Chapter 211 – Ichinose’s hard work

Food street.

"Ichinose~ Could you come over here for a moment? One of our store employees twisted their ankle yesterday and is on leave today. We need someone to help check the shelves."

"Ichinose, over here, over here. Oh, it's really troublesome for you. I'm getting old and my eyesight is failing. It's really hard to reconcile the accounts, and the delivery was late this time. If we don't hurry and match everything, we won't be able to sign off on the order."

"Ichinose, how do you use Twitter? They say if we post our products and kitchen photos on it, customers will feel more assured about coming to dine here, but I just don't understand it."

"Coming, coming~" Ichinose responded with a bright smile comparable to the morning sun. The light reflecting off her fair cheeks could warm anyone's heart.

She was like an angel active in the food street, gracefully weaving through the shops like a butterfly. Every shopkeeper would instinctively seek help from this angel.

The reason was simple: such a lively and energetic girl, kind-hearted, warm, and generous, was incredibly irresistible. She could instantly become close with anyone.

Other high school students seemed too aloof in the eyes of the shopkeepers, making it hard to approach them. It was better to ask Ichinose, who was approachable and didn't add psychological pressure.

Ichinose enjoyed helping out, not only because she was naturally kind-hearted but also because she wanted to contribute more to her class.

After confessing her past to the class, everyone still trusted and supported her as before. However, Ichinose still felt some guilt.

She believed that even though she was forgiven, she needed to put in extra effort to live up to everyone's trust. So, she pushed herself hard, always striving to do her best no matter how busy or tired she was.

Because of this, she received high praise from all the shopkeepers in the food street.

Seeing this, the members of Ichinose's class couldn't help but marvel at how she always shone brightly, no matter where she went.

Kanzaki couldn't help but quicken his pace with the task at hand, wanting to finish it quickly and then help Ichinose out a bit: "Isn't Ichinose pushing herself a bit too hard?"

"Eh? I don't think so?" Shibata, who was also helping move goods, wiped the sweat off his forehead: "Isn't Ichinose always like this? She's always full of energy, never seen her tired."

"Hey, you guys stop slacking off and chatting!" Shiranami, who was supervising, came over, mistakenly thinking the two boys were goofing off.

Kanzaki shook his head: "We're not slacking, just worried that Ichinose might be getting too tired."

As Ichinose's close friend, Shiranami naturally cared deeply for her. Upon hearing this topic, she immediately abandoned her supervising duties and joined the conversation: "She probably does get tired. Yesterday, when Honami returned to the hotel, she went straight upstairs to rest."

"I sat in the lobby for about ten minutes, not too sure, then went up to check on her. I knocked on her door, but there was no answer. She must have laid down and fallen asleep right away."

"Hahaha, Ichinose even brought back some fried meat pies she made, saying they were for dinner. She probably woke up later to find them completely cold and not very tasty."

Kanzaki found this a bit strange. Falling asleep in ten minutes? Could Ichinose have been that tired? She had been frying things all day at Granny Ueno's shop. After getting back, she should have at least taken a shower and dried her hair. Ten minutes wouldn't be enough for all that.

Did Ichinose really go straight to rest upon returning to the hotel yesterday? Kanzaki shook his head, deciding not to overthink it: "Alright, Chihiro, stop just watching. Help us move these. Let's finish quickly so we can help Ichinose out."

"You're right."

Watching Ichinose being so warmly received by the shopkeepers and seeing her classmates working so cohesively, Kiriyama couldn't help but worry.

As a second-year student, he truly felt the pressure brought by Ichinose's class. Even though it was only the second day of the task on the food street, there was already a trend of recognizing Ichinose more than the second-year students.

If this continued, the second-year students would be completely overshadowed by Ichinose's class, which was hard for Kiriyama to accept.

He's currently in Class 2-B. To surpass Class 2-A, he needs to achieve first place in this special exam.

Moreover, with Nagumo voluntarily stepping down for unknown reasons, Class A is now just a bunch of pushovers. Overcoming them should be easy.

But now, Ichinose suddenly appeared halfway through, competing with Kiriyama for first place, leaving him particularly helpless. He could only seek out the administrator of the food street to inquire about their consideration.

Earlier this morning, Kiriyama had provided the administrator with a proposal to hold a large-scale event at the food street to attract customers.

The administrator said they needed to consider it, so Kiriyama temporarily left. However, feeling the pressure from Ichinose, he had to come back to inquire...

"Oh, Kiriyama, I've read your proposal. Holding an event to attract customers is definitely not a problem, but this card issuance part, isn't it a bit too simplistic?" The administrator pointed to a specific part of the proposal, highlighting his concerns.

"Really?" Kiriyama had spent a whole night carefully thinking it through: "There are so many vendors in the food street, it looks scattered, but we can totally link them all together, gather them in one place, and guide customers to apply for a card."

"For instance, just like some restaurant membership cards outside, we can do the same. And as long as customers apply for it, they can get certain discounts at any vendor within the food street. Customers will definitely apply."

"Once they have the card, they'll become regulars, frequently visiting the food street."

The administrator's face twitched imperceptibly: "I understand that, issuing a card isn't something new. But this card can't just be issued on a whim."

"Many vendors are elderly, they've been selling at this price all along. Suddenly asking them to offer discounts and sell for less, do you think they'll be willing?"

"We can provide subsidies." Kiriyama, a typical modern youth, immediately thought of burning money as a solution.

The administrator was left speechless: "Where would the money come from? Even if we have enough funds and don't need you students to invest, covering the costs for the food street entirely, can we subsidize it indefinitely?"

"Take a few more steps back. Suppose we, the food street, have enough money to subsidize the merchants for life. Where's the profit margin then? Just giving customers discounts and subsidizing merchants leaves us as the only ones losing money. Don't we need a profit?"

"…" Kiriyama finally realized that this strategy of burning money wasn't feasible. But he was still reluctant to give up the proposal he had stayed up all night writing: "Then, maybe we can…"

"We can find ways to persuade the merchants, right? Explain to them the benefits of temporary price reductions for the sake of future higher customer traffic. They'll understand that, won't they?"

"Ha." The administrator could only respond with a laugh. If elderly and stubborn merchants were so easily convinced, then he suggested Kiriyama take his eloquence and pursue a career in diplomacy after graduation.

"In any case, you can try. Let's put the card idea on hold for now. We can still organize a large-scale event."