落とし穴５６堀：甘い日 (Part1)
**Pitfall 56: Sweet Day**
**Sweet Day**
**Side: Yuki**
Well, well, this day has arrived once again.
Fortunately, this custom hasn't fully permeated Weed. Thanks to that, the number of victims claimed by the sinister conspiracies of those detestable confectionery companies remains low.
...Yes. Low, but victims do exist.
In Japan, this date is February 14th, and the event is known as Valentine's Day.
It is a wicked tradition, familiar to anyone from Japan, but the original Valentine's Day was nothing like this. While there are various theories regarding its origins, in countries outside of Japan, there is no such custom as "obligation chocolate" or "friend chocolate." In fact, it doesn't even have to be chocolate. It could be flowers or cakes—truly one-of-a-kind items infused with genuine feelings for the recipient.
Actually, since people do those things regardless of the date, there is no special consciousness attached to Valentine's Day itself.
As this fact makes clear, it is blatantly obvious that the modern Japanese version is a conspiracy by confectionery companies to intentionally plant the image of giving chocolate and push nonsensical concepts like "obligation" or "friend" chocolate to turn a profit.
Yet, despite it being established as the Valentine's Day culture of modern Japanese society, there is no consolidated research on its origins, diffusion process, social functions, or historical significance—topics that should be studied by folklore, sociology, theology, and history alike.
In other words, even the academics have judged that such research is unnecessary. It’s clearly just a money-making strategy.
However, anyone living in Japan knows that it certainly exerts a negative social influence.
No, it’s not limited to Valentine's Day; everyone knows that events targeting specific couples can become sharp blades for the single, acting as weapons that make them feel socially isolated. It is not an event like Children's Day where everyone can smile; it is a terrible day where one might whisper, "To be alone on a day like this..."
Given the above, I thought such problems were irrelevant in the otherworld of Aulito, where not only is there no Valentine's Day, but chocolate itself is sold in only a handful of towns. But...
As someone born and raised with Japanese common sense, this is a "Black Day" for me.
Try as I might to forget, I can't. And because my wives are trying to improve Weed by incorporating bits of Earth's knowledge, this abominable event is beginning to sprout in Weed, albeit in a very limited fashion.
"So, Steve. Want some chocolate?"
"I don't want any!! Huh? Listening to you, it sounds like you're claiming to be a victim, but you're on the other side of the fence now, aren't you, Boss!!"
"Don't be like that. This chocolate isn't so much a 'true love' offering as it is an experiment to see how it can be accepted by the general public. You’re a taste-tester, that’s all."
That’s right. Last year, I happened to find a magazine and made chocolate cookies for Valentine's Day. This year, I’m challenging myself with other items, aiming to launch an event that will follow Christmas and the New Year by next year.
Mainly because of Ratz.
She is deeply impressed by that hateful, distorted Japanese sales strategy and is trying to adopt it.
Well, according to her...
*"A day where people can put sweets in their mouths. I think that's a wonderful thing. Outside of Weed, sweets are still too expensive, and the average person can't easily get their hands on them. But this Valentine's Day gives a good reason to let children eat sweets. If it spreads in Weed, other countries will surely follow suit."*
I couldn't very well complain to Ratz when she was thinking about the children like that.
"So, Steve is the one who’s going to trample on the wishes of such a devoted wife..."
"I heard the official reason. What's the real one?"
"It hasn't reached the point of being proposed as a Weed event yet, so the only taste-testers I have are those close to me."
"I see. So that's why you called a non-human like me. But what do you mean it hasn't reached the point of being proposed? You’ve been rolling out other events one after another."
"I have to consider supply, demand, and the balance between nations."
"You're using some fancy words for just a Valentine's Day thing."
"Dummy. Think about it. The previous events were aimed solely within Weed. But this time, the goal is to spread it abroad from the start. And it's an event centered on expensive sweets. There's the issue of the supply rate of honey and sugar outside, and while countries that rely on sugar might seem like they’d see increased revenue through trade, there's no way production could keep up immediately. If I just popped out sugar with DP in Weed and supplied it to other countries at a low price, what would happen?"
"Well... the places making a profit on sugar would suffer a huge loss."
"Exactly. Not to mention, it's unclear if we can even get cacao, the raw material for chocolate. If we narrowed Valentine's Day products down to chocolate, orders would flood into Weed, and we'd be making a killing. If that happens..."
"Yeah. I can see how that would earn us resentment from all sides."
"That's why I'm trying to make things that can be produced in each country, avoiding supply competition. That’s why I’ve made a mountain of different sweets. Here."
*Thud, thud.*
"That's a lot!?"
"That's why I called you. I've reached the point where I can't even tell what I'm eating anymore."
"Well, yeah, if you eat this many sweets, that's bound to happen."
"Look at the number on the box and write your impressions in this document. A rating from one to five. Sweetness and deliciousness."
"What a hassle!?"
"It is a hassle, but since I plan to make this popular across the continent, I can't put out anything half-baked, right?"
"Wouldn't it be better to do this at the Laboratory or somewhere?"
Steve popped a cookie into his mouth as he said that.
He’s a good guy for helping out despite the grumbling.
Yes, a good guy...
Good guys might just end up being "good people" until the very end... maybe?
No, no, stop that.
"The Laboratory is a place for selling recipes. The purpose is a bit different, and it would be troublesome if it got out that I’m planning the next event."
"I see. Actually, it's not even certain if we're going to do it yet, so it wouldn't be good to make it public."
"Exactly. First, we have to pass the first hurdle: us."
With that, I reached for the cookie Steve was eating and put it in my mouth.
*Crunch...*
At this point, it just tastes like hardened flour.
"Still, there's no sweetness. It just feels like I'm eating something fried in butter."