It was the third day of the interior construction.
It was still too early to make any definitive judgments, but the work seemed to be progressing quite smoothly.
I did not know who the previous tenant had been, but they had left the shop in good condition, which made cleaning relatively easy. Above all, Isaac’s outstanding efforts had been an enormous help.
—Just like the County of Edwell, every territory has defensive lines constructed to protect against monster attacks. Usually, piles of timber that were once used for traps and later discarded can be found there. I thought it would be best to reuse that wood. If we provide the timber ourselves when commissioning plywood, it should be considerably cheaper as well.
—And where did you get all the tools for making the furniture and doing the construction?
—I borrowed them. I have done this a few times before. Usually, if I visit a smithy and make some use of your name as a noble, Young Master, they are willing to lend things like these.
That was how Isaac had answered my questions on the first day of construction.
‘The fact that he came up with all of that on the spot just as we were about to begin proves that he is remarkably quick-witted and resourceful.’
Unlike me, who had only ever experienced this world from the protagonists’ perspectives, Isaac had served as a knight responsible for protecting a territory before becoming my guard knight. When it came to matters involving the management of a territory, he knew far more than I did.
Today, we had finally finished the bar that would divide the kitchen, where the coffee and other drinks would be prepared, from the hall where customers would sit.
It was essentially a bar made by joining three or four small tables together, and Isaac had assembled the entire thing with astonishing ease according to my explanations and instructions.
“...That is incredible.”
The words escaped my mouth before I realized it.
Isaac looked at me with a puzzled expression, so I vaguely explained that it was meant as praise.
“You said you needed storage cabinets along this wall, correct? Shelves over there, and another cabinet on that side for decorations?”
“You can make all of those too?”
“After all the years I have spent cleaning up after you, Young Master, it would be rather shameful if I could not manage something so simple.”
Normally, I would have complained and told him to stop mocking me.
But now, I was willing to endure whatever insults Isaac wanted to throw my way.
If an employee could single-handedly save me both labor costs and material expenses, being his target for the occasional insult was a small price to pay.
‘Isaac may actually be right. We might really finish the interior within two weeks.’
Isaac himself seemed quite pleased with the bar he had built.
Perhaps his ambition had grown a little after seeing the result, because he asked me,
“I think it would look even better if we painted it.”
“I already have colors in mind. I want all the walls painted white and the furniture painted dark gray. Do you think that is possible, Isaac?”
“There is a well-known general store inside the Fence. They should sell liquids made from extracted pigments of various leaves, along with oil harvested from worm-type monsters.”
“Oh?”
The implication was easy enough to understand.
Apparently, mixing those substances together would allow us to use them as a substitute for paint.
Seeing how dependable Isaac was, I could not help smiling.
“However, Young Master, I have been thinking about something. I am not sure those colors are a particularly good choice. Would white and gray not stand out too much compared to the surrounding shops?”
“Stand out?”
“Yes. I think it would be much better to create a warm atmosphere with shades of brown, like the other shops nearby.”
“If it stands out that much, then that is even better.”
“Pardon?”
“The primary customers I am targeting are academy students. They are young and sensitive to trends. In a commercial district as developed as the Fence, something ordinary will not even catch their attention.”
“Hmm. Surely not every student is like that.”
“Have you ever attended an academy?”
“...No.”
“I have.”
“...Young Master, you truly are....”
“So just trust my experience this once. Like you said, not every student will be like that, but most of them will. In that case, should we not target the largest possible group?”
“...Your reasoning is not without merit.”
“We need to aim directly at the majority of students who will make up our main customer base. They are going through an age when emotions run wild, and one of the defining characteristics of that period is that they tend to seek things that are different rather than things everyone else already has.”
“...Go on.”
“And what does that difference amount to? Being ‘hip.’”
“...Hip?”
“Exactly. It absolutely has to be hip. Have you seen any shops around here with a modern white-and-gray interior? No, you have not. Because of the nature of this era, the entire place is filled with old-fashioned, rustic shops.”
“...I am not quite sure what you mean.”
“Perhaps all that sword training has dulled your aesthetic sense. Anyway, in the modern world, a vintage style might be considered fashionable or praised for its Instagram aesthetic. But here, the exact opposite is true. A modern interior would inevitably feel much more novel and stylish. That is why it will be far better at attracting students.”
Since we were handling the interior ourselves, this was one area where I had no choice but to trust my own judgment.
Isaac might be vastly superior when it came to actual construction, but I was probably better when it came to aesthetic sense.
I had opened a thousand stores in my previous life. Surely all that experience had not been for nothing.
“...And what if it does not work?”
“I will give you my head. You like my head so much, after all.”
“...B-But!”
