The reigning Mahjong champion had long been the High Elf Rize, but while she sat out the matches due to her pregnancy, Frau had ascended to the top spot.
She boasted an ironclad defense, fueled by an incredibly sharp ability to read the table, and she steadily accumulated wins without ever suffering a major loss.
The man attempting to storm that stronghold was Gratz, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Kingdom, who had come to the village to visit Ronana. He relied on an aggressive style, throwing his opponents into confusion with irregular discards while building high-scoring hands meant to sink his rivals in a single blow.
Two others were caught in the crossfire of their battle.
Me and the Devil girl, Bulga.
"I feel like no matter what I discard, someone is going to call it..." I muttered.
"I agree. Anything other than a safe tile feels like a death sentence. Please, just let this one pass..."
"My apologies," Frau said. "Ron."
"I have a Ron as well," Gratz added. "Double Ron was allowed, right?"
"Ugyaaah! How could you be waiting on that discard?!" Bulga cried out.
Because Bulga plummeted into last place, I somehow managed to scrape into third. With that, the match came to an end. Thank goodness. My streak of consecutive last-place finishes had finally been broken.
"Hahaha. This is quite an intriguing game," Gratz said. "If possible, I would like to purchase a set for myself."
"I don't mind, but do you have anyone to play with? Learning the rules is a real chore."
"Ah... true."
"Lord Gratz," Frau interjected. "The Demon King, the Royal Princess, and my father all know how to play."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, they played quite a bit when they were visiting here."
Come to think of it, they were playing with Dos and the others during the martial arts tournament.
"Then there is no problem," Gratz declared. "I'll take one set."
"Understood. By the way, is it really alright for you to be playing games while leaving Ronana alone?"
"I have spoken with Ronana at length. Besides, she is working. I cannot interfere with her duties."
Ronana was currently heading toward Village Two, escorted by several of Kuro's offspring. This was a training exercise for her to learn how to travel to Village Two on her own in case of an emergency. It had been planned for some time, and since Gratz had arrived with Beezel only the day before her departure, the timing was simply unfortunate.
"I did tell her she didn't need to rush off, though," I said.
"She told me as much, so it is fine. I won't hold a grudge."
"Well, that’s a relief. Oh, it looks like Beezel is back."
"You took your time," Gratz noted as the general approached.
"Just before I returned, I received word of suspicious movements in the north," Beezel explained. "I was busy arranging countermeasures. Also, Fraurem—you are training your classmates far too hard. If I took them back with me now, they could start working at the castle immediately."
"It’s just field training... well, they're essentially already active in the field. If they wish it, I'll send them back."
"I spoke to a few of them, but they turned me down."
"Hey now," I cut in. "I’d appreciate it if you didn't try to headhunt my villagers right in front of me."
"Hahaha. My apologies. Well then, Gratz. Shall we head back?"
"Understood. Village Head, can I take the tiles now?"
"Yes, right away."
I handed over a Mahjong set. Since Dos and the others had requested one when they visited, I had prepared several extras in case someone else wanted one.
"This folding table is also a remarkable piece of craftsmanship. Beezel, once we're back, I expect you to be my opponent."
"I don't mind, provided we set a strict time limit. Also, if you plan to invite the Demon King, check his schedule first."
"I'll leave those details to you."
"I'm telling you not to leave it all to me!"
They were certainly a lively pair of guests.
The season for the festival had arrived.
Since the martial arts tournament had become an independent event, we needed to do something else. No matter how long we spent in meetings, we couldn't reach a conclusion, so I decided to leave the choice to a lottery again this year.
I debated whether I should screen the suggestions before putting them in the box, but weeding through them seemed like too much work, so I left them as-is. Instead, I threw in a large number of "safe" festival ideas I had come up with myself. As long as everyone could have a good time, it was fine—provided it wasn't dangerous!
"Now, if you please," one of the Civil Official Girls prompted.
I reached into the box and pulled out a single slip of paper.
"This year's festival is... Sliding?"
What on earth was that? It wasn't just a normal footrace, was it?
"Sliding is a competition where you run down a steep slope at full speed," she explained. "It's famous as a festival in the Bulgan Region. About ten people start at once, and the winner gets a prize."
"Running down a slope... at full speed?"
"Of course. It's a downhill race."
"Right. I figured as much. ...Isn't that dangerous?"
