A leisurely daily life

1 Spring and Reward Medals

Spring had arrived.

Through the small wyvern communications service, I received news from various places.

Good Forest Village wanted us to supply grain as usual. Mr. Michael in Shashaato Town sent a list of crops he wanted to purchase. Beezel, who was near the Demon King's Castle, sent New Year's greetings along with a list of items Yuri wanted. After discussing it with Frau and the Civil Servant Girls, I decided to sell the crops.

Although we spent some money commissioning Mr. Michael to purchase several things we needed, we still had a surplus. Next time, I would discuss with everyone how to use those funds.

I decided to clear new fields. Too many people had placed orders with us this year, so we needed to expand our cultivated acreage.

First came soybean fields for soy sauce and miso. Next, I cleared a plot for cultivating the rare trees and plants Death had given us last year.

We had to increase our harvest to trade with Mr. Michael. Even with the Almighty Farming Tool, there was a limit to how much work I could do alone.

I expanded our current sixteen-by-thirty-two plots eastward to twenty-four by thirty-two. The herb fields, originally four by four, were also moved east and expanded to four by eight. The orchard was expanded northward from eight by eight to eight by twelve.

Compared to when I started, the scale was enormous now. I wanted to grow more kinds of crops.

I distributed Reward Medals to the villagers.

Everyone received three. Kuro and the others got some too, but we couldn't give every one of them the same amount, so their entire pack received thirty in total. Zabuton and her group received the same treatment, with thirty for the whole group.

As a management bonus, each race's representative received ten.

The Infernal Wolves' representative was Kuro.

The Demon Spiders' representative was Zabuton.

The vampires' representative was Lu.

The Angels' representative was Tia.

The High Elves' representative was Ria.

The Oni Race's representative was Ann.

The lizardmen's representative was Daga.

The Beastmen's representative was Sena.

The dwarves' representative was Donovan.

The Demon Race and the Civil Servant Girls' representative was Frau.

The Dragons' representative was Rasuti.

The Mountain Elves' representative was Mea.

The other races included the bees, slimes, and Rasuti's Demon Race servants, but the bees politely declined through Zabuton, and attempts to talk to the slimes failed. As for Rasuti's two servants, they said the three that every resident received were enough.

Finally, as village chief, I received a hundred. Those hundred weren't for me to use freely, but for additional compensation for others and prizes for events.

Since I had made and distributed them all myself, I didn't really need to keep them on hand, but I decided to hold on to them for now to prevent abuse. This was also to maintain the Reward Medals' value.

Anyway, I would try using these hundred for this year and see how things went. Hopefully, the Reward Medals would serve their intended purpose.

Villagers could trade Reward Medals freely among themselves, but lost ones wouldn't be replaced.

Theft, intimidation, and exploiting subordinates through one's position would all be punished. Well, those things would be punished even without Reward Medals.

"What would the punishment be?"

A High Elf asked me that.

The punishment, huh... I hadn't thought about it. Hmm, would whipping or imprisonment be too harsh?

"Why not banish them from the village?"

Wasn't that too lenient?

"...That certainly is a severe punishment. I doubt anyone would dare commit a crime, but let's remind everyone around us so they don't break the rules."

"Sorry for the trouble, everyone."

The list of items redeemable with Reward Medals was posted.

Basically, each item cost one medal.

· One piece of furniture of your choice

· One set of recreational equipment of your choice

· One type of tool of your choice

· One weapon from the storehouse

· One set of armor from the storehouse

· One piece of jewelry from the storehouse

· A facility of your choice

· Alcohol (one medium wooden barrel)

· Honey (one small bottle)

· Expansion of crop fields of your choice (medal payable only upon fulfillment)

· Improvements to residential areas (medal payable only upon fulfillment)

· Other requests (subject to hearing the details first)

The list was quite long, but alcohol was still the most popular item.

"One Reward Medal gets us a medium barrel of alcohol?"

The dwarves immediately checked that point.

"Yes."

"Any kind of alcohol?"

"Any kind, as long as it's from the stock set aside for rewards."

From then on, the villagers had the freedom to drink.

Incidentally, a medium wooden barrel held about four liters. In terms of drinks with a meal, that would probably serve eight people. Whether that was a lot or a little depended on the circumstances, since everyone drank as much as they liked at village banquets.

The next most popular prizes were furniture and recreational equipment.

Until now, since everyone lived communally, everyone had been equal, for better or worse. For example, even if someone wanted to sleep in a sturdy bed instead of on a grass-stuffed mattress, we couldn't fulfill that wish for everyone in the village.

But by making use of Reward Medals, everyone could live as they pleased. That was a big difference.

Shelving, beds, tables, chairs, and other furniture, along with games such as chess and Reversi, were all things people wanted to redeem medals for.

The Reward Medals soon ran into problems.

First, more than half the villagers exchanged theirs for alcohol. I thought they couldn't wait to have a good drink, but instead, they took it back to their homes or rooms and stored it.

Being able to drink whenever they wanted was nice, but exchanging all three medals for alcohol at once was a bit much.

For a moment, I considered just abandoning the Reward Medals and using alcohol as currency, but I rejected that because alcohol was difficult to carry around.

Ultimately, this happened because the villagers didn't fully trust the Reward Medals yet. That was something I could only resolve through actual deeds.

Next, people began gambling on games such as chess, shogi, go, mini bowling, golf, and mahjong.

I didn't ban gambling, but lending or borrowing Reward Medals was strictly forbidden. I didn't want to see villagers fall into ruin under a mountain of debt.

Also, if they were going to gamble, I hoped they would keep the stakes small. That way, they could play longer.

More people redeemed medals for furniture and recreational equipment than I had expected.

The problem here lay in making them. For furniture, we only needed enough lumber, but recreational equipment required careful work on my part.

Without the Almighty Farming Tool, the work would take an enormous amount of time. Besides, I couldn't spend too much time on recreational equipment just because a few villagers wanted it.

I could work flat out to make it, but I had introduced the Reward Medals to save myself time in the first place. Wasn't this putting the cart before the horse?

Next time, I would prepare the recreational equipment before allowing exchanges. Making things to order like this definitely wouldn't work.

All sorts of other problems cropped up too.

What surprised me most was that a Beastman girl used the final entry on the list, "Other requests (subject to hearing the details first)," to ask to have a child with me.

After that, an endless stream of others took the opportunity to make the same request. No, no, no, that wouldn't do. Of course I refused. Wouldn't it be too sad for the children to have been obtained with Reward Medals?

Besides, not laying a hand on any Beastman girls other than Sena was the last bastion in my heart. Please, give me a break.

I barely managed to persuade them to accept other terms, such as spending a day with me or eating a meal I cooked myself, but didn't that just make me busier?

These Reward Medals were so strange.

As expected, a whole pile of problems had arisen, and things weren't going as smoothly as I had hoped.

Still, I would give it my best for at least a year. For now, I would plan an event that used Reward Medals as prizes. Since this was our first time... a sports festival sounded good.

An aside: a certain High Elf

The Reward Medals the village chief had carved himself were distributed.

Everyone received three.

We could supposedly exchange them for all sorts of things, but surely these were things to treasure rather than trade away.

Exchanging them was unthinkable! They belonged on display in our rooms! No, we should worship them!

After all, the village chief was the great man who had given us a place to live in peace! He was human, but he was no mere human! He was a god!

He was a god who commanded the Infernal Wolves and Demon Spiders we were utterly helpless against, and even made vampires and Angels bow before him! Ah, please forgive me for not knowing how to praise the village chief.

At least let me offer him my body. Preferably, I would have a child too.

Ah, no, no, no. I couldn't entertain such irreverent thoughts! I could only wait passively for our god's blessings!

...Damn, there were so many rivals today too. As people who shared the same faith, we shouldn't fight each other, but surely intimidation was allowed. Grrr!

They intimidated me right back. How frightening. Still, I wouldn't admit defeat.

The next day, Ria warned me.

She told me not to put my Reward Medals

away, but to use them as much as possible.

I was shocked. What on earth was she thinking? Someone who shared my doubts asked Ria.

According to Ria, this was the result of discussions at a preliminary meeting held without the village chief.

The preliminary meeting, also known as a secret meeting, was held to avoid ugly arguments in front of the village chief. Apparently, everyone gathered for it without needing to be specifically summoned.

I wanted to attend too, but to do that, I had to take Ria down first. That was too much for my current abilities. Hmm, I wouldn't give up. I would keep trying.

I had gotten sidetracked.

Ria meant that the village chief would be sad if we didn't make proper use of the Reward Medals. To think that was possible.

Still, she understood everyone's desire to treasure them, so she suggested using two and keeping the remaining one.

It couldn't be helped. I would exchange two. Although I really didn't want to part with them, if I had to, there was something I wanted.

A quilt. I wanted the same bedding the village chief used. But if I rushed off excitedly to redeem them straightaway, people might think I didn't value the Reward Medals, so I would see how things went first.

The dwarves actually exchanged all three for alcohol at once. I was so shocked my jaw dropped.

I had long known the dwarves loved alcohol, and in a sense, I even admired them for it. Still, exchanging everything for alcohol in one go was too much...

I must have looked very surprised. A dwarf came over and quietly told me something.

Apparently, the dwarves' representative, Donovan, had given each dwarf one medal from his leadership bonus to keep, telling them they could use their original three however they wanted.

The village chief knew how much the dwarves loved alcohol, and Donovan worried that if all the dwarves exchanged only two medals for alcohol, the village chief might suspect something.

I see. Donovan was amazing. If only Ria would share her extra ten with everyone too... No, that was wishful thinking.

There were many High Elves, so even if Ria was willing to share her ten, there wouldn't be enough. I was jealous, but there was nothing I could do, so I gave up.

I would pull myself together and exchange two medals. Thanks to the dwarves' generosity, everyone could redeem theirs without any pressure now. In that case, I would waste no time either!

I browsed the list, putting on an air of indecision...

"All right, then. I'll take a qui..."

Before I finished, I swallowed my words. That was because I heard something I couldn't ignore.

"If I ask for chess or go, will the village chief make a new set for me?"

"Does the village chief make the furniture himself too?"

...Right, I had changed my mind.

It was a shame to give up on the quilt, but if I could use something the village chief had made himself, I wouldn't regret parting with my Reward Medals.

My room gained three treasures.

First was the Reward Medal, next were a chessboard and pieces, and last was a large shelving unit.

The shelving unit was ordinary, but the village chief and I had made it together.

For now, Reward Medals were only available this year, and next year's policy hadn't been decided, but please, let us have them next year too.

Unbelievable. Those Beastman girls actually tried to exchange Reward Medals for the village chief's seed... Why hadn't I thought of that?

Unfortunately, all those requests were rejected, but I couldn't afford to be so careless again. From now on, I would keep a close eye on their movements.

Now then, today was my turn to visit the village chief's mansion. Hehehe, I would give it my best.

2 The villager recruitment plan and the sports festival plan

Someone wanted to exchange a Reward Medal for new recreational equipment, and I happened to think of three-dimensional tic-tac-toe, so I tried making it.

All I needed to do was arrange nine wooden rods in a three-by-three pattern on a wooden board, then make balls with holes through their centers that could slide over the rods.

After playing a little, I discovered that claiming the second space on the very center rod gave an overwhelming advantage, so I improved it and tried making a four-by-four version. This game really had depth.

The games often became so intense that players failed to notice they had already completed a row. Incidentally, I made a rule that completing a row didn't count as a win unless the player announced it.

This allowed unexpected reversals caused by lapses in attention.

On a whim, I tried making a five-by-five version too, but that was a failure. It took too long to be enjoyed casually.

