Konbini Ossan Volume 13 Chapter 2 — Records of the Long-Established Tofu Brewery
“I see. If tofu was developed and spread under a Hero’s leadership, then there must have been a Hero among them who was close to the people of Waynesvale.
…
If so, it wouldn’t be strange if that person’s personal journal or something similar had been preserved there.”
Matsuriya approved of Arisa’s idea.
“That’s a great angle to pursue!”
“Hehe, not bad, right?”
“Then we’ll need to dispatch investigators to Waynesvale.”
“Ah, wait a moment, please.”
I stopped the conversation just as it seemed ready to conclude quickly.
“If it’s Waynesvale, I’ll go myself. We have business dealings with the tofu brewery, and Otogi Trading also has a branch factory there.
…
It should be much faster if I handle it rather than sending someone else.”
“Then shall we leave the Waynesvale investigation to you, Otogin?”
“Yes, leave it to me.”
“Then we’ll continue investigating the royal capital’s records, along with experiments and research using Hero cells!”
And so, the course of action for me, Shuri-kun, and Matsuriya was decided.
Once we knew what needed to be done, things moved quickly.
That same evening, over dinner, I informed my family that I would be leaving the Great Forest Autonomous Region again that very day.
Everything that needed preparing was finished that night, and I departed the following morning.
Waynesvale wasn't as distant as the Dragon Village, so I arrived the same day.
I left the transport vehicle at Otogi Trading’s branch factory, then first headed for the long-established tofu brewery we had business with, the same place Arisa and I had visited before.
“Ma’am, it’s been a while.”
“Oh my, Otogi-sama. Thank you as always for your patronage.”
As I entered the storefront section of the tofu brewery, the elderly woman tending the shop welcomed me.
Otogi Trading sells this brewery’s tofu as a premium product.
The tofu manufactured at our factory is a cheaper mass-produced version, priced only slightly lower.
The difference is set just enough that customers are inclined to think, If I’m going to eat tofu anyway, I might as well spend a little extra for the premium one.
Thanks to the advertising effect and market expansion created by the budget version, the pricing strategy, and above all the high quality and delicious taste of this brewery’s tofu, the tofu market was continuing to grow rapidly.
As a result, this tofu brewery was making quite a lot of money, which meant I was treated very well here.
“Did something happen, maybe, regarding tofu sales?”
“No. I’ve come today on a different matter.”
Without going into too much detail, I explained that I had been asked by the royal capital to investigate something related to Heroes, and had come to Waynesvale to see whether any records of the Heroes from that era remained.
“Ma’am, have you ever heard of any such materials being preserved?”
“Ah, records is it?”
The elderly woman nodded, then answered as though it were obvious.
“We have them. The Hero’s journal.”
“Really!?”
I never expected this tofu brewery to be a first-try jackpot.
“Of course, that’s only what’s been passed down. It’s just a mysterious journal stored in the warehouse. We don’t actually know if it truly belonged to a Hero.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“We can’t read it. No one has any idea what country’s language it’s written in.”
If anything, that made it even more likely that it really was a Hero’s journal.
For some reason, we summoned individuals can speak, read, and write this world’s language with the same familiarity as our native tongue.
But that doesn’t mean our native language was replaced by this world’s language. We can still use our original language exactly as we could before being summoned.
If the Hero of that era had written down information they didn’t want others seeing, such as the process of ascending to godhood, they would naturally choose their native language rather than this world’s.
Which meant it made perfect sense if the journal was written in Japanese and therefore unreadable to everyone here.
“Would it be possible for me to see that journal?”
“Yes, of course. Long ago, under the lord’s initiative, preservation magic was placed on materials related to the Heroes of the past. Looking at it for a little while should be no problem.”
Permission was granted astonishingly quickly, and the elderly woman immediately guided me to the warehouse where the journal was kept.
At the very back of the storage building, where old tofu-making tools used by the brewery throughout its long history were preserved, sat a small box tucked away quietly.
Inside it was the journal.
“Here you are, Mr. Otogi. This is the Hero’s journal.”
“This...?”
The moment the elderly woman handed it to me, my eyes widened, and I was too stunned to speak.
The language used on the cover was not Japanese.
It was English.
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E/N:
A Japanese person knowing English?! Have pigs started flying?! 😭🤣 Just kidding, of course, some Japanese people do speak fluent English but majority are so abysmal, it is as abysmal as my Japanese 🤣!
Stay tuned!
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