"We use magic to protect the participants, so it isn't as bad as it sounds."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. However, if we want to hold a Sliding event in this village... we don't actually have any slopes."
"You're right. Roughly how large of a hill do we need?"
"The incline varies, but the height is usually about twenty meters."
"Twenty meters? We don't have anything like that nearby. Even if we tried to pile up enough dirt to make one, the labor involved would be immense."
"It would indeed."
"Alright, motion rejected."
"Ehh?!"
"Even if you complain, it's just not feasible."
"I understand," she said with a sly smile. "In that case, I shall return this 'Sliding' slip to the box. If you happen to pull it again, please agree to do it."
"Hahaha. Fine by me."
Apparently, I'm a fool.
"Now, let's do our best!"
And so, this year's festival became Sliding.
"We'll need to construct a small hill."
"If we dig a hole and use that dirt to make a mound next to it, we can create the height difference with half the digging..."
"Even if we turn the hole into a new pond, what do we do with the hill afterward?"
"What if we use the dirt to build a defensive wall around the village?"
"Regardless, a hill wide enough for ten people to race down at once is a tall order. Can we limit it to three people at a time?"
"As long as we can track their times, I think going one by one would be fine, but..."
"Then, to measure the speed... let's do this..."
"Wait, wouldn't that mean it's not really 'Sliding' anymore?"
"But the individual differences would be too great otherwise."
"That's why we should adjust this part here..."
"There's no trace of the original Sliding left in this plan!"
"As long as it's fun, isn't it fine?"
The plan was eventually finalized. For now, I understood that I was going to have to use the Universal Farming Tool with everything I had. I prepared myself to work hard.
There were currently two residents from Village Two, where the Minotaurs lived: Ronana and Milua. Both were, naturally, Minotaur women. Since being selected before winter, they had been stationed in the Village of the Great Tree. They occasionally returned to Village Two, but they never stayed long—usually only for a single night before returning here.
There were also two residents from Village Three, where the Centaurs lived. Both were Centaurs, of course. However, unlike the residents from Village Two, their roster changed constantly. In the beginning, they were swapping out every three days or so. Even now, they rotated very frequently.
I wondered why, so I asked Rasshashi, the caretaker for the Centaurs.
"The position of resident is seen as highly prestigious, so we have been flooded with applicants," she explained.
"Prestigious?"
"Yes."
"In what way? Is it the food?"
"No, it is the fact that they can work by the Village Head's side."
"Uhh..."
"They were originally a people who served a lord, so they find great joy in being close to a person of power."
"A person of power... Me?"
"Who else but the Village Head?"
"I see..."
"Furthermore, when you consider that they might occasionally be asked to carry you for transport..."
Come to think of it, whenever I looked like I was about to head out of the village, the Centaurs always seemed restless and eager.
"Well, I think I understand."
"Is that so? Then, on that note, I have a request to consult with you about."
"What is it?"
"Since Gluewald has been entrusted with the leadership of Village Three, she cannot serve as a resident here."
"Right... so what do you want me to do?"
In the end, I went to Village Three and took a long stroll while riding on Gluewald's back.
"Is this enough to satisfy everyone?"
"Thank you for your cooperation," Rasshashi said with a bow.
Currently, there were four caretakers in the village. Ramrias handled the Beastman Race, Nuph handled the Minotaur Race, Rasshashi handled the Centaur Race, and Mam handled the Nyunyu-daphne.
While they were caretakers, they lived primarily in the Village of the Great Tree. They didn't provide constant supervision; rather, their job was to act as consultants whenever the residents needed help or advice. Because of this, they were either very free or very busy depending on the day.
Ramrias was the only one who was consistently busy. The Beastman boys had grown since they first arrived, but they were still young. She worked tirelessly, acting as a combination of a nursery school teacher and a primary school instructor.
Nuph and Rasshashi stayed busy acting as liaisons for the rotating residents.
Then there was Mam, the caretaker for the Nyunyu-daphne.
"Do I really seem that unreliable?" she asked me one day.
The Nyunyu-daphne were, in a sense, very independent and required almost no looking after. Consequently, they almost never came to her for consultation. The count was essentially zero. Her role was reduced to simply passing along announcements from our side.
"I want to be relied on more!" she lamented.
Being a handful is a problem, but I suppose being no trouble at all can be a problem in its own way. I made a mental note to tell the Nyunyu-daphne to find something to consult with Mam about soon.