Chapter 4: Confusion
The entire floor was jam-packed right from the start.
queuing to buy the works of renowned artisans, and noblemen merchants dressed in their splendor.
The scene was chaotic, with various stalls busy touting customers.
Since the wares here were limited to "clothing", not all the production guilds had set up booths here. It
various departments that catered to different industries and needs. However, the small or medium-sized
For instance, Amenona was a weapons production guild that was known to all of Akiba's insiders. It
dedication, which stemmed from their near-freakish obsession with quality, allowed them to rediscover
Tailors, and would naturally not partake in the exhibition held within this building.
This floor was a market which specialized in clothing and was indoors at the request of the female
streets. The open-air stalls there were selling all sorts of different wares.
even jewelry. To be honest, the heart of the festival was obviously the 'flea market' being held outside;
The clothing market's main event was the 'fashion show'. Basically, it was an event featuring the clothing
fashion items and parade on a runway. The models were Adventurers famous in Akiba for their popularity
good portion of the crowd were actually here as fans instead of shoppers.
The large booths had more personnel and had a greater variety of wares on display. These were the
easy task.
were used by the small and medium-size guilds.
the floor, but it was not close to the walls either. With regards to the crowd's traffic, it was a rather
business would be a bitter struggle.
long as it interests us!" That was the sort of guild it was. In fact, its booth was only set up by the members
Since the Crescent Moon Alliance was a friendly guild full of equally-friendly Adventurers, players, even
production guilds, their experience in business was a little lacking. If, perchance, they got a good
sense, their location was very appropriate.
Henrietta grabbed hold of Maryele, who had lost her composure and was exclaiming "wuah~, wuah~".
back to the counter, and sat her down on a stool.
"You're right. It's just that, how do I put it in words, I haven't seen so many people in quite a while..."
What she had said was indeed true. In the original world, taking a crowded train was a common routine.
business in front of train stations or at crossroad junctions.
such scenes anymore. Despite the fact that Akiba's central plaza was filled with activity, it never felt
This place made people reminisce of the crowded conditions back in their original world. The crowd had
The fact that they could still afford to quarrel despite this ongoing commotion proved that Crescent Moon
Like a waterfall splashing against the rocks below, the bulk of the crowd first swarmed the booths of the
towards the booths of the small and medium guilds which were located near the stage.
roughly half an hour.
following manner: "Isn't it better if we looked at the smaller booths rather than line up now?"
serving as the cashier and accountant. However, current circumstances made this increasingly difficult to
The number of People of the Land was greater than expected.
two Tailors. Apart from this booth and the fashion show, the Crescent Moon Alliance had also set up an
As Maryele was the guild master, it was expected of her to make an appearance at every one of their
fashion show. By doing so, only the two inexperienced guild members would be left to man the booth.
The meaning behind it was clear. "No way, no way, we're not familiar with this!" The two of them were
Henrietta was negotiating business and sighing internally at the same time.
hardly be an issue. Since they were all from another world, they were all equally unfamiliar with
business". But that was more than enough for Adventurers.
Furthermore, the purpose of their visit was not simply to pick out clothes that they liked. They were here
Hence, they would make inquiries about the price, the materials, and even in depth details such as how
(However, I have neither the experience nor the know-how for such a responsibility...)
merchants with a smile on her face.
could it be that I've developed a taste for this kind of situation?) Henrietta thought to herself.
One could not regard her as experienced.
newly hatched chick with its eggshell still stuck to its head. But she also knew that in order to graduate
personal experience.
making sense of the situation.)
It might have been a result of their subconscious team spirit, but while Henrietta handled a People of the
to handle an Adventurer.
transaction was then completed after the three bowed in appreciation.
Land. Given the scale of the Crescent Moon Alliance, even an order of a 100 pieces a month was far too
Henrietta had put her foot down on.
such a pitch-black nature like Shiroe-sama exists, I truly cannot afford to let my guard down... eh?)
She had just realized that Shiroe had disappeared.
currently nowhere near the booth. There was no sign of a certain black-haired girl either.
After checking that there were no troublesome customers coming or going, Henrietta straightened her back
stall obscured her vision.
