BONUS: A NEW INN OPENED IN TOWN
Since this year’s Dance Festival brought in record-breaking numbers of tourists, the village of Flatta had apparently started talking about building a new inn.
I heard about it from Laika at home.
“I met the chief in the village today, and he asked me to come up with some ideas for an inn.”
“I see. You’d be much more qualified to think about inn stuff than I would.”
Near Laika’s home with the other red dragons was a hot spring area. The place was full of inns, of course, so Laika should know a lot about it.
“Yes. Some of my very distant relatives run hot spring inns, and I might be able to provide input with regards to the inn’s atmosphere.”
She seemed rather happy. Finding genuine delight in helping other people was a sign of a pure heart, and I was happy that she was growing up to be such a good kid.
Then the three children of the house appeared: Falfa, Shalsha, and Sandra.
“Falfa wants to give ideas, too! I’m good at playing store!”
I wasn’t sure how it would turn out if she took it as a game, but—
“When she plays store, Big Sis’s managerial sensibilities are subtle and keen. With her knowledge, I wouldn’t be surprised if they called her the Cerberus of the lodging industry.”
Cerberus of the lodging industry? Was that nickname supposed to be like “the mad dog of the martial arts world”?
“Why not just let her say what she wants? The people building the inn are making the decisions at the end of the day, right? It’s the adults’ fault if they put themselves in debt from taking a kid’s suggestions seriously.”
Sandra made a sound argument.
I hated sounding like a broken record, but she was the most childish-looking of them all. She’d probably get angry if I said that out loud, so I decided not to.
“Then you can do it—just don’t be a bother.”
“Okay! I’ll make sure we turn a nice profit with attention to hospitality! ” Falfa energetically raised her hand.
“Also, I’ve been asked to work on the construction of the inn,” added Laika.
“Right, that’s something you can take active part in.”
With a dragon’s power, the building could be finished in no time. Her help had turned the house in the highlands into what it was now.
“Got it. Then work hard, but not too hard. There’s probably no need to worry, but if they are late in paying you, you tell me, okay?”
I didn’t think it would happen in Flatta, but as a former corporate slave, I wanted to keep high standards for working conditions in my new life.
—A few days later… Really, only a few…
The inn was apparently already finished, and I received an invitation to see it.
Laika’s help hadn’t been for nothing.
And I, the Witch of the Highlands, had been called in. It was like opening a new theater. Maybe I was something akin to their guardian spirit.
I went and found a magnificent three-story building with a sign declaring it the FLATTA GRAND HOTEL.
“Ooooh, this is the biggest building in town…”
It was almost way too big for Flatta.
When I went inside, Laika was there waiting for me. “We’re ready for you, Lady Azusa. I will show you around.”
“Sure, thanks. This lobby is really tidy.”
This wasn’t an inn just for sleeping; there were even sofas next to reception so that people could relax.
“The rooms are also very high quality!” Laika was really enthusiastic about this.
All the rooms for guests were on the second and third floors. She first showed me a room on the second floor.
It was a simple yet stylish room, one that I could call “just fine” and have it be exactly what you expected. Both the bed and the desk were new, and sunlight filled the room. The smell of fresh wood was also comforting.
“I see. It’s like a chic boarding room you’d find in Karuizawa.”
“Karuizawa?”
“Oh, you can just ignore the place names.”
Suddenly, a round box sitting on the desk caught my eye.
“What’s in the box?”
“That is a suggestion of mine. Why don’t you look inside?”
I opened it, and inside were three familiar manju bun–looking sweets.
“These are the edible slimes I thought up!”
“Yes. We placed the edible slimes here to soothe our guests’ exhaustion with something sweet once they enter the room.”
I saw a little message card inside, so I picked it up.
This was totally in the style of a traditional Japanese hotel!
Laika sure was smart… I guess you just learned this stuff if you lived near a hot spring area… I never expected her to think of something like this…
“So there’s a shop here in the inn, then?”
“Yes, we decided to set one up. It was Falfa’s idea.”
“That idea isn’t just part of a game, then!”
Falfa was also giving it her all…
“The shop sells more than just edible slimes and leaf slimes—we also have preserved foods, like pickles, that are popular in this area. It takes a while for those to spoil, so we can keep them on sale for a long time.”
