Amagi Brilliant Park's
V2 - Chapter 2 Part 1
CHAPTER 2: Not Enough Money!
...----------------...
There are three things that Latifah Fleuranza looks forward to every night. The first is to prepare handmade croquettes to sell to guests the next day. The second is to talk to the birds in the roof garden. The third is a shower.
He enjoyed his hot water, which was soaked with fragrant herbs from the garden, and a faint, pleasant-smelling steam; he knew where all the things in the bathroom were. Although she had already lost her memory of everything until last month, her body remembered.
But last week, Latifah had stopped bathing like this. The luxury of drenching her naked body in a tub filled with hot water was something they could no longer pay—it would cause their gas and water bills to soar. Latifah has heard that employee dormitories even set a schedule for when hot water will be available.
Instead, she boiled hot water in the kitchen, lifted the kettle towards the bathroom, poured it into the basin, and mixed it with cold water to reach the right temperature. Then she went naked, soaped herself with towels and bar soap, and then rinsed herself with water left in the basin. She was only allowed to wash her hair once every three days, but she would not allow herself to complain.
“.....” He shivers. He rushed to the dressing room, and then dried himself with a towel. She felt cold and fragile, and she missed her scented bathtub.
Everyone worked hard, he thought. Sure, he'll make another miracle happen…
“...Achoo!” Latifah sneezed a little, then fumbled around looking for her underwear.
...----------------...
Sento Isuzu uses the nearest public bath. He could not use his bathroom in the dorm, and he could barely justify personal indulgence when he knew what humiliation Princess Latifah had suffered.
The public baths he went to have been in operation for 50 years. It was typical of baths from his day: the painting of the walls of Mount Fuji that went against the times; the floor and walls were white tiled, and a glass-covered refrigerator loads a bottle of milk coffee.
As a royal guard warrior who has only ever bathed in his private bathroom since coming to the human world, his first visit to the public bath has brought a number of surprises.
“Um, Isuzu-san..” Her companion, Water Fairy, Muse, spoke hesitantly. (Isuzu said, “This is the first time I went there. Will you drive me around?” and dragged.) “You've been staring at that ‘keroyon’ basin for a long time. I thought you wouldn't find anything there.”.
“……”
Naked round and kneeling on one leg, Isuzu stared at the basin, muttering interestedly. “Do they sell these basins?” tanyakanya.
“The bath? I don't think.” replied Muse. “I saw them selling it on Tokyu Hands... do you really like it?”
“No. I was just wondering if a basin was an effective form of advertising. If it is cheap enough, it may be worth a try..” Can I print ‘Amagi Brilliant Park’ at the bottom of a simple yellow basin, Isuzu wonders, and a public bath here and there to save it? Maybe they could include an illustration of the head of their mascot, Moffle…
“You're always thinking about work, huh?” Muse idly commented. “...but I heard it took a lot of special care to keep the message from peeling off those basins, you know? Maybe the price is much higher than you think.”
“So..”.
Wherever he goes the problem is always price, price, price. Another promising idea, ruined from the start. Depressed, Isuzu returns the basin to where she got it, then steps towards the bathtub. He threw his washcloth into the water without further ado, and will only enter when—
“Oh... Isuzu-san! Isuzu-san!” Muse called urgently.
“What's up?”
Muse grabbed Isuzu's arm and pulled the towel out of the water. “You can't take your bathtub! You need to fold it neatly and put it over your head. Then washing yourself before entering are the two curbing laws in the bathhouse! Other people need to use it, so it's a little disgusting that you don't wash yourself first, right?”
“Objected...” It is true, due to the budget problem of the park, Isuzu has not had a bath almost all day. After spending 22 hours and 32 minutes unrinsed, he had a hard time denying that he was indeed ‘disgusting.’ Without taking a shower every eight hours, he started wanting to die, but he forced himself to smile widely and hold her back—though he felt drained physically and mentally, and even moving felt like a chore. But it is considered ‘disgusting’... How can he abolish such humiliation?
