Volume 2 Chapter 2 The Bath
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Dona, Dona.”
According to what the Parasite Host¹ knows, that’s the only way to describe the scene in front of me.
It was the tenth day of the thirteenth month, the final stretch of the year.
Winter had settled in, with less than twenty days to go before the new year arrived.
The world was dusted a faint, fragile white from the snow that had fallen last night.
I felt the steady, rhythmic sway of the carriage as Carpaccio pulled us toward the town of Obernbach.
Niko, a servant of the lower class, sat up front as the driver.
Inside the hooded wagon sat Monica, her young son, and myself.
The original plan was just to meet Sister-in-law Teressa—who had been staying in the territorial capital of Besanburg—and welcome her back to town, but these two ended up coming along for the ride.
It had been about three months since Monica’s husband died.
He was cut down alongside my eldest brother at Linto, the place we’d used as a base during the start of the Vod Fortress campaign.
His name was Denis Getys, and at twenty-four, he was far too young to be in a grave.
The Getys family were old-bloods in Strock Village, arriving just after the founding four families, but they’d been hollowed out by the plague four years ago.
Denis had lost his parents, his grandmother, and his sister to the sickness.
By then, his younger brother Hardy had already married into the Feller family—the rock salt merchants—leaving only Denis, his wife Monica, and the twins, Alisa and Alto.
With the breadwinner gone, the title of family head fell to Alto, who was barely a year old and just finding his feet.
Monica was tougher than most men I knew, but no woman could hold a house together alone in this place.
Everyone knew she couldn’t wait for Alto to grow up.
To keep the Getys line from going extinct, the plan was for Alisa, the twin sister, to eventually take in a husband to lead the house.
And so, through a mess of circumstances, I was the one destined to marry into the Getys family.
Right now, we were on our way to drop off Monica’s son—the boy who should have been the heir—with his late father’s younger brother.
”Mama, look! Snow!”
”Carpaccio is so big!”
”Is Alisa not coming?”
The kid had been wired when we first got into the carriage, his mouth running a mile a minute with all the new words he’d just learned.
But as soon as we cleared the village and hit the forest, he fell fast asleep in Monica’s arms, out like a light.
(A real “Dona Dona” situation…)
The thought had a strangely pathetic, lonely ring to it.
”What’s that supposed to mean?” Monica asked.
I just shook my head and told her it was nothing.
The place her son was being sent to belonged to one of the rock salt traders who used Strock Village as a waypoint.
I’d seen their carriages with the shop’s logo before, but I didn’t actually know the people.
Those salt caravans were usually crawling with rough-looking mercenaries hired to keep the monsters and bandits off the product, so kids generally stayed far away.
”Is the boy’s uncle… you know, a scary guy?” I asked.
”Who knows? I doubt he’s worse than Hans-san or Alberto-san,” Monica replied.
She was using my brother and his best friend as the bar for ‘scary.’
I couldn’t argue that those two looked like absolute thugs even at seventeen, but I wasn’t sure if that was a fair comparison for a merchant.
”Well, if you say so,” I said.
”He looks a bit rough around the edges, sure, but he’s decent enough once you get him talking. Isn’t that right, Alto?”
She looked down, seeking an answer from her sleeping son.
Back when Obernbach was almost overrun in the last war, those uncles had taken half the shop’s staff and fled to Seiren Village—a government-run territory where their sister lived—on their father-in-law’s orders.
But the enemy’s ten-thousand-man army had collapsed in a single day, so they’d turned right around and headed back to the city.
It was during that retreat that they met Monica and agreed to take Alto in.
”His wife is a sweetheart, too. She’s the youngest of four sisters, but I think she’s got the sturdiest head on her shoulders,” Monica added.
”You’ve actually met her?”
”The sisters are scattered all over. Aside from the one who married in, I’ve only heard the stories,” Monica said.
Apparently, the oldest sister basically eloped and ran off to some coastal town in the north to start a business.
The next two had an aptitude for Mana² and went off to Magic School; one married a Librarian Mage in the capital, and the other opened a practice as a Medical Mage in Seiren Village.
Supposedly, none of the three even showed up for the fourth sister’s wedding, even though she was the one staying behind to carry the family name.
”Oh, that sister-in-law in the capital… she’d be Larry’s senior at the Magic School. We should get her address,” Monica suggested.
I turned her down, telling her that with Uncle Klaus’s place and Sister-in-law Teressa’s parents nearby, I didn’t need to be bothering distant relatives.
”So, will the wife actually be good to him? Will she love Alto?”
When I asked, Monica told me the aunt had lost her firstborn right after birth.
Because of that, she was supposedly obsessed with children.
”She told me that looking after four kids isn’t much different than looking after three,” Monica whispered.
Even as she said it, I could see the cracks in her armor. She pulled her son closer and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
”It’s good he has family that gives a damn,” I said.
