Chapter Text
"Start with the basics," Natsumi said, starting the conversation. "Like... What country are we in?"
Otto blinked. "You really don't know?"
"We did say we’re from very far away so no" Subaru confirmed.
"Right. Okay." Otto took a breath, clearly trying to process just how 'far away' these two must be from. "You're in the Kingdom of Lugunica… that’s kinda why I said ‘I’d be your personal guide to Lugunica’ earlier… anyways it’s one of the four major nations that make up our world. To the north is The Holy Kingdom of Gusteko, to the south is the Vollachia Empire, and to the west is Kararagi."
Subaru and Natsumi both leaned forward, listening intently. This was exactly the kind of information they needed. ‘So there are only four nations in this world, that's not a lot, maybe this world is smaller than Earth’ both thought.
"Lugunica is ruled by the Royal family," Otto continued, warming to his role as teacher. "Or rather, it was. There's been some... complications recently. But that's politics, and you said you wanted basics first."
"What kind of complications?" Natsumi asked.
Otto hesitated. "Like there being no King at the moment."
“No King? Yeah that seems like a big thing” Subaru replied. ‘Maybe they’re fighting for power like in movies to see which son or daughter will take over as the ruler’
Subaru filed that away as something to ask about later as it seems that conversation would be more complicated. "What about this town? Fleur?"
"It's a small town between the Capital and the Mathers domain. A lot of merchants pass through here as a stopover, which is why the inns have decent rates of merchants everyday. Not much else to say about it. It's safe, quiet, boring."
"Boring sounds nice right about now," Natsumi muttered.
For the next hour, Otto answered their questions. He explained the nobility, merchants, craftsmen, common folk. He talked about the basic stuff he knew about magic. He described the races that lived in Lugunica.
He told them about the Royal Guard, the Knights of Lugunica, and how crime was handled. He explained a bit of trade routes, common professions.
"That's... a lot," Subaru said finally, his head spinning.
"And that's just the basics," Otto said with a slight laugh. "I haven't even gotten into the really complicated stuff. But this should be enough to get you started."
"This helps more than you know," Natsumi said sincerely. "Thank you, Otto."
Otto looked happy. "Well, if you have more questions later, I'll be in Fleur for a bit. Feel free to find me if you need more help.”
They exchanged a few more pleasantries before Otto excused himself to take care of some business. The moment he left, Subaru and Natsumi looked at each other.
"Back to our room?" Natsumi suggested.
"Definitely…” Subaru replied
The moment the door closed behind them, Subaru flopped onto his bed with a groan.
"My brain hurts," he said.
"Mine too," Natsumi agreed, sitting on her own bed. "That was a lot of information to take in all at once."
"Yeah, but necessary." Subaru stared at the ceiling, organizing his thoughts. "We need to figure out what we're going to do long term. We can't just stay in this inn forever, living off the money we got from my phone."
“True, but the good thing is we also have my phone we can sell later if we’re in need of more money.” Natsumi added
“Yeah… our luck sucks but at least it had some mercy and let us sell our phones for a good amount of money” Subaru replied back looking at the wooden ceiling. ‘What do we do? Like what kinda job can we get… it’s not like we got any sort of experience.’
“What job do you think we should get? Otto already explained to us all the jobs in this small town.” Subaru added.
Natsumi was quiet for a moment, then she sat up straighter. "What about becoming merchants as a job?"
Subaru turned his head to look at her. "Merchants?"
"Think about it," Natsumi said, her voice gaining confidence as she worked through the idea. "We have money to start with. But more importantly, we know things from our world that don't exist here. We could make things from Earth and sell them."
Subaru sat up on the side of the bed facing Natumi directly, his mind already working through the possibilities. She was right. That was actually brilliant. They had knowledge that this world didn't have, yeah they weren’t geniuses who could outright make an engine but the little they did know about their world was definitely enough to make it big.
"You're right," he said. "We could introduce products from Earth that would revolutionize things here."
