By the Grace of the Gods: Volume 3

by Roy

  “I see,” I said, now the only one left to introduce myself. As we discussed work, I piqued their curiosity.

  “There are slimes like that?”

  “I’ve never heard of those before.”

  “They have unusual abilities, too.”

  I decided to demonstrate. To keep myself clean, I always kept a single cleaner in my Dimension Home. I took it out and started by having it wash my shoes. They were impressed.

  “It’s certainly a slime.”

  “The dirt from those shoes is really gone. Did the slime eat it?”

  “But the shoes haven’t been deformed at all.”

  “Hm, it really only consumed the filth?”

  Once I proved it was safe, I let the cleaner slime cleanse my body next. I didn’t know whether they were worried or excited, but they watched in silence until it was over.

  “As long as I have it out, would any of you like to try it?” I offered. They all expressed interest at the same time, but I only had one on hand, so they had to take turns. It took an oddly long time, but to my surprise, their skin was so thoroughly washed that it was glossier and more vibrant than before.

  “I like this more than soap.”

  “It does feel refreshing, doesn’t it?”

  “I haven’t felt this way in years!”

  The grime that they could never fully get rid of living in the slums appeared to be gone. The worse the filth, the more time it took to remove, so it was especially noticeable.

  “This is fascinating. Our job would be to run a laundry business with this slime? May we use our free time to do research?”

  “With this, we can get back on everyone who looked down on slime researchers!”

  “And the pay is much better than what I’ve gotten in the past. I’ll even get to work as a tamer again. I’ll do it, so please give me the job!”

  Their passion and intensity was a bit overbearing. I was somewhat hesitant to hire them, but I wasn’t one to talk when it came to passion in this area, so as long as they would remain faithful, they were fine. Our goals were similar, so it seemed like a good enough idea to hire them. After that, I would just need to have my other employees keep an eye on them to ensure they were trustworthy.

  “Would this conflict with your current jobs?”

  “Nobody’s hiring me right now anyway. My most recent job just finished up, so I didn’t know when my next opportunity would arrive.”

  “I was getting same-day pay in the mines, so I can stop whenever.”

  “I only have to tell the brothel that I’m done.”

  “I see. Can you do math?”

  “Of course, for the most part,” they all said.

  “Then by all means work for me. I haven’t decided where to open my second store yet, but you’ll have to spend some time learning what to do on the job. Where will you live? You can stay here in the slums, or live in my store.”

  “In the store!” All of them shouted at once.

  “Then let’s go with that. Now, I’d like to take you straight to my store, but maybe we can do something before that. Jeff, are there any clothing stores around here?” I asked. Not to insult these three, but their clothes were awfully tattered. The cleaner slime washed them up, but they were still full of holes. It was only the high-end stores that had uniforms, while normal stores had their employees work in their own clothes. My store was one of the latter, but I couldn’t have my employees looking like this.

  I asked Jeff and Lobelia to go to the nearest clothing store to buy a few pairs of clothes. If there were only men, Jeff could have done it himself, but nobody but Lobelia would have known about women’s clothes. In the meantime, I had to rush back to my store and tell Carme about the new hires.

  Chapter 2 Episode 41: Premonition

  I returned from the store and met up with Jeff and Caulkin, who had changed clothes.

  “Anyway, I’ve gotta get going.”

  “Thanks for everything, Jeff!”

  “It was nothing. See ya!”

  Jeff had finished his job, so he left as I got back. I bowed and saw him off, then brought the new employees with me to the Merchant’s Guild. I had asked them which guild they wanted to register with, and the decision was unanimous. When we arrived, we were of course let into the reception room to meet with the guildmaster.

  “Are these the new guys?”

  “Yes, I found them through an acquaintance.”

  “You always work quick, eh? You just came to ask me about it this morning. Well, that kind of fast action is admirable in a merchant. So, you folks are going to work at this kid’s store?”

  “Yes!” they answered. The guildmaster looked at them, somewhat wide-eyed.

  “Oh hoh, Ryoma, what’d you do? They’re oddly ambitious. And yet they seem loyal to you. Hard to believe you only just met them today,” the guildmaster observed, as perceptive as ever. They were all slime researchers for a time, so they recognized the value of cleaner slimes and thought highly of me regardless of my age. Part of it was likely also their pent-up resentment. The chance to make up for past failures overjoyed them, and they also received the security of a stable income. It hadn’t been long since we met, but they seemed to look up to me. Tony in particular had a bad experience with the Tamer’s Guild, so he must have had a lot of anger deep down.

  Their reasons aside, the guildmaster saw no problem with forming contracts with all three of them. Their main job would be to manage the cleaner slimes, so they also signed a contract to not give my slimes to anyone. There were many types of contract paper, and the variety we used was normally for significant deals only. These contracts didn’t use magic, but the paper itself served as important proof of the agreement, and they were strictly managed by the guild such that fakes couldn’t be created. Any breaches of these contracts were severely punished. An exception in the contracts was that if I established more stores and gave them permission, they could be the tamers in charge of those stores. Without that bit, I wouldn’t have been able to start new branches. Once the paperwork was taken care of, we thanked the guildmaster and left the guild.

