Oridinary Forest (Part 2)

We decided to sit down and rest for a while, just like Nicola said. Though it was only thirty minutes to walk to the forest, it’s still tiring for the body of a child.

“Big brother! We can pick up a lot of fruits right?”

“It hasn’t gotten very hot yet, so I don’t think we’ll get much.”

“What the hell, tch!”

“Brother Nicola, we can get some fruits right?”

Mary was teary-eyed when she heard that there weren’t many fruits to pick, seeing this Nicola then said.

“But there are still some fruits that can be picked this time of year! Right Leon?”

You’re asking me..? Mary looked at me with tears in her eyes. Let’s see… According to Leon’s memories there are things that can be picked up this year… and they are… Raspberries!

It seems that this world has many plants and animals similar to Japan. Sure, some are different, but a majority of them are similar. I wonder why? 

“Mary, we can pick up raspberries this time of the year! Let’s pick them, shall we?”

“Really?! I love raspberries because they’re so sweet and good!”

“We can pick raspberries?! Wooh! I love raspberries!”

“Then, today we’re going to pick raspberries?”

“Mhm!”

Mary nodded with a big smile on her face, I’m glad that she’s feeling better.

I let out a sigh of relief and stared at Nicola. Nicola… You sacrificed me… As I stared at him intently, both our eyes met and he apologized with his eyes.

I think it’s a good idea to keep your eyes on the road, and not not on the road.

I feel like ever since I’ve gotten inside Leon’s body, I’ve been acting and thinking like a kid. Perhaps there’s a part of me that’s being influenced by Leon.

Well, I guess since he’s a kid he’s just pulling me along with his life.

“Well then, let’s find some raspberries then.”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

We went into the forest and split up to look for raspberries. But when I say we went into the forest, it’s more like we went to the outskirts. So that we can get out quickly. We didn’t want to get lost here.

There was a river flowing a little deeper into the forest, but we decided to go there once we’re older. 

“There’s a raspberry here!” Mary shouted, I walked over where she was and saw a lot of raspberries.

Nicola and Luke came running here, their eyes were sparkling. Nicola was grown up, but I thought he looked cute and childish right now.

“Then, we’ll pick some! Mary, I bought you a jute bag, so you can use this.”

“Mhm! Thanks big brother! I’m so happy!”

“Oh yeah, why don’t we do our best and pick lots more and give it to mom and dad.”

“Okay!”

Mary was picking the raspberries with her tiny little hands, I also helped her out and picked with her.

While Nicola and Luke were both picking on the other side from us.

That’s a lot of work to pick these out, but there doesn’t seem to be lots of sweets or sweet things in this world. The only thing I remember is eating the fruits from this forest which were really sweet and other stuff from here, so it’s pretty valuable. Let’s do our best.

Alright. The bag’s now full, is it enough?

“I think we can be done now. My bag’s already full.”

“Yep! Mine too!”

“Yeah, I got a lot of it as well.”

“I’ve got lots of raspberries!”

Everyone’s eyes were sparkling because of the amount of raspberries we had picked.

“Let’s take a break and eat some of them.”

“Yay! We’ll eat them now!”

“Then let’s all sit over there.”

“Mhm!”

We all sat down on a stone and decided to eat the raspberries. The color was dark and it looked pretty delicious, though I wonder how it’ll taste…

*Chuu* *Chew* *Chuu*

It’s so dang sour! It’s sweet for sure, but the sourness is so strong that I can barely taste the sweetness!

Can you guys eat it? I’m not sure what to think of this.

“Mary, is it not sour?”

“Why? Isn’t it super sweet and delicious!”

“Really? What about Nicola and Luke?”

“It’s sweet and tastes good.”

“They’re super good, raspberries are the best!”

They all look fine eating them. Why is that…? Strawberries are supposed to be even sweeter and fresher… 

I see. I guess it’s because I’ve eaten a lot more sweeter things in Japan, that eating here feels a lot more sour to me. If I were to be born with these raspberries, then I can see why I’d think that this is the sweetest thing. Since that’s the sweetest thing in this forest!

But that might be fine for everyone else, but I already know the sweet taste of deserts! I want to eat fruits, cakes, chocolates, and cookies and all of that! Just thinking of it makes me drool.

If I had sugar, I could make sweets, right?

I need to find sugar, this is an urgent matter!

As I was thinking of that, everyone finished their breaks and got up.

“Since we have time, let’s pick up some firewood and go home!”

“Yep! But I’ll pick up more!”

