Striving For The Luxury Liner – Vol 9 Chapter 17

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Chapter 17 – 20 Days and New Talented Person

After the service of the gods at the Castle, I returned to the Chris.

The service of the gods was an ear waxing by the Goddess of the Forest-sama and a tea party with the God of Light-sama, the Goddess of Gastronomy-sama, and the Goddess of the Forest-sama. The other goddesses are discussing massages. I spent quite a happy time talking to the God of Gastronomy-sama and having her cook me some food.

Although there was some trouble with the drunken gods and a bit of selfishness from Creator God-sama, I think the gods were generally pleased with the event.

Since the next descent would probably coincide with my busy schedule, I told them that it had not yet been decided. I have no idea how busy I’ll be or how much time I’ll have to build the orphanage.

I might be surprisingly busy, but what will it be like? Well, I guess I won’t know until I try.

I arrived at the Chris and entered through the ramp.

“Welcome back, Master. Did something go wrong?”

“Oh, Ines, I’m back. Everything was fine.”

I greeted the ladies who greeted me. I held and stroked Rimu, who had jumped on me. I felt at home with Rimu.

“Wataru-san, have you had lunch yet?”

Alessia-san spoke to me.

“No, I haven’t because I thought I’d eat on the Chris anyway. Have you all eaten yet?”

“We haven’t eaten either, so let’s go. What do you want to eat?”

“Hmm, let’s see. Since it’s lunchtime, let’s eat at a restaurant in the courtyard.”

The ladies had never eaten at the courtyard restaurant before, and the decision was unanimous. We sat down at a table in the courtyard and received menus from Saporabi.

What should I eat? Surprisingly, there are so many options on the menu that I have a hard time deciding. I’m pretty hungry, so I decide on a steak sandwich and a hamburger. I feel like it’s too much, but if it’s too much for me, I’ll let Rimu eat it.

I give my order to Saporabi, and he comes back with a plate. This is unexpected. I wasn’t expecting a steak sandwich like this. The steak is on a piece of bread with a large donut on top.

The hamburger also has a big hamburger steak on top. Sliced tomatoes and French fries also come with the burger.

I guess you eat steak sandwiches with a knife and fork, but when it’s this big, I want to take a big bite. After everyone had placed their orders, we all said “Itadakimasu” and began to eat.

I put a thick steak between two slices of bread and took a bite. Yes, this is great. It’s cooked about medium rare. I bite into the thick meat and bread and chew.

This is how meat should be. I bite into the thick meat and enjoy the slightly rare juices coming out of the inside. I like tender meat, but it is also delicious to eat thick, chewy meat with gusto.

“Wow, steak sandwiches are pretty hearty, aren’t they?”

“It’s delicious, you know?”

Carla-san tilted her head and asked, “How is it?”

“Yes, it’s delicious. But I thought it was too much.”

“Hmm?”

Yeah, I don’t think Carla-san, who is starting on her third steak sandwich while I’m barely finishing mine, would understand.

The ladies around us laughed at the conversation between me and Carla-san. It’s a good thing everyone but the gluttonous quartet understands me, I guess.

“Don’t worry. Please eat a lot.”

“Sure.”

Carla-san smiles and takes a bite of her large steak sandwich. She looks like a cool, big-breasted beauty, but I no longer feel uncomfortable with the way she quickly finishes a big steak sandwich. Habituation is scary, isn’t it?

I manage to finish another hamburger and take a break, feeling so full.

“Wataru-san, I see that everything went well with the gods. What are you going to do now?”

Alessia-san asked me, rubbing her stomach. She, too, had eaten too much.

“We are going to relax on the Castle for about 20 days, and then we are going to load the materials we collected in the Southern City.”

“We’re not staying on the Chris?”　

“When the Castle is opened, we will not be able to enjoy it freely, so my priority will be on the Castle. We will only enjoy the Chris occasionally.”

