Joan’s Birthday
—At the training grounds.
"Joan, happy birthday. Over the past year, you've worked really hard. And thanks to you, we've been helped in many ways as well. Truly, thank you. I pray that this coming year will be a wonderful one for you. Now then, everyone, raise your glasses… Cheers."
[Cheers!!!]"Joan, happy birthday. Yes, choosing this dress was the right decision. It suits you perfectly."
"Thank you, Mother. This dress from you and Father is absolutely lovely."
I expressed my gratitude and gave Mother a tight hug.
"This is from me."
Brother Noel handed me a book wrapped with a ribbon—"Great Encyclopedia of Monsters." It was an easy-to-understand dictionary for children, filled with illustrations and explanations of various magical creatures.
"Thank you, Brother Noel. I will treasure it and read it carefully."
I hugged Brother Noel.
"This is from me."
Brother Gene’s gift was a wooden sword with a ribbon tied around the grip. Until now, I had been using hand-me-downs from my brothers, so this was my very first sword.
The weight and the feel of the grip fit perfectly in my hands.
"Brother Gene, thank you. My first sword—I’m so happy. I’ll do my best in training with this."
I hugged Brother Gene.
"Joan, happy birthday. This is from us."
Brother Aran and Vee gifted me a sewing set filled with colorful embroidery threads and adorable thimbles with cute designs.
"Thank you, Brother Aran, Vee. I’ll try making all sorts of things with this."
I hugged both Brother Aran and Vee.
After that, my aunt and uncle gave me a book titled "Magic for Beginners: Safe Even for Children," saying that I might be able to use basic magic soon.
My grandparents gifted me a letter set with cute illustrations. I promised to use it to send them updates.
From the servant family—Grey, Nancy, Nathan, and Zack—I received a set of picture books. Nancy told me, "Let’s use these to help you learn letters," making me smile wryly.
The kitchen team gifted me a small single-edged kitchen knife made to fit my hands. It seems they remembered me mentioning that in my past life, I used single-edged knives.
Sarah and the other maids gave me hair accessories, including ribbons and stretchy knitted hair ties. The stretchy ones were Sarah’s effort—though there were a few dropped stitches, I was deeply touched by her hard work.
The gardening team gifted me a cute mini bouquet and a handmade meat pie from Zara. Zara’s delicious meat pie had some kind of secret ingredient—I could never quite replicate the taste, no matter how hard I tried.
The personal guard team gifted me a hat and gloves made from horn rabbit fur. Apparently, they had hunted the horn rabbits themselves and had them processed in town. The fur was incredibly soft and fluffy.
The birthday party was filled with delicious food and cake. The adults drank and made merry, celebrating with great enthusiasm.
*****
After the party, I returned to my room and looked at the presents arranged on the table.
I really received so many gifts from everyone.
And everyone understood my personality so well—most of them were practical items. That’s really helpful.
Since I got so many books, Father even promised to build me a bookshelf.
The food and cake were delicious. Thinking back to how awful food tasted when I first came to this world, today’s meal felt almost like a miracle. Mr. Abe and the others say it’s thanks to me that they’ve improved this much, but… all I did was request the food I wanted to eat. I never actually taught them anything, so being thanked for it makes me feel a bit guilty.
Six years old, huh? In my past life, I’d be in elementary school by now. But here, school enrollment starts at ten. Adventurer registration also starts at ten. Four more years to go.
Sigh… There’s still a long way ahead.
Ahhh, I’m so full and getting sleepy…
*****
[HAPPY BIRTHDAY dear Grandma, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to YOU! Happy birthday, Grandma!]Clap, clap, clap, clap…
In front of the family altar, we placed Grandma’s favorite sushi and fruit tart, then sang the birthday song together with Ruta and Niko.
I even took the day off from my part-time job today. Since morning, Niko and I had decorated the altar to give it a party atmosphere. Normally, people might say it’s disrespectful, but Grandma loved lively celebrations. She’d surely be happy.
In the evening, my parents wrapped up work early, and Ruta, who usually lived in the dorms, also came home. When they saw the decorated altar, the three of them burst into laughter. Niko and I high-fived.
We spent dinner sharing memories of Grandma.
She was scary when she got mad, but most of the time, she was always smiling. She loved eating, cooking, and traveling. She’d go to concerts with me, play games with Ruta, and nap with Niko… We had so much fun together.
"I wonder what Grandma is doing right now?"
Niko asked.
"Knowing Grandma, she’s probably eating the sushi and cake we offered and then napping with a full stomach.”
Ruta said.
"Haha, that does sound just like Mother.”
Mom chuckled.
"Hey now, if you keep talking like that, she’ll get mad and come back to haunt us.”
Dad teased Niko.
"I wouldn’t be scared even if Grandma became a ghost.”
Niko declared.
"Yeah, but if she did come back, she wouldn’t let us sleep. She’d probably be dancing while watching her favorite 16-member dance and vocal group’s DVD.”
Ruta said.
"Totally!"
We all laughed in agreement.
After my bath, as I was heading back to my room, I heard music coming from Ruta’s room, which was slightly ajar.
"Ruta, the bath is free now. What are you listening to?"
"Oh, thanks. I’ll go in now. I downloaded the new song from that 16-member dance and vocal group."
"I did too this morning! It’s a great song, right? Hurry up and take your bath."
Saying that, I returned to my room.
I set up a live concert DVD in the Blu-ray player and lay down on my bed.
Maybe if I fall asleep watching it, I’ll meet Grandma in my dreams…
What do you think about this chapter?