“Aw, hey, it's not that bad!” Muse. “We just need to wash ourselves first. Come, come here.”
“.....” But I just want to get into the bath immediately, thought Isuzu. Still sad, he followed Muse's directions and sat in front of a designated mirror, where he made foam with a bath washcloth and soap. So in order not to be offended anymore, Isuzu noticed what Muse was doing very carefully, so that he could imitate it himself. You start by washing your right leg, then you move to your hip and waist. Then you move carefully to the tip of your left toe, rubbing in a circle…
“A-What's up?” Muse froze as he realized Isuzu's sharp gaze.
“Nothing. Please continue.”
“But when you look at me like that.. Isuzu-san, are you type ‘yuri’?” Muse blushed and wriggled before Isuzu's silence. “A-Is that why you brought me here? I'm flattered, but I really think we shouldn't. I.. I.. when I feel you look at me, naked like the day I was born, I.
“.....” Isuzu is waiting for him to finish.
“Yeah, I don't think.. I just don't have any interest in that sort of thing.” Muse said in a neutral voice he could set up. She sounds exactly like a high school girl. After the rough play in the bathroom became too intimate, it came to a realization and said, “if we continue further, we will not be friends anymore.”
But Isuzu's gaze did not waver. “...So. I don't fully understand what you mean, but I have to ask you to continue. It's very important that I guide as I should into bath culture.”
“Oh. Is that what this all means…? I'm sorry,” Muse apologized. “But the things here aren't actually that stiff. You just need to wash as usual, okay?”
“Understanding. I will wash in my standard way, then,” said Isuzu, who immediately began rubbing his body. To her, she thought: I want to soak in the bath as soon as possible.
Muse only sighed at first, but after a while, he whispered to her again: “But Isuzu-san, we should probably do things that create an atmosphere of ‘yuri.’ You know, to increase sales?” Muse proposed, for some incomprehensible business reason and broke down the fourth wall.
“...What yuri atmosphere, exactly?” Isuzu asked.
“You know. Being nervous, like I was,” Muse explained. “‘Oh, Isuzu-san, your facial skin is very bright’ and ‘Oh? You made me want to tease you a little too. Accept this!’ and other. And then we scream and chuckle and stuff.”.
Isuzu stopped soaping and looked at Muse with merciless indifference. “You were able to say some very disturbing things.”
“Oh, come on!” Muse protested. “Do not betray me!”
“I don't really know what you're talking about, but excessive fanfare will annoy those around us,” Isuzu told him politely. “After all, we will continue this discussion in the shower.”
“It's not fair. I—”
“Enough.” Isuzu waved his hand indifferently, and then headed for the bathtub. Just to be sure, he checked the reactions of the people around him: this time, no one seemed to be annoyed by the thought of him entering the hot water. He also placed a wet towel over his head, as per the instructions.
“Ahh...” It feels amazing. The word ‘meresap’ must have been meant for times like this. Immersing his body into the water filled him with a feeling that encompassed all happiness.
Isuzu recalled hearing that his bloodline had kappa blood in it. Maybe that's why it tastes so good when you put a wet towel on his head? Is that also the reason why he likes cucumbers so much?
Ah, but forget it. This is paradise.
“But we can't forever go to the public bath, you know?” muse said, cutting off Isuzu's daydream as he lowered his pure white body into the bathtub. “This place needs money, even if only a little. And. I don't think the cast can be frugal forever. We need to figure out how to raise money so that people can shower whenever and for whatever length of time they want.”
“Yes, you're right.” Isuzu whispered, staring at the ceiling. “We have no money. If things don't change immediately.”.
...----------------...
While everyone in the park skimmed with effort—Isuzu and Muse spent their allowance in the public bath; Latifah sneezed as she washed her body with cold water—Moffle, Macaron, and others, and Tiramii is enjoying the most luxurious spa massage in Amagi City.
