That was three years ago.
An impossibly long three years had passed since that miraculous day.
“Captain Heinrich, you have a visitor.”
Recognized for having saved the Duchy from certain doom, Heinrich was been entrusted an entire squad of knights. It was one of these men that alerted him to a visitor.
“Oh? Who is it?” Heinrich tilted his head in response, having long since grown into his position as captain with dignity and awareness. This fortress was fairly distant from the hustle and bustle of the city. He couldn’t think of anyone who would come out here uninvited.
“Yes, well, they’re alone. They requested a meeting with you by name. They called themselves Tatsugorou,” Heinrich’s underling informed him.
“What?! Did you say Tatsugorou?! The real one?!” Heinrich raised his voice in shock. Tatsugorou was known on the Eastern Continent as a famous swordsman who had crossed over from the Western Continent. There was not a single swordsman or mercenary who did not know his name.
“Yes. Unfortunately, I was unable to confirm his identity, but he does look exactly as the old bardic songs described…” The soldier, still a bit unsure, began to describe the man to his captain.
The person in question was a large, older gentleman wearing a kimono made of magic silver, woven by elves. Everything about the description seemed accurate, but the biggest piece of evidence was that he came out to this fortress by himself. Normally, anyone looking to make the trip would have to be accompanied by bodyguards of some kind to defend against the host of monsters populating the area. He was clearly no ordinary man.
“Understood. Bring him in, but take care not to be rude.”
Upon hearing the description, Heinrich decided to meet the man. He gave his orders to the soldier, and the two men finally met.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir Seeleman. My name is Tatsugorou.”
The man calling himself Tatsugorou respectfully lowered his head to Heinrich. He wore foreign garb and held a samurai sword, with a second blade tucked away at his waist. Heinrich found himself dumbstruck by the powerful aura the man exuded. He was almost like a lion marking his territory. There was no doubt about it: this was the real Tatsugorou.
“No, no, the pleasure is all mine, Sir Tatsugorou! I am Heinrich Seeleman, a knight of the Duchy. I’ve heard much word of your exploits!” he greeted Tatsugorou, making sure to offer him the utmost respect as a warrior. The foreign swordsman before him was known far and wide as an adventurer who could cut down any monster in exchange for money. He had even taken down beasts said to have been undefeatable by human hands. To Heinrich, who had spent years training as a knight, Tatsugorou was the swordsman he aspired to be. Even as a child, he heard the many tales the bards would tell of the samurai.
Heinrich finally regained his senses. He was incredibly honored that the legendary swordsman came to see him, but he didn’t understand why. He cleared his throat before asking Tatsugorou, “But what brings you to our little fortress in the middle of nowhere?”
Tatsugorou nodded in response. “Actually, an acquaintance of mine asked me to deliver something you forgot.”
He reached for his waist, drawing out one of the swords and handing it to Heinrich. It wasn’t the type of one-handed samurai sword that he used in battle but one much more ornamental in nature.
“That’s…?!” Heinrich’s eyes widened as he looked down at the blade. “How… where did you get this?”
This was the very same dwarf-forged sword that Heinrich had left behind at the restaurant years ago. It was the sword that he had carried with pride for many years, he was sure of it.
Why did Tatsugorou have the sword that went missing three years ago?
“Like I said, an acquaintance of mine asked me to return it to you. Since it didn’t seem like you’d ever come back, he felt you might be wanting without it.” Tatsugorou grinned. Heinrich was just as the master had described him: the stubborn type of youngster who didn’t listen.
“An acquaintance, you say? Wait, could it be…?” It took but a moment for Heinrich to realize the meaning of Tatsugorou’s words.
“It is likely exactly what you think. If I remember correctly, there should be a ‘door’ somewhere near this fortress.” After responding to Heinrich, Tatsugorou recalled some info he stumbled across during his many years of travel and smirked. “What do you say? Care to join me for some fried shrimp tomorrow, on the Day of Satur?”
Fried shrimp. Heinrich raised his voice after being rendered momentarily speechless by his words.
“I can eat fried shrimp again?” The memories of his meal from three years ago all came flooding back, and he gulped.
“Of course. Once every seven days, on the Day of Satur,” Tatsugorou replied and smiled.
On that day, the Restaurant to Another World gained a brand new regular.