Chapter 3

"Father, drink this and you'll get better. Try to drink it."

Valletta gently woke her father, who was groaning in pain, and put the medicine (stomach medicine and painkillers) and water into his mouth.

Her father managed to swallow the medicine despite choking.

"Also, this is called an energy drink. Drink this too."

As Valletta gave her father the Lipovit D, Ichirou was holding his head.

There was no way a person who looked like he was on the verge of death would be saved by just that much medicine.

He had given the Lipovit D as a comfort, but he felt that the man would likely pass away by tomorrow, not just be bedridden.

"Mr. Kazura, how long will it take for my father to recover?"

After giving her father the medicine and Lipovit D and laying him back down, Valletta asked Ichirou.

"Well, I think he will be released from all his suffering no later than tomorrow or the day after."

Ichirou answered somewhat dismissively, and Valletta smiled with relief.

"That's good... Mr. Kazura, do you have a place to stay tonight? If not, as a thank you for the medicine, please stay at our house."

Seeing Valletta's expression of deep trust, Ichirou, filled with guilt, made up his mind.

If her father died, he would prostrate himself and do his best to make amends using his wealth.

"It's a bit dirty, but how about it?"

Encouraged by Valletta, Ichirou said in a voice like a mosquito's,

"...Please."

"That's a big problem..."

Ichirou had been sitting in a corner of the eight-tatami room, holding his head for nearly two hours.

From the state of the village chief he had seen earlier, he felt that the man would likely pass away tonight or tomorrow.

Would Valletta forgive him when that happened?

After saying "You'll get better!" so confidently, if the man passed away, he felt he couldn't complain even if he was stabbed.

"Mr. Kazura!"

After rolling around on the floor for about twenty minutes, Valletta suddenly burst into the room.

Ichirou jumped up reflexively and rubbed his head against the floor.

"Father is better! The medicine is really amazing, thank you!"

"Excuse me... what?"

Surprised by the unexpected news, Ichirou looked up and met Valletta's eyes, who was looking at him, prostrate on the floor, with a puzzled expression.

"Um, you mean, your father is feeling better?"

"Yes, he's already up and preparing dinner. He looked so sick, but to recover so quickly, the medicine must be really amazing!"

Ichirou was stunned by Valletta's response.

The medicine he had given the village chief was just a fever and pain reliever, and Lipovit D.

There was no way he could recover in just a few hours.

"That's impossible..."

"Eh?"

"Ah, no, nothing."

Seeing Valletta's puzzled expression, Ichirou quickly corrected his words and groaned.

He couldn't understand why the village chief had recovered, or even believe it.

"Um, can I see how your father is doing, just to be sure?"

"Yes, Father also wanted to thank you during dinner, so it's perfect. Dinner should be ready soon, let's go to the living room."

Valletta smiled happily and Ichirou followed her, tilting his head in confusion.

"Oh, you must be Mr. Kazura. Thank you for the valuable medicine. Please, have a seat."

"A, thank you..."

When Ichirou and Valletta entered the living room, the village chief, who had been on the verge of death a while ago, was making some kind of soup at the hearth in the center of the room.

The village chief was thin and gaunt, but he looked healthy and energetic.

"I couldn't properly greet you earlier, I apologize. I am Balin, the village chief. Dinner is just about ready, please have some."

"Thank you. How are you feeling?"

As Ichirou received a wooden bowl and spoon filled with soup and asked the village chief, the chief smiled.

"Since I took Mr. Kazura's medicine, I've been like this in no time. It's my first time taking medicine, and I didn't expect it to be so amazing. I don't know how to thank you."

"I was surprised too. I heard that medicine usually takes a few days to work, so I didn't expect it to be this amazing."

Ichirou was the one who was surprised.

A few hundred yen worth of medicine and an energy drink had brought a man who was on the verge of death back to life in just a few hours.

However, the village chief's illness seemed to be cured, and Ichirou's impression had indeed improved.

"That's good."

While saying this, Ichirou sipped the hot soup, but his mind was filled with question marks.

As he sipped the soup in confusion, he felt a strange texture and took the bowl away from his mouth.

Looking at the ingredients, he saw something that looked like leaves and grubs.

(It's not grubs, it's not grubs, it's not grubs, it must be some kind of fruit. Or maybe it's a grub that's very close to a fruit.)

"That's the Arcadian grub I caught for my father. It's not a croco grub."

"..."

As Ichirou poked the ingredients with his spoon, Valletta gave him a desperate piece of information.

While he didn't particularly dislike the grubs that looked like grubs, putting them in his mouth was a different story.

It wasn't a matter of whether they were croco grubs or not.

"Recently, they've become harder to find, and I only managed to catch about ten today... But they're used as a luxury ingredient in town, and they're really delicious... right, Mr. Kazura, you must have eaten them before."

Beside Valletta, who was smiling, the village chief was saying, "Mm, they're always delicious," while eating the grubs.

"I've never eaten them and I can't eat them!?"

While shouting, Ichirou felt an urge to throw the bowl at the village chief's face, but he didn't have the nerve to do so. With tears in his eyes, he said loudly to himself,

"Yes! They're delicious!"

