“Addition to the Lineup”
Several more days passed, and one day while walking through the capital, I overheard a conversation between passing adventurers.
“Hey, how many did you manage to get?”
“I got a C-rank Orc and a D-rank Sappy. How about you?”
“I recently got a B-rank Orc General!”
“No way!”
It seemed that the adventurers were discussing wooden dolls being sold by the Greg Trading Company, and they were excitedly comparing the rarity of the dolls they had acquired.
Lately, collecting wooden dolls had become a trend among adventurers, particularly among male adventurers. In the past, they would spend their hard-earned money on equipment, food, drink, and entertainment, including visits to brothels. However, wooden dolls had been added to the mix, and it was not uncommon for adventurers to strike it rich with them.
Highly rare wooden dolls had low drop rates, but if one managed to acquire them, they could become a small fortune in and of themselves. This was a design I had implemented.
Furthermore, the popularity of wooden dolls extended beyond just adventurers; even commoners and nobles with disposable income found them appealing as children’s toys or adult collectibles. The demand for them had become so high that production couldn’t keep up.
Simultaneously, the stuffed animals and plushies featuring deformed animals and monsters that we introduced at the same time as the wooden dolls were also well-received. They were especially popular among children and women, and their production couldn’t keep up either.
Other trading companies couldn’t ignore this lucrative market either, and it seemed they were producing and selling imitation versions through their own channels. However, due to inferior quality and pricing compared to the original Greg Trading Company’s wooden dolls, the majority of people preferred ours.
Regarding these wooden dolls and plushies, I had been considering releasing a new version soon. However, the challenge came in terms of manpower.
While I could handle the development myself, mass production would require a significant workforce. Adding Artisan Golems and operating them at full capacity could be an option, but that would mean if I were absent, the production line would halt.
Currently, the items being produced by the Artisan Golems included bracelets made with magic quartz and dark demon ore, as well as hairpins. These were products we had been consistently selling since the establishment of Greg Trading Company.
For relatively newer products like scrunchies and plushies, we had set up a production system using female shop assistants with sewing skills and a newly hired woodworker named Ganzas. However, the production volume was still quite low, and we heavily relied on the Artisan Golems.
Nevertheless, the Artisan Golems’ production line was connected to the magical bags stored in the Greg Trading Company. As long as the Artisan Golems continued producing, even if I were absent, the production wouldn’t stop.
“Alright, if that’s the plan, let’s start working on it right away.”
While there were various issues that needed to be resolved, I thought I could address them later. With this decision in mind, I used teleportation magic to move to my home in Orargrand for development.
Though I hadn’t been renting this home for very long, it had significantly improved productivity compared to when I was living in an inn. In that sense, renting this home seemed to be a good decision.
However, my main operational base was still the mansion in the capital, so my home in Orargrand had essentially become a production factory for the Artisan Golems.
“Hmm, for something unused, it’s surprisingly dust-free.”
“Welcome home, Master.”
“Oh, I’m back… Wait, who’s that?”
“It is me.”
“…”
There stood a familiar golem. It was a small stone golem, about thirty centimeters tall, and I had named it Proto. It was the very first golem I had created.
In truth, some time after the end of the war and during the maintenance of the Robo Ranger used in the battle against the Skull Dragon, and after training with Nagartinya had concluded, I had tuned up Proto with the magic stone of an S-rank monster called the “Hydrant Vampire” that I encountered on my way back.
Right after the tuning, it had been its usual self, saying “Mrr” in its usual way. However, for some reason, it now spoke broken human language. Probably, the original owner of the magic stone I exchanged with, the Hydrant Vampire, had something to do with this.
When I fought the Hydrant Vampire, a high-ranking humanoid monster, it was manipulating human language. I concluded that this was the reason Proto had learned to speak human language.
“Proto, you can talk now, huh?”
“From Master’s request, I have learned. Thank you for this opportunity.”
“I guess that was the cause after all. Well, I was planning to entrust you with piloting the Robo Ranger in the future, so having some level of communication is convenient. But if I’m being honest, I kind of wish you were still speaking ‘Mrr-mrr’ language.”
“Mrr?”
Perhaps Proto didn’t understand what I was saying, as it tilted its head in its usual gesture. …Dammit, it still has that cute aspect unchanged, huh?
As I thought about that, I realized there was something I was curious about, so I questioned Proto.
“By the way, how did you come out of the storage? I don’t remember releasing you.”
“Communication capabilities have been acquired, allowing for independent action.”
“Do you know why?”
“I do not understand. However, after obtaining the ability, Proto acted independently based on its judgment as Master was absent.”
