Chapter 499
Bear-san, Draws The Picture Book’s 4th Volume.
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Author’s Note
[Caution] This is the 4th volume of the picture book, but please read the following items:
As noted in the changes in [0 Differences between the web version and the book version].
In the LN version, the 3rd volume of the picture book. When they entered the town, the bear became [hand-held], but I decided to change it into [bear cub].
I apologize to the readers, but please think of it as a normal bear cub.
I have also revised volume 3 of the web version of the picture book from [hand-held bear] to [bear cub].
I apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.
-Kumanano
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After returning from the Land of Harmony, I went to see Tirumina-san about the matter of taking Fina along. It was more like calling Fina out of the blue, so I included an apology.
But Tirumina-san did not seem angry and even said, “I trust Yuna-chan, so it’s okay”. However, since both of his daughters were away, Gentz-san said he missed them.
“And thank you for the lovely picture.” (Tirumina)
The picture I drew of Fina and Shuri wearing kimonos were well received by their parents.
Gentz-san said he was disappointed that he didn’t get to see how cute they were personally. It can’t be helped since Fina and the others, who were actually wearing kimonos, were actually prettier in person than what was depicted in my drawings.
Incidentally, my excuse to Gentz-san was that I made his daughters wear clothes that were lent to us by the Land of Harmony.
Then I asked Tirumina-san for permission to borrow Fina again the next day.
Tirumina-san told me that Fina was free to go anywhere as usual.
“Yuna-oneesan, are you drawing a picture book?” (Fina)
The papers and something to draw with was on the table.
The other day, when I gave Sakura the picture book, I felt like drawing for the first time in a while. Besides, Princess Flora might be waiting for it, so I have to start drawing quickly.
If I don’t feel like drawing, I’ll get lazy and never do it.
The last time I drew a picture book was before we went to the school festival. Then I went to the desert, traveled with everyone to the town of Mereera, went to the city of dwarves and the Land of Harmony, and I didn’t draw any picture books in that period.
So I decided to draw a picture book for the first time in a long time and called Fina to my house.
“What happens after the girls enter the city?” (Fina)
The picture book ended with the girl visiting a new town with her mother, who had been cured of her illness, and her sister.
The illustration should start where the girl’s new life is about to begin.
“I’m thinking something like this, though.” (Yuna)
I explained to Fina the brief contents of the book and began to draw.
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Picture book: Bear-san and the Girl, Vol. 4
The girl came to a new town with her family.
In the girl’s arms was Bear-san.
“Mom, where are we going?”
The girl felt uneasy in the new town.
She applied more strength to the arms that were embracing Bear-san.
Her mother said she was going to the Adventurers’ Guild.
The Adventurers’ Guild was a place where you get paid for helping the residents by defeating monsters and using magic.
For the girl, the Adventurers Guild was a scary place. It was a place full of scary-looking adults.
The girls came to the Adventurers’ Guild.
It’s a gigantic building.
Adventurers with swords were continuously entering and exiting the building.
The girl and her sister looked anxious. Their mother smiled at them. The smile made the girl and her sister feel a little less nervous.
The girls entered the Adventurer’s Guild.
Inside the building, there were many scary-looking people with swords and other types of weapons. The eyes of these adventurers were drawn to the girls.
“Kuma?” “Kuma?” “Kuma?” “Bear?” (TN:「くま？」「クマ？」「熊？」「ベアー？」title drop.)
The eyes were drawn to Bear-san, held by the girl.
Her little sister was scared and hid behind her mother. But the girl hugged Bear-san tightly, enduring the lingering gazes, and stood in front of her mother to protect her and her sister.
The mother placed her hand on the girl’s head and smiled gently, saying, “It’s okay”.
The mother went to the receptionist, and she asked her to call someone’s name.
The woman at the reception desk was surprised by Bear-san that the girl was holding, but she went to call the person the mother requested.
After a while, a large man appeared in front of the girls, happy to see them again with their now healthy mother.
The large man took the girls to the back of the room.
The man was the guildmaster, and he had the highest position in the Adventurers’ Guild.
The guildmaster looked at the girl holding Bear-san, her sister, and her mother.
“Is that a bear?”
She wanted to live with it together with my family.
Bear-san saved her life.
The guildmaster pondered.
“And it seems that you cherish that bear.”
The guildmaster reached out to pet the head of Bear-san the girl was holding. Bear-san then opened its mouth.
“I was surprised to see that that whiny adventurer turned out to be the guildmaster.”
The guildmaster was surprised because Bear-san had spoken.
“…Are you the bear at that time?”
“Long time no see. Pee-wee adventurer.”
The moment Bear-san said this, the guildmaster’s face turned blue.
“Have you recovered from leaking?”
The guildmaster tried to cover Bear-san’s mouth, but he couldn’t.
“I knew it. You are the bear in the forest, aren’t you?”
Bear-san and the guildmaster seemed to know each other.
Thanks in part to this, the girl was now able to live with Bear-san.
“Even so, you’re cute.”
The guildmaster tried to pet Bear-san on the head.
Bear-san tried to bite into his hand, but the guildmaster was able to avoid it.
The guildmaster laughed and Bear-san looked frustrated.
The girl thought it was funny and smiled.
And the girl’s mother was now able to work in the Adventurer’s Guild.
The mother started working at the Adventurers’ Guild, and the girl and her sister started playing in the Adventurers’ Guild.
