Afterword
AND that’s the end of volume four! Hello, I’m the author, Fuurou. It’s been a while since we’ve last met.
Before all else, I would like to voice my thanks. Volume four wouldn’t have been possible without the support of all my readers and everyone in the editing team. Thank you so very, very much! I shall work hard so that I can continue to deliver a good story to everyone.
Finally, we’ve made it to Mikura and Tokatechi’s wedding. Usually, in a story where romance is the main theme, this might be our goal and our last volume. But this series has a bigger focus on the slow life, so we’ll keep going for just a tad. Marriage isn’t the goal, but the starting line. We will continue taking a peek into the lives of this couple who feel as if they haven’t changed much, but have definitely gotten closer and closer as time goes by.
Onto the topic of preserves. Finally, plums have made an appearance, even if it was brief. Plums and plum products are said to be health tonics and, apparently, also keep your food from spoiling as quickly, so they have been adored by many since ancient times. There are many varieties of plums, and they have a long history, resulting in an astounding number of ways to process and season them. It’s incredible.
Plums are so popular, in fact, that in Japan, we have a term called “plum work.” Whenever plum season comes around, plum lovers would run about to purchase the best ones and process them immediately. They will work to make an entire year’s worth of plum products and preserves.
Japan’s extreme humidity and heat during summer are the natural enemies of food. Everything goes bad in the blink of an eye. Plums must have seemed like a savior to many, because as long as you treat them properly, they last a very long time.
Not to mention that plums are incredibly versatile. As umeboshi, they’re good with rice. As plum jam, they’re great with bread. I hope I delivered some of the charms of plums and Japanese plum culture to my readers through this story.
And of course, we’re only getting started with plum work. Mikura and his hungry assistants will diligently make all kinds of products with plums. You can definitely look forward to that.
That’s all from me. I hope to see you again in volume five!
Fuurou
Early Summer, 2023