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Vol 01 Chapter 13: New Year

「Hey, Almus. I can’t come here on the night of the next full moon. I’ll be busy preparing for the New Year.」

「Ah! Right, the New Year. That was a thing.」

I completely forgot about it. 

After all, the only things that tell time here are the position of the sun, the temperature, and the growth of plants. Right, of course, there is a New Year.

But the fact that the New Year is in winter means this place is in the Northern Hemisphere.

That’s somewhat reassuring.

Wait, considering the cultural level, it’s debatable whether they have a calendar. Is it based on the solar or lunar cycle?

「Hey, what do you base your calendar on?」

「Umm, I think it’s based on the movement of the sun? I don’t know much about it myself. It’s something that came from a foreign country.」

I see, that makes sense. It would be strange for astronomy to be advanced at this cultural level.

A foreign country, huh… When they say “foreign countries” here, they’re probably referring to the countries across the sea, not just the surrounding regions. I remember something about the Kirisians being mentioned.

There’s a significant difference in development between regions. I should remember that.

「What do you do to celebrate the New Year?」

「Well… We fatten up a pig to slaughter and offer it to the gods, and then everyone eats it. Also, we do purifications and renew the barriers against curses. Though these things can be done anytime, it’s not necessary to do them on New Year’s, but the preparation is a hassle.」

I see… Julia being a magician must make it even harder for her.

So, pigs, huh. Unfortunately, we don’t have pigs. We have a cow, but it’s necessary to till the fields… Maybe we can substitute with deer. Then we all need to hunt for deer.

「By the way, there’s no shrine maiden in your village, right, Almus?」

「Hmm, I’m not sure. Since we’re all abandoned children, it’s unlikely there would be a shrine maiden among us. They wouldn’t be abandoned in the first place, so there’s probably none.」

I refrained from prying into the children’s pasts. So I don’t really know what skills they possess. The one I’m most curious about is Tetra, though… I wouldn’t put it past her to be capable of doing something shrine maiden-like. Just a hunch.

「Then it can’t be helped. Shall I come to your place and do the rituals myself?」

「You don’t have to force yourself if you’re busy, you know?」

I have a hunch that Julia belongs to a very high social status. She has been regularly providing us with salt, which indicates she’s quite wealthy. I have no idea why she’s here, though.

And she’s a magician. The New Year must be an incredibly busy time for her. In this world where magic exists, she might be busier than religious figures in Japan during the New Year. If it’s an act without particular significance, I don’t see the need to trouble her.

「No, I must. Even if you are okay with it, the other children will feel uneasy. Faith is like that, you know?」

Huh, is that so? I don’t quite understand.

「But still, for a shrine maiden, you seem quite detached.」

Shouldn’t shrine maidens and magicians, who delve into the supernatural, be more mystical or deeply devoted?

「Surprisingly, most magicians are like this. Of course, I have faith. I offer prayers of gratitude to the gods; without them, I can’t use barriers. I think I respect the gods more than ordinary people do. But I’m not blindly faithful, so to speak. The gods are not very accommodating. Whether they save you or not depends on their mood and what you offer them. So, inevitably, we become detached.」

Depends on their mood and what you offer them… Sounds like Griffon. Wait, isn’t that guy similar to a god?

「Why is Griffon so revered?」

「You should be more respectful. That being is one of the divine pillars, he is a divine beast. Well, it doesn’t particularly do anything for us, nor does it do anything against us… But it’s undeniably powerful. A long time ago, it fought and defeated a dragon who had the blessing of controlling storms and thunder. The aftermath of the battle blew away several forests, vanished mountains, and split seas, or so the legend says.」

「Sounds more like a monster than a god.」

That’s some serious environmental destruction, isn’t it?

In my imagination, I expected God to say something like 「You must cherish nature more. Humans who destroy nature need to face divine punishment. Great Flood!!」

Or that’s what I thought, but if you think about it, a being who treats humans with so much indifference wouldn’t care about grass or trees. Well, I don’t know if Griffon is a god or not, though.

「Ah, but is it okay if it’s a week later?」

「That’s fine. You are doing us a great favor.」

This way, I can introduce Julia to everyone, too.

「By the way, could you come to my village from now on instead? I’ll escort you both ways. I want you to teach the kids magic.」

「Hmm, magic, huh… I’d like something in return…」

「How about I teach you arithmetic?」

「I’m fairly good at it, you know?」

「Then what’s 1555 + 20000?」

「Uh… such a large number is…」

「The answer is 21555. You are very green. Tetra, a girl I’m teaching, can already do division.」

「Gununu… fine. Deal.」

Seems like she agreed.

By the way, the only one exceptionally good at arithmetic is Tetra; the other children, however, are not as skilled. I managed to trick her nicely.

◇

「Hello, everyone~. I’m Julia, and I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Almus-kun for some time now.」

Julia greets the children brightly.

Today, Julia is dressed differently than usual. Her outfit is pure white with some purple embroidery here and there. It somewhat resembles a Japanese shrine maiden’s attire. In this world, dyes are very expensive, indicating her clothes are quite luxurious.