And he shoveled the Arcadian grubs, which were plentiful in his bowl, into his mouth and chewed them with teary eyes.

The Arcadian grubs, which he was eating for the first time, tasted like a thin corn soup.

"Come on, my stomach. Work with the Zhengluwan to repel the Arcadian grubs."

After dinner, as Ichirou was lying down in the room after taking Zhengluwan, Valletta brought a futon.

"Mr. Kazura, I brought a futon. It's time to rest, right?"

Hearing Valletta's words, Ichirou looked at his watch.

He wasn't sure if there was a time difference with his original world, but from the brightness outside, it probably hadn't changed much.

"Eh? It's only 6... no, it's still light out?"

"Yes, but it will be dark soon."

Valletta looked out the fence-like window, and Ichirou followed her gaze to see the sky turning orange, indicating that the sun was about to set.

(That's right, there's no way this house has candles or lanterns.)

In this village, people probably wake up with the sunrise and go to bed with the sunset.

In the world he came from, candles and other lighting tools were expensive in ancient times, and it might be the same in this world.

Assuming such tools were invented.

"Yes, that's right. I'll use it gratefully."

Ichirou thanked her and took the futon, which was frayed in places.

While he didn't expect there to be a bath, he was relieved that there was a futon.

"Oh, right. I forgot to give you this."

After receiving the futon, Ichirou realized he hadn't given the salt he promised to the village and took out a bag of salt from his Boston bag.

The bag was labeled "Salt 1kg" in large letters.

It cost 105 yen including tax at the supermarket.

"This is the salt I promised to give you."

"Wh-What? This is salt!? I've never seen such white salt!"

Valletta took the salt from Ichirou and was surprised, her eyes wide.

This meant that the salt in this world contained impurities and was colored.

"And, what is this transparent thing?"

"Huh? That's plastic... Ah, damn..."

Seeing the transparent plastic bag containing the salt, Valletta looked puzzled, and Ichirou slapped his forehead.

She probably had never seen plastic and wouldn't understand even if he explained it.

Ichirou decided to call it "such a thing."

"It's a recent invention in my country. It's light and quite durable. It's fine even if you put it in water."

"Is that so... What does this say? I've never seen these characters before."

"These are the characters for salt in my country. Have you really never seen such characters before?"

It seemed that while the language was understood, the characters were not.

At least in this village.

"Yes, I can read and write, as taught by my father, but I've never seen such characters."

It seemed that the language was understood, but the characters were not, a rather convenient and strange world.

"Mr. Kazura"

While Ichirou was thinking that it was convenient that the language was understood but that not being able to read the characters might be a problem in the future, Valletta spoke to him hesitantly.

"About the medicine you gave my father... Is it very expensive?"

"Yes... It is quite expensive."

Ichirou thought for a moment before answering.

While it actually cost only a few hundred yen, if it had the same effect on everyone in this world as it did on the village chief, it could be a powerful tool depending on how it was used.

It might not be wise to sell it cheaply.

"I see..."

Hearing Ichirou's answer, Valletta looked down.

"Please, I beg you!"

Then, she looked up determinedly, took Ichirou's hand, and pleaded.

"I will pay you back someday, but please share the medicine with everyone in the village! If necessary, you can sell me to a slave trader. Please help the village, our village!"

"Whoa, slave traders, there's slavery... No, I understand, but please look up!"

As Valletta, with tears in her eyes, repeated "Please, please" and clung to him, Ichirou hurriedly calmed her down.

"Are there other sick people?"

"Yes... There are about fifty people with the same illness as my father. Seven people have already died from a fever that wouldn't go down. Some mothers are giving their babies crushed Arcadian grubs because their breast milk has almost stopped, but it doesn't seem to agree with their bodies... No babies have died yet, but they are so thin and weak, I don't know how long they can hold on..."

"How many people live in this village?"

"About 110, I think."

"Almost half are down..."

It seemed that the village was in a serious state of famine.

If this continued, the village might collapse.

"Please, I know that selling myself won't even cover the cost of one dose of that medicine. But please, at least help the babies..."

Saying this, Valletta looked down again.

Ichirou felt that he had to help.

For a few thousand yen, he could save the village and gain a base of operations in this world.

As a bonus, he might get to "flag collect" the village girl, Valletta.

"Alright. Not flag collecting... I mean, I'll gladly provide the medicine to save the village. And I don't need money. In return, I want to live in this village."

"Wh-What!?"

Valletta was shocked by Ichirou's offer.

To her knowledge, medicine was traded for astronomical amounts of money.

Even with the request to let him live in the village, it was unthinkable to provide medicine for free.

"But, but, to not need money for just that... I know it's a lot to ask, but are you sure, Mr. Kazura?"

"Yes, life is more important than money."

Ichirou, who said something that sounded like a beautiful lie, was looked at blankly by Valletta.

Seeing her expression, Ichirou wiped cold sweat from his forehead, thinking, "Damn, maybe that line was too suspicious?"

"Can I... really believe you?"

"Of course. Leave it to me."

When Ichirou answered Valletta's trembling voice, tears slowly welled up in her eyes again.

As a tear ran down her cheek, she burst into tears like a child, crying loudly.