After enjoying the Kagura-style dish in the Tsubaki no Ma, we walked down into the hallway to return to our own room.

  I thought that maybe we will actually continue the banquet until late into the night, but I heard they’re going to be busy working from tomorrow so they drink the sake in moderation and the party ended early.

  I thought that the people who had too much drink will appear one after another, but I guess they perfectly understand what they’re doing here. Indeed, when it comes to a large firm the employees are different. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  Apart from Roomba - who doesn’t get drunk no matter how much he drinks -, it seems that even Irvine and Mort are drinking moderately which was surprising.

  Noone ended up dead drunk, the employees returned to their room in succession from the Tsubaki no Ma.

  「Ahー, that was delicious!」


  「Yeah, that’s right. If the meal is so tasty then I look forward to every meal after this.」


  I nodded to Irvine and Mort’s words. I completely agree with them.

  When I taste the dish from a while ago, it made me also look forward to tomorrow’s breakfast and dinner. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  And perhaps it’s because it tastes familiar, what’s with the soy sauce and miso, it calms me down when I eat them.

  Japanese food is made by utilizing the taste of the ingredients itself and it tends to give special attention to the season for the ingredients, it might unexpectedly be a cuisine that suits Bartolo - who tries to make the best use of the ingredients themselves.

  But despite that, it’s quite different from the recipe that I am familiar with until now, such as bringing out the sweetness of the dish using salt, or using dashi, though I won’t object to it.

  I wonder if the menu for tomorrow’s breakfast is going to be miso soup, salt-grilled fish, omelet, and rice.

  As I took the stairs to the second floor while imagining the menu for tomorrow, the beautiful women are waving their hands and said their goodnight.

  I wonder if the women are having their girl’s talk while lying down on the floor above? So envious.

  I don’t need such a wide room for myself, I also want to join them over there.

  There are only dirty guys on this floor.

  As I see the women wearing Kagura clothes went upstairs, Aleutia and Ilya move to the stairs.

  「Well then, you guys be a good boy, alright? I will beat you up if you went up these stairs, okay?」


  「I won’t. Just go to bed already.」


  Irvine coldly answered Aleutia’s remark.

  「Also, Alfried-sama can’t go up either, alright!」


  When Aleutia leaves that remark at the end, she turns around as her hair flutters and disappeared upstairs. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  Maybe it’s because of the matter of mixed bathing before, I was also warned. I’m being treated the same as Irvine and Mort for some reason, I don’t like it.

  「Ahahaha. Well then, good night.」


  Ilya followed behind Aleutia as she waved her hand while giving a wry smile.

  The women wearing gorgeous kimonos are now gone, and there are now only guys on the second floor.

  「……oi, Al. Let’s go.」


  Irvine put his hand on my shoulder *pon* and muttered.

  「No but, we can’t go to the third floor, you know?」


  「No, that’s not it. Even I’m not stupid enough to do that you know.」


  I feel skeptical that Irvine is not stupid. I think that this guy is an idiot who is capable of doing anything.

  「Ow ow ow!」


  When I look slightly doubtful, Irvine put more strength in the hand that was on my shoulder, so I decided to not mind it any further.

  I wonder where would Irvine - who was so true to his instinct - go if not to the third floor?

  When I was having a strange expression on my face, Mort bends his knees and lined his eye to match mine. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  「When you’re talking about the thing you have to do at night in a ryokan, there’s only one thing, right?」


  「What?」


  「「「Pillow fight!」」」


  ◆ ◆ ◆


  I was brought by Irvine, Mort, and Roomba into a large bedroom on the second floor. Kaede no Ma.

  It’s a tatami room with the same wide space as the dining room on the first floor - Tsubaki no Ma -, but one side of the floor is crammed with pure white futons and pillows.

  「…………all of the pillows and futons are here?」


  「Yeah, that’s right. That’s ‘cause one pillow for each person is not enough, y’see. They were taken from some empty room in the ryokan.」


  Irvine triumphantly answered me, who was muttering in blank amazement.

  The other male employees from Toriela Firm are in this room, looking in my direction with some triumphant expression on their faces.

  I think back to the strange conversation they had before dinner, so they were planning this kind of thing, huh?