"Reward Medals? You've made something strange again."

Doraim and Rasuti chatted happily as they played three-dimensional tic-tac-toe.

It felt as though Doraim had visited much less often since Hakuren came to the village. Was he visiting less because the lamia delivery service was doing so well that he could easily get what he wanted?

As though to confirm that, Hakuren joined the father and daughter's conversation.

"Say, Doraim, you're not avoiding your big sister, are you?"

"Hahaha, you must be joking, Sister."

"Good, then~ Oh, you wouldn't mind if I came over to your place, would you?"

"Huh? Ah, o-of course not. But the house is a bit of a mess right now. Once I've tidied up, I'll invite you over myself."

"I was joking. No need to be so nervous."

"Ah, ahahaha..."

"By the way, Rasuti, could I make a suggestion about how to use the extra Reward Medals the racial representatives received?"

"Sure. I haven't had any good ideas myself, actually. What's your suggestion?"

"Is it okay to use them to secure humans or demons?"

"Big Sister? If you want human sacrifice, I think it's better not to."

"Oh please, Doraim, do you really think Big Sister would want something like that~ It makes me so mad~"

"Please forgive my rudeness."

"To be honest, the Village Chief..."

"Recruiting humans and demons?"

Someone made this proposal at a meeting where racial representatives gathered.

The various races put up a considerable number of Reward Medals to present this opinion. Their intent was to solve the problem I brought up a little while ago.

are too few males in the village.

we don't train agricultural workers other than myself, the village will collapse if something happens to me.

The plan proposed to solve these two points is to recruit humans or demons to come to the village.

I see. Although I think this is a pretty good idea...

"About how many people are you looking to recruit?"

"The more, the better, of course."

"That sounds nice in theory, but won't there be problems if the village population suddenly explodes?"

Up until now, the village has maintained the flexibility to gradually absorb population. Furthermore, the present village formed unconsciously only after the number of people increased slowly. A sudden population increase will inevitably cause many problems.

To be honest, when those ten members of the Civil Servant Girls arrived, I guessed there would be trouble. Fortunately, Frau skillfully organized those people so we didn't run into difficulties.

However, as for whether things won't get chaotic in the future, no one can guarantee that.

Though I don't know whose connections will be used to bring people here, a large group of people coming to the village will definitely cause trouble.

"I've also thought about the population explosion problem, and that is to set up a new village in another location."

"What do you mean?"

"Just as I said a moment ago, establish a new village in another location and assign the recruited humans and demons there to farm."

"...I see."

If gathering together causes problems, it's better to separate from the start.

This is not a bad idea. No, I should say it's simply brilliant.

"I understand."

This was merely a proposal discussed at the meeting and hasn't been decided yet. The final decision-making authority rests with me, the Village Chief.

Naturally, once a decision is made, I must also take responsibility for it.

Although I don't want to run away from responsibility, I'd rather be a leisurely farmer than a village chief.

Because of that, I once proposed deciding things by a vote in the past, but everyone voted against it. In the end, only I was in favor of it.

On top of that, everyone persuaded me that living in a harsh environment still requires a powerful leader to unite everyone. Even Frau took the side of persuading me, and any hope of passing the decision-making authority off to her under the pretext of her being a local magistrate was probably gone, so whether this proposal is executed or not is up to me.

"We will establish a new village and recruit villagers from the outside."

In addition, I returned the Reward Medals everyone submitted. I didn't issue Reward Medals for direct complaints; things like this can be discussed with me directly.

Although I made the decision to establish a new village and recruit villagers, I didn't do anything. Actually, there was nothing to do, at least not yet.

Choosing the location to build the new village was handled by several High Elves and Kuro and company.

I initially thought right by the riverside would be nice, but the others convinced me that being too close to the river would spell trouble if it flooded, and there was no need to overly provoke the monsters inhabiting the forest. Since that's how it is, I'll leave the decision to you all.

As for recruiting villagers, Frau, Rasuti, and Hakuren went to exchange opinions with Doraim, Beezel, and Michael.

Even if you want to call people over, you have to go through many complicated procedures and negotiate with the original local residents, which can be called extremely troublesome. I'm terribly sorry, but I'm dumping this on you to handle. Although

this makes things very easy for me... it's still a bit lonely not being able to help.

It can't be helped. A long time ago, I thought about holding an event where you could get Reward Medals, much like a sports festival, so I'll put my efforts into that part.

The members of the Sports Festival Organizing Committee are myself and the Civil Servant Girls. Lu, Tia, and the Oni Race are busy taking care of children, so they are only allowed to act as advisors.

Other members could include Flora, but because she is currently improving the flavors of soy sauce and miso, we won't push her. The sports festival is important, but soy sauce and miso are also vital.

We did a lot of research to decide on the sports festival events. Originally it was just research... but it made us reaffirm the gap between various races.

If it's running speed on flat ground, the Oni Race has an overwhelming advantage. The Dwarves are so slow you have to wonder if they're even running seriously. If it's an obstacle course, the High Elves are the most agile, though the Mountain Elves and Beastmen are close behind. The Dwarves just smash the obstacles and walk right through, so they aren't slow either.

Of course there are individual differences within races, but before that, the racial gap is simply too huge, and I judged that fair competition is impossible. I originally intended to divide teams by race, but it seems that won't work out.

Besides, if we divided teams by race, Kuro and company and Zabuton and company wouldn't be able to participate in certain contests, and Rasuti and Hakuren have the problem of being too strong. As for build, the Beastmen are overall younger than the other races, which is also a sticking point.

Let's reconsider.

Dividing obediently into red and white teams for competition might be the best way, but how should we divide them? Might it be better to split each race evenly and then add them to the red and white teams respectively?

There is no competition called a sports festival in this world, but similar events seem to exist.

The sports festival I envisioned resembles the ordinary sports festival I was familiar with in my previous world.

Including events that frequently appear in sports festivals such as footraces, obstacle courses, ball toss into high baskets, giant ball rolling, pole pushing, and cavalry battles, with cheering squad competitions interspersed in between-I originally planned this thoughtlessly.

However, when I heard the Civil Servant Girls discussing similar events they knew about... terms like martial arts tournaments, magic tournaments, hunting contests, ultra-long-distance deliveries, and mock battles formed a prototype in my mind.

A martial arts tournament is just as the name implies.

"There are matches with designated weapons and matches with freely chosen weapons. Matches with freely chosen weapons are very popular."

As for a magic tournament, it feels like a martial arts tournament that allows the use of magic.

"Plain magic is sometimes unexpectedly effective, and it lets everyone observe."

A hunting tournament finds a suitable forest as a venue to compete on the types and sizes of hunted game...

"This is less like fighting seriously for victory; strictly speaking, the social atmosphere is stronger. Though, occasionally there are participants who don't know how to read the room."

Ultra-long-distance delivery is a competition to transport designated goods from one place to another. The transportation method is unrestricted, and whatever way you want to move them or whatever tools you use are OK. The rule of the competition is that whoever delivers the goods to the finish line first wins.

"This kind of competition is held quite often to figure out the best transportation method."

"However, although obstructing opponents is prohibited on the surface, no one is in charge of monitoring, so anything can happen."

A mock battle simply means a mock battle.

"It's practicing warfare, and many people get injured because of it."

"It's not uncommon for people to die, you see."

After listening to what they had to say, I decided to temporarily freeze the sports festival and think of other plans.

Although the Civil Servant Girls showed interest in the events I proposed, the huge gap between the races is a serious headache. Even though each race has its own personality, it would be bad if it creates unnecessary relationships of superiority and inferiority or stirs up friction.

My purpose in holding the sports festival is entertainment. In other words... I recalled the content of an idol variety show I saw in a hospital room in my previous world.

No, it should be the show right after that one. A program where the host travels all over the world to try out various experiences, and one of the segments in it was called global festivals.

The kind of festival I should hold is like that, rather than a school sports festival. I've figured that out now.

Chapter 3: Festival Organizing Committee and Musical Instruments

The Sports Festival Organizing Committee was disbanded, and a new Festival Organizing Committee was established. The members are still myself and the Civil Servant Girls.

"Everyone dresses up in their finest clothes and walks around slowly outside? And there's no destination?"

"Everyone throws tomatoes at each other? Wasting food is a bit much... The Village Chief thinks so too, right?"

"Run away from charging bulls? I don't understand the point of doing that..."

"Chase food rolling down a slope? Uh..."

After I verbally explained the contents of these festivals, I finally understood that they couldn't grasp them at all. Well, this is also normal. Yeah, you can't blame them.

Things like festivals are extremely insider activities; from the perspective of outsiders who aren't part of that circle, they just think those guys are messing around with weird things.

If it weren't for that, they wouldn't specifically make them into television programs. Moreover, the ones I explained just now all belong to peculiar festivals; ordinary festivals are the ones where everyone is forced to participate, much like Obon dancing from my previous world belonging to the latter category.

However, those are my personal common-sense views, and what we should organize now is a festival that even the Civil Servant Girls would consider ordinary.

"Festivals... There are festivals to celebrate the New Year, and harvest festivals."

"What do people do at those festivals?"

"Well..."

As a result, the same failure as the sports festival occurred. Festivals cannot be made understandable to outsiders by verbal explanation. Even if the part about eating and drinking to your heart's content can be understood, I still can't figure out what purpose celebratory events serve.

If the festivals the Civil Servant Girls talked about were traditions of this world, leaving it entirely to them to run would be fine, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

"Where I grew up, fluffy-fluffies would run into the town center and attack rich families."

"Fluffy-fluffies only dig holes, you know. The ones that attack are mumus."

"Eh? Mumus are food, right? How can food attack people?"

"Night raids."

Festivals in this world develop subtle, or rather huge, differences depending on the region. Well, the previous world was pretty much the same.

The problem that matters far more than that is...

"Can we unify and integrate them?"

"It's probably pretty difficult."

The future of the Festival Organizing Committee is pitch black. As a result, it was frozen temporarily once again.

There are many people in the village who like to sing. Whether it's after meals, during work, or in the gaps between work, the singing is very lively.

Moreover, everyone is good at singing. They sing brilliantly. I don't have an ounce of confidence when it comes to singing, and while I'm not jealous of them, I still feel inferior. However, although the village has songs, it doesn't have many musical instruments.

Things like musical instruments are only possessed by people who have leisure in their lives. Therefore, the few musical instruments existing in the village were merely bells possessing practical utility.

Utensils solely for enjoying music did not exist. I had known about this for a long time, but while thinking about background music for the sports festival or festivals, I reaffirmed this fact.

Because of this, I started making musical instruments.

First is the flute.

It won't make a sound at all. Is just drilling holes not enough? Come to think of it, how many holes are there on a flute? I forgot.

The harp.

How many strings should it have?

As for the xylophone... it actually emitted a dead, dull wooden clunking sound. I had the impression it should be a crisp sound... should I adjust the wood type or length of the mallets?

This is annoying, I'll just make a guitar instead.

...Trying to make a musical instrument I've never even touched before is truly impossible.

I merely made the shape first, and one of the Civil Servant Girls said it was a lute. I remembered that a lute is a guitar-like musical instrument that frequently appears in fantasy stories, so I decided to just make a lute.

Hmm, no matter how you strum it, it won't produce a beautiful tone.

I keep failing.

Anyway, as long as it makes a sound, I'll make a drum first.

I found a round log of moderate size and hollowed out the inside, making it hollow, then stretched fabric across both sides... but using cloth is too perfunctory, I'd better change it to animal hide. The leather was a high-grade piece found for me from Zabuton's stockpile accumulated in the large tree.

Perhaps because of that, the sound produced when striking it was wonderful.

