<b>Bear-san Guides Deiga-san, Part 1</b>
Today, Fina dragged me out of the house.
When I was lounging around in my room, she said to me, âYouâll turn into a fat bear, just like a real fat bearâ.
Bears are not fat. They are just big.
Swaying Bear and Hugging Bear also squeaked âKuhn!â as if to protest.
However, as Fina said, it was not good for our health to remain cooped in the room for extended periods of time.
It was a ha.s.sle, but I couldnât disobey Fina, so she took me for a walk around town.
âOh, by the way, did you know that Sh.e.l.ly had a stuffed animal repair shop in the town square?â (Yuna)
âSh.e.l.lyâs stuffed animal repair shop? I knew about that because my mom had informed me about it. For a couple of occasions, my mom had asked me to bring her lunch, and so I did.â (Fina)
âI see. You could have informed me.â (Yuna)
âSherry-chan told me to keep it quiet from everyone because it was embarra.s.sing for her.â (Fina)
Then I guess it couldnât be helped.
Finaâs personality wouldnât allow her to refuse if asked to keep something secret. Above all, Fina was a girl who kept her word. She also protected my secret.
So, I did not press her on the matter any further.
âFina is very kind.â (Yuna)
I said softly, and she looked embarra.s.sed.
Then while we were walking around the townâŠ
âHuh, Yuna Onee-chan, isnât that Deiga-san over there?â (Fina)
Fina pointed to the front.
A large, muscular man was looking at a restaurant from the outside.
âItâs true, itâs Deiga-san.â (Yuna)
Deiga-san was Anzuâs father, who ran an inn in the town of Mileela, a man who had helped us many times while we were in Mileela.
âDid Anzu tell you that Deiga-san is coming?â (Yuna)
If Anzu knew that Deiga-san was coming, she would have told Tirumina-san about it and then Tirumina-san would have told Fina about it.
If Fina did not know about it, Tirumina-san might not know about it.
âOh what. What is it?â (Deiga)
Deiga-san was surprised when I called out to him from behind.
âIf it isnât the Bear Girl? What are you doing here?â (Deiga)
âThatâs my line. Why are you here in Crimonia, Deiga-san?â (Yuna)
âI came to check on Anzu.â (Deiga)
Well, thatâs the only reason I could think of as well for Deiga-san to be in Crimonia.
âI understand why, but does Anzu know about your arrival? I havenât heard about it from Anzu.â (Yuna)
She might have just forgotten to remind me because Iâve been away from Crimonia for a while, but Fina didnât know about it either.
Anzu would have told Tirumina-san that Deiga-san was coming. If she had, Tirumina-san would have inevitably told Fina as well, unless she was specifically instructed not to divulge.
âNo, I didnât inform Anzu.â (Deiga)
âBecause she might be annoyed if she knew I was coming.â (Deiga)
What was he saying? This muscle dude.
Maybe even his brain has only muscles in it.
A daughter who respected and loved her father at Anzuâs age was a rare occurrence.
I learned this from TV and the internet, but Iâve heard that people around Anzuâs age dislike the idea of being close with her father to the point of treating him like an intruder when heâs home on holidays.
Well, my father was rarely home and did his own stuff. When he was home, he was locked in his room.
Although my knowledge on parent-children relations.h.i.+ps might just be skewed.
There might be a difference in my and the publicâs view of things.
But I knew that Anzu loved her father Deiga-sanâs cooking and enjoyed cooking with him.
Anzu would not be annoyed if Deiga-san wanted to come to Crimonia. In fact, I think she would be delighted.
âDeiga-san, Anzu respects you as her father, and she wonât be embarra.s.sed if you want to visit Crimonia to see her. Besides, if I had known that Deiga-san was going to visit, I would have adjusted the storeâs vacation schedule so Anzu could have time to see you.â (Yuna)
If I had been informed about this, making as much time as possible for them to be together would have been possible.
âNo, I canât bother you, Missy, by closing the store or anything like that.â (Deiga)
âIâm grateful to Anzu, so let me at least do that.â (Yuna)
âHmm, Anzu must really be working at a nice place.â (Deiga)
It would be nice if you thought so.
âWell then, let me show you around Anzuâs store.â (Yuna)
âYes, please.â (Deiga)
We walked toward Anzuâs place.
âLong time no see, Fina!â (Deiga)
Deiga-san called out to Fina, who was standing next to me.
âYes, itâs been a while.â (Fina)
âHow was my daughter Anzu?â (Deiga)
âShe is busy cooking every day.â (Fina)
âSo there are customers at the restaurant?â (Deiga)
âYes, itâs a very popular restaurant.â (Fina)
Deiga-san was pleased with Finaâs words.
âIf there were no customers, I would have thought about training her again, but it looks like sheâs doing okay.â (Deiga)
âSpeaking of guests, is everything okay at your Inn?â (Yuna)
More and more people were coming to Mileela from Crimonia and other towns. The Inn must have been busy with people visiting.