Monica gave me a jagged, toothy smirk in response.
(Come the new year, I’m heading to Magic School myself.)
(Commuting isn’t an option, so I’ll be stuck in the dorms at Besanburg. I guess I really am going to have to go pay my respects to Klaus and Teressa’s families.)
(Especially Sister-in-law Teressa. She’s technically becoming my Concubine to join the Getys house. Her parents were dead set against her taking the two daughters she had with Iffens-niisan, so the grandparents are keeping the girls.)
(They didn’t even show up for the wedding. I have no idea how I’m supposed to look them in the eye. Just thinking about it gives me a migraine.)
(Then there’s Nico’s family. She was Teressa’s maid, and her people are in the city too. What if I run into her on the street? Should I go see them first? No, that just sounds like a recipe for a complicated headache.)
”Hey, who was that second daughter? Larry had that tall older sister, didn’t he?”
That clicked a memory into place.
Sister Ariane’s husband’s family—or maybe it was her grandfather’s place—was in Besanburg.
They lived in the Royal Capital now and hadn’t sent a single letter since the wedding, so I’d completely forgotten the family name.
I’ll have to ask Klaus before I make any moves.
”If I could, I’d love to go with Teressa to handle the greetings,” Monica murmured.
She wasn’t wrong.
When I thought about it, the capital was crawling with people who were practically family now.
I guess we were technically on a ‘marriage report’ tour.
”Then just come with me. Bring Alisa, too,” I said.
”It’s not that easy,” Monica replied.
Work on the farm usually slowed down in the winter, but the Getys house was drowning in chores.
My family, the Fees, were busy with livestock, compost, and weaving, but Monica’s place had the apple orchard and the cider press.
They were in the middle of fermentation right now, which meant obsessing over temperatures while getting ready for bottling.
Bottling started after the new year once the juice was filtered, and as soon as that was done, it was time to prune the trees.
She’d mentioned she was in town today specifically to buy corks.
”Besides, Teressa has her hands full with the Village Head’s work,” Monica added.
In five days, on the fifteenth, my brother would officially take over as Village Head.
He wasn’t going to touch a single piece of paperwork, which meant his Primary Wife, Ursula, would have to pick up the slack.
But she was still struggling just to learn how the Fee household ran.
The war had left the Village Head with a mountain of unfinished business.
Luckily, Klaus’s mistress, Grete, had moved to the village.
She was a genius with numbers, a total specialist, but she completely shut down the moment she had to talk to someone face-to-face.
She just couldn’t handle people.
That meant Sister-in-law Teressa, who had been the acting deputy, was the only one who could actually run the show.
It was a four-day round trip to Besanburg.
Once you factored in the time spent there, neither Teressa nor Monica could afford to waste days playing escort for my social calls.
”I guess I’m on my own, then. Just me in Besanburg,” I muttered.
”What? Are you lonely?”
”No. It’s just… being alone is a pain in the ass,” I lied.
Moving to a strange place was a little exciting, sure, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous.
”I suppose. But it’s only for two years, right? Then you’re coming home,” Monica said.
”I assume so,” I replied.
(Wait.)
(What exactly am I supposed to do after I graduate? I’m being forced into this school, but then what?)
(They’ve already mapped out my entire curriculum.)
(It said ‘Simple-type resonance’³.)
(Doesn’t that mean Golems? Am I being groomed for forced conscription into the Golem Battalion⁴ as soon as I get my diploma?)
(No. I heard that place was women-only. No men allowed.)
(Besides, I’m never going through that kind of violation again. If they try to force me into that unit, I’m hopping the border.)
(So then, why…?)
As I spiraled into thought, Monica’s expression softened into something lonely.
”You… you are coming back, right?” she asked.
”I don’t know. If the King or that female Commander decide to be fickle, who knows?” I said.
The dread of starting school suddenly felt a lot heavier.
We broke through the forest.
Since this was a day trip, we skipped Mauer Village and made a straight shot for Obernbach.
The carriage was light, so we made it by noon.
Monica wanted to hit the New Town first to get her corks, so we headed across the Great Bridge.
The bridge still wore the scars of the battle—broken railings and dark, scorched stains on the stone.
Looking downriver, the boat traffic wasn’t backed up anymore.
It looked like the refugee crisis had finally plateaued.
But the Riverside District and most of the New Town had clearly been gutted by fire.
Scaffolding was everywhere, and the air was thick with the sound of hammers and foremen screaming orders as the city tried to put itself back together.
The carriage squeezed through streets made narrow by piles of timber and stone.
”There! That’s the place. Wait here,” Monica said.
I grabbed Alto by the waist to keep him from launching himself out of the wagon; he was practically vibrating with curiosity.
”Old man, what’s that?” the boy asked.
(I’m fourteen, kid. Give me a break.)
Alto was pointing at a crew mixing mortar.
”That’s plaster. They use it to cover the walls,” I told him.