“Ahh, yes! Yep! There, fumo!”
“Ya... work harder, ron! Again, again... yes, yes, yes!”
“Hey, hey, lady! You have a nice body, mii! Can I get your email?”
The three round-fat, two-headed mascots were lying on the massage table, moaning happily. In addition to the basic entry fee of 2,500 yen, an hour-long massage costs 7,000 yen; it is a pleasure at a level that will even make a good employee think twice.
“Oh, stop! You silly man. Don't tease old women!”
The middle-aged woman thrust her elbow into Tiramii's back while laughing, her cheeks red. She did have a nice body—good enough that she could appear in one of the ads for that fake diet product. He may have worked very hard to maintain his body shape.
“Aw, that's not true, mii! Give me your address. I will receive your LINE as well, mii.”
“Be careful, madam. It's worse than garbage, ron.”
“Yes, fumo. You don't want to lose your family, do you?”
After each of the three chimed in, the entire place burst into laughter.
Unfortunately, the woman has a husband she loves and two children her high school age, and she has no intention of starting such a relationship with Tiramii. Still, he seemed to enjoy the temptation. The other two middle-aged massage experts laughed out loud, and all the mascots left the massage parlour after enjoying themselves.
“...Ahh, I feel better. What's next, ron?”
“Hmm. We've enjoyed the sauna and the massage, the fumo. Next..”
“Bir and barbecue! Kalbi! Kalbi!”
“Kalbi! Kalbi!”
“Kalbi! Kalbi!”
The three of them roared loudly, then walked into the high-class barbecue restaurant inside the spa building.
Coincidentally, the money for all these luxuries came from Satsuki Sho's horse race ticket with a 100-1 payout. Tiramii had a tip, Macaron had researched it, and Moffle had already provided the money. After much discussion, the three finally decided that dividing it into three would be easier—and the payment was enough that even a barbecue kalbi for 300 yen per piece was trivial.
“Ahh, glad to be alive. I haven't spoiled myself like this for a long time.” said Macaron, after chugging his beer and sighing happily.
“Yeah, fun is fun, but.. I feel a little guilty, fumo.”
“Mii? Why that?”
“All the things we do to increase our arrival in March have made AmaBuri in debt, fumo. Our budget is in serious trouble.” His position of responsibility makes it difficult for Moffle to fully enjoy their current situation.
“How can you think of the current job? Remember where you are, ron!”
“For now, enjoy the calories, mii!”
“Yah.. I think you're right, fumo.”.
The three began to laugh out loud again, clink their glasses and toast, and fully enjoy the taste of the barbecue meat. They did not think about the unpleasant bathing situation experienced by Latifah, Isuzu, Muse, and others.
“Ahh, this is great, mii!”
“I really enjoyed this! It's so much fun, ron!”
...----------------...
The next week, in the conference room of No building. 1—
“It seems like the fun is over,” Kanie Seiya said in a gloomy voice. “We don't have enough funds to run the park. We are doing all we can to get new financing, but if it continues like this, we won't even be able to give a salary for this month.”.
Isuzu and most of the cast slumped.
Only three cast members sat in one corner of—Moffle, Macaron, and Tiramii— who got up from their seats with a bang of shock. Actually, Macaron and Tiramii who did that—Moffle just crossed his puppet hands, closed his eyes and muttered ‘Moffu’ as if he had suspected this.
“You won't pay us?! Are you saying you won't pay us, ron?!”
“You can't do this, mii! It's terrible, mii!”
Both of them became very pale and shouted very loudly.
“Silence. You can't get money from me.” Seiya grumbled with great annoyance.
“But, but... I've got all kinds of bills due! My phone, my rent, my credit card.. This month's salary is my last hope, mii!”.
“I too, ron! I have to live on 500 yen a day until payday... What will I do, ron?!”
As the two of them were babbling at each other, Moffle scowled. “What are you talking about, fumo? We received that big paycheck last week.”
