“This is work, huh.”
“What’s with that face?”
“N-nothing.”
Nan, who had slipped away from work and met up with Kitamiya, said she was out doing some field work and invited Kitamiya to tour the company with her.
Though she wondered if it was okay to be doing such a thing, Kitamiya accompanied her nonetheless.
The place they headed to was…
“This is supposed to be work? It seems a bit much to be walking around here.”
“It’s market research. We need to check if prices have gone up recently, especially since we’re in wartime.”
“And you’re just saying that so we can stop by Memoria-san’s shop for tea, aren’t you?”
“N-no, that’s not it.”
“At least hide that overly obvious intention of yours.”
It was the shopping street within the company.
In the past, it was an area created solely for testers, so many shops had been struggling.
Over time, the number of testers increased, and more employees started using the shops, leading to more foot traffic. However, recently, the scene had once again resembled its early days.
“Welcome, Nan-san and Karen-san. Is everything alright? We did deliver the consumables, as ordered.”
“Ah, we just came for a quick look around while taking a break. How’s business?”
“I’d like to say it’s so-so, but we’re managing to make a decent profit.”
“Oh, oh, that’s wonderful.”
“Yes.”
However, this shop, much like when Jiro used to frequent it, maintained a quiet atmosphere that seemed indifferent to the surrounding influences.
It was known as a shop Jiro frequented, but it had a moderate number of customers, not too crowded. It wasn’t high-end, nor was the quality poor.
The customer service wasn’t bad either.
The shopkeeper, Memoria, was exceptionally good-looking.
With all these conditions met, it would be strange if there weren’t a lot of customers.
Despite this, Memoria had enough free time to be engrossed in reading a book with a cup of coffee in her hand behind the counter until Nan and the others arrived.
That said, the shop wasn’t in financial trouble.
You might wonder why, but Nan acted unconcerned and moved towards the counter.
“It was the right decision to promote online sales.”
“Yes, it’s strictly for internal use, but our testers have been very positive about it. It’s also convenient for us to sell in bulk. We can also reduce labor costs by entrusting deliveries to familiars.”
When asked about the reason for the sales increase, Memoria smiled faintly and began preparing coffee with her magic.
“I understand being hesitant to buy something without seeing it, but if you have a reliable supply chain, this method is certainly more convenient.”
Both Nan and Kitamiya, who now took being served tea for granted, accepted the coffee without hesitation and began to drink it.
“It seems that’s not the case for Hands-san’s shop. If they sold weapons and armor via mail order, I’d be scared they’d end up selling magic swords before they knew it.”
“Ah, that old man might actually do something like that.”
The topic of conversation didn’t matter.
As long as there was a trigger for conversation, they could develop it into something resembling a discussion.
All three of them were aware that they had such a casual relationship.
“Still, Karen-san, you’re quite calm. Especially after what happened.”
“What happened?”
Perhaps that’s why, but Memoria, who would normally sense such subtle nuances, missed them and let the words slip out.
Kitamiya, having no idea what she was referring to, tilted her head.
“It’s about Himusumi-san. I heard he was found on the battlefield.”
She should have stopped there.
However, Memoria, thinking that the other person wasn’t aware of the matter, mistook her own information as common knowledge and blurted it out.
” “What?” ”
“…Well, I need to check the inventory.”
However, realizing that the information was more important than she had anticipated, Memoria quickly pretended as if she hadn’t said anything and tried to move towards the warehouse. But the two pairs of hands, reinforced with magic crests, mercilessly grabbed her shoulders.
“What do you mean!?”
“I haven’t heard anything like that, Gozaru!”
She had assumed Jiro would have reported it back here, but it seemed that hadn’t happened.
To clarify, Jiro did indeed report on Himusumi Toru.
However, that report was only sent to his superiors and to Keiri.
Given his difficult situation on the front lines with unstable battle lines, he couldn’t communicate it himself and figured Keiri would inform Nan.
Since it was important and confidential information, it couldn’t be conveyed through official channels. Therefore, he relied on others.
But Keiri was also busy, and he mistakenly assumed that Nan and the others had already been informed through some means.
Evia was also high on the list, but she was busy too.
Therefore, there was no point in going out of their way to deliver information that wasn’t deemed necessary.
It was understandable that Memoria, who was involved with the military as a merchant, would know the information and mistakenly assumed she had heard about it.
“…I don’t have all the details, but it seems Jiro-san fought with someone who appeared to be Himusumi-san and successfully incapacitated him. However, an interruption occurred, and he was allowed to escape.”
Memoria wondered if it would have been better not to have told them, but she lacked the power to undo the fact that she had already spoken.
With a sigh, she resigned herself to it and conveyed all the information she had.
“Jiro hid it?”