”Pwas-ter?”
Then came the barrage: he wanted to eat it, he wanted to mix it, he wanted to climb the scaffolding.
When he realized I wasn’t going to let him do any of it, he did what toddlers do best—he started bawling.
”Oh dear, what’s wrong with Alto?” Monica asked as she climbed back in.
Before I could defend myself, the kid blurted out that the “old man” wouldn’t let him play with the plaster.
”The plaster? Oh, Alto. What did you want to do with that?”
”I wanted to squish it! Like this!” He mimicked kneading mud.
”That would have been very dangerous,” Monica said.
”Dangerous?”
”Plaster gets hard really fast. If you touched it, it would have stuck to your hands and never come off,” Monica lied.
”Never?”
”Never. How would you eat your dinner then?”
I had to hand it to her; she could spin a lie for a kid without blinking an eye.
Once Alto settled down, Monica turned her frustration on me, complaining that the corks were double the price they were last year.
As we rolled past the Riverside District, I noticed quite a few ‘big sisters’ out on the stroll, even for a morning.
”Hey! Look at all the pretty ladies!” Alto yelled, leaning out.
Monica’s face went stiff, and she snapped at him.
”Don’t look at them!”
She reached over and physically covered Alto’s eyes.
”But why?”
”You’ll catch what she has, it’s terrifying!”
Spoken to in such an eerie tone, Alto got scared and clung to Monica.
”I wonder if it’s just in the bloodline,” Monica said.
She looked at me and smiled, but I just thought, (Hey, this has nothing to do with me.)
The rock salt merchant’s house sat within the old city, hemmed in by massive stone walls.
We crossed back over the great bridge, presented our transit passes, and stepped inside.
Once through the gates, the palace loomed at the end of the main thoroughfare.
It was the Viscount’s former residence from before his lands expanded; now, it functioned as the local administrative hub.
The city radiated out from there in concentric circles—the older the house, the closer to the palace; the newer, the closer to the outer wall.
We turned off the main road halfway to the palace and found a substantial house tucked into an alley.
It was large enough to house a warehouse for the rock salt and had several carriages parked out front.
”So, you’re Larry-kun,” the man said.
The man who greeted us was impeccably dressed—not so much scary as he was intensely composed, a man with no openings.
Now that I saw him, his face really did resemble Monica’s late husband.
I’d assumed he’d be idle since he wasn’t hauling salt, but he laughed and mentioned he was swamped using his carriages to move reconstruction materials.
Alto hit it off with the children of the house immediately and started playing.
Since we were there, they invited us to stay for lunch.
I sat at a table with Monica’s brother-in-law and his wife, their parents, and the employees, sharing bread and soup.
The parents told stories about their two daughters away at Magic School⁵, and I ended up staying much longer than I intended.
When it was time to say goodbye, I expected Alto to cry, but he was surprisingly nonchalant.
(He probably didn’t even realize what was happening,) I thought.
If anything, it was Monica who started sobbing the moment the carriage pulled away, which made things much more awkward for me.
When we reached the harbor in the old city, Teressa was already there, sitting on her luggage in a drafty, roofed waiting area.
As we approached, Teressa started crying too.
She was usually so steady, never the type to complain, so she must have been feeling incredibly vulnerable.
For some reason, both women fell silent, and once the carriage started swaying, they drifted off like children.
”Is something wrong?” Niko asked from the driver’s seat.
”They both just fell asleep,” I replied.
”Well then, shall we take our time heading back?” Niko said.
We had to light the magic lamps⁶ halfway through the trip, but we reached the village without any major issues, aside from a few goblins and a herd of deer crossing the path.
Daily life resumed the following morning.
The women were especially busy, so Niko and I began the move.
The layout of Monica’s house was nearly identical to our current one, just smaller overall.
It had a barn, a shed, stables, and a fermentation cellar, along with one cow and about twenty sheep.
Behind the house, between the hill and the apple orchard, sat two small shacks.
The second floor of the main house had a master bedroom and a cramped room for the siblings, along with the bedroom where the parents had stayed.
The master bedroom was overflowing with stuff, so by necessity, Teressa and I moved our belongings into the parents’ former room.
I suggested Niko take the siblings’ room, but he wouldn’t hear of it, insisting the loft above the stables was better.
When I told him it would be smelly and cold, he just laughed and said the animals kept it warm and he was used to the scent.
And just like that, it was the day before the wedding.
”A bath?”
Teressa and I repeated Monica’s words in unison.
”Water bubbles up from between the rocks right near the hill, and it’s piped into the kitchen and the bathhouse. It feels wonderful,” Monica said.
In the Fee family, “bathing” just meant wiping yourself down with a basin of hot water, but thanks to the knowledge of the parasite⁷, I knew what a real bath was.
There was a tub to hold the water, and you were supposed to soak your entire body in it.
