While chatting happily with each other, we walked for a few minutes through the not-so-large village.

　I was led to a large mansion at the far end of the village - can you call it that?
　I was being led to a large, modest house.

''Come on, Mr. Seya, come on in,''
I'm sorry to trouble you...

　They let us go inside.
　I was grateful for the Japanese style of going up to the house without taking off their shoes, as Japanese people don't feel comfortable going up to the house with shoes on.

I'm home, grandpa, you've got a visitor!
　Uzuki calls out to the back.
　-- but there is no reply.

'There was an urgent village chiefs' meeting today where all the village chiefs (muraosas) in this area gathered together, so perhaps they are tired and dozing off. I will go explain to Grandpa about Mr. Seiya, so please just relax for a while.

　He led me to a room where a straw mat was drawn between the boards, and Uzuki retreated to the back of the room.

　Sitting in front of the chabudai, I take a sip of the water served to me.
　I haven't had anything to eat since I came to the other world, so this is my first otherworldly meal - water, though.
　I gulped it down in one gulp.

It's good.........but it's just plain water. But I was thirsty, so it was soothing... but not tea, not hot water, but water.

　Maybe in this world, it's proper etiquette to serve water to guests.

Maybe not...
　Perhaps it's an economic and financial issue.

　I look around the house without a second thought, partly because of my interest in otherworldly living spaces.
　Naturally, I didn't have any electrical appliances, like a TV or an air conditioner.
　There doesn't seem to be any concept of electricity, and maybe those things don't exist in this world.

　There was a glass box with a glowing stone, like a lantern, hanging from the ceiling - probably for on-off - with a string hanging from it.
'This is an Akari stone.......wow, that's strange, the stone really does glow.

　And for the size of the house, there was quite a bit less stuff, and even if there was, a lot of it was used up.
　Even the cushions I'm sitting on right now are used and quite thin.
　But they were all well cared for and I could tell at a glance that they had been used with care.

''You said you were poor...''
　Uzuki's bright smile made me forget about it, but once again I was reminded of that fact.

　In such a simple room, there was one thing that stood out.
　It was an heirloom in the alcove. It's a single swing of a sword, decorated in a beautiful lacquered scabbard.
　Housed in a beautiful lacquered scabbard, it is

That's a Japanese sword, right?
　Although not associated with the real thing for the first time, its unique warped form, which is often seen in manga and anime, is something that Japanese people can't mistake for anything else, even if it's still in its scabbard.

'Technical similarities between different worlds?　Or was it brought in by an old incarnation?　Even though his name is Sakurai Uzuki, it's clearly a Japanese name...
　The questions were endless, but more than that, I was transfixed by the presence of the Japanese sword (katana) in front of me.

It's the first time I've ever seen a real sword in person. It's a boy's dream to be a warrior with a Japanese sword and.......well, let's just touch it, shall we?　But it looks important, and I should ask if I can touch it first?

　That's when I was about to sit up, at least to get a closer look.