The next morning.

In the Labyrinth City, the central square of Lapris was packed.

Youm looked around.

Fuze and Albis were both present.

"I wonder what Chishiya-sama called us out here for?"

"I heard he's making an announcement."

"Maybe it has something to do with that thing on stage?"

Youm and his companions glanced toward the raised platform.

Parked on it was a strange-looking vehicle.

Rimuru, lounging on Ranga's back, wore the same curious expression.

"That thing looks oddly familiar…"

"Does Rimuru-sama recognize it?" Ranga asked.

"Well… sort of. But it's not quite how I remember it."

Rimuru scratched his head.

What was parked up there looked exactly like a mobile food truck you'd find at a night market.

It had glass windows, extendable awnings, and a surprisingly spacious interior—big enough for four or five people to move around comfortably.

Off to the side…

Aqua was sipping iced cola through a straw, her eyes sparkling like a kid at a festival.

"Kazuma, Kazuma! Look! Isn't that the food truck from the food stand?"

"Is Chishiya-san opening a snack bar?!"

"I wanna eat oden!"

"No, wait! Grilled skewers go better with drinks!"

Kazuma turned to her with a look of sheer resignation.

Is she secretly part pig?

---

Finally.

Amid the crowd's speculation, Chishiya stepped onto the stage.

He took his place at center stage.

"Everyone."

"Our trade route with Dwargon has officially opened."

"And I'm here to introduce a new business model."

"I'll be selecting the right people to participate in its trial run."

"Today's just a basic introduction."

"A new business model?"

Fuze and the others raised their eyebrows, intrigued.

They were all eager to see—

What kind of innovation the young man who'd just established ties with Dwargon could pull off this time.

Chishiya continued.

"This new model is called online shopping, something very common where I'm from."

The residents exchanged confused glances.

"Online shopping? What does that even mean…"

"What a strange name."

Online shopping?

Kazuma and Rimuru looked at each other.

Wait, seriously?

Chishiya-san was about to introduce online shopping to another world?

How the heck was that supposed to work without the internet or phones?

Wasn't that just impossible?

---

Onstage.

Chishiya kept the explanation short and simple.

Going into too much detail would only confuse people.

"The concept is pretty straightforward."

"It allows customers to shop remotely, without standing in line."

"After filling out their order form, the merchant handles the delivery."

"And how we achieve this relies on the equipment beside me."

He patted the so-called "dining car" beside him.

Fuze narrowed his eyes.

Remote purchases? Merchants handling the shipping?

The concept was certainly fresh.

"..."

Fuze rubbed his chin.

But there were obvious problems.

…How would delivery work?

Could they guarantee timeliness?

And if the buyer couldn't inspect the goods firsthand, what would happen if issues came up?

"Chishiya-sama, what's the name of this device?"

Fuze asked.

"Ah…"

Chishiya hadn't actually come up with a name yet. Naming things had never been his strong suit.

After a short pause, he said, "It's called a shopping cart."

Yeah… that works.

He convinced himself internally.

Shopping cart?

Kazuma and Rimuru froze again and glanced at each other.

Wasn't that just the shopping cart from online store interfaces?

That name…

Was painfully appropriate.

And somehow… kinda genius.

Chishiya continued.

"These shopping carts will be stationed along the trade routes and inside Dwargon."

"Each unit will be staffed with four members."

"First, we'll distribute product catalogs to potential customers."

He pulled out a magazine-like book from inside his coat.

Printed with the help of the Great Sage, the publication was split into two volumes.

Volume one: a full list of specialty products available in the Labyrinth City.

Volume two: promotional content, showcasing Lapris's unique facilities, gourmet foods, and local culture.

"I see… so instead of building an online platform, we use catalogs."

Kazuma nodded.

"Catalogs keep costs low, and handing them out for free doubles as marketing."

"Much better penetration," Rimuru added.

"Chishiya-san really has a good sense for business."

As a former civil engineer, Rimuru admitted he wasn't particularly savvy with commerce.

But these ideas?

They were definitely solid.

Fuze and Albis exchanged thoughtful glances.

Product catalogs, huh?

That was actually a clever approach…

But…

Fuze raised a hand.

"Chishiya-sama, I have a concern."

"If a customer refuses to buy something without seeing it in person, how would you handle that?"

Chishiya smiled.

"Each shopping cart will carry product samples for customers to inspect."

"All they need to do is give their delivery address to the staff."

"We'll take care of delivery."

"Items will arrive within three days."

"And of course, we'll offer full after-sales service."

"This is an international initiative, after all. We can't afford to be careless."

"I see…"

Fuze lowered his head, deep in thought.

It was surprisingly doable.

No wonder Dwargon agreed to diplomatic relations.

To be honest…

This was worth testing.

If only he could get one of these "shopping carts" back to the Kingdom of Blumund...

It might actually stimulate their economy.

No…

Fuze narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists.

He had to find a way to persuade Chishiya.

Blumund needed spots in this trial.

"Um… Chishiya-sama…"

But just as he started speaking—

Albis cut him off.

"Chishiya-sama, would it be possible to allocate a few of these trial shopping carts to our Beast Kingdom?"

Fuze's mouth twitched.

Damn it…

She beat him to it.

He gritted his teeth and quickly added, "Chishiya-sama, the Kingdom of Blumund would also like to request a few spots."

Chishiya casually waved his hand.

"Sorry, for now we're only rolling this out in allied nations."

"..."

Both of them fell silent.

What a bait-and-switch…

Couldn't he have said that earlier?

In the audience…

The Beast Kingdom's envoys weren't thrilled.

Especially the older beastkin.

Still, for the sake of the three beast warriors, they didn't raise any objections.

But the dissatisfaction was obvious.

Euranazia was a global power, and their people served under the Demon Lord.

Their kingdom had set aside its pride and sent envoys to establish ties with Lapris.

And now?

They couldn't even get a single slot?

Wasn't that a slap in the face?

Besides…

Lapris was a fledgling force.

Its land size was barely one-tenth of the Beast Kingdom's.

If Demon Lord Carrion hadn't taken interest, who here would even consider diplomatic relations with this place?

And yet this guy still acts like he's the one doing them a favor?

What the hell is he pretending for?

(To be continued.)

***

For every 200 PS = 1 extra chapter. Support me on P/treon to read 30+ advanced chapters: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves

(Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)