Chapter 6: A Place to Call My Own

Chapter 6: A Place to Call My Own

The inn was as standard as they come. The hostess was a lively lady married to the silent chef who excelled at his job. They had a seven-year-old daughter who noticeably lacked cat ears, and what a shame that was. The girl reminded Mitsuha of Colette. It was still too soon to visit her, sadly—the timing would’ve been awkward.

Nothing’s stopping me from having fun with this cutie, though! Oh, she’s too busy helping? Okay... she sighed.

Mitsuha went to her room, gathered her things, jumped back to Earth to drop them off, then returned to the inn with some new supplies in tow. The dress and shoes had served their purpose, so she left them at home in favor of spare underwear and daily necessities. Reputable or not, Mitsuha felt that the inn couldn’t be completely thief-proof.

I wouldn’t be set back too much if my soap or underwear got pinched, but that dress is another story. It cost me a whole lotta money!

Mitsuha changed into some plain clothing and wandered around town. Strategy 101: gain an advantage by getting familiar with the land!

She guessed the main roads would be safe during the day but wore a handgun in her shoulder holster and a knife in her thigh belt just in case. I’ll probably have to be more careful once I start to stand out.

The place really did give Mitsuha the impression of a capital. Even though this world was still developing, she found the buildings impressive. She found the meat skewers to be pretty delicious, too, though she chose not to think about what was in them. She steered clear of dark alleys and slums. She had no need for any cliché, life-threatening encounters.

Once the sun began to set, Mitsuha headed back to the inn. The dinner was... commendable, perhaps? A lot of effort had gone into it, but with spices being such a luxury, the meal tasted bland. It wasn’t bad, per se, but she still found it lacking. Ah. I can just bring some spices from home, Mitsuha thought as she cleaned her plate. She then returned to her room, jumped back home, and had the most refreshing shower.

After lunch the next day, she wasted no time going to the real estate agent. While it might’ve been early, she had woken up so late she’d nearly missed breakfast, so she was fairly sure the place would be open. She had to ask for directions a few times but eventually found the right place. It had the count’s seal of approval, so surely she had nothing to worry about. Regardless, she meekly walked inside. She could’ve barged in as though she owned the place, but it was like a habit by now.

“Good day to you!” said the young man behind the counter. Obviously, those weren’t the words that came out of his mouth, but that was how Mitsuha’s brain processed them. “Welcome to our establishment. How may I be of assistance?”

Wow, he’s treating me like a customer even though I look like a kid, Mitsuha thought. He’s good at this. I knew I could count on you, Count Bozes! Slightly impressed, she handed him an envelope.

“Umm, I would like a shop with living quarters attached, please. Here, I’ve got a letter of referral.” The employee took it and glanced at the name on the back. Immediately, his face went pale. He asked Mitsuha to wait for a moment, then hurried through the door behind him.

Wow, look at him go... A count’s word sure is effective, she thought.

Moments later, he was replaced by a much older man. This gentleman was also a bit panicky but kept his composure as he said, “My apologies for the delay. I am Lutz Zoltan, the owner. Welcome to my humble establishment. How may I be of service?”

The big cheese himself, huh? Mitsuha thought. Makes sense. That letter proves I’ve got ties to a pretty powerful noble.

“Pleased to meet you, sir,” she replied courteously. “I’d like to start up a shop.”

“Yes, it said so in the letter. We have several properties that might suit your needs. Shall we discuss the details?” He led her to a sitting room further inside the building. Normal customers were most likely dealt with at the counter, so this was surely the VIP treatment.

Maybe they’ll give me some free sweets?

They did, and Mitsuha found them overwhelmingly... so-so. She figured they were good by this world’s standards, but they couldn’t even compare to Japanese desserts. Her face might have given away her lack of enthusiasm, but Mr. Zoltan didn’t seem upset. He most likely assumed she ate better sweets daily. Or he could have been too tense to pay it any mind.

“Here’s what we have available,” he said as he presented and explained her options.