“So you found the house dirty and decided to clean it out, huh? Thanks, you really saved me.”
“I am glad if it was of assistance.”
I had been surprised by the sudden turn of events, but I quickly accepted it since having a helpful assistant like Proto was convenient.
More importantly, my main goal in coming here was to start working on creating new wooden dolls and plushies. So, alongside the Artisan Golems, I decided to begin the work.
Starting with the wooden dolls, I decided not to follow the approach of releasing a completely new set like a trading card game expansion. Instead, I planned to add a few new characters to the existing lineup.
This way, I could reduce the number of new types introduced compared to a whole new expansion, and with the current production setup, I should be able to manage it efficiently.
“First, I need to decide how many new types to add for each rank.”
Currently, the released wooden dolls were set with rarities corresponding to the monster’s rank, with a total of twenty types ranging from the lowest F-rank as a dud to the super-hits of S-rank.
This time, I decided to add one type for each rank except S-rank, and two new special types.
“Let’s leave the special ones for later and start with creating dolls for each rank.”
Next, I proceeded to create monsters for each rank and lined up the finished ones. I noticed that Proto was standing nearby, periodically cleaning up the sawdust I generated while carving wood.
Well, I would eventually clean up anyway, so it was not a big deal that it was done ahead of time. However, it was a bit distracting when it had to clean up after each individual piece I finish.
“Proto, if possible, wouldn’t it be more efficient to do all the cleaning at once after I’m done?”
“I understand. I will do so next time.”
Saying that, Proto now started to watch my work intently. …While internally sighing at how this development made me even less focused on my work, I persevered and continued. By the way, the newly added monsters are as follows:
[F-rank]: Hopping Rat
[E-rank]: Forest Ant
[D-rank]: Goblin Mage
[C-rank]: Battle Mantis
[B Rank]: Ogre
[A-rank]: King Wolf
“Alright, it’s done. Next is the plushies. I wonder if is it okay if I make them resemble animals from Earth?”
Plushies didn’t necessarily have to be real-life creatures; they just needed to be cute. So, I decided to create deformed versions of familiar animals like chicks and other creatures that Earth is familiar with.
With everything completed, I left the cleanup to Proto and returned to the royal capital. Since it was evening, I decided to unveil the new creations the following morning.
In the days to come, rumors spread about the new additions to the wooden dolls and plushies, leading to even greater sales.
“Addition to the Lineup”
Several more days passed, and one day while walking through the capital, I overheard a conversation between passing adventurers.
“Hey, how many did you manage to get?”
“I got a C-rank Orc and a D-rank Sappy. How about you?”
“I recently got a B-rank Orc General!”
“No way!”
It seemed that the adventurers were discussing wooden dolls being sold by the Greg Trading Company, and they were excitedly comparing the rarity of the dolls they had acquired.
Lately, collecting wooden dolls had become a trend among adventurers, particularly among male adventurers. In the past, they would spend their hard-earned money on equipment, food, drink, and entertainment, including visits to brothels. However, wooden dolls had been added to the mix, and it was not uncommon for adventurers to strike it rich with them.
Highly rare wooden dolls had low drop rates, but if one managed to acquire them, they could become a small fortune in and of themselves. This was a design I had implemented.
Furthermore, the popularity of wooden dolls extended beyond just adventurers; even commoners and nobles with disposable income found them appealing as children’s toys or adult collectibles. The demand for them had become so high that production couldn’t keep up.
Simultaneously, the stuffed animals and plushies featuring deformed animals and monsters that we introduced at the same time as the wooden dolls were also well-received. They were especially popular among children and women, and their production couldn’t keep up either.
Other trading companies couldn’t ignore this lucrative market either, and it seemed they were producing and selling imitation versions through their own channels. However, due to inferior quality and pricing compared to the original Greg Trading Company’s wooden dolls, the majority of people preferred ours.
Regarding these wooden dolls and plushies, I had been considering releasing a new version soon. However, the challenge came in terms of manpower.
While I could handle the development myself, mass production would require a significant workforce. Adding Artisan Golems and operating them at full capacity could be an option, but that would mean if I were absent, the production line would halt.
Currently, the items being produced by the Artisan Golems included bracelets made with magic quartz and dark demon ore, as well as hairpins. These were products we had been consistently selling since the establishment of Greg Trading Company.
For relatively newer products like scrunchies and plushies, we had set up a production system using female shop assistants with sewing skills and a newly hired woodworker named Ganzas. However, the production volume was still quite low, and we heavily relied on the Artisan Golems.
Nevertheless, the Artisan Golems’ production line was connected to the magical bags stored in the Greg Trading Company. As long as the Artisan Golems continued producing, even if I were absent, the production wouldn’t stop.
