Chapter 140
If Ronny wants to keep doing this work, should we turn it into a shop instead of having him operate only a stall like he does now? There aren't any dessert shops specializing in things like cakes in this world, so I think a sweets shop with a café attached would be extremely popular.
To do that, we'd have to develop more sweets, though... First, I need to find a cook who can develop sweets for us.
"If you want to continue this work, Ronny, I'll work hard so that, even though you're running a stall now, we can turn it into a shop someday."
When I said that, Ronny looked slightly hesitant.
"Is there perhaps a diner somewhere you'd like to work at?"
"No! It's not like that! I'm really grateful that I'll be able to keep working here, but... aren't I relying on you too much, Leon?"
"Not at all! If anything, I'm relying on you too much. Turning it into a shop will be quite difficult, but will you lend me a hand?"
"Of course! If you're okay with me, I'll work as hard as I can."
"Then let's work even harder from now on. Our goal is a wildly popular sweets shop!"
"A sweets shop? Not a crepe shop?"
"A crepe shop would be nice too, but there aren't any specialty sweets shops, so I'd like to try it. But now that we're doing this, maybe I should make both. It's not as if we're limited to opening just one shop, and we've got to dream big!"
As Ronny and I continued getting excited about it, Martine joined the conversation with sparkling eyes.
"A specialty sweets shop sounds wonderful! I'll absolutely become a regular customer!"
Her enthusiasm was incredible... If Martine was this enthusiastic, the shop might become quite popular once we opened it. I couldn't help thinking that as I gave a wry smile.
"It would be a huge help if you became a regular customer, Martine."
It might end up attracting a little too much attention... but that would probably be a good thing when running a shop.
A specialty sweets shop would probably cater to nobles at first. Eventually, I'd like to open shops for commoners outside the central district too.
If we opened several shops, we'd have to hire a lot of people as well. It would probably be quite difficult, but I was starting to get excited!
If I opened a shop, what would the biggest problem be? I should have enough money for the initial opening funds, so that wouldn't be an issue. Credibility would probably be the biggest concern. When buying supplies, a commoner—and a child at that—would probably be looked down on.
The ducal family was acting as my guardian, but what would happen if I decided to open a shop?
Could I even open a shop? They had readily approved the stall, but a shop felt like it might be a different matter.
"Lucien, would it be all right for me to open a shop?"
"Yeah, I think you'd get permission without any trouble. The ducal family would probably back the shop, too."
"They'd support me?"
"If you asked, they'd probably even provide funding. But you don't need funding, do you, Leon?"
I suppose I didn't need funding since I had money... Besides, accepting investment would probably make things complicated.
"I don't think I need funding. Their backing would be a huge help, though."
"If you tell Grandfather-sama about the shop later, I'm sure he'll back you as a matter of course."
If the ducal family backed me, all I had to do was work hard. I'd only just thought of this, but I could already see the path ahead... Social status really was powerful. I'd put everything I had into making it a good shop!
Now that I thought about it, finding cooks was the biggest issue. Even if we managed to open a shop, it wouldn't become popular if the sweets themselves were mediocre. We could make cookies, pancakes, and sweet crepes even now, but that alone wouldn't be enough. We really needed cakes.
I needed a cook specializing in sweets who could listen to my vague descriptions and develop them. I'd ask Richard-sama about it at dinner tonight.
I was really getting excited! Opening a shop sounded fun, and more than anything, I might get to eat cake!
"Ronny, if we move forward, it looks like we'll really be opening a shop. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
"Yes! I'm getting excited too! It feels like a dream that I might get to run a shop."
"If we open a shop, would you be willing to be the manager, Ronny?"
"Huh!? Aren't you going to be the manager, Leon!?"
"Well... I have to work as a government official after I graduate. And in the future, we might end up with several shops, so I couldn't be the manager of every one, right?"
In my mind, the ideal position would be something like a company president. Though being president would probably be difficult, so I wondered whether I could do it while working another job...
