Chapter 126
Alone
Translator : PolterGlast
「Umm, if I recall correctly...」
To head to the location I was informed of beforehand, I was
walking through the Imperial Capital Elmoregrad while staring intently
at the map I'd been given. After about ten minutes of walking and puzzling over
it, my destination finally came into view.
「Hey Riku, take this batch of
building materials over there.」
「Got it!!」
The one walking with a heave-ho while carrying a massive
amount of square timber was our class's mood maker, Onda-kun. Looking
around, I could see the figures of a few other male students besides him. What
they were wearing wasn't the school uniforms they had on when I brought them
here, but rather brownish coveralls that served as the standard equipment for
laborers in this other world.
「Alright, short break!」
「Phew, the foreman is a demon as
always...」
「Yo, looks like you're doing well.」
「—Wait, why is Masaru-kun
here!?」
It should have been obvious to anyone watching that I was
approaching, but Onda-kun feigned realization and put on a surprised
expression. The five classmates working here also trailed after him and
gathered around. —That's right, they were currently working here. To put it
roughly, Onda-kun and the others were in the construction business. In
this world, you can build houses using Earth Magic, and apparently, they
turn out sturdier that way, but having a mage build a house takes a
considerable amount of time and money. Because of that, ordinary houses like
this are still built by carpenters. Onda-kun and the rest were currently
in the midst of learning the carpentry trade while working here as apprentices.
「It's already been a week, huh...
Time sure flies.」
「How is it? Have you gotten used to
the work yet?」
「Yeah, pretty much. It's a lifesaver
that I have strength thanks to the Hero Buff.」
That's right, a whole week had already passed since my
classmates arrived in the Empire. At first, everyone had started working
while grumbling, but perhaps they found it surprisingly enjoyable once they
tried it, because no one came to complain, and no one took an oath of
non-labor, saying they didn't want to work. Thanks to the Gifts and Growth
Buffs we received upon arriving in this world, our stats are higher than
the average person around here, even if we've barely leveled up. Because of
that, it's easy for us to demonstrate our strength in physical labor like this.
It seems they're being kept a close eye on as promising newcomers.
By the way, because Emilia had vetted their workplace
beforehand, the wages are somewhat high, and the working environment is
incredibly ethical and stress-free. They're receiving a wage level that allows
them to save up a solid amount even after paying for their inn and three meals
a day. Therefore, the people who initially said they would work elsewhere came
running back to this workplace in less than a day. As of now, all the male
classmates, with the exception of Mitsukawa-kun, are
working here. It's a cozy workplace with high wages!
「Well, we have to work for ourselves
at least enough to earn what we need to survive. After all, in this world,
we're already of age.」
At Onda-kun's words, the male classmates nodded.
They're the fairly responsible type, so their plan seems to be to solidify
their foundation by living in this Empire first, and then take a few
more risks to become Adventurers once things stabilize. Ah, by the way, Mitsukawa-kun
is an exception. It seems he's already registered as an Adventurer in
the Empire under a fake name and is running wild. I feel like it's
impossible for me to stop him, so I plan to just let him do as he pleases.
Having a Growth Buff and easily becoming stronger is an advantage that
the other people of Aristella lack. Although there's a risk to one's
life, there's no doubt that those who can utilize their strengths in that field
are more likely to succeed in the end. I basically don't intend to interfere
much, but when push comes to shove, I'm not averse to doing a Power Leveling
session or two.
「Alright then, I'm going to head over
that way now.」
「Yeah, take care.」
Parting ways with Onda-kun and the others, I headed
towards the heart of the Imperial Capital, closer to the center than before. As
I slipped through the alleys and approached the main street, the foot traffic
gradually increased. It was what you'd call a high street, quite bustling
despite it being before noon. Facing the street was an exceptionally
fancy-looking shop—my destination, Jin-san's Patisserie. Through the
glass, I could see the figures of my classmates. Among them were the girls, all
dressed in slightly cuter clothes than usual.
「Ah, Masaru-kun!」
「Yo.」
Entering the shop while returning the greeting to one of my
classmates, Miku's friend, Kishikawa Airi-san, I found the
interior to be as lively as ever. Jin-san's Patisserie was, exactly as
the name suggested, a baked goods shop managed by the store manager, Jin-san.
The spacious interior allowed customers to purchase goods on the first floor,
and if you went up to the second floor, there was an eat-in space where you
could enjoy your purchases while drinking black tea and the like. It was
glass-fronted so you could see inside from the outside, and the setup was on
par with shops in Japan. It gave off an open and airy impression that you
rarely saw in Aristella.
「Oh my, is that Masaru-sama?」
「It's been a while, Jin-san.」
I shook hands with an elderly, gentlemanly man—the store
owner, Jin-san. He had his white hair slicked back and a mustache that
stretched tautly to the left and right, his posture so perfectly straight that
it belied his age.
「Well now, I am turning quite a
profit thanks to you, Masaru-sama... I am truly grateful.」
Jin-san was
someone with enough desire for self-display to put his own name in the store's
name, but his skills were recognized even by Emilia. The fact that his
business was thriving in a location facing the high street, where land prices
were surely expensive, was a testament to his high-level baking skills and
business acumen. I had asked him as a favor to recreate Earth's Western
confectioneries in this other world. Having said that, the only things I knew
how to make were pudding and pound cake, and even my knowledge on those was
pretty vague, but the girls handled that part skillfully. There were few girls
who disliked sweets even if they are bad at fighting, and thanks to them
enthusiastically conducting trial and error, a pound cake using dried fruits
had finally been commercialized. Thanks to that, they were apparently raking in
the cash, and Jin-san was clearly in a better mood compared to the last
time we met.