All right, anything in the noble district’s out, Mitsuha decided. Sure, it’s probably peaceful, and the clientele’d be good, but these prices are insane, and I don’t wanna deal with nobles all the time. There wouldn’t be many commoners around, either. Well, it’s not like I don’t like nobles. I know there are good and bad people in all classes—from royalty to slaves. But I feel like I’d get bored and tired pretty quickly if I had to deal with nobles all day. It’s not a real store without the occasional patronage of a lowbrow simpleton. Uh-huh.

She wasn’t recommended anything close to the slums to begin with, so excluding the noble district left her with properties in the commoner district. She could either choose to be closer to the center or closer to the nobles.

Hmmm... Pretty sure I’ll need noble money flowing in if I want to make a fortune, she thought. There’s some good food around there, too. And no, that’s not why I walked around town yesterday! Honest!

“Umm, may I take a look at this one, this one, and this one?” she asked.

“Certainly,” said Mr. Zoltan. “Would you like to go right away?”

“Yes, please,” she replied, and the two prepared to leave. Not before Mitsuha stuffed the rest of the sweets into her pocket, however.

Huh? Why does the server girl look so sad? W-Wait! Were the rest gonna go to her? Using the same sweets twice might not be ideal for the establishment’s reputation, so it wasn’t unusual to think they’d give away leftovers to staff members or children. Boy, did I screw up... Sorry! I’ll make it up to you with some Japanese sweets, I promise!

Not long after, Mitsuha and Mr. Zoltan arrived at the first building she’d chosen. It’s in a good location, Mitsuha observed. Being next to the main road means I’d have a good stream of customers, but it looks so cramped. Plus, I don’t want too many customers. It’d wear me down. I’d be satisfied with modest clientele who only know about me thanks to good ol’ word of mouth. My business model’s gonna be “Big Profits, Slow Returns”...! Okay, doesn’t sound great.

Immediately upon seeing the second property, Mitsuha thought, Does Mr. Zoltan think I’m some multi-millionaire? What would I even do with something this huge?! What, does he think I’m gonna turn it into an orphanage and have the children work for me? Does he take me for some philanthropic saint? Nope, that ain’t me! I’ll pass! Next!

Mr. Zoltan brought her to the third building, which was a little off the main road. There weren’t tons of people passing by, and the area had clearly seen better days. The place was a three-story brick building that had once housed an inn and restaurant. Like any such establishment, it also had a backyard, complete with a well. The room that used to be the dining hall would be a good place for Mitsuha to display her wares, while the kitchen had a drain, meaning she could install a bath. All in all, it seemed perfectly suited to her needs. First too small, then too big, and then just right. That was a basic and reliable sales technique. Mr. Zoltan really knew how it was done.

“I’ll take it!” she gushed, like a whimsical little girl buying some cheap candy. Not the most fitting tone, since it probably cost hundreds of gold coins.

Ah, that reminds me... I completely forgot to ask the price!

◇ ◇ ◇

“Welcome back, Milady!” a crowd of servants cried out in perfect unison.

“H-Hello...” Mitsuha replied, a little taken aback. Mr. Zoltan, on the other hand, was frozen still. She’d asked him to come with her to discuss the payment in Count Bozes’ capital mansion, and upon their arrival they’d been greeted by the entourage of attendants.

Mr. Zoltan was sweating so profusely that Mitsuha felt a pang of guilt. He might actually think I’m the count’s daughter or something. A maid led them to the reception room, where they met a man with a refined aura.

“Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Rufus, a butler here,” he said, though only directed his introduction toward Mr. Zoltan. Mitsuha wasn’t sure why he’d excluded her, but chose to shrug it off. The butler then faced her and asked, “Milady, who is this man, if I may ask?”

“Oh, this is Mr. Lutz Zoltan, a real estate agent. I’m buying one of his properties for my shop.”

“I see. Master Lutz, thank you for conducting business with our Lady Mitsuha.”

“P-Please, there’s no need for that!” Mr. Zoltan humbled himself.

