In the twenty-second year of the new calendar, July. I finally quit my part-time job at the pizza place and devoted myself entirely to being a company president on days and nights when I didn’t have college.
One reason was that I no longer had to worry about money thanks to the company’s income, but the main reason was undoubtedly that I now had people other than family to feed and take responsibility for. Hime’s influence, urging me to have the consciousness of someone who employs people, was also significant.
From that day on, I would spend my days going into dungeons, helping Hime make products for exchange points at night, assembling products that required things like powered suits, studying third-class bookkeeping, and so on, all in a steady manner.
And in between all that, I would continue to consult with Hime and, despite being rejected repeatedly, finally bring the Kawashima Point Economic Zone Plan with me… Today, I visited a dungeon, slightly cool even in the summer.
“Procurer, give me cup ramen. Seafood flavor.”
“Oh, if it isn’t Yoshida-san.”
Yoshida-san was originally from East 3rd, the bespectacled man to whom I first sold items in the dungeon. He was a responsible and serious person who even wore a plate carrier properly in the summer.
“Yoshida-san, actually, I have a special offer for regular customers like you.”
“Huh? What… I’m fine, I don’t need that kind of… “
Huh? Why not!? As I hesitated on how to explain it to the now slightly withdrawn Yoshida-san, Mars quickly stepped in to help.
“Hold on a second! Tonbo, that sounds too suspicious. You’re talking about making a special catalog for regulars, right?”
“Oh, yeah… something like that…”
Was it really that suspicious…? I wondered as I took out the bound catalog I had made at home and handed it to Yoshida-san.
“Well, okay, but are the items in this catalog any different from before? Just so you know, I can’t afford things like powered suits.”
“These items are listed here, but… This catalog mainly features items that are hard to come by.”
“Oh, right. Your items were featured on TV, weren’t they? It was a hassle when resellers without any equipment showed up in the dungeon.”
“I apologize for any inconvenience caused back then…”
While saying, “Well, okay…,” Yoshida-san flipped through the catalog, then turned it toward me after a few pages, pointing to an open page. There, it said, “[Kawashima General Trading Logo Mug Cup – Ten Points].”
“It says ‘points’ instead of an amount…?”
“Well, there are various reasons for that. This catalog now operates on a points system.”
“What’s a point?”
I flip through the catalog that Yoshida-san is holding and open the last page. There, the overview of the point exchange system is written.
“It’s written here. Materials necessary for our company… for example, currently, it’s magic stones. If you can supply those, we’ll exchange them for points.”
“What’s the use of magic stones… well, I guess you guys could find a use for them…”
“Also, if you work part-time with us, you can earn money and points.”
Yoshida-san, behind his glasses, looks at me suspiciously as I raise my finger and say that.
“We’re adventurers, you know? Even if you call it a part-time job?”
“It doesn’t necessarily have to be you, Yoshida-san. As long as the person has a reliable background with your recommendation. Honestly, we’re really short-handed right now with packing and shipping orders. Of course, we’ll issue points to the referrer too!”
“What a roundabout way… Well, fine. So, what kind of products do you have? Any recommendations?”
I nodded eagerly and took out a small bottle from the junkyard.
“Take a look at this, it’s super strong adhesive.”
“Adhesive? What would you use that for?”
“This is really strong. You can even repair a broken spear instantly with this.”
“Really?”
“Watch this.”
I took out two one-meter iron rods from the junkyard and applied adhesive to one end of each. Normally, it would take about an hour to set firmly, but with this adhesive, it was already completely fixed. I swung the rods and hit the ground with force.
“See? It’s incredibly sturdy, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Is that true?”
“Try it out.”
Yoshida pressed the end of the rod I handed him against the ground, trying to bend it at an angle. Of course, the adhesive surface didn’t budge. It’s a mysterious adhesive from space; it might even be stronger than the rod itself.
“Wow, that’s really amazing… Wait!”
Yoshida exclaimed strangely and quickly let go of the rod. However, instead of falling to the ground, the rod stuck to the sole of his shoe.
“Oh dear, it stuck.”
“What are we going to do about this…”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. I have a remover.”
After dropping a few drops of remover on the sole of his boot, the rod separated into two pieces again and rolled to the ground with a dry sound.
“Wow… hey, Procurer! This is amazing!”
“It is, isn’t it!”
