episode_0139

Do you know the difference between a giant capitalist who should be torn limb from limb in a revolution and an intelligent investor?

It’s whether or not they invested in me.

Someone who doesn’t invest in me is a giant capitalist trying to monopolize the market and ruin small businesses, and someone who invests in me is someone who appropriately recognizes future value.

My current situation was exactly like that.

Starting as a giant capitalist who suddenly jumped into the market and caused trouble, I was promoted to a wise investor who should be revered with just two words: ‘collaboration’ and ‘Atelier’s Clothes’.

It’s still temporary, so I need to talk a little more to become a truly wise investor, but the fact that an environment where we can talk has been created is a positive sign.

I passed the document screening, at least.

“You seem to have acquired high-quality coffee beans; the aroma is excellent.”

“Is that so? I’m glad if it suits your taste. Even though it looks cheap, it’s beans brought from a continent across the sea.”

“The Guild Master seems to have a good eye.”

“Haha~ Thank you.”

And look at Guild Master Gilbert, who is now personally brewing coffee and doesn’t even think about removing the bright smile from his face.

He’s like a very gentle and kind puppy, and if you don’t think positively when looking at this, your eyes must be strange.

“Seeing that you have good coffee beans, it seems things are going well for you these days?”

Good coffee beans, not a bad expression.

So, I figured things weren’t too bad for him these days, and I casually blurted out those words with a light heart.

“…Crack!”

The Guild Master’s expression crumbled.

And if I heard correctly, there was definitely a sound of teeth grinding coming from between the Guild Master’s lips.

Did I step on a landmine…?

“Tsk…”

My original intention was to start with, ‘Haha, it’s enough to make a living,’ and receive it with, ‘Haha, then I should give you a little help,’ a light back-and-forth, but it went wrong from the start.

“How many tailors are affiliated with the guild…?”

I was so curious as to how badly I messed up to get that kind of reaction, so I braced myself for the atmosphere to get even worse and cautiously added a question.

At my question, the Guild Master’s face twitched, struggling to manage his expression, but he chugged down his coffee, barely suppressed his anger, and opened his mouth with difficulty.

“…Including apprentices and journeymen, there are about 1,000 people. In terms of ateliers, there are about 200 throughout the empire. When I first started as an apprentice, it was about twice the size it is now… It has decreased a lot now.”

“I see…”

Considering the Guild Master’s age, roughly 30 years.

You might wonder what the guild did to cause such a disaster, but it’s just an unfortunate trend of the times where machines replace artisans and factories replace ateliers.

Maybe in a few decades, the great name of Luddite will echo throughout the empire?

Fortunately, the guild was still maintaining a basic size.

Since the number of ateliers can usually be regarded as the number of artisans, it means that there are more than 200 skilled people like Young Master Herbert or Lady Fani throughout the country.

It was more than enough to share our burden.

I was worried that I should escape quickly because the Guild Master’s reaction was so terrible, but fortunately, it wasn’t that bad.

If the Guild Master isn’t an idiot, he’ll maintain his lifeline in this way for at least a few decades.

Not bad.

There’s no risk of becoming a competitor, and it’s not a non-performing loan that collapses in an instant.

As long as I’m alive, it will be able to remain a good cooperative relationship.

“Emily.”

“I’m here.”

Lightly snapping my fingers and receiving the basket from Emily, I took out the fabric used for the girdle and handed it to the Guild Master before explaining.

“…What is this?”

“This is the fabric used in the clothes I make; please take a look.”

A plain fabric that looks lower in quality than silk at first glance.

“Yes…”

The Guild Master had a look full of questions as to why he was being asked to look at this, but since it didn’t take much effort to pick up the fabric, the Guild Master carefully picked it up.

“What is this… Hmm?”

And as if proving that the position of Guild Master was not won by trickery, he frowned as soon as he picked up the fabric and began to examine it closely.

“Hmm…? Heo…? Heo, heoh…”

The Guild Master, who let out sighs mixed with curiosity and doubt, pulled, twisted, and folded the fabric, then let out a hollow laugh and looked at me with unbelievable eyes.

“Silk? No, rubber? H-, how…? H-, how on earth…? W-, what exactly…?”

“I can’t say in detail, but it’s a new fabric that combines silk with two newly discovered threads to ensure strength and elasticity.”

“Th-, three kinds?! Are you saying you used three kinds of thread? How much money did you pour into this? It’s insane!”