"Exactly!" Natsumi was getting excited now, her eyes bright. "We just need to figure out what would be easiest to make with the resources available here. What do we know how to make? What would actually sell?"
They both fell silent, thinking. Subaru and Natsumi ran through options in their head. What did they actually know how to make from scratch? They weren't exactly craftsmen. They couldn't build complex technology. They didn't know how to forge metal or work with wood at a professional level so it couldn’t be something that involved that.
But food... food Subaru|Natsumi knew a bit about that. He|She had spent enough time in the kitchen back home, watching mom cook before things got… complicated, experimenting with recipes when he|she was bored. Simple things, mostly, but there were some dishes and ingredients that Japan had perfected that probably didn't exist in a medieval fantasy world.
Their mind landed on one thing in particular. One perfect thing. Something simple that they actually knew the recipe for by heart because they’d looked it up so many times and made it even more times, hoping to make the perfect batch. Something that would change this world's cuisine forever.
Something they loved more than almost anything.
"Mayonnaise!," Natsumi and Subaru said at the exact same time looking directly into each other's eyes sparkling with excitement.
They both froze.
Natsumi was staring back at Subaru with wide eyes, her lips slightly parted in surprise.
Subaru was staring back at Natsumi with wide eyes, his lips slightly parted in surprise
Of course they had said the same thing again especially to this. Because back home, Subaru|Natsumi had been obsessed with mayonnaise. Absolutely, utterly, completely obsessed. He|she put it on everything sandwiches, rice, fries, pizza, vegetables, sometimes even ate it straight from the jar with a spoon. His|her parents had teased him|her relentlessly about it, calling it that he'd|she’d probably marry a jar of mayo someday.
He'd|She’d never told anyone outside his|her family about the depth of his mayo addiction. Why would he|she? It’s not like anyone else could truly grasp his|her love for the condiment, so he'd|she’d never actually talked to anyone about how much he|she genuinely loved it. Especially not anyone his|her age.
And especially not a girl|boy.
And Natsumi... Natsumi was him. Which meant she was exactly the same way.
And Subaru… Subaru was her. Which meant he was exactly the same way
They continued to stare at each other, and Subaru|Natsumi could see his|her own shock and excitement reflected in her|his eyes. That same desperate love for the perfect condiment. That same immediate recognition that mayonnaise was the answer to everything.
"You..." Natsumi started, her voice almost awed. "You actually like mayonnaise too?" Natsumi knew it was a stupid question to ask it was literally her male self but she still asked anyways wanting to know to what depth her male counterpart loved it.
"Like it?" Subaru's face was starting to feel warm. "I'm obsessed with it. I put it on literally everything.”
"Me too!" Natsumi's face flushed pink, and her eyes were shining with excitement.
Subaru was still perfectly opposite of her despite his excitement. "Holy shit, you really get it. You actually get it."
They were both grinning now, wide and unrestrained, and Subaru|Natsumi felt something warm and bright bloom in his|her chest. This was so stupid. They were getting this excited over a condiment. But it didn't matter because someone finally understood. Someone finally got it. Someone else loved mayo as much as he|she did.
And that someone was...
Subaru's|Natsumi’s thoughts stuttered to a halt as he|she really looked at Natsumi|Subaru. Her|His eyes were bright with excitement, her|his cheeks were flushed that pretty pink color, and she|he was looking at him|her like he'd|she’d just revealed the secrets of the universe. Like he|she was someone special, someone important, because he|she understood her|his weird obsession with mayonnaise.
No one had ever looked at him|her like that before.
He|She couldn't seem to look away from her|him, from the way her|his smile made her|his whole face light up, from the way she|he was leaning forward slightly like she|he wanted to be closer to him|her. He|She wondered if he|she was doing the same from her|his perspective the answer was obvious even to him|her.
"I've never really talked to anyone about this," Natsumi said, and her voice was softer now, almost shy. "Except my parents. And definitely never someone… You know. My age. A... a boy."