“Alright, if that’s the plan, let’s start working on it right away.”
While there were various issues that needed to be resolved, I thought I could address them later. With this decision in mind, I used teleportation magic to move to my home in Orargrand for development.
Though I hadn’t been renting this home for very long, it had significantly improved productivity compared to when I was living in an inn. In that sense, renting this home seemed to be a good decision.
However, my main operational base was still the mansion in the capital, so my home in Orargrand had essentially become a production factory for the Artisan Golems.
“Hmm, for something unused, it’s surprisingly dust-free.”
“Welcome home, Master.”
“Oh, I’m back… Wait, who’s that?”
“It is me.”
“…”
There stood a familiar golem. It was a small stone golem, about thirty centimeters tall, and I had named it Proto. It was the very first golem I had created.
In truth, some time after the end of the war and during the maintenance of the Robo Ranger used in the battle against the Skull Dragon, and after training with Nagartinya had concluded, I had tuned up Proto with the magic stone of an S-rank monster called the “Hydrant Vampire” that I encountered on my way back.
Right after the tuning, it had been its usual self, saying “Mrr” in its usual way. However, for some reason, it now spoke broken human language. Probably, the original owner of the magic stone I exchanged with, the Hydrant Vampire, had something to do with this.
When I fought the Hydrant Vampire, a high-ranking humanoid monster, it was manipulating human language. I concluded that this was the reason Proto had learned to speak human language.
“Proto, you can talk now, huh?”
“From Master’s request, I have learned. Thank you for this opportunity.”
“I guess that was the cause after all. Well, I was planning to entrust you with piloting the Robo Ranger in the future, so having some level of communication is convenient. But if I’m being honest, I kind of wish you were still speaking ‘Mrr-mrr’ language.”
“Mrr?”
Perhaps Proto didn’t understand what I was saying, as it tilted its head in its usual gesture. …Dammit, it still has that cute aspect unchanged, huh?
As I thought about that, I realized there was something I was curious about, so I questioned Proto.
“By the way, how did you come out of the storage? I don’t remember releasing you.”
“Communication capabilities have been acquired, allowing for independent action.”
“Do you know why?”
“I do not understand. However, after obtaining the ability, Proto acted independently based on its judgment as Master was absent.”
“So you found the house dirty and decided to clean it out, huh? Thanks, you really saved me.”
“I am glad if it was of assistance.”
I had been surprised by the sudden turn of events, but I quickly accepted it since having a helpful assistant like Proto was convenient.
More importantly, my main goal in coming here was to start working on creating new wooden dolls and plushies. So, alongside the Artisan Golems, I decided to begin the work.
Starting with the wooden dolls, I decided not to follow the approach of releasing a completely new set like a trading card game expansion. Instead, I planned to add a few new characters to the existing lineup.
This way, I could reduce the number of new types introduced compared to a whole new expansion, and with the current production setup, I should be able to manage it efficiently.
“First, I need to decide how many new types to add for each rank.”
Currently, the released wooden dolls were set with rarities corresponding to the monster’s rank, with a total of twenty types ranging from the lowest F-rank as a dud to the super-hits of S-rank.
This time, I decided to add one type for each rank except S-rank, and two new special types.
“Let’s leave the special ones for later and start with creating dolls for each rank.”
Next, I proceeded to create monsters for each rank and lined up the finished ones. I noticed that Proto was standing nearby, periodically cleaning up the sawdust I generated while carving wood.
Well, I would eventually clean up anyway, so it was not a big deal that it was done ahead of time. However, it was a bit distracting when it had to clean up after each individual piece I finish.
“Proto, if possible, wouldn’t it be more efficient to do all the cleaning at once after I’m done?”
“I understand. I will do so next time.”
Saying that, Proto now started to watch my work intently. …While internally sighing at how this development made me even less focused on my work, I persevered and continued. By the way, the newly added monsters are as follows:
[F-rank]: Hopping Rat
[E-rank]: Forest Ant
[D-rank]: Goblin Mage
[C-rank]: Battle Mantis
[B Rank]: Ogre
[A-rank]: King Wolf
“Alright, it’s done. Next is the plushies. I wonder if is it okay if I make them resemble animals from Earth?”
Plushies didn’t necessarily have to be real-life creatures; they just needed to be cute. So, I decided to create deformed versions of familiar animals like chicks and other creatures that Earth is familiar with.
With everything completed, I left the cleanup to Proto and returned to the royal capital. Since it was evening, I decided to unveil the new creations the following morning.
In the days to come, rumors spread about the new additions to the wooden dolls and plushies, leading to even greater sales.