During his one-on-one time with Mitsuha, Stefan had told her that the butlers of influential nobles were powerful enough to make short work of your everyday salesmen. He’d also told her about Rufus, saying, “Though quite young, he’s not bad at all.” However, he emphasized that Rufus should never hear of word of his compliments. Mitsuha didn’t know why she’d been sworn to secrecy, but her guess was that it was a high form of praise among butlers.

“Oh, dear. Milady, your hair appears a bit unkempt,” Rufus noted. “Bertha, see to it that she looks her best!”

“Understood!” barked the maid in question.

H-Huuuh? But we were about to make a deal here, Mitsuha thought, but the maid dragged her out by the hand and sat her in a dressing room before she could protest. After enduring a good bout of combing, she was finally allowed to return to the reception room. Huh? Uhh, why does Mr. Zoltan look like he’s about to die? Is he even breathing?

“Ohh, Milady, welcome back. I see they did a wonderful job with your hair. You look marvelous. Now, where were we... The price, yes? What will you be charging, Mr. Zoltan?”

The salesman still looked deprived of most of his hit points. With desperation in his voice, he uttered, “T-Two hundred and eighty gold coins!”

Huh? That’s so cheap! What a steal! Mitsuha cheered internally. It was agreed that the Bozes’ household would pay Mr. Zoltan’s company directly. When Mitsuha requested money for renovations, she was granted twenty gold coins, raising the total expenses to three hundred. What a nice number!

Mitsuha saw Mr. Zoltan off in front of the mansion. He informed her that he’d write up the paperwork and send it at a later date, then gave her the key to the building. She was now free to enter and leave it as she pleased. Normally, she would’ve been wary of signing a contract without checking the documents first, but since Rufus and a great deal of other servants had witnessed the signing, she wasn’t worried in the least. It didn’t take a professional salesman to know what would happen if he broke the terms.

Boy, it’s great having a sponsor!

◇ ◇ ◇

“Hellooo!” Mitsuha called out. The response came almost immediately.

A moody, sinewy man—who could’ve been either middle-aged or elderly—poked out from behind a corner. “Yeh? Whaddya want?” he asked curtly.

Mitsuha had set foot in a carpenter’s workshop. After parting ways with Mr. Zoltan, she’d tried to think of someone she could contract to do her renovations. Then, it had occurred to her: Oh yeah, Mr. Zoltan’s bound to know someone! We just split up, but I’m sure he won’t mind if I bother him some more. I don’t know too many people just yet, so I gotta use the little network I have!

With that, she’d gone back to Japan, bought some high-quality Western sweets, and headed to Lutz Real Estate. The sweets, of course, were a souvenir for the girl. The offering had caught her off guard, but Mitsuha somehow persuaded her to accept it and call upon Mr. Zoltan.

“Could you please point me to someone who’s good at what they do, has pride in their work, and is open-minded enough to try new things?” she’d asked him. He’d hesitated to help her, though she didn’t know why. However, she hadn’t backed down, and he’d eventually given in, though on the condition that she listened to one request.

“Erm, if I put you in contact with someone, might I ask you not to haggle their rates?”

“Huh? I would never. Trying to lower the cost of a craftsman is an insult to their craft. Good craftsmanship deserves proper compensation,” she’d said, adding that she’d pay directly this time. After that, Mr. Zoltan had finally relaxed and pointed her to a reliable workman.

What was that all about, anyway? Mitsuha wondered. Did haggling bring up bad memories or something?

“I’d like you to build these for me, please!” she said, spreading out some documents on the table.

Kunz, the carpenter, looked at them in awe. “Wha... What inna world...?” The first source of his shock was the paper itself. It was thin, smooth, and resistant at the same time—surely a rarity in this country.

“W-Wait, this—!” His jaw dropped further when he saw the crisp detail of the images (which were photos) and foreign writing. The final blow was the furniture displayed in the pictures. Every piece was as novel as it was beautiful.

“This thing’s a table?! And that’s a... chest? And this here’s...”