“Nope! I’ll get the most!”

“I’ll get the most!” “I’ll pick up a lot!”, talking like this the three of them started picking up firewood. We were only picking up branches that had fallen onto the floor but it was a lot of hard work and we also had to carry them home. 

The reason for why would be that we get pocket money from home.

Since we’re a diner we consume a lot of firewood, but of course that’s really expensive and so to save money we, the kids, pick up firewood from the forest.

It seems many other houses also follow this method to save money, and of course Nicola and Luke’s home is no different.

“Come on big brother! You have to pick up some too!”

“Sorry~ Sorry~ I’ll pick it up now.”

I started to pick up firewood too, but the basket got heavier and heavier and it was hard to carry on the back. But Mary and Luke were doing it without a sound. So there was no way I, an older man, could be weak here. I’ll have to work hard too. 

Kids in this world are so strong, with that in mind I continued to pick up firewood.

“It’s getting late, let’s get home.”

Nicola said, we all then started preparing to leave. Since there are no clocks, we have no idea of the exact time, so we have to use the sun to estimate the time.

“Alright, is everyone good?”

“Yep! I’m good!”

“I can still walk!”

“Yeah, I’m fine as well, let’s get home.”

And we started walking towards home, it took us longer than when we came here. 

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Author Note: I post this everyday after 8pm. I hope you enjoy reading it! If you find it interesting, please rate it and give me reviews and feedback!

Ordinary Forest (Part 1)

[This chapter was split into two, as this was a pretty big chapter in the RAWs. Expect the next part in a week or two. It takes me a while to translate. But the author pumps out a chapter a day. Haha D: ]

“Then, mom and dad will prepare the evening menu, so Leon and Mary can go play.”

“That’s right, but be careful.”

Once mom and dad said that, Mary suddenly got up from her chair and shouted as if she remembered something.

“I almost forgot! Brother, we promised Luke and Nicola to go to the forest with them today!”

“Really?”

“Really! Did you forget brother?”

“N-No, I remembered! Let’s get ready then!”

I replied to Mary impatiently, though it’s true that when I search for the memory, I can find the memory of the promise. But it’s really inconvenient since you try to remember yourself. But… well it’s better than nothing… I’m thankful.

Nicola and Luke are kids next door in the tool shop. We’re childhood friends and we play together a lot of times. And the fact that Nicola is the same age as me helps. And Luke is the same age as Mary. And that’s probably the reason why we get along so well.

“Are we going to the forest today? Don’t forget to bring the beast-repellant bell!”

“Mhm! I won’t forget it! I’m gonna get lots of fruits!”

Beast-repellant bell seems to be something you must bring when you go to the forest. It’s kind of like the bear-bell in japan.

[TN: If you guys didn’t know, hikers in japan wear what’s called a bear bell to repel bears away, but according to some people it’s ineffective, therefore hikers talk, yell, and clap to let the bear know of their presence.]

According to Leon’s memories there don’t seem to be any demons, as he has only ever seen small animals and bears, but all of them are pretty deep into the forest, and you don’t meet them in the shallow parts of the forest, and if he wears a bell, he never encounters them.

Isn’t it standard to have demons in a fantasy world? Was that just in stories…? But well, if there aren’t any, then that’s a good thing! Since I can’t fight them and it’s pretty scary you know?

“Well then Brother! Let’s get ready!”

And then Mary pulled my hand and then went to the storage room up the stairs on the second floor.

When going to the forest, it seems that she’ll change into leather boots, carry water in a leather bag and a knife, and puts on a backpack for the collected things in the forest.

I am right now wearing trousers made of the same material as a rugged t-shirt that is tied together with a string. And it seems I go to the forest with the same clothes.

I’m ready now, but I’m nervous about carrying a knife around on my waist. But it is another world… Where even kids have knives.

“Mary, ready to go?”

“Mhm! I’m ready to go!”

“Let’s go get water.”

We have to get drinking water from the well, so we have to go there to get it. It doesn’t have an automatic pump either, it works by pulling a rope on a pulley. So it’s hard to get water.

Alright! I dropped the tub into the well, and it filled itself with water, and then I pulled the ropeー Pull… Pull… Pull…! ーvery vigorously. And my hands hurt a lot now.

Fuuh~ I finally pulled it all the way up here. It’s not easy for an eight-year old to get water from a well.

I then put the water into my leather bag and we were ready to go.

“Well then, Mary let’s get going!”

“Okay!”

We opened the kitchen door and said goodbye to mom and dad and left home.

