North Rukongai, District 1.
This is the name of the place where I, Airi, was sent.
This world, the Soul Society, is where the dead arrive—you can think of it as the afterlife or the netherworld without any issues.
In the center, there is an area called the Seireitei where the privileged classes, such as Soul Reapers and nobles, live. Spreading out around it is the downtown area called Rukongai, where the commoners live.
This Rukongai is divided into eighty districts spreading out in fan shapes to the north, south, east, and west. In other words, there are eighty districts in each of the four directions, making for a total of three hundred and twenty districts. So, an address would be expressed like "South Rukongai, District 20."
The lower the district number, the better the public order, and the higher the number, the worse it gets. Apparently, safety drops sharply after District 50, and in districts beyond 59, no one even wears straw sandals.
District 1, where I was assigned, has a townscape that feels like the Edo period or perhaps the Azuchi-Momoyama period. The people walking on the streets properly wear kimonos and straw sandals, and everyone seems gentle.
Come to think of it, the assigned number depends on the quality of the soul... Was being assigned to the safest district a so-called reincarnation perk? If so, it is plain, but I am very happy about it.
...Could the perk be my appearance? I am incredibly beautiful, after all.
By the way, after giving a fake name with such confidence back at the gate, I worried, 'What if I don't have an assignment because I used a fake name and I just die here!?' but to give you the conclusion, it was a groundless fear.
When I searched the sleeves of my kimono, the numbered ticket was inside. I was truly relieved when I found it.
If I hadn't found it... ugh, I do not want to imagine it.
And so, as for what I, having safely arrived in Rukongai, am doing right now—
"Sis! Another sake bottle!"
"Over here! Two orders of rice!"
"Three skewers!"
"Yees! Please wait a moment!"
I am working as a server at a shop where food is served and alcohol is drunk—a so-called izakaya.
Wearing a triangular kerchief on my head and an apron, I carry ordered items to customers. Just when I think I am done, I get sent to wash dishes or help with the cooking.
The interior, which looks like an old-fashioned shop, is bustling with many customers. It is full of vitality, with everyone chatting, eating, or drinking sake until their faces turn red.
Even though I say customers, there are no new ones; they are all residents of District 1. It is nothing but regulars.
On the first day, I was overwhelmed by this tremendous momentum and nearly fainted, but as expected, one gets used to it after three days. I have become quite composed.
I have also gotten used to smoothing over my way of speaking and behavior to match my appearance. See, see? Doesn't my speech sound more feminine now compared to how a man talks?
Once I gained some composure, working became fun. The staff meals are especially delicious, and it is hard to restrain myself from eating too much...
...Huh?
People in Rukongai can basically live without getting hungry? Only those with spiritual power aptitude get hungry? Since commoners don't need to eat, restaurants shouldn't exist?
Your point is valid. I thought so too at first.
But, please think about it for a moment.
You won't starve if you don't eat. You won't die even if you do nothing.
Even if told that suddenly, the people who come here are those who lived their previous lives saying, "I worked every day, ate rice, and worked again."
You can survive without doing anything, but a life of doing nothing leaves you with too much time and boredom. When that happens, humans want to work. You could call it a distraction, a hobby, or a pastime.
By utilizing the skills and experiences the residents had in their previous lives to work, they grow crops, make clothes, and build houses. In doing so, economic activity is born. After all, many people lived that way originally.
Above all, a currency culture exists in the Soul Society, so the culture from one's previous life applies as is.
In addition, the location of District 1 and its good public order are related.
Because the people living here in the safest area think, "Let's all live together in harmony and cooperation," things run without problems. This would be impossible for people living near District 80—the so-called lowest slums—because their thinking becomes "steal, kill, violate."
It is the same logic as why vending machines only work in Japan.
To add to that, since the district is close to the Seireitei, Soul Reapers show up often, so it is fully possible for ordinary shops like restaurants to exist. Among those doing business in this district, some apparently go inside the Seireitei to deal directly with nobles.
It is just that we "cannot live" inside the Seireitei, not that we "cannot enter."
For those reasons, restaurants are fully viable as places to satisfy the desires of "gourmets" and "drinkers."
Besides, even in Rukongai, there are people who say, "I have the aptitude, but I don't want to become a Soul Reaper." Since those people get hungry normally, restaurants are appreciated.
Also, I cannot say it in a loud voice, but there seem to be shops that satisfy preferences other than food... erotic preferences.