「Can I ask something?」

「Sure! Uh… Ron-kun, was it?」

Ron stood up and asked Julia.

「What is your relationship with Leader?」

「We’re lovers!!」

While saying that, Julia clung to my arm.

Hey, what are you saying!!

「Really?!」

「Wow!」

「I’m jealous… with such a beautiful person!」

「How can I… compete with someone so beautiful…」

「Damn, I’m envious…」

The children started buzzing with excitement.

「…Hey, Almus… Is that story true?」

Wow, scary! Tetra, stop with the dark aura!

「It’s just Julia’s joke. Hey, don’t say weird things!」

「Ahahaha. I just wanted to tease you a bit. But I wouldn’t mind being in that kind of relationship with you, you know?」

Julia winked at me and then let go. Tetra glared at me and stomped on my foot.

「That hurts… don’t be so angry.」

「Hmph!」

Tetra turned away.

「Let’s get back on track and perform the ceremony. Ideally, we’d use a pig… but you don’t have one, right?」

「We’ve prepared a deer instead. We already drained the blood, though.」

「Hmm, ideally it should be alive… but, well, it’s fine. So, Almus, repeat the words I’m about to say and then behead it with a sword.」

Understood.

I brandished the iron sword.

「Here we go. To the numerous gods and spirits of the heavens, earth, and sea, we offer this sacrifice with gratitude for allowing us to live throughout this year. We hope you will continue to watch over us…」

After repeating Julia’s words, I beheaded the deer with my sword. As its blood was already drained, not much blood came out.

「Now that concludes the offering ritual. We’ll move on to the purification ceremony next!」

「What should we do?」

「Let’s start by washing ourselves. We’ve just been tainted by the impurity of death.」

I see. Indeed, performing a ritual right after killing an animal is considered inauspicious.

「Then the girls should go first.」

「Almus. No peeking.」

「I don’t mind if you do.」

「I won’t peek at you. What’s so great about looking at a ten year’s old body?」

I don’t have strange fetishes. Wait, now that I think about it, it is not really weird to be excited by the body of a girl your own age, right?

◇

「Let’s start the purification ceremony right away.」

「Please hurry. It’s too cold.」

Bathing in the river in the middle of winter is not good for the health. According to Julia, hot water can’t be used for purification. It’s unreasonable.

「So, let’s begin.」

Julia raised her hands.

As she muttered, her hands started to glow with a pale blue light. Soon, I began to feel warmer.

「What is this?」

「It’s a type of healing magic that increases body temperature. It’s only temporary.」

So such a spell existed. But it seems a bit plain, just raising body temperature. Maybe there are more advanced techniques?

After she finished with me, Julia performed the same spell on everyone else. She showed no signs of fatigue, truly impressive.

「Now, let’s do the dance ritual.」

「What does that mean?」

「It’s to set up a barrier around the fields. Just a basic one, though.」

Julia said, standing in front of the field.

「Just watch quietly. It’ll be over soon.」

Julia began to dance, holding a fan and a bell-like object.

Ring, ring, ring.

The bell chimed.

To the sound of the bell, Julia danced.

Sometimes bold, sometimes delicate. Her beautiful fan and white shrine maiden outfit swayed with her movements.

The bell chimed melodiously with her movements, she started to sing.

Her voice was more beautiful than any bird or insect. It is like the serene surface of a clear lake.

Julia’s lavender hair swayed. I was naturally captivated by her.

Is it a charm spell? No, it’s just Julia’s beauty. Exceedingly beautiful. It feels like the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

Time passed, feeling eternal. When I realized it, Julia had finished dancing.

After a moment of silence, thunderous applause broke out.

「How about it? Have you seen me in a new light?」

Julia approached me closely.

How beautiful…

Looking at Julia’s face, that thought crossed my mind.

I’m the worst. Despite repeating that I’m not a lolicon, I now find myself sexually attracted to Julia.

「It was really beautiful. I’d like to see it again sometime.」

When I said that, Julia blushed.

「Th-That’s so direct…」

Both of us blushed and looked down.

Breaking the silence was Soyon.

「Hey, can you come again next time? I want to see your dance again!!」

「Me too, me too!」

Roswald joined in.

「Of course! I could even teach you. After all, Almus has asked me to teach you magic. And if you invite me, I’ll dance for you during the wheat harvest too. There’s another dance I can perform!」

People gathered around Julia.

It seems she was able to fit in. That’s good, that’s good.

「Julia.」

Tetra called out to Julia. The children swarming Julia made way for her.

「I’ll concede this time and let you win… But I won’t give in when it comes to arithmetic.」

「Hehe, okay. I’ll catch up to you soon and beat you.」

They glared at each other.

And then they burst into laughter. It was so sudden, that both the children and I were taken aback.

「Nice to meet you.」

「The pleasure is mine.」

The two shook hands.

…I don’t quite understand, but it seems a friendship has been formed.