Exiled Alchemist’s Frontier Life: A Former Elite’s Fresh Start in the Backcountry After Failing Again - Chapter 12: Delivery
The welcome party ended after the first round, and we left the bar.
“Zeke, I’m heading this way, so you can see Erika off. Also, here’s the key to your room.”
The branch manager handed me the key.
“Understood.”
“See you.”
After parting ways with the branch manager, I walked through the darkened streets with Erika, heading in the same direction.
“Looks like I was the only one who drank.”
“I’m not good with alcohol, and the branch manager had some past issues with drinking.”
“I see…”
“Erika, I know this might sound strange, but how did I come across it today? Was I weird? Did you think you couldn’t work with me?”
I was anxious.
“Well, I could tell you were really concerned about that. But honestly, I don’t think it’s something you need to worry about too much.”
“Is that so?”
“To be honest, I did think, ‘Why doesn’t he understand this simple thing?’ But considering the difference in our levels—I’m at rank 10 and you’re at rank 3—it’s natural. However, you explained things very clearly, and it’s reassuring. I was really worried about just Leo and me.”
“Two rank 10s, huh…”
“Is Leonora young too?”
“he’s the same age as you.”
“22, then…”
So they’re both quite young. It seems they’ve been managing with just the two of them, almost as novices, for the past year.
“That must have been tough.”
“Yeah, it was. There was no one to teach us, and we made many mistakes.”
It sounds like the branch was in worse shape than I imagined…
As we chatted, we walked through the dark streets and arrived in front of the apartment.
“Erika-San, I’m not great with interpersonal relationships, but I’ll work hard to turn this branch around. Let’s do our best.”
“Yes, looking forward to working with you.”
“See you tomorrow.”
“Good night.”
Erika-san bowed politely and entered her room, so I checked the room number on my keychain.
“Looks like my room is this way.”
The keychain had “A-102” written on it, indicating it was in the same building as Erika’s and directly across from her room.
I went to the door, unlocked it, and turned on the light since the room was pitch dark.
“Nothing here, of course. It’s a bit lonely.”
“After seeing Erika’s room yesterday…”
Though the layout was the same, Erika’s room was bright and charming, fitting for a woman.
“Let’s just unpack today and get some rest.”
“Yeah, we’ll organise things tomorrow.”
We used spatial magic to unpack our things, set up only the bed, and took a bath. The bath had a proper tub, so we filled it with water and soaked it. Helen-Chan was also soaking in a tub of warm water.
Helen-Chan, despite being a cat, likes baths.
“Seems like a tough workplace…”
I muttered while staring blankly at the ceiling.
“I think it’s a good workplace. Erika-San and the branch manager both seem like good people.”
At least the branch manager didn’t seem troublesome, and he was quite straightforward for a noble military man.
“What about Leonora?”
“I’m not sure, but I think things will work out well.”
I hope so.
“Helen-Chan… the welcome party wasn’t so bad.”
Even if I was the only one drinking.
“That’s good to hear. Zeke-sama, people come in all kinds. There are unpleasant ones, but just as many good ones.”
“I see… I want to be a good person.”
I’ve probably been unpleasant before.
No, I still am.
But to make a fresh start, I have to change.
Even if my path to promotion is blocked, my second life isn’t over yet.
“Let’s keep working hard from tomorrow.”
“Yeah.”
We soaked in the bath and then went to bed in the room filled with cardboard boxes. The next morning, Helen-Chan woke me up, and I got ready and headed to the branch.
As Erika-San said, the commute took only 30 seconds, which was incredibly convenient.
“I’ll be able to sleep a bit more starting tomorrow.”
I said this as I entered the branch, but, as expected, no one was there.
“Wait, I haven’t had breakfast yet.”
“I forgot to buy bread yesterday. I’ll just have some portable food and supplements later… Oh? Erika-San isn’t here.”
I went up to the second floor, but no one was there, though the lights were on.
“Looks like the third floor. I can smell Erika-San’s presence from above.”
“Must be in the storage…”
I climbed the stairs to the third floor and found Erika-San placing potions for delivery into a magical bag.
“Ah, good morning, Zeke-San.”
Erika greeted me when she noticed me.
“Good morning. Preparing the deliveries?”
“Yes. I’m just finishing up with these potions. Let’s head to the offices and the military office first thing in the morning.”
“Got it.”
Erika-San already finished placing the last potion into the bag and stood up, she said,
“Everything’s ready. First, we’ll go to the nearby office. You might need to go there alone eventually, so let me show you the way.”
“Please do.”
We went down the stairs and left the branch. Erika walked to the left, so I followed her.
“This is it.”
She stopped in front of a three-story building. It was only about 300 metres from the branch, quite close.
Entering the office, I saw it was bustling with staff and visitors, a stark contrast to our branch.
“It’s a bit depressing.”
“Please don’t say that.”
Erika-San seemed to feel similarly.
“Yeah… Where’s the reception?”
“Over there.”
Erika-San pointed to the right side, and we walked over. We ended up in front of a middle-aged man at the farthest reception desk.
“Mr. Rubert.”
Erika called out to the staff member who was writing something.
“Hmm? Oh, Erika-chan… What’s up?”
“We’re delivering graph paper and bricks.”
“Huh? The deadline is still a while away. Has it already been completed?”
“Yes. Zeke, who just arrived yesterday, handled it.”
“Zeke?”
Rubert glanced at me.
“Yes, he’s just been transferred from the capital. Zeke, this is Mr. Rubert, our contractor.”
I stepped forward as Erika-San was introducing me.
“I’m Zekewald Alexander. Nice to meet you.”
“I’m Rubert. Nice to meet you too. Erika-chan, it’s great to have more colleagues.”
Rubert smiled warmly at Erika-San.
“Yes!”
“Well, I have another request for you. Can you handle it?”
A request on the day of delivery…
The office really is prepared.
“What’s the request?”
“I need 50 more bricks delivered. Also, I’ll give you 50 iron ore, and I need you to turn it into ingots. Can you do that?”
“Ingot…”
Erika glanced at me, probably because she hadn’t done that before.
“No problem.”
Making ingots is a basic skill. It’s not difficult at all.
“It’s fine. What’s the deadline?”
“About a month.”
“Understood.”
Erika nodded.
“Then I’ll go get the iron ore. Please leave the bricks here.”
Rubert went to the back, and Erika placed the bricks in a wooden box on the counter.
After a while, Rubert returned, and we took the iron ore and left the office.