Volume 1 Chapter 21 The Nurturer Is Thriving？
It's been a week since I decided to start the nurturer shop.
The first thing I did was promote the shop.
Well, when I say promote, I just got permission from the guild through Ms. Terra and put up a notice on the bulletin board.
And just like that, the preparations for opening the shop were done.
Unlike starting a restaurant or a weapon shop, there wasn't much to prepare at the beginning, and I didn't need to renovate my home to make it a shop.
I did put up a sign on the front door so people would know this is the nurturer shop, but honestly, there was nothing else to do.
Now, all I could do was wait.
A week has passed, but not a single customer has come by.
"...Is this really okay?"
I couldn't help but question what I was doing.
I didn't expect a huge crowd of customers on the first day!
In fact, I thought it would be a bit of a hassle if it got too busy.
Still, I thought at least one person might stop by.
But after a week, no one has come.
On the bright side, I could relax, but at this rate, I wouldn't earn a single coin and would end up starving.
Maybe I should just go take on some adventurer requests instead, I started to think when...
*Knock, knock, knock.*
Suddenly, someone knocked on the front door.
Could it be my first customer!? I straightened up and opened the door, and there stood...
"Hey there, how's it going?"
"...Ms. Terra."
The familiar guild receptionist was standing there.
I felt a mix of disappointment and relief, and I swallowed a sigh.
Instead, I shot the line I had prepared in my mind at Ms. Terra.
"Are you here for a training request? I charge 300 Flora for each level you gain."
"...What am I supposed to do with being stronger?"
Ms. Terra came inside with an exasperated look on her face.
Since I still hadn't managed to say the line I had been thinking about for a week, I figured it was okay to say it at least once.
Anyway, I prepared some tea for Ms. Terra, who came to visit, and asked her.
"So, what's up today? The sun's about to set soon."
"I got off work early today, so I thought I'd check on you, Roezé."
"Huh?"
Why are you worried about my situation?
As I tilted my head in confusion, Ms. Terra looked around the house and continued.
"Well, I was the one who suggested you try running a nurturing business, so I was curious if the shop is doing well."
"Oh, I see."
It's true that Ms. Terra came up with the idea for the nurturing business.
It's only natural to be curious if it's thriving.
"So, I came to see how things are going, but..."
"...Well, as you can see, it's super busy here."
"Doesn't look like it to me."
For a moment, I felt a dry breeze blow through the house.
Yeah, as you can see, the shop is chirping.
I feel bad that Ms. Terra came to check on me, but I can't show her the scene she's hoping for.
"It's been a week since I advertised the nurturing business, but I still have 0 customers."
"...I see. I thought it would go well, though."
Honestly, I thought so too.
There are always adventurers like Rose who struggle to grow, no matter the time period.
Besides, this is a town for beginner adventurers, and I thought a nurturing business to help them grow would be perfect.
But customers aren't showing up like I imagined.
"Well, I know from seeing it with my own eyes that there are many adventurers struggling to grow, so I think there's a demand. Plus, it just opened, so maybe everyone still thinks the nurturing business is suspicious?"
"Suspicious..."
Now that you mention it, it does sound like a shady business.
──We'll help you grow.
──Level up quickly.
──It's 300 Flora for every level you gain.
Just that wording doesn't really explain what kind of service you'll get.
And I'm not sure what other kind of advertising I could do, so I'm kind of stuck.
Honestly, just the phrase "level up quickly" sounds super sketchy.
"Well, if just one person comes and good rumors start spreading from them, the nurturing house might really thrive, right? I'm sure time will take care of it."
"Hmm, I hope so."
Time will take care of it.
That's a positive thought, so I'll definitely keep it in mind.
"Honestly, I'd prefer if just one person came by each day rather than it being super busy."
"You're still the same, huh..."
As I was getting another exasperated look from Ms. Terra...
*Knock knock knock.*
The door was knocked again.
The gentle knock made me snap to attention.
"Huh, could it be a customer? Is this finally the first visitor at the nurturing house?"
"Ah, no, that knock was probably..."
Hearing that familiar knock, I quickly figured out who the visitor was.
When I opened the door, there stood the expected red-haired girl.
"Just as I thought, it's Rose. Welcome!"
"Uh, good evening."
Just the other day, Rose Vermilion had ranking up to a Rank 4 adventurer.
She came over carrying a tote bag full of stuff.
Rose has been visiting almost every day since then.
I'm not sure if she's worried about the nurturing house like Ms. Terra or if she just finds it comfortable here.
I skillfully took the bag from Rose without saying a word and invited her inside.
Ms. Terra, who had been watching the scene with a meaningful look, raised her right hand at Rose.
"Hey, Rosie. I'm just heading out."
"Ms. Terra...?"
Rose looked at Ms. Terra, her eyes wide with surprise.
Then, for some reason, she twisted uncomfortably and started to back away toward the entrance, even though she had just arrived.
"Um, was I interrupting...?"
""What?""
"Well, it's just that you two were alone..."
""...""
After a few seconds of silence, Ms. Terra suddenly shook her head.
"No, no! I just happened to think I'd check in on how the nurturing house was doing! We're not doing anything weird, so don't worry!"
"I-Is that so...?"
Here, I finally understood Rose's misunderstanding.
If we were alone at home, it's not surprising to think there might be something going on between us.
Of course, Ms. Terra and I aren't in that kind of relationship, so I agreed with Ms. Terra's denial.
Then Rose let out a sigh of relief, her hand resting on her chest.
Well, if we really had that kind of relationship, it would have been pretty awkward for Rose.
So it makes sense that she felt relieved knowing the air wasn't ruined.
"So, Rose, why are you here? Were you curious about the shop like I was?"
"Ah, um..."
Rose, when asked by Ms. Terra, pointed to the bag I had received.
"I found some delicious-looking sweets at the candy shop today, so I bought them for Mr. Roezé to try."
"Ah, thanks as always!"
Peeking into the tote bag, I saw sweet treats that I would probably like.
Rose always brings some kind of snacks or ingredients when she comes over to hang out.
Then Ms. Terra caught onto something I said.
"Always? Huh, what? Could it be that Rose visits Roezé quite often?"
"Well, I mean, it's almost every day since then, right?"
"Y-yes, that's right."
Rose took out a small pouch from her pocket and handed it to me as if adding it to her gifts.
"I need to repay the curse-breaking fee you covered, so I'm doing it little by little every day."
"Thanks again. I said it's fine to wait until you're more comfortable, but Rose insists on doing it this way."
"..."
When I said that, Ms. Terra's eyebrows furrowed even more in confusion.
I didn't say anything strange, did I?
Just as I was thinking that, Ms. Terra asked Rose in shock.
"R-Rosie, you're not in Hyamars town anymore, you're working in 'Pailight' town now, right? You hardly show up at my guild lately."
"Eh? Yes, that's correct."
"From here to Pailight town, I think it takes about a whole day by carriage, so how can Rose come over to play every day?"
"..."
Now that I think about it, that's true.
Rose has currently moved her adventurer base to the neighboring town of Pailight.
That's because Rose has become so strong that she surpasses even top-rank adventurers after achieving Exceed.
In this town of beginner adventurers, she has way too much power, so now she's working in Pailight, where all sorts of requests come in.
That town is about a whole day away by carriage from here.
Looking back, it's clearly strange that Rose comes over to play every day.
It was Ms. Terra's comment that made me realize it, albeit a bit late.
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