"Yes, the items this time are experimental. Therefore, for the sake of getting as much feedback from as
"I've already made it clear that I'm willing to pay!"
Henrietta, who had craned her neck to search, heard Shiroe's bland voice.
people and finally spotted Shiroe's figure at a booth located opposite the passageway.
worn on the inside, made him look "presentable". He was holding his ground, with a steady
Wearing Crescent Moon's apparel, Shiroe looked more like a normal Japanese youth than a character
into Shiroe's private life back in the original world.
Henrietta only managed to get a glimpse of him before losing him in the crowd again. She cut through the
That was the guild Cocoa Brown's booth.
but it seemed as though Shiroe was stopping her rather than protecting her.
of various colors as well as delicately-crafted necklaces and earrings.
expo's opening, when she was greeting the booths around theirs. Furthermore, the items were priced
have been taking care of small guilds like ourselves.'
the Land—"
Shiroe continued to reject the merchant's offer.
Cocoa Brown.
two items, but a bulk purchase would make the stall unable to continue its operation for the remainder of
If their aim had been profit or to sellout, then Cocoa Brown would have sold everything by then. But that
Adventurers. Thus, their policy of limiting the items sold per customer didn't sit well with businessmen.
Their subclass level could allow them to achieve crafting capabilities comparable to a master artisan's
However, haggling and negotiations did not depend on physical abilities. After all, the proficiency of
do with physical capabilities and instead was about interpersonal skills.
He decided to lend a helping hand.
unlucky.)
Just as Henrietta managed to squeeze her way through the crowd to reach the area in front of Cocoa
The onlookers that gasped were mainly People of the Land.
However, the result was as Henrietta had expected.
Shiroe was an enchanter. Like the other magic classes, an enchanter's stamina and strength were lower
and of similar level.
difference in agility and strength was overwhelming. In Shiroe's eyes, the haughty merchant's fist was
Because Shiroe caught the People of the Land's punch, it was not judged as an "attack" and there was no
As he caught the punch from the middle-aged merchant with his left hand, Shiroe stopped Akatsuki with
"Have you had enough?"
In spite of his smile, the bard Henrietta could clearly sense a formless energy being focused in Shiroe.
could provide mana to their party, Henrietta was keenly aware of what was happening.
Brandishing a friendly smile on his face, Shiroe gradually amplified the oppressing atmosphere. All
Shiroe was not casting any spell.
Therefore, it was not an act of combat and the city guards would not appear. Moreover, his expression
And even though the People of the Land weren't as sensitive to magic as Adventurers, at that point, they
The middle-aged merchant's face rapidly grew white and withdrew his fist from Shiroe's hand.
He hastily muttered these words and fled the scene.
"My lord, didn't you also force him into a corner?"
"After breaking all of his limbs."
Shiroe shrugged helplessly as members of Cocoa Brown thanked him. The cute and round face of the
"Shiroe-sama."
That was because it contained a somewhat displeased tone.
"Nothing, it's just that..."
"That's right."
The crowd nearby had also begun dissipating as though satisfied with the ending.
"Yes, Shiroe-sama?"
Henrietta instantly set aside her musings on "Why am I feeling unhappy?" and considered the meaning
A chaotic expo.
back, she had also just handled a business transaction that nearly turned into a fight. It was because on one
experience... that was what Henrietta suspected. Did Shiroe think differently?
Henrietta was in doubt. She couldn't decide whether or not to inform him of her bad premonition from
"Erm, Shiroe-sama..."
simply cannot make anything out of this situation."
unknown machination.
Henrietta wanted to talk to him so that perhaps, with his insight, he could shed new light on her doubts.
was contacting others through telepathy.
Finally, he nodded and turned towards Henrietta and stated his deduction clearly.
