Volume 1 Chapter 1 Morning in Strock Village
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It was quiet.
It seemed a bit too early to be awake. My home had been a picture-perfect example of a cheaply built house from the mid-Showa era¹. Back then, even while lying in bed on the second floor, I could tell roughly what time it was just by the sounds around me.
I felt like only yesterday the cicadas had been buzzing, but before I knew it, the season had changed to one where I wanted to burrow into my blankets for as long as possible. I stretched my drowsiness to the absolute limit, listening to the silence outside.
There wasn’t a single sound of a car.
(It’s still early… Just once more, back into the fluffy, lukewarm depths of sleep.)
But… wasn’t it too quiet? It felt like New Year’s morning. Wait, was that a rooster?
A sharp cock-a-doodle-doo rang out.
(I have to get up.)
I sat up to find the usual darkness and the usual bed. Even with a sheet over it, the straw mattress was prickly. My blankets were a grimy, matted mess, but it still took a surge of courage to leave the warmth my body had managed to trap throughout the night. From downstairs, I could hear the muffled voices of women and smell the sharp, woody tang of a fire being lit.
I needed to hurry, use the outhouse, and get to the well.
Larry Fee, a thirteen-year-old who still retained the soft features of childhood, kicked off the heavy blankets.
This was the Central Continent. To its west, a chaotic swarm of Empires, Kingdoms, and Duchies vied for dominance. In the heart of that region lay the Kingdom of Schuberitz, a nation that had clawed its way into the ranks of the Great Powers over the last century.
Originally a small Duchy, it had expanded through a relentless campaign of annexation. Guided by the counsel of sages, the last few generations of Kings had pushed the borders until they hit the Horn Mountains to the south and the Norden Sea to the north. Now bordering over a dozen nations, Schuberitz was a military juggernaut, standing toe-to-toe with the Eastern Rusis Empire and the Western Charler Empire.
The story begins in the home of a Village Headman², located halfway along the Rock Salt Road in the Viscounty of Bizan. Young Larry Fee was the third son of this house. In other lands, a Headman’s status was equivalent to a Knight-Squire. With his pale skin, bronze eyes, and matching curly hair, he looked like any other boy you’d find in the countryside.
The only thing that set him apart was a spark of magic he’d learned from his older sister. Even then, it was barely enough to light a candle-a glorified party trick. He lacked the raw strength to be a neighborhood leader like his second brother, and he lacked the sharp intellect of his eldest brother who had recently passed away.
This thirteen-year-old boy would eventually become the King’s right hand and expand the nation’s borders even further, but that was a story for much later.
Four years ago, a plague arriving from the southeast had wiped out half the population of the Kingdom and its neighbors. In an age devoid of hygiene or medical science, the calamity had covered the country in an instant. Rich and poor alike died in droves. It was only through techniques shared by the Elven Kingdom to the north that the plague was finally contained, taking about a year to fully subside.
Larry’s village had been hollowed out, its population cut in half. The farmlands had gone fallow. The world was only just beginning to recover. Yet, as the nations regained their footing, a darker impulse began to stir. The loss of labor and resources wasn’t seen as a tragedy, but an opportunity to seize strength from a neighbor.
Larry sat up in the room he shared with his brothers. Three sets of bunk beds lined the walls. It used to be a cramped, rowdy space for six boys, but now only he and his brother Hans remained. Hans hadn’t even come home last night, so Larry had the room to himself.
His three younger brothers and his eldest sister had been taken by the plague, along with his parents. His eldest brother, who had taken over as Headman, had died in a skirmish three weeks ago. Even the girls’ room next door was empty; his second sister had married and moved away two years prior.
From a family of eleven, only he, Hans, and their widowed sister-in-law and her two daughters remained. Sometimes he missed the constant bickering of his little brothers, but in four years, he’d learned to live with the silence.
(Still, what was that dream? Warm, soft bedding… I felt like a completely different person in a different world, yet it felt familiar. Waking up to this feels wrong. Well, dreams are just dreams.)
He fumbled in the dark for his shirt and trousers, dressing quickly before heading for the stairs.
”Larry-bochan, you’ll trip,” warned Herta.
Larry offered a quick “Morning” as the head maid hurried past with a load of wood. Though the sun wasn’t up, the first floor was bathed in the warm glow of Magic Lamps. Near the large dining table, Larry caught sight of Teressa-san, his widowed sister-in-law. She sat with her bodice loosened, nursing his infant niece. Larry averted his eyes immediately, mumbling a greeting as he bolted past her toward the outhouse. He yanked open the door to the first stall.
”Ah-sorry!”
Nika, his sister-in-law’s personal maid, was already inside. Larry slammed the door shut and ducked into the neighboring stall.
”Honestly! Ever heard of knocking?” Nika snapped through the thin wooden partition.
Larry stammered an apology. Nika grumbled something he couldn’t catch, and when she finished, she stepped out, holding a Magic Lamp high. She stood in front of Larry’s stall with a smirk.
”Not much to look at yet, is there?” she mocked, then slammed the door as she left.
(What is her problem?)
After finishing, Larry headed to the courtyard. In the pre-dawn chill, the menservants were gathered around the central well. Larry joined them and began brushing his teeth.