“Would you believe it if I said that a witch, a magic tower, a weaver, and our atelier are all involved in that one thing?”

“How can I not believe it when I see this? The restoring force that instantly returns to its original size, the strength that can withstand even a man’s power, yet the touch that doesn’t feel rough, this is something that is difficult to explain unless it’s magic!”

“Hehe~”

This Guild Master has a great reaction.

I don’t know if it’s genuine or acting, but I couldn’t help but smile at the reaction that made me feel good.

“I still have one more thing to show you, so I’d be troubled if you were this surprised.”

“You said you have one more thing? What is it? Is it fabric again?”

“It’s not fabric, but it’s also a material used to make clothes this time.”

“Q-, quickly…!”

At the sight of the Guild Master’s eyes twinkling like a child waiting for a gift, I immediately took a bra out of the basket and placed it on the table with the band facing up.

“…Did you put hooks on the clothes?”

“You recognized it right away; I used hooks instead of buttons or strings for a clean connection.”

“This must have cost a considerable price as well…”

“But its role is certain; if there are three of these side by side, it’s strong enough to withstand the force of a man pulling on it.”

“Gulp…”

At my explanation, the Guild Master stared intently at the bra and swallowed hard.

It felt visually uncomfortable to see an old man looking at underwear with that kind of reaction, but I knew that it was a gaze coming from the passion of an artisan, not a lewd mind, so I smiled awkwardly and pushed the bra back into the basket.

“What do you think?”

“If I had the chance, these are materials I’d like to handle. That fabric is really amazing, but it looks a bit difficult to handle, so personally, I’m tempted by the hook because it seems easy to use.”

“An artisan has an eye for materials.”

The title of artisan was not won by trickery, so a fairly accurate assessment came out.

“As you might have guessed from showing you these things, I came here because I want to share the method of making clothes using these with you.”

“That’s welcome news, but is it okay for you to make such a choice just because you’re short on people? The investment and the effort you’ve put in must have been considerable…”

“I’ve made a decent profit from the investment, and we have many more clothes of our own besides these, so it doesn’t matter.”

“Heo…”

When I spoke honestly without pretending, the Guild Master let out a hollow sigh and looked at me with an indescribable expression.

It would be absurd to say that I made all the profit I needed in just four months, not four years.

“Under what conditions are you thinking of sharing with us?”

“I’ll replace the explanation for that with… this.”

I took out a stack of documents and handed them to Gilbert.

Gilbert, who received it, approached the documents as if he would bury his nose in them, reading them as if he wouldn’t miss a single word.

“This is surprisingly generous.”

“What is?”

“I was surprised because the conditions are more generous than I thought; you could have presented stricter conditions.”

“I’m not in a hurry for money, so I thought it was more important to take care of intangible assets such as image and reputation as a designer.”

“Well, we have nothing to lose since the pie is getting bigger.”

“So, you’re thinking positively?”

“Overall, it’s positive, but…”

“… …”

The Guild Master suddenly trailed off.

I frowned and waited for him to continue, and the Guild Master cautiously opened his mouth.

“One concern is… I don’t know if a small atelier can handle this. The price of machines and fabrics is considerable, and other places are not as well-funded as you are.”

“Then, what kind of solution do you think the Guild Master has?”

“There is one way.”

“We will take full responsibility for persuading and managing the ateliers affiliated with the guild. In return, or rather, for the sake of smooth management, can we be in charge of the process of supplying raw materials to the ateliers?”

“Aha-”

His tone was so unusual that I wondered if he was going to refuse, but in the end, he meant that the guild wanted to get involved in intermediate distribution and skim off a little.

It might be a little annoying from the perspective of the ateliers affiliated with the guild, but it was not bad from my perspective.

From the beginning, I was planning to connect the guild with Young Master Hans or Miss Heini while drawing such a picture.

“It would be better to discuss that part with the parties involved, not me. However, I will make it clear in advance that I will not interfere as long as whatever method is used to supply raw materials doesn’t tarnish our atelier’s reputation.”

“Ahaha! I will keep that in mind.”

When I indirectly told him to take care of it appropriately, the Guild Master nodded with a satisfied smile.

“Under these conditions, the guild will accept Lord Howard’s proposal. Is it okay to proceed with the contract right away?”

“Of course.”

The Guild Master’s cool deal, obtained with a little concession.

The Guild Master and I smiled contentedly and lightly shook hands.

I had a feeling that I would be meeting him often in the future because he was a person I could communicate with quite well.