Oh. Oh no. Subaru's brain was short circuiting. She looked so genuinely happy, so pretty when she smiled like that, and she was blushing because of him, because he understood her, because they shared this stupid thing in common
"Same," Subaru managed, his voice coming out slightly strangled. "I mean, same but opposite. A girl. Someone who's not family who actually gets it."
They stared at each other for a long moment, and the air between them felt charged with something Subaru couldn't quite name. It wasn't just shared excitement about condiments. It was... more than that. Something about being understood. About finding someone who saw the weird parts of you and didn't think you were strange, who actually celebrated them.
Someone who made your heart race and your face heat up and made you forget, just for a moment, that you were technically the same person.
Because right now, looking at Natsumi with her bright eyes and flushed cheeks and that smile that made his chest feel tight, Subaru wasn't thinking about how she was technically him. He was just thinking about how she was a girl who loved mayonnaise and understood him in a way no one else ever had, and how much he wanted to keep making her smile like that.
That was... that was probably something he should think about later. Much later. When his face wasn't on fire and his heart wasn't trying to beat out of his chest.
"So," Natsumi said, clearing her throat and looking away, breaking the moment. Her face was still pink. "Mayonnaise. That's... that's actually perfect for what we need."
"Yeah," Subaru agreed, trying to get his brain back into business mode. Right. Merchants. They were talking about becoming merchants. Not about how cute Natsumi looked when she got excited. Definitely not that. "It's simple to make. Just eggs, oil, vinegar or lemon juice, and some salt. We can definitely get all those ingredients here."
"And it doesn't exist in this world yet," Natsumi added, her voice becoming steadier as she focused on the practical aspects. "We'd have a complete monopoly. No competition at all."
"Exactly." Subaru felt himself calming down as they shifted into planning mode. "It's perfect. We know the recipe by heart, the ingredients are simple and available, and there's no way anyone else here has thought of it."
"And more importantly..." Natsumi looked back at him, and they both grinned.
"We won't have to live without it," they said in unison, then laughed.
"God, can you imagine?" Natsumi said, and there was genuine horror in her voice. "Being stuck in another world forever and never tasting mayonnaise again? That would be actual torture."
"It would be worse than fighting a boss you spend months trying to kill in a game just for the game to glitch on the final hit ending in your death," Subaru agreed.
"Way worse," Natsumi nodded emphatically. "That would just be heartbreaking. Living without mayo would be a slow, painful death of bland food and misery."
They grinned at each other again, and this time the moment felt easier. More like two people who'd just found a kindred spirit and were reveling in that connection.
"Okay," Natsumi said, standing up and starting to pace. "So we make mayonnaise. But we'll need equipment and we'll need to figure out pricing, how to explain what it is to people who've never seen it before..."
"We could do tastings," Subaru suggested, getting into it now. "Give out free samples to show people how good it is. Once they try it, they'll be hooked."
"Smart. We'll need to come up with a good sales pitch too. Something that explains what it is without making it sound weird."
"'A revolutionary new condiment that enhances the flavor of any dish,'" Subaru said in his best merchant voice. "'Creamy, tangy, and absolutely perfect on everything from bread to vegetables to meat.'"
"Not bad," Natsumi said with a smile. "Though we might need to tone down the 'perfect on everything' part. Don't want to sound too obsessed."
"Speak for yourself. I'm planning to tell everyone that mayo is a gift from the gods even if they won’t ever understand the true perfection that it is." Subaru answered back
"That's because it is a gift from the flavor Gods" Natsumi smiled
"We're still going to need help though," Subaru said, getting serious again. "We need someone who knows the merchant business. Someone who knows the market, knows how to actually sell things to people, knows the trade routes."
"Otto," Natsumi said "He knows all that stuff. And from what we saw, he really needs…… money."
"Otto," Subaru agreed, nodding.
"We should probably work out the details of our offer before we approach him," Natsumi said, sitting back down.
They spent another twenty minutes hashing out the details of their offer, making sure they were prepared for any questions Otto might have.
They found Otto in the common room again, back at his corner table with his ledger spread out in front of him. He looked up as they approached, surprise flickering across his face.
