Four days later.
"..."
I woke up at my usual hour, without the need for an alarm or any outside signal.
First came the morning chores: preparing food for the slimes, then for myself. Once that was finished, I got dressed for work. On the mornings when I still had time to spare before heading out, I occupied myself by carving statues of the gods. This had become my set routine as of late.
"Phew..."
Ever since that day in the craftsman district when things went sideways, a lingering gloom had settled over me. Still, I suppose I should consider myself lucky that I’d at least realized I was being overly high-strung on the day it happened.
My mind drifted back to the parting words Selerepta had left me with.
"Your surroundings are going to get noisy in the near future, so do your best."
That "near future" had clearly meant the period following my return from the Fatma Territory. The "noisy surroundings" undoubtedly referred to the current state of Gimul—the way the public safety was rapidly deteriorating.
Since he is technically one of the gods of this world, it wasn't surprising that he knew what was coming. I couldn't help but think, If you knew, you could have just told me clearly! But given his personality, he didn't seem like the type to provide straightforward information. I suppose I should be grateful he even bothered to give a preliminary warning to a single human.
Even so, why did my heart feel so restless?
When I sat down to calmly analyze the cause, I eventually arrived at an answer.
The current atmosphere in Gimul felt too much like my past life and the company I used to work for.
The scenery and the air should have been entirely different, yet in fleeting moments, I sensed a lingering presence—as if suppressed memories were about to resurface. It felt as though everything up until now had been a beautiful dream, and I was just now waking up. It was an irrational, vague anxiety, a feeling that because I had been so fortunate thus far, a wave of misfortune was now rushing in to restore the balance.
It wasn't that I didn't trust my employees. On the contrary, precisely because they were kind people who had supported me, I wanted to protect them. I was terrified of losing them by even the slightest chance.
I hoped it was all just a groundless worry, but no matter how much I pondered it, I couldn't find an answer. It got to the point where I wondered if these circling thoughts were going to become just another part of my daily routine.
"Sigh... Ah, it's almost time."
Eventually, the hour arrived. I forced myself to stand and headed to work.
Upon arriving at the shop, a new development was waiting for me.
"A letter?"
"It’s from that laundry shop," Calm replied.
"From them?"
The moment I stepped through the door, I was greeted by something that threatened to deepen my melancholy. My thoughts must have leaked onto my face, as Calm looked quite apologetic as he handed me the envelope. Feeling a pang of regret for my reaction, I opened the letter.
"I see."
"Manager, if it isn't an intrusion, may I read it as well?"
"Yes, go ahead. To put it simply, it’s an apology."
The letter began with a formal apology for the other day, followed by the owner’s perspective as a mother, an explanation regarding the men who had been standing in front of the shop, and her reasons for reacting the way she did.
"How do you intend to handle this?" Calm asked.
"How? Well... she didn't write anything about wanting us to visit again or wanting to talk, so I’ll simply accept the apology for what it is. More importantly, let’s focus on our other work."
"I see."
"Is there a problem?"
"I understand your judgment, and I have no objection to it. However, if it were the usual you, you might have laughed and accepted her explanation as unavoidable, and perhaps even gone to speak with her again. Following the incident the other day, I couldn't help but feel that this is unlike your usual self."
"Hmm... Well, it’s true that I usually don't let small things get to me, and I don't hold a grudge, so I can't really deny that. But I simply don't feel inclined to entrust a branch of our shop to that person. Still, I appreciate your concern. Thank you."
He was clearly worried about my mental state.
"Have any other letters or documents arrived?"
"These are the ones we’ve received so far. One is from the Commerce Guild Master, Madam Grisiela. We have the usual correspondence from Master Taylor of the Tamer Guild as well... and then there is this envelope. It doesn't have a sender's name, but I believe it was brought by a young adventurer named Beck."
"In that case, it’s from Ribul, the representative of the slums. Let’s see... Ah, good."
"You look pleased, sir."
"Yes, I’d consulted him on a few matters, and it seems they’re progressing well. Remember the talk about the waste processing plant and the Morgan Company's slime products factory?
Building the factory and its related facilities will require a significant amount of land. We were discussing where to construct it, and after looking at the options, it seems we’ll likely end up demolishing a portion of the slums."
"Will that be alright? What about the people living there?"
It was a perfectly valid question. The answer was right there in the letter.
"According to the survey, almost all the current buildings in the slums are single-story. They’re essentially just a dense cluster of tiny shacks with very few rooms."
Furthermore, many were little more than hovels—ancient structures with cracked walls, rotting timber, and roofs on the verge of collapse. They were houses that had reached their absolute limit despite constant patching.
"If we rebuild those into two-story structures like this shop, we can create twice as much living space by simple calculation. If we can't expand horizontally, we just need to go vertical."
"That is true, I suppose."
"Utilizing magic and slimes, it took me about a week to build this shop. Using that track record as proof, I had Ribul reach out to the homeowners in the slums. We asked if anyone would be willing to let us rebuild their houses into two-story buildings.
After completion, the owner would naturally live on one of the floors. Then we asked if they would be willing to rent out the vacant rooms. Essentially, we’re turning them into rental properties."
That way, the homeowners would get a brand-new house and a steady source of rental income.
"To be honest, I thought it would be a hard sell at first, but when I asked the Guild Masters, they said that as long as there was proper compensation and support for those being relocated, it would just be a matter of negotiation.
When I actually consulted Ribul, it turned out the people in the slums took it more favorably than I expected. Many are quite interested, saying things like, 'I'm poor so I have almost no belongings to move anyway,' or 'I can move immediately.' Some are even asking when we can start. Based on these documents, the response has been surprisingly proactive."
