16) Take a leap of faith

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{3rd Pov}

The next morning, Subaru woke up with a clear goal in mind.

He decided that today would be the beginning of his plan to properly create, organize, and eventually sell the oil stoves he had designed.

The excitement from last night’s experiments still lingered, and now he wanted to turn that excitement into an actual business.

The very first thing he needed to do was figure out how to secure a reliable production system.

For that, he would definitely need to hire blacksmiths or metal tinkers who could work on assembling the stoves consistently.

After that, he would have to think about ways to promote the product so customers would even know it existed.

Subaru sat down with a sheet of paper and began scribbling out a proper plan, trying to be as systematic as possible.

“Alright, there are a few major problems I have to deal with,” Subaru muttered while tapping the paper with his pen.

“First is production, second is distribution, third is advertisement… and fourth is theft.”

He didn’t like the last one, but he had already seen how this world operated, so he couldn’t ignore it.

“I need to hire workers who can produce the stoves. Ideally, I’d prefer to own a dedicated workshop so I can keep everything under my control. But if I waste all my remaining funds on buying or renting a full workshop, I might end up bankrupt before even starting,” Subaru grumbled, thinking realistically instead of being overly optimistic.

“So for now, I’ll just temporarily hire some reliable workers—blacksmiths or tinkers who can handle metalwork well enough. Once I confirm that the stoves sell, I can think about expanding properly.”

“Second is distribution,” Subaru continued, jotting down another point on the sheet.

“For that, I can probably ask Halibel to lend me a hand. He visits a lot of different shops, so he can introduce me to store owners he knows. That should give me a small starting network.”

He tapped the paper again before moving on.

“Third will be advertisement… and that’s honestly a headache.” Subaru paused, leaning back as he thought about it.

“There aren’t any newspapers in this world, so I can’t rely on printed ads like back home. Posters are an option, but most people probably won’t appreciate random papers being glued outside their homes or cluttering up the street walls. So what would be the best way to advertise a cooking product in a medieval fantasy world?” Subaru muttered, sinking deeper into thought.

After a few moments, his eyes widened and he snapped his fingers.

“I got it!”

He leaned forward with an excited grin.

“The best way to advertise something used for cooking… is to use it to cook! Show them the results directly!”

An idea formed rapidly in his mind, growing more appealing the more he considered it.

“I can open a small restaurant, or even a stall at first, that cooks food using these oil stoves. And to make it even more attractive, I can introduce food recipes from my world that nobody here has ever tasted before.” Subaru smirked proudly, feeling like he had stepped into full-on businessman mode.

The list of possibilities overflowed in his head.

First and most obvious was mayo—Mayoinnase—which he already knew people here loved.

Then came tartar sauce, something that would be even easier to sell alongside fried foods.

And if he wanted to go big, he could introduce pancakes, pastries, French fries, tempura, tonkatsu, karaage, and dozens of other familiar meals from his Japanese life.

Just imagining the reactions of the medieval folk tasting those dishes for the first time made Subaru grin like an idiot.

“As long as I hire loyal chefs and keep the cooking area completely isolated so no one can copy the recipes,” Subaru muttered, his grin widening, “I can create an exclusive menu. And once people start lining up for the food, I can openly tell them that the taste of their home cooked food becomes even better if they buy the oil stove themselves.”

He chuckled.

“I can even do live demonstrations using simple, common recipes so everyone sees how convenient and efficient the stove is. That way, the restaurant becomes both a business and a giant advertisement.”

“And finally, I need to prevent theft. That’s honestly one of the biggest problems,” Subaru muttered as a deep frown appeared on his face.

“If some large merchant company or noble-backed workshop gets their hands on one of my stoves, they could easily copy the mechanism and start mass-producing it. And if that happens, I’m screwed before I even get started.”

He rubbed his forehead, already getting irritated by the thought.

“Branding… I guess I’ll need to do proper branding. If I create a unique brand emblem and engrave it onto every stove, it’ll help people identify the real product from the fakes. But even then…” Subaru sighed heavily.

“The bastards could just copy the emblem too.”