"Back already? Did you think of more questions?"
"Actually," Subaru said, pulling out a chair and sitting down without being invited. Natsumi did the same. "We have a business proposition for you."
Otto's eyebrows rose. "A business proposition?"
"We want to become merchants," Natsumi said. "And we want you to help us."
"Help you how, exactly?" Otto asked carefully, setting down his quill.
Subaru leaned forward. "We have a product we want to sell. Something new, something that doesn't exist in this world yet. Something we know how to make. But we don't know anything about running a merchant business. We need someone with experience to help us get started."
"And you think that someone is me?" Otto asked, and there was something guarded in his expression now.
"We know it's you," Natsumi said. "You know the trade routes, you know the market, you know how businesses work here. You have everything we need."
"Except money," Subaru added. "Which, no offense, you seem to be lacking."
Otto's face flushed slightly.”Rude you didn’t have to say it like that…”
Otto sighed and asked “What's your product?"
"A new kind of condiment," Subaru smiling a bit by the response. "We call it mayonnaise. It's creamy, tangy, and enhances the flavor of pretty much any food."
"A condiment," Otto repeated skeptically. "You want to start a business based on a condiment?"
"Once people taste it, they'll want to buy it. It's that good."Natsumi said.
"And you know how to make this... mayonnaise?"
"We know the exact recipe," Subaru confirmed. "We can make it easily with ingredients available here. We'd have a complete monopoly since no one else knows about it."
Otto drummed his fingers on the table, thinking. "And what would my role be in this?"
"Partner," Subaru said smiling. "Equal say in business decisions. You'd help us navigate the merchant world, handle the actual trading and selling, teach us what we need to know. We'd split the profits sixty-six to thirty-four, sixty-six for us since we're providing the capital and product, thirty-four for you for your expertise."
"And before you think we're trying to lowball you," Natsumi added, "that split will be renegotiated as we grow and start making consistent profit. This is just the starting arrangement."
Otto stared at them. "That's... actually very generous. Too generous, almost. What's the catch?"
"No catch," Subaru said. "We genuinely need your help, and we're willing to pay fairly for it. We're new to this business. You're not. It's that simple."
"Plus," Natsumi said with a slight smirk, "you're kind of our best option right now. Someone more successful probably wouldn't give two weird foreigners the time of day. But you..." She gestured at his ledger. "You're desperate enough to actually work with us. No offense."
"Plenty of offense taken," Otto whined, but there was no real heat in it.
"We're offering you a lifeline," Subaru chuckled at the interaction, he could already tell that working with Otto would be fun if he accepted. "A fresh start with actual funding behind you. Real capital to work with instead of scraping by trying to salvage bad investments. And all you have to do is teach us the ropes and help us sell mayonnaise."
"Which is definitely going to sell," Natsumi added, smiling confidently. "We're that sure about the product."
"You keep saying that, but I haven't even tasted this mayonnaise," Otto pointed out. "How do I know it's actually good and not just some weird foreign thing that no one will want?"
"We'll make you a sample," Subaru said. "You can try it yourself and then decide if you think it'll sell."
"Though we already know you'll love it," Natsumi said with a grin. "Everyone loves mayo. They just don't know it yet."
Otto looked between them, his expression still conflicted. "You two are very confident for people who've never run a business before."
"We're confident in the product," Natsumi corrected. "We're humble enough about the business side to know we need your help."
"Which is why we're offering you a partnership instead of just trying to hire you as an employee," Subaru sincerely added. "We recognize your value."
Otto's eyes widened a bit at his words, as nobody had told him that, especially not as sincerely as Subaru just did. He truly believed that someone like Otto had value.
"What's the worst that could happen?" Subaru asked. "If the mayonnaise doesn't sell, we're out some money and time, but you're no worse off than you are now. But if it does sell—"
“—Then we all make a profit and you're back on your feet as a successful merchant," Natsumi finished Subaru’s sentence.