Part 2
Of course, this was not of her own volition.
least eventually.
content.
an afternoon nap. Elissa was bustling around the room like a bee, taking out dresses and accessories from
The reason why Elissa was behaving in this manner was not because she was one of those airheaded girls
In the nobles' society, an event such as a dinner party or a formal meeting was an important gathering
other parties according to its value, its color, and what gemstones it contained. This was how nobles
For instance, Raynesia was the second daughter of a duke. However, because the eldest daughter had
the reason for her deployment to the city was publicly announced as "a sincere and personal apology to
Freedom Towns Eastal and the Corwen clan. This was a rather evident fact.
prestigious noble family— Clan Corwen— would not be shamed. On the other hand, using her status as a
she had to don jewelry of the appropriate value so as not to be despised, and when she was meeting with
others' family situations, one could choose to avoid a fashion faux pas by wearing something that clashed
game of complex psychological warfare.
inexperienced maids who served as her helpers, the choice was left to Elissa to handle. It had to be
Such was Elissa.
She had to change her clothes and accessories for each new guest, making her very busy.
considered bad form to refuse the request of another party right on the spot. This was true even for cases
follow such customs to satisfy the demands of high society.
party cannot agree to', and if you were the higher-classed noble to whom the request was made to, one had
and gifts were the tools of the trade.
tasteful."
"And what is this 'usual' you speak of?"
"Princess Raynesia, really?"
In the League of Freedom Towns Eastal, how one could convey gratitude was common sense. But for the
giving their thanks to Adventurers was a complete mystery. To know how to dress or how to act for
Since this was so, the dinner party was modeled to resemble what was popular as closely as possible.
made, half of the cuisine was from restaurants around Akiba. If such an event were held in Maihama
seemed that for Adventurers, such an event was alright.
whatsoever. To her, it served no purpose to get frazzled over things that hadn't even started yet, so she
because she lived a life of indolence while avoiding people as much as possible.
"This should be on the list— next, coupled with a jade necklace, please wait. Remember last year, you
Elissa's voice contained a hint of nervousness.
It was all too sudden.
Lord Marvis was a merchant by trade, but was also an important member of Holy Empire Westelande's
And judging from the timing of his visit, he was most definitely sent here by order of the palace.
Raynesia bit her lip.
About 280 years ago, the Yamato archipelago was a single, unified country. Commonly called the ancient
archipelago by use of force.
annihilation, the unified Yamato split apart after the power that was keeping it together was lost.
dynasty. After the death of the royal family, being the core of the former social strata, Yamato's people
To the League of Freedom Towns Eastal, this fact was also very significant.
originally bestowed during the Westelande Imperial Dynasty. Likewise, the lords of the League of
Of the areas of Yamato that were once under the Westelande Imperial Dynasty, the two most influenced,
two.
Dynasty.
family" of the ancient dynasty's royal family. The origins of the Itsuki clan came about from a political
Dynasty.
alone held a strong appeal to rulership, being the "legitimate successors" of the Westelande Imperial
However, not all of Yamato's nobility recognized the Itsuki clan as royalty. In fact, both Akiba and the
their rightful rulers.
Once the clan split from the bloodline, its title could not be reinstated.
their veins through a number of political marriages as described by the records kept by the aristocracy.
bloodline. Having said that, the fact that they were still a branch family of the royal bloodline could not
Under the hierarchical system of the previous Westelande Imperial Dynasty, the Itsuki clan outclassed the
Eastal and the western Holy Empire Westelande both branched out from the royal lineage, they always
This Lord Marvis person, the man that was sent here by the Holy Empire Westelande this time, was a
was in charge of maritime trade.
drop by, they could not refuse him an invitation. He was not the kind of man that could be refused with a
Raynesia shook her head to clear her dark thoughts.
royal family in Yamato, they were both nobles.
norms of etiquette and culture high society demanded.
What she could do right now was do her duty, that was what Raynesia was thinking.
was a way to repay Akiba for saving her home.
Although she did not know the intentions of this noble from the west, she had decided to be the vanguard
Part 3
"This is an attack. As they are using propaganda or psychological warfare, this is really leaving a bad
Shiroe sighed softly.
The intent of such actions was obvious.
and to weaken the unity of the city. However, this approach was too crude.
"... Or arrogance?"
He waved his hands hastily upon seeing the situation.
"But, my lord..."
Akatsuki unwillingly hid the ice-cold weapon under her skirt. Shiroe averted his eyes from her thighs and
"Akiba is under attack."
