It has been three months since that matter with Suzuranâs duck pen and the simple pond and theyâve already started giving me work that Iâm supposed to do .
Things like patrolling inside the village, manning the watchtower and managing the ca.n.a.ls, Iâve been working at relatively safe places . A few months ago I suggested tentative countermeasures against monsters to the other members of the patrol so the adults who have actual combat experience became in charge with dealing with that .
Aside from that, Iâve been thinking about making a new alcoholic beverage . Iâm going to use the knowledge I have from my previous world to make a still .
For the time being, as an experiment, Iâm thinking of distilling mash made from inferior wheat yield . I was actually planning to go to the town later since I was thinking of exchanging techniques with the distillers there but then I remembered what happened at the bar of the inn we were staying at the last time we went to town . Thinking about what was poured from the flagon, I immediately dismissed that idea myself .
When I proposed making a new sake to the village chief, he said
ăSure, if itâs only an experimentâŠă
Because of that, I headed towards the villageâs trinket1 shop .
ăOcchan, howâve you been lately?ă ăWell, Iâve been getting by with the increase of newcomers and all . Anyway, what is it? Those gla.s.s beads again?ă ăOcchan can do a bit of smithing, right?ă ăRight, I can do tinkering as well!ă
With that, we started our pointless banter . When I thought the time was right, I immediately cut back into the main issue .
ăIs occhan a drinker?ă ăOi oi . You probably already know Iâm a heavy drinker but, whatâs this? Are you going to treat me?ă
No, you shouldnât let someone younger treat you .
ăNo, I wanted to talk about a brewing tool for the new sake that Iâm going to makeă ăIs a barrel not enough?ă ăNo, what I need is something like thisă
As I said that, I used magic to make the soil take form in front of us and showed the sample that was just created to him . It was a simple still since that was all I could come up with using my limited knowledge . The pattern was quite simple as well .
ăWhatâs this? Isnât that just a weird pitcher?ă ăAlcohol evaporates faster than water so you put sake inside of this container and light a fire at the bottom in order to boil it . The alcohol in the sake would separate from the water and turn into something like steam . If you collect that steam and cool it down, youâll get an even stronger sake compared to beer and wineă ăOh, sounds interesting . What material is it made of?ă
I cut the sample vertically in half and showed it to him .
Since I had a copper like color when I saw it during our field trip . Iâve probably lured him in now since gave me a spirited reply while looking at the sample with great interest .
ăYou can put that away since Iâve already got the general details of it in my head . Itâll soon vanish anyway, right?ă ăWell, yeahă ăHmm . Then, how about the size?ă ăFor the time being, it should be this big . Thinking about production, it should be the size of a house but Iâll also need a couple of them as wellă ăIf thatâs the case then thereâs no way I can do that by myselfă
After that, we continued our pointless exchange then I went back to doing my patrols .
A few days later, the trinket shopâs occhan came to our house to deliver the still . When I asked him about the price, he said
ăYou donât need to pay as long as I get to be the first one to drink that sakeă
After that, he went back to his shop . Then, I immediately went to that tavern to buy sake .
ăCaam-kun, you want sake while itâs still daytime? Youâre starting to resemble you father, huhă
Hearing that, I replied .
ăIâm making a new sakeă
He became intrigued after I said that and he came asking me about the details .
ăIf you let me drink that sake youâre making, Iâll give you these low-grade wines free of chargeă
The person earlier only wanted to drink sake but this time, heâs probably interested in it as the bartender of the tavern .
When I went home, I was about to start the distillation but was immediately discovered by mother .
ăAra, sake even though itâs still daylight? Youâve also become like your father with that, huhăŒă
or so she says . Does father really drink sake that much during daytime?
ăWell, Iâm not going to drink it . I might be able to come up with new jobs for the village, you know?ă ăHmmăŒ I wonder if you really are our child . I havenât done it with anyone else besides your father so Iâm sure that youâre our child thoughăŒă
Stop it . I donât really want to hear my parents talking about such things, you know?
Returning to my room, I placed a tripod made of wood on top of my slightly charred desk . When it comes to wood working, sculpting is no good but when it comes to DIY carpentry jobs like the duck pen I built the other day then, havenât I gotten slightly better at it? My skill still hasnât gone up though .