“Oh, that’s right. It will take a few months for the Castle to open, but in the meantime, I’ll enjoy the Castle to the fullest.”

So, after the gluttonous quartet is satisfied, we move on to the Castle. We’re going to relax for a while.

………………

I took it easy, and the 20 days flew by. I had Ines and Felicia wax my ears frequently, I trained occasionally to defeat monsters, watched movies, swam in the pool, ate delicious food, and had a pretty fulfilling 20 days.

I did my best to get to know the members of Girasole by talking to them according to their interests. Maybe things are going well.

“Wataru-san, don’t you think we should go to Lutto soon? We need to defeat the monsters as well.”

Oh, if I recall recent events, we were about to leave the open sea. There are too many problems to rush to the Southern City at this time. I think we should defeat the monsters, as Alessia-san said, and go to the Lutto.

With the effect of the Boarding Rejection, we will unilaterally destroy the monsters from a safe place and then transfer to Lutto to reach the Southern City. For now, let’s go to Camille-san’s place.

I enter the Merchant’s Guild and call out to Camille-san.

“Hello, Camille-san.”

“Ara, Wataru-san, hello. Are you here to talk about materials?”

“Yes, I also have something else to discuss, like human resources. Can you give me a moment of your time?”

“Yes, that’s fine. I’ll take you to the back room.”

I was taken to the usual room, drank tea, and waited for Camille-san to come in.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Wataru-san. First of all, here is the price for the pepper, 169 platinum coins.”

Oh, that’s right. I sold the last pepper, didn’t I? It’s quite nice to get money I forgot, isn’t it?

“Thank you very much. So, how did it go with the materials and human resources?”

“We have almost collected all the materials. While we are loading the materials onto the ship, the rest will be brought in. As for the personnel, I would like two people to meet with you if that’s okay.”

Oh, that sounds good. Are two people enough for personnel? I asked her to find someone for a management position, so there’s no need to find so many people. There’s no point in increasing the number of people too much, so I’ll just have to buy slaves to cover the rest. If we need more people, I will think of something.

“Tomorrow, I will dock the ship a short distance from the harbor for materials. We can meet at any time, so could you arrange that, Camille-san?”

“Tomorrow, it would be a problem to anchor a large ship suddenly, so could you please wait a little? I’ve already spoken to the Southern Count-sama through the Guild Master, and I’m sure he’ll give us permission right away, but if we do it suddenly, he’ll complain.”

Ah, if I suddenly dock the ferry where they can see it from the harbor, they’ll wonder what’s going on. Maybe there will be some kind of event, like a messenger from the Southern Count-sama to the mage. It’s a pain in the ass, to be honest.

“I understand. I’m sorry to bother you, but I’ll leave everything to you, Camille-san. As for the meeting with the two, it should be no problem tomorrow night. I will come here to see you.”

“I understand. I’ll call them for you.”

After finalizing some details and chatting a bit, I leave Camille-san and return to the ship.

“Master. I’m glad Camille-san is motivated.”

“Haha, that’s right. As Felicia said, Camille-san’s motivation was great. I still wonder if five gold coins will be enough.”

During the chat, I was told that she was already thinking about the price of the rooms, the ban on taking food off the ship, preparing contracts for items on board, making signs for how to use the facilities, and other ideas.

To my surprise, she told me that the Royal Loft Suite would cost five gold coins per night. I asked if there were people who would stay in a room that cost 5 million Japanese yen… but she said that there were many wealthy people who would be willing to pay any amount of money to stay in a first-class room and that if it became popular, even if it cost ten gold coins, there would be a rush of reservations.

Especially since royalty and nobility would want to reserve the most luxurious rooms because of their prestige, it would be possible to sell the rooms at a higher price.

Hmm, a room that costs 5 million yen per night sounds crazy, but it seems that the power and wealth of the rich and powerful people of this world are even greater than that of Earth.

Come to think of it, the power of royalty and nobility is not bad at all, right? Do they collect money?

