After days spent in a whirlwind of tension, excitement, and confusion, the day of the main event finally arrived: the date of our appreciation party and year-end party. It had been a few days that felt both incredibly long and fleetingly short.
Mika and I changed into the casual formal clothes we had all gone out to buy—outfits we certainly didn't wear on a daily basis. My own ensemble was a standard combination of a collared shirt, a jacket, and slacks. There was no reason for me to try anything eccentric.
"...Well, I suppose fine feathers really do make fine birds."
Dressed in my formal attire, I felt an odd, indescribable sensation as I studied my reflection in the full-length mirror in my room. Since I almost never wore these kinds of clothes, I couldn't shake the feeling that the person staring back at me was a total stranger.
So, this is the kind of restaurant that requires this level of dress... I could already feel the beginnings of a nervous stomachache.
"Well, I’ve come this far. I just have to brace myself."
I let out a heavy sigh toward the mirror and lightly slapped my cheeks with both hands to psych myself up. What was I doing, getting cold feet before I’d even left the house? Come on, move!
"Oh, Daiki. You're certainly looking sharp."
"Haha, thanks."
Once I steeled my resolve and headed down to the living room, my mother gave me a compliment. She was sitting on the sofa watching TV, and her eyes widened slightly in surprise at my appearance. Her reaction was fair enough; it wasn't every day she saw her son dressed like this.
"You said you were having a year-end party with your friends, but do you really have to dress up that much?"
"Yeah. I guess it's necessary for the pretext."
"Pretext?"
With a wry smile, I sat down on the sofa and explained the reasoning behind the wardrobe choice.
"Right. For the sake of appearances. We want to frame this year-end party as a business dinner necessary to maintain a good cooperative relationship with peer companies involved in a joint venture."
"Joint venture?"
"I mean exploring dungeons in a party together. Since we're all registered as independent explorers, from an outside perspective, it looks like multiple businesses cooperating to run a joint project. Even if the reality is just a group of close friends having a good time in a dungeon, you know?"
"Is that... how it works?"
My mother tilted her head slightly, but she seemed to follow the logic, so I continued the explanation.
"That's how it works. Or rather, we’re making it work that way by dressing the part—wearing formal clothes we don’t normally use."
"If you need to look formal, you're students, so your school uniforms would be fine. You can use those for weddings and funerals as long as you're in school."
"I know that, but if we did that, it would just look like a group of student friends having a meal, right? That’s a bit inconvenient for us. We want it to look like a meeting between peer companies in a joint venture. That’s why we’re going out of our way to use a restaurant and clothes that students wouldn’t normally touch—to establish the pretext that this is a business dinner required for work."
"...You children certainly do go through a lot of trouble."
Listening to my explanation, my mother let out a small sigh, looking a bit exasperated by the complexity of it all. I understood what she was thinking, but it was a hassle for us too. We were only doing it because it was necessary.
"Yeah, honestly, it is a hassle. But it's just to be safe."
"What do you mean 'to be safe'? Why go through such a troublesome pretext?"
"To put it simply: tax-saving measures. It's so we can get receipts that qualify as entertainment and hospitality expenses for this party."
"Tax-saving measures...?"
My mother looked slightly taken aback by the raw, realistic details of our financial planning. She stared straight at me, silently demanding more information. I knew she would. Since I’d gone this far, I figured I should explain it properly.
"It’s exactly what it sounds like. Rather than letting the government take a huge chunk in taxes, we might as well use it as a legitimate business expense. An expense like a year-end party won't change everything, but if it serves as a reward for everyone alongside the tax savings, it kills two birds with one stone."
"Well, I suppose that’s true. But are you children really earning enough to need tax savings... Oh, right. You were."
"Pretty much. But this time, it's not so much for my tax savings as it is for Mika and Saori-chan's."
"Now that you mention it, you did say they made a fortune when they went to the dungeon with you the other day."
Because they had pushed themselves to the absolute limit, Mika and Saori-chan had earned millions of yen in a single day. And with the year ending so soon, they had almost no time left to spend it on business expenses.
I had tried to create an opportunity for them to use the money for maintenance and upgrades on their primary weapons, but due to the blacksmith's schedule, that could only be treated as an expense for next year, no matter how hard we tried.
"Right. So, we're making it so we can write off the year-end party as entertainment and hospitality expenses."
"I see. Certainly, at this time of year, it's probably a safe tax-saving method to spend it under that category."
"Exactly. That's why it's better to keep up appearances, just to be safe."
"True. If those are the circumstances, it's better to have a setup where you can defend the expense even if someone tries to find fault with it later."
I thought it would probably be fine, but to avoid any future headaches, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"So that's why, even though it's a pain, we prepared these formal clothes we're not used to."
"I see."
Once I finished my explanation, my mother let out a deep sigh, pressing a hand to her forehead. At first, she probably thought we were just playing dress-up and trying to act older than we were, but after hearing the cold, hard facts, she looked like she didn't quite know what to say.
"Sorry to keep you waiting!"
Just as an awkward silence was spreading through the living room, Mika's energetic voice rang out, and the door swung open.
"Oh, Mika. That looks quite good on you."
"You think so? Thanks!"
Clearly pleased by the compliment, Mika slowly spun around once, showing off her dressed-up appearance to Mom and me. She was wearing a light brown lace ribbon dress and carrying a handbag; the look was a world apart from her usual self.
Mika struck a deliberate pose for my benefit, fishing for a reaction.
"How do I look, Onii-chan? Pretty good, right?"
"Yeah, it suits you. You look quite elegant—very different from your usual look."
"I see... Elegant, huh..."