“You guys are not to mess with these girls and their bears from now on. If you do, your adventurer card will be revoked.”
The guildmaster declared this when he introduced the girls, whom he was taking care of.
The adventurers were surprised for a moment, but nodded in acknowledgment.
There’s a black bear with her mother, a white bear with her sister, and Bear-san with the girl.
And to help her mother, who was not yet able to work long hours, the girl was assigned to help dismantle monsters and animals.
In time, she became known as “the girl with a bear” in the adventurers’ guild.
One day, the girl decided to go for a walk in a nearby forest because Bear-san wanted to go there.
Bear-san ran across the meadows and through the forest with the girl.
Bear-san runs very fast.
Then, as they passed through the forest and ran along the highway, Bear-san stopped.
“There are monsters.”
Bear-san’s words made the girl nervous.
Bear-san moved slowly and cautiously.
Even from the girl’s position she could see several wolves.
“There are people.”
There was a wagon that stopped near the monsters.
Near the wagon, a man was swinging a stick as if to protect it.
“Stay away!”
The man swung his stick towards the wolf.
Upon closer inspection, a figure of what appeared to be a mother protecting her child by covering her near the wagon.
The wolves growled and tried to attack the family.
The child was being hugged tightly by the mother.
To the girl, the figure of the mother covering and protecting her child when they got attacked by the monsters on their way to town, was all she could see.
The girl wanted to protect that family.
But the girl had no strength nor power.
“Bear-san, please help them.”
The girl begged Bear-san.
She would be putting Bear-san at risk.
But the girl could only ask Bear-san and nobody else.
Bear-san accepted the girl’s feelings and started running toward the wagon. Bear-san growled at the wolves.
The wolves tried to attack Bear-san. Bear-san growled more menacingly, and the wolves finally fled in all directions.
The girl looked relieved.
“Are you all right?”
The girl spoke to the family.
“A bear!”
The father pointed the stick at Bear-san.
The girl explained that Bear-san was not dangerous.
The man dropped his stick when he found out that Bear-san was not dangerous. He then thanked the girl.
It seems the family was in the process of transporting fruit produce to town. That’s when the wagon wheels got stuck in a ditch and wolves surrounded them, and they were unable to escape the predicament.
The father looked at the wheel and made a troubled face.
The horse put all its strength into pulling the wagon, but the wheel that was stuck in the ditch would not move.
“Bear-san…”
When the girl asked Bear-san to do something, Bear-san moved to the back of the carriage. Then, when Bear-san pushed the carriage from behind, the wagon wheels moved out of the ditch and started to rotate.
The wagon can now move freely once more.
The father thanked the girl and Bear-san and gave them a piece of fruit as a reward.
The girl was delighted to have a souvenir for her mother and sister.
Later, the word spread to the Adventurers’ Guild that the girl and Bear-san had saved a family. And that saved family came to town and asked about Bear-san.
Many people later in the Adventurers’ Guild came to learn about the incident, which came from the mouth of the guildmaster, that Bear-san could change its size, so the Adventurers’ Guild immediately notified the girls.
The mother was angry at the girl for doing something dangerous.
A few days later, the girl was summoned by the guildmaster.
A request came to the girl.
The girl made a curious face while holding Bear-san.
The girl was not an adventurer. So she should not be receiving any requests.
But the girl was surprised when she heard what the guildmaster said.
The person who made the request was the most important person in the town.
But the guildmaster said it’s okay and she can go.
She was then told to go together with Bear-san.
“I’m counting on you.”
It would be safe if Bear-san was with her.
The guildmaster tried to get his hands on Bear-san, but Bear-san tried to bite him. And again, he avoided it.
The girl’s mother was worried when she heard the story but decided to let the girl go, partly because of the guildmaster’s reassurance.
The girl went with Bear-san to the house of the lord of this town.
The lord’s house was so large that the girl was left in awe.
“Huge.”
As the girl felt the urge to leave, the gate opened, and a little girl emerged.
“Bear!?”
A girl with golden hair in beautiful clothes came out of the gate. In the girl’s eyes, she looked like a princess.
The girl with golden hair talked to her.
“The Adventurer Bear?”
For a moment the girl did not understand what the golden-haired girl was talking about.
As the story goes, it sounded like the girl was supposed to have teamed up with Bear-san to defeat the monsters.
The girl explained that she was not an adventurer and that she was just taking a walk and saw someone being attacked by monsters, so she asked Bear-san to help her get rid of them.
The girl told the golden-haired girl, she did not do anything.
Then the girl told the story of how she was called to this mansion.
Then, the golden-haired girl said that she was the one who had called the girl.
The golden-haired girl wanted to meet the girl with the rumored Bear-san.
The girl was invited to the mansion, and they talked a lot about Bear-san.
The girl and the golden-haired girl had a good time.
The girl became friends with the golden-haired girl.
Bear-san and the Girl, vol. 4, the end.
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Author’s Note:
Sorry for the delay.
I skipped bookwork in July, which was a big deal (laughs).
(Laughs) Like homework during summer vacation, you have to do it little by little in advance.
I have finished about 80% of the bookwork, but I still have some new writing to do, so I will not be able to post until the 3rd or 4th.
※ I will also take a break from replying to feedback for a while.
Also, the official PASH!
You can read a sample of “Kuma” and see the color illustrations by 029-sensei.
It will make you feel a little better.
Please take a look at the site.
From now on, the information will be available here.