Chapter 6

I am currently staring at the guest register and the inventory ledger, comparing numbers and writing them down on paper. It’s a tedious task. Ah… I wish we had at least a spreadsheet program, if not accounting software… at the very least, give me a calculator.

The result of this work, as expected, shows that the income and expenses are barely breaking even. If there’s a sudden expense or if someone can’t work, we’ll have to take out a loan.

Then, I’m trying to use the stack of paper my father bought to make notes on the problems and areas for improvement at this inn. The vocabulary in Luka’s writing is limited, so I’m writing in Japanese. Well, he’s a child, so it can’t be helped.

I’ll list everything I can think of for now. First…

“The biggest problem is the low net profit.”

I think about ways to improve this.

“Reduce the number of vacant rooms, increase the number of users, improve the turnover rate, raise the accommodation fees…”

Then, specific actions that can be taken to address the current issues. To deal with the aging facilities, we need to repair the inn to improve customer satisfaction. To increase the utilization of the dining room, we need to improve the taste and the menu. Other options could include paid extras.

“Other small efforts to eliminate waste, new services… we need to advertise too.”

As I pick out the issues and add what can be done now, I feel like I’m starting to see a direction, even though it’s rough.

Raising the accommodation fees is out of the question for now. If we raise the prices without proper measures, we’ll lose our current customers. Plus, it would also mean driving away the customers who are barely managing to stay here. If the almost homeless become truly homeless, it would be a bad start to the day.

I don’t have any good ideas for new services yet, and I don’t know what would be popular. Market research is needed, and there’s no budget for it, so I’ll put it off for now.

Advertising needs to be considered. What kind of advertising would be effective? There’s no internet, and paper is precious, so in this world, word of mouth might be the best option. For now, I’ll ask the current guests what made them choose this inn.

According to the ledger my mother kept, the accommodation fee at the 'Golden Star Inn' is a flat rate of one silver coin, which is very cheap. It might be the cheapest in the area.

In this Heilberg, a family can live for a month with about two gold coins… or 200,000 gelt. On a daily basis, one person can live with 2 to 3 silver coins.

Our income, after deducting taxes, food costs, firewood, and other expenses, is about one gold coin a month. After deducting the costs for supplies and ingredients, there’s not much left.

“My eyes are tired…”

I looked away from the ledger and shook my head. Hmm, I stretched. Somehow… it feels like I’m doing the same kind of work as in my previous life, even though I’m a child.

My mother, though a bit spacey, is meticulous and has been keeping a detailed record of the monthly income and expenses. Honestly… I’m grateful. If the accounting was a mess, it would be a disaster.

Still, my mother is serious and, objectively speaking, quite beautiful. She has a well-defined face, light blonde hair tied up, and deep blue eyes, always with a gentle smile. Even after having two children, her figure hasn’t changed.

Yeah, I’ll revise the evaluation of our inn to ‘not great, but cheap and the innkeeper is beautiful.’

However… regarding the mysterious endless soup incident, my mother’s behavior has been a bit strange. She must have been hurt by her real son’s harsh criticism of her cooking. I do realize I went too far.

Still, after improving the soup, the use of the dining room in the evenings has increased significantly. Like in my previous life’s business hotels, where breakfast is included in the accommodation fee, even if the food is a bit bad, everyone eats breakfast, but many guests go out for dinner. Most are just there to drink or are too lazy to go out.

But with the morning soup being decent, more guests are staying for dinner. This is a valuable increase in income, given that we can’t raise the accommodation fees.

I want to expand the menu while this momentum is still going, but I can’t bring it up because my mother, who is in charge of cooking, is acting strange.

— Maybe I should try a curveball. I approached my mother, who was drinking tea after finishing her work.

“Hey, Mom.”

“What is it, Luka?”

“Why did you marry Dad?”

My mother spat out the tea she was drinking.

“W-What? Why are you asking this all of a sudden?”

“I was just wondering why.”

I pretended to be innocent, but I’m genuinely curious. I can’t really imagine my father flirting with women. Is it just my nosiness? Exactly.

“W-What did Dad say?”

“I haven’t asked him.”

“Oh, I see.”

“So… why?”

I looked up at my mother with wide eyes. Come on, answer the innocent question of a 6-year-old! My mother took a deep breath and began to speak, as if resigning herself to it.

“I proposed to him.”

“Mom proposed?”

“When Dad was still an adventurer, I was in the same party.”

“Mom was an adventurer too!?”

“Yes, I was quite strong back then.”

When I peeled away the sugar-coated story my mother told for children, it went something like this.

They were both adventurers in the same party, with my father as the front-line shield and my mother as the back-line mage. Even then, my father was a star in a decent-ranked party, and his taciturn nature made him quite popular with the town girls.

I’m envious. I never had a chance to be popular in my previous life. Who said that everyone gets at least three periods of popularity in their life?

On the other hand, my mother had a crush on my father and subtly approached him, but despite spending more time with him than the town girls, he didn’t take any action. Frustrated, she finally made a bold move.

“—So, we got married… don’t tell Dad, okay?”

“I won’t.”

I will, though. I’m looking forward to seeing how he reacts. Now, with the mood lightened, it’s time to get to the point.

“By the way, don’t you think the number of evening guests has increased?”

When I said this, my mother looked thoughtful.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, you’re right. I guess it has.”

“So, what do you think about adding more menu items?”

“Hmm… maybe we can add some simple ones.”

I pressed on.

“Sometimes people ask if we have any snacks. When I say no, they go out to buy something.”

“Then, we could add nuts or pickles… hmm, if Maximilian brings back some game, we could add roasted meat…! That sounds good. Yes, I’ll think about it.”

My mother smiled her usual gentle smile.

“Thank you, Luka.”

“No, I… I’m sorry.”

Sorry, I blurted out the truth and hurt you. I felt bad for hurting my mother.

“What for? Oh, the soup the other day?”

“Yes. I think I went too far.”

“Were you worried about that? It’s okay, it was my fault.”

I felt relieved to be able to apologize. It seemed that the tension between my mother and me had finally eased. Running the inn is important, but I can’t forget the real goal. The happiness of my current family is my happiness. I don’t want to make everyone’s life tense and strained just because of my mistakes.

I want to live happily in this world.

—For that, I’m here.