By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 2 - Chapter 21

Chapter 2 Episode 21: Instant Decision

Monster Subjugation, Day 4.

After finishing work at the mines, I returned to town and headed for Serge’s place.

“Good evening, Mr. Serge.”

“I’ve been waiting for you, Master Ryoma. Shall we get going?”

The carriage that was prepared took us from the center of town to a little towards the south.

We eventually reached the Merchant’s Guild, a plain building that was simple but sturdy, faint light shining out of the front door. Though sparse, I could hear the sound of people other than employees within, too.

When we walked up to the reception, they let us straight through to a room further inside. In response to the experienced manner he conveyed his business, the receptionist lady bowed her head politely. Seeing that exchange made me wonder if Serge was treated as a fairly important figure.

He was the president of a large trading company, so I guess so?

Several minutes later, a scrawny man and an old, hunchbacked lady entered the room. The two of us both made to stand up when the old lady stopped us with a hand and the man opened his mouth.

“What’s this, Serge? Been a helluva time since I last saw ya’s. Ain’t heard yer name on the grapevine lately, jes’ been wonderin’ what’cher up ta nowadays.”

He said in a... fake-sounding accent? There was a nostalgic lilt to his words that made me wonder how it was being translated in my ears. I used to have a boss who sounded like this...

“Long time no see, Pioro.”

“What are you here for today? It’s rare to see you around these parts outside of guild gatherings. I haven’t met that boy there before, have I? I’m Glissela. The hag in charge of this Merchant’s Guild.”

“I’m Ryoma Takebayashi. I’ve come to register for the Merchant’s Guild today. Though I am still inexperienced, I humbly ask for your guidance and instruction.”

“Oh my, what a polite greeting. Serge, is this boy one of your servants?”

“Bingo. Howdy, name’s Pioro Saionji. If y’need anything from me, I’m happy t’indulge ya.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Ryoma Takebayashi.”

Saionji? That was a very Japanese-sounding last name. His black hair and eyes almost made his appearance look Japanese... Was he a descendant of an otherworlder?

“Ryoma. Roight, I’ll commit that t’ me mem’ry. So, like the ol’ crone Gli said, what brings ya ’round here, Serge?”

“We’re just here for Ryoma’s guild registration. I’m simply an escort.”

At Serge’s words, the other two looked at me. Then, the guildmaster peered closely at my face.

“Hmm... Wait a minute.”

After saying that, she picked up her staff and bopped Serge on the head with it.

“You fool! What are you doing, making a child act in consideration of you!” she scolded.

“Ow, guildmaster, not the staff...”

“I don’t know what the situation is, but he seems like an earnest child. Being revered by a decades older man like you will only make him feel awkward and uncomfortable.”

How did she know what I was secretly thinking?! Could she read minds?!

“Ryoma, was it? I can’t read minds.”

She clearly could!

“I may be old, but my merchant senses are still sharp as a tack. You seem like the honest type, so I can read you a fair bit.”

“I see...”

“Terrifying ol’ bint, ain’t she? She always tells people that, but I jes’ about figger she can read minds.”

“Rather than terrifying, I think it’s amazing. But I’ve always been bad at reading other people’s thoughts.”

“It’s all experience. If you place yourself in the right environment, you’ll gradually learn with time. You’re only just starting out. It seems like things have happened in your past... but your future starts now.”

“Thank you... Are you sure you can’t read minds?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I could tell because of the distant look in your eyes when you mentioned other people’s thoughts.”

Seriously?!

“Did I really have such a look in my eyes?”

“It reminded me of a middle-aged man looking back on his past.”

She’s right!

“Now, set your shock aside. You came for guild registration, yes? The night’s getting late, so let’s get it done with.”

She handed me the registration form.

For some reason, she had one on hand... Could she really... Oh well, guess I’ll fill it out first.

“Hmm... What does it mean by occupation type? Isn’t a merchant an occupation?”

“You write the business you want to do there. So if you want to sell weapons, you write in ‘weapons merchant.’ You can write more than one, and you can always add more later, so you don’t have to write any you’re unsure of right now. Basic types of occupations are listed on the back, so you can reference those.”

“I understand.”