I poured in sake into the small hole at the side and was constantly letting out a small flame from my fingertip using fire magic to let it simmer . Having done that, the distilled liquor started trickling down from the spout so I took a flagon that I washed and dried to store it .
The amount that came out was only a little .
ăThinking about itâs original alcohol content, it should be about this much I guessăŒă
While I was talking to myself, I checked its flavor and aroma . So this is pure alcohol⊠The taste is a bit strong and it has an intense aroma as well . If I dilute it with distilled water and age it in a barrel, I made this from wine so would it turn into brandy? I donât have a lot though .
The village chief, the occhan from the trinket shop and the bartender . For now itâll have to be enough for these three .
I got the three of them to gather at the tavern to try the new drink .
ăThis one is made from heating wine and letting the alcohol condense . I only got one bottleâs worth but itâs quite strong so please be carefulă *Cough cough* ăItâs quite strongă ăHnăŒ hot, or should I say, it hurts . But itâs not like I canât drink ită ăItâs spicy isnât it . And that sensation also persists inside the mouthă
They all had different reactions .
ăIf you put this inside a barrel and leave it be for at least a year, its aroma and taste would change so it would be easier to drink . You can also dilute it with water or drink it by adding lemon and sugară
I was originally going put this in a barrel after adding distilled water to it but I probably wonât succeeded with just my skill level and knowledge so I just gave up .
ăYou can also skip the barrel and put this straight into a bottle since I think it would taste just as good if you mix in fruit juices before drinking it . Or you can just drink it as is I guessă ăI came since I was lured by the scent of strong sake butâŠâŠ Itâs quite delicious even though itâs still being refined . Even dragonkins havenât produced sake this strong . I donât mind making a personal investment into it if itâs like this so tell me more about ită
When we looked back, schoolâs headmaster was there . I just wish that the older members villagers would stop walking around while erasing their presence . He just immediately brought up something quite amazing as well .
ăErăŒ, we will have to make something like this thatâs as tall as those two-story buildings in town . Weâll also have to make a building that would fit thată
Then, I started thoroughly explaining the process to him .
ăIf you heat sake, only the alcoholic part of it would get pulled out!? Why havenât our clan come up with such a simple thing up until now!? If it turns out well, I should bring some to my friends at my hometown!ă
The princ.i.p.al became really excited .
ăItâs almost time for harvesting so thatâs why we should use all of remaining wheat from last year for distillation!ă
The princ.i.p.al who has a childish appearance started going wild .
ăWe can drink this as early as next year, right? We donât need to age it!ă(Headmaster)
I tried saying something but he wasnât listening .
ăNever mind that! Iâll bring a single barrel to the guys from my village to let them know of this beforehand and then let them have the aged product next year! This is for the sake of spreading knowledge, technology and the development of sake! Rather, if we donât produce a lot more this year, there wonât be enough for next year as well! Iâm certain of that!ă
Youâre going to be âsamplingâ it a lot, arenât you?
ăWhat are you going to do about school then!ă ăEven without me, the school would continue to function! I only started the school as a hobby so it would be fine if Iâm not there for a while . Theyâll be able to manage for about two monthsă
Or so he a.s.serted . So thatâs why we donât need to pay tuition . Was that the reason why I was reincarnated here in this place?
But still, this tiny and cute ossan was the type who doesnât stop once he starts running wild, huh . Even though he was pretty decent when he was still acting as a headmasterâŠ
When it comes to the members schoolâs staff, the only normal one is Moore-san who has practical experience in leadership . Fig-sensei turns into deplorable beauty whenever she starts drinking . Birke-sensei can only move in pots with her branches on it while her a.s.sistant, Gaike-chan is a mandrake . Tryapka-san usually runs out of control when it comes to SpeckâŠâŠ Well, I just got used to her I guess . Iâve already stopped worrying about it .
The number of people coming to the distillery to monitor it would just continue to increase . Thereâs a huge possibility that they would come to distill their own sake at their convenience . The possibility of them coming to âtasteâ it isnât that low as well .
While saying, âWeâre just going to sample the tasteâ they would come to drink it everyday . At that rate, itâs possible that the barrels would go empty .
