Labyrinth Renovation – 006 | Sousaku – 創作

Episode 06 Infinite Stock!

To put the situation in perspective, I decided to prepare a meal.
After all, I had not eaten anything for quite a while. As expected, I was hungry.
You can't have a good idea if you are hungry.

Fiona said that I had been watching the dragon for quite some time. Certainly, the time on my smartphone has advanced considerably.

For the record, I've got no signal.
I don't know where we are, but it will be difficult to call for help.
I tried the phone in the Hardware Store, but it too was disconnected. The PC in the office was able to boot up, but the Internet was not working.

(I'll ask Fiona about the details later, but right now I'm hungry.)

That said, granola or something similar would be sufficient.
It would be better to consume milk and yogurt, which don't last long, as soon as possible.
As expected, this is not the time to be talking about money at this point in time.

As I was going to the Hardware Store, Fiona grabbed my hand.

"W-Where are you going? "
"Where? I'm just going over there to get some food."
"I'm coming with you."

Having said that, hand in hand, we headed for the Hardware Store.
Somehow, all of a sudden, she became attached to me. Because I fed her? Is this an effect of that?

"Granola, granola, granola. Where was it again? "
"What's a granola? "
"……What is it? Dehydrated seeds and cereals? "
"Oh, you mean like muesli? "
"I don't know what that muesli is."

Well, she could eat porridge, and granola is more of a Western-style food, so Fiona should be able to eat it normally. What about milk? Well, we'll just have to test the waters there.3

"Over here, we only have meals for the sick.…… Eh? "
"What's wrong? "
"Well, something doesn't feel right. I wonder."
The grocery section. There's nothing strange about it――

"……Ehh? I don't remember there being so much porridge left. "

The first time I fed Fiona, I put a fair amount in the basket, so if there were any leftovers, there should only be a few. But now the shelves were packed to the brim. It was as if someone had stocked the shelves.
I also looked at ready-made side dishes other than the porridge, but they too had changed back to their original state.

"…………They're back.……How? Or did someone restock it? "
"Someone? "
"Maybe a store clerk ghost……?"
"Ghost, as in apparition? But there are no monsters on this level, you know? "

So this is the kind of world where ghosts are commonplace.……
Well, nevertheless, electricity is coming normally, and maybe it is possible that things will eventually be restored.

"Let's try an experiment."

I put the porridge in the basket. Not surprisingly, the porridge had been decreased from the shelves and was not being recovered any other way.

"What are we going to do? "
"For now, let's just keep an eye on things here. Will the ghost clerk come or not……"

In any case, we have time, so we should solve the mysteries that can be solved.
The wait was a mere five minutes.
Poof, and. Porridge suddenly appeared on the shelf.

"Ehhhh!? How!? "

Fiona sounded puzzled.
I picked up the porridge and compared it to the one I just took. They are completely identical.
In other words――

"We did it, Fiona! It's an infinite stock! "
"What do you mean? "
"It means we can live here for as many years as we want! We've got everything we need, food, clothing, and shelter, all perfectly arranged. Would you like to get a permanent position here with me? "
"I don't……"

Shock! I was dumped out of the blue. I'm kidding, though.
We still don't know anything beyond that dragon, so there is a possibility that we won't be able to leave this place for a long time. At that point, no matter how much inventory was available, there was still a sense of uncertainty, but now the quandary was virtually eliminated.
If identical items are replenished, then the expiration date will probably be reset back as well.

……Well, that doesn't mean I'm going to live here until I die, though. I think my mind would reach its limits before my body.
Nevertheless, a strong backup plan is always better, isn't it?

◇◆◆◆◇

We (mainly just me) were excited about the infinite inventory, but now we had more important things to do.
Like having something to eat, and getting information out of Fiona.

"Here you go. This is granola. You can have milk or yogurt, whichever you prefer."
"So cute! It looks delicious with lots of nuts! "
"You're reacting like those food influencer girls……"

Apparently, this food was more familiar in appearance than the porridge.
She ate it without hesitation, munching on it.
I personally don't really like it because it gets stuck in my teeth. It tastes good, but I'm a Japanese food kind of girl.
We have electricity. Next time, let's try cooking rice in a rice steamer.

Oh, by the way, I stopped using honorifics with Fiona.
The reason...... because I saw her slouching around, smoking some dangerous-looking…… weed, some something......

While eating, I drew information out of Fiona.

"I was lying there and you woke me up, Fiona. But what happened while I was unconscious? "
"What happened, you ask? ...... you just showed up out of the blue. This entire building too. Or more accurately, the building appeared, and when I walked in, I saw you lying on the floor."

So, the Hardware Store was the main one, and I guess I was an accessory?
No, or perhaps vice versa. In fact, the whole situation was strange in itself, as there was no one else there besides me.

"By the way, I was caught in a displacement trap and sent here. The treasure chests here sometimes have traps like that. It has kept me here for three extra days――"
A treasure chest? Trap? "

(Those are words you don't use in your everyday life. Is it like a game? Fiona is dressed like a princess knight, ...... says it's not a costume, and there's even a dragon, and then there's this place――)

To tell the truth, up until this moment, I still did not fully understand the situation―― that is, that I had been teleported to another world.
I had seen such stories in manga and anime, but I had never imagined that such a thing would happen to me, it would be more realistic to think of it as the afterlife.
There's also the possibility of an epic prank............ But I guess that would be too much, right?

(Hmmm? What is it all about? I wonder if it's a dream after all…… Because, you know, right? I fainted in the Hardware Store, and when I woke up, the whole Hardware Store had been transported to another world! Isn't this even beyond the level of ridiculousness? I swear, this is a dream. A dream. I mean, how could there be such a magnificent dragon? Look, I'll just do the classic cheek pinching and it's not like it HUUUUUUUURTS, OUCH!)

"Hey, are you listening? "
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was just thinking."
"Thinking? ……While pinching your own cheek? "
"It is a traditional method of judgment in my country."

I answered while rubbing my aching cheek.
I mean, it was just plain painful!

"So, where did you come from? "
"From Japan? "
"Ya-pan? And why are you asking me? It makes you sound skeptical……"
"Ahh, I sort of expected you to not know anything about Japan……"
"And what's with that building? A store? …… But isn't it too big for it to be one? "
"That's called a Hardware Store...... it's quicker to look, want me to show you around? "

I decided to show her around inside to share my knowledge.
There may be something new to discover, and there are places we haven't checked out yet.

Fiona followed along, surprisingly timidly.
She looks like a princess knight, but I wonder if she is more skittish than she seems.
……No, perhaps everything is just unfamiliar to her. If you don't know what kind of product it is, you have to be cautious. I guess that's how it is.
While explaining to Fiona, I tried to grasp the situation.
The Hardware Store "Dharma" boasted an unusually large space typical of rural Hardware Stores, and it even had a gas station in addition to gardening supplies and materials, of course.
We also checked the bathrooms and rooftop, which we hadn't checked yet, but we couldn't find anyone other than us.