Henrietta gave a stiff, curt nod.
"Our enemies should be making use of the ruckus to spread rumors. They aim to undermine the authority of
"... We have to counter this quickly, maybe even stop the festival if necessary."
Shiroe calmly replied to Henrietta, who was hastily trying to find a solution.
resulting in our loss of authority, and our enemies will have achieved their goal. Thus, the best thing we
festival must continue."
Henrietta looked pale.
as if Shiroe wasn't under the same amount of stress, but rather as Shiroe had a better grasp of the situation,
Shiroe's instincts told him that the People of the Land were behind this attack. There were numerous
organization".
Not to sound boastful, but the Japanese saw no value in undermining the authority of its governing body. In
such organizations failed, it would only inconvenience them. So for most Japanese, they would rather
incompetent is only natural' did not originate from the Japanese people themselves. In other words,
organization'.
The People of the Land behind this would not expect this attack to physically harm Akiba's Adventurers.
the city. It could only result in the criticism of the Round Table Council, but would not weaken the
This level of attack wouldn't achieve their goal, even if that were to 'undermine the authority of the Round
In that case, what was their real objective? And how would they benefit from it?
This should be the aim of the 'merchants from the west', as mentioned when Minori reported in via
naturally the People of the Land from the west also wanted the same to prevent the benefits from being
If the mastermind were able to mobilize such a large number of merchants, then this person should be a
The only person who could fit this criteria had already entered the city beforehand, a conclusion Shiroe
Shiroe could understand this.
However, Shiroe felt that if that were all there was, then it was too crude and inelegant.
mobilizing so many people. That was the extent of their capability.
"Please keep it a secret for the moment."
"I don't mind, Shiroe-sama, but what should we do next?"
Shiroe paused again.
autonomous organization that was trusted by Akiba's residents. If he acted alone, based on his own
He was dead-set that "there would be no easy solution."
means, they should be prepared for our retaliation too.)
We might fight when beaten back, this was only right and proper. In this place, the cause and effect would
needed no explanation.
The out-of-place feeling Shiroe felt since yesterday's "chaos" cleared up after asking the Production Guild
The disputes in the city and the minor incidents that escalated to quarrels were merely the tip of the
staff's time by making them go through unnecessary paperwork, not pay the exact amount in taxes, and
was someone pushing these minor issues to their limits as a means to attack Akiba.
continued to accumulate, trying to bind the Production Guild Liaison Committee— and even the Round
The enemy would mercilessly exploit this vulnerability.
At this stage, they should be targeting the Production Guild Liaison Committee's administrative
repeated reports focused on these businesses would overwhelm the administrative powers of the liaison
The places where Adventurers or People of the Land were interacting were also targets. The enemy was
To resolve these situations, they would have to "increase the number of staff". The focus was to establish
The governing bodies headed by the Round Table Council were all formed by volunteers. Volunteers
insufficient numbers would lead to fatigue, which in turn would deplete their morale. Without adequate
— We must reorganize the command system and deploy more manpower.
he would be ready to play his next card in hand to press the attack. Such a scheme would seriously
Shiroe calmly examined the situation.
attack encompasses the entirety of Akiba. The sheer scope of things makes it impossible for me alone to
Table Council, there are certain disadvantageous aspects. In fact, the enemy is probably waiting for this
The priority at the moment was to contact the appropriate people for assistance, but this had to be kept
would then take more manpower to handle. The attack was directed towards the Round Table Council by
level would make them fall into the enemy's trap.
Shiroe started thinking of the possible outcomes.
change the conditions of the simulation. Shiroe stopped breathing, moving away from the murmur
the balance that had to exist somewhere.
Shiroe was so immersed in his thoughts that light and sounded faded away from his senses.
Shiroe was not good at dealing with an "enemy" that used such attacks.
as a whole, but each attack was almost always a type of "live" action. The assault was not based around a
They could only know about the attack after the enemy had already finished preparations and initiated the
(Well wow, I hate this kind of opponent.)
much more complicated and frustrating than he had imagined. It was impossible to predict an enemy that
energy on a single point, their location could have been calculated, and defenders could gather to fortify
time, however, the enemy had chosen to simultaneously attack everywhere at once. Moreover, the enemy
Shiroe was thus unable to properly interpret and anticipate the various movements of the enemy groups.