ăHeadmaster, if weâre aging these sake, how long would we have to wait in order for it to become delicious? Unlike beer, it tastes better the older it gets, right?ă
I tried changing the topic .
ăMuâŠâŠ Then, we should place them at the very back of the precious cellar without opening it for four hundred seasons . We still need to make money so how about just putting three barrels in thereă ăThere wouldnât be any sake inside if we leave it be for that long . I think letting ten end of the year festivals pa.s.s would be good enoughă
I might have just made it worse by saying that since heâs part of a long-lived raceâŠâŠ
After that, the princ.i.p.alâs funds, enthusiasm and love for sake converged so we able to finished making a still and construct the villageâs distillery . We attaching the name of the village to it so the drink called ăBeryl Sakeă started to be sold on the market . People from various towns and villages started coming to us in order to train under our craftsmen and learn their techniques .
Taverns named ăBerylă were built in those towns and villages and different kinds of distilled liquor started emerging . Of course, the ingredients were different as well as the taste so those who loved drinking started barhopping in order to try those outâŠbut that is a story for another time .
The princ.i.p.al set out a few days before the harvest festival . Even though there were concerns about the time it would take to complete the harvest because of the expansion, we were able to finish without any particular delays .
We were fortunate that there were a lot of people who can reasonably use magic among our new immigrants . I think it would be a waste not to teach techniques that could be taught . I think it would be better if such technology would spread out to other villages and towns .
While we were busy preparing for the harvest festival, the headmaster came back along with several other people .
ăHey, Caam-kun . These guys are fellow dragonkin but theyâre still just immature kids . Theyâre here to learn distillation techniques so could you teach them?ă ăăăWeâll be in your careăăă
The three women came over and politely bowed their heads . Iâm relieved to see that they arenât arrogant . They had a really prideful image in my previous life so I thought they would say something like,ăThe one whoâll be teaching us is this lowly human?ă
It really is bad having preconceptions, isnât it? Incidentally, while they were bowing their heads, the b.r.e.a.s.t.s of two of them started to jiggle .
The other guys in the area were excited but I just replied,
ăI look forward to working with you as wellă
I shouldnât stop acting like a gentleman just because of that, right? Later, I was sent flying by a magnificent body blow from Suzuran since she found out that I looked at their b.r.e.a.s.t.s .
By the way, he said that they were young but they were taller compared to the headmaster . Or rather, no matter how you look at him, you wonât be able to see the headmaster as anything other than a kid . What a strange race .
For generations, it seems like the task of making sake was left to the women of the dragonkin . If I remember correctly, in my previous life, wine used to be made by having someone stomp on the grapes . It seems like that job was usually a.s.signed to beautiful women . Having rough men stomping on grapes to make wine is somewhatâŠâŠ Men of that time probably had fungus in their feet as well . Even if they somehow removed all traces of that, I still wonât feel like drinking it . If I think of it like that, it would be natural to let the women be the one to stomp on the grapes . Even in j.a.pan, shrine maidens were the one tasked to chew on rice when making sake .
After giving them a brief explanation, I showed them the miniature model of the still that was made earlier . That was all we did for now so while they were under training, they will be staying at vacant houses . It seems like theyâll only be staying here for a few days after the harvest festival .
This yearâs harvest festival was rough .
The new villagers started drinking without reserve . The sake wasnât aged and they didnât even dilute it so they were drinking pure alcohol .
ăWeâll still be fine if itâs only this much! Arenât you going to drink too?ă
One guy who was getting carried away said was influencing everyone around him to drink . Everyone started drinking the hard liquor like usual even though they were supposed to squeeze fruit juices into it to tone down the alcohol levels .
Even the women were drinking it as well so all of the adults ended up really drunk as expected .
The girls that the headmaster brought along drank it straight as well .
ăSo you could also drink it as isâŠă ăIâd like it more of it had even more kickă ăIt would be nice if it was sweet as well, right?ă
As they were exchanging their opinions while drinking, a drunkard interrupted them . He was about to rub their b.r.e.a.s.t.s when they turned the tables on him and held him down .
ăThat hurts! Still, itâs nice to feel b.r.e.a.s.t.s. .h.i.tting against my back!ă
Since I was no longer able to stop the other guests from drinking, I just left them to the other guys who werenât that drunk . The men were looking forward to seeing those things jiggle so they kept making pa.s.ses at the dragonkin girls . Just looking at it is already a sight for sore eyes, right?