“Gaji? What are you talking about?”
“We won a 100-1 ticket at the Satsuki Sho race, fumo. We split it into three, so each of us gets 150,000. We even got a nice little night on the side, fumo.”
Other cast members lean forward in excitement: “Wow, lucky!” and “How do you get the jackpot?” and “Let me take part in that activity next time!” they're buzzing.
“.....” Seiya, meanwhile, slumped sadly. The mascots who are supposed to bring dreams to the kids betting on horse races and squandering their money? It was all so dirty and ugly.
“Macaron, Tiramii. Why are you so upset? Even after our little night, you guys should still have plenty left over, fumo.”
Their cute doll bodies were deflated in shame.
“I lost everything in pachinko, ron..”.
“I spend every night in pub lingerie, mii.”.
You two are the real trash, all the eyes in the room seem to be saying that. In return, they exploded with the excuse:
“But I won at first, ron! I thought I was lucky after the 100-1 ticket! I was thinking, ‘I should get the jackpot this time,’ ron!”
“I h-just feel sorry for this one pub lingerie girl, mii! No one picked him and he looked very sad and.. I want to help him, mii!”.
“Good..” Both mascots murmured, but the threat from Isuzu's musket quickly silenced the two.
“...However, back to the point of origin: we are almost bankrupt. And once we start getting blank checks or failing to pay employees, it's a countdown to bankruptcy. We have to do some ingenious things to get our labor costs paid Seiya explained.
Ashe, head of the accounting department, chimed in. “But sir, we will also recruit new part-time workers this month. How can we justify that to the entire cast? Hiring new people while their own pay is late.”.
“We need those new employees no matter what.” Seiya said, firmly. “If we can overcome these obstacles and keep the garden alive. This is one thing I can't give up.”
“But we don't have enough money. We cannot be late to pay our employees. Someone will run to the Labor Standards Inspection Office, and the rest will be like rats escaping from a sinking ship. I wasn't trying to imply that you were going to run away, Moffle-san,” Ashe apologized, as he realized Moffle was making a face. “...I'm sorry. It seems we should have kept this to ourselves. If rumors spread, it will make things worse.”
Ashe's right. Even if this was a half-and-half amusement park and it failed, this park could not be late in paying its employees. Even rumors about it happening would be a huge slap; they would be over. That will wipe out all the hard work they've done in March.
“Alright, I hear you,” Seiya confessed. “But we can not return the genie into the bottle. Think of this as a very secret matter that we entrust you to keep for yourself. Understand?”
“.....” Hearing Seiya's words, the group fell silent. Maybe the phrase—‘we believe in you’—have united them by itself.
“So I want to talk about this with everyone here,” Seiya continued. “What we need is 25 million yen, and we need it in the next two weeks. I'll accept whatever ideas you have.”
Hearing the exact number caused the group to sink even heavier. That is far beyond anything they can get with a horse race or a pachinko jackpot.
“Ide anything. If you think of something, just put it up there.”
Macaron hesitantly raised his nails. “Um... we can all play pachinko.”
“No. The others?”
“Mii. We can all bet on horses.”
“No. Eliminate gambling. The others?”
“Moffu. We can all rob department stores.”
“No,” Seiya sneered. “Despite us stealing 50,000 from each, we still have to rob 500 stores.”
“Then what about robbing a bank?” Moffle.
“No. Avoid robbery.”
“Moffu. Pyramid scheme?”
“Come,” said Seiya desperately, “without any illegal thing. The others?”
“We can open an adult playground!”
“Bringing adult entertainment business law. The others?”
“Doujin sexy?”
“Only a few of us can sell it, and we can't make 25 million from it.”
“Figurin sexy?”
“Didn't you hear what I said?”
“Bantal hug?”
“Get rid of items segs.”
“Me and greet?”
“You think anyone will want to meet or greet you?”
They spent about an hour like that, throwing in half-hearted ideas, but nothing reasonable came up.