I would need to be extremely thorough in confirming their consent and ensuring their conditions were met. If I were mistaken for one of those predatory land sharks later on, it would be a disaster for everyone.
"For now, it seems the plan is to have the residents move, buy the land from the rights holders, and have them vacate the area once an agreement is reached. Also, Arnold from the Town Office mentioned that he wanted to carry out a land readjustment project in the slums if possible..."
In that case, I was considering suggesting a full-scale housing complex development. I intended to build employee dormitories for the factory and the waste processing plant anyway, and the demolition could be handled in one go with magic and slimes. For the simple manual labor of clearing debris, we could hire local workers to make it even more efficient. At this point, it really was becoming a full-blown urban redevelopment project.
Still, a cluster of industrial facilities utilizing slimes standing on the former site of the slums... I suppose it would be fitting to call it the "Slime District." I liked the sound of that.
"So, that’s where we stand."
"I didn't quite follow that last part about the name, but I am glad to see that things are going well and that you seem to be enjoying yourself."
He was right. While there were certainly problems and concerns, the outlook was positive. Thinking about it that way brought back my motivation.
"Just please ensure you don't overexert yourself," Calm said with a smile before returning to his work.
I watched him go, then began sorting through the remaining documents to write my replies. As always during this part of the job, one thought crossed my mind.
Email sure was convenient...
Meeting face-to-face was always the fastest way to handle things, but everyone was so busy that our schedules rarely aligned. In that sense, letters were a rational way to communicate. Email was simply the evolved version of that, allowing for instantaneous exchange. It had been a long time since I’d craved the conveniences of modern civilization this badly.
Time passed in a flash while I worked. By the time the sun began to set, I was ready for a break before the end of the day, but then a voice called out.
"Manager! You have visitors."
"Send them in!"
Today’s visitors were Pauline from the flower shop next door and Sieg from the butcher shop. They were accompanied by their daughter, Leni, and their rambunctious son, Rick.
"Hello, Ryoma-kun..."
"Sieg-san, are you alright? You look even thinner than usual. You look exhausted."
"Haha... It’s true I’ve been busy lately, but things are starting to settle down now. Once winter sets in for real, the amount of game we can hunt drops off... Plus, Pauline is coming over to help me out."
"I suppose business slows down for flower shops in the winter?"
"It’s not that we can't force them to bloom with magic, and there are winter flowers, but they’re expensive and almost no one comes to buy them," Pauline explained. "Setting that aside, Ryoma-kun, thank you for today. Thank you for looking after the kids."
"I’ll be going with the two of you, so my employees will be the ones looking after them."
I glanced toward Maria, who had shown them in.
"It’s no trouble at all!" Maria said cheerfully. "Back in our village, we were always looking after the younger children."
"It’s a huge help, truly. Honestly, it would have been fine if either my husband or I went alone," Pauline said.
"But they did say at least one representative was required for each store..." Sieg added.
The situation had begun three days ago. Exactly the day after my blunder, a letter had arrived via the Commerce Guild.
"With the worsening safety in Gimul, the number of shops suffering damages is on the rise. We are asking the owners of each shop to gather to exchange information and cooperate on countermeasures... or so it said. But has this 'Gimul Association of Medium-sized Stores' been around for long?"
"Probably not," Pauline replied. "We’ve never heard of them."
"But it’s like the letter said—things really have been dangerous lately. I imagine someone with a sense of crisis finally spoke up."
It wasn't unusual for business owners to form a group and hold meetings. Of course, it wasn't open to everyone; there were certain conditions for participation, but since we’d received invitations, we must have met the criteria.
I’d been a bit wary after the Guild told me there were no records of this group’s previous activities. However, as Pauline and Sieg suggested, it was possible a new group had formed out of genuine concern for the city. Even the staff at the Commerce Guild had said as much when I asked.
Perhaps it really was just a new organization and I was worrying over nothing?
Or so I thought, until I arrived.
"..."
There were about fifty people present. I stepped into the Commerce Guild’s large conference room, filled with people who looked the part of successful business owners. The moment I crossed the threshold, a feeling washed over me.
This place is no good.
It was a pure, intuitive reaction. I had come because I was interested in the meeting and wanted to cooperate with other local owners, but I suddenly felt like turning around and walking right back out. In fact, I felt as if I should leave immediately.
While I was debating my next move, a voice called out.
"Ryoma? Is that you? You came too?"
"Eh? Ah, Dalson-san!"
It was Darson Tigger, the owner of Tigger's Weapons and Armor Shop, who had always looked after me in my capacity as an adventurer.
"You’re here as well, Dalson-san."
"Well, I’ve been making a decent profit lately, so I suppose I qualify. And who are your friends?"
"Oh, this is Calm-san, our Vice Manager. And these are our neighbors, Sieg-san and Pauline-san."
I introduced the three of them to Dalson. Upon seeing our group, other owners in the room began to take notice. Some had business dealings with Dalson, Sieg, or Pauline, and they began to drift over.
"Pleasure to meet you. I represent such-and-such company. I’ve heard quite a bit about your shop."
"To have built such a successful business at your age! I’ve been wanting to meet you."
"I hear you have connections with the Ducal House."
"My, how fortunate."
"We’d certainly like to share in some of that good luck ourselves."
Before I knew it, I was at the center of a crowd of business owners, all trying to speak to me at once. While I was busy handling their polite but pointed advances, a man stepped up to the front of the room.
"Thank you all for waiting. Since the appointed time has arrived, I would like to begin the meeting."
It was time to see exactly what this was all about.