Suzuran was also drinking like usual but the air around her is a bit strange . She has those glazed eyes like but she didnât care about her disheveled clothes and was indifferent towards the meat sheâs eating .
Aa-ah, her mouthâs dirty now . I guess Iâll have to go there and wipe her face later . It was already too late for the three idiots since they were already wasted . At least they havenât vomited all over the place yet .
Mir was considerably drunk as well since sheâs laughing while forcing Sc.h.i.n.ken to drink even more . Stop it! Heâs going to die!
Kuchinashi was in a similar state and kept on pressing her chest against Wurst . As she was doing that, he was starting to be crushed by her b.r.e.a.s.t.s . Kuchinashiâs surprisingly big, isnât she? I can say that since I was hugged by her before .
Tryapka-san took it to the extreme since she started attacking Speck in public . Still, it would be problematic if they do the act in a public area . The surrounding womenâs faces were dyed in red seeing a cute boy being undressed . I was just silently observing at first but once a s.p.a.ce started to opened up, I went in and stopped it .
I received a few jeers for that but I couldnât let a friend get attacked while I just stand there and watch so I just ignored everybody else besides those two . Theyâre probably on route to Tryapka-sanâs house right now .
ăThat guyâs a girl desuăăAn ikimen with b.r.e.a.s.t.să
They were definitely referring to Granade when they said that . I though that it fits though since she was drinking enthusiastically . No oneâs getting close to her since sheâs scary . Even I donât even know what Iâll do if I get mixed up with her . The image of her stabbing the lump of meat and eating it is more frightening than seeing an actual bandit doing it .
ăCaam again, huhă ăMy sonâs amazing, right!ă ăSo Caam was the one who came up with thisă ăThis will be the villageâs specialty productâŠă
Thatâs what the adults were saying but Iâve heard that same conversation four times already . Since theyâve been repeating the same lines over and over again, I wonder if the alcohol started getting into their heads . They should really stop drinking soon because theyâll die .
Since it would be quite problematic if they died,
ăItâs just iced water but you drunkards should drink thisă
I said that while bringing a pitcher filled with water but when they heard that, they said
ăCold is good too!ă ăThatâs right!ă ăShould we also put a bit of lemon in it?ă
and started drinking watered down alcohol . These adults are no good .
While I was looking after everyone to some extent, I started a conversation with the three dragonkin women .
ăWere you somehow able to understand the method of making distilled liquor?ă ăYes, thanks to you . The only issue now is with the still since itâs difficult to find someone who can make something that big . Even though we already have that one barrel, that wouldnât be enough since that drink has already become the favorite of everyone from our race . Weâll just have to ask the chiefâs acquaintance blacksmith so that it would no longer be a problemă ăIt seems like Occhan from this villageâs trinket shop has a bit of dwarf blood in his veins but he said it was still impossible for him to make that alone . He had to hire a lot of help just to complete one that big . Once the still has been made, next would be to decide whether to make sake from grains or potatoes . What kind of area do you guys live in?ă ăWe live in the mountains desu . We can find wheat once we descend from the mountains but since thereâs a lot of snow during winter, the soil becomes sterile so tubers are prevalent . We also raise a small quant.i.ty of buckwheată ăWell, thatâs alright since it would still become sake once you ferment it . It would become somewhat tasteless or the flavor would be a bit different but it would still be distilled liquor in the end . I just donât know what would happen if you blend it since I havenât done it yetă
They would be making Imo Jochu or Soba Shochu I guess .
ăAre there no other ways of making it?ă ăI tried steeping different fruits and spices into the finished liquor to try and add flavor However, you should store the liquor in bottles or jars at that time to preserve the aroma since it will probably just permeate through if you use barrels . You may also steep herbs and spices that are good for the body into the liquor to turn it into medicinal alcohol . It would still cause adverse effects if you drink too much thoughă
Everybody laughed as I said that .
In my previous life, they would put peppers, herbs and even a whole apple into the bottles . There were also those brown bottles with spices that were good for the body or natural remedies in them .