Although it was good that I was brought here, when I was wandering aimlessly without knowing right from left, I coincidentally met the owner of this shop.
Happily, while wandering, I got hungry.
In other words, since I have the aptitude, there is a possibility I can become a Soul Reaper. Yay!
When I told the owner that, including those details, he agreed to let me work as a live-in employee.
The shop is run by the owner and the landlady, just the two of them. They were very good people who gladly accepted me even on the condition that I would only work as a stopgap until I became a Soul Reaper.
Probably, but I think the reason they hired me, aside from kindness, is that they expect me to work like a poster girl. I do not know how long it will take to become a Soul Reaper, but let's do this properly.
I must return courtesy with courtesy.
"Check over here!"
"Yees."
Oops, back to work. Just as I finished serving an order, I was called.
"One, two, three... that will be 1,200 Kan."
Kan is the currency of this world.
And at this shop, the bill is calculated based on how much each plate costs.
It is similar to how conveyor belt sushi has different prices for each plate; if you count the types and number of plates, you immediately know the total.
It is a simpler method than the modern style of restaurants where every dish has a different price and everything is written on a slip.
"Here you go."
"Umm... yes, exact change. Thank you very much."
After receiving the payment and confirming there were no mistakes, I bowed my head. The customer is god only for the moment they pay money.
...The rest of the time, they are a bit like—petty villains.
"But Airi-chan, you have a nice butt today too."
"Those breasts too, right? The kimono is bursting at the seams; it's irresistible."
"It's a shame she's a bit too tall. But she's a super beauty."
"Idiot! That tall height is the good part!!"
"If I get down on my knees and beg, do you think she'd let me do it just once?"
I can hear you, you know...
The ones saying those things one after another are the other customers still remaining and drinking. They intend to whisper amongst themselves so I cannot hear, though.
Also, the last person! Please give up because it is absolutely impossible even if you prostrate yourself a thousand times. I am not such a cheap woman!!
It has only been three days since I started working at this shop, yet not a day has gone by without hearing this kind of talk.
The gazes from the male customers are basically poured hotly, hotly onto my chest.
What I am wearing now was also lent to me by the shop, but the size does not fit vertically or horizontally. Even though I hurriedly altered it, I am pushing it quite a bit. It looks like it might rip if I move too forcefully.
Because I am forced to wear clothes that are too small, my body shape is completely visible, and the hem and sleeve lengths are near their limit. Of course, others will look.
...However, you really can feel these kinds of gazes. I had heard about it when I was a man, but experiencing it actually made me understand it very well.
If it were just gazes, that would be one thing, but they seem to get bold because of the alcohol, and I have had my butt and breasts touched a few times.
But I cannot get truly angry... If I put myself in the opposite position, I understand their feelings.
At least the old me would have looked.
Since my response ends up being half-hearted and my warnings gentle, they stop in that moment, but they put their hands out again immediately...
"Haa..."
"Airi-chan, if you don't like it, you should say so clearly. If need be, shall I tell them off harshly?"
"Landlady... no, no, it is just playfulness at a drinking party, so it's fine. I will get properly angry when it is truly dangerous."
"Is that so? It's too late once it gets to that point, though... but really, be careful."
She must have heard the sigh I let out instinctively; the landlady called out to me, and the owner is also looking at me with concern.
While feeling grateful that I met truly good people, I started clearing the table that had just opened up.
"Nngh, I'm tired..."
The last customer left, and just as I finished cleaning up, the owner told me, "You can knock off for today."
The couple seems to still have prep work for tomorrow, but they won't make a newcomer who just joined do that much.
I head to the room lent to me.
Though I say room, it is truly small, a trivial space with barely a set of bedding and two kimonos, let alone personal belongings. Still, I cannot complain.
Because this is my home now.
Once I finish laying out the futon, as a final resistance, I do flexibility exercises and muscle training by imitation. I am an aspiring Soul Reaper, after all. It should be better than doing nothing. I do not know if my method is correct, though.
Truthfully, it would be best if I could train my spiritual power, but unfortunately, I don't even know how, so I cannot train it.
However, there was a good thing.
On the day I was taken in here, the owner told me, "If you are aiming to be a Soul Reaper, I'll take you to a good place," and tomorrow is that day.
Well then, I wonder where I will be taken?
After doing mock training for about an hour, my sleepiness reached its limit...
Good, night...
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