Chapter 20 The Government Office and the Older Brother
It's pretty damn shady reason, but since I decided to do it, I can't do it halfway.
More than anything, it affects my future income, so I gotta run things seriously.
If I screw up, that retirement money I got will just disappear.
"It's nice to look at the ledger and see what sold well so far."
For now, I started by cleaning the shop, wiping the dust off the top shelves.
Yuruyana sat at the counter, leaned on his hand, flipping through the ledger, not helping at all.
Instead, he recommended his homemade cleaner that's good at removing dirt.
"Definitely, if it's about numbers, it's consumables. When it comes to unit price, Arcane Machinery is probably the main thing."
"Consumables, huh? Like what?"
"Like detergents, shampoo, makeup, stuff like that."
He grinned smugly.
His core product is his tech.
His attitude that he needed his tech products kinda rubbed me the wrong way, so I shot back.
"If Yuruyana's gonna sell medicine here, I'll charge for the shop space."
"Didn't forget that, huh."
He clicked his tongue.
He said he'd pay rent if he borrowed the place.
"Well, we're also selling a good amount of tea. Gotta go say hi to Mr. Junce again, huh?"
"Yeah..."
I've got a mountain of stuff to do.
It's time to reassess what I actually need.
As I was thinking that, I suddenly remembered.
"That's right. If I'm gonna open a proper shop, I probably need to file for a business license at the district office."
"Huh, really?"
"Stores without a license can get penalized. Those kinds of shops are used for crimes or sell bad quality stuff."
Usually, that's police business to crack down on, but I learned about this law after joining the army.
I've never run into trouble myself, but if a shop sells explosives or dangerous chemicals, the military might have to step in.
──But shops that properly report and do shady stuff behind the scenes can be even worse.
"So, I need to go to the office once just to register?"
"The district office, huh..."
I kinda hesitated at that, and Yuruyana tilted his head, noticing.
The capital has a lot of people, so each area has its own responsible office.
The office in charge of the west side is a little up from White Brick Street, near the city center.
Usually, I only go there when I move or get married or stuff like that, so regular folks don't visit often.
But,
"Finally showed up, Tsukumo. When you came to do the moving paperwork, you ran off like you were escaping."
Seeing the tall male worker at the counter, I almost thought about running away again this time too.
"Brother...why are you here at the counter?"
Senri Kreis is popular with everyone, young and old, for his neat short hair and gentle smile.
He's more like his dad overall, not much like me.
"When we're short-handed, I help out at the counter too."
But even looking at the back of the counter, it doesn't seem like they're short of staff.
I think we're even in different departments, honestly.
Without caring about my suspicious stare, my brother turned his gaze to Yuruyana.
"You're Yuruyana, right? I recognized you right away, you look just like I heard from mom."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Yuruyana, the Arcanopharmacist."
Yuruyana, before doing his cute girl act, got ahead of himself and greeted in his real voice this time.
"You came to pick up the papers for opening the shop, right? ...Did you end up taking over that store after all?"
"Yeah... There was just some urgent thing that came up."
It's hard to say that he was persuaded by someone, moved by others, or lost to Yuruyana's push, but the biggest reason was that he couldn't resist the charm of the underground workshop.
"If you're getting motivated, that's good. You probably don't know how to write it, huh? I'll teach you."
"Thanks."
After finally finishing the paperwork thanks to my brother, he explained some details.
Since what he plans to sell is a bit special, there will be a visit for inspection, but it's a place where grandma ran a similar shop without trouble until 5 years ago, so it should be quick.
Also, they'll ask to see the Arcane Engineer and Arcanopharmacist licenses, so keep those handy, he said.
Despite seeming tense, my brother didn't talk much and only did what was necessary as the counter staff.
"When I go, I'll be a customer, so give me a discount. I really liked the herbal tea they sold at that shop."
I was a bit surprised he said something like that at the end.
"You too?"
"'Too?' You were only interested in Arcane Machinery, right?"
Sure, that's true.
But it kind of stings when someone else says it.
"...I drank it recently and thought it was nice."
"So you're saying you've grown up? Can you drink black coffee now?"
"I can drink it..."
I'm not sure how my taste will be once it comes back though.
My older brother, 6 years older, still treats me like a kid, chuckling quietly while looking around.
On the way home, Yuruyana seemed to be lost in thought.
"What's up? You're acting really shy."
"How rude. I can be quiet too, you know."
After saying that,
he muttered softly, "I was just thinking that family is nice. Especially Tsukumo's family, they're warm and I envy that."
"...Well, I guess that's true."
There are a lot of annoying things, but before I knew it, they've helped me in various ways.
This might be one of the things my grandfather carefully wove into our lives.
"But I bet when I visit home next time, Yuruyana will get told by my mom, 'You're like family, so don't hold back.' I'd bet on it."
Like my grandfather, my mom is also the type who loves to meddle and gets emotional easily.
Having heard about Yuruyana's background, she'll definitely say it.
"Is that so? I'll look forward to it. The crepes we had last time were delicious."
"Then if I win, you wash the dishes for 3 days."
"What! That's labor!"
"But there's nothing I want to eat..."
And so, for 3 days after the day I went to pick up the circuit diagrams I drew in my student days, Yuruyana washed the dinner dishes, looking regretful.
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