I Became a Food Developer in Another World

Chapter 33: Side – Yuren (1)

Thirty million gold is a lot of money.

I set up a processed food development facility in Yuren and started working on cider.

In the meantime, I’ve also been remodeling the White Tower.

Considering the enormous size of the White Tower, remodeling the tower was a major undertaking that would take at least six months and up to a year.

Of course, this was for the entire project, and only a month was needed to decorate the exterior and repair the residential floors.

And a month was like a day to a mage.

Wizards were the kind of people who wouldn’t come out of their rooms once they were locked in.

As long as the food was put in on time, it was hard to see their faces.

While the remodeling was underway, the mages of the White Tower continued their usual reclusive life.

“Is this the drink that Yuren commissioned you to develop?”

“Yes, it’s called ‘cider’.”

Ciel looked at the clear cider, curious.

The cider I made was from a company that got seven stars.

The world’s most famous cider is Coca-Cola’s Sprite, but I was more familiar with this one.

“Oh, it’s sweet, but it’s very refreshing.”

“Yeah, that’s the difference between it and Coke.”

If cola is the poster child for soda, cider is the poster child for refreshing flavors that you don’t have to like or dislike.

With its tangy carbonation and refreshing flavor, cider was the best way to describe a soft drink.

In fact, the phrase “cider” was used to describe a situation that was so refreshing that it made your stomach turn.

Because it was so basic, it was also simple to make.

‘All you need is citric acid.’

Cider was sweetened carbonated water with sugar and added citric acid and other flavorings.

I’d heard that citric acid is extracted from lemons and citrus fruits, so it shouldn’t be difficult to develop…or not.

“I’d have to analyze the ingredients to find out, but I don’t think it would be difficult to make.”

Ciel said, as if reading my thoughts.

“Of course, I’d need to know the ingredients.”

“Lemon would be good.”

“Ah, that would be easy.”

“Please.”

Leaving Ciel to make the cider, I went to the main room.

“Hello?”

Ranya was waiting, dressed in her going-out clothes, a white robe draped over her head.

“Are you all ready to go?”

“Yes. Shall we go?”

“Yes.”

I left the Tower, alone with Ranya for the first time in a long time.

I needed to keep busy for the time being if I was going to set up a factory in Yuren.

*

……Cat Dream Community Emont Branch.

“Branch Leader, I think you should come out, Nya.”

As he trimmed his beard in the mirror, Branch Leader Konia shook his head at the staff member’s words.

“Is someone from the main branch here, Nya?”

“A VIP customer is here, Nya.”

At the mention of a VIP customer, Konia stood up and took a quick step.

Cat Dream Community was a real estate agency in Yuren.

It was a company that brokered and arranged real estate deals, with its main clientele being ‘beast-people’ who had come out into human society.

But,

“…Humans?”

Sitting in the reception room were a human man and woman.

They were Ranya and Yuri, the two who had left the White Tower.

Yuri spoke up.

“Is this a place where humans can’t come?”

“Not really, but it’s true that human customers are rare, Nya.”

Humans were a self-sufficient race and often looked down upon or shunned the beast-people.

As such, it was safe to say that humans rarely visited the Cat Dream Community.

But when they did, they were all customers, human or beast-people.

“Are you looking for something in particular, Nya?”

“A workshop.”

“A workshop!

The corners of Konia’s mouth twitched.

A wizard or alchemist’s workshop was a special place where experiments were the main focus, so it was many times more expensive than a normal building.

The exterior walls had to be strong, the ventilation had to be good, and so on.

“Are there any workshops that are hard to find from the outside?”

“Of course there are, Nya.”

Konia flipped open a thick booklet with a list of workshops.

“The one I recommend is Downhill in the East, Nya.”

A slum, Downhill was a neighborhood that was not well policed, but was often sought after by customers who wanted a place to hide.

“Workshops with vents and protective barriers, Nya.”

Konia pointed out one of the better workshops.

“The previous owner, a mage, had an unfortunate accident with an explosion during an experiment, but it’s cheap, Nya.”

“Not bad.”

“It is.”

Ranya and Yuri nodded.

It was not uncommon for mages to have accidents during experiments.

There were so many open rooms in the White Tower alone right now.

By comparison, the workshop Konia had shown them was state-of-the-art, complete with magical barriers.

“How much does it cost?”

“Three million gold, Nya.”

“Three, three hundred……!”

Konia scoffed inwardly as Ranya flinched.

‘You’re a hillbilly, Nya.’

Workshops start at a million gold for the basics, with larger workshops equipped with the latest tools going for up to ten million gold.

If they were surprised by three million gold, they must have come without checking the prices.

“Even three million gold is a ten percent discount, Nya.”

Of course, Konia had only listed the price high, and the actual workshop was worth less than three million gold.

But real estate was all about having your cake and eating it too.

“We can do the loan in installments, Nya.”

When Ranya hesitated, Konia pulled out a card that said Loans and Installments.

“…Hmm. That’s nice, but I’ll take something else.”

“Then how about this one, Nya.”

Konia continued to show them properties that were overpriced.

But Ranya, with a can-do attitude, avoided all the traps like a ghost.

‘…Is this part of the job, Nya?’

Konia’s face turned puzzled at Ranya’s seemingly easy demeanor.