“And if it does work? Will you offer me your head instead?”
“...Uh, well, that might be a little....”
Isaac fell silent.
Apparently, no matter how much he thought about it, he did not consider this a matter worth wagering his own head over.
He soon gave me an awkward smile and nodded.
“I understand. It seems your judgment is probably correct, Young Master.”
“That is my guard knight for you. Your comprehension is excellent.”
“You flatter me. Surely it is all thanks to you, Young Master.”
Isaac returned to the interior work.
Did he never get tired?
Even though he had spent the entire morning doing physical labor, he showed no sign of exhaustion whatsoever.
If anything, he looked like a knight who had been specifically trained for construction work.
‘Does he actually have some kind of construction-related trait?’
Suddenly, I became curious about the extent of Isaac’s abilities.
Come to think of it, I had never once checked his status window.
Part of that was because I had been too busy with everything else, but another reason was that I simply had not expected much.
After all, I was the notorious wastrel of a young master.
I had assumed Count Edwell would never have assigned an especially capable guard knight to a son like me.
‘Huh?’
If I had to summarize my first impression of Isaac’s status window in a single sentence....
‘His stats are actually quite good.’
And after examining them more carefully, another thought occurred to me.
‘If he continues training consistently, he could probably reach the level of a Sword Expert without too much trouble.’
.
.
.
.
.
.
The stronger Isaac was, the better it was for me.
Why?
Because he needed to protect both me and our shop from any unforeseen dangers in this world.
He might be the café’s only employee, but he was also my only guard knight.
[ Isaac Turner ]
— Age/Gender: 19/Male
— Race: Human
— Occupation: Knight of House Edwell [Sword User]
— Achievements/Reputation: None
— Stamina: 10/ View Details >>
— Intelligence: 5/ View Details >>
— Mana: 7/ View Details >>
— Dexterity: 10/ View Details >>
— Traits: [Loyalty LV3], [Swordsmanship LV2], [Mana Manipulation LV2], [Woodworking LV3]/ View Details >>
In Legend of the Seven Heroes, stats increased according to proficiency.
However, after playing through the game as all seven protagonists, I knew that even their final stats at the ending were only around thirty.
That meant increasing stats required a considerable amount of time.
Therefore, Isaac’s stats were actually quite respectable.
The protagonists could increase their stats through Hidden Pieces or rewards obtained by resolving major incidents during main episodes and events, but supporting characters and those below them did not receive such advantages.
I had wondered whether he might be capable, but he exceeded my expectations.
In terms of Stamina and Dexterity in particular, he was comparable to some of the more prominent supporting characters in Legend of the Seven Heroes.
‘Wait. I am a supporting character too. Should they not have given me stats at least this good?’
The thought occurred to me, but I quickly shook my head.
I remembered something Isaac had told me recently.
I had not entered the academy through my own ability.
Count Edwell had used his influence in high society to secure my admission.
He must have swallowed his pride as the head of a prestigious knightly family and begged favors just to get one of his sons into the academy in the hope of making something respectable out of him.
When I thought about it that way, I could understand why the Count was so obsessed with me obtaining a diploma.
Most likely, the character Maxim Edwell was originally supposed to be expelled according to the scenario, turn to dark magic afterward, and only then experience increases in his stats or awaken new traits.
But there was absolutely no chance that the current me would ever resort to dark magic.
So becoming powerful myself would probably be difficult.
Instead, I decided to be satisfied with having Isaac beside me, since he clearly had the potential to grow stronger.
‘Still, why is Isaac’s occupation Knight when his Woodworking level is higher than both his Swordsmanship and Mana Manipulation? Just how much trouble did I cause back in the territory...?’
I was lost in that thought when—
SLASH—
A blue light flashed before my eyes.
A massive log was cleanly severed in half.
“After everything I am doing for you, Young Master, if you fail not only to graduate but even to advance to the next year, the point of this sword may find itself aimed at you again.”
Using mana to make furniture.
Was that a waste of talent too?
Isaac flicked his mana-infused sword clean before continuing.
“I have wagered everything on you, Young Master.”
“So you are threatening me?”
“Threatening you? Of course not. I am saying that you must make this business succeed somehow for the sake of your graduation. I can handle the interior work perfectly well by myself, so there is no need for you to waste any more time here. You should go and take care of your own responsibilities.”
“There you go, trying to look impressive again.”
That was what I said, but in truth, he was incredibly reassuring.
I had felt guilty leaving all the work to Isaac, so I had stayed behind to carry lumber and plywood and take care of miscellaneous tasks.
Thanks to Isaac’s consideration, however, I could finally handle the work I had been postponing.
“Will you really be all right by yourself?”