“ “ We’re off! ” ”

“Have fun! Be careful, okay?”

“Be back before dark.”

“ “ Okay! ” ”

I replied and ran out of our home to next door. But even though I say ‘ran’, it’s more like ‘walk’ since it’s literally next door.

The house next door was made in a similar way to our home, the dining room was also part of the tool shop.

They sell knives, leather bags, jute bags, and other tools for everyday use.

“Hello! Are Nicola and Luke there?”

“Ara~ Welcome Mary.”

“Hi aunty.”

“Leon’s already here, no~ Nicola and Luke will be here too, so just wait a little bit.”

She’s Nicola and Luke’s mom. We call her aunt, but she’s pretty young, about the same age as our mother. She’s a little plump and she’s kind. She’s sitting in her chair at the counter instead of the cash register and smiled at us.

“Isn’t uncle here today?”

“Oh~ Ben is out stocking up today. Sorry, okay? He’ll probably be back by the time you guys are back from the forest.”

“Mhm! I love uncle!”

“Fufu~ Ben would be overjoyed to hear that.”

Ben is Nicola and Luke’s father, he’s a very cheerful and energetic person. Mary likes uncle and often comes to visit him. And aunty’s name is Sarah.

“Leon! Mary! Wait for me!”

“Oh Nicola! We haven’t been waiting for long!”

Nicola opened the door and came towards the store. Nicola had green hair and eyes. Which was really strange for me as a japanese person. But it’s a normal color in this world. According to Leon’s memories, Luke has blue hair and eyes. That’s also a cool color. It seems that this world is colorful in both hair and eye color…

“Luke’ll be here soon.”

“Big Brother Nicola! Let’s get lots of fruit today!”

“Mhm Mary! Let’s get a lot!”

“Right!”

Nicola loves Mary as if she were his own sister. Even now he’s stroking her head gently. Mary’s face relaxed.

Nicola is a good guy who you can rely on.

“Sorry! Did I make you guys wait? I couldn’t get my shoes on!”

“It’s okay Luke, did you put your shoes on?”

“Yep! They’re perfect.”

Luke put his hands on his hip and pumped his chest forward and exclaimed with pride. Luke is a mischievous boy with blue eyes and hair, but he’s got a gentle side.

“Dang it Luke! You’re so late! If we don’t go soon, we won’t have time to get fruits!”

“Sorry! Sorry! I’ll help pick out more fruits for Mary.”

“Really?! Yay! Thanks!!”

At first Mary’s brows were wrinkled in anger, now she’s smiling because Luke said he’ll help her out get more fruits.

The only sweet things Leon could remember eating were fruits from the forest, so fruits must be a valuable sweet.

“Let’s go, then. You have a bell to keep the beasts away, right?

“Yep, I have it!”

Nicolas made a final check and we were off.

In Leon’s memory, the royal capital was not surrounded by walls, and after passing through the densely populated residential areas, fields and farms spread out, with only a few houses standing on their own.

As we continued along the road in front of the house, we began to see fields and farms, and after a short distance, we came to a road that veered off to the right. We followed the road for about ten minutes until we reached the forest.

We walked in silence and reached the forest.

“Alright let’s take a break and find some fruit.”

“Brother Nicola! Mary is still okay! Let’s find some fruits!”

“Let’s get some rest first. We won’t be able to walk home if all of us are too tired.”

“Okay~”

Another world’s Meal.

I finally finished cleaning… Right as I was admiring my own work. I heard the sound of a bell. Was that the afternoon bell?

As I was thinking that, the door of the house opened up and Mary popped in.

“Are you done yet, Big Bro?! The bell just rang, so we’re gonna be open for business now!”

“Ah, I’m all done! How does it look?”

“Good, but don’t just stand there. Come and help me!”

“Yeah, yeah… I’m coming.”

Mary is growing up to be stronger and stronger… While I was in a daze, Mary got angry at me again.

“Big Bro! You have to keep the door open!“

“Oh, right. I forgot. Sorry.”

As I said that, I opened the door and slid the door stopper under it. In this world, the door is usually left open when the store is open. [TL/N: Look at bottom of page for information about ‘stopper’]

There are stores that don’t, but it’s a custom because stores want to show their ‘bright atmosphere’, plus, not many people write around here.

A customer came right as I pushed the door open.

“Is the store open yet?”

“Yes! Welcome in!”

Mary replied to the customer with a small smile and the customers had a big smile on their faces when they saw her.

