The buildings changed from stone to wood, progressively looking more and more squalid as we proceeded deeper… Hey, Another World! Are you perhaps looking down on wooden construction? What’s up with this treatment of wooden buildings? Is stone that great, huh? Why is wood somehow treated as a material of poor people?! Good grief, that’s why this world is no good. It seems to have no understanding of oriental esthetics and construction techniques. By the most modest estimations, it’s 3,000 years too early for them to challenge wooden constructions with such architecture, no different than a pile of rocks stacked up on top of each other. In 5,000 years they might have a chance? Nonono, even in historical terms it’s…
「Heey, Haruka-kuun. I told you that you can’t remodel the Capital as you please, didn’t I? Somehow, the townscape is turning into something like traditional temple architecture, just what are you trying to do? Or rather, actually doing? Importing Buddhism? Also, I have no idea what you are up to, but why are you building a five-storied pagoda with your mana fully leaking while we are infiltrating enemy territory? You do realize this is another world? Others will mistake this for a Kyoto sightseeing tour, you know?」
Looks like I’ve gone and accidentally did it. Well, now even denizens of this world will comprehend the beauty of oriental architecture and sophistication of wooden construction. The place looks a lot better after all?
「「「The slums now look as if millionaires live here? We couldn’t go on the field trip, but is this a fake Kyoto?」」」
I mean, it’s vexing that people would consider those miserable shacks to be examples of wooden architecture. I had to properly demonstrate the splendor of wooden architecture here. But unfortunately, it’s not a fake Kyoto? I mean, there are no geishas or dancing girls! Every highschool boy is attending school believing that one day he will kya~kya~ ufufu with geishas or dancers during the school trip! Don’t just go and summon people to another world before the trip! And if you do, at least send some geishas along as well! I’ll be sure to treat them well? Like, I bid you welcome? Sincerely?
No one showed up.
「Somehow, the slums look more extravagant than the rest of the city? The nobles district over there looks like some ordinary stones?」
「The warmth of wooden buildings? The comforting feel of it? I was admiring European-style but there is a special familiarity to this.」
「Yeah, the Royal Palace is doing its best… But even Nigatsu Hall of Todai Temple was erected here～」 [2]
「That district looks poorer! It began resembling piles of rocks crudely stacked on top of each other! Are we going to distribute emergency rations to those pitiful nobles too?」
A favorable reception from modern-day school girls too. But with the area being as level ground as it is, Kiyomizu Temple [3] would be impossible to pull off. As a fire prevention measure I also added some stone walls too. These should allow for way more comfortable livelihood than stone-made dwellings. How dare the likes of this world look down on the modern-day Orient? Go and sit in stone buildings, getting steamed and frozen!
With this, the nobles so proud of their aristocratic district will feel ashamed and behave more quietly. The sight of nobles, who originally were supposed to serve the people and help them in times of need, living in luxury right beside the slums is an eyesore, you know? But now they won’t be able to act so arrogant. Even if they say anything, replying with『haha, this guy lives in some stones, isn’t he just a beggar golem?』will probably send them running back in tears. Well, I also would feel bad if they were bullied because of this, so let’s distribute some Frontier Wooden Swords as well. Their performance might not be top tier, but it would be a problem if being too powerful they turned the place like that town of clubs. I’m sure both gobs and kobolds are troubled by that town. That’s one place one wouldn’t want to attack.
「……And so, a certain someone arbitrarily remodeled the place, and also took a permit to set up a store in the capital along the way. We are moving, but since there is no baggage we only have to walk there. I’m sure everyone has forgotten, but this is still more or less enemy territory, alright? The poor capital officials gave passage permits and operation licenses for everyone in a blank daze, so there is no issue, but since the most problematic walking issue of a person is with us, we should watch out… Which surely wouldn’t do anything, it never had any effect at all, but let’s still try to take care, okay?」
And heading to the orphanage marked on the map, well, poor orphanages are a staple of isekai stories, helping which earns one the gratitude of a pretty young lady watching over it, which she then would passionately express through this and that and also that, but even so, isn’t it way too run-down? Decaying wooden ruins with various spots covered by tattered rags, in a way, it’s actually impressive that they managed to keep it from collapsing, which borders on being a miracle with how decrepit it is?
A swarm of little kids poured out of the building, however, all of them malnourished and wearing tattered clothes, or rather, actual rags? Eh? Matching outfits with me? No no! Their clothes weren’t black by design, they darkened with time, and with holes here and there from being so worn out, they are now pitch black.
「「「「Haruka-kun, please. We’ll pay from our salaries! Please, these kids… These kids…」」」」
The pres and the others burst into tears. Well, this world has many western-style beauties, which makes it even more painful to watch. I mean, that little girl with unkempt blonde hair and dirty face has the features of an angel from paintings, that dirty urchin with red hair, would be annoyingly good-looking once his soot-smeared face is washed and hair combed. But they are dressed in terrible dirty rags, living in derelict rubble that might collapse at any moment. That’s why the girls are crying from the shock. Even back at the Frontier, as poor as it was, it wasn’t like this. As worn out or poor things might have been, it still was tidy and orderly, everyone was helping each other. The first thing that Meripapa-san asked for, despite the dire lack in money, was a splendid orphanage. Back at the Frontier, everyone, be it an orphan, a wounded, or sick, everyone desperately did their best to help each other.
But this place is abandoned. These kids are abandoned.
Royal Girl said that this place is operating with donations from the royal family, which makes me really curious exactly which part of this had any money spent on it? Royal family is donating money, but this place is supposedly under the jurisdiction of the aristocratic district, and customs seem to prevent the royal family from interfering with it. That’s why Royal Girl hadn’t visited this place, and only somehow managed to draw a map. I wish I could show her this sight. And I also really wish she would kindly introduce the nobles involved with this to me. I would like to implore a thorough and detailed explanation of where and how much of the donations were used on this abandoned wreck of a building, tattered rags of clothes, and malnourished kids.
But for now, let’s take care of the orphanage first. It’s not too late to turn the aristocratic district into a hellish district after that. The streets built with the money donated to this miserable shack can wait. They can wait, but they cannot hope. But first, the orphanage. The orphans come before that.
[TL Notes:
[2] Nigatsu-dō (Japanese: 二月堂 lit. ’The Hall of the Second Month’) is one of the important structures of Tōdai-ji, a temple in Nara. It includes several other buildings in addition to the specific hall named Nigatsu-dō, thus comprising its own sub-complex within Tōdai-ji. The current main hall of Nigatsu-dō is a designated National Treasure.
[3] Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺, Kiyomizu Temple, “Pure Water Monastery”) is a Buddhist temple located in eastern Kyoto, Japan. The temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities) UNESCO World Heritage site.
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