h.e.l.lo everyone, I’m back!

Anyway, starting from chapter 4, I may or may not have to start splitting up chapters into two parts. We’ll see how long they take.

I’ve decided to change”withered branch-kun” to “(you) dead branch.” Also, I have decided on Jaiko, Gian, and Suneo for the three stooges—I mean bullies haha. They’re based on the characters from Doraemon, I think.

As always, if you enjoyed this release please leave a like or a comment below. Please rate/review this novel on NU if you feel generous ^^

Thanks!

Third Story: I Write Things Down

“T-tired…”

I return to my room, toss my bag away, and crash down into my bed face down.

Somehow, the first day ended without incident.

Tired. I’m so exhausted.

Eh, are there still six more years after this?

Do I have that?

I mean, I’ll be sent back all dandy, right?

For some reason a touch of anxiety pa.s.ses through me…That warm G.o.ddess… No, I believe it. I’ll be saved by the things I believe in. (ほんわか)

Back then, she said I would stay only until the starting village arc. After six years,  she should return me to my original world. Yeah. That’s definitely it.

Nevertheless, G.o.ddess. You’re too cruel.

I told you properly at the start, didn’t I? That I’d help you with simple tasks.

This is absolutely not simple at all, is it?

Furthermore, do I really have to stay in this world for another six years?

Despite this, I want to know the results of the remaining job interviews quickly, which I have yet to receive. Please, let me pa.s.s. Even one will be enough. I’ll cry if my efforts were useless.

I heave a large sigh, lifting up my heavy body.

Stepping down from the bed sluggishly, I’m tottering as I head toward the desk.

Currently, I am twelve years old. Today, I made a decision to go to the school in the village.

Next year, I will graduate from the village’s primary school.

I’ll commute to the neighboring town’s established school afterward.

The main character will become eighteen years old after six years.

So that means, this village and my 〈Lian’s〉 lifespan will last another six years.

Meanwhile, I must not give myself the highest priority.

What are the most important in the six-year period are as follow: to raise the future Hero splendidly and to come up a defensive plan to survive that tragic night.

Yet, I’m not sure how far I can carry this out. I just have to persevere for as long as I can.

I don’t want to witness the deaths of myself or anyone else.

I sit down on a chair, fetching a thick diary.

From now on, I will record and deliberate over the events that I have handled and those that will occur. I’ll confirm their progress so that I won’t forget.

I pick up a pen.

Ah, I hope this won’t become a last will and testament.

I beg this of you, G.o.ddess.

I mean, how can I put this; I haven’t caught a glimpse of the G.o.ddess at all.

As I thought, is she going to abandon s.h.i.+p and leave the rest to me again?

That’s not good. That’s a useless trait for a boss. Please stop. I’ll complain. I wonder where can I file a complaint? A s.h.i.+nto shrine? Somewhere else? A church from this world? Let’s go to the church and complain when the main character isn’t there.

I open my eyes to the first white page.

Whether or not it’s common for there to be an instantaneous correction in the transfer of information, I can understand and speak the words of this world. Also, I seem to be able to write this world’s letters.

Despite this, I’ll only write in j.a.panese in this diary.

It will be unfavorable if someone reads it.

Anyway, I decide to write down as much as I could remember starting from the beginning, by recalling the story’s future events.

As I’m doing this, Lian’s elder brother invites me to the bath.

This is very helpful.

That’s because I don’t know how to enter a western-style bath¹ for the rich. I’m not familiar with what’s inside the several bottles there. I’m afraid of how much money I will need to reimburse if I damage anything.

However.

As Lian’s elder brother washes my body, I feel quite a bit unpleasant.

I decline politely and clearly, his face becoming incredibly disappointed.

The large ceramic bath smells pleasant. Although it feels really comfortable, my elder brother snuggles up near me.

Why is he sticking so close?! I’m scared?!

I try to s.h.i.+ft as far as I could from him, backing away and moving around in the bath. It’s unusually tiring.

From now on, I swear in my heart to never take a bath with Lian’s elder brother.

Is a guy like this is a severely bad sign, or is it all in my mind?

Currently the situation is like so, but I hope that he will stop doting on his younger brother. In other words, please stop it. I beg you. Please. Incest flags are overwhelmingly unpleasant. Please stop it. I’m about to cry. Was this game for every age group? No, it should be around R-15. Because I say that, I have a harsh expression. (殘酷な表現有り、ってついてたから)

“Arcadia” has nothing to do with erotic relations.h.i.+ps. It should be a cla.s.sic and stoic royal road fantasy. (ストイックな and 王道)

That’s why, let’s advance stoically please.

