guess. This vagueness is just a cultural difference I’ll have to accept. It’s not like we need timelines for daily life anyway.
”Come on, everyone. We have guests—let’s welcome them.”
In a corner of the impressive brick-built underground warehouse, a small room was partitioned off with crudely added earthen walls. As soon as Mr. Aslink entered and spoke to someone, the mana readings spiked. Multiple sources, too.
Four magicians? No, five? I was hit directly by a magic attack. I hadn’t sensed any human presence, so I was completely caught off guard. It seemed like a mental attack, but it wasn’t particularly strong—I resisted it easily. Using my Editor skill to scan the spell formula, I confirmed it was indeed a mental magic. The recognition-blocking code looked vaguely familiar.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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