Stepping out the back door, the apple orchard hill stood before us, and in that narrow space were the two shacks.
”What are those?” Teressa asked.
Monica explained that one held a cistern to collect the spring water, which was then drawn into the kitchen.
”I don’t know why, but they say the water has never run dry. Watch your step,” Monica warned.
A trench about twenty inches wide and deep had been dug into the ground, crossed by boards, though several were missing.
If she hadn’t said anything, I probably would have fallen right in.
”Normally, we’d have to light a fire from the outside, but you can use mana⁸, right, Larry?” Monica asked.
”Can you make a Fireball?” Monica added.
”I mean, that’s about all I can do,” I replied.
Monica seemed satisfied with that answer.
”In the past, when Granny Ferris or Daniel-san came by, they’d boil the water in one shot. It made things so easy,” Monica said.
With that, she slid open the shack door.
Apparently, her late husband’s father had built it as a replica of something he’d seen at a high-end brothel in the capital.
The shack was split into three sections: the dressing room for changing, the firebox area for the wood, and the bathroom itself.
The firebox area was just a dirt floor enclosed to keep the rain out.
We stepped inside.
The lower half of the room was stone and cement, with wood finishing the upper half.
A square stone tub, large enough for a person to lie down in, sat next to a cauldron embedded in the floor.
Two gutters ran from the wall, one constantly trickling water into the cauldron.
”The fire outside heats the water in the cauldron, and then it flows into the tub,” Monica explained.
(Just as I figured,) I thought.
The other gutter was likely for adjusting the temperature with cold water.
”But when Granny and the others drop a Fireball in, the bath is ready in seconds. Give it a try,” Monica said.
I nodded, conjuring a Fireball and submerging it in the water.
It made a violent, sizzling hiss, but the water didn’t warm up much.
I tried again, and that time, it was scalding.
Just as I expected, Monica extended the other gutter and started pouring in cold water.
”Alright, let’s get in,” Monica said.
She headed back to the dressing room and started peeling off her clothes without a second thought.
”Hurry up, you two!” Monica added.
(Well, the three of us are getting married, so I guess it’s fine to see them naked, but it’s still a little awkward…) I thought.
Teressa started undressing as well.
”Come on, Larry, you too,” Monica said.
She practically stripped my jacket off, so I had no choice but to handle the rest myself.
When I stepped back into the bathroom, it was so thick with steam that I couldn’t see the corners of the room.
”Crouch down there and wait a second,” Monica said.
She scooped up some hot water with a small bucket and poured it over my shoulders.
”Is it too hot? You okay?” Monica asked.
I told her I was fine, and she urged me into the tub.
I stepped in tentatively, feeling a sharp, electric tingle against my skin.
Once that sensation faded, the heat felt incredible.
I sank into the water slowly.
”Wow… this feels good,” I said.
”Doesn’t it?” Monica replied proudly.
Monica, who had been rinsing Teressa off, spoke with an air of triumph.
Then, all three of us were in the tub together.
Our skin brushed against each other bit by bit, and since we were all naked, I was both embarrassed and incredibly excited.
”Once you’ve warmed up, we’re going to wash,” Monica said.
When Monica and I climbed out, the water level in the tub dropped by half.
”Larry, heat the water in the cauldron. Make it hot,” Monica said.
”Got it,” I replied.
The steam made it hard to gather mana, and it took three Fireballs before the water was hot enough to overflow back into the tub.
”Alright, sit here,” Monica said.
I sat on a wooden stool while she scrubbed my body with a towel.
When she rubbed my back, arms, and chest, it was so ticklish that I couldn’t help but squirm.
”Stay still and endure it,” Monica said.
She scolded me seriously, but her soft breasts kept bumping against my body.
”Legs next,” Monica added.
She rubbed my feet, toes, and ankles with care, but as she stood in front of me, her legs would occasionally part, giving me a glimpse of the vital parts.
(This is bad…) I thought.
”You can do that part yourself,” Monica said.
(I was half-expecting her to do it, but she shut that down fast,) I thought, as my “pole” was already trying to stand at attention.
I scrubbed myself haphazardly while she splashed me with more water.
”Your turn, Teressa-san,” Monica said.
”I’m fine, really,” Teressa replied.
”Then I won’t get a turn either. We have to be even,” Monica insisted.
(Watching these two wash each other is a bit too much stimulation…) I thought.
”Hey, Larry, while you’re at it, change the direction of the gutter so more water flows in,” Monica said.
I increased the flow and reheated the cauldron.
”You really do have a lovely shape, Teressa-san,” Monica said.
”Oh, Monica…” Teressa replied.
I glanced back to see Monica reaching around Teressa from behind, cupping both her breasts.
”What are you looking at?” Monica snapped.
I turned back to the cauldron immediately, but I was too distracted to focus on my mana.
By the time Teressa was finished, the tub was full again, and we all soaked for a while.
