Chapter 58

"Ah, Onii-chan Shiro. A while ago, Onee-chan Karen came by and said, 'I'll be waiting at the town hall.'"

Once back in the store, Aina-chan immediately said this as soon as she saw me.

Too bad. We must have just missed each other.

"Town hall, huh. Aina-chan, is it okay if I go to the town hall now? I'll leave the store empty again, but can you manage on your own?"

"Sure, Aina can handle it just fine."

Aina-chan patted her chest as if to say she was up to the task.

"Thank you. I'll leave the store in your hands for a bit. I'll try to come back as soon as possible."

"Take care."

"Thanks, I'll be back soon."

With Aina-chan seeing me off, I left the store.

Probably because the new branch of the Adventurer's Guild opened, the customers have been spread out.

The customers at the first store are mostly residents, and it's not as busy as before.

In fact, there are times when Aina-chan can handle it on her own.

It's probably time to start changing the inventory between the first and second stores.

I should seriously think about the products for each store when I have some time.

But right now—

"I'm going to the town hall."

◇◆◇◆◇

I told the receptionist that I had come to see Karen.

Perhaps the arrangements had been made in advance, as I was quickly led to her office.

"Thanks for coming, Shiro."

"Sure. I heard you were looking for me. Is something wrong?"

"Let's talk after you sit down. I'll get some tea. Please take a seat."

At Karen's urging, I sat down on the sofa.

"It's herbal tea from our garden. I hope you like it."

Karen placed two cups of herbal tea on the table and sat across from me.

I took a sip of the herbal tea.

With a clear mouth,

"So... what did you want to talk about?"

I asked why she had been looking for me.

"Well... hmm."

Karen's mouth was heavy.

She seemed unusually hesitant.

"Is it something hard to say?"

Karen's face was more serious than usual.

What could she be about to say?

Is she going to raise the rent?

Or maybe she wants me to return the store?

Either one seems possible.

Oh, I'm getting nervous.

"Yeah. It's not so much that it's hard to say, but more that it's hard to ask you."

"That's not like you. We're friends, right? Don't hesitate, just say it."

"Being told that makes me even more hesitant."

Karen chuckled.

But she quickly returned to a serious expression.

"Let me say this first. The favor I'm about to ask you doesn't have to be accepted. In the worst case, it could be a matter of life and death."

"Life and death, huh?"

"Yeah. Life and death."

I see. No wonder Karen looks so serious.

I took another sip of the herbal tea to calm myself down.

"Tell me. If Karen is this serious, it must be about the future of the town, right?"

"You're sharp. Just as I expected from Shiro."

"It happened once before. Plus, whenever Karen asks me—no, asks someone—for a favor, it's always for the town's development."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, it is."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. I've only been in this town for three months, but I've been watching. I've seen how hard you work, Karen."

"..."

Being complimented so directly must have been embarrassing.

Karen's face turned bright red.

She fanned her face with her hand and looked out the window to fill the silence.

"Everyone knows how hard you work, Karen. That's why everyone wants to help. Of course, I'm no exception."

"Shiro..."

"So don't hesitate. If I can do it, I'll say so, and if I can't, I'll say no. So please tell me."

I said this and waited for Karen's response.

"You are... really..."

Tears welled up in Karen's eyes.

She quickly wiped them away with her fingertips and said, "If that's the case..."

"Actually, I received a request from the Guild Master, Bash."

Karen paused there and lowered her tone.

"He asked if I knew of anyone with the Spatial Storage skill or item."

"Bash did?"

"Yes. Bash wants to build a base for adventurers in the eastern forest. He's looking for someone with the Spatial Storage skill or item to transport construction materials."

"Ah... I see."

The Spatial Storage skill I have is quite rare.

It's apparently so rare that having this skill would ensure a lifetime of not going hungry.

"I don't know the scale, but building a base will require a lot of materials. And manpower too."

"That's right. There's no road in the forest for wagons, and more food will be needed for the additional manpower."

"If someone with the Spatial Storage skill is available, it would solve all these problems."

Karen nodded at my words.

"If a base can be built in the forest, there will be no need to return to the guild every time."

"That would speed up the exploration of the forest. I can understand why Bash would want to find someone with the skill. But for the mayor to ask you, Karen, it must mean...?"

I looked at Karen with a sigh.

Karen also sighed and nodded.

"Bash probably realizes that you have the Spatial Storage skill."

"Yeah. I showed off a lot of alcohol at the guild the other day."

"Bash was grateful to you for that. I heard later that the guild's atmosphere had been bad because they couldn't find any ruins in the forest. There were constant fights among the adventurers."

"Wow... I didn't know. Neither Liera nor Emi showed any signs of that."

"They probably didn't want you to know about the guild's problems. You tend to meddle, after all."

"You're giving me too much credit. I wouldn't try to stop muscle-bound adventurers from fighting, no matter what."

"But you would try to stop them in some other way, right?"

"Maybe I would offer them some good alcohol."

"Hehe. In the end, you did stop them. In fact, the disputes among adventurers stopped because you sold them fine wines."

"Alcohol helps relieve stress."

"Especially in this town, where there's little entertainment."

"I'm not selling alcohol with that intention, you know?"

"I understand. Mentioning the lack of entertainment was more of a challenge to me—something to consider for the town's future."

"I see. If you plan to create some entertainment, please let me help."

"I will consult you when the time comes."

Karen took a sip of the herbal tea.

After moistening her throat, she said, "Let's get back to the topic."

"Bash realizes that you have the Spatial Storage skill. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made a request to me, who is just the mayor."

"So he's indirectly asking me to help through you, Karen."

"That's just a guess, but it's probably correct. So, what do you think, Shiro? The forest is full of monsters. The deeper you go, the stronger and more unknown the monsters become. Of course, there will be a reward, and the adventurers will protect you with all their might."

"Hmm... By the way, how much is the reward?"

"The reward is two gold coins per day."

"Wh-What!? Two gold coins? You mean gold, not silver, right?"

Exchanging two gold coins for an equivalent amount would be 2 million yen.

A daily wage of 2 million yen is in the league of top-tier celebrities.

I can't believe Karen heard it correctly...

"Sigh, you're still so unaware of your own value. I told you that Spatial Storage skill holders are valuable. I don't know the market rate, but I think two gold coins a day is cheap. Even with the protection of adventurers, there are no guarantees."

That's what she said.

"The rest is up to you. As I said, it's a matter of life and death, so it's fine to refuse. Two gold coins a day is probably not worth risking your life."

"You're right..."

I folded my arms and thought.

Two gold coins a day is indeed tempting.

However, it's not worth risking my life.

But if a base can be built, exploration will become much easier.

If ruins are found and treasures are discovered, the adventurers' pockets will be filled, and my store's sales will increase even more.

What came to mind were the four with the blue flash.

Liera, Nesca, Kiki, and Rolf.

They would be happy if ruins were found.

Especially Liera, who always talks about wanting a magic sword with permanent enchantments when she drinks.

"Karen..."

"What is it?"

"I'll accept the request, but with conditions."

When I said this, Karen smiled as if she had expected it.

"Can you tell me what those conditions are? I'll try to negotiate with Bash for you."

"Thank you. My conditions are—"

And so, I told Karen my conditions.