My name is Marisa. I’m the proprietress of a small restaurant in Shashato City.
My husband is an adventurer. Sometimes he stays home for ages, and other times he vanishes for months on business. He brings home a decent amount of coin, but we were currently in the middle of a long-running discussion about whether it was time for him to finally settle down. Usually, those talks just turned into a fight and the whole matter ended up ignored.
Enough about my husband, though. The important ones were my son and daughter. My son, Marc, was fifteen this year, and my daughter, Sun, was thirteen. They helped out at the shop, but they also took turns running a food stall on the main street. It was a sort of apprenticeship for them.
Normally, it would have been better to send them off to work somewhere else, but they both insisted they wanted to help me with my shop. I was happy to hear it, but because I didn't want to tie them down to my business for the sake of their own happiness, we’d had a massive argument about it.
"Fine, then I’ll just become an adventurer," they’d threatened. That was when I folded, but I set a condition: they had to train by running a food stall. The two of them had put a lot of thought and effort into it, so I felt like it had been a pretty good compromise.
However, for the past few days, they both looked miserable. When I asked what was wrong, they said a new shop had opened up and the flow of customers had shifted away from them.
How foolish. If that was the case, they should have just moved. The whole advantage of a food stall is its mobility. When I offered that advice, my son and daughter just let out heavy sighs. I couldn't believe they’d respond to their mother’s wisdom like that.
Apparently, to set up a stall in the city, you had to apply for a specific spot with the Commerce Guild. When you applied, you paid a location fee to the guild to secure the right to operate there for a set period. Therefore, if you wanted to move, you had to file a new application and pay another fee.
They explained all of this to me as if it were a massive chore. I see. Food stalls had their own share of complications, didn't they? I’d only made them do it because the wife of the shop next door had suggested it; I hadn't actually known the details.
I tried to think of ways to help them, but no good ideas came to mind. If I had that kind of business sense, my own restaurant would be much larger by now. I let out a sigh of my own.
I usually sent one of the children, but today I decided to go out and handle the shopping myself. I figured I would take a look at the state of their stall while I was at it.
...
I’d heard the rumors, but it really was a massive building. So this was the place that had changed the flow of traffic and was making my children suffer. It was a shop that sold something called curry, but I figured it couldn't be anything special. It was probably just popular because of the novelty... or so I thought, but the crowd was incredible.
If even a hundredth of this crowd came to my shop—or better yet, to my children’s stall—we’d be set. Still, it certainly smelled amazing. I had intended to eat lunch at home, but I decided this was a perfect opportunity for a little enemy reconnaissance.
My name is Marc.
When I was little, food stall fare was mostly just grilled items or the same few kinds of soup. However, over the last few years, the food stalls in Shashato City had been evolving. It wasn't just the stalls, either; regular restaurants were changing too. I didn't know why, though a senior stall owner told me the Goroun Company was involved.
Well, it didn't really matter. The important thing was that my younger sister and I were trying to ride that wave by running our own stall. We sold grilled mutton on the bone. It was a classic dish, but we’d experimented with certain herbs to give it a unique flavor. Thanks to that, our reputation was excellent. We even had scouts from other stalls coming to spy on us. Our sales were better than expected, and I was proud of what we’d built. I’d even started to dream that we might eventually own a proper shop.
Then, the long rains came and shattered that dream. The greatest weakness of a food stall is bad weather. Rain, in particular, kills foot traffic. During heavy downpours, it was usually better to just stay closed. The world isn't an easy place. In Shashato City, the winters are mild, but the frequent rain is a real problem. Still, there was nothing to be done about the weather. That was God’s domain. I just had to do my best with what I could control.
Then the world got even crueler. The flow of people suddenly shifted. I knew why, of course. Construction had started on a corner of the northern crossroads that used to be a materials depot. I didn't know what they were building, but every carpenter and laborer in the city had been hired for the project.
With that much activity, the flow of people wasn't going to return to normal for a long time. I realized I had to consider moving our stall. Luckily, our renewal date was coming up. I decided to give up on our old spot and choose a place near the former materials depot. Given the scale of the project, construction would likely continue for a while. If all those workers gathered there...
The crossroads originally had a lot of traffic, so the location fee was high, but I figured we would make it back quickly. My younger sister agreed, so we went for it. Just as I’d hoped, we sold a lot of meat to the carpenters and laborers. For a few days, our sales were more than double what we made at the previous location. If we could only keep this up...
But then the construction finished. I couldn't believe it. This soon? I thought it would take at least a year. And what on earth was this building? It didn't even have walls. I wondered if it was finished so quickly because they’d cheaped out on the exterior. It looked like nothing more than a giant roof.
While I was staring at it, they started selling food. Curry. Whether people already knew about it or not, it was a massive success from the very first day. People were being sucked into that huge building, walking right past my stall.
No, it was just the novelty, I told myself. It was fine. They’d get bored soon. They had to. I couldn't afford to panic. I wouldn't panic.
My name is Sun. I’m the cute girl who runs a food stall with her big brother.
And my cute face was currently clouded with worry. The reason was simple: our sales had plummeted. Moving locations had been a fatal mistake. A complete failure. I don't think anyone could have predicted that if we moved to target the construction workers, the building would be finished so quickly and turn into such a delicious restaurant.
Actually... when we applied to move at the Commerce Guild, the clerk had gently advised us against it. Those people must have known what was being built. We should have just listened. I spent some time reflecting on that mistake.
Once my reflection was over, it was time for countermeasures. But what could we do? The obvious solution was to move again immediately, but the problem was the fee. We hadn't earned enough to cover the cost of a new spot. We had two and a half months until the next renewal, but at this rate, we wouldn't even have enough by then.