“Ah, I don’t need that one,” Mitsuha cut in, then gestured to the other items. “I need this, these shelves, and these display things. I’d also like defenses on my doors and windows. Like this, see? I’ll provide the metal parts myself. I’ll also need these stands for water tanks. You can see how they look in this phot—I mean, picture. See how big they are? I’d also like a bathroom installed near my kitchen. I’ll handle the water flow myself, so I just need you to divide the room. I’ll tell you more when we’re there, and—”

”...Takin’ it,” Kunz mumbled. His eyes were fixed on the dozens of sheets Mitsuha had printed off of her computer. He grasped them so tightly she thought he’d tear them.

“But we haven’t even discussed the paymen—”

“I said, I’m takin’ it. I’M TAKIN’ THIS JOB!”

Well, whatever. He’s motivated, and that’s good enough for me, Mitsuha thought.

“This paper’s stayin’ with me, though, ya hear?”

Huh? That’s what you wanted?

“Sure thing,” she agreed. “These are just samples, though. I’ll bring you something more detailed later. And if you want, I can even get you blueprints for furniture and stuff that’s got nothing to do with my order.” She felt she could allow him that much. Basic designs weren’t some futuristic alien technology. She’d leave the methods and durability completely in their hands, though.

“I’m gonna do it,” the craftsman declared. “I’ll catch up to these geniuses if it’s the last thing I do!”

Wow, he’s really fired up, huh?

Hey, remember when I said I wouldn’t bring anything along that might affect this world’s future? Well, I LIED! Just kiddin’, I wouldn’t sell anything like that, but no harm done if it’s just for me, right? There’s no problem with me using anything that doesn’t depend on me. Even if people stumbled upon the tech I have in mind, they couldn’t analyze it, let alone reverse engineer it. Plus, I really don’t wanna cut corners with security.

I also have to be careful about what I do end up putting on the market. It’s gotta be something that wouldn’t create problems if I suddenly vanished. Small luxuries, handy little tools... that sort of thing. People might be sad to see ’em go along with me, but it wouldn’t cause any real trouble. Oh, and I don’t wanna attract too much attention from powerful people. That’d make things complicated, especially if those “powerful people” included any big-shot merchants.

Oh, well. Whatever happens, happens. If things go sour, I can just try this again in a different country or do a really big sale and then dip outta here. Not that it’s ideal. If possible, I want to make a fortune at a comfortable pace, having fun with everyone involved. Huh? It’ll never be that smooth? Okay...

At any rate, it was time for Mitsuha to gather some things and put the next phase of her plan in action. Where from, you ask? Her home back on Earth. Normally, she would’ve been glad to return, but she felt the whole ordeal was just draining. Huh. I just realized you can’t spell “draining” without “raining”, she mused. That’s kinda ironic. Nonsense aside, her family’s car had passed on along with them, and so the Yamanos’ parking space was always open. Mitsuha was now using it for deliveries, so it was being occupied by a steady stream of shipments from home improvement stores, emporiums, online retailers, et cetera.

Mitsuha had contracted a fuel salesman for six large propane tanks. She split them up into three groups of two, hooking some up to dummy pipes outside her home to make it seem like they were in use. Six propane tanks were a bit too much for the average home, but she’d convinced the salesman she needed them to power her through her new stay-at-home job. She’d known him for a long time, though, so he was probably being a bit lenient with her.

She would use propane for the oven, stove, and bath in her store, but had a different reason for using two tanks of this size at a time—electricity. It was the backbone of modern life, and a propane generator was the best method for her to get it in the other world. In reality, the extra propane tanks were spares for her to bring to the capital whenever one ran out.

Gasoline and diesel generators had lots of problems: they were loud, hard to refill, bad for the environment, used dangerous fuel, and could cause some concern if they ran for too long. They couldn’t even compare to propane generators.

Of course, Mitsuha didn’t neglect to install solar panels and a big battery, as well as an electrical energy control system. The latter was basically a switchboard to help her manage her multiple methods of generating and storing electricity.

