Something broke inside Azabu when he saw her laying on the ground in a pitiful state
Azabu, who was present, asked why that happened to her.
His heart hurt to the point where he almost fainted, but he desperately composed his breathing and listened.
That seeker kidnapped her when she was on her way home from shopping, leaving her baby behind.
Why he did that was not certain. After all, the culprit was not in that world anymore. To satisfy base desires? For money? Both? It did not matter to Azabu.
He lost her. He said he would protect her, but could do nothing.
There was nothing he could do, he was not there. Anyone he spoke to said the same thing, but that did not help.
No matter the excuse, the fact was that he broke his promise. The fact that it was nothing but lip service with nothing behind it remained.
◇ ◇ ◇
After her funeral, his children tried to cheer up their brooding father, and fought hard for him to go back to his normal life even a little sooner.
Azabu wanted to kneel and yell to his grief’s content, but he knew that would accomplish nothing except make his children anxious.
And so, he tried as best he could to pretend to be facing forward.
But bad things continued to happen.
“Transfer…”
“Yes. It’s been decided that the department of products for seekers will be partnered with another company, so it will be downsized. I’m sorry, but you are being transferred to our Kansai branch.”
“But I have kids. I can’t just move like that! Can’t you reconsider?”
“I’m sorry, but it’s been decided. We don’t have work for you here anymore. I didn’t want to say this, but we received complaints about you. Staying here will only bring shame.”
“Complaints…?”
“Yes. I understand the circumstances, but leaving work unfinished causes problems for other employees. I know it was for your family, but other employees don’t see it in a good light when it keeps happening.”
He did not notice. Maybe he did, but still prioritized his family. His parents looked after the children too, but he could not put a big burden on his aging parents. And since he did not want his children to feel lonely, he ignored it.
And it was time to pay for it.
Azabu left without saying anything in return, and went back to his desk. Then he noticed the looks from other employees.
Maybe it was because of what his boss said, but it felt as though they were criticizing him, and he felt embarrassed. Even if he wanted to apologize, he did not know to whom to do it.
◇ ◇ ◇
A few days later, he informed his boss he was quitting.
He could not look after his children if he moved, and could not work without the help of his parents. And since staying there would only be a bother for the other employees, there was only one option.
He looked for work again, but had a tough time. He was on the cusp of turning forty, so there were few jobs for him. Even going to a temp agency only gave him options that would rob him of time with his children.
He used to have plenty of money saved up, but not even ten percent of the money involved with that crime came back, so he had to find another job quickly.
Azabu walked through the door of the seeker association. He avoided seekers after what happened with his second wife, but he had to steel himself to go accept a job.
“Don’t you have anything else? Something that won’t take up so much time.”
“The hours depend on the person but… If you want to minimize risks, there is nothing that will pay more than ten thousand yen per day with a schedule of nine to five. Maybe if you start early, but a starting time of nine might be rough.”
“…I see.”
There was work. Taking down monsters, collecting medicinal herbs and ore, instructing new seekers… But nothing seemed to be right for Azabu.
He looked at the quests, but they were mostly about collecting precious materials. Practically suicide for someone who had not been in the dungeon for close to twenty years and did not have proper equipment.
He asked a receptionist if there was anything else, when the president of the seeker association, who was nearby, turned to him with a question.
“Do you have any production skills?”
“Eh? Ah, I have Sewing and Duplication. I used Sewing in my old job.”
“Ooh, good timing. Our lecturer who used Sewing quit. Do you want to try giving a lecture?”
The sudden invite left him perplexed, but there was no reason to say no to this godsend.
His lectures were seen positively. Thanks to studying applications of the Sewing skill at his old job, he was knowledgeable and ready to answer questions.
But two lectures a month was not nearly enough money, so he had to look for work again.
But then a strange woman spoke to him.
“Excuse me, you’re Shinichi Azabu, right? I’m Maya Seijyu of the Church of Minsule.”
The woman who introduced herself as Maya Seijyu was dressed in a white dress, wore white boots, and had a white bucket hat on top of her long flowing blonde hair. Her skin was white and her face was beautiful.
Despite the whole air around her seeming captivating, no one around them looked at her.