Wouldnât it be good for the body if you drink too much? Back when it was still advertised as an elixir of life, they would put things that were good for the body in the alcohol . In order to get rid of the taste, they started sweetening it . I guess that was when they started calling it liqueur . Well, the manufacturing method of alcohol hasnât really spread out at that time so I think that it was good that the variations of alcohol in that region increased .
AhăŒ, that just made me want to drink j.a.panese Liquor . I would need rice to make that but I still havenât seen any paddy fields in this area . I want to drink Umeshu as well .
As we were getting even deeper into our conversation, Suzuran suddenly barged into the middle of it with a face that didnât look amused . She then sat next to me and hugged my arm .
ăAra ara, it seems like sheâs jealous . You donât have to worry, Ojou-san, weâre not going to steal himă
She said that with a big smile but Suzuran still remained vigilant . It seems like she was glancing at her chest . Iâm not that fussy when it comes to b.r.e.a.s.t.s though .
Noticing her gaze, the dragonkin girl said,
ăAra, are you interested in my b.r.e.a.s.t.s?ă
She touched them with both hands as she said that and proceeded to jiggle them . What a sight . Thank you for the meal .
ăHow to make it bigger? Could not make mine bigger no matter whată
Suzuran started rubbing the sides of her chest . So she had a complex with that . A girl who is worried about her small chest is cute too .
ăI didnât do anything in particular, you know?ă ăThatâs right . Before I noticed it, they were already like thată ăUmu, Iâm bigger than everybody else but I also didnât do anything in particular . I tried making them smaller instead but stopped since I was worried that milk wouldnât come out once I gave birthă
The one with the smallest chest among them said,
ăIt may be small but thereâs nothing wrong with that . ă
She said that as a follow-up but, even though she may be small, Iâm certain that sheâs still bigger compared to Suzuran . It doesnât really sound persuasive when someone whoâs even bigger than you says that .
As the five of us continued drinking, one of them asked .
ăCaam-san is strong with alcohol, isnât he?ă ăWell, thatâs because I have level 2 poison resistanceăis not how I replied .
ăSkillă»Poison Resistance: 3ăacquired .
Itâs been a while since one of my skills just randomly leveled up . I was given this ability that lets me more or less easily increase the level of my skillsâŠor at least thatâs what I was told before I reincarnated but I feel like I lost something instead . I felt like G.o.d just hurriedly pressed some b.u.t.tons without giving any thought to it while increase my abilities . I wonder if thatâs just my imagination?
Then, the slender one of the three suddenly asked .
ăAre you guys a couple?ă
It was so sudden that I almost choked on my sake just as it entered my throat .
ăWell, weâre more or less like that but we still donât have plans to have kids, you know? I donât even have stable source of income . I donât want us to go hungry so I want to at least earnăŒă ăHow naive! Women donât care about those things because they would want to have the child of the person they love as soon as they cană
I was interrupted while I was still in the middle of saying something .
ăSheâs right, you knowăŒ This village is abundant when it comes to food so itâs fine if you just take it one step at a time and thinking about then when that time comesă ăUmu, I also donât mind that as well . Or rather, even though the girl wants it, this guy is quite slow on the uptake . The ojou-san over hereâs starting to look pitiableă
What? Are all the dragonkins this bold? I couldnât imagine myself doing such a thing .
Because she suddenly said something in a loud voice, everyone else started looking at us . Anybody would look if they hear someone saying things like âmaking childrenâ and âwanting kidsâ .
ăNo, well, Iâve been thinking about finding work in town once I graduate from school . I want money for sure but Iâm not that skillful when it comes to making things thatâs why Iâve been thinking about studying a lot of things . When we went to town the other day, I tried checking the adventurerâs guildâs day laborer jobs . Repairing the outer gate, making bricks, there were a lot of things there . When making wells, I can deal with it using magic . Only the digging part though, Iâll have to leave reinforcing the well with stones to other people since I donât know how to do it . What would you think of an adult in that situation? Thatâs what Iâve been considering . We should be able to do a lot of things since weâre still kids after all . Thatâs why even though I feel bad for Suzuranâs I want her to wait for a bit . ă
I received slightly harsh remarks from the dragonkin girls after that but the worst one of them all was,
ăTo prevent affairs, you should go and make a child . Even if the parent isnât there, kids would still grow up . Itâs already enough so only having the mother there would suffice . Thereâs a chance that men would die when they go into battle thatâs why you should go ahead and make children . It would be sad for the ojou-san if you donâtă ăUmu, itâs as she said . I think itâs better if you form a child firstă
That would have been unthinkable in my previous life, you knowăŒ . You see, if you say things like that, Suzuranâs going to feel like doing it . AhăŒ, d.a.m.n it . Her eyes have already started looking like sheâs hunting for prey .
