Kays Translations

Chapter 24: Ears and Tails

Day 30 of living in a different world

Yesterday, the open-air bathhouse was completed. Environmental improvements were also progressing, but one step at a time. Since my transfer until today, there have been many things that would have been unthinkable in Japan, but I have managed to survive .......

Drinking water, food production, and sanitation issues such as toilets and baths have been managed for the time being. If we wanted, we would have done something about clothes and bedding - but we do not.

The threads that the giant spiders drop are similar to Japanese cotton threads and are strong, but ...... we don't have the tools and technology to process them. Natsuki tried to take on the challenge before, but she didn't know how to process it in the first place. She said regretfully, "At least if I had special tools ......."

(Well, even just being alive is a blessing )

I was tending to the camellia and the fields, thinking about that now.

“Keisuke-san, the rice harvest is going to be ready in three days.”

“I can't wait to be able to eat rice again.”

“ --By the way, what do you do about threshing and milling the rice?”

“I have made two wooden Senba koki (Japanese old threshing machine), but I don't know about threshing and milling rice. ...... For the time being, we will have to use a pestle and mortar.”

Touya told me about the structure of the rice-polishing machine, but I couldn't help him because it was not powered by a power source. There is no point in begging for something that doesn't exist.

"If only I had wind magic at a time like this...".

“Let's give it a try anyway. Maybe we'll come up with a good idea later."

“I'll ask Natsuki to make the pestle and mortar. Can I leave this to you?”

“Yes, go ahead.”

When we got close to the wood storage area, we found Natsuki working silently.

There are many weapons lying around her. At first glance, they looked like wooden spears or wooden shields.

“Hey, Natsuki,......, do you need to make so many?”

“Village chief, it’s too late to panic after something happens.”

After being told that by Natsuki, i regret it.

"That's right, I was shallow. Natsuki's opinion is correct."

“Well, I want to increase my skill level!”
Natsuki answered while laughing. She was jokingly murky, but I guess she thought about her actions. Involuntarily i was impressed.

"Well, the rice harvest is scheduled for three days from now, and I need you to make a couple of sets of pestle and mortar wheels for me.”

“What size and shape?"

I ordered from Natsuki a slightly larger size than I remembered from Japan, thinking that I would be able to use it since my arm strength had improved.

“Then, can I use the thickest one over there?”

"Yes, you are free to use your own judgment. I'm counting on you.”

“Thank you.”

◇◇◇

Around noon that day, Touya and Sakura returned after completing their search. --But it was different than usual. They were running at full speed with a little flustered feeling.

"Village chief! We found a group of people who seem to be locals!”

It had been a month since I came to the other world. For the first time that day, the presence of locals became apparent. I calm the two excited people down and let them explain the situation slowly.

“No need to panic, just report back to me with as much detail as you can.”

“Whew, everything is fine now. There were approximately 15 locals. Most of them were adults, and I think there were three small children. We were about two hours west of the village. We were walking slowly, so the distance was not that far. They are slowly heading in the direction of the village."

It seemed that quite a large group of people were quite close to here. Moreover--

“And the locals were beastmen!”

“They had rabbit-like ears and tails!"

She started to get excited again. I understand how you feel, but I need you to calm down a little more right now.

"Okay, so were they hostile? Tell me what they were armed and dressed like.”

“I don't know if they were hostile because we didn't make contact with them. Some of them were armed with spears or bows or something. But ...... they all looked exhausted and didn't look like they were on a raid.”

“I see. Good work, you two. First, you need to rest and have a meal. The village is warded, so we will be fine if they come here.”

During lunch, everyone was talking about the beastmen. I'm not quite in the mood to do so because I'm worried about hostilities, but ....... We eventually finished lunch, and I explained to them what we were going to do.

“I'm going to tell you what I think about how to handle this, and I want you all to give me your opinions. Please feel free to speak up, even if you disagree with me.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“First of all, if the locals attack us, we will do our utmost to eliminate them. We will be thorough. If they don't, and they ask for shelter, or if they are friendly, we will ...... ask them to become villagers or invite them to join us."

“What if they refuse?"

“Can they understand your language in the first place?"

“If they refuse, as long as they are not hostile, we leave it at that. The same is true if they don't understand our language.”

If they don't antagonize us and just go away, that's fine. There is no need to go after them too hard, and it is best to stay out of their way.

“What if one of the fifteen cannot become a villager?”

“I will respect the wishes of those who are able to become villagers and accept only those who remain.”

“If that is the case, I am in favor of accepting them. What this village needs the most is manpower.”

The other three nodded in agreement with Natsuki's words.

"It's not good to make the other party wary. I'll ask you to work as usual in the village."

"Okay. Is there anything else we should be careful about?"

"That's right. Weapons are not allowed, and I want the women to be in a place where they can be easily seen by the other party."

"Ah, I see.”

"yes"

In this way, each of them got to work while waiting for the locals.

◇ ◇◇◇◇

Two hours had passed since the first report. But there is still no sign of any group that looks like that. It's about time there was some kind of action. ......

“Keisuke-san, they haven't come yet.”

“I guess we'll just have to wait and see.”

Right now, Sakura and I are killing time chopping firewood in front of our house. Tsubaki does farm work, and Touya and Natsuki dry the harvested rice.

“The beastmen were quite tired, but what do you think ...... happened?"

"I think it's highly likely that we were attacked by monsters or transferees. Isn't that the same for Sakura?"

“Some of the transferees are absolutely stupid.”

“Yeah, I'd like to accept them all somehow.”

“Yes, it is possible, as long as they speak the language.”

We would be able to increase our strength and human resources, and we would also be able to obtain information about this world. I was very eager to make them villagers.

“The problem would be if the cause of their displacement is a transferee. If they find out that we are also transferees, they will be very wary of us.”

“No, no, we don't want to be treated like those people! There is no one in this village who would do such a terrible thing!”

"Well, let's hope they are not bad people.”

After another 30 minutes of this exchange, I heard a rustling sound.

Three locals appeared from the forest to the west.

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