The Day of Corruption was tomorrow. I didn’t do any mining today, instead going to meet with Kan and Lan in their workshop. This village’s survival depended entirely on the weapons and tools they crafted. I offered them support and shared some ideas. Currently, they were working on making new arrows—hundreds of them. The new elven villagers were archers, just like Murus, so you could never have too many.
The village men were repairing and reinforcing the log fence, running busily around town. They’d finished the fence two days ago, but they were checking every last log for weak points, quickly switching out any parts that seemed faulty.
The women and children were working to prepare as much food as they could in advance of tomorrow. Lyra and Chem were in charge of the cooking.
The village’s defenses were stronger than ever, and some of the new villagers were fighters, rendering our offensive forces much more powerful. Most of all, I was grateful for the elves. As proficient archers, they could climb the watchtowers and snipe enemies from afar. We’d have a leg up right off the bat.
Dordold sold us weapons and armor at a good price—we didn’t lack anything. We had eight close-range fighters including Gams, Kan, and Lan. Six elves took care of long-distance attacks including Murus. That was three times as many offensive hands as before. I’d also saved up my FP for miracles or summoning the golem. I’d barely used any of it since the start of the year, so I had plenty in reserve without spending any new money. But I still asked Sewatari-san to convert my earnings at Isekai Connection to points.
The evening came on, and Gams and his patrol returned. I was in charge of dinner for today, aware that this might be my last chance to eat with everyone. I cooked using Chinese spices I brought from the other world in a red can and a Japanese-style broth. A multinational dish.
Everyone finished their plates with relish.
Looks like Mom taught me well.
After dinner I went to relax in the baths, Destiny coming along with me like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Finally, everyone gathered in the center of town.
“The Day of Corruption starts at midnight! Let’s get through it together!” Rodice declared, earning him a cheer from the crowd.
The village had no formal chief, but Rodice appeared to fill that role naturally. I’d declare him the formal leader in a prophecy at some point.
“I won’t talk for long because everyone needs rest. Yoshio? Have you any words for us?”
I straightened my back. I thought he might ask me to say something; I already had my speech prepared.
“There is just one thing I want to say. Let us get through this together. Know that the Lord is watching over you always. May He bless this village and its people!” I tried to keep my tone bright. Not much, but it was the best I could do.
The villagers gave thanks to the God of Fate with tear-choked voices. I touched each of their heads as they bowed in fervent prayer, speaking their names in turn. When I was finished, I smiled and told them to raise their heads.
The moment I was back in the tent, I dropped to my knees and slammed my head into my blanket.
That was sooooo cringey! Did I really do that?! Me? GAAAAARGH! I know I’m trying to get into my role, but that was way too much! AAAARGH!
I floundered around in my blanket, unable to take the embarrassment.
Look, I did my best, okay?!
Maybe I should count it as impressive that I could manage to do something so cringeworthy just to encourage my villagers. I probably couldn’t have done it if this weren’t my last evening with them. After some more squirming and reassuring myself, I finally calmed down.
“I did everything I needed to. Now I just gotta wait until tomorrow…which is less than three hours from now, according to my phone.”
I lay down and pulled the covers over myself, but I was way too alert to sleep. I sat back up again, casting my gaze around the tent. This was my last night here. I’d only slept here for about a month, but it was still strange to know this was it. I looked at the wooden pole in the center and the rough-hewn wooden cabinet propping up my bag.
Since I’d arrived, I’d worn the same clothes as the villagers. My clothes from Hokkaido remained folded up in my bag. I’d only kept my coat—my villagers seemed to use it to pick me out of a crowd. Besides, it was cold outside.
Destiny was curled up in a basket beside my bed, sleeping comfortably. Apart from that, the tent contained the wooden God of Fate statue, the fine one carved by Kan and Lan. The statue held two swords to wield whenever I activated the golem. Controlling it was a little fiddly on my phone—the D-pad and buttons appeared, and you had to use them spread out across the touchscreen. I’d practiced every night, though, so I wasn’t worried about messing up.
My villagers always went to bed early—I was the only one still up. I’d spent so much of my life without a proper routine, and I still found sleeping at night difficult. My body was tired, but my mind was wide awake.
If I was going to get through the Day of Corruption with my villagers, I had to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. Realistically, this might be my only chance to ever speak to my family again.
“I thought I was totally prepared for this…”
It was the eleventh hour, but I felt frozen. Sitting there doing nothing wouldn’t solve anything, though. I reached for my phone, which suddenly flickered to life and started playing my mom’s ringtone.
“Hello? You’re not causing those villagers any trouble now?” Mom asked. Wow, more concerned for strangers than for me. Classic.
“I’m not! I’m helping them out! How are you guys doing?”
“Fine, though Dad and Sayuki miss you.”
“No, we don’t! Quit lying to him!” I heard Sayuki yell through the phone. She must’ve been right next to Mom.