  No wonder no one is dead drunk with the sake. That’s because you won’t be able to join the pillow fight if you get drunk. So, I guess they’re going to do it immediately after the meal since the people of the ryokan are busy tidying up?

  Nevertheless, seeing that everyone is holding two pillows or more means that the number of pillows is double that of the forty guys here, so it’s at least around eighty pillows then.

  When I imagine eighty pillows flying about simultaneously, I feel that it’s not a joking matter.

  『Hehehe, we can do it to our heart’s content since the bedroom this year is wide.』


  『Yeah, with this much space, even if we throw them seriously it will be fine, isn’t it. We can also make a battle formation.』


  The employees are holding pillows on both of their hands while having a fearless smile on their faces.

  ……those guys, they’re ready for it.

  I can see the appearance of people who had experienced many scenes of bloodshed after staying in many places.

  It looks like it’s different from having a pillow fight anywhere during their journey.

  However, I too have also experienced that kind of scene of bloodshed.

  Every morning, I threw my pillow to repel Sara who tried to wake me up, and then there’s Eleonora-neesan who threw the pillow back to me when she woke me up on practice day. (I catch-ed it without fail, throw it, and then went back to sleep)

  You guys are not the only ones who have been on the verge of death.

  「Yoーshi, we’re going to also pick our pillows!」


  「Yeah!」


  Following Irvine and Mort, I also pick up some pillows.

  「It’s the first time for me to have a pillow fight with this many people. I’m looking forward to it!」


  Roomba said as he picks a pillow in each hand just like he’s picking a small ball.

  When I look at those muscular arms, it made me quite worried.

  Would you still be alright if Roomba were to use his great strength to throw the pillows at you, I wonder? www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  「Hey, your neck won’t snap if you were to be hit by the pillows thrown by Roomba, right?」


  Irvine and Mort’s movement suddenly stopped when I nervously muttered.

  「……I think you will be fine if you raise the futon as a shield.」


  「Tha, that’s right. The futons laid down here, not only will it become a cushion, and even if you fall there will be no problem, and it can also immediately be used as a shield since they’re a lot of them laid down on the floor, see.」


  「Can you say that even when you remember the Sword Boar Roomba defeated in the middle of our journey?」


  The scene of its head sunk in with a single blow, the crater spreading on the ground.

  「「…… let’s strengthen our body when the time comes」」


  I always strengthened2 my body, so when it’s necessary I will not hesitate and cast Physic magic.

  When I was thinking about such things, Roomba came to the middle of the room while holding a pillow.

  「Some warning about the pillow fightー. Don’t hit repeatedly without a pillow. Also, if the proprietress came, immediately pretend to sleep, yeahー」


  『『『Yeーss』』』


  Reminded by Tori, the men respond peacefully.

  You can’t hit someone without a pillow. If the proprietress comes, then forget about the match and pretend to sleep. That’s the absolute rule. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  This really feels like a school trip. So we’re the students, while the proprietress is the teacher, huh

  「It’s surprising that Tori is in charge of this.」


  「Well, that’s because he’s the head of a large firm after all. He would need to pay attention so that the employees could let out some steam.」


  What a surprise. I thought that he would be the kind of person that will turn a blind eye, turning to the other side, or stop looking at such things. The head of a firm that has subordinates also has it hard, huh.

  「Hey, Irvine. Do we have allies or something?」


  「Everyone is an enemy. If you want to form a party then you can discuss it with each other and form a party. Whether it be enemy or allies, it all can change depending on the fundamental flow of the situation or the place at the time.」


  I ponder about it, after hearing Mort’s remark that sounds as if he’s trying to keep away from me.

  At the dinner just a while ago, I made it worse for Irvine’s numb legs.

  They’re the type of guys that have a motto like ‘If we were done in, then we will retaliate without being discouraged’. These guys would definitely not be my allies early in the game. Along with the starting signal, they will throw their pillows at me. The one that I attacked back then was not just Irvine but also Mort, so it appears that it’s better to think of the two of them that they’ve joined forces.

  The first thing I have to do is to knock these two down. www.ihavesinnedtranslation.com

  「Now then, is everyone readyー?」


  The moment when Tori said that, all the men inside the room are taking their stance with their pillows and emanating a dangerous atmosphere around them.

  「Pillow fight, start!」