Mary was doing her job of being a sign girl very well. I’ve gotta do my best as well! With that in mind, I went into the store.

After I went in, more and more customers kept on coming. It seems that we’re quite popular. I led the customers one by one to their seats.

The only two items on the lunch menu were the steak set, and the stew set. Both sets included hard bread, soup, and juice, and you can either choose between steak or stew for the main course.

Since the menu is pretty heavy, most of our customers were men and steak was ordered more than the stew.

Another new customer came in, this time it was a stout uncle.

“Welcome in! Would you like steak or stew?”

“Steak, please.”

“Right! One steak coming up!”

In this world, unlike Japan, you don’t need polite service to serve people. You raise your reputation with just a smile.

“Leon, take care of the steak!”

“Okay!”

My job was to take orders and serve food to the customers who ordered first, and clear the table once it was empty. Mary was in charge of bread, soup, and fruit juice, so I just served either steak or stew.

Since the bowls and cutlery are made out of wood, there isn’t a need to worry about breaking them. But since there are a lot of customers, it’s kind of difficult.

“Leon, I’ve got one stew and three steaks ready!”

“Okay, I’ll get them!”

As I worked without noticing the time, the number of customers gradually decreased, and the last customer left the store, and we closed.

The stores don’t have a set closing time, but they usually close once there are no more customers left, and so the closing time varies from day to day, but it doesn’t seem to make that much difference because everyone comes for lunch once the bell rings.

“Good work everyone, let’s all get some food, since we’re tired.”

“Let’s get lunch.”

“Lunch! Yay! I was so hungry.”

Leon’s family always has dinner after the cafeteria is closed for lunch. I was pretty hungry too, so I couldn’t wait.

“You’re also going to eat right, Leon?”

“Yep! I’m super hungry!”

“Then let’s all have dinner together, there are two steaks left today, so we can eat half for each.”

“Woohoo! I’m so glad.. We’ve been having only stew lately!”

It seems that we always eat the leftovers from lunch for dinner. This of course leads to more stew. Marie was saying that she was tired of stew lately.

Now she’s waiting for her steak with a big smile on her face. My dad looked at her and said with a smile.

“Mary, just wait for a bit. I’m going to bake it. And I’ll make Mary’s portion bigger.”

“Really? Yay!!”

“Ara~ Ara~ Mary sure does like her steak doesn’t she?”

Even my mother was chuckling, I couldn’t help but laugh and smile. This family is wonderful. But it pained to think of my family in japan, but I was glad that I was part of this family.

“Dad! I want a bigger steak too!!”

“Leon too? I’ll get you a bigger one!”

“Jeez, I guess they’re children too.”

Mom and dad looked at each other and chuckled.

“Now then, the both of you wait in the living room.”

“ “Okay!!” ”

Mary and I replied together and headed to the living room, there’s a desk and four chairs. Mary and I sit next to each other, while mom is in front of Mary and dad is in front of me.

I sat in my usual seat.

“Brother, are you excited for the steak too?”

“Mhm, of course, it’s so good.”

“Yep! I love steak! It’s been four days since I ate it, I’ve been counting the days!”

Mary then put her hands on her hips and pushed her chest forward and stood proudly. She also made a proud face.

My sister is…… unbelievably cute!! I’m going straight into the ‘stupid brother’ group now.

As I patted her head with a ‘pom pom’ she smiled happily, she looked so cuuu~te!

As I was internally screaming due to her cuteness, the living room door opened and mom and dad came through.

“Dinner’s ready.”

“Here’s Mary’s and Leon’s steak.”

“Kyah~! Yay!”

“Looks so good~!”

There it was, a freshly cooked steak that looked super delicious. This was my first meal after coming to this other world. I hope it suits my taste… But it smelled so good that I started drooling.

“And here’s some bread, soup, and fruit juice!”

“Would the two of you like some stew?”

“I’ll just have steak!”

“I’d like some!”

“Okay, here you go, here’s your stew leon.”

“Thank you!”

The other dishes looked good too! I couldn’t hold myself.

“Let’s eat it then? Thank you for the food.”

“ “ “ Thank you for the food. ” ” ”

I first used my fork to take a piece of the steak. This world doesn’t seem to have the custom of using knives while eating, and so the steak was already in bite-sized pieces.

And I ate the steak.

“So good~!”

“Mhm! Isn’t good brother?”

It’s really good, it tastes the same as the beef steak I ate in japan, the food in this world may be the same as in japan.

But Leon’s memories tell me that the variety of food is pretty small. So the ingredients may be the same, but it seems that cooking methods have not yet developed in this world.