"You're really not going to let me turn this down, are you?" Otto asked, a slight smile tugging at his lips.
"We're very persuasive when we want to be," Subaru said.
Otto looked at them for a long moment, his expression finally starting to soften. Subaru could see the moment he made his decision, even before he spoke.
And then Otto's face suddenly twisted into an exaggerated expression of fake indignation.
"You know? You two are really mean, you know that?" he said, and his voice had taken on a theatrical quality that made Subaru blink in surprise.
"Uh—" Subaru started.
"No, really!" Otto interrupted, throwing his hands up dramatically. "Coming here with your money and your opportunity and your perfectly logical arguments! Pointing out how close I am to becoming a debt slave, It's incredibly rude!"
"Who just walks up to someone and says 'hey, you're basically failing at your job, want to work for us?' It's insulting! I-it's just mean!"
Subaru and Natsumi stayed slight staring at Otto accepting his tantrum with a smile.
"And another thing" Otto stood up now, gesturing wildly. "You could at least pretend I'm not a complete failure! You could have some tact! You could have said something like 'we hear you're an experienced merchant who's hit a rough patch' instead of basically calling me broke to my face!"
"Otto," Natsumi said, leaning forward with a smile. "Are you actually mad, or are you just performing right now?"
Otto looked at her, his dramatic expression faltering. He glanced around at the people watching them, then back at Subaru and Natsumi. His shoulders sagged.
"I'm performing," he admitted quietly. "But in my defense, you really were mean about how broke I am."
"We were," Subaru agreed, trying not to laugh. "But you're still going to say yes to our offer, aren't you?"
Otto sighed heavily, running a hand through his gray hair. "Of course I'm going to say yes. It's a good offer and I desperately need the money and the fresh start. But I'm allowed to complain about your methods."
"You're absolutely allowed," Natsumi said, and now she was openly grinning. "That was quite a performance, actually. Very entertaining."
"I have many talents," Otto said with mock dignity. "Throwing tantrums is just one of them."
Subaru couldn't help it, he burst out laughing. Natsumi joined in immediately, truly showing they were the same person, and after a moment of trying to maintain his offended expression, Otto cracked a smile too.
"You two are going to be a handful to work with, aren't you?" Otto asked, shaking his head.
"Absolutely," Subaru confirmed, still grinning. "But we promise it'll not be boring."
"We'll keep you entertained at the very least," Natsumi added. "And hopefully rich."
"Mostly rich," Subaru said. "The entertainment is just a bonus."
Otto looked between them, and something in his expression softened completely now. "You know what? I believe you. You're both completely insane, but I believe this might actually work."
He extended his hand across the table, this time with genuine warmth in his eyes. "Alright. You've got yourself a merchant. Partners."
Subaru shook his hand firmly. "Partners."
Natsumi shook his hand as well, her smile bright and genuine. "Welcome to the team, Otto. You won't regret this."
"I'm already regretting the part where you pointed out how broke I am," Otto said, but he was smiling now too. "But otherwise, I think this might actually work out if all you say is true."
"It will work out," Subaru said with confidence he actually felt. "We're going to revolutionize Lugunica's cuisine with mayonnaise, and we're all going to get rich doing it."
"Rich enough that you two can stop making fun of my financial situation," Otto added.
"Rich enough that you'll be able to make fun of other people's financial situations," Natsumi countered.
"I think that’s just you two but besides that, that’s the dream" Otto said solemnly.
"We should start planning our actual business strategy," Otto said, pulling his ledger over and flipping to a fresh page. "When do you want to start?"
"Tomorrow," Subaru said. "We'll need to source ingredients, find equipment, work out the production process."
Otto tapped his quill against the page thoughtfully. "We should probably also think about where we want to set up operations. Fleur is fine for now, but if this mayonnaise really takes off, we might want to move to somewhere with a bigger market."
"One step at a time," Subaru said. "Let's start here, build up some money and reputation, then expand from there."
Otto nodded approvingly. "You two might actually have a head for this business thing."