“Right. I’m sure Camille-san’s price will be okay. Especially since there is only one room, even five gold coins will be desired by many people. If someone more important comes along later and interferes, it will be up to Camille-san to show them her skills.

Alessia-san also decided that five gold coins would be fine. But what do you mean by a demonstration of skill?

“Uh, shouldn’t it be in the order we made the reservations or something?”

“If the viscount has the best room and the marquis has a room of lower rank, it would be awkward for the viscount, wouldn’t it? Something must be done about it.”

It hurts my head just to ask, what if the same rank of knighthood in the two countries were to be covered? If it weren’t for Camille-san, I would be frustrated.

“There will be a lot of problems. I think it would be better if we get the terms of the accommodation right first.”

“I agree. There will be people who will be selfish no matter what, so it’s better to give Camille enough authority to deal with them properly.”

Alessia-san was right. Well, I originally planned to make her the vice-captain, so I think she has enough authority. Although I think it would be fine for her to be the captain, but if Camille-san is too good, I’m afraid it will make a big difference to me as the captain as well, so I’ll make her the vice-captain. I am such a small person, right?

“Yes, I plan to delegate a lot of authority to Camille-san, so I think she’ll be fine.”

Well, it’s like a monopoly market in a way, and as for violence, it’s safe inside the ship, so we can handle it.

………………

The next evening, I went to the Merchant’s Guild to meet the two people Camille-san wanted me to meet.

“Oh, hello, Camille-san. Are these two here?”

“Hello, Wataru-san. They are here. Let me show you the way.”

Camille-san led me into the room, and two people stood up to greet me.

“Let me introduce you, Wataru-san. These two are Mauro-san and Donatella-san, who I asked to help us. Mauro-san and Donatella-san. This is Wataru-san, who will be my employer.

I greeted Mauro-san and Donatella-san and sat down.

But I didn’t expect this. Mauro-san looks like an old man. He has white hair and a white beard… and he looks like a retired man who travels around the world.

Donatella-san looks like an excellent secretary type, and I think she’ll run the ship well.

“Um, excuse me, but Mauro-san looks quite old. Will he be all right?”

“Yes, he’s fine. Mauro-san is on a certain level and surprisingly energetic.”

No, he is indeed energetic, but is he… fine? Camille-san doesn’t seem to mind at all, so I guess it’s not a problem, but I’m worried.

“I see… what kind of work do you do, Mauro-san?”

“I’m a big merchant with big shops in the royal capital and the Southern City, with roots all over the continent.”

…He looked like a good-natured old man, but when I spoke to him, he suddenly started bragging. I looked at Camille-san uneasily.

“Wataru-san, Mauro-san used to be a big merchant. He is retired now.”

“I’ve been an active merchant all my life. Just because I gave my store to my son doesn’t mean I’m retired as a merchant.”

He sounds like an annoying person. Is Camille-san really sure that this is the right person?

“Um, is it okay with Mauro-san, Camille-san?”

“Yes. Actually, I have a family relationship with Mauro-san, and even though he is retired, he has great connections and experience. This will be my first attempt at working with Mauro-san, so I’m very encouraged to have his help.”

“Hmm, I can’t help but be excited when Camille-jouchan says that. I’ve heard rumors about you, Wataru. I’ll take care of everything, so you don’t have to worry.”

He seems like a person you can rely on, but he also seems like a person who could cause trouble. Didn’t he force his son to take over his business?

“What’s with that look?”

“No, it’s nothing. I’m looking forward to working with you.”

If he has connections and experience, he must have a perfect record as an advisor. I have a little apprehension, but he seems to be a family friend, so I will trust him.

Funds on hand: 31 gold coins, 82 silver coins, 55 copper coins

Guild account: 0 platinum, 70 gold

Savings ship: 908 platinum coins

Pepper ship: 0 ship

Charity expenses: 95 platinum coins, 70 gold coins

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