「As expected of myself... At this
rate, opening a branch store soon might actually be possible... My own talent
frightens me...」
While offering a wry smile at Jin-san, who was
fiercely singing his own praises, I gave a small bow. The reason I gave him the
recipes was partly because I wanted to eat delicious sweets even in Aristella,
but also because I wanted him to look after the girls. There were about six
female classmates in total, but among them, the only one who voluntarily raised
her hand to level up or make a living out of fighting was the highly motivated Kudo-san.
That being the case, the rest of the girls needed a place to work. However, Aristella
had a rather strong tendency toward male chauvinism, or rather, female laborers
were often casually subjected to things like sexual harassment, making it a
working environment that Gen Z girls like them simply couldn't tolerate.
「Hehehe... As I thought, it is always
young women who are at the center of trends. If cute girls serve customers,
women who come aiming for that will appear, and from there, we can capture an
even broader customer base...」
What Jin-san was looking at as he laughed and said
this was the store's maid-like uniform. They took existing maid outfits, added
lace and other things, and shortened the overall skirt length. Simply put, it
looked like a costume for a maid in a maid cafe. Thanks to this uniform, which
was adopted based on Kishikawa-san's proposal, foot traffic had
apparently increased by over twenty percent compared to before its adoption.
Not only were there window shoppers coming just to see the uniforms, but there
were even demands to buy them.
「Ah, Manager, if it's alright, we'd
like to do a trial run for a new baked good next time...」
「Yes, please go right ahead. The
innovation of you Heroes is wonderful. Of course, once it is officially
adopted into our store's lineup, I will be sure to pay you a proper margin.」
In that regard, for better or worse, Jin-san is a
professional who is only interested in himself and his shop. On top of that,
because this shop bears the sign of being purveyors to the Imperial Household,
dangerous customers rarely show up, creating an extremely open work environment
where the girls can utilize their knowledge from Japan to freely voice their
opinions. Upon asking around, it seemed multiple products proposed by the girls
had already been adopted, and I could certainly tell that the products on sale
looked more delicious than the last time I visited. Cookies with chunky almonds
mixed in looked completely on par with the ones in Japan.
(Just like I discussed with Emilia before, perhaps a
future will come where one of the girls runs her own shop, or gets entrusted
with a branch of Jin-san's store.)
While pondering such things, I began my survey, asking if anyone
had any complaints. Then, Kudo-san sharply raised her hand.
「Yes! I want to go adventuring soon
too!」
「Umm, could you wait just a little
longer? I am thinking about it, you know.」
「Really? Don't you lie to me, Kazuno.」
「H-Hey, I'm really not lying!」
Poked in the side by Kudo-san, her sweet scent made
me instinctively back away with great force. Because my Agility stat was
too high, I moved at an incredible speed. It was fast enough to make the bangs
of the girls around me flutter upwards with a whoosh. I can usually
control it, but when I let my guard down like this, there are moments where my
absurd stats accidentally slip out. It seems playing the part of the "good
grief" protagonist who pretends to be ordinary is impossible for me.
「Anyway, I'm thinking of finding a
good time for all of us to go sometime next week.」
「Ehh... Are we doing it together with
Onda and Shimokawa and the guys?」
「Of course we are.」
「Being the only girl surrounded by
guys is an absolute no for me.」
「Even if you say that...」
If I'm going to do Power Leveling, I want to match the timing with Onda-kun and the others so there is
no sense of unfairness. But it's true that being in a reverse-harem situation
as the only girl among the male students might make her feel awkward. ...Though
I feel like Kudo-san wouldn't really mind that sort of thing anyway.
「A-Anyway,
we'll talk about this later! See ya!」
「Ah, he ran away! Wait, Kazuno!」
Because I'm currently busy traveling all over the place, I haven't been able to properly look for suitable hunting grounds. I intend to do it properly once this upcoming meeting with the demons—which seems to be the biggest hurdle right now—is over, so I'll have her bear with it for now. Like that, I hurriedly left the shop and used my Home Gift to head straight for the Grust Kingdom. Ah, by the way, the reason Miku isn't accompanying me is because I've asked her to provide emotional support and such for the people who recently arrived in the Empire. I'm having her move around all over the place, working hard as the social lubricant between the people of the Empire and our classmates, and occasionally speaking with Her Majesty Emilia. I decided to leave those things, which only someone with strong communication skills can handle, to her. Therefore, in exchange, I intend to do what I can do.
-----
Thank you for my Patrons !!
[Platinum]
-
[Gold]
B random
Nepheos
ShitaiNoKootoRyuu
[Silver]
Corey Hicks
Creris
Frédéric Bertrand-Hudon
Jake Seagraves
Matthew Fraser
Tbaum56
Xavier O'Donoghue
Anton Lim
Austin Lorenzo
Baelee
Bloodyemperor
Ctdela
Curious Panda
nick nasca
openope
Radhitia Furqan
SD Fox
Yosua Lumbangaol
Read Advanced Chapters only on my Patreon
-----
