Business Negotiations

After finishing lunch and leaving the school cafeteria, it seemed Caro and Rachel were finally released, as they headed toward me.

“There’s no time left to eat! Onii-chan, do you have any bread left?”

Rachel asked me.

“Sorry, I didn’t prepare lunch today, so I ate at the cafeteria.”

“Aww. There’s no time, so I guess I’ll have to settle for whatever the cafeteria can serve quickly… Let’s go, Caro-san.”

“Yes. Well then, Kent-san, Josette-sama, we shall see you later…”

With that, the two of them ran off toward the cafeteria.

The afternoon classes began; perhaps because it was getting warmer and it was right after lunch, about half of the students looked sleepy. The female student in the seat next to me had also entered sleep mode.

(I can see her chest perfectly through the gap in her clothes…)

Whether it was just the right angle or not, I felt like I had lucked out. Other male students noticed my gaze, and those in a position to see joined me in the eye candy.

“Kent-san, do you have a moment?”

Once class ended and the break began, Josette spoke to me.

“What is it, Josette-san?”

“Would you mind coming with me for a moment?”

Led by Josette, I was taken to the spot behind the school building where we usually had lunch.

“Kent-san, you really are interested in women’s chests, aren’t you? You were staring at the chest of the person next to you the whole time during class, weren’t you?”

“Eh, how did you…?”

“The other boys were too. How lewd.”

Josette looked at me with a scornful gaze.

“Are you really that interested in women’s chests?”

Josette asked me, appearing as though the words were difficult to say.

“Well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t interested…”

I replied.

“It can’t be helped then. I shall step up to the plate myself.”

Saying so, Josette began to undo the buttons of her shirt.

“Um, Josette-san, what do you intend to do?”

“I said I shall step up myself; please do not make me repeat the same thing multiple times.”

Saying so, Josette skillfully removed the thin white undergarment she was wearing beneath without taking off her shirt.

“Please, have a look.”

Just like the other commoner female students, the fabric was thin and translucent, making the tips of her breasts visible.

“Now that I’ve said it… it is a bit embarrassing.”

Josette said, her face turning red.

“If it is through a gap, you may look a little, you know?”

She made me sit on the bench and sat down on my lap. Because of the height, Josette’s chest was right near my face. When I shifted the clothing slightly, I was able to behold a beautiful chest.

“It’s very beautiful.”

I stated my impression of what I saw.

“I am happy to have you say that, Kent-san.”

Josette hugged me just like that. It resulted in me burying my face in Josette’s chest. While enjoying Josette’s pleasant, soft sensation and scent, we remained in that position for a while until the first bell rang.

“Oh, that is the first bell already. We must return to the classroom soon.”

Josette skillfully adjusted her clothes, put her undergarment back on, and straightened her attire.

“Kent-san, shall we go?”

Josette, now in a better mood, pulled me by the hand and we returned to the classroom.

After school, Caro came to the classroom as usual. Rachel, who was supposed to start her part-time job today, was with her.

“Well then, Kent-san, let’s head home.”

“Onii-chan, let’s go home!”

Pulled by the two of them, I left the school. The three of us returned to my house once to drop off our belongings and headed to the bakery across the street. The inside of the shop was overflowing with customers.

“Welcome back. I feel bad for asking right away, but could you start working?”

Marie was busy restocking the bread. The fact that Marie was on the shop floor meant things were incredibly busy. I went to the bread workshop, Caro helped with wrapping at the register, and Rachel went into the kitchen as we each split up to work.

“The flour consumption is faster than expected… If I don’t place an additional order, we’re going to run out soon.”

Because it was selling as fast as we could make it, production volume had increased, and material consumption was becoming high. The most important material, flour, was managed collectively by the bakers’ guild and sold to each bakery. While some bakeries had supply routes where they could purchase flour without going through the guild, the vast majority purchased through them. Naturally, Marie’s bakery also purchased through the bakers’ guild, with whom we had a long-standing relationship.

We no longer ran out of bread, but we were baking at a considerable speed. As soon as we baked and lined them up in the shop, empty trays would come back immediately. We continued that assembly-line process of baking to match the demand until the peak hours passed.

Once the peak time was over, we turned off the ovens and began cleaning up. The day’s business would end once we sold out the bread displayed in the shop. I was restocking items other than bread while holding my terminal.

“Excuse me—”

A voice came from near the entrance, so I went to respond.

“Ah, Prim-san. Welcome.”

She had mentioned a representative would come, but it seemed Prim had come in person.