He knew very well how dangerous competition was in this medieval world.

Unlike his old world where laws and enforcement existed—at least most of the time—in this place, big companies and merchant groups could easily steal ideas, crush smaller competitors, and then pretend like nothing happened.

Competing with medieval giants who had manpower, money, and political backing felt like standing in front of a dragon with a wooden stick.

“Maybe I can make the emblem using a special material?” Subaru mused aloud, trying hard to brainstorm.

A unique emblem would be hard to reproduce if the material itself wasn’t common.

But the moment he thought about using something like gold or silver, Subaru clicked his tongue.

Those metals were expensive as hell, and using them would skyrocket the production cost for each stove.

Not exactly ideal when he wanted these things to sell in large numbers.

“Wait… maybe I can make an alloy with a very distinct look,” Subaru said as the idea suddenly clicked in his mind.

“If I use zinc and copper to create brass, and then adjust the ratio—or even mix in certain controlled impurities—I could end up with a very unusual shade of metal. Something that stands out, something that looks like a signature material.”

He nodded slowly as the idea formed in detail.

“If the emblem uses that alloy with a unique color and texture, people would recognize my brand by sight. And because the alloy is custom, copying it would be extremely difficult unless they somehow figured out the exact mixture.”

But after getting excited for a second, Subaru slumped back again.

“Okay… that might actually work. But the cost of all of this…”

Just thinking about the expenses—materials, workers, equipment, and even potential bribes to keep mouths shut—gave him a massive headache.

Hiring a couple of workers would be doable; buying metal wasn’t too hard with his funds.

But getting people who were loyal, trustworthy, and not the type to stab him in the back for some extra coins?

That was the real challenge.

He tapped his pen repeatedly on the paper.

“Materials and labor I can manage… but loyalty in this world? That’s the rarest resource out there.”

Subaru wondered if there was any reliable way to get cheap but loyal labor, and after thinking for a while, his mind drifted toward a certain place almost automatically.

“Slums!” Subaru suddenly stood up from his chair, nearly knocking it over.

“That’s practically the best way to gather people who might actually stay loyal!”

The logic made sense to him.

If he could help people living in extreme poverty—people who barely had opportunities, resources, or anyone willing to treat them like actual humans—then there was a good chance they would return that kindness with genuine loyalty.

People in desperate situations often valued stability more than anything else, and Subaru believed he could provide that in exchange for honest work.

But then he remembered Felt—who lived in the slums and was still completely willing to steal anything for even a bit of money.

His enthusiasm deflated just a bit.

“Yeah… right. There are also people like her,” Subaru muttered, rolling his eyes.

“So maybe not everyone will be loyal even if I help them.”

Still, he didn’t want to dismiss the idea.

Some people would betray him, sure, but many others might actually stay committed if he treated them decently and gave them a steady income.

“Whatever, man. I’ll figure it out later,” he sighed.

“First I should just go to Bruno and start there. If I can hire him and the blacksmiths he knows to work on producing the oil stoves, that’s already step one.” Subaru tapped his plan sheet with his finger.

“After that, I’ll look for a place to open the restaurant. Honestly, it might be way easier to just buy an existing building instead of renting, but I’ll decide when I see the prices.”

Having made up his mind for the moment, Subaru grabbed his things and left the house.

The very first thing he needed was more liquid funds to start this whole business properly.

So once he entered the city and located the appropriate branch of the Merchant Trading Group, he marched in without any hesitation.

He filled out the required forms, showed the necessary identification details, and then instructed the clerk to make a withdrawal.

Subaru didn’t even flinch when the clerk asked for confirmation of the amount, and with a steady voice he said,

“Withdraw 500 High Kararagi Shells.”

It was a massive sum, enough to start a small business from scratch, but Subaru knew he needed that kind of financial horsepower if he wanted to pull off everything he planned.

After confirming everything, he accepted the heavy pouch of currency and stepped out of the building, ready to put his ambitious ideas into motion.

When he finally reached the commercial area, everything was going smoothly—at least until a sudden impact slammed into him, sending him stumbling and falling flat on the ground.

