For quite some time, there had been a demand in Village Five to increase the number of shops that sold cakes and chocolates. Currently, those treats could only be found at two locations: Kuro and Yuki or Cafe Blue. Both shops were immensely popular and constantly packed. Furthermore, because the supply of cakes and chocolates was limited, the competition to get them was fierce. It seemed that in Village Five, sweets were not something one could simply eat whenever the craving struck.
"Well, that’s usually how it is," Lu had said. "Unless you live in a noble household, you probably can't eat them whenever you want."
Setting aside the wheat for the cake, ingredients like milk and eggs were hard to come by unless you lived near someone raising cows and chickens. Sugar was a high-end luxury item. As for chocolate, the raw material—cacao—did not even circulate in the general market. The only supply in the region was what we cultivated in Village Four. Basically, if we just sat around and waited, the number of sweets shops was never going to increase. Therefore, at the request of Village Five, I decided to open a shop myself.
First, the location. To make it easy to transport milk, eggs, and other supplies, we chose a spot at the Village Five Foothills. We selected a vast plot of land large enough to build about four detached houses with gardens. It faced the main street, but right now, there was nothing there besides the road itself. It was an area slated for future development. Since Yoko was the one who designated the spot, I had a feeling she already knew exactly what was going to be built around it.
Next, the building. Keeping the kitchen in mind, we went with a brick structure with fireproofing measures. Most of the interior was taken up by the kitchen, a warehouse for ingredients, and a dormitory for the staff. Since the shop was intended to specialize in takeout sales, I had planned for the sales space to be small... or so I thought. To give customers a place to wait while their orders were being baked, we ended up securing a fairly large area for tables and chairs. I had a feeling we would end up selling tea and light refreshments too. I really wanted to differentiate it from Kuro and Yuki or Cafe Blue, but things were shifting.
"Wait, we need a space for business negotiations?" I asked. Was that really necessary? "And a reception room for when important guests visit?" Look, this was supposed to be a shop specializing in takeout. Why did we need a reception room? Apparently, if we didn't have one, things would definitely become a headache later. I had originally planned for a two-story building, but it ended up becoming three stories.
Then, the pastry chefs. We had ten employees who had learned the trade at Kuro and Yuki. The one acting as the representative for the craftsmen was a woman who had been a Former Elf Empire Imperial Kitchen Apprentice Cook.
"I will give it my all!" she promised.
Since she had been an apprentice cook, I wondered if it might have been better for her to stay at Kuro and Yuki so she could try her hand at a wider variety of dishes, but she was adamant.
"No, I want to focus on making cakes. I was born to do this."
I told her to keep it in moderation.
As for the sales staff, there were five people in charge of customer service who had also been sharpened by the training at Kuro and Yuki.
"Cake! Cake! Cake! Cake! Cake!"
Their morale seemed high. I just hoped they wouldn't overdo it. I planned to hire more people depending on how sales went.
And the Shop Manager... was me. I didn't particularly care about the title, but that was how it settled. As for the Acting Shop Manager—the person who would manage and operate the shop on my behalf—we recruited volunteers from the Angels in the Village of the Great Tree. After a strict and fair fistfight... I mean, negotiation... I mean, lottery, one of the beastman girls ended up taking the position. I wasn't entirely sure why a beastman got the job when we were specifically asking for Angel volunteers, but the Angels decided they would rather move to support roles. For a while after the opening, we would have a five-person support system. They wouldn't just be assisting the Acting Shop Manager; they would be helping the sales staff as well.
Now for the products. The main items would be cakes sold by the slice, cut from a whole cake into eight portions. Eventually, I wanted to offer a wide variety, but for the grand opening, we decided to stick to just two: strawberry shortcake and a fruit cake using multiple fruits. We set the price at ten medium copper coins for the shortcake and twelve for the fruit cake. Those prices were higher than what was offered at Kuro and Yuki or Cafe Blue, but considering the cost of the raw materials, it was actually quite a bargain. Still, it would probably remain a luxury treat for most residents.
We also planned to sell cookies, biscuits, and chocolate. The chocolate consisted of solid pieces sold in small boxes for five hundred medium copper coins. Yes, five hundred. It sounded expensive at first, but given the trading price for cacao, it was a massive bargain. An extreme bargain. It was only a price we could offer because we produced the ingredients ourselves. Because of that, the supply was extremely limited. We would only prepare one box per day. Part of me thought it was better not to offer it at all if we only had one, but there were people who practically begged for us to provide it anyway. I figured we would see how things went for a bit.
Finally, the shop name. I ended up being the one to think of it. Since Kuro and Yuki was named after Kuro and Yuki, I thought about naming it after Lu and Tia. Something like "Lu-Tia" or "Tia-Lu." However, they both shot the idea down immediately. They told me I should save names like that for our grandchildren. Was I supposed to marry Lu’s son to Tia’s daughter? No? Apparently, they just meant it was normal to inherit names from close relatives.
I suggested names like Ria or Ann, but they were rejected for the same reasons. In that case, what about Zabuton? Western Confectionery Shop Zabuton had a nice ring to it, I thought. But Zabuton herself indicated it was a no-go. The name "Zabuton" belonged only to her. I understood. It was her name, after all. I apologized and promised not to use it for the shop.
As a last resort, I thought about using my own name. "Western Confectionery Shop Hiraku" was a bit too direct, so I tried, "Hira... Hira... Hirataro!" Western Confectionery Shop Hirataro! That was it! When I announced it, though, the atmosphere turned awkward. They told me I should save that name for a child instead.
In the end, the Fairy Queen showed up and settled it.
"Western Confectionery Shop Fairy Fairy."
It was a good name, though I suspected most people would just end up calling it Western Confectionery Shop Fairy.
"I don't think I can use the name Hirataro for a child, though," I said later.
"Why not?" Lu asked.
"Think about it. If it gets out that it was originally the name of a sweets shop, the poor kid will never hear the end of it."
"I guess that means Lu-Tia and Tia-Lu are out as well, then."
"Looks like it."
"They weren't bad names, though."
"I'm sorry. I was being careless."