It was a sunny morning when I dropped by Anima’s office to see how she was doing. I gave the door a light knock and announced myself; a delighted voice called out "Please, come in," and I stepped inside.
"Morning, Anima."
"Good morning, Master!"
I gave a wry smile at Anima, who greeted me so energetically I could almost see the phantom image of a puppy wagging its tail. As I looked around, the massive pile of letters on her desk caught my eye. Anima was sorting through the mail as she always did, but even at a glance, the volume seemed significantly larger than usual.
"Are you sorting through the letters, Anima? It seems like there’s more than there usually is..."
"Ah, yes. The number of letters addressed directly to you hasn't changed, but there have been quite a few arriving via the merchant guilds and shops we do business with."
"I see. Is there some kind of trouble?"
"Oh, no. The contents of almost every letter are the same: product inquiries. Most of them are regarding the pottery created by Illness-dono and Nebula."
"The pottery... You mean the ones we sold with that mark on them?"
The items Anima referred to were the surplus pieces of pottery that Illness-san and Nebula had made as a hobby. We had sold a small amount of them during the Arclesia Empire Founding Anniversary Festival. We had stamped them with a brand mark featuring three mountains lined up—mostly just as a whim—and aside from the ones I brought to the stall at the festival, Anima had sold some through several other shops and guilds.
That said, since they were originally just leftovers from what Illness-san and the others had made for fun, we only sold them because it seemed like a waste to throw them away. There hadn't been a large quantity to begin with.
"Yes. Since the quality itself was exceptional and the quantity was limited, we set a very aggressive price point, thinking we could just mark them down later if they didn't sell... but they sold like hotcakes, and the stock was gone in an instant."
"Eh? Really? Well, I guess everything I brought to the Arclesia Empire Founding Anniversary Festival sold out too. People who know what they're looking at can probably tell how good the quality is."
"Indeed. In fact, they aren't inferior to the items found in places like the Royal Castle. Even with the aggressive pricing, since it’s a new brand, the cost is still lower than other famous labels. For those who care about quality, it was likely seen as a chance to get an excellent item for a bargain."
"I see, so that's why the inquiries... But, hmm. We were really just selling off the extras, weren't we?"
"Yes. Since they really were just the surplus from their hobby, they weren't being mass-produced. I wasn't quite sure how to handle this..."
Hmm. This was certainly a thorny issue. Knowing Illness-san and Nebula, I was sure they would make more for retail if I asked, but I felt a bit guilty asking them to work when they hadn't started making them for business in the first place.
On the other hand, if we just left things as they were, the shops and guilds Anima deals with would continue to be bombarded with inquiries, which would be a hassle in its own way.
"Maybe we should actually launch a formal brand and supply the products? We could have Illness-san and Nebula teach people the process, and then hire others to do the actual production?"
"That's true. That feels like the safest bet. If we position it as a high-quality, high-end oriented brand and limit the number of items... Since we also have things like the Crafted Sugar, it might be good to make it a black tea-related brand."
"A lot of people love black tea, so that sounds like a good idea. It would be great if we could handle tea leaves too... though the leaves Nebula grows seem incredibly difficult to handle, and there aren't many of them to begin with, so they aren't really suited for sale—"
"I have heard the details!"
"—ing? Wait, Nebula? When did you..."
When I turned toward the voice, Nebula was already in the room. She puffed out her chest with a powerful air and spoke.
"I am an Absolute One! No matter where in the world I may be, the voices of those who need me reach my ears! And once again, I have heard the details. If that is the case, please leave it to me. For this brand, I shall create delicious tea leaves that even an amateur can easily brew!"
"Eh? I appreciate the offer, but... are you sure? It won't be a burden on you, Nebula?"
"It is no problem at all. However, if you are worried, Master, I shall create them so that they are easy to cultivate and then hand them over. You can grow them under your new brand!"
"In that case, mass production won't place a heavy burden on you... Well then, since you're offering, could I ask you to do that?"
"Yes! Please leave it to me!"
I lightly patted Nebula's head as she nodded with utter confidence. Nebula was amazing and reliable, so I figured it would probably be fine. My only worry was making sure the burden didn't get too heavy, so I decided I would keep a close eye on that while looking forward to the results.
Well, creating new tea leaves would probably take a fair amount of time, and Anima would need time to prepare for the brand launch too, so there was no need to rush...
"Then, I shall bring the prototypes by tomorrow~"
...That was way faster than I expected. Nebula really was an amazing girl.
Serious-senpai: "Hey! Listen here, you doting parent! 'She can make new tea leaves in a single day' and you just think, 'As expected, Nebula is amazing'? This guy... his standards are way too loose when it comes to her!"