I’ll request this of you!

Spare me from the erotic route! Don’t raise an incest flag, among other things!! Furthermore, to talk about things like BL— no thanks! None of that please!

°•°•°

I apply strain though the pages, wrinkling them.

I smooth out the wrinkles with care.

Oh yeah, I should write town today’s events that I handled before I forget.

Later, I remember the way to plan in advance stuff like good things and memos². (あと、憶えておいた方が良い事とか、メモしとかねば)

The village’s school has considerably good teachers.

They are fed up with the brutalities performed in the king’s capital and came to the countryside. The contents of the mage teacher’s lessons are very accurate. The physical education teacher is a former knight. (王都)

This former knight disliked the ways of the country Valmcaldo (ヴァルムカルド). This was the country that will summon the demon king behind the scenes and prioritized increasing the country’s armaments rather than the peoples’ livelihood. He is a man that escaped to such a rural location.

He’s fairly experienced and teaches how to handle weapons. Well, there’s no need for children to learn full-fledged weapon handling in a peaceful village, so they’re taught degrees of self defense through fencing and body skills; these include tempering the body using stretching techniques, and other things of similar taste.

Today’s lesson was on wooden swords. Somehow, I managed to win against Alfred. Alfred is weak and has little strength. Thus, I was saved.

I was neither born knowing how to fence nor had I ever done anything like that before. My swordsmans.h.i.+p is nonsensical yet I still won. For now, it looks like I can still continue pus.h.i.+ng through.

But from now on, Alfred’s growth will proceed, and winning with this nonsensical swordsmans.h.i.+p will definitely prove harsh.

In the future I mustn’t practice properly as well.

How troublesome. Although I am part Indian. (基本インドア派な)³

However, I have to continue beating the main character. It’s impossible to do.

That guy in this village, Alfredo’s rival-like existence, has to give up.

It will be best if he feels like defeating Lian.

The lesson on charms in the afternoon was fairly interesting. (呪物)

Because I’m part Indian, I’m more suited for desk work than manual labor.

Writing spells and patterns on paper like a talisman(札), giving them power, and engraving them into stone—that’s how to produce a charm.

Today, I was taught how to make a simple amulet. (お守り)

Because I have to expose it to the sun’s rays for one day, the charm will take three days to complete. Seems so. The subject of the next lesson is how to create a protective charm. (魔除け)

A protective charm?

Something that wards off magical beasts.

Well. Let’s study hard. I’ll find it useful in the future most likely. My intuition tells me so.

Even though magic exists in this world, one’s ability depends on the individual.

There are those who can’t use it at all.

If you don’t have it in your genes, then tough luck.

Unfortunately, Lian has poor magic capability. As such, I think that if I can extend the spells and magic square system as much as possible, it wouldn’t matter that my magic power is low.

That’s right! I’ve landed on a good idea!

How about sticking protective charms all over the village?!

I feel so good that I could cry. Alright. Let’s contemplate over this.

Ahh, at any rate I’m exhausted.

Let’s get some shut-eye.

I put away the pen and crawl into bed.

Ending notes:

Anyone found it funny that Lian was so against BL in the tub XD

I need you guys’ opinions on a name again. Valmcaldo (ヴァルムカルド) or Valmcardo? Maybe something else?

bath¹: I think it says “a rich man’s western-style rich bath.” The second “rich” is written in katakana, with the “rich” as an adjective, probably. Pretty stumped here. (西洋式のお金持ちのリッチな風呂の入り方なんて知らないからな)

“Later, I remember the way to plan in advance stuff like good things and memos²”: This sentence almost made me want to kms. I couldn’t figure out which おいた was being used. I went with “to plan in advance,” since it followed a verb that ended in “-te form.” In cla.s.s, I learned that 方 means ~how to/ the way when conjoined with a verb. Google translate said the sentence should be “also, I had better memorize things like good things or notes.” Tbh Google’s translation makes more sense than mine, but it definitely is missing stuff ( あと、憶えておいた方が良い事とか、メモしとかねば)

“Although I am part Indian³”: Jeez, I don’t know if this sentence is a fragment or what. I learned in cla.s.s that のに means even though/although/synonyms and is used to combine two sentences with differing sides(?) of a similar topic. But I have no idea what’s being related here. I don’t know if 基本インドア派な is a slang. I mean, I’m guessing that means he’s part Indian? He probably meant Native American though, since they had shamans and voodoos. (俺、基本インドア派なのに)

Also, what’s the difference between 魔除け, お守り, 札, and 呪物 LOL. Dictionary says they’re all charms?