Seeing a naked Monica being scrubbed by a naked Teressa was intense.
Every time they moved, their breasts swayed, and I had to fight to keep my composure.
When they finally joined me in the tub, the visual stimulation was at least dampened a bit.
”I’m curious about something. Sit here for a second,” Monica said with a straight face.
Feeling a bit lightheaded from the heat, I sat on the edge of the tub.
”I knew it! Teressa-san, look. Larry hasn’t even finished growing in yet,” Monica said gleefully.
She reached out and pinched the fine, downy hair that was just starting to turn into a man’s coat, showing it to Teressa.
Teressa just gave a wry, bashful smile.
”The hair isn’t there yet, but he’s definitely got enough of this,” Monica added.
I didn’t know what to say as I tried to push down my semi-erect shaft.
”Was Iffens-san about this size?” Monica asked.
Teressa blushed but gave a shy nod.
”Huh. He’s already bigger than my last husband,” Monica said.
(Wait… am I actually big?) I thought, feeling a sudden surge of pride.
My expectations for what was to come started to soar.
”Alright, that’s enough for today,” Monica said.
(Wait, what? Why stop now?) I thought.
”What’s with that face? You look like you want to do it,” Monica said.
”Well… yeah,” I replied.
”No. Tomorrow is the wedding. We wait until after that,” Monica said.
(But she’s the one who suggested it before!) I thought, but my silent plea went ignored.
That night was our last in the Fee family house.
And for the first time, I decided to go for a night-visit⁹.
Since Teressa had come back, we’d been sleeping in separate rooms to keep things proper until the wedding, but I couldn’t take it anymore.
To my surprise, the master bedroom door wasn’t even locked.
I turned the handle and slipped inside.
I closed the door silently and stopped by the bed.
Suddenly, someone tapped my shoulder from behind.
”Larry, you’re late,” a voice said.
”Huh?”
Sister-in-law embraced me from behind, her breasts pressing firmly against my back.
A sweet scent filled my nostrils, and she nipped at my earlobe with her soft lips.
”Let’s do it.”
”Ah… okay,” I replied.
When the first round ended, Sister-in-law told me the truth.
She had been in a state of shock after leaving Lyrica and Maria behind while they were in such pain. When we first returned from Besanburg, she couldn’t bring herself to be intimate, which is why she insisted on separate rooms.
But by the next day, the loneliness had set in. She wanted me to come to her, but I never made the move.
Finally, at her wit’s end, she consulted Monica. That is how we ended up sharing a bath together today.
(Man, that was a close call…)
I thought to myself how lucky it was that I hadn’t tried to fondle Monica’s breasts or anything during the bath.
”What if… what if I had actually made a move on Monica back then?” I asked.
”Well, then I suppose we would have just had to do it with all three of us, wouldn’t we?” she said.
Huh?
The three of us?
Together?
”You’re thinking about something naughty again, aren’t you?” she teased.
Saying that, Sister-in-law climbed on top of me, and my lips were slowly silenced by hers.
====
Principal Figures Part 2: Elders’ Council Members and Relatives
- Ferris Visshinina Lattua
An Elf over two hundred years old.
She has a Mana Handling Level 4¹⁰; while she isn’t an expert, she is capable of basic Healing.
She has the appearance of a human woman in her early thirties and is often seen in provocative black one-piece dresses.
Commonly known as Granny Ferris; she goes by “Granny” in the village.
Originally from an Elven forest village far to the northwest of the Empire of Rus.
She was the first Commander of the Kingdom of Schuberitz Army Golem Battalion¹¹.
She was active in the defense of Strock Village using a Golem she kept hidden in her barn.
However, that Golem was eventually confiscated due to illegal possession.
Currently, she runs an inn and a pharmacy in Strock Village.
At the pharmacy, she also works a side job charging Mana into Amber.
The inn is staffed by three slaves.
For the right price, guests can engage in prostitution with the slaves—or with Ferris herself.
She has contributed to many of the village men “graduating” from their virginity.
Examples: Bours Debritz, Larry’s grandfather, etc.
- Emma
A twenty-four-year-old Amazoness slave.
She works at the inn under Granny Ferris.
Originally from Tashkurgan, near the Wyvern Corridor in the central part of the Central Continent.
Former Deputy Commander of the Durara Assassination Squad¹² of the Tashkurgan Datsu Tribe.
Her real name is Zaboo Ertesh. She is currently faking her age as fifteen in the village.
Because she has a small, black-haired, and incredibly cute face, no one suspects the truth.
She is an expert with the bow.
For further details, see the ongoing series: “Why the Amazoness Became a Slave Prostitute.”
- Jutte
A thirty-nine-year-old human slave.
One of Granny Ferris’s long-time slaves. She has been gaining weight lately, though word is she used to be quite slender.
- Kari
A twenty-nine-year-old human slave.
Another of Granny Ferris’s slaves, though she has yet to appear in the main story.