“No, that’s not likely, Gozaru. The most probable cause is a simple miscommunication. If this kind of information reached the testers, it would cause significant problems, and if it got out to other companies, it would create unnecessary friction. Therefore, it’s more logical to assume it was treated as classified information and wasn’t passed on to us. I suspect if you ask Keiri-san, she’ll tell you without hesitation.”
“I see.”
Kitamiya no longer harbored any lingering feelings for Himusumi.
Her cooled emotions wouldn’t be rekindled.
However, she did worry about her childhood friend being missing.
For a moment, she suspected her own superior, but considering Jiro’s personality, she reasoned there must have been a reason for him to keep it quiet. At the same time, she understood why Nan hadn’t been informed after Nan’s denial.
Regaining her composure in an instant, the two began to consider what to do with the information they had acquired.
“Please don’t go to the front lines.”
Feeling a sense of responsibility for having leaked the information, Memoria cautioned them with a troubled look.
“I wouldn’t dream of it, Gozaru. There’s no reason for me to go.”
For Nan, war was synonymous with troublesome events.
Nan enjoyed dungeon work, which offered a fantasy-like experience, but she had no desire to participate in war.
When Amelia was involved, she fought to protect her friends, but her personality was such that she would be the first to flee if trouble arose.
She would do support work in the rear, but she refused anything beyond that.
She waved her hands dismissively, the first to declare she had no intention of going to war.
However, she simultaneously understood that someone beside her might participate.
“Are you curious?”
“It would be a lie to say I’m not.”
Nan was surprised to hear such a calm response, expecting her to become emotional and lose control.
“What’s with that face?”
“I was just surprised. I thought you’d be more eager for information.”
“I can’t deny that there’s a basis for you to think that…”
Despite her dissatisfaction with Kitamiya’s expression, she didn’t deny it and shook her head.
“It’s better than no sighting at all. The point is, he’s alive. And I suspect it’s just his usual illness acting up.”
“Ah. He was a person like that. I don’t know the specifics from Jiro-san, but it’s possible he could betray us and believe he’s in the right, then cooperate with them.”
“Yes, it’s sad, but it’s not impossible. When he convinces himself of something after seeing only one side of it, he tends to stick to that belief.”
This was something she understood because they were childhood friends, and considering his past actions, it wasn’t entirely inconceivable.
Slowly sipping her coffee, Kitamiya tried to calm her mind.
“At worst, he might appear saying he’s been deceived.”
“What kind of ‘haha, you thought you won, loser!’ trope is that?”
“My childhood friend.”
The more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed, making her wonder if worrying about it was foolish.
“Somehow, that sounds difficult.”
“I understand the hardships of dealing with people, Gozaru. Let’s go for drinks after work today.”
Kitamiya gazed into the distance.
When he was kidnapped, she was worried, but the thought that he might be doing well elsewhere led to her mentally conjuring a rosy picture, and now she worried he might be dismissing his past failures.
Perhaps noticing this emotion on her face, Nan gently patted her shoulder.
Memoria also cast a sympathetic gaze.
Touched by the kindness of the two women who were worried about her, even here, Kitamiya’s eyes began to well up.
“Oh? Are you crying, Gozaru?”
Nan teasingly remarked.
“Shut up. If I’m going to cry, I’ll cry at Katsu-kun’s place.”
“Boo, boo. Karen’s too honest these days, it’s boring, Gozaru.”
Kitamiya responded to the teasing with composure, trying to subtly raise her own stock.
“Well, I’m relieved if you’re not too concerned. If you had thrown a tantrum about going to the battlefield, I would have gotten an earful from Keiri-san.”
“Well, at this point, we can’t really be swayed by emotions, Gozaru.”
“In manga, it would be at this point where everyone says, ‘If we don’t go now, we have to all go help him!!'”
They drank their now-cooling coffee and picked up the accompanying cookies to eat.
“Reputation is important, Gozaru. If it were me… well, if Katsu were in trouble, I’d go. For anyone else, it depends on who else is going.”
“Me too. And Amī… I can’t quite picture Jiro-san being kidnapped.”
“First of all, if that person were to be kidnapped, there would probably be a lot of people besides us who would act.”
“Yes, I would act as well, and I’d mobilize the Toris Trading Company.”
“Oooh, you’re well-loved, aren’t you?”
Despite talking hypothetically, they were not aware that their conversation was rather serious.
A situation where the Demon Lord’s Army’s highest-ranking combatant was captured was something that should truly be avoided.
However, they themselves didn’t believe that person would ever be captured.
That’s why their atmosphere was so relaxed.
“Yes, I’m not the type to just wait around.”
“Indeed, Gozaru.”
Nan and the others thought, “If only such everyday life could continue,” and savored the luxury of time passing.
Another Side
Today’s Quote: Worry is influenced by repute.
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