Episode 40: The Smash-Selling Lidiel Figure

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Translator: Soafp

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“Ask-kun, I can see the border city now!!”

“That's the border city…”

The border city is, just as the name suggests, a city the Belhart Empire built along its borders with other nations.
Apparently, foreigners are examined here and assigned a rank.

“Next. Do you have a rank certificate?”

“Yes, here you go.”

“I'll check it—wait, a Second-Class Certificate!?”

When Lidiel showed the plate called a rank certificate, the guards protecting the massive gate at the city entrance gasped in surprise.

So Lidiel really is amazing, huh? I thought she was just an easy-to-manipulate girl… ahem.

“C-confirmed. It's genuine. No problems.”

“Thank you. Thanks for your hard work every day.”

“N-no, it's just our job. This much is nothing…”

“Being able to work hard at the same job every day is admirable too. Be more proud of yourself.”

“Y-yes!!”

When Lidiel smiled and praised them, the guards blushed.

“She's insanely cute…”

“And she even praises Third-Class guards like us…”

“Is she an angel…?”

The guards seemed highly motivated and started moving briskly.

After Lidiel, it was my turn.

“You there, do you have a rank certificate?”

“I don't.”

“First time in the Empire? Do you know about our system?”

“Yup.”

“I see. Then do you have any special skills?”

“Nothing worth calling a skill, really…”

I took out some wood and a knife, then carved a wooden figurine right in front of the guards.

“W-what the hell is this!?”

“I've never seen such a detailed wooden figure!!”

“This could be Third-Class—no, even Second-Class!”

“Art-related exams are pretty lenient. First-Class isn't impossible!”

“Hey now, that's exaggerating… probably.”

The guards caused a huge commotion over the wooden figure.

I feel like anyone could make something like this with enough practice, though. Lidiel and these people from the Empire are really good at praising others.

After that, one of the guards explained the examination process in detail.

“Your final rank will be decided in the Imperial Capital. The results should be out in about a week, so stay in the border city until then.”

“Okay.”

“This is a temporary Third-Class certificate. Be careful—losing it comes with a fine.”

“Got it.”

Just as I took the certificate, one of the guards whispered to me.

“There's a place on the main street called ‘Great Tree Pavilion.' It's both a restaurant and an inn. Security's solid, and if you've got the money, it's a good place to stay. But there's one thing you should know.”

“What is it?”

“The food there is no joke—it's unbelievably bad. If there were a worst-food contest, it would crush all other disgusting Imperial dishes and take first place.”

“That bad?”

“That bad. Listen—Imperial citizens are usually used to bad food, so they don't collapse easily. And even so, nearly a hundred people were hospitalized just last month. Seriously, be careful.”

That's food poisoning. It needs treatment.

Feeling a strange sense of duty, I entered the city. Lidiel, who had been waiting inside, greeted me with a smile.

“Welcome to the Belhart Empire!!”

“Ohhh. The buildings are huge.”

“Right? Right!? The Imperial Capital is even more amazing!!”

The royal capital of the Kishirika Kingdom had a circular layout with the castle at its center. The Empire, on the other hand, was laid out like a perfect grid.

…Hmm.

Fewer blind spots like back alleys. Sneaking around to do street healing might be difficult. I'll need to be careful.

“Alright! First, let's make some money!! We'll sell and sell and sell those wooden figures you made in the carriage!!”

“Do you think they'll sell that well? They're just a hobby.”

“I'm confident in my sales talk!! And the quality is great—earning a million marni in a day isn't a dream!!”

Feeling a little uneasy, I decided to leave it to Lidiel.

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“They're selling like crazy.”

“I-I didn't expect this either. To think we'd sell out in half a day and make five million mani…”

The wooden figures sold explosively.

Even at ten thousand mani each—a fairly high price—they sold one after another to passersby.

Also, the fact that Lidiel, who was doing the sales, is an absurdly beautiful girl definitely helped.

Oh, right.

The best-selling item by far was the Lidiel figure.

One customer with suspiciously heavy breathing demanded, “Please increase the exposure!!” That one was honestly troubling.

…Maybe I should sell a swimsuit version of the Lidiel figure for a hundred thousand marni.

“Lidiel, want to open a figure specialty shop with me someday?”

“!?”

“…What's wrong?”

“Ah—oh, I see, that's not what you meant. Ask-kun, you shouldn't say things that sound like a proposal and confuse people.”

“Huh? A proposal?”

…Now that she says it, I guess it could be taken that way.

I'll be careful.

“Got it. So what do you think? I feel like becoming super rich wouldn't be a dream with you.”

“That does sound tempting, but I'll pass. My dream is to become a hero!!”

“Then can I make and sell figures of Hero Lidiel?”

“…If you give me thirty percent of the profits.”

“Deal.”

After graduating, I'll make figures during the day to earn a living.

And at night, I'll do street healing.

Perfect. A flawless life plan.

“Now that we've got plenty of money, let's stay at the inn the guard recommended.”

“Huh? You mean the ‘Great Tree Pavilion' on the main street? I don't have enough money to stay there…”

“What? I'll pay for the room.”

“…What!? N-no, you can't do that!! That's money you earned!!”

What is she talking about?

“I made the figures, but they sold because of your sales talk.”

“B-but…”

“And I want to thank you for helping me.”

So, since it would be rude to just keep using —ahem—I decided to treat her to the inn.

But then, trouble.

“I'm sorry. We don't have any single rooms available. We do have one double room open.”

As expected of a guard-recommended inn—it's popular.

If there are no rooms, I'll let Lidiel take it and find another place myself.

When I told her that, she shook her head.

“N-no!! It's not fair if only I get something nice!!”

“Then what should we do? Look for a cheaper inn together?”

“Ugh, but it's already dark, and we might not find one… i-if that's the case, we'll stay together!!”

“Huh?”

“Madam, one double room!!”

“Enjoy your stay~”

And just like that, Lidiel and I ended up sharing a room.

“I-I'll say this just in case, but if you try anything lewd, I'll fight back!!”

“I won't.”

“I-I'm serious! No funny business!!”

Lidiel, being a girl her age, was clearly on guard.

Despite that…

“…nhehe… I'm gonna become… a big hero someday… mmm…”

What do I do?

Lidiel wandered into my bed while half asleep and hugged me like a body pillow.

Something big and soft is pressing against me.

I have a feeling that if I don't escape before she wakes up, I'm going to suffer some very unreasonable violence.