Hufufufu, I finally completed a musical instrument with a normal tone. Very ~ good, very good, let's keep striving in this direction.

I took the "Almighty Farming Tool" in my hand and concentrated wholeheartedly on a piece of wood. For some reason, it ended up becoming a wooden fish percussion block. Although I felt regret, this is the musical instrument with the best tone so far.

Hahahaha, my talent really has limits.

I might as well ask the villagers for help. Someone who is familiar with musical instruments... actually, there was no special need to think about it; when I intended to make musical instruments, High Elves, Mountain Elves, and Civil Servant Girls gathered around me inexplicably.

While listening to their opinions, I worked hard to make musical instruments. More accurately, I desperately produced musical instruments following their instructions.

Flutes of various sizes. Transverse flutes seemed more popular than recorders.

Harps, lutes, guitar-like instruments. Also shamisen-like instruments, guzheng-like instruments. The names of musical instruments change according to their shapes or the number of strings, and the names of string instruments are truly endless to remember.

Xylophones, glockenspiels, drums, plus maracas. I didn't spend too much thought on the detailed parts, but simply processed the materials according to their instructions. The others would help me assemble them and tune out all the pitches. I see, just adding a piece of leather to an ordinary pot or wooden barrel can turn it into a drum with a completely different tone.

They pointed it out and I realized it, but I hadn't thought of it at all beforehand. Since I had already considered a xylophone, how come I didn't think I could also make a glockenspiel...

I feel regret. Being quite mortified, I wrung my brains out and produced musical instruments similar to tambourines, castanets, and triangles.

Regrettably, it seems musical instruments similar to the ones I made already exist in this world, and fortunately no one complained about why no brand-new musical instruments appeared.

I asked in detail and understood that a piano-like instrument also exists here, but because the mechanism is too complex I gave up on making one myself. Next time, I'll discuss with Mr. Michael and see if we can buy one. I can't play it, but someone here should be able to.

Well, we'll talk about those things later; anyway, musical instruments were finally born.

With musical instruments comes the next step: performance.

The High Elves, Mountain Elves, and Civil Servant Girls who assisted me in making the musical instruments are also excellent at playing them.

The High Elves took charge of wind instruments, the Mountain Elves percussion instruments, and the Civil Servant Girls string instruments. It's great that they each have their own specialized fields.

They had no problem instructing people who had never touched musical instruments before. I originally wanted to hand out the musical instruments directly, but the quantities were limited, so I had to treat them as public property of the village, managing and lending them out uniformly.

Although they have to be borrowed, I won't be taking them back day and night, so it's not a problem.

Villagers actively approached the musical instruments and received instruction, causing the sound of music in the village to be ceaseless. This is truly wonderful.

It lasted for about three days.

"No matter how you look at it, having music play even in the middle of the night is going too far, isn't it?"

Playing musical instruments in the village is only allowed within specified hours. After sunset, it is basically prohibited.

It is not totally forbidden, though; dinner time and banquets are OK. Whatever the case, I hope everyone enjoys things in moderation.

As a side note, soundproofing magic was cast on Alfred and Tiselle's room, so it is quiet.

This was also the reason why I noticed the nighttime music a beat late.

Chapter 4: Dwarf Ecology and New Guests

Dwarves give the impression of frequently drinking heavily, but that is not actually the case.

They only enthusiastically participate in work related to brewing alcohol. As long as it is related to alcohol, they throw themselves into agricultural work without any complaints either.

Conversely, they are even more nagging than me when it comes to the harvest period, which can also be considered one of their merits.

I originally thought they must steal sips frequently during the brewing process, but apart from tasting how the flavor is, they don't do that at all.

According to them:

"It's impossible to brew good alcohol while working in a drunken state."

I see.

Brewing alcohol requires making fires, so sometimes they need to stay up overnight in shifts to keep watch. Even under such circumstances, they don't even take a light drink.

"Drinking while tending a fire is absolutely unforgivable."

That was absolutely right. Fires were terrifying.

They did drink with their meals, though.

"Hmm, today's liquor is no good."

"Yes, all the aroma has evaporated. This stuff only burns your throat."

"Speaking of aroma, I found a tree with a lovely scent. Shall we try making barrels out of it?"

"Rather than wooden barrels, how about trying that method the village chief mentioned?"

"You mean adding a scent while drying the crops?"

"We'd just smoke the crops we use as ingredients before brewing. It shouldn't be difficult."

"True. Still, it's a bit frustrating that we never thought of that ourselves."

"Hahaha."

Although they drank with their regular meals, it felt more like tasting, evaluating, and presenting their research.

Well, that was because I had placed restrictions on the villagers' drinking. They could only drink at banquets.

Still, keeping the restrictions in place forever didn't feel right, so I was planning to lift them once everyone learned moderation... but things were fine as they were, so I decided to leave them in place.

Besides, they could now exchange Reward Medals for liquor, so I didn't think the villagers' discontent would boil over.

In short, contrary to my impression of dwarves, they weren't dead drunk all the time.

They were very enthusiastic, as long as it involved brewing.

"Um, Donovan."

"What is it, Chief?"

"Have your numbers grown again?"

"Mm, they arrived this morning. I wanted to bring them to greet you right away, but they said they wanted to see the brewing facilities first."

There were now fifteen dwarves.

"You must be running out of sleeping space. Do you need a new building?"

"If you're building something, a drying room would be better. We'd also like a new still. And a shed to put the still in."

"I'll certainly build them if you need them, but shouldn't we sort out your sleeping arrangements first?"

"No, please build the drying room first. A floor is all we need to sleep on."

They were very enthusiastic, as long as it involved brewing.

We had a visitor, and he was a strange fellow.

The first strange thing was that neither Zabuton, Gran Maria and the others, nor Kuro and his pack had noticed him entering the village.

Though the newly arrived dwarves had been much the same in that respect...

The second strange thing was that, despite his sneaking in, neither Zabuton nor Kuro and his pack took the initiative to attack him.

It felt more like they wanted to act but couldn't.

The third strange thing was that, by the time I noticed him, he was prostrating himself before the statues at the big tree... no, he was probably praying.

Even after we discovered our visitor and surrounded him, he continued his worship.

Then our guest's true identity was quickly revealed.

"Progenitor?"

He was Lu's grandfather.

"I heard Rurushi had given birth. I thought it was just a rumor or something... but it was true."

"Yes, I never imagined I would have a child either."

"Indeed. Rare as it is, a child is a treasure. Raise him well."

"I will. Thank you very much."

At first glance, the Progenitor looked like a young man.

He wore what appeared to be respectable noble attire, but parts of it had deliberately been left disheveled. It didn't make him look slovenly; instead, it came across as a fashionable way to dress.

That kept him from seeming unapproachable. On the contrary, he seemed very friendly.

Through Lu's introduction, I learned that the Progenitor had lived for around four thousand years.

Four thousand years.

Yet the man before me had none of the solemn weight of a venerable elder. To me, he looked like a friendly young man from the neighborhood.

"Hahaha. The secret to a long life is to erase your memories every so often."

Perhaps sensing my puzzlement, the Progenitor explained before I could ask.

"I don't forget important things like my name and family members, but I've forgotten everything else completely. It's unsettling at first, but once you've done it, you get used to it. I last erased my memories about two hundred years ago, so I still feel quite young."

"Vampires can even erase their memories?"

"It's not because I'm a vampire. It's magic. Some Dragons do it too, I believe. Living too long leaves you weary of many things. Oh, I don't mean Death. I mean dragons of an older generation than him."

"You know Death?"

"He's the one who told me about you. Oh, right, I'm sorry I entered the village without announcing myself. I intended to take a look around and leave quietly, but an intriguing presence drew me out."

"A presence?"

"This. This statue-the God of Creation."

"The God of Creation? Which one do you mean?"

There were two statues I had carved myself in the Big Tree Shrine.

One was the god I had met when he sent me to this world. The other was the God of Agriculture, who had bestowed the Almighty Farming Tool upon me.

Without hesitation, the Progenitor pointed to the god who had sent me to this world.

"This one. Remarkable. To capture the God of Creation's appearance so perfectly... truly admirable."

"...Have you met him?"

"Only once, when I was born. He said my constitution was a little unusual and told me to do my best in life."

"By an unusual constitution, do you mean being a vampire?"

"Probably. Because of this constitution, I've been through hardships, received help from many people, and tried all sorts of things. Unfortunately, I erased all those memories. Hahaha."

The Progenitor laughed casually, then turned to me with a serious expression.

"But no matter what I do, I never forget the God of Creation, nor could I. Yet I no longer remember his appearance. Was he young or old? What color were his eyes? What color was his

"hair? How long was it? I've tried several times to make a statue of him, but I could never achieve the perfection of this one."

There was a passion in the Progenitor's gaze as he looked at the statue.

"But I can't give this to you."

"That is unfortunate, but I understand. In that case, I would like you to carve another one for me. I will pay you, of course. Could I ask that of you?"

"Ah..."

At a loss, I looked around.

Quite a few villagers had gathered... Lu and Flora looked as though they were begging me with all their might. Tia, Gran Maria, and the others urged me on with expressions that said, "It can't be helped." Rasuti and Hakuren looked expectant, wondering how I would respond. As for Frau and the Civil Servant Girls... apparently unwilling to get involved with the Progenitor, they had decided to pretend not to see anything. You shouldn't run away from reality.

The other villagers generally fell into those same four patterns. The largest group urged me on with resigned expressions.

"I'll try carving one... but I can't promise you'll be satisfied. I'm not a sculptor, after all."

Though I was technically the one doing the carving, it was really thanks to the Almighty Farming Tool.

"Of course. I have no objections at all. Sorry for the trouble."

"All right. Please wait a moment. Oh, how large would you like it? Would roughly human-sized be all right?"

"That would be fine."

"Understood. I'll start carving right away."

I went into the forest, chose a suitable tree, and cut it down.

I turned the Almighty Farming Tool into a chisel and began carving with gratitude in my heart. I carved and carved and carved. Then I turned the Almighty Farming Tool into a carving knife to make the finer adjustments. At last, it was finished.

It looked a little more handsome than the statue in the Big Tree Shrine... but the overall air should have been right.

"Will this do?"

Seeing the Progenitor kneel before the new statue, I didn't need to ask again.

Afterward, we held a banquet to welcome the Progenitor.

During the banquet, the Progenitor held Alfred, beaming. He probably wanted to dote on his grandchild, but he looked so young that, at a glance, it seemed as though he were holding his own son.

Although I found the sight touching, I also felt a little jealous because that was my son.

Lu came over to comfort me for feeling that way. Mm, this was family.

I talked with the Progenitor about many different subjects during the banquet, and all I learned was that he truly was remarkable.

Chapter 5: The church and the piano

At the central temple of a certain country-

"Oh, Your Holiness. Welcome back."

"It has been a long time."

"Yes. Fifty years have passed since we last met."

"By the way, are you the temple's head priest now?"

"Yes. I was chosen about thirty years ago."

"You are very devout. I think it was a fitting choice."

"Thank you for your high regard."

"Has anything changed these past few years?"

"Nothing. Everything here remains as it always was."

"Is that so? That is heartening, though something will change today."

"What might that be?"

"I would like a statue I brought to be enshrined in the main sanctuary."

"...A new statue?"

"Yes. I would like it placed in the most prominent position."

"If it is to occupy the place of honor, does that mean moving Zirk's statue of the God of Creation?"

"Sorry for the trouble... hehehe, don't look so displeased."

"Forgive me."

"I understand your displeasure. But once you see the statue I brought, you will change your mind."

"...Is it truly that good?"

