Gather Divine Coins and Gacha! - Chapter 1

What comes into view are about thirty children sleeping in a large room.

The usual sight.

And I was sleeping facing the wall in the corner of that room, and I woke up earlier than anyone else in the room.

This, too, is the usual.

It’s been a little over six years since I was abandoned at this orphanage.

It’s a morning no different than usual.

The only difference is that I’m gripping something hard in my hand.

It’s not a copper coin. Not a silver coin, either. I’ve never seen one, but it isn’t a gold coin, either.

It’s a white, glossy coin; on one side there’s a woman, and on the other side something like a temple is engraved.

I’ve never seen anything like this.

But I can kind of guess what this is.

A Holy Coin.

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A Holy Coin.

A blessing from the goddess, bestowed while held in one’s hand at the moment of one’s first cry, and on one’s eighth birthday.

Other than that, I’ve heard it has a chance of being bestowed when you accomplish some great feat…

I don’t really understand it, but it seems to be some kind of mysterious coin.

And the single most important thing is that it’s apparently traded for twenty gold coins apiece.

That said, I hear official outlets are limited, so it’s rare to get the full amount.

Now then.

Now, now, now.

It’s an unexpected treasure, but there’s one problem.

I’m supposed to be seven years old.

◇

Back in Japan, I lived a reasonably smooth, fairly successful life as a working adult.

But before I knew what had happened, I was here at this orphanage surrounded by brats, and on top of that I was one of them.

I do remember covering up an unhealthy lifestyle with alcohol and cigarettes, and even though I didn’t understand what was going on, I somehow adapted one way or another and ended up where I am now.

But I can’t just stay here as I am.

Because not just here, but probably at other orphanages too, they collect Holy Coins at the orphanage.

One of the official outlets is the church, and the orphanage is under its umbrella.

If they used the proceeds from selling Holy Coins to run the orphanage, I could grit my teeth and accept it, but from what I could tell when I stole a look at the ledger during breaks from cleaning the director’s office, most of it goes straight into the director’s and staff’s pockets.

In the first place, even the children’s meals are mostly vegetables we grew ourselves, and the money is money we earned ourselves by working in town.

Even when it comes to looking after the younger kids, the older group does it.

In other words, an orphanage is an organization that gathers orphans in order to collect Holy Coins.

Maybe because my body is small, they still thought I was seven, but while they were off their guard, I was able to get my hands on a Holy Coin.

I’d been thinking about it already, but it really looks like there’s no choice but to run away.

Forgive me. My brothers and sisters!

◇

You might be thinking, “Run away even though it’s an orphanage—how does that work?”

Up until age eight, you’re treated decently enough so they can collect Holy Coins.

The work is helping out at eateries around town, cleaning, and the like.

But once you’re past eight, that changes.

For example, hauling cargo.

I’ve seen them carrying heavy loads while groaning and straining.

Apparently you have to keep moving from morning to night.

There seem to be other places too, but with all of them, when they come back they fall asleep like they’ve collapsed.

Most of the time, you die in a ditch.

If you’re lucky enough to survive that and grow to around twelve or thirteen, boys go to the mines or a frontier settlement.

Girls, if they’re pretty, go to a brothel; otherwise, just like the boys, they go to the mines or a frontier settlement.

Either way, you’re sent to a harsh and dangerous place.

And on top of that, the wages are paid to the orphanage.

It almost makes you think a jail cell would be better…

In fact, every year a few people run away.

I don’t know what happened to them afterward, but…

If I end up on that route, all I can see is a fate of dying in a ditch.

No matter what, I have to get out of it…

◇

I’d made up my mind to run away, but what to do…

After all, I’m a child with no one to rely on....

My precious Holy Coin.

I probably ought to make use of this somehow, but…

Sometimes I work jobs like washing dishes at a tavern, or peeling vegetables.

Every so often—specifically, one or two people a month—customers who’ve gotten a Holy Coin come in.

And they treat their companions and the other customers around them to drinks.

It hurts that I was so focused on the profession of “adventurer” and the existence of monsters that I missed out on information about Holy Coins…

There are seven or eight other similar taverns in this town, but they’re probably the same.

I figure it’s around a dozen or so coins a month.

Mixing mine in there and converting it to cash would be difficult.

Have an adult handle the exchange for me?

They’d just take it.

“Hmm…”

A groan slipped out despite myself.

Even if I run away, I can’t convert it to cash.

And even if I could, carrying around gold coins would be far too dangerous.

If I had an absolutely safe 【Hideout】, that would be different, but there’s no such thing.

“Haa…”

A sigh spilled out despite myself.

Where I am right now is the director’s office.

Since there are expensive things like books and other items here, aside from me and a few older ones as the cleaning crew, people basically don’t come and go.

Even though I hate them, I’m not going to go out of my way to dirty things or handle them roughly, and one way or another, I like this place where I can be alone.

If I had to say, this is my hideout within the orphanage, but since I’m trying to leave, it’s pointless.

“Haa…”

Another sigh spilled out.

It’s a harsh world.