“Falfa really does have a manager’s eye… I’m sorry for treating it just like a game…”
“We also have wooden swords and metallic key chains with the name of the area engraved on them, as well as stationery sets with paintings of the local scenery.”
It was a real souvenir corner…
“Would you like to take a look at the shop? I can show you the large baths on the first floor while we’re there as well. Inns do need a large bathing space. They’re not hot springs, unfortunately.”
To Laika, inns and large communal baths went hand in hand.
“Got it. Then let’s head that way.”
The shop was a lot more like the kind you’d see in a traditional Japanese inn than I thought.
There were even Flatta butter cookies for sale—I didn’t know when she’d made those.
“Those four-packs of mini cupcakes used to have a very plain name, but Falfa suggested we change it to ‘I Visited Flatta,’ so we did.”
“That’s so touristy!”
“We have small sample bites in that little bowl over there, so please have a taste.”
We had little plastic containers for samples in Japan, too.
“Mmm, I’ve definitely tasted these somewhere before… I think that might’ve been at the Kinugawa hot springs or in Atami…”
Memories from three hundred years ago reached through time and space to replay in my mind!
“Kinugawa? Atami?”
“Oh, those are just place names. Don’t worry about it.”
“Then next, we have the baths.”
I didn’t expect any surprises in the baths, but on the way there, we passed a room that looked familiar.
The door said GAME ROOM.
Is this what I think it is…?
“Laika, I’m going to take a peek inside here first, okay?”
—When I opened the door, Falfa and Shalsha were playing pin-pone.
I knew it! That’s the game that’s almost exactly like ping-pong! It was even in the hot spring inn at Mount Rokko!
Sandra was acting as the referee.
“It’s nine to nine. Shalsha serves next.”
“Big Sis, try taking an underspin serve.”
“I’ll send it right back to you with a drive, Shalsha.”
And it was turning out to be a close match…
“Lady Azusa, we not only have pin-pone, but we also have an ayer hokey table here.”
“I feel like I’ve heard that name before…”
Farther into the room, the village chief and a villager were playing a game that strongly resembled air hockey.
They were hitting a thin disc back and forth on the table—it was exactly like air hockey.
“You always let it through when it comes in from an angle, Chief! You gettin’ old?”
“What?! I haven’t lost yet!”
I felt the urge to play for the first time in a long time. But more importantly, I wondered about its origin.
“Laika, is this ayer hokey game well-known among the dragon races, too?”
“Yes. People play it everywhere. When you insert a hundred gold for a game, the table creates a little wind magic that lets the disc slide around.”
That spell was way too convenient.
“I’ve got the gist of it now, so show me the baths…”
“Of course. I doubt anyone will be there at this time of day, so there should be no problem.”
That just sounded like foreshadowing to me, but I decided not to say anything.
“We could not construct an outdoor bath, so we separated the men’s and women’s baths.”
The entrances were set off by red and blue curtains.
“I see. For some reason, my memories of going to Kinugawa hot springs are coming back, even though I just hopped over to Flatta…”
We opened the door to the women’s bath.
There we found Flatorte, buck naked, hands in the air.
“Yesss! I can be naked and unashamed in here! Freedom!”
She seemed to be enjoying herself immensely.
I didn’t even feel like snarking at her when I saw that smile. There was nothing better for a person than smiling.
But this was apparently unexpected for Laika.
“What are you doing here?! I don’t remember calling you in!”
“I don’t need your permission. You don’t have to be a hotel guest to use the baths; you can just pay money for a day visit.”
“Then at least put on some clothes!”
“But you’re supposed to be naked in a bath! What’s really against the rules is coming in with clothes on!”
I never thought the day would come when Flatorte was right!
“Urgh… I was just supposed to be showing Lady Azusa around…”
Having Flatorte refute her so soundly didn’t sit very well with Laika. Her face was red.
I patted her on the shoulder. “We’re already here, so why don’t we join her? A daytime bath isn’t so bad every once in a while.”
“Y-yes, you’re right… It’s not bad at all…,” Laika agreed, her face flushed with embarrassment. And that settled the matter.
“Oh, but we don’t have any towels…”
“That’s not a problem. Reception sells towels for a hundred gold each,” Laika said, and a thought crossed my mind.
This is basically just Japan.
The End
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