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ONCE we polished off our plum pulp sauce yakisoba, we relaxed until the end of the lunch break, tuning in absentmindedly to the chorus of cicadas that had only just begun singing the past few days. We were sipping on our barley tea unhurriedly when I heard heavy stomping approaching from the garden.
I could tell who it was just by the sound of their feet. All of us other than Sayori, who didn’t know the owner of those footsteps, shared the same expression, as if to say, “Huh, he’s early.”
Soon, the carpenter Také came over with a large bundle of papers in his arms. The bearfolk took a seat on the veranda. I promptly offered him a cup and the infuser bottle with cold-brew barley tea, but he didn’t use the cup—he lifted the infuser bottle and directly poured the tea into his mouth. In the blink of an eye, the bottle with a 1.5 liter capacity became empty.
“Whew, thanks for the drink, buddy,” he said good-naturedly, vigorously putting down the bottle on the veranda. “It’s gotten boiling hot in no time… So before the summer sets in and steams us alive, here, I made sure to get your renovation plans sorted. Check it out.” He handed over the documents he was carrying in his arms.
I began looking over the documents with Techi, who’d rushed up behind me, as well as Kon and Sayori, who’d both run up onto my shoulders from my back.
As I read, Také added, “The work’s gonna take a week. I got all the materials, so I can get started as soon as tomorrow. You’ve got the quote there in those papers. Welp, it came down to a pretty decent price, if I say so myself. You have to stay somewhere else while we’re busy with your house. If you want a recommendation, I’spose the public-owned Central Hotel at the center of the forest’s your best bet.”
I inclined my head. “Huh, I never knew there were hotels around here.”
Techi had sat down next to me and was now looking in my direction. Her face was practically glowing with brimming anticipation and excitement. On top of that, Kon and Sayori, who’d sprinted down next to my legs, looked up at me with a similar expression.
Without a word, I looked at Také with the silent message, Details please.
He grinned. “You wanna know more about the Central Hotel? Sure. You go straight from here in the direction of the Fusang trees and pass through the tunnel at the roots of those trees. The hotel’s right on the other side. They built it to receive guests from other countries—ah, should I call it the mainland? Anyway, it’s for guests from the other side of the border and it was also built in preparation for when we’re open to tourists one day.”
Then, he shrugged. “But it was practically a haunted house ’cause it doesn’t have guests or tourists with how the Wilds are now, and it got to the point that it’d have to shut down altogether unless it was public-owned. And so, they decided to forget about being a normal hotel altogether and made all kinds of renovation and remodeling. Now, it’s kinda like a recuperation resort where us beastfolk in the Wilds drop by once in a while to indulge ourselves and rejuvenate.
“There’s plenty to see. A crazy big shopping corner. Hot springs of all kinds like medicinal hot spring, open-air hot spring, you name it. Saunas, pools… Body care services like massages… The top-class restaurants in the Wilds… And while you enjoy the hot springs, there are even a hospital and a rehab center nearby—that’s the recuperation part. You could spend an entire week or two, or even more in that place. Plus, if you’ve got a referral from people in the building trade when you’ve got to rebuild your house or something, you can even stay at a discount. Of course, your pal Také here has gone ahead and made the arrangements so that you can stay over during your renovations this time.”
He raised an eyebrow and grinned triumphantly at me. Then, he promptly pulled out a promotional flyer of the hotel and something that looked like a discount ticket from the bottom of the documents.
I looked over the flyer. What immediately entered my eyes was the photo of a vertically elongated building—roughly five or six stories high, the hotel was the picture of luxury and extravagance. “Whoa…” I muttered in wonder.
Perhaps my reaction spurred them on, because not only did Techi look at me expectantly, even Kon and Sayori gave me a pleading, hopeful gaze. I checked over the terms and conditions on the discount ticket, and after confirming that the two children were also eligible for the discount, I turned to Techi. She gave me a big, encouraging nod.
Having received her approval, I slowly spoke up. “Well… Personally, I think it’s perfectly fine for the two of you to join us, Kon, Sayori. But it would mean staying out for an entire week, so we’ll need to see whether your parents are okay with that before we make any plans. If your parents give you permission, I’ll contact the hotel just in case. Let’s head there together if everything works out. We’ll finalize the date for the renovations after we finish that—”
Before I could even finish my sentence, Kon and Sayori sprang into action. They whipped out their phones from their pockets and began calling their respective parents about the matter.
Their explanation was something like this: We want to stay in the Central Hotel with Mikura and Techi. It sounds like we can stay at a discount. It will be for a week while their house undergoes renovation. We’ll make sure to pay with our own savings.
The reaction they got from their parents on the other side of the calls were quite similar. They chuckled cheerfully before replying, “Yeah, go ahead, that’s a great idea. It’s your early honeymoon.” And contrary to my expectations, everything was settled in no time.
When they finished their call, Kon and Sayori gazed at me. They used their tiny fingers to tap on the part of the flyer with the hotel’s phone number. Relenting under their insistence, I promptly called the hotel.
After I explained my circumstances and asked whether that was all right, the hotel staff replied, “Ahhh, Mr. Moriya, yes? We have heard about your potential stay. Yes, we’d be delighted to have your little additional guests. In fact, we have so much vacancy that you can almost say we are hoping for more customers all the time, so please don’t hesitate to come here whenever you wish. We will be very happy to receive you even as soon as today.”
In my peripheral vision, I saw that the ears of my three companions were twitching attentively—they were probably listening in. Their expressions lit up brighter than the sun, and I raised the white flag of surrender in my heart.
I made up my mind and continued speaking to the hotel staff. “If that’s the case, let’s see… I would like to reserve two rooms for a total of four people—two adults and two children. The adults will stay in one room and the children will stay in the other. We will check in in three days’ time and stay for a week.
“…Yes, we have plans of going to the hot springs, as well as experiencing the other facilities available such as the pool, the saunas, and the body care services… Yes, I think we’ll keep ourselves busy around the hotel throughout the duration of our stay… I understand. …Ah, it would be great if we’re able to sightsee in the vicinity of the hotel while we are there. …I would prefer to pay with… Yes. All right, I got all that. It should be fine. Okay, that’s all from me. …Got it, we will check in at ten in the morning in three days. All right, thank you.”
The moment I ended the call, Techi balled her hands into fists and stood up in celebration. As for Kon and Sayori, they leaped up in joy, exclaiming, “Yay!” in unison. They successfully high-fived in midair.
Shaking my head with fondness, I looked over at Také. “Well, I think you heard all that, Mr. Také. Would it be all right if we start the renovations in three days?”
Grinning from ear to ear, Také gave me a smooth and charming thumbs-up.