For a moment Subaru just blinked, trying to process what had happened.

It turned out to be a young boy who had crashed straight into him.

The kid immediately blurted out, “I-I’m so—” but his words died in his throat the instant he noticed something that made his face drain of all color.

The pouch of coins he was gripping was stuck to Subaru’s clothes as if glued there, refusing to move even a centimeter.

Of course, that wasn’t a coincidence.

Subaru had discreetly summoned a single invisible hand beforehand to clamp down on his money pouch, just in case someone tried something shady.

He absolutely wasn’t planning on repeating the kind of stupid mistake of getting robbed in broad daylight.

Not again.

Not ever.

Realizing that his attempt had failed spectacularly, the boy panicked and tried to bolt.

He barely managed two steps before he tripped over his own feet—or maybe pure karma—and crashed onto the ground for a second time.

The nearby pedestrians, who had seen the entire thing unfold, paused their own business and watched with clear amusement.

Judging by their expressions, they had easily figured out what the boy had been planning from the start.

“Now that was extremely rude,” Subaru said as he stood back up, brushing dust off his clothes and checking himself over, more annoyed than anything else.

He then took a proper look at the boy lying on the ground.

The kid had short green hair and bright blue eyes, and the most noticeable features were the cat-like ears perched on top of his head and the long tail twitching behind him.

There was no doubt about it—he was a demi-human, and judging by his appearance, probably someone from the poorer parts of the city.

“Kid,” Subaru said sharply, his eyes narrowing as he stared down at the trembling boy.

“Do you even understand what you just tried to do right now?”

The boy flailed helplessly on the ground, trying to scramble to his feet or at least crawl away, but every attempt failed miserably.

Something invisible was coiled tightly around both of his ankles, holding him in place no matter how desperately he kicked.

The people around them began whispering among themselves, glancing between Subaru and the boy with growing curiosity.

Some wondered if this was some bizarre street performance, while others quietly speculated that Subaru might be using some kind of magic to restrain the kid.

“Let me go!” the boy shouted, his voice cracking with fear as he kept struggling uselessly.

His tail bristled, and his ears flattened completely against his head.

Subaru approached him slowly, step by step, until he was standing right in front of the boy.

Then he lowered himself into a crouch, bringing their faces to the same level. He reached forward, grabbed the boy’s chin firmly, and forced him to look directly into his eyes.

“Do you even realize what you tried to do?” Subaru said, his tone calm—almost too calm.

His face showed no anger or irritation, just a blank, neutral expression.

But his eyes were steady, focused, and strangely quiet, and that quietness alone made the boy tremble as though he were staring into the eyes of something far more dangerous than a regular human.

“I-I apologize…” the boy stammered, his whole body shaking as he fell to his knees.

Tears welled up and streamed down his cheeks, and he lowered his head in shame.

“Forgive me… please… I was hungry… I was really, really hungry!”

His voice broke completely, and he began crying openly, his shoulders shaking as he confessed his situation without even trying to hide it anymore.

Some people nearby stopped what they were doing and stared openly at the scene unfolding in the middle of the road.

Since most of the onlookers were ordinary commoners, they immediately felt sympathy for the boy.

They whispered among themselves, criticizing Subaru under their breath and calling him an imbecile for being so harsh on a starving kid. Subaru, however, couldn’t care less about any of them.

In his mind, every single one of these spectators was an idiot anyway, standing around and treating this situation like cheap street entertainment while acting as if they were morally superior.

Of course, not everyone bothered to watch.

A good portion of the passersby didn’t even spare a full glance, clearly uninterested.

They had their own problems, their own work to do, and their own money to earn.

They weren’t going to waste their time observing a random argument between a stranger and a pickpocket.

Subaru didn’t let any of the murmurs around him affect his expression.

His eyes didn’t soften even for a second.

He simply looked down at the frightened boy and asked bluntly, “Tell me, do you have hands?”

The boy froze on the spot, completely thrown off by the question.

Fear surged through him again as he stared at Subaru with wide, panicked eyes, thinking the worst possible thing.

Was this man going to break his hands?

Was that what he meant?

