How to Survive in a Good Small Guild - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive in a Small Good Guild
Chapter 12
2. Your Company Is Far Too Exploitative
└But I’m the owner
“Good morning, Guild Master.”
When the Guild Master arrived, Susanna and I—already seated at our desks—greeted him. His expression darkened at the sight of the empty desk where the new recruit, Sedrick, should have been.
“What’s this? He still hasn’t come in?”
“Ha ha, well… yes.”
That’s because the Guild Master had arrived thirty minutes early today, of all days. He was the kind of person who was usually late. What was going on?
“Guild Master, you’ve come in quite early today?”
I probed him gently, and what spilled from his mouth was utterly absurd.
“That’s right. I need to occasionally come in excessively early so my wife understands how hard I’m working. I even complained about the guild on my way here with her.”
But Guild Master, you’re the owner of this company. And if you go around complaining about the guild, what does that…
I swallowed those words and averted my gaze to the papers before me. Of course, this was a charade—pretending to work diligently.
Twenty minutes before the official start time, Susanna slid a note across to me.
—Do you think the new hire ran away?
I drafted a response.
└He didn’t seem sharp enough to pull that off.
Whether Sedrick fled today or not would be a true test of his judgment.
The moment I sent the note to Susanna, the door opened with impeccable timing, and Sedrick appeared.
“Good morning.”
His hair looked disheveled, as though he’d rushed to get here. Yet even so, his good looks weren’t diminished.
‘He’s handsome enough, but with black hair and brown eyes, he doesn’t strike me as anyone particularly special in this world.’
Brown hair and brown eyes were never going to be protagonist material, sad as that was. Truth be told, anyone foolish enough to take a job at this guild in the first place could never be a leading character anyway.
The Guild Master, who had been waiting to pounce, began his scolding the moment Sedrick appeared.
“How can you show up this late?”
“Yes? I… I’ll come in earlier from now on.”
Fortunately, instead of protesting that he’d arrived thirty minutes early, Sedrick simply bowed his head and responded in a meek voice.
“Young people these days don’t understand the value of time! You have to skip meals and come in early if you want to make real money!”
Though you won’t be raising anyone’s salary, will you, Guild Master…
Sedrick was thoroughly chewed out from the moment he arrived, and when he slumped into his seat with a gloomy expression, I tried to console him.
“Hang in there, Sedrick.”
“Thank you….”
“Come on, let’s get to work. First, we need you to help with the Guild Master’s son’s Art homework.”
“…Yes.”
As he completed the Art assignment with an increasingly despondent face, I reviewed the guild’s recent performance records.
Hmm, I need to take control of this guild and expand it as soon as possible. My goal was to reduce the Guild Master to a complete figurehead, but I hadn’t spotted any weaknesses I could exploit yet.
How does our guild even stay afloat taking in so few commissions? Ah, I see—they’re skimping on the staff salaries instead.
Today, like most days, the guild remained empty of customers. Unless someone walked in requesting an Affair Investigation, our guild was destined to remain this quiet.
“I have work to do outside the office.”
Outside work—sure, you mean a day off. How is it that the Guild Master never shows up to work, and yet nothing’s being done about it? I gave him a sharp look.
But having the Guild Master gone wasn’t entirely bad. He was more of a liability than an asset—a negative one, rather than merely zero.
While Sedrick stared down at his Art homework with a look of sudden despair, and Susanna openly wrote her essay, I fell into thought.
‘How can we grow this guild?’
As I saw it, one of the guild’s major problems was publicity.
Objectively speaking, Susanna’s abilities weren’t poor, and I was confident I could gather good information by drawing on my knowledge of the original story. But our guild’s reputation was far too low. We only got customers who happened to pass by and noticed our sign.
‘So I need to think of a way to make this guild more widely known.’
And do it with almost no budget, at that.
Since I couldn’t find the answer on my own, I decided to ask Sedrick’s opinion.
“Sedrick, wait—why are you drawing this so well?”
“I received rather strict training as a child….”
“Ah, I see. It looks like you must have been taught by a professional painter.”
As I marveled at his Art homework, an idea struck me.
We could make a Poster using his incredible artistic skill!
Back in my old world, even detective agencies posted flyers in bathrooms and places like that, after all.
An ordinary poster wouldn’t have much effect, but with Sedrick’s absurdly high level of talent, I felt we could pull off anything.
“Susanna, what do you think about making a guild Poster?”
“Pardon? Why would you want to create more work….”
“Heh, having something like this Content would give us more things to talk about.”
“That really is a brilliant idea!”
Susanna rose from her seat with a changed attitude and approached me. Her jaw dropped the moment she saw Sedrick’s artistic skill.
“This is incredible…!”
And for good reason—he had rendered a nine-year-old’s art assignment with flawless command of light and shadow, perspective, composition, and color.
“Let’s make a poster then. Why don’t we brainstorm the design together?”
I flipped over a sheet of paper and began sketching out the composition. To convey to this world’s people the benefits of using the information guild and draw their attention….
Find missing persons. Locate places.
Collect all manner of evidence.
Resolve every worry swiftly.
Global Information Network Guild
XX-XXX-XXXX
“Clear messaging works best. What do you think?”
As I asked, Susanna tilted her head thoughtfully. In the next moment, the text was reborn under her hand.
Wherever they hide, we find them.
Whatever evidence exists, we retrieve it.
One moment of carelessness, and you’ll be the victim.
Before it happens to you, gather your information first.
Number one problem-solver across the continent.
Global Information Network Guild
XX-XXX-XXXX
“Oh! That’s amazing!”
I gasped in admiration. It was far more striking, and somehow made you feel like you had to entrust your commission to them immediately. Strike first before you get struck!
“As expected of a writer! I’m just a junior staffer at the information guild, but still, this is like the meaning of my life….”
“P-please, be quiet.”
“But isn’t ‘number one across the continent’ false advertising?”
When Sedrick offered his opinion in a cautious tone, Susanna and I shook our heads in unison.
“It depends on how you look at it.”
“We never said number one in what. We’re probably number one by the character count of our guild name, at least.”
“…That’s remarkably unjust.”
After settling on the poster’s text, we all turned our hopeful gazes toward Sedrick.
His expression grew uncomfortable for a moment, but then he began writing the text on the poster in beautifully flourished letters.
“Wow, truly a master calligrapher!”
“Indeed, it’s as if you’d received penmanship instruction from the greatest master yourself.”
“…….”
He seemed flustered by this, but under our expectant eyes, he completed the poster in perfect form. The lettering, composition, and color palette—everything was flawless.
“Now we just need to take it to a print shop, make copies, and post them.”
“Where should we put them? On the notice board in the Square where everyone can see?”
“No, we can’t use a place like that.”
I shook my head in response to Susanna’s question.
“Do you carefully examine the notice boards every time you pass through the Square?”
“Uh, no….”
“Then where is it that we spend a long time observing our surroundings closely?”
“Ah!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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