She’d had the solar panels installed on the rooftop so they wouldn’t stand out. The flat, open rooftop—as opposed to a regular peaked roof—was another good thing about the brick building she’d bought. The previous owners had used it to hang their laundry.

For entertainment, Mitsuha brought along an LED TV that didn’t require too much power, as well as several game consoles. I mean, I’m gonna be spending a lot of my time in the other world, so I’m gonna need this to watch the stuff in my backlog and play video games. A girl’s gotta have a way to unwind on slow days.

She took metal window bars, along with some other security equipment, and jump-carried—or just “transferred“—them to the other world. The wares she’d be selling would stay at home for a while longer. She’d gone shopping at discount stores and loaded up on all kinds of cheap, useful items. A whole bunch of them would go for several silver coins—thousands of yen—each. Others were probably worth a small gold coin apiece. It was a real pile of treasure.

Mitsuha also crafted hiding spots to stash her earnings: one at home and one in the shop. She called them “deep pockets”. Since the area around the shop wasn’t all that peaceful, and because she was often away from home, she needed safe places to keep her money. Making them was a breeze. First, she acquired a large plastic container and a twenty-foot-long PVC pipe.

Next, she opened up the floor and jumped between worlds, all the while picturing the dirt below in the shape of a twenty-foot-deep hole with an open space at the bottom. In the other world, she appeared alongside a chunk of dirt with a very tall dirt cylinder sticking out of it. Then, she jumped back with the container and the pipe, making sure they appeared in the hole she’d created—with the container at the bottom, of course—and voilà. Success!

She’d thought of it while running through the internal “instruction manual” given to her by the formless being alongside her healing powers. While her power couldn’t be used to transfer just an object, she could bring things with her if she concentrated on them. She didn’t even have to touch them directly, which made sense. If she did have to touch everything she wanted to transfer, she’d be showing up at the end of a jump in just her underwear and shirt, leaving any coats, skirts, shoes, and items in her pockets behind. What a tragedy that would’ve been. At this point, she’d experimented with her powers enough to understand the process.

When these safes get pretty full, I’m gonna really savor the sound the coins make as I toss them down the pipe! she thought happily.

Stealing her stock of gold would require knowledge of the “deep pockets”, digging a twenty-foot hole without anyone noticing, then lifting up the gold from that depth without using any heavy machinery—it wouldn’t fit inside the house, after all. The noise, the handling of the unearthed dirt, the danger of people walking by, time limits... It was impossible for everyone but Mitsuha, really. She could simply transfer it out.

Even if someone did discover the pipes, they’d have no idea they were twenty feet deep and housed a trove of gold at the bottom. And if Mitsuha somehow lost her world-jumping ability, she could just hire some people to dig it up for her. If she didn’t have to hide the work or do it within a time limit, she’d be reunited with her coins in a couple of days. Both worlds were advanced enough to have well-digging, at least.

She also attended driving school, since she only had a scooter license. Obviously she didn’t need a license or registration to use a car in the other world, but they’d be required to buy one on Earth, as well as for maintenance and oil changes. All in all, it was a worthwhile investment. As things were, Mitsuha had no plans to drive Scooty or a car in the other world. They’d make her stand out too much. She planned to use them mostly for shopping trips in Japan, though was open to making an exception if the situation called for it.

The renovators ran into problems every now and again, but they were making decent progress. While they were occupied, Mitsuha took the opportunity to transfer her wares to the second floor. She planned to set up security systems for this level later on. She chose the third floor for her personal quarters, a move that prioritized security over convenience.

She stored a rope ladder and other evacuation tools on the rooftop and planned to store a backpack full of emergency supplies elsewhere. These were all preparations in case she hired any employees. If the place experienced a raid or similar assault and she couldn’t jump because of them, she’d need a reliable alternative. Mitsuha was a cautious, cowardly worrywart to the core. She’d take that claim to her grave, even if her peers unanimously disagreed.