"If it weren't, would I have come all this way?"

"Indeed. Then I shall make preparations to enshrine it."

Several days later, the oldest and most authoritative temple on the continent held a grand festival.

The festival's purpose was unknown. Its scale, however, was the greatest in history. Rumor had it that everyone who entered the main sanctuary to pray came away in tears.

"Should we not canonize the sculptor?"

"Sorry, but we cannot. He seems to dislike attracting attention. Canonizing him would only trouble him."

"Hmm, that is a shame."

"But there would be no problem with supporting him in secret."

"Indeed. Just as one would expect of Your Holiness."

"Then let us do that. Inform every branch. Furthermore, we must never make an enemy of him."

"As you command."

"Chief, you suddenly let out an enormous sneeze. Are you all right?"

"Y-yes. It surprised me too."

It was my first sneeze since the god had bestowed a Healthy Body upon me.

Still, sneezing was a physiological response, so even a healthy body should sneeze.

"More importantly, Chief, let's hurry and set up the piano."

"Oh, right."

After the Progenitor went home, he sent us a piano. Though it wasn't money to pay for carving the statue, it was probably something similar.

To be honest, I had intended to think about the carving fee after finishing the statue. However, looking at the finished work, taking money for it felt like selling the god himself, so I had refused payment.

As far as I was concerned, that settled the matter, but the Progenitor didn't see it that way.

He wanted to pay me no matter what... no, he said a return gift would do instead, so we settled on calling it a gift to celebrate Alfred's and Tiselle's births.

And that birth gift was a piano.

I was simply delighted, but Frau and the Civil Servant Girls looked as though their faces were about to cramp. Apparently, pianos were luxury goods here. Was that why?

In any case, since it had been given to us, we would put it to good use. After everyone discussed where to set it up, we decided on the inn's dining room.

"That piano was made by Master Gurazoru, wasn't it? They say there are only three in the whole world..."

"Yes. I checked the maker's mark. It's genuine."

"Is it the sort that ought to be in a cathedral or temple?"

"It should be of a caliber reserved for important ceremonies."

"...C-can we pretend we didn't see the mark and just play it?"

"A-agreed. Opportunities like this are rare... no, an ordinary person would never get a chance like this in their entire life."

"Who else knows about this?"

"Miss Fraurem certainly does. As for the others... it wouldn't be surprising if Miss Lu and Miss Tia knew. I'm not sure about Miss Rasuti and Miss Hakuren. The Mountain Elves or Elder Dwarves might know too."

"That's a lot of people."

"Yes, so..."

"Let's play while we have the chance."

The newly delivered piano was very popular, and many people took a turn playing it.

Only a small number were good at it, though. Most simply tried making sounds...

"Another piano?"

"Yes, for practice. Please. Even a battered old piano would be fine."

"For the sake of our peace of mind, sorry for the trouble. Practicing on that expensive piano feels a little inappropriate..."

Several people with the same wish pooled their Reward Medals and came to make the request, but since they had a valid reason and did not need Reward Medals for this, I returned them.

The Reward Medals had created an environment where it was easier to speak up, but now people were afraid to say anything without bringing Reward Medals. What a headache. I had to find a way to fix that.

Anyway, we bought another piano through Michael.

It was secondhand, but it was not cheap. Entertainment goods really were expensive.

Incidentally, the Progenitor's piano had been delivered by Seiren's husband, Maxbergak.

Apparently, the Progenitor had done a great deal for him when he was born, so he could not refuse a request from him. I gave him some crops to take home as souvenirs.

Rasuti and Hakuren were heading toward the Northern Dungeon.

Their goal was to defeat the giant snakes that lived in the dungeon-the Bloody Vipers-and obtain their meat.

Accompanying them was an investigation team about the same size as last time. Rasuti and Hakuren alone should have been enough in terms of fighting strength, but considering the Giants who had helped us there, bringing some familiar faces would make things less dangerous.

I hoped they could avoid unnecessary disputes. After all, Rasuti and Hakuren were both hotheaded youngsters.

I had wanted to send someone who could stop them, but we simply had no one suited to the task, so I gave up. Instead, I privately instructed the High Elves accompanying them to return and report immediately if those two caused any problems.

"There were no problems"-that was the report I wanted to hear.

Chapter 6: Building a new village

We had decided where to establish the new village.

It was a little south after crossing the river west of Big Tree Village. The straight-line distance between the two... was about ten kilometers, perhaps?

Since the river flowed from the north toward the southwest, the new village was closer to it.

"Why did you choose this spot?"

"First, considering the hierarchy between the two, we cannot choose somewhere upstream. Downstream was the inevitable choice."

Huh? Ria's answer left me a little puzzled.

"Hierarchy?"

"Yes."

"Um... is that necessary?"

"Yes."

She told me that with clear eyes and not a trace of hesitation. Really? It was necessary? If it was necessary... well, all right. I had no objections.

"So that's why you chose downstream... but why put a river between us?"

"If the new village rebels, the river can serve as a barrier."

"Rebels?"

"Yes. We must consider that possibility."

"Can't we leave that out of our considerations?"

"No."

R-really? We couldn't...? I decided not to ask any more.

"There are no large monsters or beasts near the chosen site, and Zabuton's children and Kuro's descendants will be capable of defending it."

"I-I see."

Speaking of which, I had assumed Kuro and the others would regulate their numbers on their own, but this year they had started reproducing like mad again.

Could they be increasing their numbers to guard the new village? Or had they foreseen the need to hunt more once it was established? Perhaps it was both.

In that case, it was only natural that Masayuki, with his many mates, would have that exhausted look in his eyes. I sympathized with him, and I could relate all too well.

I brought my thoughts back to the new village.

"I know where the planned construction site is now. Should I go clear the forest first?"

"About that, there is another job we would like to trouble you with before that."

"Hmm?"

"Building bridges."

"Bridges? Oh... bridges to cross the river."

"Yes. Considering the building materials we will need to transport, bridges would make things much more convenient."

"That makes sense... but how did you get around the river before?"

"Well, there are places where we can cross. Kuro and the others can also jump straight across."

"Really?"

"We would like to use the waterway as a road, so if possible, we would like the bridges built near it."

"Understood. Tell me what to do."

"Yes. Sorry for the trouble."

The first new-village construction team.

I was its representative.

The building personnel were eight High Elves, including Ria.

The construction workers were five lizardmen.

Our guards were ten of Kuro's descendants.

Kuudel handled regular communications.

The river was about five meters wide, and its depth ranged from one to three meters, depending on the location. Its banks were rocky rather than sandy. The river's surface was about a meter below where I was standing. A short distance north was something like a waterfall, roughly seven meters high. The waterway drew its water from the top of that waterfall.

We built the bridges a little downstream from the waterfall.

I had imagined suspension bridges, but that was not what Ria and the others planned to build.

We laid an enormous log longer than the river was wide across it, then secured both ends so it would not slip. To make walking easier, we shaved the top flat. The resulting flat surface was about a meter wide.

With the Almighty Farming Tool, it was finished in no time.

"Is this all right?"

"Yes, but could we trouble you to build a few more?"

"Understood."

We built five bridges across the river, all within sight of one another.

"Wouldn't it be better to put them all together into one big bridge?"

"If we built a large bridge, large beasts and monsters would be able to cross too."

"Oh, right."

We had to be careful about that.

"Could you clear a little of the forest at both ends of the bridges? That would make it easier to spot any approaching monsters or beasts."

"Understood."

I cut down the trees with the Almighty Farming Tool and tilled the ground. Since bare dirt looked rather bleak, I tried planting grass over it.

That finished the work on the bridges. I thought the village would be next, but I was wrong.

"Now, village chief, this way, please."

I began clearing a road toward the planned site of the new village.

Yes, we did need a road first. After cutting down the trees, I used the Almighty Farming Tool's hoe to turn the stumps into soil. The road was about five meters wide.

"We will patrol the surroundings and do some hunting."

"All right. Let me know if I start clearing in the wrong direction."

"Yes."

I silently cleared the road until the sun sank low in the west. Since I was already so accustomed to using the Almighty Farming Tool, I could clear roads much faster than before, but even so, it took several days.

"Is this the planned construction site?"

"Yes."

I could not tell whether the location was good or bad. Still, since Ria and the others said it was good, I trusted them.

"Village chief, this is the tree."

"Hmm?"

Ria led me to a large tree. It was similar to the one in the center of Big Tree Village.

"I would like to make this tree the center of the new village."

"I see. Understood."

I tilled the area around the tree.

Ria and the others were planning which buildings would go where, so first I turned all the land except the large tree into cleared building plots. At times like this, the only thing I had to watch out for was thinking about anything unnecessary.

If I let my thoughts wander, crops would sprout from the ground. With my personality, I would end up making that area a field, and I would feel bad for Ria and the others after all their planning.

So I emptied my mind and swung the Almighty Farming Tool without thinking about anything.

After several days of work, I had cleared a sizable area for construction around the enormous tree.

Next, I had to dig a well.

Until then, water for the new village's construction site had to be carried over in buckets. Thanks to the well, things became much easier.

The toilets came next.

Yes, toilets were important. I prepared grass for wiping bottoms and set up buckets for washing hands. I had to remember to bring slimes next time.

The large tree, the well, the toilets, and the vast amount of lumber obtained from clearing the forest earlier.

Since it seemed the actual building work had not begun yet, I built a shrine beside the large tree first.

It was to enshrine the two gods: the god who had sent me to this world and the god who had bestowed the Almighty Farming Tool on me.

With the High Elves helping, the shrine was finished in no time.

I carved the two divine statues to place inside. Yes, they turned out quite handsome this time.

As in Big Tree Village, I also carved ornaments modeled after Kuro and Yuki, similar to stone guardian lions, and set them out. Also, partly for fun, I went ahead and carved a life-size statue of Zabuton... but where should I put it?

The most suitable place was on top of the shrine, but putting something above the gods' heads felt disrespectful.

While I was puzzling over it, Zabuton's children came and carried the statue up into the large tree. So that was where they were putting it.

"I don't mind, but make sure you secure it properly so it doesn't fall."

Also, only then did I notice that several dozen of Zabuton's children had already arrived in the large tree.

Chapter 7: Building the new village and the investigation team's return

The well, toilets, and shrine were complete as facilities for the new village.

Next was a large building that could serve as an assembly hall. A building like that would reduce a lot of problems as long as it kept out the rain.

I wanted to help, but I had other work to do.

Building waterways.

Although we had dug a well, we still needed waterways for the fields. I built the incoming waterway parallel to the road, but the drainage channel was to run in another direction, according to Ria and the others' instructions.

I built the drainage channel in the direction they specified.

Several days later, I reached the river. Compared to before, I could really feel how much faster I was working.

"Is this a good place to dig the reservoir?"

"Yes. Sorry for the trouble."

It felt as though we were building things in reverse order, but I dug a reservoir and connected it to the drainage channel. Of course, I also installed a slime pool to purify the wastewater.

All that remained was the incoming waterway to bring in water, but apparently, I did not need to build that part.

At first, I did not understand why, but it turned out they wanted the new villagers to do it themselves. If we took care of everything for them, they would take it for granted, and that probably would not be good.

Was that how it worked? Hmm... well, all right. I could not monopolize the fun of building a village either. Looking at it that way, I could accept it.

Then, as I was considering my next job, it seemed my part was already finished.

"Is that all right?"

"Yes. Thank you very much. The others can handle the rest."

We had rotated shifts several times over the course of the work so far, and there were currently eight High Elves and five lizardmen on site.

There were also ten of Kuro's descendants on guard duty, along with several dozen of Zabuton's children who had arrived at some point.

