I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 344

After roughly stopping the food fight situation.

“I will eat well!”

As I shouted, holding my spoon, the others also picked up their spoons, making sounds like ‘I will eat well-’.

“Wow, the New Year’s stew in the southern region is quite spicy.”

Junior, taking his first spoonful, frowned and stuck out his tongue. Indeed, there’s a complex mix of various spices. It’s a bit spicy too.

Feeling refreshed by the spicy taste, I swallowed it deliciously and gestured with my chin.

“Junior, you’ve traveled around the world, right? What’s it like in other places?”

“In the north where I was born, they eat it plain with just salt. In the east, being by the sea, they use fish fillets instead of meat dumplings.”

Fish cakes, huh! Hearing that makes me crave fish cake soup…!

This time, Lucas chimed in.

“In the Imperial Capital, they grill the meat dumplings separately and pour the vegetable stew over them.”

“Why do they eat it so complicatedly?”

“I’m not sure either, but my lord often criticized it, saying that the Imperial Capital values unnecessary processes.”

Ah, hearing it like that, I kind of understand….

“And my lord considered having a glass of strong liquor with this New Year’s stew as a pleasure on the first day of the New Year.”

Lucas picked up a wine bottle from under the table, placed it on the table, and smiled at me.

“Would you like a glass?”

“Sure! Pour me one.”

As expected, Lucas knows what’s up.

‘…Huh? By the way, since when did I become such a good drinker?’

Is it because of the Border Lord? No, is it because I’ve been drinking at every banquet after winning a defensive battle?

While I was pondering when my alcohol tolerance got so high, Evangeline, who was ladling her third bowl of stew, said something.

“Seriously! What are you doing from the first day of the New Year! You drunks!”

“It’s meaningful because it’s the first morning of the first day. Hehe.”

“Senior, you’re still not feeling well!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m all better.”

Lucas filled my glass, his own, and even Junior’s. Junior grinned as he received the drink. I became curious.

“Junior, didn’t you not like alcohol that much?”

“Ah, well, because of Kyeo-yeong-yong-wi, I ended up drinking often….”

“Kyeo-yeong-yong-wi…?”

What’s that? It sounds like some dragon’s cry.

Then, Evangeline waved her hands in alarm.

“T-that’s enough about that! Come on! Let’s all have a toast!”

Damian is an adult, but he doesn’t enjoy alcohol, and Evangeline is still a minor even after her birthday this year, so she can’t drink.

Instead, Aider brought out a sugary drink for them, mixing pickled fruits and milk jam, calling it a New Year’s drink.

He even put cold shaved ice on top.

“Happy New Year!”

“May this year be filled with good things-!”

Clink-!

We toasted. Evangeline, after gulping down the New Year’s drink, scrunched up her eyes and shivered.

“Kuh…! I hate winter, but this drink is seriously amazing…!”

The wine, which was said to have been buried in the winter snow and just taken out, was also ice-cold and delicious.

Hot stew with ice-cold liquor. The combination is quite intense.

We spent a pleasant morning eating and drinking like that.

***

After having a full breakfast and relaxing a bit, my party members, who woke me up from my daze, dressed me in outdoor clothes.

Evangeline put fur boots on me, Junior fastened the front buttons of my coat, Damian wrapped a scarf around my neck, and Lucas put a fur hat on my head.

Did you guys practice beforehand? Why are you so skilled?

I, waddling like a penguin in my thick outdoor clothes, belatedly asked.

“What, where are we going that you’re dressing me up like this?”

Then, Damian replied with a bright smile.

“On the first day of the New Year, we have to go to the temple and pray for the goddess’s blessing!”

Ah. I see. It seems like there’s such a custom in this area.

“The temple is usually operated somewhat closed off, but on the first day of the New Year like today, it’s wide open to all guests.”

“Hoo.”

Normally, only the medical facilities are open to the general public, and most of the other temple areas are off-limits.

But only today, the central hall corridor with the largest statue of the goddess inside the temple is open.

It’s possible to pray to the goddess for this year’s blessing here.

‘…Wait a minute.’

That goddess statue in the central hall… isn’t that the one I destroyed before? The one that was disguised as a communication device….

As I broke out in a cold sweat, realizing this, Damian, who noticed my inner turmoil, chuckled softly and whispered in my ear.

“…They carved a new one and put it in. Don’t worry too much.”

“R-really? I’m not going to be punished by the heavens, am I?”

“You might receive heavenly punishment… later in the afterlife. But anyway, there’s no problem with the temple’s operation, so don’t worry!”