âIâve left it to my wife and son. They canât cook as well as I can, but it wonât be a problem. Also, Iâve got someone I know helping them while Iâm away.â (Deiga)
Your son was a fisherman, right?
So it was easy for Deiga-san to look for a helper to help at the Inn when he needed some time to go somewhereâŠ
Well, if he had the connections to help him, then I see no problem with him being away for some time.
âBut Iâm surprised your wife let you do that.â (Yuna)
âWhen I was worried about Anzu, she kicked me out and told me to go check her place out.â (Deiga)
I see, your wife is a strong character.
âItâs a very crowded and lively town by the way.â (Deiga)
Deiga-san said as he looked around.
But this was just a recent phenomenon.
When I first came to Crimonia, there were fewer people.
âMileela is also attracting more and more people, right?â (Yuna)
âYes, more people are moving into town, and houses are starting to be built in those pioneer areas.â (Deiga)
The forest between the tunnel and the town had been cleared, and Inns and stores had been built.
Still, there was a surplus of cleared land, and apparently, new houses were being built there.
Incidentally, I had a large bear house that stood on a prime piece of land in one of the sections.
There was a straight road to the beach, so it was easy to go swimming. Moreover, no other buildings were around my Bear House, so the view was nice.
I have heard that the residents of Mileela were trying not to bother with my house.
Well, as long as nothing was built in front of my house, I wouldnât mind if they built something next to my house.
âIt is strange, however, that it has become so easy to reach Crimonia.â
Thanks to a tunnel named Bear Tunnel, Crimonia and Mileela could be reached by dusk, if everything went well, and if they left before dawn.
But the time now was just before noon.
âDeiga-san, when did you arrive in Crimonia?â (Yuna)
âYesterday. So I stayed at an Inn and was walking around town before going to Anzuâs store when I was approached by you guys.â (Deiga)
âWhat Inn did you stay at?â (Yuna)
Cliff told me that more and more people these days could not afford to stay at inns. Thatâs why he planned to make that haunted mansion a new inn.
âOh, thatâs okay, I took a horse-drawn carriage to Crimonia that included accommodations at an Inn.â (Deiga)
He went on to explain that pa.s.senger carriages and innkeepers have joined hands to arrange lodging along with their carriage trip. When those carriages arrive in Crimonia, the pa.s.sengers wonât be troubled looking for accommodations.
However, he said that accommodation was only for one night.
After that, guests would be left to their own devices to find a new stay.
Well, I think it was a good system because I think it would be difficult to find a place to stay after reaching Crimonia in the evening.
âSo, where are you going to stay today?â (Yuna)
âI havenât decided yet. I was going to stay at the same inn, but they didnât seem to have any rooms available. So Iâve been walking around town looking for a place to stay.â (Deiga)
âThen why donât you stay at Anzuâs place.â (Yuna)
âWouldnât she hate it if I went over there out of the blue?â (Deiga)
Everyone at that place was good friends with Anzu, and I knew they wouldnât mind.
If she said, âI donât like the idea of my father staying over,â a different plan could be arranged.
Besides, there were other young women besides Anzu who were also living in the store.
The Bearâs Lounge also had rooms available, but as expected, it was difficult to arrange because Morin and her family were living there.
Even if I put that aside, there was also the orphanage with rooms available, and I could ask them to let Deiga-san stay there for a bit.
Well, worst-case scenario, there were vacant rooms at my Bear House as well.
âIâll help you find you a place to stay then.â (Yuna)
âThat would be helpful.â (Deiga)
We arrived at Anzuâs store.
âThe Bear has a fish. Did you make it?â (Deiga)
Large bear figurines were on either side of the entrance to the store. The bears were holding a fish.
âAnzu and the others asked me to make it for them.â (Yuna)
I did not take the initiative in making it.
Deiga-san peeked around the store, hiding behind the bear figurine.
âUncle Deiga, what are you doing?â (Fina)
Fina questioned Deiga-sanâs behavior.
I wanted to ask him too, so I was glad Fina did.
âIâm just trying to figure out whatâs going on in the storeâŠâ (Deiga)
âWhy donât you just go inside?â (Fina)
He was a big man, but a little bit of a coward when it was about his daughter.
âIâm sure big sis Anzu would love to meet Uncle Deiga too.â (Fina)
Fina also provided support.
Fina and I dragged Deiga-san inside the store as Deiga-san was unable to shake me and Fina off.
Seno-san, who came from Mileela with Anzu, stopped moving as soon as we entered the store.
âYuna-chan, Fina-chan, and Uncle Deiga!â (Seno)
Senoâs words startled the other girls, who were also in the store.
âAnzu-chan! Your Dad, Uncle Deiga is here!â (Seno)
âOh jeez, Seno-san. There is no way my father would be hereâŠâ (Anzu)
Anzu peeked out from the kitchen in the back and froze.
âYo, I came to see how youâre doing.â (Deiga)
For the first time in a long time, father and daughter met face to face.
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