This will be the second update for today.
Please be careful to not skip over this part.
In the village on the Fifth Floor, several buildings were currently under construction.
This was because entrepreneurs had begun building rental and for-sale houses, targeting adventurers who were making the Fifth Floor their base.
Of course, some of these buildings were being constructed at Schmidt’s request.
In this village, the land was treated as borrowed from the tower’s manager.
There were no specific regulations against adventurers and merchants setting up tents and staying, but if the spot where they pitched their tents was contracted as borrowed land, they would be asked to vacate.
If they ignored this, they would be expelled from the tower itself. A couple of groups of adventurers had already been kicked out, and since then, no one had repeated the same mistake yet.
Furthermore, all such procedures were handled at the temple where the teleport gate was located.
Eventually, all of these tasks were supposed to be handled by the guild that Kousuke would lead.
Kousuke had thought that the guild could be formed immediately since he had a grasp on creating the guild cards, but a problem had arisen.
He simply did not have enough manpower.
Wahid had visited the management layer to find a solution to this problem.
“…Slaves?”
“Yes. To satisfy both the shortage of personnel and a certain degree of trust, I believe purchasing slaves would be the best course of action.”
As it turned out, the slaves in this world were quite different from what Kousuke had imagined.
The slaves in Kousuke’s imagination were criminal slaves, subjected to harsh labor and whipped if they slacked off.
However, debt slaves and those who sold themselves into servitude had aspects closer to employment placement and labor provision. Naturally, their food, clothing, and shelter were guaranteed. Moreover, it was stipulated that only those who fit these criteria could be purchased.
For those with a certain earning capacity, hiring slaves was virtually indistinguishable from having subordinates in a company.
In some cases, it seemed to be better than being an employee of a “black company” in some other world.
Even after hearing all this, Kousuke’s past upbringing made it impossible for him to completely shake off his resistance.
But unfortunately, considering the future of the village and the guild, he knew that trustworthy personnel were undeniably necessary.
In the end, he decided to accept it, telling himself that he could simply treat those he hired normally.
“…Understood. I permit the employment of slaves.”
“I see. Thank you very much.”
As Kousuke gave his permission, Wahid showed a look of relief.
“So? What about the guild?”
“Well… they won’t be immediately useful, but they will have to get used to it through practical experience. I believe preparations can be completed within a week.”
“Understood. Then, I will have the guild cards ready by then.”
“Please do.”
The functions, such as status information to be displayed on the guild cards, were ready, but the design had not been properly decided yet.
“So, will you accompany me to purchase the slaves?”
“Hmm… No, I’ll pass. I’ll show myself after they’ve arrived here.”
He did not want to arouse suspicion from slave merchants regarding his connection with Wahid.
While he eventually planned to reveal his ownership of the tower, it was not yet time.
“Understood.”
“How many do you plan to purchase?”
“Around ten initially. Depending on the situation, it might be good to purchase combat slaves for guarding the facilities.”
“For making the guild?”
“People will flock to us due to the novelty of the cards, but how many trustworthy individuals will emerge from that group remains to be seen…”
“…I see. Right. Understood. …Is that all?”
Wahid nodded at Kousuke’s confirmation.
“That’s right. …Ah, speaking of which, when will you meet with Lord Schmidt?”
Just the other day, Wahid had told him that Schmidt had opened a shop, and Kousuke had wanted to meet him once.
“Ah, yes. I’m free anytime. Let me know his convenient time, and I’ll adjust my schedule.”
“Understood. Then, please take care of the cards.”
“Roger that. I’ll have them ready before I meet Schmidt.”
He intended to show them to Schmidt for a specific reason.
Wahid nodded once more in understanding and returned to the Fifth Floor.
“Was that okay?”
Mitsuki asked Kousuke, who was stroking Wanri, who was lounging on his desk after seeing Wahid off.
