The market’s participation requires joining the commercial guild, with the cost for using a stall space being one silver coin per section.
The daily fee of 10,000 yen seems a bit high, but I’m confident in the goods I’m selling.
Perhaps because they were intrigued by the unfamiliar stalls, some people did stop by and take a look.
There were many male customers, as I handle a lot of blades.
“Is this a small knife? Do you fold it inside instead of using a sheath? Interesting.”
“Convenient, isn’t it? This is a razor for shaving your beard.”
“Oh! Just for shaving your beard? You don’t often see such a fine blade. It’s a good product.”
I smile at the positive reactions from the male customers.
“This is for shaving your beard, but it can also be used for body hair. Would you like to try it, madam?”
Next to the plump man stood a woman with a similar demeanor, who blinked in surprise when spoken to.
I took out some petroleum jelly from my pocket and gestured for the middle-aged woman to come closer.
After receiving the couple’s permission, I applied the jelly to the woman’s arm and carefully placed the shaving knife against her skin.
Unlike noblewomen or wealthy women, most common women don’t have the habit of removing body hair and keeping their skin smooth.
This slightly plump woman, too, had not removed any arm hair.
(She has lighter hair than a Japanese person, so her body hair doesn’t stand out as much, which is a benefit.)
The woman with bright blonde hair had arm hair that matched her hair color, so it wasn’t that noticeable, but it still caught my attention when viewed closely.
After I carefully slid the knife and wiped the skin with a wet cloth, it looked noticeably smoother and more beautiful.
“Wow…! It’s so smooth!”
“There’s no cut either. Was the cream you applied earlier some special medicine?”
“No. It’s just a cream… an ointment-like substance that makes it easier to shave and protects the skin. For example, animal fat. After you’re done shaving, be sure to wash both the skin and the knife thoroughly.”
By now, a crowd had gathered around us.
Not just the male customers, but the women were also eagerly checking the shaved skin.
As planned, I was able to put on a good performance and secretly grinned inside.
“How much?”
“One gold coin.”
“I’ll buy it!”
“I’ll buy one too.”
“I’ll take two!”
“I’ll take three!”
Suddenly, a crowd rushed forward. I quickly arranged them into two lines and, together with Shella , started selling the products.
In addition, the nail files and scissors were selling well. The women quickly noticed the glass jars and joyfully bought them. When I explained the use of the sewing scissors, they sold like hotcakes.
Thanks to the clearly marked prices, Shella was handling customers with ease.
By the way, Ketsue, who had been sleeping comfortably in the basket under the table, was now awake.
◆◇◆
“Yes! All sold out! Faster than I expected.”
All the products on the table had sold out.
I secretly checked the time on my phone—it was still only 11 AM, just two hours had passed.
I had taken stock from the “Item Box” several times, but as soon as I placed them out, they sold right away.
Indeed, convenient knives are quite powerful.
“I-I’m so tired…”
“Good job, Shella . Here’s your payment for today.”
When I handed Shella the silver coin I had promised, her face lit up with a smile.
“Thank you so much! Oh, then this! Please use it to repay the money I borrowed!”
“Huh, are you sure? It might be better to pay half of it back first.”
“No! I’ll manage with the five silver coins I borrowed. You’re going to earn more from the stall, right?”
“Yeah. I want to work five days and rest for two…”
“Then, you can repay the debt in those five days!”
The earnest girl smiled happily.
Her silver hair sparkled under the sunlight, shining brightly as it spilled from her hood.
The effect of the “Recognition Inhibition” ring was superb, and no one was paying attention to her.
She seemed genuinely happy about it, wearing a broad smile.
“No one was looking at me!”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“I’ve never been ignored by men like this before!”
“Is that so?”
“I wasn’t treated badly by women either!”
“…Good for you.”
Depending on how you hear it, it might sound like a smug, self-confident remark from a woman, but seeing her so genuinely happy made me reflect on her past struggles.
“Well, this kind of work, is it okay for you?”
“Yes, of course! It feels so good when things sell well! I had a lot of fun.”
“I feel the same. Thanks to that, I made a lot of money, so let’s have a fancy lunch.”
“Wow! Yay!”