Come to think of it, did this world even have the concept of companies or corporations? How did people who ran multiple shops manage it?
"I don't know who to ask, but how do people who run multiple shops manage them? They don't become the manager of every shop, right?"
When I asked that, Stefan answered my question.
"In that case, the usual thing is to establish a merchant guild. Nobles don't need one when they run shops, but commoners establish a merchant guild and use it to manage all their shops. It also makes things like procurement easier."
A merchant guild, huh... Then should I create one too? Actually, now that I thought about it, what exactly was a merchant guild?
"Um, this might be a question I should have asked long ago, but what exactly is a merchant guild? I've never really thought about it."
When I said that, Lucien looked at me with exasperation.
"Leon, you never seem to know things that everyone else takes for granted."
"That's because I'm a commoner!"
"But you know plenty of things that commoners definitely wouldn't know, don't you?"
"Well, that's true, but..."
"Well, it's not as if Leon's weirdness is anything new."
I couldn't argue with him, even though I wanted to!
"So, Lucien, do you know what a merchant guild is?"
"Yes. Put simply, a merchant guild is a household in name only that commoners can establish. When entering into a contract, you can do so under the merchant guild's name."
Huh? What did he mean by saying that commoners could establish a household in name only? The more he explained, the less I understood.
"...What does that mean?"
"Let's see... Nobles all belong to the houses they were born into, right? In my case, when I enter into a contract, I can do so as an individual, but I can also do so under the name of the Townsend ducal family. When opening a shop, I can operate several shops under the name of the Townsend ducal family. A merchant guild is something commoners can create that functions like a noble house, at least on paper."
I see. I think I understand now. Basically, it's like a company. Nobles are born into a household that functions like a company, while commoners aren't part of one, so they can create one themselves.
"I think I understand, more or less. Are there any requirements for creating a merchant guild?"
"No, I don't think there are any particularly difficult requirements. But I believe you have to pay a fee every year."
Since you had to pay every year, merchant guilds didn't multiply indiscriminately. But for me, it was convenient that I could register one just by paying the fee.
"Then maybe I'll create one for now."
"That's probably a good idea."
"Where do I go to create one?"
"Normally, the church, but if you tell Grandfather-sama, he might be able to register one for you. I believe you can create one without meeting any conditions if you have noble backing."
"That would be too much to ask, so I'll go register it myself!"
"Well, I think you should talk to Grandfather-sama about that too."
"You're right."
But more fundamentally, we couldn't open the shop until after Ronny graduated, could we? Even allowing for the preparation period, it was still a little way off. How many years would it take Ronny to graduate? If it took five years, it wouldn't be for several years yet.
"Ronny, if we're going to start the shop, it would be better to wait until after you graduate, right?"
"That would be better for me."
"How many years do you think it will take you to graduate?"
When I asked, Ronny looked a little puzzled before speaking.
"How many years? I'll graduate in one year."
"What? You can graduate in one year!?"
"Is that really so surprising? You'll graduate in one year too, won't you, Leon?"
"I know, but... normally, two or three years at the earliest, right?"
"But isn't that because nobles stay at the Royal Academy while expanding their connections? I'm a commoner, I don't have any money, and I want to graduate and start working as soon as possible."
So that's how Ronny saw it... He was almost too innocent and good-natured. The nobles probably just lacked the ability to graduate in the usual time...
Still, I didn't actually know if that was true!
"Do you think you'll be able to graduate, Ronny?"
"Hmm, I think I'll be fine if I just study normally."
I'd thought Ronny was naturally bright, having grown up in an orphanage and still getting into the Royal Academy, but he was even smarter than I'd realized. If anything, he was definitely smarter than me.
I only had the advantage of knowledge from my previous life, so he'd probably catch up to me soon... I needed to study harder too.
"Then can we start preparing so that the shop will be ready to open next spring?"
"Yes! I'll help too!"
Ronny looked incredibly happy and excited as he said that. Seeing his expression made me happy too. We'd make this a success, no matter what! I squared my shoulders, fully determined.