Hearing my assessment, Mika smiled happily and started striking a series of ostentatious poses. Hey now, if you overdo it, you'll start to look cheap.
The "Mika's Fashion Show" continued for a while until the departure time approached. She seemed satisfied, so I suppose it was fine.
"Well, I'm sure there's a lot to think about, but since it's a special occasion, you two should enjoy yourselves, okay?"
Yeah.
My mother saw us off at the entrance, and Mika and I replied as we stepped into our shoes. There were a lot of complicated reasons for this, but this was still a party to reward us for a year of hard work. It would be a waste not to enjoy it.
"Hm?"
As I waited at the door, the smartphone in my pocket began to ring.
"Ah, Onii-chan, it looks like the taxi is here."
I checked the caller ID; it was Yuji. He was calling to let us know that the taxi had pulled up in front of the house.
"Okay, Mom, our ride is here. We're off."
"Yes, be careful."
"Yeah, we're going."
"We're off!"
After saying goodbye to our mother, Mika and I stepped out of the house. A jumbo taxi was parked at the curb, and Yuji was waving lightly from inside after spotting us.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. Thanks for picking us up, Yuji."
"Thank you very much!"
"It's nothing. More importantly, get in quickly. We have to go pick up the others too."
Yuji, wearing a collared shirt and jacket just like me, welcomed us into the vehicle with a pleasant smile. Since everyone was dressing up today, we had decided to have a taxi go around to each person's house rather than meeting at the station, so we could arrive at the restaurant together.
"Alright, you're in. Next is Saori-chan's house."
"Yeah. Everyone's probably waiting, so let's make the rounds quickly."
"Right. Driver, to the next location, please."
"Understood. We're departing, so please fasten your seatbelts."
Once the driver confirmed Mika and I were buckled in, the taxi pulled away. After circling the neighborhood and picking up the rest of the group, we headed toward the restaurant Yuji had reserved.
Inside the van, everyone was busy imagining what the place would be like.
"The restaurant we're going to is run by an acquaintance of Hirose-senpai's grandfather, right?" Tatebayashi-san asked Yuji.
"Yeah. It's a place I've been to a few times for work with the old man or my parents. I'm a familiar face there, so I don't think they'll treat us poorly just because we're students."
"Is that so? I guess you're right. A restaurant would probably be worried if it was just a group of kids, after all."
"Well, it's that kind of place. It's only natural for them to worry if students have the ability to pay."
A restaurant used for business dinners related to Yuji's family... That made me even more nervous. He was talking about it like it was just some regular place he frequented, but there was no way it was "just a regular place."
Seriously, I really hoped it wasn't the kind of establishment that refused first-time customers or asked for a referral...
"So, how's the food? Does it have a specialty?"
"A specialty... I don't know about that, but I personally like the rice cooked in a clay pot."
"Clay pot rice...?"
"Yeah. It's cooked with seasonal ingredients, so it changes depending on when you go. Last time, I think it was a mushroom mix? It had several different types in it and was delicious."
That clay pot rice probably had matsutake mushrooms in it, didn't it? It sounded amazing, but it also sounded like the kind of dish where the price tag would be terrifying.
As we continued chatting about the food, the taxi arrived near our destination before we knew it.
"Guests, the navigation says we'll arrive at the restaurant shortly."
"Ah, yes. The exterior is a bit hard to spot, so I'll guide you," Yuji told the driver.
"Please do."
Listening to them, I wondered what he meant by the exterior being hard to spot. Following Yuji's directions, the driver steered the taxi until it came to a stop in front of a large old estate surrounded by white-plastered walls. Naturally, there was no sign on the gate. If you didn't know better, you’d never guess it was a restaurant. It was certainly hard to recognize.
"Here we are. Thank you very much."
After paying the fare, we stepped out in front of the gate. Looking at it again, I really couldn't believe this was a place of business.
"Alright, shall we go in?"
Without a hint of hesitation, Yuji slid open the wooden door of the entrance gate and stepped onto the grounds. The rest of us stared in surprise before hurrying after him, trying not to get left behind.
Wow...
"Whoa."
"Heeh."
What greeted us was a magnificent entrance featuring a perfectly manicured garden. The sheer elegance of it was enough to make us feel overwhelmed by the restaurant's status before we even reached the front door.
"Hey, don't just stand there staring. Come on."
"Ah, right, sorry."
Yuji called out to us from in front of the main house. We snapped out of our daze and scurried over to join him. If we got separated here, we’d probably be too intimidated to move.
"Okay, going in."
Yuji slid open the front door of the house, and the sound of a bell announced our arrival.
The interior was a spacious entrance hall with a warm, wood-grain finish. Hanging scrolls and flower arrangements were placed subtly throughout, creating a refined, tranquil atmosphere.
"Welcome. We have been expecting you. Are you Hirose-sama, who made the reservation?"
A few seconds later, a waitress in her early forties wearing a kimono appeared from the back. Her voice was calm and welcoming. Even though we were clearly a group of very young students, she showed no sign of surprise, treating us like any other valued guests.
Yeah, the staff training here was clearly top-tier. This was a place that recognized that even if guests were young, they weren't just children—they were guests who were expected to be there.
"Yes, I'm Hirose. I made the reservation the other day. Thank you for having us today."
"The pleasure is ours. Thank you for choosing us. Your room is ready, so please, allow me to show you the way."
"Yes, thank you."
While the six of us watched the exchange with fear and trembling, Yuji handled the conversation with his usual efficiency, showing no signs of tension or hesitation.
I wondered if the day would ever come when we could be as smooth as Yuji. Probably not...
Still, if this is a year-end party where we've invited peer companies for business reasons, it should qualify as entertainment and hospitality expenses... I hope.