Chapter 126

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 126

Chapter Title: Waste Disposal Business (2)

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Back on Earth where I used to live, the waste disposal industry wasn't something that could be run on a slapdash basis like this.

First, you'd have to deal with transportation and storage issues for the waste. Then there were classification methods, recycling plans, ample landfill space, incinerators, and for some industrial waste, massive disposal costs—not to mention a whole host of other problems.

But this was a different world. And from everything I'd seen and heard so far, the cultural level here was akin to Earth's Middle Ages.

The Industrial Revolution hadn't happened yet, so production relied on handicrafts rather than factories. Unlike modern times, there were no highly dangerous radioactive wastes or medical wastes requiring strict legal procedures.

All I really needed to worry about was transportation, storage, and disposal methods. And all of those could be solved relatively simply.

"Alright. Those who've paid at the counter, please come this way and stack your trash and waste here."

For waste collection, I didn't have our staff go pick it up directly. Instead, the people disposing of the waste handled the initial gathering and transport themselves to a certain point. And the piles of all sorts of trash...

"Heave-ho!"

With the help of demons who possessed strength beyond most machines and the golems silently getting the job done, transporting it was a breeze. Normally, direct human contact might lead to illness or injury, but...

Thanks to the [Janitor's Outfit] preventing dirty waste from sticking, there was no risk of illness or injury. Plus, it was utterly tear-proof, drastically reducing the chance of cuts or harm.

And storage? That was simple too. We barely needed to store anything at all. If it piled up beyond limits, we could just [Collect] it into the system's [Collection List].

Of course, we wouldn't even need to store it in the first place. We'd process it right away.

"Rio, head on out."

"Yes!"

Transporting waste from human cities all the way to these ruins would take considerable time and effort, so we gathered it at a spot a bit removed from the cities and dispatched Rio there via the [Staff Dispatch] function.

And once Rio arrived...

-Thud!!

She whipped out her personal [Incinerator] and burned the trash to ash. Toxic gases from incineration? That didn't happen. And even if it did, it wasn't my problem.

I wasn't a resident of this world, and there were no laws forbidding it. What were they gonna do?

'Not that it happens in the first place.'

At low levels, the [Incinerator] took ages to burn trash and spewed toxic fumes, damaging the player character without a high enough [Cleaning Mask] level. But mine was at max level.

It incinerated in an instant, produced no fumes, and somehow had infinite capacity in its tiny, portable form—enough for Rio to carry around and stuff mountains of trash inside.

'Come to think of it, it's max-level gear, but Rio can use it? Must be because of that '[Incinerator] usable' trait under Red Demon Tribe racial perks.'

Anyway, demons tossed the trash they'd hauled into Rio's set-up [Incinerator]. To save time, Rio torched the smaller bits with flames from the [High-Pressure Cleaner].

Since it was a cleaning tool, burning stuff with it still netted points.

And thanks to that...

'Nice. Perfect!'

Normally, no points outside cleaning zones, but dispatching Rio via [Staff Dispatch] let points flow in normally. And at an insane rate.

But that wasn't all.

Various materials for upgrading cleaning tools and outfits—like those for Erzsebet's [High-Pressure Cleaner] or the staff's [Janitor's Outfit], which we'd burned through—were now replenishing at a breakneck pace.

A quick peek at the [Shop] showed points already topping 10,000.

'Of course, the prep work was a pain.'

We had to pick usable fake identities from the demons' disguises, disguise transport golems as mage-made familiars instead of monster types, deal with taxes and such since we were taking money...

Still, it was worth the effort. Plus, the continent's residents weren't ready for a proper 'waste disposal business' yet, so we kept prices low at a flat 1 silver per trash type. But we'd raise them gradually later.

That way, we'd rake in massive cash, and bulk purchases in human cities wouldn't raise suspicions about our funds' origins.

'Can't earn points like this every time, though.'

Right now, pent-up trash gave us a windfall, but future hauls would be smaller. Still, long-term, it was pure profit. Just the unique point-earning alone made it worthwhile.

"Cl-cleaning was one thing, but now trash...? Disposing of the city's accumulated garbage...?"

Meanwhile, Jeanne—who'd been endlessly repeating the cleaning tasks I'd assigned—looked utterly dumbfounded upon hearing my business plan, like her sense of reason had fled.

"Humans dirty everything, and demons clean it up? What kind of...?"

Her values seemed a bit shattered, but good was good, right? It wasn't like I was doing anything evil.

"Master, is this truly necessary? You slew a 5-star hero. Do we really need to tiptoe around humans or skulk in the shadows?"

"He's right. Just send us instead. We'll smash their weak forces and bring back the spoils."

Of course, a few demons in the ruins—especially the belligerent werebeasts—griped about my methods. Why bother with this ridiculous 'business' when we could just take what we wanted?

But I convinced them easily enough.

"Any complaints?"

"...No, sir!"

I was starting to get the hang of handling demons. These subordinates were mostly bound by Erzsebet's kinship or Lilith's charm, so rebellion wasn't an option. Demons obeyed the strong—that was their way.

Especially ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠after I took down that 5-star hero; their loyalty had maxed out without me even trying.

"By the way, has word spread among humans about the 5-star hero getting offed?"

"No. Actually, they don't even know the Hero of Radiance came south."

To gauge human reactions post-hero-slaying while launching the business, I'd sent scouts. Surprisingly, things were quiet. They didn't even know Lumen was dead.

"Lady Jeanne and Sir Lumen's movements were kept secret. If word got out that I—the saintess who should be in the capital—had left, the faithful would panic, and the demons would..."

"Eh, whatever. If it's done, move to zone 3 cleaning."

"........."

Jeanne, who'd butted in to explain, got shut down hard and trudged off to the cleaning zone broom in hand, lips pursed.

"I'm a saintess... I can even use miracles..."

Even as she surrendered, she'd agonized over what to do if this dungeon master turned hostile to humans—or if she'd misinterpreted her oracle and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠he was actually a vile dungeon master.

All that worry was for naught now.

Cleaning! This lunatic only cared about cleaning!

'Everything feels so stupid now...'

She'd confirmed with her own eyes that demons weren't purely evil. Still, she wanted to see the dungeon master and minions firsthand, wondering if they'd differ...

But the dungeon master was a freak who cleaned personally, and even his minions didn't bat an eye at it...

'Are dungeon masters supposed to clean their own dungeons? Am I the weird one for thinking otherwise?'

The dungeon folk were just used to it, but for Jeanne—newly exposed to the outside and vowing to shed her old biases—warped common sense was steadily taking root.

"Fine. If any ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠rumors start about the Hero of Radiance's death, report it immediately—top priority."

"Yes, Master."

"Hm. And..."

"Master. Might I make one request?"

"Hm?"

Having shooed Jeanne away—to avoid any saintly change of heart from human news—I was briefing the demons on infiltrating cities when Erzsebet, who'd been quiet, spoke up.

"Erzsebet? No more rest...?"

She'd suffered greatly fighting the Hero of Radiance. Word was she'd used so much blood she couldn't regenerate anymore.

That's why I'd let her recover with captured humans' blood while the other demons rested...

And now a request?

"What is it? You've done plenty for me, and aced it this time too, so I'll hear out most any favor..."

...Wait, hold up. It wasn't blood again, was it?

"The east."

"Blood's a bit... Huh?"

I'd preemptively braced to refuse a blood ask, but what came out of Erzsebet's mouth was completely out of left field.

"When gathering intel from humans, could you have them thoroughly investigate the east? Specifically the eastern demon realm and its 'Empress'?"

"...Empress?"

And with an expression that looked desperately earnest.