And besides, I absolutely donât want to her to turn into a single mother . You often hear those stories about couples who donât use protection separating once a they make a child, right . I really want you to spare me from that .
Wurst and Sc.h.i.n.ken went, âIs that true?â, and asked their respective partners . Seriously, please give me a break .
ăNo, wellăŒ, I believe that it would depend on the race . I think itâs better to make a child if you partner has went through all that trouble and still came back . I mean, a child would definitely be better off having a father, right?ă ăWhat would you do if you died? The ojou-san would be sad, you know?ă ăUmu . We can say this since weâre women but even if the man dies, we would be happier if we could at least have a child as a keepsake from them . Thatâs why you should go ahead and make themă ăNo . The neighboring town is just half a day away and the monsters that come out of the highway are only around the level of goblins . Thatâs why I can still return home on a regular basis, you know?ă
We each had point that we wouldnât concede . Is this because of the difference in race? Or rather, my opinions are based on the norm of my previous lifeâŠâŠ I might have said something strange earlier . Suzuran who was staring at me looks happy . Everyone around us started whistling .
Iâll just ignore them .
ăWell then, that being the case, the woman has already consented . If thatâs what will make the ojou-san happy⊠Or rather, if ever I hear word about you dying, Iâm going to find your dead body and kick it, okay?ă
Iâm not sure whether thatâs good or bad thing . Is it really alright for her to kick a dead body just like that? Well, I guess you could say that our interaction with another race after induction course reached the point where we could be frank around each other .
After our conversation was over, Suzuran seized my arm and forcefully dragged me back home . While I was being dragged against my will,
ăThe ojou-san sure is strong, isnât she?ă ăI agree . Women arenât usually that strong-willed so⊠do you best, ojou-sană ăTo her happinessăŒă
Was what I heard . Theyâre really cheering for Suzuran, arenât they?
Regarding what happened next, she was also gentle this time even though we havenât done it for a while . My manhood was somehow saved because of that . I wonder if what happened last winter was effective . Well, since I have this chance, I wonder if I should increase the number of times we do it . Is the overbearing girl without b.r.e.a.s.t.s next to me that I should be consulting this about already asleep?
ăSkillă»Charm Resistance: 3ăacquired .
Do these skills easily go up during festivals because the G.o.ds are watching?
ăWe wonât look while youâre doing the act, you knowăŒă
Is what they said but that sounded fishy . Iâm going to interrogate them the next time I go to that room .
A certain new villager asked,
ăHey, why wonât they just go home if theyâre already drunk?ă ăWell, itâs for âthatâ . Theyâre being considerate of the children of marriageable age so they donât go home during festival daysă ăWait, you mean theyâre getting it on at home right now?ă ăI guess so . The village has gotten a lot bigger these days but it used to be small . Where would the children do that act? Thereâs no place here intended for that . It was a small village so there were no inns . Even if there were, they would easily get discovered, right? Thatâs why the adults donât go home until morning . Thatâs what happened during my time and weâll continue doing so from now onă
Wringing a fruit into his liquor, he drank it while having a reminiscent look .
ăThey can just use the left over rent houses these days but, well, they would have to clean the stains themselves thoughă ăSo thatâs why . Iâm just following their customs over here but I still havenât heard all the minor details so I didnât know . Iâve been staying in town for a long time now so Iâm used to having loverâs inns for that kind of thing . I donât have a partner for that right now thoughă
The man laughed as he gulped down all of his sake in one go . Seeing that, a woman nearby came and poured sake into his empty cup and tapped the shoulder of the person that the man was talking to . Reading the mood, he vacated his seat so that the woman could take his place .
It seems like the woman had already thought that the man wasnât that bad from the start so it didnât take that long for the two of them to leave together .