Yes, they should be fine.

"Understood. Then I'll leave the rest to you."

I had Kuudel, who had come for a regular check-in, carry me in her arms and fly straight back to Big Tree Village.

That said, even while working at the new village, I had returned before sunset, so it did not feel nostalgic.

With the Almighty Farming Tool, I would not get tired even if I worked through the night. I had simply been following everyone's advice to rest properly at night.

Still, if they really had my interests at heart, they ought to let me sleep a little more at night.

Back in the village, I did the same work as before.

I harvested the crops that were ready, then cultivated new fields. I thought it would be better to prepare extra seeds and seedlings for the new village, so I worked harder than usual.

The investigation team that had gone to the Northern Dungeon returned.

At the same time, Rasuti and Hakuren, in their dragon forms, began transporting the defeated Bloody Vipers in their arms.

"How many did you kill?"

Apparently, seventeen. The enormous Bloody Vipers took up a troublesome amount of space.

"Won't the snake meat spoil if we leave it?"

Considering when they had set out to hunt them, many days must have passed since the snakes were killed.

Yet the meat still looked fresh.

"Isn't Bloody Viper meat famous for being slow to spoil?"

"They have such strong vitality that they don't rot easily~ Even if only the head is left, the body can grow back~"

That was what Rasuti and Hakuren told me, but I did not understand and could only reply, "Oh."

"Did you wipe out all the snakes?"

"We spared the small ones, so we didn't kill them all. That means we can go hunting every year... well, that might be a little much, but at least once every few years."

"Uh... if we leave some alive, won't that cause trouble for the friendly Giants?"

"If we don't leave a few, the Giants won't have anything to eat~"

"...They eat Bloody Vipers?"

"They only eat the small Bloody Vipers."

"..."

Did they deliberately leave some uneaten every time, and then the snakes grew up and went on angry rampages?

I decided not to picture that.

"Anyway... does that mean the investigation of the Northern Dungeon is complete?"

I asked one of the High Elves who had joined the investigation team.

"Yes. We obtained a detailed map of the dungeon's interior from the friendly Giants, and we subdued nearly all the dangerous forces inside. All the large Bloody Vipers ended up like that, and we brought them back..."

I see.

"Anything else to report?"

At my question, the High Elf's face began to twitch. She was the one I had given secret orders to before their departure.

"Did Rasuti and Hakuren cause any problems over there?"

"Th-they caused part of the dungeon to collapse and cave in... Fortunately, our Giant friends kindly told us it was all right and not to worry."

"Meaning?"

"W-well, although it didn't cause any problems, I recommend sending the Giants something as an apology."

Hmm, I had better not let Rasuti and Hakuren go next time.

"...I'll send the Giants some crops later."

"Thank you."

Still, that was a separate matter...

I gave each villager who had joined the investigation team one Reward Medal. Yes, this was probably the best way to use them.

I had planned to give crops to the Lamia who had accompanied them, but they seemed very interested in the Reward Medals. After explaining the rules for using them, I gave their whole tribe five in total.

I also reminded them repeatedly that these things had no value outside the village.

We held a banquet that day to celebrate the investigation team's return.

The banquet featured heaps of dishes made with Bloody Viper meat, and that night was utterly exhausting.

The next day, Rasuti took Bloody Viper meat to Doraim's nest as a gift, while Hakuren took some to Seiren's and Seki Ren's nests.

At a glance, it looked like a dragon flying with a giant snake in its claws... It was quite a spectacular sight.

The first night's banquet and the gifts had reduced the amount of snake meat a little, but what were we going to do with all these remaining Bloody Vipers?

One whole snake went to Kuro and the others... Although they had already eaten some at the banquet, could they still eat more?

No problem? But they wanted me to grill it for them? Got it.

Another whole snake went to Zabuton and her children... Were they fine eating it raw?

With Zabuton at their head, all her children gathered around the Bloody Viper's corpse.

There were more than I had imagined, which gave me a bit of a shock.

In the blink of an eye, only bones remained. Inside the now-bare skull was a large, beautiful stone. Apparently, this was a magic stone, something monsters and beasts all had.

Come to think of it, the giant boars we had killed before had magic stones too, but Kuro and the others had always crunched them all up. Could you eat those things? As I wondered, Zabuton started crunching on it too. Apparently, they were edible, but just hearing that sound made my teeth hurt, so I would pass.

Anyway, the Bloody Vipers I had thought would be difficult to deal with were consumed within a few days.

I had planned to plow away the bones, but someone said they wanted to store them in the warehouse. What use were they...? Apparently, they were regarded as some kind of treasure. Did people really want bones like those? This world had its eccentrics too.

Side story: A certain Mountain Elf's rebellion

We were a race known as Mountain Elves. In the mountains, we were invincible. If we had any opponents, they were other Mountain Elves.

But, much to our frustration, our tribe got into a dispute with another Mountain Elf tribe, causing us to lose our home and forcing us to wander.

Fortunately, however, we soon found a new place to settle. Moreover, it was far better than our previous home. Surely this outcome was thanks to our tribal chief, Lady Mea, being so attentive to etiquette and handling outside relations so well. As expected of Lady Mea. I needed to pay more attention to manners too. I also respected her greatly.

However-yes, that "however" was the point! I was quite dissatisfied with Lady Mea as she was now.

It was because of her attitude toward the owner of this new home-the village chief. She was just like a young girl experiencing her first love.

This would not do. No, I wasn't saying she couldn't fall in love.

After all, Lady Mea was in the bloom of youth. No, I actually thought she was a little old to be discovering romance... Ahem.

Anyway, I wasn't opposed to romance, but to that man!

That man was no good! He had relations with countless women. He had absolutely no restraint!

True, when I heard that he had originally built this village all by himself, I thought he was impressive and worthy of respect.

It was also impressive that he had made the famous vampires and Angels his subordinates. However, he still wouldn't do. He was too much of a womanizer!

I wasn't rejecting his existence. I also acknowledged him as the master of this settlement. But I would not agree to him becoming Lady Mea's partner! Absolutely not!

Unfortunately, Lady Mea probably wouldn't listen to anything I said.

Talking to the village chief would be useless too. If words could stop him, he wouldn't have made advances on so many women.

In that case... what should I do?

How could I stop Lady Mea and the village chief from becoming involved?

I had no confidence in my own wisdom. Whenever I had encountered difficulties before, I had always asked the dependable Lady Mea for help. Now I couldn't consult her... I was completely at a loss.

Every intelligent person in this settlement had received the village chief's favors.

The Demon Race women in the Civil Servant Girls should have been fine... But when I went to ask them, I sensed contempt in their gazes and gave up. At times like these, instinct mattered. It had helped me through danger in the mountains many times.

That left only Zabuton and Kuro... But communicating with them was difficult. Besides, I was a little afraid of them.

It seemed I would have to do this alone. I racked my unwise brain. My brain, now is your time to shine!

As things stood, Lady Mea had feelings for the village chief (in my subjective judgment).

Meanwhile, the village chief had made no move to approach Lady Mea (perhaps I simply didn't know about it).

In other words, all I needed to do was make Lady Mea give up on the village chief.

Would she give up? At her age, she was nearing her limit... Ahem.

Lady Mea was a wonderful woman. She would surely find a good partner, so I had to ask her to give up. I absolutely had to make her abandon the idea.

As for how... perhaps she would back away if I showed her the village chief's ugly side?

Yes, that had to be it. In that case, this would be easy. I would uncover the village chief's misdeeds!

It had been five days since I had that thought.

I had expected the village chief to have countless faults, but he was actually an extremely ordinary farmer. No, perhaps it would be more accurate to call him a

hardworking farmer.

His only misdeed was his nightlife... But that was merely something I personally disliked. Families with one husband and multiple wives were not unusual.

Hmm, could Lady Mea's judgment have been correct? No, no, I couldn't give up yet.

Although I was trying to find the village chief's flaws, I could only do so during my free time.

In other words, I could only watch him for a limited amount of time. He might have been doing something bad outside those hours.

Tomorrow, I would simply shift all my working hours.

Today, the village chief was at home doing some kind of intricate work. Had someone asked him to?

He cut wood into small pieces, got thread from Zabuton, and fetched something or other from the warehouse.

What exactly was he doing? Could this be connected to his misdeeds? Excellent.

No, I couldn't rush things. I needed to observe his actions carefully.

I couldn't understand it at all.

The village chief sometimes did things I couldn't understand, but never anything as baffling as today. Just what was he up to...?

I could tell he was making some sort of device... And the closest thing to it in my knowledge was...

"A trap?"

I spoke without thinking.

"Hahaha, this isn't a trap."

The village chief noticed me too. How embarrassing to fail at surveillance, but I wouldn't let him see that.

"Um, then what is it?"

"Ah... I just need to adjust this part like so... and that finishes it."

"It's finished now?"

"Yes."

With that, the village chief pushed over one of the little wooden boards lined up in a row.

The little boards kept knocking over the others lined up beside them... Finally, they pushed a ball that had been set in place beforehand. The ball rolled out and struck something tied to a string, which triggered other mechanisms in a chain.

"Ooooooh! Amazing! It's a chain of traps!"

"Hahaha, it's not a trap... Well, I suppose it does look similar. Unfortunately, it stops here."

According to the village chief, the ball was supposed to roll back and forth over some cups, but that part apparently hadn't worked.

"What if this part works?"

"Then this mechanism activates and moves this part... and finally, this happens."

"Oooh!"

Mountain Elves were skilled at catching prey with traps.

So what was I trying to say...? I absolutely loved this sort of thing!

That day, I lost track of time playing with the village chief. Although the chain of traps still failed to reach the end, I was thoroughly satisfied.

I wanted to preserve this masterpiece forever. However, the heartless Oni Race maid told us to clean it up. What an uncultured brute, with no appreciation for art.

Look, take a good look. This part goes like this, and that part goes like that... Ah, all right, I'll start cleaning up.

She gave me an absolutely terrifying look. Damn it, she was practically an oni... Huh? Wasn't that expression normal for the Oni Race?

A few days later-

Although I thought it would be useless, I tried speaking frankly to the village chief.

"Would you please avoid making advances on Lady Mea as much as possible?"

"Of course! Your help is essential for that! Listen, do everything you can to keep her from being alone with me! If possible, stay by Mea's side at all times!"

"Huh? Ah, yes."

The village chief looked like a soldier surrounded by enemies who had finally seen reinforcements arrive.

"If the mood gets too romantic, you have my permission to ruin it! Please! You absolutely have to help me! You're my only hope!"

There was nothing false in his forceful tone. Had I misunderstood him all this time?

No, no, surely the village chief thought he and Lady Mea were unsuitable for each other. That had to be it.

Anyway, with the village chief's permission, I set about obstructing the progress of his relationship with Lady Mea!

...Huh? Would Lady Mea end up hating me?

The village chief's day: From morning to noon

My mornings began relatively late. I didn't get up until the sun was fully up.

After doing some simple exercises resembling radio calisthenics, I first made a round of the house. Whatever else, this was part of my job as head of the household, so I tried to do it every morning and evening.

When I couldn't do it, someone filled in according to a household ranking that had been established at some point without my knowing.

The order apparently went Lu, Tia, Flora, Ann, and Hakuren.

Alfred and Tiselle were still too young to be included, but I really didn't know how that order had been decided.

Although I didn't understand why, no one had wanted to tell me so far, so I decided I was better off not knowing. That was how I saw it.

My morning rounds mainly involved greeting the people working in the house. The Oni Race maids were already at work, lighting fires, preparing breakfast, and starting the cleaning.