The steak is also good, but it’s pretty salty.

Well then, let’s try the bread and soup.「Crack!」- what the hell?! It’s so hard, it feels like dry french bread. But well, if you chew enough, you can eat it. It tastes good, but it’s a hassle to eat.

And the soup is… 「Gulp.. Gulp..」Well, it’s not bad, but it’s not exactly exciting since it’s just salty. Is it because there aren’t any other ingredients?

What about the stew..? This is pretty…. Good. But it’s not a stew per se. It’s more like a ‘milk soup’. Maybe with consommѐ and no flour?  I lived alone in college, so I understand simpler recipes.

It’s not the stew I knew, but it’s really good!

If you don’t have high expectations, you’ll have a good and plain meal. It was really good and everything suited my tastes.

I’ll have to think about better food in the future, as I ate with these thoughts in mind before I knew it, I had finished it.

“That was good! Thank you for the food.”

“I ate all of my food, it was so delicious!”

I looked to the side and saw that Mary had finished her meal and was looking satisfied with a big smile on her face, my mom and dad also smiled back at her.

I was so happy. And so I decided that I’d take good care of this family, my family in another world.

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Author Note: I’ll be posting every day after 8pm! I would be very happy if you could read it. If you find it interesting, please rate it, give me feedback, and give me a review!

An Encounter

Well then, what do I do now? I was told by mom to get some rest, but I don’t feel tired at all. Let’s see… Oh yeah! Let’s explore the house! Of course there’s a difference between what I ‘remember’ and what I’ll see.

Right! Let’s get out of this room first. After I stepped down from the bed, I saw that my shoes were also at the side of my bed. I also noticed something else: this place is covered in shoe-prints.

When I put on the shoes, I notice that they were knit with a grass-like material. They feel uncomfortable, but I’ll have to manage with these for now. I don’t think there are any other types of shoes, are there?

Getting off the bed, I opened the only door in the room, and went outside. Looking to the left, it had a staircase going down, and to the right there was nothing but a dead end with a window. And in the front, there was a door.

And so, I decided to open that door first.

“Excuse me…”

I said so in my childish voice, and opened the door. I somehow felt like I was sneaking into someone else’s home.

The room looked like it was a storage room, I didn’t really know what to look at, so I thought I shouldn’t go in there.

Let’s go down-stairs then, after I walked down the creaky stairs, I found a short corridor with a door at the end. It had two doors on the right, and one on the left.

I opened the doors on the right, and found that the first door was a toilet, and the second was leading to a living room, with a table and some chairs.

There was another door at the back of the living room, which I opened. Outside there was a small garden and a well. There were fences on the sides to prevent people from getting in, both from roadside and neighbouring homes. Of course the fences were wooden.

I’m guessing this is where they do their laundry, there’s a basin and clothes hanging on a string that’s connected from the house to the wooden fence, it seems that from Leon’s memories, he also uses a basin to wash his body with a towel…

I don’t want to do that. I wonder if there’s a proper bath in this world. What if there isn’t one…

No, I’m sure there’s a bath somewhere here. Once I know this world well, I’ll go looking for a bath. First, let’s continue exploring the house

Next, I went to the other door in the corridor, I heard some noises, so I assume that mom and dad must be there.

When I opened the door, I saw mom and dad were cooking in the kitchen. It looked like they were preparing for business later.

“Leon, what’s wrong? Did you have enough rest?”

“It’s okay. I feel better now, mom.”

Taking a closer look at her, she was really beautiful. Probably in her twenties, with blonde eyes, and amber eyes. From Leon’s memories, she seems to be kind. But she’s quite scary when she’s angry.

“Leon, you alright? When you fell down and hit your head, I couldn’t do anything. I’m sorry.”

“Dad, it’s okay! I’m fine now, see!”

“Alright, if you’re really fine, then I’m glad.”

His face looked relieved. He has brown hair, and brown eyes. He seems like a nice person. He’s quite relaxed and friendly.

“John! If you don’t move faster, we won’t be in time for the store to open!”

“Sorry, I’ll be right there.”

Leon couldn’t help but chuckle at his parents. It seems that his mother was the captain here.

But I can tell from a glance that both of them love each other. Even though dad looks a bit angry, he still has a smile on his face.

“Mom, where’s Mary?”

I wanted to meet my new sister. As Ryosuke Kikuchi didn’t really have younger siblings, I always wanted a little brother or sister.

“Mary is cleaning the diner. Leon, if you feel better, could you help her?”