Shiroe switched to another point of view.
(Some things simply cannot be done. With this in mind, we should focus instead on what we can do.)
deployed within the next hour, the situation would deteriorate so much that it would become obvious to
In this situation, you had to find out what you could do to fight the "enemy"...
Shiroe turned to look and spotted his friend, West Wind Brigade's Soujirou, at the back of the crowd.
carrying two swords around his waist.
Horizon's..." "Yaaay!"
"I went to the cake store Senpai recommended. Their service was amazing! They brought out sixteen full
they kept bringing us more and more cakes! Such warmth and kindness... Ah, eh?"
That wasn't service, that's just increasing the cake count to match the number of people per the
The retort almost made its way out of Shiroe's mouth, but was restrained at the last moment. Soujirou
"They ran out of stock after bringing out 30 cakes, but everyone enjoyed them. Oh, I like the orange
(Ah ah, really, Soujirou, this guy...)
shoulder.
"I'm fine, Soujirou, come, there's something suitable for you to handle."
regulations of saturation combat.
The best candidate to fight was right in front of Shiroe.
Minori clenched her fist after ending her telepathy call.
Akiba—Minori and her friends were under attack.
Minori nodded in response to Charasin, who was taken aback.
Charasin bit his nails with a serious expression on his face while reviewing the document, and then
Minori had been in this office for nearly eight hours, almost never taking a break since morning from the
file boxes in the corner of the room.
The reports were dispersed to avoid detection, but the number of Western merchants exceeded 15% of the
The quantity was not the issue. The problem was, that 15% was causing more than 60% of the storm.
Gathered here were prior and subsequent intelligence reports.
administrative process.
Keeping records was the iron rule in administrative work, and in this world, it could only be done on
The Production Guild Liaison Committee, though, had an overwhelmingly inadequate processing power.
the reports. While they also lacked experience in doing this, the main culprit was the lack of manpower.
Some examples included the simple survey of goods that were brought in, the permit to sell at the flea
warehouse of the Round Table Council, the permit to withdraw goods on site. There was a shortage of
Delays caused by pressure, the pressure caused a storm.
was the unintended result. In other words, they did not expect this clutter, which was also the
But after organizing the reports, the actual situation was clear. Western merchants were deliberately
A person or a group was trying to increase the burden on the system.
Knights, were at their limit dealing with the rapid increase of quarrels and disputes, while voices
With things having escalated to such a degree, Charasin told Minori to contact Shiroe so that there would
Minori's prediction was unfortunately supported by Shiroe's report.
She had expected Charasin to ask this question, and shook her head "no" as she planned.
"Ah?"
Minori stressed this once again.
When groups were under attack, they tended to gather at the leader's side. This was the defensive instinct
In these kinds of situations, members would gather next to the guild master to wait for instructions, this
unilaterally by an unidentified social aggression, like right now, most guild masters, like Charasin, had
Moreover, since Minori was still young, Charasin believed that she should return to Shiroe's protective
But instead, Minori decided to stay here.
District Shopping Center had several such members that worked in the background, but seeing how
Minori deliberately pretended not to see Charasin's worried look, and took a deep breath.
From her perspective, these documents and this office seemed to be other things.
(In other words, use the same approach as before.)
It was the same idea as "having an insufficient healing capacity".
hands, her body resuming the blood circulation. That's right, she could imagine this as a raid battle.
Use the same approach as in Ragranda, Choushi, and Sand Leaf. Imitate what Shiroe did, follow in his
"I'll stay here and deal with the warehouse work. Can all the warehouse documents be moved over here?"
Charasin gave instructions to the youth beside him, Taro.
guilds could rent the warehouse space for a small fee. This was established during the Round Table
After the Catastrophe changed the world, material quality would affect the finished product's quality. So
Before, if the item name was 'tomato', regardless of what 'tomato' was used, the quality of the finished
used, a tomato salad would be of poor-quality, and it would just become disgusting food. It was therefore
This gave a need to improve the management system of large warehouses. Large guilds could use their
Round Table Council set up several large warehouses and was responsible for their management.