Since they also had to prepare food for Kuro and the others, their work must have been quite demanding, but they kept working hard without a word of complaint. I was very grateful.

Also, since they had to get up earlier than me to work, I made myself avoid rising too early.

I hadn't actually asked them to do that, but they always insisted on getting up before me, and I had given up trying to stop them.

Apparently, they felt they mustn't get up later than me, the head of the household. It was probably some kind of maid spirit I found difficult to understand.

So even when I woke up early, I sometimes stayed in bed-or rather, couldn't get out of bed.

My mornings started late out of consideration for them, certainly not because I was lazy.

Back to the subject.

When I met them in the morning, we also exchanged any information we needed to pass on.

"Last night, an Alcohol Slime got into the food storehouse and drank an entire barrel of cooking alcohol."

"One of the small barrels we divided it into to deal with the Alcohol Slime?"

"Yes. I'm not sure whether to be pleased that everything went as expected, or to lament our carelessness in allowing it inside. It's troubling."

"We've already half given up on keeping it out, so let's be happy things went as expected. Anything else?"

"Nothing in particular. Today's breakfast consists mainly of soup made with daikon, spinach, and cabbage, along with seared Killer Rabbit meat."

"Got it. I'll let you get back to work."

I ate breakfast after finishing my rounds of the house.

My rounds covered the parts of the mansion other than private rooms and storerooms, so there weren't that many places to check.

I greeted the Oni Race maids at the main locations and listened to their reports, and it was over in no time.

Breakfast.

Breakfast at home was served in the dining room in three shifts.

The first group consisted of me, Lu, Tia, Flora, and Hakuren. Alfred and Tiselle ate different food at different times, so they didn't join us.

After all, the others couldn't eat until I finished, so I made short work of breakfast. Lu and Tia also had to feed Alfred and Tiselle afterward, so they ate quickly too.

The second group was the Oni Race maids.

I had originally told them we could all eat together, but because of the dining room's size, the limits on serving food, and their need to look after Alfred and Tiselle first, we ended up eating separately.

Someone had to look after the children while Lu and Tia ate breakfast.

The third sitting was for anyone who had missed the first and second sittings, or visitors who came to the house early in the morning.

The regulars were Flora and Hakuren, who got up even later than I did and often missed the first sitting. Gran Maria, Kuudel, and Corone were the other main members.

Gran Maria and the others had originally lived with the lizardmen, but their schedules differed, so they had moved to another house.

I also knew that Gran Maria and the others had no ability to do housework.

The lizardmen went to their house to help with cleaning and laundry. As for meals, their working hours meant they mainly came to my house to eat.

Officially, they came to report on the previous day's patrols.

"No particular problems?"

"Correct. Around dusk, about three Killer Rabbits approached the village, but Kuro and the others eliminated them all."

"All right. Still, those rabbits never seem to decrease in number."

"No. But their meat is delicious, so complaining about it seems a little too extravagant."

"True."

Rather than decreasing, the number of rabbits seemed to be steadily increasing.

After breakfast, I left the house.

I greeted Kuro, Yuki, and Zabuton, then paid my respects at the shrine. After that, I inspected the fields.

Kuro, Yuki, or their descendants accompanied me. If I saw a field that needed tilling, I tilled it on the spot, and if there was too little water, I watered it. I checked the crops' condition and got rid of pests along the way.

Zabuton's children sometimes ate those pests, and Kuro's descendants alerted me to them, so they had never caused serious damage.

Whenever I spotted pests, I eliminated them with the Almighty Farming Tool's watering can. As for the crops' condition...

There had never been any problems so far. That was probably because I had tilled the land with the Almighty Farming Tool.

That part worried me when it came to starting farming in the new village. Was there any magic that could help? I would talk to Lu or Tia about it next time.

Oh, perhaps I could ask Frau, Rasuti, or Hakuren too.

The fields had expanded before I knew it, and inspecting them had become quite tiring.

Still, seeing the crops growing well put me at ease.

Lunch.

I usually ate my fill.

But we didn't gather together for this meal. Everyone could freely take the food the Oni Race maids had prepared, and there was no rule about where to eat it.

Although there was no rule, I usually ate in the dining room at home or at a table set up in the courtyard.

Because of my memories of my previous world, lunch was nothing remarkable to me, but in this world, it was considered unusual.

Even Lu and Tia had been surprised by the existence of lunch, though fortunately they had quickly adjusted.

Kuro and the others didn't eat lunch. More precisely, they ate as much as they could whenever they wanted to, and when they couldn't eat, they seemed fine going ten days without food.

About ten days was the limit of how long I could go without worrying. They might be able to last even longer.

Never mind lunch-the High Elves had been bewildered even by breakfast. In fact, before they came to this village, it was doubtful whether they had even managed one meal a day.

I still remembered how I couldn't hold back my tears when I first learned that. You could all eat as much as you wanted here with me.

The dwarves were probably the only ones who had no questions about lunch. Well, perhaps all their questions were about the alcohol instead.

Doraim and Beezel, who visited the village from time to time, had been puzzled by lunch at first, but they were used to it now. As for Yuri, who had stayed here for a while, was she doing all right after returning home? I hoped she wasn't causing trouble for those around her...

Wait, she was a princess, wasn't she? With her status, there was no need to worry.

In short, the villagers had accepted the habit of eating lunch.

My lunchtime also became an opportunity to discuss things with the villagers and hear reports. That was exactly why I tried to eat lunch in a fixed location.

"Village chief, most of the planned buildings in the new village are finished. All that's left is the finer interior work. I think we can leave that part to the villagers who move in."

"The nanny goat's belly is getting bigger. She should be giving birth soon. I'd like to add something nutritious to her feed. Would that be all right?"

"Regarding the southwestern part of the village, the residential area is too close to the forest, so some people would like us to clear a little more land."

"Based on the estimated autumn harvest, we'll probably need to build a new storehouse at this rate. Otherwise, we'll have to sell things to Mr. Michael sooner."

Eating lunch with me today were one High Elf, one lizardman, one Oni Race maid, and one member of the Civil Servant Girls.

I listened to each of their remarks and gave instructions where I judged it necessary. Since introducing the Reward Medal system, this part of the work felt a little easier.

Until recently, Lu and Tia had joined my lunchtime meetings too, but now they had to look after Alfred and Tiselle. We were concerned that having children present would make it difficult for others to speak, so we ate separately.

Perhaps I was being too protective of Alfred and Tiselle. I needed to reflect on that.

"Village chief, much like goats, pregnant hellhounds become more aggressive. Please try to keep Master Alfred and Miss Tiselle away from them."

"Understood. I'll be careful. Hmm, with Lu and Tia watching them, it should be fine."

"Ah... of course, looking after children is their mothers' job, but entrusting some of it to experienced members of the Oni Race is also an option."

"Are Lu and Tia having difficulties?"

"No, that's not what I meant... but sometimes, things look a little dangerous..."

"That's not quite fair. Everyone is like that with their first child. When Alfred was first born, I was nervous just holding him."

"Forgive my rudeness, but I'll speak plainly. I don't think flying while holding a child is appropriate."

"...Flying while holding a child?"

"Yes, they were definitely flying, and quite high, too. Just watching from below made me worry they might fall."

"Understood. I'll speak to them."

"Sorry for the trouble."

Lunch ended amid that sort of lively conversation.

Chapter 9: A day in the village chief's life, from noon to night

After lunch, my activities generally fell into three categories.

First, inspecting the fields, just as I did in the morning. I did this because there were some fields I hadn't managed to visit that morning, and it also let me check on the village... no, perhaps I should call it taking a walk?

I led Kuro and the others on a circuit around the inside and outside of the village.

Mostly, I checked for problems with the roads, cut weeds, tilled barren ground again so grass would grow, and trimmed the plants we had grown to block the view.

Was I a handyman? Or was this more like a caretaker's work? Well, I had no complaints about this sort of work.

Second, making things at the villagers' request.

This mainly included supplying building materials and making small items. If I had to name a more unusual request, it would be developing dishes. Things I made on my own even without being asked included play equipment.

Thanks to the Almighty Farming Tool, even a near-novice like me could just about meet their requirements. No, after all these years, surely I should have graduated from being a novice?

Once again, I felt grateful to God.

And then there was the last category.

Combat training.

Did a farmer need combat training? Putting that question aside, I did it because the villagers had strongly recommended it.

Of course, I didn't do it alone. Gran Maria, the lizardmen, the High Elves, and the Oni Race participated, as did the Civil Servant Girls.

Not everyone joined in; we only asked those who had time to come if they could, but there were still quite a lot of people. Was it my imagination, or did all the participants seem full of energy? Did everyone like fighting? Or were they here to lose weight? Whoops, my mind was wandering again.

First, we reviewed how to hold weapons, take a stance, and use them. Next, we reviewed how to wear armor, take a stance, and use it. Then we practiced swings on our own. After warming up to a certain point, we found partners for one-on-one practice. Last came group-against-group practice.

Although the weapons were wrapped in cloth to prevent injuries, getting hit still hurt. I had taken quite a beating several times.

With the Almighty Farming Tool, I could handle most enemies, but considering emergencies, it was better to learn how to use ordinary weapons too.

Still, I was reminded once again that, as village chief, I ought to find a way to resolve things before everyone needed to take up weapons or was forced to use them. Besides, fighting didn't suit me.

Incidentally, the Almighty Farming Tool could turn into a spear, an axe, or a sickle, but not a sword. It could turn into a knife, yet not an ordinary sword. So why could it turn into a spear?

I took another look at the Almighty Farming Tool's spear form.

No matter how I looked at it, it was an ordinary spear, without any decoration, just a spearhead fixed to the end of a long wooden pole. At first glance, it looked like a weapon a poor warrior would carry.

Hmm. It didn't look capable of bringing down a wyvern at all. But it had indeed killed a wyvern... I hoped I would never have to use it again.

When the sun began to set, I finished work and went home.

The village had no streetlights or anything like them, so it became pitch-dark once the sun had set completely.

Fortunately, the stars and two moons made the night sky beautiful, and a faint glow spilled from several buildings on the ground.

I carried a lantern whenever I went out walking at night, but perhaps streetlights would be better?

Streetlights... could we fix torches in place? The problem was fuel. Even if each day's consumption was small, it would add up to an alarming amount.

It would probably be impossible without magic. I would have to look into it properly.

We ate dinner in the dining room at home.

There were more people than at breakfast or lunch. Flora and Hakuren were always there, and Frau and Rasuti joined us too. Depending on the circumstances, Ria, Daga, Mea, and others might also attend.

Once everyone was seated, I had Frau and Rasuti give their reports for the day before the food was served.

After all, they were the village's local official and diplomat respectively, and I was the village chief.

Well, leaving Frau aside, Rasuti actually rarely had anything to report. I thought she simply came for dinner.

If Ria, Daga, Mea, or the others attended, it meant they had something to report.

Good news was fine, but if it was bad news, I really wished they wouldn't tell me before dinner. Still, waiting until afterward would lessen the sense of urgency.

The current approach was probably the right one.

Dinner had quite a few dishes.

To me, it was an ordinary meal, but compared with what an average village chief in this world ate every day, the dishes and portions were incredibly lavish.

What exactly did the chiefs of other villages eat? Just thinking about it was frightening, so I decided not to.

I tried to distribute food fairly, so the other households in the village ate dinners of the same standard.

It was all thanks to the Almighty Farming Tool. I mustn't forget to be grateful, and I should enjoy my food.

Among the dishes, I spotted one I didn't recognize.

"Ann, what's this dish?"

"A new dish developed by today's cooking team."

"How confident are they?"

"About twenty percent."

