"Alright, let's call it a day for now."

It was evening, and quite some time had passed since we started Dolph's customer service training. Thanks to the effort put into the training, Dolph had already become considerably proficient at serving customers in just one day.

"You seem to have it down. I'm counting on you starting tomorrow."

"Yeah. I'll be counting on you too."

Not only Dolph, but the practice had also been a good experience for Lilia and Fia. It turned out to be a very productive day. Although our weekend was over, having a new employee onboard should make the workload a bit lighter starting tomorrow.

If I want to aim for a slow and easy life later, I need to put in the effort now. Well, I've been through countless weekends of overtime at a black company, so it's not a big deal for me...

While I might be fine, I don't want to make my employees work on their days off. Especially Lilia, who even helped with the interviews yesterday. I'll make sure she gets a proper break next week.

"Alright, starting today, we have Dolph, bringing us to four employees. I don’t think it’ll be as busy as last week when we first opened, but with word of mouth from the customers who visited us then, we can expect a lot of new visitors. So, stay sharp."

"Got it!"

"Yes!"

"Understood!"

The week begins with Dolph officially joining the team. Having one more person should make things easier than last week, but it's said that the period when you're just starting to get used to things is when you're most prone to mistakes. I’ll need to focus even harder.

"Okay then, let's open the shop!"

"Welcome to the outdoor shop!"

Hmm, Dolph's smile is looking good. Whether it's because he's conscious of being around female customers—friends of his younger sister, Angel—or not, his smile directed at the customers is quite something.

Female adventurers, in particular, are sneaking glances at the new handsome employee. Strange. I don’t remember getting that kind of reaction during my shifts. I guess good looks are universally appreciated, even in this world...

"Excuse me."

"Yes!"

Oops, I need to focus. It's more important to make the shop successful than to be popular with women right now.

"Here’s your change: six copper coins."

"Ah, thank you."

Customer service and register duties seem to be going well. I’ve been shadowing Dolph to observe him today, but even just one day of practice has shown noticeable results.

That said, Dolph’s earnest smile is almost too dazzling. Maybe it’s a good thing he can’t maintain it all the time. The female adventurer he’s serving right now seems slightly flustered.

If he attracts too much attention from women, there’s potential for other problems to arise. While I appreciate how he brings in female customers, it would be a hassle if personal matters start interfering with the shop’s operations.

In a way, it’s a relief that Dolph isn’t particularly interested in women.

"Hey, Tetsuya!"

"It's pretty busy today, huh?"

"Yeah, thankfully. Are you all off today?"

It looks like Roya and the others came to visit the shop.

"No, we finished early this morning and wrapped things up quickly. We ran out of instant soup, so we came to restock."

Ah, I see. They had bought every variety of the instant soup to try last time, so the three of them must have gone through it quickly.

"Oh, you already hired a new employee?"

"Yeah, it’s a one-week trial for now, but he’s a former adventurer, so I think he’ll have some useful insights. These three are Nicole, Roya, and Fal. They’ve been a huge help to me since before I started this shop."

"I’m Dolph. I just started working here today. Looking forward to it."

"Likewise!"

"Nice to meet you!"

"Same here!"

Dolph shook hands with Roya and the others. Since the three of them will likely be around the town for a while, I hope they all get along well.

"Nicole, welcome!"

"Fia! I came to shop again!"

"........."

Nicole is the same as ever. She seems more interested in talking with Fia than interacting with Dolph, despite his looks.

"This instant soup really adds a touch of luxury to lunch. It’s a big help."

"Yeah, we’ve limited purchases to two per person now."

"That’s great. Looking forward to doing business with you!"

I took their empty wooden canisters and handed over new instant soup. It looks like this product will continue to be a strong seller.

"Excuse me, can you buy this torn blue sheet from me?"

"Of course."

"Alright, we’ll get out of your way. See you later!"

"Yeah, come by anytime!"

As another customer approached, Roya and the others headed out. It’s always nice to have familiar faces stop by.

"Thank you. We’ll buy it for five copper coins."

At our shop, we buy back damaged or torn blue sheets for five copper coins. This is because, even back in my old world, discarded blue sheets were a common sight.

Unlike other camping gear, blue sheets are often used on the ground or to carry things, so they frequently get damaged and are more likely to be thrown away.

We repurpose any reusable parts from the collected sheets, and the rest will be incinerated outside the city with the help of Lange’s magic.

I’ve also asked Roya and some other adventurer acquaintances to pick up trash whenever they come across it. Of course, it’s impossible to collect every discarded blue sheet, but I want to do my part to keep this world’s nature clean.