After lunch, Jin and Beena headed out to set up their street stall.
As usual, they intended to place a simple table at the very edge of the stall area and line up their magic tools. Or at least, that had been the plan.
"What's with this crowd...?"
The area was already swarming with people.
"Ah! They're here!"
"Hey, give us some 'popcorn' already! The kids are waiting!"
"Two bags of popcorn, and make it quick!"
"I need three over here!"
It seemed the vast majority of the customers had come specifically for the popcorn.
"Yes, yes, please just wait a moment," Beena said, trying to manage the rush. She poured the corn into the popcorn maker, added oil and salt, and activated the device. In about three minutes, the corn began to pop loudly.
"No matter how many times I see it, that's a real show."
"Ooh, it smells incredible."
Once finished, the popcorn was sold wrapped in Pau tree leaves. These leaves were supple and remarkably tear-resistant, making them the standard choice for packaging in this region.
"Here you go, thank you very much. That'll be five copper coins."
Five Toll—roughly fifty yen—per wrap. It was a fair price. After all, half the point of the stall was to drum up publicity.
"Oh, finally! This is it, this is the taste! I can't stop eating this stuff."
Some customers began snacking the moment they opened their wraps. Jin watched the popularity of the snack with a hint of amazement before snapping back to his tasks. He placed several items he had prepared onto the display table.
These were small placards indicating the name and price of each product. While many stalls he’d seen used price tags, almost none provided any kind of product description. He had decided to fill that gap.
"Excuse me, what's this 'lighter' thing?"
Just as he'd hoped, a customer waiting in the popcorn line took the bait.
"It’s a magic tool for starting fires. Here, let me show you."
Jin picked up the prototype lighter to demonstrate. It was a rectangular box that fit comfortably in the palm of his hand. When he pressed the round button in the center, a small flame flickered to life.
"You can use it to start a fire just like this."
"Huh, that’s quite nice. Can I try?"
A woman who looked to be a housewife in her thirties asked to see it, and Jin handed it over.
"Like this...? Oh! It really does work. This would be perfect for the kindling. It’d be so handy for when the pilot light goes out. This is... fifty Toll? Hmm, I want it. I'll take one."
"Thank you very much."
Their first sale happened immediately. Jin took back the prototype, handed her a finished product, and accepted the payment.
"Looks useful. Give me one, too."
"Thank you!"
Seeing how convenient the lighter was, other customers who were bored while waiting for popcorn began to buy them as well.
"Oh, I really want one, but I don't have enough on me... Hey, are you coming back tomorrow?"
"Yes, we'll be here."
"Then I think I'll buy one then."
The momentum didn't slow. Before evening even arrived, they had gone through all their corn and sold every single lighter.
"Shall we head back?" Jin asked.
"Yeah..." Beena replied, a look of exhaustion on her face. Jin was also feeling the strain of the unfamiliar work, so they decided to call it a day.
"Still, things are really selling well."
"Yeah, it surprised me too. We must have had over two hundred customers."
"I think so. The revenue is incredible."
The pouch hanging from Beena's waist was heavy, nearly overflowing with copper coins. Jin’s own pouch held a mix of silver and copper.
"Is there no way to exchange those for larger denominations?" Jin asked.
"They charge a fee for that, so it’s a waste of money," she grumbled.
Back at Beena's house, they sat down to calculate the day's earnings.
Popcorn sales totaled 2,200 Toll, while the lighters brought in 1,000 Toll. That made for a total of 3,200 Toll.
Subtracting material costs: 500 Toll for ten kilos of corn, 100 Toll for salt, 300 Toll for oil, 500 Toll for the lighter's magi-stones, and another 100 Toll for miscellaneous supplies.
"That leaves us with a profit of 1,700 Toll."
About seventeen thousand yen in a single day, Jin translated in his head. That was a respectable haul.
"Alright, then eight hundred and fifty Toll for you, Jin. Here." She held out a bag stuffed with copper.
"Wait a second, that’s way too much."
"Why? We're splitting it down the middle, aren't we?"
"It shouldn't be a 50-50 split. It's your workshop, and you’re the one who went out to get the materials. A 7-3 split in your favor is more than fair."
"Uh, let me see... 7-3 would be...? Math is a pain, just take seven hundred Toll. Look, you’ve been giving me fruit and things lately anyway."
Beena thrust 700 Toll—partially in silver—toward him. Incidentally, the mathematically correct amount for Jin’s share would have been 510 Toll.
"...Well, if you insist." Jin accepted the money with a wry smile.
"Anyway, we still have a bit of time. We should probably head out to restock, shouldn't we?"
"You're right. I'm wiped, but if we don't go today, we won't have anything for tomorrow."
Beena slung a large shopping bag over her shoulder, and Jin followed suit.
"I think I'll pick up the magi-stones first."
Beena started toward the shop to buy the magi-stones for the lighters, thinking it best to start with the lightest items, but Jin stopped her.
"Wait, don't worry about the magi-stones. I'll provide those."
"Eh? Oh, that’s right, you did say you had some, didn't you?"
"I do. I'll sell them to you at cost, so don't let it worry you."
"I feel a bit bad about it... but thanks."
With that settled, the two went around town buying salt, oil, and corn. Jin also finally managed to secure a supply of barley and wheat for his own meals.
"And there goes all my profit," Beena sighed, looking a bit dejected. It was the reality of their current hand-to-mouth operation.
"You'll have more breathing room soon enough," Jin said, trying to comfort her.
Beena looked up and managed a smile. "You're right. Before you showed up, Jin, I couldn't sell a thing. I shouldn't be greedy."
She stood a little taller as they walked.
"But the lighters were a hit. Making things that are actually useful to people... it's really rewarding."
"It is. I feel the same way. We’ll obviously keep making lighters, but try to think of what else we could produce."
"Oh, are you heading home already?"
"Yeah, sorry. I'll be back tomorrow, though."
"Ri-right. Thanks for everything today."
Jin parted ways with Beena and headed back toward his gate, carrying his newly acquired corn and grain.
In a different part of the city, within a noble’s mansion inside the inner walls, a young boy of about twelve or thirteen sat in a lavish chair. A servant entered the room.
"Young Master, I have purchased the item you requested."
The servant held out a package wrapped in Pau tree leaves.
"Oh, is this it? Let's see."
There was no mistaking it: it was popcorn. The boy took a bite and his eyes widened.
"Mmm, it's delicious! I've never tasted anything like this."
He began to gobble it up, finishing the entire portion in no time.
"Is that all? Hey, go buy some more."
The servant looked apologetic. "The stall has already closed up shop for the day, sir. I won't be able to get more until tomorrow."
The boy huffed, looking irritated. "Then order the chef to make some."