“About the slaves? …I felt a bit resistant at first, but after giving permission, I feel like something has lifted? As for the rest, I’ll judge after seeing them.”
“I see. That’s good.”
“…? Did something happen?”
“No. If you were to hire them reluctantly, it wouldn’t be good for either of us, so I was just concerned.”
“I see, thank you. But, it’s alright.”
Kousuke was surprisingly less resistant to hiring slaves than he had initially expected, making him wonder himself.
He wondered if some sort of adjustment had occurred during his reincarnation, but there was no way to know.
Besides, slave issues aside, Kousuke was currently troubled by another problem.
That problem was the guild card.
The material for the card itself was created through alchemy, incorporating designated functions, but the decorations were entirely outside his expertise.
It wasn’t just about adding decorations; they had to be done in a way that wouldn’t interfere with the embedded magic circles.
While merely functional and unadorned would not be an issue, it just didn’t feel right.
Something soft was pressed against the back of Kousuke’s head as he closed his eyes, pondering with his arms crossed.
At the same time, a familiar voice called down from above.
“Kousuke, what are you pondering?”
It was Shurein.
Lately, Shurein, or rather, since being put in charge of the 76th Floor’s management, had taken a liking to interacting with Kousuke and would often come to him.
Strangely, Kouhi and Mitsuki did not stop her, so Kousuke just went along with it.
He couldn’t deny that being approached by a woman with a figure comparable to Kouhi and Mitsuki wasn’t entirely unpleasant. After all, he was still a man.
Still with Shurein clinging to him, Kousuke silently handed her the guild card.
“…What is this?”
“It’s a card planned for use in the guild I’m about to create.”
Since this was the first time he was showing it to Shurein, he explained all the planned functions from scratch and even made a test card for Shurein.
After receiving and examining it, Shurein wore a look of astonishment.
“You’ve made quite an elaborate item. In the human world, this would be considered well beyond current technology!”
“It’s not that exaggerated.”
Hearing his reply, Shurein, after confirming Mitsuki shaking her head beside them, let out a sigh.
“It’s not exaggerated. …After all, there’s no way to have tools made using divine power when there’s no one who can use it. …This should simply be called a divine artifact.”
“…What!? Is that so?”
Because he had made it on a whim, he had completely forgotten to consider such things.
However, since he was using the same principle as his left eye, which displayed status, it was unavoidable to use divine power.
“…Hmm… …Well, I suppose it can’t be helped.”
“Is that so? Well, if you say so, Kousuke, I won’t object.
Regardless, about the card’s decoration. Why not consult the Iggrid Race?”
“…Huh? What do you mean?”
“Oh? Didn’t I mention it before…? Because that clan lives by digging holes underground, many of them have nimble fingers. When it comes to decorations like these, they are said to even surpass the Dwarves.”
“…Did I say that?”
Kousuke had completely forgotten about this and couldn’t blame Shurein. Rather, it was Kousuke’s fault for forgetting such important information for the tower.
He immediately took the sample card and, together with Shurein, decided to visit the Iggrid Race.
The chief of the Iggrid Race appeared somewhat apprehensive at Kousuke’s sudden visit, but he gladly accepted Kousuke’s request.
For them, Kousuke was the one who provided them with a safe place to live.
They confirmed that technically, they could handle the decorations and would create several sample pieces afterward.
Relieved by their answer, Kousuke returned to the management layer, but…
To Kousuke, who saw the Iggrid Race for the first time, they were quite an interesting species.
As he had heard, they looked like dolls, but the dialect-filled way they spoke was rich with local accents.
This contrast left a strong impression on Kousuke, and he resolved to make time to visit them properly next time.
Dialect… What should I do?
For now, I’m thinking of either mixing them up without specifying a particular region or just making them up as I go.
(Before that, there’s no certainty if scenes where they converse will appear in the future either.)
2014/5/11 Corrected inconsistencies regarding the Iggrid Race.
2014/5/24 Typo corrections.