- Daniel Groupa
A Dwarf over one hundred years old.
Mana Handling Level 4.
His trademark laugh is “Fo-fo-fo!”
He migrated from the southern mining regions of Kiridal due to religious persecution.
He runs the blacksmith shop in Strock Village.
From late autumn to early winter, he treks through the mountains searching for veins of Magic Steel Ore.
He usually hunts a few monsters while he’s at it.
- Theo Groupa
A sixty-five-year-old Dwarf.
Daniel’s third son.
He is currently training in Obernbach; he is an associate master and a member of the Blacksmith Guild.
He has the skills to be independent, but his master refuses to let him go, so he remains an apprentice for now.
He occasionally joins his father in the search for ore veins.
- Aisha Groupa
A five-year-old Dwarf.
Daniel’s granddaughter and Theo’s child.
She fits in perfectly with the other village children.
- Bours Debritz
A forty-six-year-old human.
A yeoman managing apple orchards and vineyards.
He looks like your average middle-aged guy.
After graduating from the Royal Military Academy, he was stationed on the Western Front against the Empire of Charle.
He was a junior to Duke Gerhard by one year.
He rose to the rank of Captain but retired to take over the family estate after his father passed away.
During his service, he was a hero within the Kingdom’s army, and many still look up to him.
He remains on the military rolls as an instructor.
At Vod Fortress, he drilled the youth of Strock and Mauer Village into a militia¹³.
He led the 303rd Militia Unit¹⁴ and served as the Commander of the first squad.
Expert with a longbow.
- Sheeta Klein Debritz
A twenty-seven-year-old human.
Bours Debritz’s second wife.
She is the same age as Bours’s eldest son, Michel.
She has a wild side and loves to gamble.
Currently pregnant.
- Michel Debritz
A twenty-six-year-old human.
Bours’s eldest son.
A graduate of the Royal Military Academy. He served in various campaigns and was assigned to border defense against Rus.
He was classmates with Marquis Wilhelm von Sabaski at the Academy.
He is the Commander of the 101st Golem Battalion¹⁵ on that same border.
Engaged to Christina Meinecke.
She is currently pregnant.
- Alberto Kessler
A seventeen-year-old human.
Hans’s bad-influence friend.
Standing over 2 meters tall and weighing over 100 kg, he is a silent redhead with monstrous strength.
Despite his brawn, he has a surprisingly thoughtful side.
He married Mary Eisner to bring peace of mind to his ailing father (who later passed).
He will also succeed as a village Elder.
—
Summary:
A carriage carries Monica, the toddler Alto, and the protagonist toward Obernbach in the wintry thirteenth month. The boy is being handed over to his merchant uncle to preserve the Getys family bloodline while the protagonist grapples with his impending enrollment at Magic School. The party witnesses the charred remains of a city under reconstruction while political and familial obligations loom
Moving their belongings into Monica’s new home, Larry and Teressa struggle with their physical attraction ahead of the wedding. A communal bath experience in a custom-built shack leads to heightened intimacy and teasing from Monica. Larry attempts a night-visit to Teressa’s room only to be intercepted by an unexpected presence
The protagonist reconciles with his Sister-in-law after a period of emotional distance sparked by the trauma in Besanburg. Their intimate moment reveals her prior consultation with Monica to bridge the gap. The narrative lens then broadens to catalog the diverse backgrounds of Strock Village’s Elders and their kin.
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Trivia:
- The thirteen-month calendar system suggests a unique temporal world-building mechanic
- Monica’s chipped tooth provides a visual cue of her rough lifestyle
- The Golem Battalion is explicitly described as a female-only unit
- The protagonist’s marriage to Monica is part of a complex social arrangement to maintain a household after war casualties
- The merchant is a relative of Monica’s late husband
- The bathhouse was modeled after a high-class brothel
- Larry used three Fireballs to heat the water to a scalding temperature
- Niko refuses to sleep in the house to stay with the animals
- Teressa was sitting on her luggage at the harbor before being picked up
- Ferris’s side business involves prostitution with herself.
- Emma’s fake age of fifteen is widely accepted despite her actual age of twenty-four.
- Bours Debritz was a junior to Duke Gerhard.
- The 101st Golem Battalion is currently deployed for border defense
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Character Insight:
Monica shows a pragmatic yet heartbroken maternal instinct, while the protagonist experiences a surge of PTSD-related anxiety regarding his future at the Magic School.
Larry is gaining sexual confidence after Monica’s comparisons to her former husband, while Monica takes on a dominant, teasing role in the relationship dynamics.
Sister-in-law shows a shift from grief-induced withdrawal to proactive reconciliation, using Monica as a catalyst for intimacy.
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Glossary:
Notes:
• Niko – An elderly, dignified former slave and former head butcher, now the oldest male servant of the Fee family. He assists the move, drives the carriage, shovels snow, and prefers the stable loft near the animals. Loyal to Larry, he encourages the young man’s rite of passage and follows him to the new Getys household.