“Seiya... no one will find a way to get 25 million yen instantly, fumo.” Moffle said with a tired expression.
“Hmm... Well, I know you won't find it.” Seiya replied recklessly.
The whole group groaned.
“Then why are you asking, mii?! I'm bad at finances, mii!”
“Isn't it your job to find these things, Kanie-san?!” Ashe.
“Just give us amazing miracle like last month!”
They shouted at him one after another. Seiya's expression shriveled because of their arrogance. What do they expect from a high school student who earns 850 yen per hour? 850 An hour is the minimum wage of Tokyo. Seiya would love to work not for anything, but as a base of grip, he felt at least himself should receive that much. He wanted to rebuke them for that, but he chose not to do it—If he told them “don't put too much pressure on a boy like me” now, no one will ever listen to him again.
“Kanie-kun.” Isuzu sat beside her, pulled up her sleeve and whispered in her ear.
“What?” he whispered back.
“Don't you have to tell them about Malmart's thing?”
“It is better not,” he replied calmly. “I really want any idea I can get from them, and I also want them to feel responsible for what happened.”
“I understand..” Isuzu muttering. He moved away and re-typed the notes on his laptop.
“Ah! Right too, ron!” Macaron suddenly stood up, hitting the table with his nails. “Dornell Cave! Dornell Cave!”
“Ahh... I forgot about that, fumo.” Moffle tilted his head as if remembering something. It seemed that no one else in the conference room knew what they were talking about.
“What is it?” Seiya asked.
“It was a cave in the second park. Most of it has been forgotten, but we park veterans still tell some legends about it, fumo.”
The second park is a large plot of land to the south of the highway, separated from the park that Seiya currently manages. When the bubble burst in the early 90s, there were already plans to build a second park there, but financial problems caused the plan to be shelved. The land is still there, but mostly untouched.
The one inside was just the large stadium they used last month. In other words, ‘taman dua’ is just a name of the park, but the actors are used to calling the southern region like that.
“So, what cave is this?” Seiya wanted to know. “Sort of attractions?”
“It's not an attraction, fumo. There's a tunnel deep in the woods over there. Said it's been there a long time..it's even older than the days of ‘Amagi Game Field,’ I guess.”.
‘The Amagi’ Game Field is the predecessor of the current park: Built in the Taisho Period and enjoyed by the people around Tama Ward, the place was already closed in the early 1970s. Then during the 1980s, Maple Land funded renovations and reopening, and the place became Amagi Brilliant Park, which remains to this day.
“What does this cave have to do with our financial problems?” Isuzu asked.
Moffle's gaze moved away. “Some time ago—ini more than ten years ago, fumo—we have a Flower Fairy named〈Dornell〉 in our cast—”
“That's a rough name.. That sounds like a practical weapon.”.
And it will also put it in brackets, such as 〈Arbalest〉 or 〈Laevatein〉.
“Do not interrupt, fumo! …Well, one summer night, 〈Dornell〉 got drunk and ventured into the second park, fumo. There is no evil motive behind it; just a kind of guts test, I'm sure.He took some mascots with him, and they headed for a cave deep in the ground.”.
“It so happens, Dornell is a Flower Fairy from two generations before me, mii.”
“Kuhargai footnote, fumo. But when they went to the cave to test their guts—”
“Can you get straight to the point.” Seiya.
“Well, wait, fumo. This will sound like a made-up story unless I give the construction of a gradual atmosphere just right for—”
“Just go to the core.” Seiya.
With annoyance, Moffle said, “...It seems that there is a treasure deep in the cave system, fumo.”
...----------------...
Moffle and Macaron went on to explain the rest: The cave was located between two hills, deep in a virgin forest at the southern end of the second park (which was planned). Everyone always assumed that it was a bomb shelter from World War II.