“Mhm.”

“Mary~! Leon’s coming to help you!”

Mom called out for her from the kitchen, since both the diner and kitchen are connected, though there is a counter in between them. 

“Yay~! It was hard to do alone, but I did it!”

After I heard Mary’s voice, I went back into the corridor and walked into the door in front at the end of it and went into the diner area.

“You okay, big bro? It doesn’t hurt anywhere, right?”

“I’m sorry, I’m okay now.”

“Jeez~ My brother’s so clumsy…”

Mary puffed up her cheeks and pouted at me. I couldn’t do anything but stare at her.

Marie had brown hair, amber eyes, and a face like a doll. She’s way too cute. This is practically a crime…

She’s just five, but she’s helping out at the diner, and she’s already become like a mascot of the diner. I swore to protect her from all the weirdos that might come here.

Aren’t I already becoming a idiotic-clingy-brother? Jeez~

“Bro! Big Bro?! What’s wrong? Does it hurt in your head?”

I was staring at her, so I probably looked like an idiot, and worried her.

“I’m alright! I’m alright! See, even your big brother will work now!”

“Really?”

Mary was skeptical, but she was convinced after I nodded my head.

“Okay, you can go clean outside the entrance, and I’ll clean inside, okay?”

Mary then handed me a broom to clean the outside.

“I understand! I’ll go clean outside!”

Leon then took the broom and opened the door which led outside.

“Woah..!”

He unintentionally let out his reaction and kept his hands on his mouth.

But I still couldn’t calm down, I knew what it would look like from Leon’s memories, but of course seeing it with your own eyes, and having memories feel completely different. It really hit home that I was in another world, it was so different from the Japan I was used to.

The first thing I saw once I opened the door, was a large street with enough space for carriages to pass through. There were already a lot of people and carriages coming through and going places.

Most of the houses that can be seen are made of wood, and are two-stories tall, they’re all lined up in a row. But considering this scene, it could also be like a ‘time-slip’ event, right? But it was proven that it wasn’t. Why?

From Leon’s memories, there was magic in this world. So, it was clearly another world.

Even so, it wasn’t exactly impressive. It wasn’t as beautiful or as clean as Japan. But, the fact that it’s another world overcomes the fact that this city isn’t clean at all.

But thinking about it, I’ll have to live here for quite a long time. That kind of made my excitement wear off, and just made me wish this place was cleaner…

There’s no point in thinking about that now! Slapping myself on the cheeks, I got my mind cleared. Right as I tried to walk to the right, another person was walking from that direction, and I bumped into them. Leading me to fall right on my butt.

“Ow.. ow.. huh?”

I looked up to apologize to that person. 

Although I endured the pain to apologize, when I looked up at him, I was shocked and couldn’t say anything.

It was a knight, he didn’t wear full plate armor, rather he wore light armor, and had a sword on his waist. He looked cool with his red hair and brown eyes.

I didn’t know if there were nobles in this world, but from his clothes he seemed like an important person, and so I sat down and tried to apologize, but he held his hand out.

“You alright? I’m sorry for bumping into you.”

When he apologized, my head didn’t fully register what he said, and I was confused. I stood up quickly and apologized.

“Likewise, I apologize for bumping into you. Are you perhaps injured anywhere?”

It was a habit from when I was in Japan. I replied to him with honorifics. Did he think it was strange for a child like me to speak honorifics? When I looked at his face, he was furrowing his eyebrows, and looked skeptical. [T/N: The JPN version of that dialogue is very very polite/respectful to say it. Since it was said by Leon; a kid. The knight looked suspicious.]

I was really nervous and wondered if a child shouldn’t talk like that… And then the man asked meー

“Where did you learn to talk like that? Aren’t you the kid at this diner? I don’t think you’ll have a proper chance to learn that though…”

Wait. What if it doesn’t matter if you’re a kid and it’s just not used by anyone here?! What if it’s not allowed… Oh man… What should I do!

“Umm… So… I learned it from the old man in the neighbourhood…”

I tried lying to him, but he still looked doubtful, I was panicking on what to do, and then he smiled.

“Is that so? That’s great then.”

He patted me on the head, and I finally let out a sigh from all that stress. 

“My name’s Frederick. What’s yours? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“My name is Leon, I’m okay, and I’m sorry for bumping into you.”

I told him without sounding too polite.

“Leon, I don’t have time right now, I’ll stop by at the cafeteria later.”

He said, smiling at me.

“Ye- Yes, I’ll be waiting!”

