a lot of things happened in life, sorry for anyone who reads my stuff, i’m trying to get back into the hang of things and hopefully do more stuff i enjoy soon
Title: Welcome Apple! - Isn’t It Refreshing?
Characters: Jade, Epel, Idia, Sebek, MC/Yuu, Grim
JP Proofreader: okaykei
EN Proofreader: Jewishruggie
Event Story Navigation
| Episode 1 | 1-1 ・ 1-2 ・ 1-3 ・ 1-4 |
| Episode 2 | 2-1 ・ 2-2 ・ 2-3 ・ 2-4 ・ 2-5 ・ 2-6 |
| Episode 3 | 3-1 ・ 3-2 ・ 3-3 ・ 3-4 ・ 3-5 ・ 3-6 ・ 3-7 ・ 3-8 ・ 3-9 ・ 3-10 ・ 3-11 |
| Episode 4 | 4-1 ・ 4-2 ・ 4-3 ・ 4-4 ・ 4-5 ・ 4-6 ・ 4-7 ・ 4-8 ・ 4-9 |
| Episode 5 | 5-1 ・ 5-2 ・ 5-3 ・ 5-4 ・ 5-5 ・ 5-6 ・ 5-7 ・ 5-8 ・ 5-9 ・ 5-10 |
Isn’t It Refreshing?
Harveston
Idia
I-I ended up coming along, after all. Wh-What do I do…?
Epel
Are you alright, Idia?
Idia
Eeek…!
Idia
p-p-p-pay me no mind… just pretend i'm a leaf and leave me be…
Epel
I-I can't do that…
Grim
Oooh, so this is Harveston!
…There's nothing but snow and mountains here!
Epel
Grim! Can't you at least say that the landscape's vast?
Clear skies, long stretches of mountains, clean fresh air…
Isn't it refreshing getting to feel the majesty of nature itself?
Grim
Not at all…
Epel
MMMMmmm!! The air's so clear! It feels so good!!!
Sebek
……
Epel
What's wrong, Sebek? You're shivering.
Sebek
…N-Nothing.
Epel
But you're worryingly pale, even your lips are losing all their colour…
Sebek
I'm perfectly fine. No need to concern yourself with me…
…AHH!! AAAH CHOOIE!!!!
Ah…
Epel
Are you feeling cold, Sebek?
Sebek
Ugh… In truth…
I find the cold a little bit difficult to handle.
No matter how much I train, I just cannot overcome it…
Epel
I see…
Jade
I never knew you had such a weakness, Sebek.
Epel
The weather in this village is cool from spring to autumn so it's comfortable then.
But when winter comes, the temperature plunges super low and tons of snow pile up too.
Sebek
I understand you being fine with it, Epel, given this is your hometown and all, but Jade doesn't look like he's feeling all that chilly either, does he?
Jade
Yes, that's because I've lived in a much colder and quieter place my whole life.
Grim
I'm also totally fine, yanno! I'm covered in thick fur after all!
Select one of the choices to reveal the next dialogue
Epel
You're right. Even I'm starting to feel the cold since we've only got our school uniforms on.
Epel
Really? Don't push yourself, though. It'd be a real shame if you caught a cold while on a vacation of all things.
Epel
Don't worry. We've prepared warm clothing for everyone here.
I'll hand them out the moment we reach my house, okay?
Sebek
Th-That'd be great.
Idia
…u-um…sir epel.
could that strangely shaped snowy mountain that's visible from here possibly be…
Jade & Idia
MOUNT MOLN?!
Epel
Yes! It's the symbol of Harveston itself.
Idia
Thought so! Maaaannn~~! I never would've thought I'd get to see it with my own two eyes!
Jade
What a divine shape it has! To think that the spectacle I've yearned to view for so long is now right in front of me… I'm awed. Truly.
Idia
Both the mountains and clouds look exactly like the striking backgrounds in Love Sled! My otaku blood is boiling!
Jade
I understand how you feel, Idia. As someone who prides myself in my love for mountains, I'm excited beyond belief.
Epel
Idia managed to recover! That's a relief~
Grim
Both Idia and Jade are super excited somehow.
Epel
So they loved Mount Moln this much. This makes me kinda happy, actually.
Mount Moln has an elevation of 2,469 meters1. It's the most prominent mountain range of the Shaftlands, which is connected by three towering mountains.
It boasts rich wilderness at its foot with many trees and shrubbery…
…but due to its latitude, it receives heavy snowfall, and its summit is snowcapped all year round.
That contrast makes for a really picturesque panorama shot, y'know! It truly lives up to its fame!
Sebek
Your love for your hometown certainly rivals Idia and Jade's, doesn't it.
That said, it certainly is a majestic mountain. Its summit is so obscured by the clouds that I can't see its full beauty.
Epel
The "moln" in Mount Moln actually means "cloud".2
It originates from those fluffy clouds that conceal the mountain's summit, you see.
Sebek
So the sled race will be held at that snowy mountain, huh… It looks much colder than here.
…Quite the bother.
Epel
Nature around here is rich thanks to the abundance of springwater that flows from the mountain.
The village located here at its foot uses the same springwater for agricultural purposes. That's why we have bountiful harvests.
And that's also the reason why most of the villagers here engage in agricultural work.
Ah, look! There's a famer pruning apple trees in the orchard right now.
Sebek
What a vast field it is. I see apple trees all over the land as far as my sight allows.
Epel
Yeah. Most of Harveston's land is occupied by orchards…
…but amongst those, the vast majority are apple orchards in particular, since apple cultivation is Harveston's chief industry.
Although in other regions apples are only in season for a limited time…
Here, we cultivate all sorts of apple varieties, so we can harvest apples all year round!
The apples you can harvest in winter here are actually a unique cultivar that's also a local specialty of Harveston's!
Sebek
Ohh. In other words, this snowscape containing apples is a rare sight to behold in other places?
Epel
Mmhmm. The best season to harvest apples is usually in autumn…
…but if we make a large shipment of apples at that time, they lose value and so their price would decrease, right?
That's why our village went through trial and error with selective breeding so we could harvest apples year-round.
Jade
Which is to say they are the fruits of the farmers' wisdom and labour.
Epel
There are also differences in their flavours. The apples harvested in autumn are sweet, while the apples picked in winter have a strong tartness to them…for instance.
Idia
Sour apples? Why would anyone even make such a thing?
Epel
When you add sugar to them, they can be used to make jam or apple pies, for example.
We make lots of processed apple products in this village as well, you know.
Notes
- There is actually a mountain in reality that is this exact height - Galdhøpiggen. Whether Mount Moln is intentionally meant to be a one-to-one allusion to Galdhøpiggen, I’m unsure, but the writing team certainly did their homework for worldbuilding (Return to text)
- The word Moln is Swedish (Return to text)