Damian said this with an angelic smile. Hey, you punk! Can’t you watch over me even in the afterlife?!

‘…I need to donate a lot.’

I will protect my afterlife with the power of capitalism. I resolved and grabbed my gold coin pouch. I need to donate and give some New Year’s money to the kids.

When I came out of the mansion, the sky was clear. It had been snowing just a few days ago, but today there wasn’t a single cloud.

The temperature was low, but there was no wind, making it a refreshing day for a walk.

“Shall we walk to the temple?”

“Oh, that’s a good idea, Senior! Walking is good exercise too.”

Hearing that made me want to just take a carriage.

“Then, I will have the carriage wait, my lord.”

“Ah, ah… Y-yes. Let’s do that.”

It’s too late to take back my words now.

So, we walked towards the temple, following each other.

There were already many people on the way to the temple, and it started to get crowded as we got closer.

It seems like everyone is flocking here from the morning to receive the goddess’s grace.

One alleyway was particularly crowded, and I wondered why, but as I got closer, I heard a familiar girl’s voice.

“Oh, Ash!”

A small, black-haired girl wearing a silver crown and a fur coat was waving her hand enthusiastically.

In the girl’s smiling mouth, her neatly grown, sharp shark teeth were visible.

“Are you also going to the temple?”

“Duke!”

It was Dusk Bringer. I bowed my head slightly.

“Happy New Year.”

“Ahaha, yes. I pray that you and your subordinates will be overflowing with good fortune this year.”

Next to Dusk Bringer, a large pot was placed over a bonfire.

Her knights were diligently boiling something in the pot and ladling it out to people. That’s why people were gathered around.

“We are sharing Western-style New Year’s stew for free.”

“Oh, Western-style… but why for free?”

“The people of Crossroads here accepted our refugees without much discrimination or persecution. Let’s just say it’s a token of our gratitude.”

I see. They’re sharing their traditional food as a sign of thanks.

“What kind of style is the Western New Year’s stew?”

“Well, our Bringer Duchy’s style is similar since it’s a country that branched off from the Empire. We eat grilled vegetables with meat dumpling stew poured over them.”

It seems like the order is reversed from how they eat it in the Imperial Capital.

“And we eat it outside like this, holding the bowl! The New Year’s stew eaten in the cold air is another delicacy!”

Dusk Bringer pointed to the people around her, who were blowing on their bowls and eating, and grinned.

“Would you like a bowl too?”

“No, thank you. I just came out after eating a full meal….”

I refused, but Evangeline and Lucas happily accepted a bowl each. Stop eating so much!

“Wow, this is good too!”

“Hoo. The grilled vegetables have a sweet taste.”

As the two knights were enjoying their meal, Dusk Bringer crossed her arms, looking satisfied, and laughed heartily.

“You have to pay more attention to the fire control than the meat to make delicious grilled vegetables! So, I personally breathed fire to grill them!”

…I must have misheard, right? It’s a joke that the Dragon Lady breathed fire to cook the New Year’s stew, right?

“Ugh~ The stew is pretty good too.”

At that moment, I spotted Quillan and the Punishment Unit eating from their bowls next to us.

They seemed to have trouble with hot food, sticking out their tongues and trembling, but the Punishment Unit was slowly swallowing the stew. With their tongues like that, they look a bit like beastmen….

“Hey, Quillan. Happy New Year, many times over.”

“Ah! Captain! Happy New Year to you!”

“Oh! Big Captain! Happy New Year to you!”

The Punishment Unit members, who finally recognized me, bowed deeply. I gestured with my chin.

“Do beastmen also eat New Year’s stew?”

“Our Maple Wolf tribe doesn’t eat stew for the New Year. Instead, we eat special dumplings baked in a hearth.”

Quillan made a gesture of eating a dumpling with a ‘Woah~’ sound.

“You have to swallow it in one bite. If you miss even a drop of the dumpling’s juice, all your luck for the year will disappear.”

“You guys don’t seem to be good with hot food…?”

“That’s why we challenge it. Usually, after that, our mouths are all burned, and we suffer for a few days.”

Isn’t that just foolish?

“Next time, if I get the chance, I’ll make a hearth and bake a lot of our tribe’s traditional dumplings to treat you. My brother taught me all the secrets a long time ago.”

“…Okay. I’ll look forward to it.”

My heart felt a little heavy when Kureha’s story came up.

I patted Quillan’s shoulder, and Quillan smiled and started blowing on his bowl again, eating the stew.