It was impossible. Big brother still wanted to keep trying, but I wondered if it was time to give up the stall and find work at a shop somewhere. For example, the one right in front of us... Their employee uniforms were so cute. I wondered if I’d get to wear one if I worked there? Some of the girls only wore aprons, so maybe I’d have to earn my way up to the full outfit.
A few days later, a major incident occurred. A huge commotion broke out at the shop in front of us. Actually, that wasn't the major incident. The real one came afterward.
Somehow, the shop decided to give away curry for free for one day only. I had to get in line immediately. I’d been curious for a while; it always smelled amazing, and the customers always looked so happy while eating it. Our stall? Watching the shop? No customers were going to come anyway, so I declared us closed for the day.
The curry was delicious. And it was hopeless. Truly hopeless. Somewhere in my heart, I’d thought our stall could compete, but this was on another level. There was no way we could win against this. My mother used to nag us because she was worried, but after she ate the curry here, she stopped saying anything. She just started watching over us with a gentle smile. But that wasn't a gentle smile. It was a smile of pity.
I looked at my brother eating next to me. Yeah, he was in total despair. As for Mother... oh, she was already back in line for seconds. When did she manage that?
But really, what were we going to do? I pondered the question while eating my second bowl. There was no easy answer. In reality, our sales weren't zero. After eating curry, some customers would stop by our stall to grab a little something extra to top off their stomachs.
I’d wondered why, but I realized it once I ate the curry myself. One bowl was a decent amount, but it left you wanting just a little bit more. At five medium copper coins, the dish was cheap, but ordering two bowls started to get expensive. So, I guess that was why they came to the stalls.
If that was the case, we just had to stick it out until the end of our current term and save up for the next location fee. If that failed, we’d have to close the stall for a while. We could do day labor or anything else to earn the money.
What do you think, big brother? I don't think drinking all that free water is going to do any damage to this shop's bottom line, you know. They give that out for free anyway.
The free curry was a big deal, but the real major incident happened after that. The managers of the nearby stalls and restaurants all showed up together to complain to the shop. Their arguments were... well, embarrassing to listen to.
"Our sales have dropped because of this shop! What are you going to do about it?"
They weren't going to do anything, obviously. Business is the law of the jungle. You can't demand a shop do something just because they're selling too well. Were they supposed to just stop? Besides, who could prove that this shop was the sole reason their sales were down? The Commerce Guild certainly wouldn't take their side with that logic.
I wondered how the shop would handle them, and then a high-ranking person from the Goroun Company stepped out. I was so shocked I literally fell off my chair. It was Marlon, the next chairman. He actually helped me up. What a nice man.
The people who had come to complain seemed to recognize him too. They went dead silent. And for good reason—the Goroun Company was a giant merchant house that could basically boss around the Commerce Guild. If you crossed them, you wouldn't be able to do business in this city, or anywhere else in the Demon Kingdom territory.
Marlon guided the complainers to a nearby table. I thought he was going to win them over with curry, but instead, he started a business negotiation.
I eavesdropped, of course. Don't call it unladylike. If you negotiate in a place where you can be heard, it’s your own fault. Actually, they probably wanted to be heard. They weren't making any effort to hide it; if anything, it felt like they wanted everyone to listen.
Marlon's talk was a bit complicated, but the gist of it was simple.
"This shop has a vast amount of space, so why don't you all open your stalls inside?"
Each shop would get a space of three square meters. There were two rules: one, you could only solicit customers directly in front of your own space. Two, if you caused a fire or an outbreak of food poisoning, you were evicted immediately.
The location fee was ten large copper coins per month. If you used fire, it was an additional five. The spots would be rotated by lottery every six months. However, if a shop became so popular that it caused congestion—like a place with long lines—they would be asked to move to a specific designated spot.
Ten large copper coins a month? With the extra five for fire, that made fifteen for our stall. That was incredibly cheap. I looked at my brother. He was desperately checking the money in our pouch, but I knew we didn't have enough. we’d just paid for our meat, and with our recent sales... I wondered if we should borrow it from Mother.
Mother was currently groaning with delight as she ate some karaage she’d paid for. Since when did she get that? I told her to save a piece or two for me.
Still, I wondered if our sales would really go up just by moving inside. If they gathered a bunch of restaurants together, would people come specifically for the variety? It made sense. Tables and chairs would be provided for everyone to use. The water was free. And because there was a roof, we didn't have to worry about the rain. They even planned to bring in shops other than restaurants eventually. It sounded like a great opportunity.
"Ah, yes, one more thing," Marlon added. "The fee is ten large copper coins, but since we’ve caused you all some trouble recently, the shop manager has said the first month will be free. Why not give it a try for a month as a trial...?"
"We'll do it! Please!" I shouted, cutting Marlon off before he could even finish. I knew I was being rude, but I couldn't let this chance pass us by.
The others who were listening started raising their hands one after another. Marlon looked at me and gave me a bright smile.
"Then let's start the paperwork with this young lady first."
I was just glad I didn't get scolded.
A little while later, our stall moved from the street into the shop. Even though we used fire, the high ceiling let the smoke escape easily. It was amazing.
As for our sales... they definitely went up. It was slow at first, but then the manager of the curry shop—everyone called him the Village Head—gave us a demonstration. He took some of our mutton and dipped it into the curry before eating it. It was a revelation. That simple act saved us.
"This mutton is delicious even when dipped in curry," he told the customers. "I can even carve the meat off the bone for you if you'd like."
We found a way to coexist with the curry. And when people eventually grew tired of it, we were right there to offer a change of pace. We’d already earned enough to cover next month's fifteen large copper coins. I decided right then and there that I wanted to keep working hard here. It looked like my brother felt the same way.