“Meow!”
Ketsue, who had been sleeping at my feet, suddenly purred and nuzzled up to me as soon as I mentioned the fancy lunch.
And of course, he begged for me to cook, saying that my food was better than any stall or restaurant.
“You want me to cook? We’re in the city, so let’s eat at a restaurant.”
“Meow.”
“Mr. Tohma , are you going to cook? I’m looking forward to it!”
I tried to refuse, but I couldn’t resist the gaze of the excited beautiful girl.
◆◇◆
In the end, lunch was served outside the city.
I couldn’t bring Shella into the inn room to cook, so after storing the stall equipment in the Item Box, I headed outside the city.
“I didn’t expect to finish by noon. But thanks to that, I should be able to earn some more through adventuring in the afternoon!”
Shella walked briskly ahead, leading me towards the nearby forest.
“Are you sure we don’t need to stop by the Adventurers’ Guild? Don’t we need to take some quests?”
“For regular city quests, special gathering quests, and monster slaying requests, we need quest forms, but I can only hunt weak magical beasts, so…”
“Ah, for material buying, you don’t need a quest form, right?”
“Exactly. If I happen to gather materials or herbs from monsters that are out on quests, I can just return to the guild and bring them along with the quest forms.”
“Seems surprisingly lax.”
The spot Shella guided me to was in the forest, but it was open and perfect for a picnic.
The tree stumps made for great seats.
“Yeah, this is a good spot. Alright, Shella and Ketsue, I’ll leave the lookout to you.”
“Meow.”
“Leave it to me!”
With a determined “Hmph,” Shella readied her bow, while Ketsue sat on her shoulder.
Since this was just an ordinary forest, unlike a dense jungle, if anything appeared, it would likely just be a boar or a wolf.
There was no need for magical barriers.
From the Item Box, I took out the cooking table, the magic stove, and various cooking utensils.
Now, only the ingredients were left.
“Now, what should I cook?”
I decided to use the deer meat I had in stock since using high-end magical beast meat might make Shella hesitate. I prepared three large chunks of meat, knowing everyone was a hearty eater.
I seasoned the block meat with salt, pepper, and grated garlic, and heated olive oil in the pan. The cooking would be done over medium heat.
I would’ve preferred to use an oven, but I couldn’t exactly set up a container house here, so I made do with the frying pan.
I used tongs to press the meat down, and when it had developed a nice sear on the surface, I secretly checked its condition.
Yeah, perfect searing.
“Shella … hunting rabbits, huh? Well, with Ketsue around, it should be fine.”
I wrapped the beautifully seared meat in aluminum foil and let it rest for about thirty minutes.
In the meantime, I decided to make another dish: soup.
“I should avoid miso or soy sauce flavors. It’d be hard to explain if anyone questions it. Alright, I’ll go with onion soup.”
I sliced the onions thinly and sautéed them carefully in butter. Since I couldn’t use a microwave for shortcuts, I stir-fried them for about ten minutes without burning them, until they turned a caramelized color.
Then, I transferred them to a large pot, added water and consommé, and let it simmer.
Slowly cooked on low heat, I seasoned it with salt and pepper to finish.
“The main dish will be bread. Hard bread… I’ll slice a baguette and make garlic toast.”
I bought the baguette at a convenience store and toasted the garlic bread in a pan.
For the garlic butter, I used the tube variety I had bought at the store. I finished it off by sprinkling chopped parsley on top. Mmm, it smells great.
“Making sauce would be a hassle, so I’ll just buy some roast beef sauce. Store-bought sauces are the best, huh?”
I hummed a little as I summoned it.
No shame in cutting corners! I’ve been greatly helped by dashi, chemical seasonings, and noodle dipping sauce.
“…By the way, where did those two go?”
Lunch was ready, but one of the lookouts and one of the cats were nowhere to be found.
I used my Sense Presence skill to search for them and found them coming back, carrying their prey.
“Ah! Mr. Tohma ! Look, we managed to hunt a lot!”
A silver-haired beauty, whose appearance was almost elfin, was covered in mud and blood, dragging the corpse of a magical beast while waving and smiling. It was a bit of a horror-like sight.