“I—I do have them, sir,” the boy said in a shaking voice.

“But please, forgive me! You can whip me if you want, but don’t break them! I need them!”

Subaru let out a long, exasperated sigh, briefly wondering if he truly looked that terrifying or if the kid was simply overreacting out of desperation.

Maybe it was a mix of both.

He focused on the kneeling boy again and clarified, “What I mean is… you have hands and legs, right? So why, instead of using them to work, did you decide to resort to stealing?”

The boy completely froze for a moment… and then, as if Subaru had pressed directly on a deep, painful wound, he suddenly burst out in frustration.

“Do you think I don’t want to work?!” he shouted, his voice cracking from stress and exhaustion.

“I tried lifting heavy stuff! I really did! But people cut my pay because I’m from the slums!” he cried, his words tumbling out in desperation.

“Whenever we from the slums do any chores, they always pay us way less! No matter how hard we work, they treat us like garbage! My sister is sick and I—”

He abruptly stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening as he slapped a hand over his own mouth. He instantly realized he had said too much.

Exposing the existence of a family member—especially a vulnerable one—was dangerous, and the panic on his face showed he understood that perfectly.

Subaru watched the reaction and understood the situation almost immediately.

It wasn’t hard to connect the dots.

‘Great… this is literally a walking cliché,’ Subaru thought, letting out a tired sigh in his mind.

‘Which anime had this trope again? Whatever. Not the time for that.’

Pushing away his irrelevant thoughts, Subaru reached out, grabbed the boy’s arm, and gently pulled him up.

At the same moment, he dismissed his Invisible Providence, freeing the boy’s ankles.

Subaru helped balance him so he wouldn’t fall again, making sure the kid could stand properly.

“Alright, kid,” Subaru said, his tone calmer now.

“What’s your name?”

The boy hesitated immediately.

It was obvious he was torn, unsure whether to give his real name or make one up on the spot.

After all, revealing too much could easily lead to trouble he wasn’t prepared for.

In fact, he had already made a personal rule long ago: never expose the existence of his sister to anyone if he ever got caught.

If the wrong person learned about her, it could easily lead to her being taken by slave traders, forced into labor, or punished unfairly by the people in power.

The possibilities were endless—none of them good, and all of them terrifying.

“How about I get you something to eat?” Subaru offered, keeping his voice steady and casual, as if he were simply talking to any hungry kid on the street.

But the boy immediately recoiled, shaking his head so fast it looked like he expected Subaru to pull a knife at any moment.

“No way! Absolutely not! This is a trick!” he shouted, backing up instinctively even though his legs were still shaky.

“If I go with you, I’ll lower my guard! You’ll act nice, give me hope, then betray me! That’s how it always happens!”

Subaru’s eyebrow twitched hard at that.

‘Great…’ he thought dryly, ‘so the usual isekai anime script doesn’t work in this world after all.’

He had seen this trope so many times—main character shows kindness, starving kid melts instantly—but apparently Od Laguna didn’t subscribe to that logic.

Then again, Subaru reminded himself that his life was already the anime trope–free edition.

Here, things didn’t magically resolve with friendship speeches or sudden heartwarming moments.

Here, the only rules that consistently mattered were what Subaru jokingly—yet honestly—called the three SSS truths.

Strength, Sage, and Satella.

If you had strength, you were automatically considered right.

If you had brains, you could maneuver through nearly any situation and survive even if you weren’t strong.

And the third, which Subaru had learned painfully and recently, was much simpler: There wasn’t a single enemy or threat that Satella couldn’t erase if she wanted to.

A gigantic murderous white whale is chasing you?

Simple solution: just drop Satella on top of it.

Problem solved instantly, and congratulations—the world's one of the most terrifying monsters transforms into freshly prepared Whale Sushi on the spot.

A bunch of escaped mental patients are causing chaos in the city and attacking random people?

Nothing to worry about—deploy someone even more mentally unhinged and incomprehensibly terrifying, namely the Witch of Envy, and watch as the troublemakers collapse from sheer psychological overload before they even get close.

Your so-called friends refuse to help you out in a crisis?