For example, a People of the Land with over-laden carriages would need such services. Among their
high-level items required special storage, like Tianjin Winter Clothes, which were made by elves and
But by opening their use to the People of the Land, the process itself had become complicated, and this
addition to the usage of the warehouse, they had originally speculated that a fixed amount would be taken
businesses withdraw goods whenever they clinched a deal.
was how Akiba came under attack, the most illustrative example.
"Ah, Tohya."
Communication between these twins was unique. Because of their constant calls to reach each other, it
thoughts alone.
"Ah, ah, long time no see. Sorry to trouble you, thanks for helping."
After Tohya's simple greeting, he simply dropped the backpack and left the office. Minori didn't ask
Various warehouse goods were definitely kept on this floor somewhere. As he said to Charasin, Tohya
The documents would soon be moved into the office at twice the speed. The flea market reports and
After cleaning up the current space in this office, they would have to deal with the parallel processing of
This was the battlefield that Minori had chosen.
As Minori was sorting the documents, the more important ones were passed to Charasin. Written in red on
after inspecting it.
keeping track of supplies, such as potatoes being "taken out multiple times", which Minori could not
damages.
At this moment, rushing back to Shiroe was not a good approach.
The healers had the obligation to trust the vanguards.
But at this moment, this office lacked manpower; the only people present were Charasin and two 8th
—Even if it were the Libra Festival, the core staff only numbered at five people.
Minori pondered over the hidden intentions behind these words.
directly causing physical harm". If it progressed into a dangerous situation, and Shiroe should order to
But after feeling at ease, she felt as though the message was giving her the permission to act freely.
freedom of movement, which she interpreted as Shiroe looking to her to take action.
Perhaps this was just a misunderstanding, but it was enough to make Minori get fired up.
expectations, I...)
Minori came to this decision.
While having two Shiroes in the same place was meaningless, if there were no Shiroe here, then imitating
The People of the Land counter staff were the vanguard tanks. Charasin, who was solving the problem
Prioritizing the issues at hand was of utmost importance, predicting how things will progress. Sorting the
(I cannot become the vanguard or the healer.)
collations. Minori herself felt a kind of fire burning inside her underlying the sense of helplessness and
She was a middle school student, and incompetence was a matter of course.[7]
Shiroe's teachings. Minori did not want to go contrary to Shiroe's expectations.
Minori recollected Shiroe's gentle, half-joking voice.
For the current Minori, the so-called fighting with the flow of files one after another, that was moved in a
something like this.
No thinking.
Minori chased after the vague feeling of contact as she focused on the task at hand.
The venue for the dinner party was shrouded by a luxurious atmosphere.
Maple Consulate" was where Raynesia was posted when she came to Akiba, which was purchased by the
Originally, it was almost in ruins, with only the basic structure of the building remaining. Now, it had
This was a Consulate in outer appearance only, as it offered accommodations for visitors, and was also
was Raynesia's private residence in name, it was of considerable size. It had three large halls, a total of
The Consulate would be holding the grandest of the events—the dinner party. The number of staff
weren't enough bards or waiters, and there was urgent recruitment of kitchen staff from Akiba
In fact, the staff was not limited to People of the Land.
scenes. Adventurers had high income levels; Raynesia was using the People of the Land as a benchmark
Adventurers that 'were interested' and a 'join in on the fun' mentality that applied.
gorgeous banquet, working side-by-side with People of the Land of the opposite gender and got to know
"Thank you very much."
cold and indifferent while looking away, but still quietly replied, this was how it should be.
only be grateful, so she made this event, the dinner party that would be held today, in order to thank them.
my eternal gratitude."
The young man waved for her to stop, hurriedly telling her that "This isn't worth your thanks, we are
The youth blushed, blurting out "Don't mind me, please don't!" as he left in a rush.
"Correct... that is so."
Adventurers—especially the young ones, seemed to be mostly reserved people. Most Knights were also