I smiled back, Frederick patted my head yet again, and left.

“Fuuh~ I wonder if I managed to fool him.”

This was really bad, I’ll have to be extra careful.

I don’t get it… How could I even speak Japanese honorifics? At least ‘Leon’ can’t speak it.

If I really think about it, I can speak in this other world’s language just like I speak Japanese, I can also understand everything they say.

Thinking about letters… I tried writing letters on the ground, but the strange part was; I was writing the words of this world, as if I was writing Japanese, and I could read them.

What does this mean…? According to Leon’s memories, he couldn’t read or write.

I don’t really get it, but it seems I can read and write this world’s language as well as I can with Japanese. 

Right as I was thinking, Mary opened the door of the Diner and came out.

“Big brother, are you done?”

That’s when I remembered what I had come out here for. I hadn’t cleaned one bit. Quickly I took the broom and started sweeping.

“Ha- Haha, I wonder if it’ll take a little longer…”

I looked at Mary with a fake smile, and she looked really suspicious.

“Brother… You’ve been slacking off, haven’t you?”

“No! No! I was just about to be done, so you can go back inside!”

Mary was staring at me, but then her face calmed down a bit. Maybe she was convinced?

“Okay. Then hurry up. We’re almost about to open.”

“Understood. I’ll be done soon.”

Mary said that and went back inside.

Oh man! I gotta clean up faster! I then cleaned in a hurry.

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Author Note: I’ll be posting everyday for a little while. I’m planning to post every day after 20:00, so I’d really appreciate it if you’d read it!

If you find it interesting, please rate it, give me feedback, and give me a review!

Reincarnation

Author Note: This is my first time writing a novel, I’m a beginner, but I hope you enjoy reading it, thank you!

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“Leon! You okay?!”

“Leon! Are you awake!?”

Uhh~ It’s so loud… My head hurts so much. My head is going to shatter from the noise. Please, just shut up.

Thinking that, I opened my eyes and noticed another a person. Who are they? Where am I?

To add to the confusion, there was a wooden ceiling in place of my usual white ceiling at home.

“Leon, you okay? You fell down the stairs and hit your head. You were even unconscious… Oh, do you feel weird anywhere? Anything?”

Fell down the stairs? Who the heck is Leon? I’m Ryosuke Kikuchi. I don’t know a single person named Leon…

Crap… It feels like my head is about to split apart. I can’t even think properly.

‘Let’s go to bed. Right, this is a dream. If I sleep I should be able to go back to reality..’ —Thinking that, Ryosuke closed his eyes.

“Ah~ Man, I slept well… Huh? Where am I?!”

Wait a minute. Was it possibly not a dream?!

Why am I even here? I don’t know anything about this place.

I know my lecture at university got cancelled so I was on my way home… What happened after that?

I can’t remember anything properly. No, something exploded and then what…? I don’t remember. I can’t.

Wait a minute… Aren’t my hands really really small? Even my body’s the same?! What the hell?! Am I a child?!

“Ah~ Ah~”

Even my voice! I sound- I sound like a child!

What does this mean? 

Wasn’t there another person in my dream? Wasn’t I even called Leon? 

Could I perhaps have become Leon? No way. That’s impossible…

While I was thinking about it, my mind was suddenly being flooded with something; Leon’s memories. What are these? I’ve become Leon?

What’s going on? According to these memories… This isn’t even Japan. No wait, this isn’t even Earth!?

Did I seriously reincarnate into another world?! Wasn’t that just in stories?!

Then, does that mean I died on Earth?

While I was still confused, the door to the room slowly opened.

“Leon? You awake? Are you okay now?”

It seems that this person is Leon’s mother. I can tell from his memories. He loved his mother very much, but she’s a stranger to me.

It’s better if no one knows that Ryosuke Kikuchi is the one who’s living inside Leon’s body. No one will believe me, and I’ll probably be assumed to be possessed by a demon.

I’ll have to become Leon to survive in this world.

“Good Morning Mom, I don’t feel any pain anywhere. I’m okay. I fell down the stairs right?”

“That’s right! You have to be careful. Did you know how worried Mom was?”

“I’m sorry… I’ll be more careful from now on.”

“That’s right, be more careful. Leon dear, do you want to eat anything? Mom and Dad have already eaten.”

Leon’s mother was looking into my eyes, with such worry. I shouldn’t make her worry here. But, I’m still confused and I don’t really feel hungry. I’ll need some time alone to get my head straight.

