Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou (LN) - Volume 13 - Chapter SS5

Venri-san’s Bridal Training

[This short story contains spoilers, so please finish the main series before reading this!]

A few days had passed since Hajime had recrafted the means to return to Earth. Right now, Hajime and the others were visiting the dragonman village in the far north. Once they actually made the trip it would be a few weeks before Hajime had enough mana to return to Tortus again, so he wanted to let Tio spend some time with her family before they left. Tio had invited Hajime and the others to come with her, so they had. On the first night, there had been a huge banquet to welcome everyone, and it was now noon the day after.

“Do you understand, Yue-sama? The fundamentals are vital.”

“Yes...”

“Without the fundamentals, you can’t accomplish anything. You need to practice doing things the hard way or you’ll never understand—hey, you just took a shortcut with magic again, didn’t you? How many times do I have to tell you you can’t rely on magic for everything?!”

“I’m sorry...”

Yue and Venri were currently in the Klarus family home’s kitchen. Both of them were wearing aprons.

“Forget teaching you how to cook, I need to start by teaching you how to wash and cut the ingredients. How did you manage to turn the kitchen into such a mess?”

The cutting board on the counter was split in two, there were holes in all of the pots and pans, the stove was half-melted, and the ingredients were all cut into too-fine pieces.

“I’m sorry...”

“Instead of constantly apologizing, stop rushing into things before you’ve even learned the basics.”

Venri had also checked to see how Yue handled other chores like cleaning and laundry, but had discovered that Yue used wind and water magic to cheat her way through those as well. When it came to household chores, Yue’s genius had backfired on her. The moment she saw a task and thought she’d found a more efficient way of tackling it, she immediately felt compelled to try her novel method, but more often than not it ended with disastrous results.

“Your sewing is all right, but the rest of your skills are sorely lacking. Forgive me for asking, but how did you take care of the cooking and cleaning while you were traveling?”

“Shea took care of most of it,” Yue said, puffing her chest out proudly.

“That’s not something to be proud of!”

Yue looked down, suitably chastised. Venri had lived thrice as long as Yue, and was the very model of a wise and stern dragonman that Yue had initially looked up to. Every time Venri looked at her, Yue felt as though she was being seen right through, which made her a little uncomfortable. Had Venri been a vindictive and spiteful mother-in-law who was just finding fault with Yue because she didn’t like that Yue was Hajime’s first wife over Tio, Yue might have been able to argue back. However, Venri wasn’t that petty, and her reasons for training Yue were far too reasonable.

“Yue-sama, listen closely,” Venri said as she cupped Yue’s cheeks gently with her cool hands. “Whether you like it or not, you are the most famous bride in all of Tortus’s history. I know better than anyone what a wonderful woman you are, but when a person becomes famous enough, people inevitably try to find fault with them. And don’t forget, Hajime-sama will be marrying women from many different races, nationalities, and cultures. As the first wife of that household, you will be held to an unreasonable standard by the general public. Right now, everything is fine because people’s memories of Ragnarok are still fresh. But as time passes people will forget. Unlike the other girls, who contributed directly to the fighting, you were the one person who needed to be rescued. Sure, Hajime-sama may have told everyone that it was with your help that he defeated god, but no one actually saw you fight. Once enough time passes, people will start to talk. They’ll start saying that the girl from their race or culture is more deserving of the title of first wife. I’m not saying you have to be perfect, or even that you have to push yourself very hard. Why, with your strength, you can easily ignore what others say. You, or Hajime-sama, or one of the other girls can shut anyone up easily enough.”

“Mhm.”

After saying all that, Venri’s expression became stern once more. It was the kind of sternness that stemmed from genuine care though, and Yue could tell Venri was saying this for Yue’s own good, even if Yue ended up hating her for it. Thus, Yue decided to give Venri her utmost attention, and looked directly into the dragonman’s eyes, ready for whatever she had to say.

“But what I want to know, Yue-sama, is whether or not you can accept that. Will your pride allow you to be a first wife who isn’t truly fit for the title?”

“No, definitely not.”

“Good,” Venri replied with a satisfied nod, then patted Yue on the head. Yue felt a warm fuzzy feeling in her chest and blushed a little.

“D-Don’t treat me like a child.”

“He he, from my perspective, you are still a child.”

If Yue went into adult mode, there was practically no one who could resist her allure. But for some reason, Yue had a feeling her charms wouldn’t work on Venri. It would be really embarrassing if they didn’t either, so Yue was too scared to even try.

“Mmm, I’ll do my best to master your training,” Yue said, her determination renewed.

“Very well. But we should take a short break for now.”

“Huh?”

Yue was taken aback. Venri had just gotten her all pumped up, but now she was saying they should stop.

“I suspect that it’s precisely because your control over magic is so fine that you’re unable to properly put it to good use when it comes to cooking and cleaning.”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“Before I explain, there’s something I want to give you. Follow me,” Venri said before she led Yue to her room and directed her to stand in front of a splendid full-length mirror.

“Yue-sama, please take this.”

“Is this a...kimono? The kind dragonmen wear?”

“Yes. Among dragonmen, it’s customary to give your child a kimono when they’re getting married. I’m afraid I haven’t been able to make enough for everyone yet, but this is yours.”

It seemed Venri was planning on making kimonos for all of Hajime’s wives, not just Tio. Yue let out a sigh of wonder as she took the kimono and ran her fingers across the fabric.

“Perhaps I should have consulted with you before deciding on a design, but I thought red would match your eyes perfectly.”

Indeed, the kimono was the red of autumn leaves with a white flower pattern. There was golden embroidery on the sleeves as well, and it was obvious it had been designed with Yue’s characteristics in mind.

“Since we’re already here, why don’t I teach you how to put it on?”

The kimono had been made with Yue’s adult proportions in mind, so she transformed into adult form.

“Umm...thank you very much,” she said shyly.

“He he, you’re welcome. Please look after our princess for us.”

“Mmm, I will. I promise to make everyone happy.”

“Also, please do something to fix her horrible fetishes.”

“Umm, that might not be possible...”

“If you can’t manage that much, then how can you call yourself Hajime-sama’s first wife? Did you not just decide to train yourself up into a woman capable of doing anything? Oh, and be wary of the food and water in Hajime-sama’s world; who knows what it might do to your body. Be sure to show proper respect to his parents as well, you don’t—”

“O-Okay, okay, I get it already!”

Venri continued listing off warnings like a worried mother, but Yue could tell from the look in her eyes that she was genuinely concerned for Yue. Yue almost called her “mother,” but then caught herself at the last second and looked away bashfully.

“There you go, Yue-sama. You look wonderful.”

“Thank you...”

Indeed, Yue did look stunning in the kimono. But she didn’t have the same sensual appeal she normally did. No, it was a more artistic beauty she exuded now.

“All right, back to your bridal training,” Venri said after a few seconds, snapping Yue out of her reverie.

“Huh?! While I’m wearing this fancy kimono?!”

“Yes. The very same one I stayed up all night to sew,” Venri replied with a terrifying smile, and Yue’s expression stiffened. “You won’t get it dirty, will you?”

It seemed the reason Venri had made Yue change was to force her to concentrate on performing well because now there were consequences for failure.

Gulping, Yue replied, “O-Of course not!”

This was one woman Yue decided she would never cross.