Come to think of it, I’d heard of adventurers working as peddlers before... For now, I’ll add that... And for my main store, a town merchant? I wrote that down too.

...What was this bard occupation? I knew what the word meant, but was this a merchant too?

As I thought such things, I finished filling in the registration form and submitted it to the guildmaster, who looked at it and said, “Oh, you’re an adventurer? Take care of yourself out there; there’s no coming back from death. And you want your own store?”

“Actually, I had a bit of a different idea for a store. I was thinking of doing it as a side job between my adventurer work at first, but Mr. Serge told me to register at the guild and do it at a larger scale.”

“Serge did?”

“Oh? How curious. What kinda business?”

“A laundry service.”

“Laundry service? You’re going to take money for washing? ...Serge, why would he need registration for that? There’s nothing to lose by registering, but it’s not something to go out of your way to do.”

“I thought the same at first. But after listening to Master Ryoma, I realized he had the potential to make enough profits to be a problem if he didn’t register.”

“...He got that much potential, y’say?”

“I’d like to hear the details myself, if it’s that good of an idea.”

Serge sent me a smiling look. It should be safe to tell these two, but I’ll leave it to Serge in case I say anything wrong. As the explanation continued, their reactions gradually changed from surprise to understanding, eventually turning into laughter.

“Heehee! Living a long life sure brings about some interesting sights! Ryoma, you’ve come up with something great here. Who would have imagined a slime could have such use? And a new species of slime, at that. This is a good omen for sure.”

“Damn straight. If ya could pull that off, ya’d be makin’ ’er rain. The guild would really start t’stir shit up if ya didn’t register. For such a ripe young lad as yerself, ya sure got some interestin’ plans fer business. Gods bless ya.”

For some reason, Pioro started praying in my direction. What was this person doing?

“You don’t have to pay Pioro any attention. He’s always doing that when he meets someone with a good plan for profits.”

“Luck’s somethin’ only the gods can give ya. I see someone ’bout ta stir up some mad bank, I gotta show my gratitude, d’ya not agree?”

I guess I could understand.

“I figger I’ve got enough feelin’s of surprise fer th’next 8 years. But yeah, that sorta business’d be a long shot fer me. Puttin’ the idea aside, a laundry service ain’t gonna make no profits without that slime. Only you could git ’er done. So buck up, lad, I’m sure yer gonna do fine.”

“I’ve taken a liking to you. Nothing usually shakes me anymore in my old age, but... You have promise, so come visit me every now and then. I’ll serve tea and snacks, and listen to anything you have to say.”

“Thank you. I’ll do my best.”

“Then next, let’s decide your store location. Guildmaster, if you would, please.”

“Good grief, Serge, treat your elders more kindly. Pioro, bring me the documents on the left bookcase. Top shelf, second from the right.”

“Treat kindly, me foot! Cain’t ya go get it yerself?!”

“Just go and get it.”

“All right, all right... What, ain’t this the document with all them defective buildings? Ryoma’s store’s got big potential, couldn’t ya put ’im somewhere slightly better? I’d be willin’ ta throw some funds in if he needs ’em too.”

“You fool, Serge has already said the boy is oddly earnest. Even if you offer him money, he’d just turn it down.”

I’ve been completely read through in such a short time, huh. I have been called overly serious and foolishly honest in the past, though. And I don’t want to start a store with other people’s money. Debts shouldn’t be made lightly, and I had no intention of going that far to start my store.

The observation senses of a merchant were scary... There was something to fear in soft power.

“Now, as Pioro said, this stack of documents is a collection of buildings that are defective in some way. But that makes them that much cheaper, and very strictly speaking, you only need a place for a reception and storage, right?”

“Yes. The work will all be done by slimes, so I don’t need a water source either.”

“Normally if you heard someone was doing a laundry service with no need for water you’d wonder if they were just messing about, but... How much coin have you got prepared?”

“I have 700 small gold coins.”

“That’s more than expected.”

“There were bandits near my old residence, and I defeated them with poison. Apparently, they had high bounties on their heads.”

“If you have that much, then... Guildmaster. There was an empty lot near my store; how about that?”

“Let’s see... there certainly was one...”

The guildmaster shuffled through the documents.

