Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!, Volume 1, page 18
“That’s how you manage money. I think it’s more important to think about what you will and won’t buy, rather than deciding not to buy anything at all.”
For example, if I really loved that watch from earlier, I could buy it by making a budget and saving up for it for a few months. It was obtainable so long as I decided on what I did or didn’t want.
“I see, so you need to choose only what you need without wasting money,” she said as she waved her doll’s hand.
It was okay, that doll didn’t count as wasting money. It had the important role of entertaining Ms. Elf from here on.
In any case, I was able to teach her about shopping, a necessary piece of knowledge for living in Japan. As Marie began picking out clothes, she seemed like she got to know and accept Japan just a little bit more than before.
We entered a café to take a rest. Before her was the unfamiliar sight of coffee and next to her were her shopping bags.
I was putting sugar and milk in her cup when she tapped my hand with her finger. I looked up to find the elf, with her ears hidden under a knit hat, smiling at me.
“Thank you for buying me such wonderful clothes. That one piece with the laces should be wearable when the season changes too. And it was so inexpensive!”
We spent a long time in the clothing area choosing what we needed together. The shop employees came gathering to help us, which took us by surprise. The appearance of a cute girl like Marie was like a special event for them, and they picked out all sorts of clothes that would look good on her without pushing us to buy anything. They even answered her questions about the seasons of Japan and when each piece of clothing could be worn, which I found to be helpful.
“No problem at all. I’m glad we were able to get you some spring clothes. After all, you were saying you didn’t need any other clothes at first.”
“It was only natural when I didn’t understand the situation. I wouldn’t have minded if you were rich... Well, I probably still would have minded.”
She had a point. I wouldn’t have been comfortable asking someone to buy me a bunch of things when I didn’t know their worth. In that sense, I was glad she now saw the whole picture and gained the ability to pick out what we needed.
As I thought about it, a little something peeked out from under the table. Its lips were sticking out, and its eyes were looking off to the side. Then, with a high-pitched voice, it spoke to me.
“Hello, Kazuhiho, thanks for teaching me so much today.”
“Hehe, you’re welcome. I hope that information was useful.”
“Of course! It was a ton of fun, and Marie loves her new clothes. Plus, she seems to be enjoying life here in Japan. You know, you’re kind of a ditz, but you can be real mature when it comes down to it.”
I wished she’d cut it out, because seeing Marie sticking her lips out while doing her ventriloquism almost made me spit my coffee out in laughter. She was almost too cute to handle already.
As I chuckled to myself, the doll began patting my head. I raised both my hands in surrender, and her lips turned into the shape of a smile. Seeing a smile like hers made me feel like my heart was being cleansed. Happy emotions seemed to gush out of her and flow into me through her eyes. I couldn’t help but stare, despite my age.
To be honest, she had me good. She didn’t realize how powerful her punch was, and I pretended not to be affected, but I was only keeping it together thanks to being twenty-five years old.
I cleared my throat, then poked the fluffy doll with my finger.
“You actually like him a lot, don’t you?”
“Yes, I love him. He’s such a little brat, I can’t take my eyes off him.”
It was such an honest response, we both suddenly burst out in laughter. It had been a while since I felt such genuine joy. All this from simply going out to get clothes with her... The time I spent with her on my days off truly were special.
It was already dark by the time we went outside, and we decided to take the long way home.
Afterword
Hello, this is Makishima Suzuki. This is my first published work.
First, I’d like to thank everyone who helped me with this publication.
To Hobby Japan, thank you for choosing this book out of the many other submissions and giving me this precious opportunity.
To my editor, thank you for kindly advising me when I didn’t know what I was doing. I’m quite tough, so if I say something too amateurish, please don’t hesitate to shout, “Shut up, Makishima!”
To Yappen, the illustrator, thank you for drawing your stunningly beautiful art. I have a rather serious personality, so it was just by chance that I only requested sexy illustrations, haha.
I’m very thankful for my wife, who has generously accepted my self-centered efforts to get this book published. I’m talking about you, my love.
I also believe this book has become a reality thanks to the kind support of my readers.
We’ve done it, everyone. We’ve finally welcomed Ms. Elf to Japan.
Now, this is a slightly strange story about going between Japan and a dream world. A main character with a bit of an obsession for fantasy, and an elf who learns of Japanese culture. Please watch over them as they enjoy their time together.
Dreams are a strange phenomenon, but I believe I dream more often than others. But I can’t really compare the frequency with anyone, so this is just a guess. They could be in color or black and white, or show you a place you’ve never seen before or seen only in your dreams...
Don’t you feel a little lucky when you have a dream like that? Though there are scary dreams too, of course. I hope you will be able to experience that positive feeling by reading this book at least.
Oh, and there’s a rare, chance meeting with a Magi Drake during this story. I believe she, too, will turn dreams into a fun experience, so I hope you enjoy.
Well then, I hope to see you again in the next volume.
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Copyright
Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf! Volume 1
by Makishima Suzuki
Translated by Hiroya Watanabe
Edited by Kris Swanson
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2018 Makishima Suzuki
Illustrations Copyright © 2018 Yappen
Cover illustration by Yappen
All rights reserved.
Original Japanese edition published in 2018 by Hobby Japan
This English edition is published by arrangement with Hobby Japan, Tokyo
English translation © 2018 J-Novel Club LLC
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property.
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The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
Ebook edition 1.0: February 2019
Akira, Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf!, Volume 1