  ■　■　■

  Next, I went to my store to introduce my new employees and put them to work right away.

  “Customers 13, 14, and 15, please!”

  “Numbers 38, 39, and 40, I’m leaving your clothes right here!”

  After a chat on our way to the store, I learned that Caulkin used to be a noble. The way he talked to people could be somewhat haughty, so rather than have him speak to customers, I put him in charge of carrying clothes. Tony had the stamina of a miner, so I gave him that duty as well. Lobelia worked a job with a lot of human interaction, so I placed her at the reception desk. She was quick to adapt to her role. I don’t know what it was, but the skills she picked up from her last job seemed to draw the eyes of adventurers. Her clothes weren’t especially revealing, but maybe that had nothing to do with it. Attraction is about more than what you can see. At any rate, there was a high chance that these male adventurers would become regular customers.

  Now that I thought about it, all the women I hired were beautiful. Although, that could have been because the people of this world tended to be attractive in general. I couldn’t think of a single ugly person I had met. Even the elderly aged gracefully. While I was thinking about that, I heard a shout.

  “Is that you, Caulkin?! Why are you here?!”

  “Is that Leipin that I hear?!”

  “You two know each other?”

  Caulkin was in the middle of carrying some laundry when Leipin yelled at him from over the counter.

  “Oh, yes, I used to work with Leipin.”

  “We were employed by the same monster research facility. I quit after a matter of years, however. Never did I expect to run into you in a place like this, Caulkin. When did you come to this city?”

  “Well...” Caulkin trailed off. It was going to be a long story.

  “Caulkin, you can take a break now. Leipin, you’re
free to come talk with him in the back,” I said, allowing them to use the break room.

  ■　■　■

  Around an hour later, after Leipin heard all about Caulkin’s situation, he let out a deep sigh.

  “I cannot believe you have been in this city for longer than I have. I was certain you must have only just arrived.”

  “I didn’t think you were here either. I assumed you’ve been chasing monsters from city to city.”

  “Indeed I have been, but this town is my base of operations. But this meeting of ours was quite the coincidence.”

  “Agreed, I never thought I’d see you again. I always wished that I listened to you and ditched that lab when you did, but in the end, the choice was made for me.”

  “What did I tell you? We may be researchers, but laboratories are no place for us.”

  “Unlike you, I’m no good at magic. Nor do I have any talent at taming monsters. I thought that adventuring would be too dangerous for me, so I felt I couldn’t go with you. As far as that goes, I still think I made the right decision, but I should have given up on the lab sooner than I did. Maybe then I wouldn’t have wasted so much money and gone bankrupt.

  “But now I’ve been hired here, so maybe life isn’t so bad. This could be my chance to get back at everyone who mocked us. Also, it’s only been a few hours so far, but learning about the cleaner slimes feels like it made all my years of slime research worth something. All thanks to you, Boss.”

  “No, thank you for your hard work.”

  “I’m only doing my part.”

  “Well, I’m glad to see you’re alive,” Leipin said. “This job should provide some security.”

  The conversation slowed to a crawl, but then I started to wonder why Leipin came in the first place. He didn’t seem to have any laundry with him, unless it was in his Item Box.

  “By the way, Leipin, did you want us to do your laundry?”

  “Ah, right! I am not here for laundry today. I got plenty done yesterday,” he answered. He must have come in while I was gone. “Today I have something to tell you about. Do you know of grell frogs?”

  “Those monsters that appear in great numbers in a swamp near town? Their hides are used to make armor, and their organs are used in medicine, I hear.”

  “I am glad you know, that makes things quick. They have begun to spawn.”

  “Really?!”

  “They are expected to hit their peak numbers in three or four days, but tomorrow, the guild will put out requests for the capture of grell frogs. They go for a high price thanks to the medicine produced from their parts, and they are also used as bait for limour birds, so they are popular among tamers and nobles. Forming a contract with a limour bird would prove your worth as a tamer and raise your standing within the guild. Try it, if you are so inclined.”

  Putting my standing within the Tamer’s Guild aside, I had heard that limour birds fly fast, so maybe they would be useful for delivering letters.

  “Thank you for the info. If I open branches of my store in other towns, it’ll be best to have a quick and reliable means of communication, so I think I’ll try catching some.”

  “Is that right? Good luck.”

  There was a sudden knock at the door, and I heard what was probably Carme’s voice. He sounded so similar to Carla that it could be hard to tell.

  “Boss, Asagi the adventurer is here with a group of five. They want to speak with you,” he said. I didn’t know what they wanted, but I looked at my two guests and they seemed to be understanding.

  “Let them in.”

  “As you wish.”

  Carme left for the moment, and Caulkin said he would get back to work, knowing there would be more chances to see Leipin. Coming in as he left were Asagi, Miya, Welanna, Mizelia, and Cilia.

  “Welcome, everyone. What do you need?”