After greeting Dusk Bringer once more, we headed back towards the temple.

When we arrived at the temple, we encountered the three members of the Shadow Unit who were just coming out of the temple. I waved my hand happily.

“God Hand! Body Bag! Burnout! Are you on your way out after being discharged?”

“Ah, Your Highness!”

The three elves bowed politely.

The three of them, who were injured during the last special forces infiltration incident, had been receiving treatment at the temple. It seems like they’re being discharged today.

“Happy New Year, everyone.”

“To Your Highness, and to everyone, may the luck of the World Tree be with you.”

I asked the three, who were giving their Elven New Year’s greetings.

“Are you all fully recovered?”

“Yes. We’re almost fully recovered. The Saintess told us to stay for another day or two… but seeing how crowded the temple is today for the New Year’s event, we decided to just get discharged early to ease the burden on the priests.”

I see, that’s how it is.

I gestured with my eyes to Damian next to me.

“But the temple is busy, is it okay for you to be out?”

“The Saintess entrusted me with the task of bringing the Prince… hehe. I have to go back to help with the temple work from the afternoon.”

Damian smiled sheepishly. This guy, he’s learned how to be resourceful, he’s grown a lot.

I asked the three elves again.

“Did you three eat the New Year’s stew?”

“Yes. They served it as breakfast at the temple. It warmed us up a bit.”

“Do elves usually eat New Year’s stew today?”

“No. The Elven Kingdom uses a different calendar than humans… so today isn’t the first day of the New Year. There’s a difference of a few days.”

God Hand’s face looked a little wistful.

“And for our New Year’s food, we drink warm tea with sunflower honey.”

“…With sunflower seed cookies?”

“Oh, how did you know?”

It’s because I know now that you guys are a hamster-like race that’s crazy about sunflower seeds, nuts, and fruits.

While we were having such silly, and fitting for the first day of the New Year, conversations.

“Ah!”

I turned around, hearing a familiar woman’s voice from over there, and Lily was standing there, stopping her wheelchair. She was holding a tray with something on it.

I quickly waved my hand.

“Lily, Happy New Year!”

“Happy New Year, Your Highness. I hope everyone has good fortune this year!”

Lily, sitting in her wheelchair, bowed her head in turn, then swallowed hard and approached us.

“U-um, God Hand? I heard about it before, so I baked some….”

When Lily removed the cloth covering the tray, several pies with a warm smell appeared.

They were densely packed with nuts and dried fruits.

“I’m not good at cooking… so it might not taste good….”

Some were slightly burnt, and some had broken edges. Lily stuttered, her face flushed with embarrassment.

“B-but… just for the effort, would you like to have a bite…?”

“……”

God Hand, blinking in surprise, quickly picked up a piece of pie and put it in his mouth.

Body Bag also smiled brightly and took a bite, and Burnout removed his gag and shoved the pie in his mouth before putting the gag back on.

“Wow, it’s delicious!”

Body Bag said, her eyes sparkling, and quickly took a few more bites,

Nod nod.

Burnout also nodded fiercely, his cheeks full.

“……”

Only God Hand was quietly chewing the pie without saying anything.

His gaze was distant, as if he was reminiscing about some distant past.

“…Um, God Hand?”

Lily asked carefully, worried, and God Hand snapped out of it and smiled gently.

“It’s really delicious, Lily. Thank you for being so thoughtful.”

“Oh, well, I just did it because I had some time….”

Lily turned her head away, her face red, and chattered.

Ah, it’s starting again. A pink mood is bubbling up….

These couples are being lovey-dovey from the first day of the New Year, should I just flip them over? I was unconsciously contemplating.

I saw my two knights… no, two ogres, reaching out for the pie, smacking their lips. You guys!

Whack!

I smacked their hands away and quickly led my party members into the temple.

“Come on, let’s go into the temple and pray for the goddess’s blessing~”

“Ah, why! There seems to be a lot, just one bite!”

“I’m also curious about the taste of the pie that the elves eat, my lord!”

“Aish! Read the room, you muscle pigs!”

They’re making good memories on a good day. I don’t like couples either, but I’m the kind of person who knows when to be considerate.

After going through such ups and downs, we entered the temple—

“……”

It started to appear from the entrance.

In the distance, in the central hall of the temple, was a large statue of the goddess.

The woman carved out of white marble was the typical image of a ‘goddess.’ With a benevolent face and white wings sprouting from her back….

‘…Come to think of it.’

I suddenly became curious.

‘Who is this goddess, anyway?’