After her shop preparations, Mitsuha jumped to the mercenary base and hurried off to ask the captain what she’d been dying to know.

“Hello, Captain! So, did you check the value?”

“Man, it always feels like you just pop outta nowhere... Yeah, we had it appraised. The purity’s ninety percent. Each one’s worth about two hundred an’ thirty dollars on today’s market, includin’ fees.”

230 dollars... That’s about 25,000 yen, Mitsuha thought. That’s way less than I expected. Plus, it messes up my calculations. From the prices of food and board, Mitsuha had estimated a coin’s worth to be at least 100,000. Ah, wait. I wasn’t wrong—it’s just that the people on Earth put different values on things. Earthlings have lots of expenses—taxes, rent, electricity, gas, water, cars, entertainment, clothing, food, education, neighborhood associations, and so on.

The people from the other world have way less. People with homes pay taxes, then there’s food, clothes, firewood, and... booze, maybe? Anyway, they don’t have to pay for nearly as much stuff as people on Earth. Though they do have smaller incomes... If the monthly income for a family of four is two gold coins, then yes, one gold coin would be worth 100,000 yen. But the exchange rate between that and Earth’s money is 25,000 yen. That’s all there is to it.

To compare commodity prices between the worlds was foolish. In the other world, crops were way cheaper, while things like clothes, tableware, rare ingredients, and luxury goods were absurdly expensive. The standards varied wildly depending on what you compared. In the end, such comparisons were meaningless, and Mitsuha could only really say how much she would need to live on one side and how much on the other.

So, since I’d need one billion yen to live in Japan till I’m a hundred, that’d be 40,000 gold coins. As for the other world... if I wanted to live eating good food, wearing comfortable clothes, staying up late, and buying the newest household goods—a standard life in Japan, but livin’ large over there—I’d also need 40,000 gold coins, for a total of 80,000. That’s my final goal... I’ll save up those 80,000 gold coins and have a peaceful and happy retirement!

~The End~

Please keep an eye out for Miss Mitsuha’s other works!

...YEAH, RIGHT!

Anyway, I’ll assume that in the other world, a gold coin is worth 100,000 yen, a small gold coin is about 10,000, a silver coin is a thousand, and a small silver coin is a hundred. And since one gold is worth 25,000 yen on Earth, I have to draw a line between how I think about money here and there.

I’ll have to set my prices pretty high, but I don’t really have a choice. If my stuff’s too cheap, it’ll just fly off the shelves and I won’t get a second to breathe. Not to mention how much that would affect the world. But I also don’t want my goods to cost an arm and a leg. I’m sure I’d still get people willing to pay for them, so it’d be a quick and easy way to strike it rich, but Mitsuha’s General Store isn’t about that!

If I wanted to do something along those lines, I’d go around the world selling pearls and artificial gems at insane prices. Then I could put on a disguise, change my name, hire some people, and quickly rack up enough money to live a comfortable life. I won’t do that, though. You wanna know why?

That’d be way too boring! Life isn’t all about making money. You just need enough to make it fun. Not having enough is hard, so “enough” is all I need. But what would be the point if I didn’t have fun getting there? The real gold is the friends you make along the way... or something. Anyway, if I can, I want to get the money at a leisurely pace. And luckily, my power makes that real easy. I’m gonna share its blessings and have a good time doing it! But if that gets me some enemies, I’ll just have to crush them. I can’t let anyone threaten that happiness.

“Ya done?” the captain asked abruptly.

“Huh? With what?” Mitsuha was jerked back to the present.

“Daydreamin’. It really dragged on this time, too.”

Oops... Sorry!

“Anyway, let’s go.”

“Comiiing!”

Today was assault rifle practice. Mitsuha had long since given up on grenades, by the way. Her throws had always somehow brought them closer, not farther away, so the people training her banned her from touching them. I’ll have to make do with RPGs or something.

Please keep an eye out for Miss Mitsuha’s next work, “RPG-22”!

Stop! That joke’s DOA!