  “Sorry about the sudden visit. Meow? You’re here too, Leipin?”

  “I was telling Ryoma about the grell frog outbreak.”

  “Hrm, you too? We were going to discuss the same topic.”

  “If I might ask, Ryoma, where did you buy those work clothes you were wearing before?”

  “We can always get laundry done here, but it’s rough having to come by so often, especially for beastkin and dragonewts like us. That’s why we’d like some clothes that don’t get dirty so fast.”

  I decided to introduce them to Serge’s store. They already had waterproof cloth in stock, so I assumed he had begun to make clothes from it.

  “You can find it at the Morgan Trading Company in town. Those clothes aren’t very well known yet, so there’s not much demand and I don’t know how much they’ll have in stock. It’s possible they only have a few, but you all met the president of the company at least once, at my opening party. He’ll probably accommodate you,” I said. At the very least, I doubted that he would flat out refuse.

  “Really?! Thank you!”

  “It’s nothing.”

  “No, this really helps us out. Beastkin noses are stronger than humans can possibly imagine.”

  “Even the slightest stench is hard to ignore.”

  “Thank you, I will go straight to the Morgan Trading Company. Farewell,” Asagi said hurried away.

  “What? He doesn’t get like that very often.”

  “True, Asagi would normally spend a bit longer apologizing for the sudden intrusion.”

  “Ah?!”

  “Meow?!”

  “What is it, Cilia?”

  “Those work clothes! You said there might not be many available, right?!”

  “Asagi’s gonna buy them all! We have to hurry!”

  “No use sticking around here! I gotta rush! Thanks, Ryoma!”

  The rest of them scrambled away as well. If odors were such a problem, I had to wonder just how powerful their sense of smell was.

  “What a boisterous bunch.”

  “Leipin, what about you? Aren’t you going?”

  “I am used to filth and stenches. It goes along with monster research. Besides, I use magic to capture grell frogs, so I have no need to enter the swamp. I hardly get dirty.”

  “I see.”

  We spent some time chatting about monsters. From what he told me, you could sell grell frogs to the guild for a medium silver coin each, thanks to how the medicine made from their organs had numerous effects. According to the medicinal knowledge I received when I came to this world, there were more than fifty drugs made from grell frogs. Many of them worked as aphrodisiacs or nutritional supplements, and male nobles bought them for a high price.

  But it was important to process the grell frog organs correctly. If done wrong, the quality could drop precipitously. You would still produce some medicine, but of lesser value, and certain types of drugs would be impossible to make. That’s why the guild only called for their capture, and insisted that adventurers not dissect the frogs themselves.

  The most crucial part of the process was draining the blood. It had to be done as carefully as possible. That seemed like a perfect job for my bloody slime. After that, they had to be dried and preserved. This could potentially damage the frogs, so wind magic or similar methods were required to dry them swiftly. The speed at which they were dried had a significant effect on their quality, but maybe alchemy would work. I could easily process the grell frogs, had ample use for them, and could preserve them as well. If I didn’t take the job from the guild, I might not be able to sell them. If I did try to sell them, however, they could be purchased for less than what they would otherwise be worth. As with collecting herbs, it might have been a good idea to go capture these grell frogs without taking a job from the guild for use as ingredients in medicine. I discussed these matters with Leipin for a surprisingly long time.

  “Is it this late already? My apologies for taking up so much of your time.”

  “That’s all right, it was fun.”

  I saw Leipin off, and not long after that, we closed for the day. I checked on our sales, then decided to g
o home for the day.

  Chapter 2 Episode 42: Preparations

  I was with the duke’s family in their room, enjoying Araune’s tea as I reported to them.

  “Did the guild listen?”

  “Yes, and I just hired three tamers today.”

  “Already? Isn’t that a little fast?”

  “Maybe, but I found some good ones. The guildmaster of the Merchant’s Guild agreed.”

  “Hoh, that’s a relief.”

  “Also, they all have a history with researching slimes, so they seem highly motivated. Apparently because it’ll help them get back at somebody, or something.”

  “I see, so that’s why.”

  “If they have good reason to work with you, maybe that makes them more trustworthy.”

  After we discussed the store, Reinhart told me about the grell frog outbreak as well. They were planning to make a contract with a limour bird in a couple days.

  ■　■　■

  The next day.

  I popped into the store in the morning and told them about tomorrow’s plans to make sure I had time available. Caulkin gave me some tips about limour birds.

  “Thank you. You certainly know a lot about them.”

  “Well, I do try to make a contract with one every year,” Caulkin laughed. “It’s never worked, but I know how to do it, at least.”

  “What about this year?”

  “I was planning to try until yesterday, but now that I’m working here, I don’t especially care about limour birds anymore,” he said with a smile. He was happy to work for me, thankfully. I left the store in a good mood and headed to Serge’s place next.

  “Welcome, Master Ryoma.”

  “Good morning, Serge. I’m here to deliver some waterproof cloth.”

  “Thank you. The cloth from a couple days ago? I suppose you must have advertised it yesterday as well, because five customers came for those clothes.”