Easy fix.

Just use Satella for every purpose imaginable.

She’s basically the ultimate universal answer key to life-or-death problems.

Ahem.

“Fine, go away then,” Subaru finally said, deciding to just give up on the stubborn kid entirely.

He raised his hands slightly as if to show he was done trying.

However, the boy immediately jabbed his finger at Subaru as if accusing him of high treason.

“No! This is definitely a trap! I don’t believe for even a second that you won’t secretly follow me the moment I leave!”

Subaru almost slipped backward from sheer disbelief, barely catching his balance.

A vein popped visibly on his forehead as irritation surged through him.

“You brat! What on earth do you want me to do then?!” he exploded, exasperation leaking through every word.

“You refuse any kind of help, you don’t believe me when I say I won’t punish you, and if I actually punish you, then I end up looking like some deranged psycho! What kind of impossible logic am I supposed to follow here?!”

“This—” the boy stammered, completely speechless as he finally recognized the undeniable logic behind Subaru’s words.

He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again, but no proper argument came out.

“You know what?” Subaru said, letting out a sharp exhale before his expression twisted into something halfway between frustration and unhinged amusement.

“The days of politely asking brats like you are officially over. If you won’t accept food the easy way, then I’ll just force you to eat it!” He laughed like a complete maniac, grabbed the kid by the back of his shirt, and began dragging him across the street straight toward a nearby restaurant.

…

A short while later, the boy sat stiffly in front of a full table of dishes.

His eyes darted between the plates and bowls, confusion and suspicion battling with raw hunger.

He looked at the steaming food like it was some kind of dangerous trap.

His gaze then flicked toward Subaru, who was sitting casually in front of him with a smug grin plastered on his face.

“I’m not asking you to eat it,” Subaru said, leaning forward with a smirk that could irritate a saint.

“I’m ordering you to eat it. Understand? Either you eat this food or I’ll punish you. Pick one.”

The boy nodded weakly, though it was obvious his head was all over the place. His stomach growled so loudly a few customers turned to look.

He swallowed hard, saliva gathering in his mouth just from the smell, but still he squeezed out, “N-No… I can’t eat it. If I eat it, you’ll take advantage of me… I know how people from the city act…”

Subaru raised an eyebrow, then grabbed a spoonful of the steaming mutton soup.

Without breaking eye contact, he slurped it loudly, savoring the taste just to taunt the kid.

“Damn, this is incredible. The broth is amazing. They really cooked this perfectly.”

The boy stared in stunned silence as Subaru proceeded to dig into the dishes like a ravenous animal.

Each bite was accompanied with exaggerated praise: “This is masterpiece-level stuff,” “Holy crap, the seasoning is perfect,” “Damn, they really outdid themselves today.”

With every passing second, the amount of food on the table visibly decreased.

The boy’s eyes widened, panic rising as he realized the food he desperately wanted was disappearing right in front of him.

Finally, unable to watch any longer, he slammed his hands on the table.

“STOP! I’ll eat it! I-I’m eating it, okay?! That’s what you wanted, right?! I’m eating it, just don’t finish it all!”

Subaru’s eyes glinted sharply, and a mocking smirk crept across his face as he leaned in slightly.

“Oh? But weren’t you the brave kid who said he wouldn’t obey me? Weren’t you the one claiming you absolutely wouldn’t fall for my ‘trap’? What happened to all that confidence, huh?”

The boy didn’t even stop chewing.

With his cheeks stuffed full of food and tears still rolling down his face, he muttered stubbornly, “Since I’m going to get beaten anyway, it’s better to get punished while my stomach is full… at least that way I won’t die hungry.”

Subaru stared at him for a second, speechless at the absurd logic, then let out a small sigh and shook his head.

Watching the kid eat almost desperately, Subaru couldn’t help noticing just how thin he was.

His arms were bony, his wrists looked fragile, and every movement showed how malnourished he’d been for a long time.

The sight made Subaru feel a mix of annoyance, pity, and irritation at the entire situation.

After the boy finally finished the last bite—licking the bowl just to make sure nothing remained—Subaru crossed his arms and said, “Hey, kid. Would you be willing to do a job?”