“It’s alright, I’m not really hungry right now. I’ll eat lunch later.”

“Are you sure? Well then, get some sleep for now.”

Saying that, she stroked my head, and then left the room.

“I’m so tired. But, I have to clear my mind.”

So, I’m dead on Earth, huh?

I don’t remember much, but this isn’t a dream either. It seems impossible to return back to Earth now.

I tried my best to pass the entrance exam for the university, and even got into my first choice.

I can’t see my friends, Mom, or Dad anymore, can I…?

When I think about Earth and my life there, teardrops just started flowing down one after another.

Ryosuke simply sat there for a while and cried in silence. He couldn’t do anything other than to accept the fact that he is now stuck in another world. So he stopped.

“Alright! I might be sad, but let’s think and accept this situation first!”

Ryosuke then slapped his own cheeks to calm down. 

Let’s first think about Leon. Though the body is ‘owned’ by Leon. The mind and personality is from Ryosuke Kikuchi. I also have Leon’s memories.

But, although they can be remembered, I have to try hard or else they just don’t come.

According to his memories; Leon has just turned eight. I can remember him celebrating it.

There are also seasons, but it doesn’t get too hot in summer, nor does it get too cold in the winter. It’s just about fine to spend time here.

It seems that Leon lives in ‘Lasria’, the royal capital of ‘The Kingdom of Las Laslia.’

It seems Leon’s family owns a diner. My dad’s name is John, my mom’s name is Roana, and his sister’s called Mary.

This seems to be Leon’s daily routine seems to include helping around the house when the cafeteria is open, and after it’s closed, he goes out into the forest with the neighbourhood kids, to pick up fruits, vegetables, and firewood. He also uses a bit of his pocket money to buy some food as well.

From what I can see from Leon’s memories, he doesn’t know the specific days in a year. But there seems to be churches in regions, the bells in the churches ring at certain times, and we use that to understand what time it is.

The bell rings four times in a day; Morning, Noon, Evening, Night. We find out what day it is; through the amount of times the bell is rung in the morning.

1 ring: Fire day.

2 ring: Water day.

3 ring: Wind day.

4 ring: Earth day.

5 ring: Recovery day.

And so, the cycle repeats. A week has about five days.

I wondered if recovery day was like a sunday. But it turns out it’s not, from Leon’s memories; the diner is open every day, unless something bad happens. So there may not be the concept of holidays in this world. [T/N: Sundays a day of rest in Japan. The protagonist wondered whether recovery day was like a day off.]

When convert the coins into Japanese yen, it seems an iron coin is roughly 10 yen, small copper coins are 100 yen, and copper coins are 1000 yen.

There might be coins with higher value, but Leon’s never seen any.

This is the most important one, there is magic in this world. From Leon’s memories, most people are able to use magic.

To simply put it, there are six attributes: fire, water, wind, earth, recovery and finally, body strengthening magic. A person is limited to one attribute, and the amount of magic that can be used depends on the amount of magical power available.

It seems that once you are 8-years-old, you will be asked to measure your magical power and attributes, and how to use magic. Leon just turned eight, so he should be going soon, I look forward to it.

There’s also one more thing that I almost forgot to mention: the development of this world.

This world, at least where Leon lives, doesn’t even have the concept of running water. You have to get water from the well.

Which also means that there are no flushable toilets, or even a proper bath.

You bath by using towels to wipe your body, and you have water in a vat. The toilet is basically a botton toilet.[PR/N: See end note.]

Well, you get the point now, right? Even this room is that bad, it doesn’t even have a glass window, it’s a wooden pull-up window.

The bed is practically just a wooden frame with some straw underneath a cloth..

There isn’t any electricity either. There’s just a candle in the room, which I’m assuming is for night-time use. The windows are open right now, so there’s only sunlight to light up the room.

And there’s also the door through which my mother left through. 

I can’t take this anymore. I need to have better standards of living. For now I can only gather information.

That’s mostly all of the information that I can gather from Leon’s memory.

Since I’m still a kid, I probably don’t have all the necessary knowledge, and I’m sure there’s a lot of things I won’t understand. But I should learn them from now on.

For now, I’ll have to learn to live here, to make sure that people don’t find out that the ‘real’ Leon is gone.

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Author Note: I plan to post every day, so I will post more tomorrow.

End note:

1. Botton toilet (a type of drop toilet or pit latrine)
   • A deep, dug out hole which is often used as a community toilet.
   • The word ‘Botton’ is the onomatopoeia for when the faeces hit the piling waste at the bottom.