• Monica – Sun-tanned, tomboyish fifteen-year-old widow and member of the Getys household, one of Larry’s wives, missing a front tooth; she lost her husband Denis in the Battle of Vod Fortress, now raises her twin children and cares for infant niece Maria as wet nurse, while managing the household’s domestic atmosphere with weary authority, bitter over Larry’s neglect and haunted by anxiety over her family’s survival—so much so she gave up her son, embodying war’s quiet devastation on non-combatants.
• Sister-in-law – A woman who embraces the protagonist from behind, exuding a sweet scent. She has been struggling with the emotional shock of leaving Lyrica and Maria behind in Besanburg, leading to a temporary period of intimacy avoidance and separate rooms before reconciling in a mixed bath.
• Teressa – Blonde short‑haired, big‑chested village head with golden lashes and piercing blue eyes, she wears a wool jacket over a blouse with a split button. Widow of former head Iffens, mother of Lyrica & Maria, pregnant with Larry’s child, sister‑in‑law of Monica and close to Hans. Lived with the family >4 years, taught by Henrietta, shares Mana with Larry, steady yet vulnerable, motherly‑alluring, sharp‑mischievous, grounding force.
• Denis – A yeoman farmer who was killed alongside Iffens.
• Getys – The Getys family, a once‑thriving Strock Village lineage that arrived after the original four families, now bears the name carried by Alisa and Monica; its members — Hardy and his late brother Denis — were known for their rugged, weather‑worn appearance and a heritage of combat and trade. Plagued by disease and war, the clan has been drastically thinned, leaving its survival precarious, while the household is in transition after the death of its former masters.
• Feller – The Feller family name, representing a prominent trading company. Hardy married into this lineage.
• Alisa – A two-year-old girl who has been designated as Larry’s Primary Wife. She is shy, fearful of strangers, and hides behind her mother’s legs when greeted. A two-year-old girl who is designated as Larry’s Primary Wife. She is the niece of a rock salt merchant.
• Hardy – A young rock salt merchant of the Feller Trading Company. He is sharp, composed, and carries himself with a professional air that earns Johann’s respect.
• Alto – A toddler roughly one year old with limited speech, barely able to walk. He is the biological son of Monica and the late Denis Getys, currently being sent away to live with his uncle to ensure the continuity of the Getys lineage.
• Al – Alberto (Al), a massive red‑haired man recently wed to Mary, lives near the Dish Basin. He’s a companion of Hans, helping intimidate and rally elders as a villager and leader.
• Alberto – A 17‑year‑old red‑haired human, over 2 m tall and >100 kg, with monstrous strength, formerly a delinquent and now an elder on the temporary Elders’ Council. He questions Larry’s future as Village Head, is engaged to Mary Eisner, and is a renowned combatant known to Larry and Hans.
• Hans – Hans-niisan, the rugged 17‑year‑old, nearly 2 m tall and over 100 kg, heir to the Kessler estate and elder brother of Larry, part of the Fee family. He recently accepted the Village Head role, rough‑coarse yet charismatic, with a monster‑hunting past; his decisive, aggressive brother refuses the headship, while Hans‑niisan enforces the Village Head’s will and holds his own wedding alongside his sibling.
• Larry – 14‑year‑old third son of Strock Village Head, reddish‑white skin, curly bronze hair, bronze eyes. Slave‑soldier in Militia Unit 303, Mage Lv 3, hosts a 40‑yr‑old Sage’s mind, fire magic, mana sensing. Married into Getys, manipulates mana for warmth, close with sister‑in‑law, preparing wedding with Monica & Teressa, suspected Fifth Sage.
• Klaus – Uncle Klaus-san, thin and nervous, is the Thalbach family’s finance head and vassal to Viscount Bizan, attending the wedding as a close relative. He wears a light grey cloak and a black hat adorned with gold ornaments; deep dark circles shadow his high-strung face, worn down by overwhelming workloads and his wife’s jealousy. Larry and Hans both dislike him.
• Iffens – Eldest son of the Fee family, village head of Strock Village and older brother to Larry, he fell in battle. Remembered as a solemn, battle‑scarred figure, his death casts a heavy emotional shadow over the household and fuels Yutia’s fear.
• Nico – Silver-haired and stern, once devoted to Teressa as head maid, she now radiates prickly volatility, deeply shaken by the revelation of Teressa’s pregnancy. Once a paragon of high-society grace and childhood acquaintance of Camilla—whom she once outplayed at gambling, earning the cruel nickname “the hole”—she now lives with Larry’s family as a sister-in-law figure, scolding him bluntly yet quietly aiding neighbors by cleaning gear instead of chores. She plays violin gallantly on stage, carries a subdued, haunted air since recent events, and as a Village Head Fee family member, recently completed her coming-of-age ceremony. Her once-polished demeanor is frayed, her protectiveness now laced with emotional turbulence, her past elegance haunting her present.