One summer night, the subject of the cave appears in a discussion between the Tiramii ancestors who have been wiped out for two generations, the Flower Fairy Dornell, and several other cast members: when you really stop and think about it, you, they realized, it was strange to assume that the place was a shelter. Why would anyone need such a place here in the mountains where no one occupies? Could it be that the cave was not a shelter, but the ruins of another facility? Dornell and the others then got the idea to go exploring, and they headed for the cave in the park both that night as well.
“We know for sure that much, fumo, because Macaron and I were at a drinking party where it happened. But, well.we wanted to train for the parade the next day, so we chose not to go with them, fumo. Come to think of it again now.. We should have stopped them.” Moffle's talk, really.
“So, what happened after that?” Seiya wanted to know.
“Dornell never came back, ron.” said Macaron, with pain in his eyes.
Apparently two mascots who entered with Dornell were found two days later in a corner of the second park, half dead. They were battered, covered in mud, and so exhausted that they could barely communicate.
After they recovered, they both testified that they found a large labyrinth inside the cave. They went in, still drunk, and then got lost in the dark. Unable to find a way out, they advanced and met with all kinds of traps and strange monsters.
They spent a full day running around, half mad and sipping puddles of water to quench their thirst, before coming to the deepest floor of the labyrinth. There, they saw a dazzling hoard of treasures protected by a huge dragon with furious eyes and fiery hot breaths.
“A tail dragon?” Seiya asked skeptically.
“Yes, a dragon. Scales and so on.”
“More fairy tales are long..” Seiya furrowed her brows in great disbelief.
Moffle members in return. “I myself do not fully believe, fumo.. That's just what two people who managed to return.” said.
“Dan?”
“They said Dornell was kidnapped by the dragon and completely swallowed, fumo. The other two escape for their lives, spend another full day wandering the labyrinth, and finally make it to the surface, fumo.”.
Park employees soon form a rescue group to search for the missing Dornell. They headed for the cave in question, but they only entered a few meters before they reached a dead end.
“Well, it's an old cave and that's for sure, but there's no sign of collapse. The tunnel only reaches its natural end on the slopes of the mountain. They searched around, but they could not find their way back to the labyrinth, fumo.”
“Nobody knows what happened to Dornell. And that brings us to today, ron.”
That's the whole story.
“...Um, so let me set this straight: a couple of drinkers tell you a crazy story about buried treasure? That's why you forced me to listen to a long story with an ending that was deliberately made in vain?” Seiya's head started to hurt.
“I can understand why you think that way, fumo. But—”
“Mii. I brought it, as you requested, mii!”
Tiramii had already left his chair after a silent word from Macaron, but he had now barged into the conference room again, panting. He carried a small wooden box, old and darkened with age.
“What is it?” Seiya asked.
“We've kept it in the company museum, fumo. It was the place for various trophies and pictures taken during the park's 30 years of history. None of it is worth anything, of course. This comes from the incident of ‘gua Dornell’..”
Moffle took the box and opened it. “One of the two who came back alive gripped this coin when he was rescued, fumo.”
Inside the box was a large gold coin. It was slightly larger than a 500 yen coin, stamped with a design Seiya had never seen before, and words in a language she did not recognize.
“It comes from one of the magical realms, Schubert Empire, ron. This is a commemorative coin from about 100 years ago, and its value is equivalent to 100,000 Japanese yen.”
“Wow...” Seiya took it using a handkerchief and carefully examined it. Meanwhile, Tiramii screamed in surprise when it mentioned its value.
“100,000 yen?! Why didn't you tell me, mii?! I'll run away with that coin if I know!”
“And that's why we didn't tell you, fumo. Well, Seiya, give it back.”
“Hrm..”
Moffle took the coin from Seiya, then carefully put it back in the box and closed the cover.
“He said there was a mountain of gold coins like this, ron. That would clear up the park's financial troubles, right?”
“If it's true. Of course, none of us know for sure, fumo..”.
It was the end of the conversation regarding the treasure, and the conference ended soon after without any clear plan to take care of their financial hardship.
...----------------...