"We’re highly motivated," Subaru added. "The thought of never tasting mayo again is a powerful motivator."
Otto shook his head, amused. "You two and your mayonnaise. I really hope this stuff is as good as you claim."
"It's better," Subaru and Natsumi said in unison, then grinned at each other knowing that the only person that could truly understand their love for it is themselves.
Otto noticed the exchange and smiled slightly. "You two really are in sync, aren't you? It's almost like you share the same brain sometimes."
"We're very close," Natsumi said.
"Yep you could even say we’re practically the same person from how close we are" Subaru joked.
"If you say so." Otto made a few more notes. "Alright, here's what I'm thinking for tomorrow, We spend the morning getting the ingredients you need for a test batch. You make some mayonnaise, I taste it and give you my honest opinion. If it's as good as you say, we proceed and start planning our first sales attempt. Sound good?"
"Sounds perfect," Natsumi agreed.
"Good. Then we have a plan." Otto closed his ledger with a satisfied snap. "Seems tomorrow we start the great mayonnaise adventure."
"I can't believe I'm staking my merchant career on a condiment I've never tasted," Otto said, but he was smiling.
"You won't regret it," Subaru promised. "When you taste it tomorrow, you'll understand why we're so confident."
"I'll hold you to that." Otto stood up and stretched. "I should probably settle my bill with the innkeeper and get some rest. Tomorrow's going to be busy."
"Tomorrow we change the culinary world of Lugunica," Natsumi said dramatically.
"Tomorrow we make mayonnaise," Subaru corrected with a grin. "Same thing, really."
"Same thing," Natsumi agreed, and they shared another smile that lasted just a moment too long.
Otto definitely noticed this time, raising an eyebrow but not commenting. "Right. Well. I'll see you two in the morning. Try not to stay up too late planning world domination."
"No promises," Subaru said as Otto left.
Once he was gone, Subaru and Natsumi looked at each other, both practically buzzing with excitement and nervous energy.
"We really did it," Natsumi said softly.
"We really did," Subaru agreed. "We have a partner. We have a plan. This is happening."
"Are you scared?" Natsumi asked.
"Terrified," Subaru admitted. "But also excited. This is the first thing in my life that's felt... Like I'm actually doing something that matters."
"Me too," Natsumi said quietly. "here, we're building something. We have a purpose."
"We have each other," Subaru added, and then felt his face heat up a bit at how that sounded.
Just as Natsumi did when she heard it, l smiling genuinely knowing what he meant "Yeah. We do."
They headed back upstairs but before that they paid the inn keeper once more, both lost in their own thoughts about what tomorrow would bring.
"We should probably get some sleep like Otto said," Natsumi said eventually, though she didn't move to lie down. "Big day tomorrow."
Subaru didn't move either ""Yeah, Lots to do…….Natsumi"
"Hmm?"
"I'm really glad you're here. I don't think I could do this alone so thank you for being here with me." Subaru said suddenly.
Natsumi looked at him, and his expression was so soft and warm that it made Natsumi’s heart skip. ‘We really are the same I was just about to tell him something similar…’ "I'm glad you're here too, we’re going to make this work, Subaru."
Eventually, they both fell to bed.
They'd found common ground over mayonnaise of all things. They'd blushed and gotten flustered like awkward teenagers with crushes, even though they were technically the same person. They'd recruited a merchant who threw tantrums but seemed genuinely like a good person.
It was all so weird and unexpected and completely insane.
But as Subaru and Natsumi drifted off to sleep, they realized they wouldn't change any of it. This strange situation, this impossible world, this confusing relationship with themselves, it was all worth it.
Because for the first time in their life, Subaru Natsuki and Natsumi Natsuki felt like they mattered. Like they were building something real. Like they had a future to look forward to.
The thought made them smile as sleep finally claimed them both.
Tomorrow they'd begin their adventure as merchants. Tomorrow they'd take the first real step toward building a life in this world.
But for tonight, they could rest. They had each other, they had a plan, and they had hope for a better tomorrow.