• Fee – The Fee family name, carried by Larry, Hans, and Iffens. The family is central to the governance of Strock Village.
• Village Head – The elderly leader of Balsheni Village who previously sold furs in Obernbach. The elderly leader of the village and grandfather to Marie. The leader of the village who orchestrates Larry’s integration into the family.
• Ursula – Ursula Ullman, 28, tall and dark‑haired, is the virgin former maid of Aunt Camilla and now Hans’s fiancée. Daughter of a northern‑coast man, she was a gifted child, joins him at breakfast, and prepares to become the new Village Head’s wife, a union strained by family intrigue.
• Grete – She is a small, stern‑looking woman with a prickly demeanor, serving as Uncle Klaus’s mistress and a highly capable clerk. Precise and efficient in her administrative work, she has taken refuge in the village to escape Aunt Camilla’s jealousy.
• Commander – A man leading the mercenary press-gang at the south gate.
• Mauer – A stout man from the Rosen family with thin, downy white hair. He wears a beige dalmatica.
• Daniel – A white‑haired dwarf with a thick mane, over 100 years old, migrated from Kiridal’s southern mines to Strock Village, where he runs a blacksmith shop opposite Granny Ferris. He forges weapons, serves on the council, teaches that a strong grip fuels mana, is an elder, and is famed for his trademark laugh and marimba playing at weddings.
• Ferris – Granny Ferris, an ageless elf over two hundred years old with the youthful appearance of a woman in her early thirties, runs an inn and formerly served as the first Commander of the Golem Battalion in the Kingdom of Schuberitz Army. She often wears provocative black one-piece dresses and plays the transverse flute, speaks bluntly, claims to know Larry’s grandfather, and is the elderly woman Martin hopes to marry—once a close associate of the Second Sage.
• Lyrica – Larry’s niece, a toddler under three, appears innocent but harbors a demonic edge; she bluntly repeats scandalous gossip she overhears, exposing adult secrets with childlike honesty.
• Maria – The three-month-old second daughter of Ifens and Therese.
• Mar – A battle‑hardened veteran, clad in worn armor, uses door panels as shields and captures enemy crossbows; Larry’s comrade who teases him about his sister‑in‑law’s pampering, known as Martin to his companion Edmond.
• Visshinina – The middle name of Ferris, indicating her lineage within the Elven forest village region northwest of the Empire of Rus.
• Lattua – The family name of the Elf Ferris, associated with her role as an inn and pharmacy owner in Strock Village.
• Debritz – The family name of the human lineage in Strock Village, headed by Bours and including his wives and eldest son Michel.
• Bours – Tall, scarred, in a faded Royal Army uniform, Sullen Bours is a 46‑year‑old human yeoman who manages orchards and vineyards. A retired Western Front captain and Royal Military Academy alumnus who served under Duke Gerhard, he heads the 303rd Militia on the Elders’ Council, is married to Sheeta‑san, father of a conscripted son, and once saved Larry and Rudy.
• Emma – A twenty-four-year-old Amazoness slave with a small face, large black eyes, and a cold, sorrowful expression, her black hair tied in a bun adorned with a three-colored crest; once Deputy Commander of the Durara Assassination Squad, she’s an expert bowwoman now serving at the inn alongside Ferris-san, witnessed a healing session, and is a candidate for Larry’s rite—regarded as incredibly cute yet suspected of drugging Edmond, with a legendary side-boob presence that draws attention despite her quiet, tragic demeanor.
• Jutte – A thirty-nine-year-old human slave and long-time subordinate of Ferris. She has begun to gain weight recently, contrasting with her reportedly slender past.
• Groupa – The family name of the Dwarven smithing lineage in Strock Village, including Daniel, Theo, and Aisha.
• Theo – A Dwarf. Daniel’s third son, an apprentice in Obernbach, sports bronze curly hair and a neatly trimmed beard, embodying his family’s legacy while learning a trade in the city.
• Sheeta – A petite, dark‑haired village woman, ten years older than Monica, is Bours‑san’s young wife. She teases playfully, serves as the pragmatic bookie for Larry’s Rite of Passage betting pool, and secretly involves her husband in the wagers.
• Michel – A First Lieutenant in the military and the son of Bours. He arrives with reinforcements after the primary battle has concluded and reveals he is expecting a child with a Golem Battalion commander.
• Sabaski – The Sabaski family name, a noble house that produced the Fourth Sage. Though possessing high status, the family was previously weakened by floods and epidemics near the Western Front.
• Kessler – The family name of Alberto, who is set to succeed as a village Elder.
• Mary – Edmond’s younger sister, now radiant and confident in her transformed look, serves as Albert’s fiancée and Al’s bride, daughter of Jason.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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