"I think I said before that, if possible, it would be better to wait until they were more than fifty percent confident before serving it?"

"We can't waste ingredients."

"...True."

I worked hard to persuade myself to enjoy the meal.

After dinner, I could relax a little.

Mostly, I played with Alfred and Tiselle and doted on them.

Alfred had begun learning to talk, so I taught him words.

"Do your best every day."

"Every day, best?"

My son was a genius. Oh, my daughter, you were sure to grow into a beauty too.

I enjoyed my time indulging my children.

After playing for a while, I entrusted Alfred and Tiselle to the Oni Race maids and headed to the bath.

The bath was in a separate building outside the house, a bathhouse for my exclusive use.

Although someone had suggested putting a bathroom inside the house, the village already had a place for me to bathe, so I politely declined.

I was in the habit of bathing after dinner, and the others adjusted to my schedule.

Although I wanted everyone to come whenever they liked without worrying about me, they seemed to think bathing together with lots of people was better.

My private bath wasn't all that large... every bath became a lively affair.

If we built a new bathroom in the house, it might end up very spacious. That was another reason I had politely declined.

After my bath, it should have been time to relax.

But it wasn't. Tension began to fill the air around me.

I knew very well why. It was all because of my lack of self-restraint. I had been wrong to lay my hands on them, but now that I had, I ought to take responsibility to the end.

Besides, to be honest, I enjoyed doing that sort of thing myself, didn't I? Hahahahaha.

My only free time was the short walk home from the bathhouse. Better not to think too much. That was my secret to protecting my mental health.

Thank you, God, for granting me a Healthy Body. I felt truly glad to have this ability.

Morning. I opened my eyes.

When I was at home, I woke without any memory of when I had fallen asleep. Apparently, I drifted off without noticing.

I checked the time by the sun's height and knew it wasn't time to get out of bed yet.

Despite knowing that, I got up anyway.

Near the door were hot water and a towel prepared by one of the Oni Race maids. The water was still quite hot, so she had probably only just put it there.

Feeling grateful, I wiped myself down. Then I put on the clothes they had prepared and did some light exercises resembling radio calisthenics.

Before I knew it, it was time to get out of bed, and another day had begun.

"I'll do my best today too."

Side story: A day in the life of an Oni Race maid, morning

Early in the morning, I opened my eyes before sunrise.

This was an established habit. Was it a good thing that I woke at the same time no matter when I went to bed? At least I wouldn't get scolded for oversleeping, so I thought it probably was.

After washing my face and tidying myself up, I checked today's duty roster and notices.

The duty roster and notice system had been introduced when we joined this village, and it was very helpful to someone with a poor memory like me.

There were eight duty assignments: "House," "Cleaning," "Cooking," "Village," "Village chief," "Master Alfred," "Miss Tiselle," and "Rest."

Anyone assigned to "House" did everything in the village chief's home except cleaning and cooking.

Some called it all-purpose duty, and it was the most demanding assignment. It was especially busy when guests came. In addition, two people on this duty had to take charge of the nighttime patrols.

"Cleaning" duty in the village chief's home.

This involved thoroughly cleaning the entire house. Since it also included laundry, it was an unpopular assignment in winter.

"Cooking" duty in the village chief's home.

Someone had also suggested putting those who were good cooks in charge full-time, but that had not been implemented yet. I hoped no one would complain about my cooking when my turn came.

When assigned to "village" duty, we went somewhere other than the village chief's house and instructed people in cooking and cleaning.

High Elves and lizardmen learned as soon as we taught them, but dwarves were very unreceptive.

Or perhaps I should say that dwarves simply had no desire to learn these things. They kept their brewing areas perfectly clean, so it was not as though they were incapable. If my superiors allowed it, I really wanted to give the dwarves a beating.

"Village chief" duty involved looking after the village chief's daily needs.

This was the most enjoyable assignment, and also the most demanding. If we let our guard down even a little, the village chief would do everything himself, so we needed the skill to act one step ahead of him.

We had to work hard and take the initiative so that the village chief would not politely decline our help.

"Young Master Alfred" duty involved looking after Young Master Alfred.

This assignment carried a great deal of responsibility and was very important. However, it was quite popular because it offered a chance for Young Master Alfred to remember our names.

"Miss Tiselle" duty involved looking after Miss Tiselle.

This was another important assignment with a great deal of responsibility. Everyone had been reminded to check their physical condition first and, if they felt unwell, report it to their superiors and ask someone to take over.

"Rest" was simply rest.

This assignment had been added at the village chief's suggestion, but we could not stay calm when we had nothing to do. Being assigned to it was practically torture.

At present, anyone assigned to rest would take the initiative to secretly help the others.

Two people's names never appeared on the duty roster.

One was Lady Ann, the head maid who represented us, and the other was Ramurias, who was assigned full-time to caring for the Beastmen.

I was a little envious of Ramurias for being given a full-time assignment.

My assignment today was "village chief."

I had to stay sharp.

After all, I was the only one assigned to it. There should have been two of us, but the other person had been pulled away to make up the numbers for Young Master Alfred and Miss Tiselle.

There was no helping that. I would have done the same in Lady Ann's position.

Of course, that did not mean I took "village chief" duty lightly. Rather, my superiors expected me to do the work of two people.

Heh heh heh. Let me show them what I could do and live up to those expectations.

Though I was brimming with enthusiasm... there was one drawback to handling village chief duty alone.

The toilet. Since I could not take my eyes off the village chief, I had no time to use it. No, strictly speaking, I could only slip away when the village chief went himself.

Considering the worst-case scenario, I seriously examined whether I should wear a diaper.

My pride won out. I would not wear a diaper.

Instead, I prepared several bamboo tubes. Please do not speculate about how I would use them.

After checking my assignment, I checked the notices again.

Any urgent notices would be written there.

There did not seem to be anything important today.

Though I wanted to get straight to work, I could not be so impatient.

First, we had to gather in the entrance hall.

For the morning meeting.

Before Lady Ann, the head maid, appeared, we would stand in a neat row.

Lining up after she arrived was unacceptable. The important thing was to have our formation ready before she came.

Though it was demanding, the wait was not long.

Lady Ann soon arrived and greeted everyone quietly.

"Good morning, everyone."

We returned her greeting with a bow.

We could not make a sound at this point, since some people might still be sleeping.

When we of the Oni Race gathered and greeted one another enthusiastically, we were quite loud. In the past, every room had been completely soundproofed with magic, but an incident involving musical instruments being played at night had alarmed the village chief, and the soundproofing was no longer as thorough.

As a result, our voices would carry outside if they rose above a certain volume. On occasions like this, we had to remain as quiet as possible.

Listening silently to Lady Ann's announcements was the rule for morning meetings.

"Last night, an Alcohol Slime entered the food storehouse. Although we had set out cooking alcohol divided into small casks as bait beforehand, those on 'cooking' duty must check again for any other damage."

"Those on 'house' duty, I have told you several times that staying up late is forbidden. You must divide the night watch properly and get enough sleep beforehand. If you cannot manage that, we will have to make 'night watch' a separate assignment."

Apparently, someone on night duty had accidentally fallen asleep, allowing the Alcohol Slime to enter so easily.

Though I sympathized, those on night watch only needed to stay awake and had nothing else to do.

It would be going too far to say it did not count as work, but it certainly was boring work.

As a result, it was easy to find other things to do during the day and inadvertently miss the chance to get enough sleep beforehand.

Perhaps, as Lady Ann said, we would need a separate "night watch" assignment sooner or later.

"There are no problems with Young Master Alfred, but Miss Tiselle had a slight fever last night. Those assigned to Miss Tiselle today, please pay close attention."

At Lady Ann's words, a tense look flashed across the faces of those on "Miss Tiselle" duty today.

This was not apprehension at work that required greater care. Rather, they were inwardly delighted to have been given such a difficult assignment. I really envied them.

After finishing her announcements, Lady Ann bowed silently in turn. We responded with bows of our own, and the morning meeting ended.

I took up the designated position for "village chief" duty.

That was beside the door to the village chief's room. If I stood directly in front of it, the door would hit me when it opened. One past failure was enough.

Likewise, the five people on "cleaning" duty stood behind me on standby.

By paying close attention, I could sense that the village chief was already moving around inside. He approached the door, then opened it. Once I could clearly see his face, I bowed.

"Good morning."

Being the first to greet the village chief was a privilege of "village chief" duty.

"Morning."

The village chief greeted me, then greeted the people on "cleaning" duty behind me.

He really was a good master.

The village chief walked straight out of his room and began making his rounds of the house.

This was only natural for the head of the household, and I had to follow a few steps behind him. Meanwhile, those on "cleaning" duty entered his room and began cleaning.

We could not let our master see us cleaning. Keeping ourselves clean and beautiful at all times was a matter of course for a maid's dignity.

Therefore, cleaning his room also had to be finished before the village chief finished breakfast.

After all, he might return to his room after eating.

While cheering them on inwardly, I took care not to lose track of the village chief.

Another day in which I could not let my guard down for a moment had begun.

Side story: A day in the life of a member of the Oni Race-from morning to noon to night

The village chief made his rounds of the house, greeting people and hearing reports at each important location.

I was not trying to slack off, but I had no particular work to do until breakfast. Even so, I could not afford to be careless.

While the village chief inspected the house, I had to remember which areas drew more of his attention so I could report them to Lady Ann afterward.

Even if I did not understand why those areas concerned him, Lady Ann might know.

This was rather demanding for someone with a poor memory like me, but all I could do at times like this was try my best.

As soon as the village chief went to the dining room, breakfast was served.

This was the result of my passing on his location to the others through each important point along the way.

Satisfied, I entered the kitchen beside the dining room and hurriedly ate breakfast at the small kitchen table.

Since those on "cooking" duty served the village chief during meals, I had to take the opportunity to finish my own breakfast quickly.

If "village chief" duty had its full complement of two people, we could take turns looking after him and eating. I felt a little frustrated. Still, frustrated or not, I might collapse if I skipped breakfast, so I had to eat properly.

Yes, today's breakfast was delicious too.

After breakfast, the village chief went to inspect the fields.

I saw him off from the house, then hurried out to follow him. In the past, I could openly accompany him, but he said that made it impossible for him to relax, so now I could only follow him secretly.

Kuro and Yuki stayed closest to him, so his safety should not have been an issue, but I still wanted to be by his side.

Though I wanted to follow him secretly, judging the right distance at times like this was very difficult.

It was not a question of whether the village chief would notice me. Others had already claimed the available positions.

They included two or three of Kuro's descendants, as well as Zabuton's children... a great many of them. In addition, one of the High Elves would conceal herself near the village chief.

Everyone had the same goal: to guard the village chief.

These were our current numbers, but there had once been even more.

Our numbers had been limited following discussions at a secret pre-meeting meeting, resulting in the present arrangement. It was wonderful that Kuro and Zabuton were willing to help.

At any rate, we all shared the same love and respect for the village chief. We had to protect him properly without getting in one another's way.

One of Kuro's descendants gave us a signal.

Seeing it, one of Zabuton's children also pointed a leg in a certain direction beyond the village. That meant a large monster or beast seemed to be approaching from that direction.

As a precaution, I moved to the village chief's side.

"Village chief, how are the fields looking?"

This was so I could step in and protect him in an emergency.

Still, Kuro and the others or the High Elves would probably defeat the enemy before the village chief saw it.

Nevertheless, I would not be careless.

"A few pests have started appearing. Sorry for the trouble, but could you help?"

"Yes, please leave it to me."

I worked in the fields with the village chief until lunchtime.

The huge monster or beast approaching the village was a large pig called a Gatekeeper Boar.