”Morning. Looks like Hans-bochan didn’t bother showing his face again,” Nico remarked. Larry could only respond with a bitter shrug through a mouthful of foam.
”And here I thought he’d finally grow up and take the mantle,” Egil said. “But after the way he barked at the Patron Klaus at the funeral… I’m thinking you’re the one who’s going to end up as Headman, Larry.”
Even as a kid, Larry knew it wasn’t that simple. His eldest brother had died without a male heir, so Hans was the natural successor. But Hans was a disaster, and he was loathed by their uncle, Lord Klaus-the family’s political protector. Hans had always been trouble.
At thirteen, he’d been hauled off by guards for a brawl in Obernbach. Last year, the headman of a neighboring village had come to their door fuming because Hans had allegedly forced himself on a girl. They called him the Mad Dog of Strock Village, and for good reason. Then, at the funeral, he’d had the gall to scream insults at Uncle Klaus in front of everyone.
Hans didn’t even want the job. He’d told Larry he planned to take his band of local thugs and join a pioneer squad on the frontier. But that didn’t mean the title would just fall to Larry. The Headman was responsible for taxes, records, and the village’s only licensed money-lending business. If a kid like Larry took over, the adults would eat him alive. Most likely, Larry’s niece would eventually be wed to a capable man who would take the name and the title.
”Larry-bochan, don’t look so grim,” Nico said, changing the subject. “Did you hear? The Dvoraks across the river lost a sheep to a goblin last night.”
Larry blinked. “This early in the year?”
Usually, the monsters didn’t come down from the mountains until the first snows. The men, glad for a distraction, immediately launched into a debate about the best way to kill a goblin or how to fetch a high price for the ears.
”Alright, that’s enough jawing!” Egil barked. “We’ve got three fields at Yokonose to turn today. Move it!”
The men headed for the tool shed. Larry’s morning was just beginning. His job was to haul water from the well to the kitchen. Since they were brewing ale today, he’d be making at least eight trips with the heavy shoulder-yoke. By the time he finished, the end-of-October sun would finally be breaking over the horizon.
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Summary:
Larry wakes up in a fantasy world with memories of modern Japan. He navigates a household diminished by a plague and military conflict, realizing he is now a third son in a declining rural leadership family. The chapter sets up the political tension regarding who will inherit the role of village headman after his eldest brother’s death.
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Trivia:
- Larry’s family used to have eleven members, now only five are left in the main house.
- The ‘Mad Dog’ Hans is technically the heir but is politically sabotaged by his own behavior and his uncle’s distaste.
- Goblins appearing in October is unnaturally early, suggesting a shift in the local ecosystem or mountain conditions.
- Larry’s magic is currently limited to fire starting, which he considers a party trick
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Character Insight:
Larry shows a stoic acceptance of his lot, likely due to his ‘Showa’ soul being older and more grounded than his thirteen-year-old body suggests. Hans is already established as a chaotic element who rejects responsibility.
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Lore And Worldbuilding Context:
The author uses the ‘mid-Showa house’ comparison to contrast the safety of modern civilization with the ‘dirt and straw’ reality of the new world.
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Glossary:
Notes:
• Larry – Thirteen‑year‑old third son of the Strock headman, with reddish‑white skin, bronze eyes and curly bronze hair, holds faint Showa‑era memories and minor fire magic. He hides a crush on his sister‑in‑law, does chores despite quasi‑noble status, and is also the third son of the Fee family.
• Tim – A 14‑year‑old village youth, the eldest son of the Dvorak family, has just ‘graduated’ into adulthood. With short dark hair, a lean build and thoughtful eyes, he recently traveled to the riverside town of Obernbach accompanied by his father.
• Hans – Second son of the Fee family, known as Mad Dog of Strock Village, a rugged, violent delinquent and chronic alcoholic with a history of assault, extortion and other crimes.
• Herta – Head maid of the Fee household, she is a striking woman with a voluptuous figure, respected by staff and closely connected to the family.
• Teressa – The widow of Iffens and Larry’s sister-in-law. Currently serving as the deputy village head. Larry’s sister-in-law and widow of the deceased eldest brother. She has an infant daughter. Has blonde short hair and big chests, and big sister/motherly aura. Wears a wool jacket over her blouse, which its button almost split.
• Nika – A fourteen-year-old personal maid to Teressa. Freckled, has wavy bronze hair, flat chest, and prone to mocking Larry. Lady’s maid and cousin to Terese. Educated free person with a prickly personality. Terese’s lady’s maid and cousin. Known for being sharp-tongued toward Larry.
• Nico – The eldest manservant in the village headman’s house, an elderly man with silver hair, a faded livery, and a dignified bearing, is trusted by the headman and revered by the household staff.
• Klaus – Larry’s maternal uncle, head of the Thalbach family and a vassal to Viscount Bizan. He dislikes Larry and Hans. He is described as a thin, grumpy-looking man, wears a light grey cloak and a black hat with gold ornaments signifying his rank in a Viscount’s house.
• Egil – The tall, dark-skinned head manservant, bearing a shaved head, serves as the household’s chief attendant, commanding respect and maintaining close ties with the family and staff.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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