The boy immediately stiffened, his guard shooting back up even though he wasn’t trembling as much as before.

He eyed Subaru suspiciously, as if the man had just asked him to walk into a dragon’s den.

“What job?” the boy asked in a serious, almost dramatic tone.

“I’ll warn you right now—I’m not interested in selling my body to some old rich noble women! Even if I were starving on the streets, I would rather die with my honor intact than get dragged into that kind of crap!”

Subaru’s eyebrows twitched so hard it looked like he was about to flip the table.

“Why the hell is that the first thing your mind jumps to?! Are all kids in this city this dramatic or is it just you?!”

“No, nothing like that,” Subaru said with an annoyed sigh, waving his hand as if swatting away the boy’s absurd assumptions.

“It’s basically metal tinkering work. You’ll be trained to do one specific task for a product I’m planning to mass-produce. It’s simple, repetitive work, and you’ll learn it quickly. I can promise you three full meals every day and a decent amount of pay on top of that. I’m not offering a mansion or gold bars, but you won’t starve, and you won’t be freezing on the streets either.”

He paused and stared directly at the boy, who still glared at him with those wary, suspicious eyes as if Subaru was trying to sell him into slavery.

Subaru sighed again, louder this time.

“You already said it yourself,” Subaru continued.

“Even if I let you go right now, you don’t believe I won’t follow you. And let’s say I did punish you—hell, even if I just gave up on you completely—there’s still a huge chance that I’d eventually find your sister anyway.”

The boy went stiff immediately, his entire body locking up like a trapped animal.

He looked at Subaru with fear and caution, knowing full well that trying to run was useless.

Subaru had already shown he could use some sort of invisible magic that could literally grab his ankles like shackles.

Escaping wasn’t an option, and they both knew it.

Subaru leaned back slightly, voice calm but brutally blunt.

“Let’s say you go to the extreme and kill yourself to avoid getting caught. Even then, even if I never find your sister, do you honestly think she has a high chance of surviving without you? Be realistic. At best, she starves to death in some corner of the slums. At worst… well, you know how this world works. People will take advantage of someone young, weak, and alone.”

With every word Subaru spoke, the boy’s fists clenched tighter and tighter until his knuckles turned white.

His jaw trembled, his ears flattened, and his tail stiffened in fear and frustration.

Subaru didn’t soften his tone.

“Look, accepting my offer is your best option. You already believe you’re going to die anyway. So is there anything wrong with at least checking whether I’m right or wrong? You have nothing left to lose. Whether I betray you or you refuse my offer—both are already the worst-case outcomes you imagine. So your only actual chance of something better is to take the risk and trust me, even a little.”

Subaru stood up from his chair, adjusting his clothes casually as if the conversation was nothing more than a business discussion.

“So think carefully. This isn’t charity. It’s survival.”

“That is why, it’s up to you…” Subaru said, his voice steady as he walked toward the counter and placed the required amount of money on it.

He didn’t look back, simply finishing his words while the coins clinked softly.

“Whether you want to take a leap of faith or not.”

The boy stood frozen in place, staring at Subaru’s back as he began to walk away.

His mind was flooded with countless thoughts—fear, doubt, curiosity, and a strange sense of hope all crashing together.

He tried to convince himself to stay silent, yet the pressure in his chest only grew heavier with every step Subaru took toward the exit.

Finally, unable to hold it in anymore, he blurted out, “Sir! I… I believe you!”

Subaru didn’t stop.

He kept walking as if he hadn’t heard anything.

Only when he reached the gate did the boy realize that his words alone weren’t enough.

His throat tightened, but he forced himself to speak again, louder this time.

“M-My name is Karl!”

This time Subaru halted.

After a brief moment, he turned around with a small, almost knowing smirk.

“See? Wasn’t so hard now?”

Karl flushed a deep red, looking down for a moment before glancing back up at Subaru.

His heart pounded nervously.

He couldn’t help wondering if he had just made the biggest mistake of his life… or if this decision would actually change everything for the better.

To be continued...