“You say that as though you have been particularly helpful until now. If anything, having you beside me like this feels far stranger and more uncomfortable.”
He was surprisingly bad at expressing his feelings.
Of course, I was hardly any better.
“All right. Then I am counting on you, Isaac.”
I had put it off because I felt guilty leaving Isaac to work alone, but there was something else I needed to do.
I had to purchase green coffee beans, the raw ingredient for coffee, as well as the equipment needed to prepare it.
I could not simply buy whatever I found.
Green coffee beans were particularly important, and since only a few places inside the Fence sold them, I would have to search every grocery store.
Even then, I needed to identify and select beans suitable for what I intended to make.
“Isaac.”
“What is it?”
“Once our shop opens, you are definitely becoming the manager.”
“Manager? Is that something good?”
“Hmm. I would say being a manager is about the level of a Sword Expert.”
“...I-I would become the equivalent of a Sword Expert?”
For Isaac, who was still only a Sword User, the rank of Sword Expert represented an extraordinary level.
Perhaps imagining himself at that stage pleased him, because he turned his gaze away from me while the corners of his mouth twitched.
“Anyway, I will be back.”
After leaving the shop, I began searching through the grocery stores inside the Fence.
***
The Empire’s history with coffee was nowhere near as extensive as that of the modern world.
Coffee culture did exist, and some general stores even carried equipment related to it, but for now, there was no denying that it remained a luxury culture primarily enjoyed by the Imperial Family and the nobility.
Perhaps because of that, there were not many places selling coffee even inside the Fence of the Duchy of Arnia.
There was one in each cardinal direction around the academy, and Gale’s Grocery Store was the one located to the south.
“The academy needs to reopen soon. Tsk.”
Gale had operated his grocery store from the same location for fifty years.
He had opened the shop when he was young, but now his face was deeply lined with wrinkles.
A long sigh escaped his lips.
There was a simple reason.
Coffee, the most expensive commodity in his store, had barely been selling lately.
He had a contract with a large merchant company, so he had no choice but to continue receiving regular coffee shipments.
However, the academy was still on vacation, meaning there were very few noble customers around.
“At least House Arnia and a few nobles staying in the area still buy some coffee, but if the stock keeps piling up like this....”
Demand was undeniably much lower than during the semester.
If Gale had his way, he would reduce both the number of coffee varieties he carried and the amount he stocked.
But if he did that, the large merchant company supplying him would immediately abandon Gale and begin doing business with another grocery store instead.
One could perhaps call it an abuse of power by the merchant company.
But what could he do?
Compared to them, he was merely the owner of an insignificant grocery store.
He had no real alternatives.
“For now, I have no choice but to endure the losses and hold out until the semester begins.”
No matter how many times he considered the problem, the answer was always the same.
Gale was scratching his head in frustration when—
“Hmm?”
A young man stopped in front of the shop.
The poorly dressed young man naturally turned his attention toward the display of green coffee beans.
‘Just a curious onlooker. I suppose coffee would seem fascinating to him.’
In truth, Gale himself did not know much about coffee.
At best, he had only recently learned how to distinguish between the varieties to some extent.
Not every noble was like this, but most nobles actually knew even less about coffee than Gale did.
—Which coffee is the finest?
Even nobles who occasionally visited the store in person often asked Gale that exact question.
Despite their lofty status, most of those nobles knew almost nothing about coffee.
Coffee simply carried the image of being an elite luxury, so everyone wanted to partake in it.
Fortunately, making recommendations was not particularly difficult.
Gale’s Grocery Store carried five varieties of coffee.
Whenever someone asked which was best, Gale simply recommended them in descending order of price, and most customers purchased whatever he suggested.
It was a sales tactic of sorts.
That was also why he did not display price tags on the coffee.
With prideful nobles, it was more effective to reveal the price only after they expressed their intention to purchase rather than telling them beforehand.
Once a noble had declared that they wanted something, very few would suddenly refuse because the price was too high. They would lose face.
And because it was difficult to judge the quality of green coffee beans merely from their outward appearance, customers naturally assumed the more expensive varieties were superior.
However, the young man standing in the store was somewhat unusual.
Judging by his clothes, he certainly did not appear to be a noble.
Yet there was something different about him compared to the occasional curious onlookers who wandered into the shop.
‘What? How did he know to choose that one...?’
To Gale, the young man had initially been nothing more than another ordinary sightseer.
And yet, after briefly inspecting all five varieties of green coffee beans, that same sightseer casually crouched down in front of the most expensive beans as though the choice were obvious.
As though he could distinguish their quality with nothing more than his eyes.
‘Does he actually know something about coffee?’
Only then did Gale rise from his seat and approach the young man.