This time, Kuro's son-in-law Uno defeated it.

I ate lunch with the village chief.

Normally, a maid should avoid eating with her master, but refusing the village chief's invitation was something to avoid even more.

Since he had invited me, there was nothing I could do.

No, I was not treating this as a privilege of "village chief" duty. As proof, I was properly carrying out my duties.

"Regarding the southwestern side of the village, some people would like the forest cleared back a little farther, since it is so close to the residential area."

Even with my poor memory, I would not get the details of an important conversation wrong.

I had heard from those on "village" duty that many insects flew in because the forest was so close to the southwestern side.

Zabuton's children ate the insects that flew in, so they caused no harm, but the sheer number of insects piled up in the webs had frightened the Beastmen children to tears.

I had seen it once, and it really could leave a person traumatized.

Yes, I also hoped this could be resolved quickly. Though it was rather strange that we could accept Zabuton and her children yet be afraid of other insects...

Lunch was also delicious.

After lunch, it seemed the village chief intended to do combat training today.

When he made things, sometimes I could help and sometimes I could do nothing, so I was truly grateful that it was combat training today.

As a member of the Oni Race, I was quite capable in combat.

My weapon was a sword and my armor a shield, making me a fairly standard swordsman.

Come, village chief, train with me!

Though that was what I thought, many people got in the way.

Combat training was one of the few opportunities to have contact with the village chief, so it was very popular.

As maids, we already got to accompany him frequently, so Lady Ann had ordered us to yield a little at times like this.

This was a way to get along smoothly in the village. Though I understood that approach to life, I was still bitterly disappointed.

Waaah, I wanted to have a mock battle with the village chief too.

There was no helping it, so I chose one of the Civil Servant Girls as my opponent. She seemed rather unwilling too, but that must have been my imagination. My imagination.

Come on, let's begin.

"I look forward to training with you."

"How am I supposed to win against someone from the Oni Race? Noooo!"

From my perspective, she had tried very hard.

The village chief returned home when the sun began to set. The day had been neither particularly long nor particularly short.

No, no, no. The main event was still ahead.

Dinner.

As at breakfast, I ate at the small kitchen table.

"Pffft!"

An intensely strange flavor assaulted my mouth. I deserved praise just for not spitting the stuff out.

"What in the world is this?"

"A newly developed dish... though it didn't go very well."

"This is simply a failure, isn't it?"

"As long as I don't admit it, it isn't a failure."

"Oh-ho, then you wouldn't mind eating nothing but this yourself, would you?"

"I already filled up while taste-testing."

Damn it.

I had been far too careless not to find out that today's cooking staff were this bad at cooking.

Was it a coincidence that breakfast and lunch had been fine? Or had they been fine because Lady Ann had been keeping an eye on things in the morning and at noon?

"Everything other than that dish is the same as usual, so don't worry."

"If possible, I'd like every dish to be the same as usual."

Was the village chief all right eating in the dining room? With his personality, he would most likely force himself to eat it.

I couldn't manage it myself. Aside from that failed dish, I enjoyed everything.

After dinner came a leisurely stretch of time.

The village chief was enjoying some family time with young master Alfred and Miss Tiselle.

What a lovely sight. If only my child were among them... My imagination started running away with me, and I quickly shook the thought off.

I was still working. I absolutely couldn't let my guard down.

I left the village chief in the care of the maid on "house" duty and went to prepare his bathing supplies. Mine as well.

My enthusiasm was practically overflowing, but I could still hold it in for now. It wasn't time yet. Heh heh heh.

Once the village chief finished spending time with his family, he would go take a bath, so I needed to hand him his bathing supplies right away.

Normally, a maid should carry them for him, but the village chief said he could carry that much himself and wouldn't hand them over. Well, that much was within acceptable limits.

I followed behind the village chief as we headed to the bath.

Not the women's bath I normally used, but the one exclusively for the village chief.

I was going to scrub his back. This was another privilege of "village chief" duty. Though there were many competitors in the bath, everyone left this job to the maid on duty.

Naturally, I gladly accepted, scrubbing the village chief's back and rinsing it off.

He wouldn't let us wash his front, though.

In the past, the village chief wouldn't even let us wash his back. Only after all the Oni Race maids pleaded with him did we achieve our current results. It was truly gratifying to see our daily efforts rewarded like this. None of our work had been in vain.

The village chief's back was ordinary. Just an ordinary man's body.

Compared with the men of the Oni Race, calling him scrawny wouldn't be an exaggeration.

Yet his slender back bore great responsibilities. I wanted to lend him a hand, too.

Once we came out of the bath, the tension would rise all at once.

Word that the village chief had left the bath would spread in an instant.

A meeting kept secret from the village chief had already decided the order, but of course, there were people who lost control and barged in. Lately, we had needed to be particularly wary of the Beastmen girls.

With an impenetrable defense, I would escort the village chief safely back to his room. That was my mission, and the purpose of "village chief" duty.

And with that, my work for today would be over. Once the village chief returned to his room, I would be free to do as I pleased. Heh heh heh.

The walk from the bath to the village chief's house felt so long.

The next morning.

As always, I woke before sunrise.

I quickly washed up and made myself presentable.

After preparing hot water and a towel and offering a one-sided greeting to the still-sleeping village chief, I headed to the place where notices were posted.

I knew today's assignment without even looking at the duty roster.

After "village chief" duty, the next day's assignment was always "rest." Still, I checked.

After checking the notices, I waited for the morning meeting to begin.

I could rest all day today. Put another way, it was a day when I could do anything I wanted.

That meant nobody would object if I insisted on working. Though I hadn't decided what to help with yet, helping clean the village chief's room seemed like a good place to start.

It would be embarrassing if I'd left anything there.

I would do my best all day today, too.

Side story: Mea's attempt at seduction

My name was Schtelto, and I was a Mountain Elf.

I was also the right-hand woman of Lady Mea, our clan's leader.

Originally, I had been slated to become the next clan leader, but I declined because my personality was better suited to supporting a leader than being one.

In the end, I had pushed the job onto Lady Mea, but fortunately, the results had been fairly good.

I had grown up with Lady Mea from a very young age, and there had been a time when we played together as friends.

In terms of age, I seemed to be a little older than her... But there was no need to dwell on such a small detail.

Mountain Elves were a long-lived race. A difference of ten or twenty years was a minor discrepancy.

After various events, our clan had become part of Big Tree Village.

That probably counted as an incredible stroke of luck.

Delicious food, fine drink, warm beds, and fulfilling work. We led rewarding lives in the village. This might even have been the first time our clan had enjoyed such abundance.

I was grateful to the village chief for taking us in.

For the village chief and the village, I would do anything. If ordered to cut down our enemies, I would lead the charge. If ordered to stand guard without sleeping, I could last about ten days. If ordered to share his bed at night, I was prepared to offer my body, however embarrassing it might be. Yes, the village chief didn't seem like a bad person, and forging a closer bond with him was important for our clan's future.

However, this village didn't seem to have any hostile forces to contend with, and the Infernal Wolves, who were stronger than us, already handled guard duty.

In our position, it seemed the only ways to repay the village chief's kindness were to work hard or share his bed at night...

There were no problems with work.

Fortunately, our race was naturally dexterous, so we should have been able to contribute to Big Tree Village.

The problem was sharing his bed at night.

It would have been ideal if the village chief asked us himself, but unfortunately, he was surrounded by so many women that he surely had little opportunity to ask us.

Even so, as a lady, asking for such a thing myself felt rather odd.

Ah, no, I wasn't criticizing the other races. Big Tree Village revolved around the village chief. I could understand why everyone wanted a closer relationship with him.

That was why I needed to try harder, too. Simply waiting around would accomplish nothing.

I would work to catch the village chief's eye and get him to ask me himself. That was my plan.

Even with this plan, though, I couldn't go ahead of Lady Mea, our clan leader.

Throwing the clan's order into disarray was absolutely unacceptable. But even so...

I held my head as I agonized over it, looking toward Lady Mea.

At that moment, Lady Mea was lifting a large rock.

What on earth was she doing? Though I didn't want to know, I decided to ask anyway.

"Lady Mea, what are you doing?"

"Training my body."

"...According to our last clan meeting, you were supposed to be working toward getting the village chief to ask you himself."

"That's exactly why I'm training my body like this."

I took a deep breath. I wanted to shout at her, so I had to calm myself down first.

"At any rate, Lady Mea, please put that rock down first."

"...Hm? All right."

"Thank you very much. Now, let me ask again. What were you doing just now?"

"Huh? Didn't I say I was training my body?"

"Why?"

"To build muscle, of course."

Lady Mea had been dim since childhood... Sorry, I meant she wasn't much of a thinker... My apologies. In short, she was an idiot.

But I hadn't expected her to be this stupid.

"Why do you need to build muscle to get the village chief to ask you himself?"

"That's a strange question. You charm men with muscles. That's been common wisdom for ages, hasn't it?"

Ah, so that was it. I'd heard that as a child too, so I couldn't deny it, but...

"Lady Mea, respecting tradition is important, but please face reality."

"Reality?"

"Yes, reality. Muscles are certainly important, but they're for keeping a man once you've secured him, preventing other women from approaching, and forcing a man who resists."

"Exactly."

"Unfortunately, you haven't secured a man yet. Building muscle at this stage will have the opposite effect."

"You fool. Of course you need muscles to secure a man."

"That's securing him physically! Using violence in this village will only make more enemies! Besides, do you intend to repay the village chief's kindness with ingratitude?"

Ah, oh dear. I'd shouted at her. Calm down. I had to stay calm.

"Lady Mea, I understand. As they say, seeing is believing."

Lady Mea and I went to wait in front of the village chief's mansion.

The village chief should be passing by shortly.

I carefully gathered all sorts of information about the village chief. Of course, it wasn't intended for occasions like this, but there was no helping it now.

After a while, the village chief appeared.

Lady Mea and I bowed our heads slightly in greeting. We should have prostrated ourselves, but life here had taught me not to do that.

Now then, Lady Mea, go ahead.

"Watch me."

When the village chief came closer, Lady Mea picked up a huge rock and thrust it overhead.

"Lady Mea, do you understand now?"

"Mm."

Lady Mea hugged her knees, looking dejected.

I felt sorry for her, but it couldn't be helped.

Seeing Lady Mea hoist the rock overhead, the village chief let out a small shriek. Given the distance between them, it was clear that he hadn't cried out for fear of being attacked, but plainly because of Lady Mea's brute strength. He hadn't sensed any feminine charm from her at all.

Yes, this outcome had been perfectly obvious.

Some of the other women around the village chief were stronger than Lady Mea, but none of them deliberately showed off that particular strength.

On the contrary, they acted weak... Making themselves seem delicate and vulnerable. That was probably the village chief's preferred type.

Before taking down your prey, you first had to observe it. That was the most basic of basics.

Yet despite knowing that, she clung to tradition and kept building muscle...

"I'm truly sorry, Schtelto."

"There's no need to apologize. Please keep trying from now on. If the village chief never asks you, those of us behind you won't dare make a move either."

"I understand. Um, about that..."

"What is it?"

"What should I do besides train my body?"

The road ahead would probably be a long one.

"For starters, show more skin. As for your breasts... Let's not expect too much. Focus on your lower body instead, and shorten your skirt. Also, you need to study. I think the village chief would prefer a woman with brains over brute strength."

"Didn't we agree not to mention my breasts!"

"Complain about that after you've had a child with the village chief! No more building muscle. Just keep your figure as it is. If you get careless, you'll end up with a spare tire around your waist."

We were a long-lived race, but I hoped we could somehow get the village chief interested in us before our lifespans ran out.