“I think my brother would find it useful for when his glasses break.”
While muttering “Right, I see.”, Yoshida put on his boots again and, completely different from his suspicious demeanor earlier, started to look at the catalog with a heated gaze.
“Do you have any other recommendations?”
“Um, how about this? It’s a personal air conditioner that clips onto your collar.”
“An air conditioner?”
I took out the clip-style air conditioner and switched it on. Yoshida took it and pressed it against his neck. Actually, I’m wearing one myself right now, and it blows cold air quite strongly into your clothes, making it incredibly cool and comfortable.
“Oh, this is nice…”
“It’s great, isn’t it! I’m using it right now, and it’s incredibly comfortable.”
“That adhesive earlier was amazing, but I want this today! How many points is this?”
“This one is two thousand points, so it’s about one kilogram in terms of magic stone conversion.”
“Wow, that’s about eighty thousand yen with the current price of magic stones… Well, it’s still cheap, I guess…”
“We also have rechargeable headlights, shoe insoles with strong sterilizing power to prevent odors and athlete’s foot, and various other items.”
“They really hit the spot with these recommendations…”
As Yoshida began to ponder with his arms crossed, Kimu and his party, their balaclavas damp with sweat, arrived.
“Oh, Yoshida, what are you up to?”
“This is amazing, it’s a small air conditioner.”
“What? I want that…”
“Kimu-san, actually, I’ve been guiding only regular customers to a really useful story.”
” It’s a bit scary…”
“Hold on, Tonbo, watch your words.”
After that, despite being meticulously corrected by Mars, the recruitment continued, but some people became suspicious… It made me realize that gaining the trust of others through speech isn’t something you can learn overnight.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
◆
After about two weeks of clumsy recruiting efforts, adventurers finally started selling magic stones sporadically, and some even said they’d be willing to introduce their family or acquaintances as part-timers. I felt the success of my plan.
And today, I had come to report to Abukuma-san and Yoshikawa-san, who were struggling at the shipping site of Kawashima General Trading, about the discussions on increasing manpower.
“So, Mr. Yoshida, Mrs. Kino from this party, and Miss Kimu from Kina-san’s place are coming? Well done, President! I’ve revised my opinion about you!”
“Really, they found the right people. President, well done.”
Seated facing each other on the two sofas placed in a corner of the former factory’s office area, the two of them commended me with such joyous words.
“Well, it’s thanks to our product development department’s hard work.”
“That’s true, but this time, Tonbo came up with various ideas for recruiting people.”
“I see. As expected of the president, you’re reliable.”
“No, no, it’s not that big of a deal…”
I, who had never been praised much in my life, found my head unable to be lifted, my face unable to suppress a grin.
“With this… what do you think?”
“Well, why not?”
“Huh? What’s this?”
Biting the inside of my cheek and returning my face to normal, I raised my head as the two of them nodded to each other.
“You mentioned before about becoming a full-time employee, right?”
“Oh, that… If it’s still okay, I’d be willing to accept.”
“Huh!? Really!? Of course! YES YES!”
Overjoyed by the offer, I instinctively grasped Abukuma-san’s hand with both of mine as I shook it up and down.
“Well, I’ve gotten quite used to this job too.”
“The pay is good, and if the labor shortage improves, becoming a regular employee wouldn’t be bad.”
“Ah… thank you very much. With both of you becoming employees, it’s as good as having a thousand people.”
“You’re exaggerating… By the way, um…”
Abukuma-san said with a somewhat embarrassed expression.
“Huh?”
“Tonbo, how long are you going to hold my hand?”
“Oh! S, sorry…”
I quickly released my hand and bowed repeatedly, feeling like I had become a harassing boss even though she had just become an employee…
“And so, um, President, I have one more thing to discuss.”
“Huh, what is it?”
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
BUY THE SOURCE MATERIAL TO SUPPORT THE AUTHOR !!!
Kindly click on the green button above and contribute to filling the green bar if you’re interested in having another LN from the request page translated. Also, every donation is being used to purchase the source material and to fund more English translations.
Please consider joining my Ko-Fi membership. By becoming a member, you’ll also gain access to 2-10 additional chapters of all of the novels from this site translated into English. Last but not least your support will also assist me in upholding the translation quality and speed. For more information, please follow the link.
Donation for faster release is always welcome