“Ah, here it is. It’s in a spot facing the residential area. There was a large pub and inn, and a warehouse for storage, so the location’s good. However, the inn caught on fire and over half the building turned to ash. It’s overgrown and unusable right now. If you want to use it, you’d have to demolish the previous building and prepare the land for rebuilding. It’s leftover land no one wants to buy because of the time and money investment involved. There are no flaws other than the building and land preparation, but what do you think?”

“I’ve heard that you are a very skilled earth magician. This spot is large and will allow you to build as you please.”

There was a certain charm to being able to build how I liked.

“If you can use earth magic, would you be able to fix something up with time?”

“Let me think...”

If I used earth magic like Create Block, then used the hardening solution of my sticky slimes... Yeah, it could work.

“I can. Looking at this map, it really is a good location, so close to the residential area.”

Gimul was a town that was surrounded by a sturdy wall elliptically long from north to south.

A large road cut straight through the center of the town, connecting the north gate to the south gate. The east was the residential area, while the west was the industrial area for ironworks and things.

There were many inns near the south gate, and the inn I was staying at was at the south too.

Because the north gate led to the mines (the abandoned mine), it wasn’t really used by anyone other than mine workers. I had heard it hadn’t been used much since the mines were abandoned.

There was a road to more mines from the east gate too, and these mines weren’t abandoned. The residential area had been prepared in the east to make it easier for the miners to travel to work.

The building I had been introduced to just now was pretty much directly east of the center of town, right between the residential area and the main street. It was close to both the residential area and the Adventurer’s Guild, and while the industrial area to the west was slightly further, the path there was simple. It really was the best possible location.

When I voiced my thoughts out loud, the guildmaster agreed.

“That’s right. That’s why this used to be a popular pub too. Lots of people used to gather there, like adventurers and residents on their way home. Even now, it’ll attract people if you open it up there, but you’ll need the funds to do so.”

“I see... then I’ll take that one.”

Honestly, I didn’t know much about location, but I couldn’t imagine this was a bad one. It had the benefit of being close to the residential area and the Adventurer’s Guild, and the appeal of building it how I wished. I was here at Serge’s recommendation, and the guildmaster and Pioro seemed like nice people. I should be able to trust them.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I have no complaints about the location, and I should be able to do something about the demolishing, preparation, and reconstruction of the building with my magic and slime familiars. More than anything, I’m interested in the idea of building my own store from scratch.”

“Like I said before, this place will be fairly expensive. It costs 580 small gold coins. And because the area is so large, the land tax will cost 10 small golds, and 60 small golds for the business license and yearly fees. It’ll be a total of 650, are you sure?”

“That’s no problem. I have some leeway in my living expenses.”

“True, you’d be able to live like a noble or better for the rest of the year on 50 small golds alone... All right, this land is now yours, Ryoma. Also, I forgot to mention earlier, but the business license is only charged once at registration, while the land tax is doubled when buying. From next year onwards you’ll only need to pay 5 small golds in annual land tax. Make sure you get it right.”

“I understand. Thank you very much.”

They told me several things after that, but it didn’t seem like being a store owner in this world was that hard. All you have to do is buy land or a building from the guild and open a business there. The account book just needed to keep a record of income and expenses, and a tax based on the profits had to be paid to the guild along with the annual land tax. As long as you did that, neither age nor gender mattered.

The problem came down to whether I could earn anything and pay the money, I guess...

Furthermore, it seemed like the double land tax I paid this time was comparable to a deposit and gratuity fee on Earth. The business license varied depending on the scale of the business, so a stall could pay 5 medium bronze coins while the size of land I purchased cost me 2 small golds.

Finally, the yearly fees were kind of like a donation to the guild. Normally the yearly fee was a small sum, but there was no upper limit and the more you paid the more you were expressing your financial ability to do so, leading to preferential treatment from the guild and a higher evaluation. How business-like.

Once I had finished all the procedures, I thanked the three of them and left the guild.

Serge was due to appear at a guild gathering in the near future, which he had things to discuss with the guildmaster and Pioro about, so I said goodbye to him at the guild.

It looks like I’d be working on construction after my current job at the guild was done... I hadn’t built a non-cavern residence since my previous life. Work was hard back then, but I also found it fun seeing the results happening right before my eyes.

I was kind of looking forward to it.