But what stood out the most was the Church of Minsule.
The Church of Minsule was commonly called a cult. They believed the world’s resources should be distributed equally in the name of god. And that included resources taken from the dungeon.
They also argued that seekers were beings that should be controlled, and their abilities could spark a war.
“Miss Seijyu, what does Minsule want with me?”
He was wary, because he heard bad things about Minsule. There were rumors that they had a seeker unit who specialized in rough business, and erased people that were in their way.
A member of that church approached him and seemed to know him. There was no way he would not be apprehensive.
“Fufu, don’t be so wary. I won’t eat you. I just want to talk for a bit. How about we go to that cafe?”
“I have work to do, so I have to decline…”
“Don’t lie. I know you’re looking for work. Why don’t I introduce you to a job?”
Her probing smile saw through his lie.
Her eyes were not smiling, and there was darkness in her clear blue eyes. That pressure made Azabu go quiet, and he had no choice but to take her hand.
◇ ◇ ◇
He could not make a living with his courses in the seeker association, so he looked for a side job. Under the president’s recommendation, he duplicated magic circles on products put out by Honto.
By infusing these magic circles with magic energy, a protective film that could stop one attack from a goblin would be formed, but that was all it could do.
It was like a charm given to children.
With the help of his skill, he could copy one in seconds, so it did not take long to hit the daily quota of two hundred.
The ink was provided by the association, and seemed special. It had lower resistance than anything he had used before, and magic energy flowed smoothly.
He checked with the company about what to do with the leftover ink, but they told him to do what he wanted, so he thought about using it to research magic circles as a hobby.
Magic circles were available on the internet, but most were said to be fake.
The magic circles that the seeker association dealt with were ones discovered by seekers or through trial and error, so they were trusted. But looking at them cost money.
This was proof that they were treated as intellectual properties, and incentive to develop new ones.
If one developed a new magic circle and registered it in the seeker association, they would be paid a sum that varied depending on the number of views every couple of months.
They were basically treated like trademarks, with the country or the seeker association behind them.
Azabu thought to compile them into a book.
There was the issue of intellectual property rights, but he figured if he did not sell it, there would not be a problem.
“Depending on the price, you can sell that book.”
Said the president of the seeker association.
He did not show it off, it just came up naturally in conversation.
And after perusing it, the president casually gave permission.
He asked again if that was all right, but while the magic circles in the book had been slightly modified, they worked properly. And as long as the effects of the new magic circles that were added were verified, there should be no problem with the association.
And so, he sold his completed book for a million yen. The price was decided by the seeker association. It was not overpriced for a book that contained the majority of magic circles.
He was confident when he put it up for sale, but did not sell a single copy.
It seemed obvious in hindsight. Magic circles needed by seekers who wanted to explore deeper were limited to those with magic skills. And since they could buy them from the association, there was no need to buy a book.
Also, seekers with magic skills learned two or three magic circles, five at most. They had no use for a book with over a hundred.
Most who had Alchemy, Sewing, or Blacksmith skills already decided what magic circles they used. If they were to use new ones, they would be ones they discovered or modded, so they did not need a book made by someone who was practically an amateur.
Companies who manufactured magic items asked the association directly, so they had no use for a book either.
Basically, it was never going to sell.
Azabu was dejected when he realized this.
It was not something that would sell if he dropped the price, and since he got carried away and made a hundred copies, he had boxes of them sitting in storage.
But Azabu did not give up, and at the end of lectures, he would ask if anyone wanted a copy. But no one was interested.
Most people who attended these lectures were working because they had no money, so they were not going to pay a million yen for something they did not need.
Still, he asked every time.
Two years passed, and he made a new complete edition. This one really was just a hobby. Something he knew would not sell, but made for his own self-satisfaction.
He gazed at it after the children went to sleep, and had a drink as he felt satisfied.
“I’ll buy it! I’ll buy that book!!”
The next day, he sold his first copy.
The buyer was a fat man. He appeared to be a kid in his late teens, and while he could not complain about someone who paid upfront, he worried if that was really all right.
“Yes. I was moved by your lecture! I’ll buy that book!”
His eyes were honest, like those of an innocent child.
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