‘Our Tower Lord is not easy.’

I shook my head inwardly as I watched her panic.

It’s just that Ranya is weak when money is involved, and even if she looks like that, she’s one of the top ten mages on the continent.

It would be difficult even for me to eat leftovers against such a mage.

My master was the type to never make a losing deal.

As I watched Konia sweat, I selected a workshop from the brochure.

“I’ll take this one.”

“…Are you sure that’s what you want, Nya?”

Konia’s eyes widened at my choice.

“You shouldn’t pick this one, Nya.”

Konia, who was trying to drive up the price, ended up earnestly dissuading me instead.

“The Windless Zone is a monster-infested place, Nya.”

The workshop I chose was tucked underground in the monster-infested wilderness.

It was a workshop that was hard to find from the outside, but just as dangerous to enter.

‘This is where stock should be made,’ I thought.

The finished stock was enchanted with Ranya’s rock magic, so the recipe could not be leaked, but the process of making it was a top secret that must never be revealed.

In the Empire, Ranya took care of these matters, so it was none of my concern.

But in Yuren, where I had no connections, I would have to go out on my own to find a workshop.

I could have gotten help from the Yuren government, but that would have risked revealing the location of the workshop.

‘It’s not like it’s hard to get in and out.’

It was dangerous to travel to and from the Windless Zone, but if I built a portal, I wouldn’t have to go back and forth.

There was another reason why I came to the Cat Dream Community, which is only for beast-people.

“That whisker is……!”

Konia’s eyes widened as I held up the whisker I’d gotten from Laura.

“Excuse me, Nya.”

Konia’s saleslike demeanor changed in an instant.

“I can find you a much better workshop than this dangerous place, Nya. Of course, I don’t need a commission.”

“No, this is good enough for me.”

“But are you sure this is a good workshop, Nya?”

“Yes, there’s a way to get there and back.”

“…… Okay, Nya, but since I made a mistake, I’ll only accept 100,000 gold for this workshop.”

“Is that really all you’ll accept?”

I asked, surprised by Konia’s words.

The workshop itself was the best deal I’d been offered so far, except for the location.

“Don’t worry, if you’re a benefactor to the Miao clan, you’re a benefactor to me, Nya.”

The effects of the whisker were amazing.

*

After checking out the workshop, we headed to the Gold Tower, the home of the alchemists.

We were supposed to be introduced to the alchemists who would be working at the cola factory.

We were greeted by Charlotte, the civic representative of Yuren.

“You’re early, I assume you haven’t found a workshop yet?”

“No, we have.”

Charlotte, who had been looking around, was surprised to hear that I had already saved the workshop.

“Rather than that, can you introduce us to the alchemists?”

“…Oh, yes, of course, please follow me.”

Once Charlotte had recovered from her surprise, she led us to where the alchemists were waiting.

In a workshop cluttered with large and small beakers and glass tubes, a dozen alchemists were waiting for Ranya and me.

“These are the best alchemists in the business.”

Even without Charlotte’s explanation, it was common knowledge that the alchemists of the Golden Tower were excellent.

What mattered was whether they were tight-lipped enough to keep their secrets, but that wasn’t a problem.

“…Hmm, the ‘Book of Oaths’.”

“That’s the least we can do to make sure we can work with you.”

Book of Oaths is a magical scroll which ensures that once a contract is made, the promise will be fulfilled.

Of course, it wasn’t impossible to break it arbitrarily, but…….

‘This one is unbreakable.’

Ranya was the one who created it.

To break a ‘Book of Oaths’ made with Ranya’s magic power, one would have to be stronger than Ranya.

In other words, they can’t just break it.

Of course, Yuren must have known this already.

The question is.

“Coke, did you say? It was an interesting potion, to be sure, but it’s nothing more than a food item.”

An older alchemist with an air of sage-like wisdom spoke up.

“And who are you?”

“I am Erestol, a first-class alchemist.”

I didn’t know the criteria for classifying alchemists, but I could tell at a glance that Erestol was an accomplished alchemist.

He was older and older meant more experience.

And for all his years of experience, Erestol had a high nose.

“We are not here to make a deal with the White Tower.”

“…Erestol?”

Charlotte looked puzzled, but Erestol held his ground.

“To show you that Coke isn’t enough to take on the Gold Tower.”

Erestol picked up the round beaker on the table.

“We can make our own coke.”

Erestol proudly shook the beaker’s cloudy liquid.

Taking the beaker held out to me as if to check it out, I took a sip.

“It must taste good.”

“Yes, it is delicious.”

I admitted meekly.

It tasted just like a soda with milk.

It reminded me of a certain beverage from a previous life, only not quite as good.

“Would you like to try one of mine?”

“?”

To the puzzled Erestol, I dipped the cola stock I had prepared into a nearby beaker of carbonated water.

Chiiiiii─

As the stock released and took on the color of cola, I dropped in the aspartame powder to create Zero Cola.

“Coke.”

Erestol tasted the Zero Coke and shook his head in disbelief.

“It tastes a little different, but what is it?”

“It’s a new flavor of Zero Coke that the White Tower just released.”

“Zero?”

“It has no sugar in it.”

“!”

Erestol’s eyes widened.

The alchemists of Yuren had not yet heard of Zero Cola.