“Prim-san, it’s been a while.”

Caro noticed Prim and came running over.

“Caroline-sama, what are you doing here?”

Noticing Caro, Prim hurriedly straightened her posture.

“Geez, you don’t have to be so stiff. I was demoted to a commoner, and now I’m working here part-time. No one calls me Caroline anymore, so Caro is fine.”

“I-I see… Then, Caro-san?”

“Yes, what is it?”

Seeing Caro answer with a smile made Prim’s heart race. She was cute even from a female perspective.

“Um, I have come today for business negotiations, so I would like to speak with the shop owner…”

“Ah, that’s Marie-san. Please wait a moment.”

Caro went pitter-patter into the back.

“Marie-san, you have a guest!”

Caro’s voice could be heard from the back.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. How can I help you?”

Marie, who had been called, came out and asked Prim.

“Ah, I’ll handle the talking. For now, Marie-san and Prim-san, please come this way.”

Saying so, I guided the two of them to the dining area.

“What an unusual shop. There are many things I’ve never seen before. Moreover, the shop is bright even though the sun hasn’t set yet.”

Prim said, looking around the shop curiously.

Then, the three of us sat across the table.

“Marie-san, Prim-san is the daughter of the merchant association that runs the school cafeteria, and she is effectively in charge of operations.”

“Is that so? You’re quite impressive for someone so young.”

Marie said admiringly.

“So, the discussion is about wanting us to supply bread to the cafeteria.”

“Come to think of it, there was a talk like that before. I believe I declined at that time.”

Marie replied.

“Could you somehow manage to supply us?”

Prim made a request to Marie.

“Um, how many do you need, and what unit price are you anticipating?”

I asked for specific details.

“Regarding the quantity and unit price, please look at these documents.”

Prim placed the documents she had brought on the table.

“That’s quite a large number. But with our current production capacity, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Indeed, it seems like we’ll be fine.”

Marie and I confirmed the required numbers and spoke after considering the surplus production capacity of the workshop.

“As for the unit price, you’ve set it higher than ours. Even including intermediate costs, it’s okay to lower it a bit more, you know?”

Marie’s bakery mainly sold side-dish bread and sweet bread that could be eaten on their own. Originally, bread was a staple food used to be eaten with side dishes. Of course, we also sold bread that could be used for that purpose. The bread needed for the cafeteria was the latter. Currently, that bread was sold at Marie’s bakery for 70 G. In reality, since mass production had become possible, the unit price could be lowered a bit more, but we kept it as is due to price balances with other bakeries.

In the end, since it was a bulk delivery, the wholesale price to the cafeteria settled on an amount slightly lower than the price sold at Marie’s bakery. Since the cafeteria served it as part of a set menu, the bread wouldn’t be sold individually, so the students likely wouldn’t find out the price.

“Are you really going to supply it at such a price?”

Prim asked Marie and me with an expression of disbelief. It was approximately 70% of the price Prim had initially proposed. Since Marie’s bakery would still make more than enough profit even at this price, we felt guilty about accepting the full amount she had offered.

“However, since this calculation is based on current procurement costs, we may ask for a price change if raw material costs go up.”

“That is only natural. Flour prices fluctuate quite a bit, so we understand that here as well.”

When I said that, Prim showed understanding.

“I am sorry for being late. Please, have some tea.”

As the negotiations had progressed to a certain point, Emily brought out tea. Apparently, it was at Rachel’s instruction. Since they were in a confrontational relationship until recently, Rachel seemed a bit hesitant to show her face.

“Thank you. Eh?”

Prim thanked her and was surprised when she saw Emily.

“Did something happen?”

I asked Prim, wondering what was wrong.

“This person… is the shop’s fairy, isn’t she?”

“How do you know that?”

I was surprised by Prim’s statement and asked back.

“I can see the wings on her back, though they are faint. I see… so the reason it’s thriving is because there’s a fairy.”

Prim said, appearing convinced. However, Prim was making a huge misunderstanding here. If calculating only by business days, today was only Emily’s second day working here. It would be a little while longer before she realized that the one contributing greatly to the shop was me.

“My name is Emily. It is nice to meet you.”

Emily gave a polite bow and greeted Prim.

The discussion was settled, and we decided to supply bread to the cafeteria starting the next day. It was decided that Prim would arrange the transportation for the bread.

“Well then, I look forward to working with you from tomorrow.”

“We look forward to working with you as well.”

The deal was concluded, and Prim went home.

Without noticing, the shop had sold out of bread, and it was time to close.