第６６０堀：御社の事業説明をしてもらってもよろしいでしょうか？ (Part1)
**Chapter 660: Could you please explain your company’s business model?**
**Side: Sota Kamishiro, Revenant, Age at death: 78, Unemployed**
It has been nearly… 500 years since I left Earth?
I had supposedly lived out my natural lifespan in this other world, but for some reason, I was resurrected after death. I’m not entirely sure if I actually saved the country I’m involved with, but here I am, entangled with it once again.
Well, I suppose life—and even death—is full of surprises.
"Yes. Please lend us your strength, Sota-san!! Seriously, earnestly, so that we can establish a Ministry of Foreign Affairs!! Oh, and setting aside Enol, we don't need the airhead. As for Arge-dono, I’ll leave that to your own judgment."
"I can hear you, you know!"
That’s right. Yuki-san had just asked me to take a job.
I never imagined that I, a man who never held a proper job back in Japan, would be asked to help build a Ministry of Foreign Affairs in another world—and as a man who had already passed on, no less.
Well, it’s not like I was unemployed the whole time I was in this world. I served as a strategist for a mercenary group, founded Haiden, and was granted a dukedom to manage a territory, so I suppose that counts for something. But still…
If I were to meet my late father, mother, or brother in the afterlife, explaining what I’ve been doing would be a bit difficult, wouldn't it?
I didn't actually see my family while I was dead, but I would like a profession I could at least write down on a resume with a straight face.
But a Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
If I told my father about that, he’d surely be surprised, or perhaps even look at me with a bit more respect.
As I was lost in thought, Hairen—who had just been called an airhead to her face—was pouncing on Yuki-san.
"What do you mean, 'Ministry of Foreign Affairs'?! There’s no reason I can’t do it if Sota and Enol can!"
"No, you can't."
"Don't decide that so quickly!"
"Now, now, calm down, Hairen. Yuki-dono, I can sense the situation, but isn't it a bit much to insult your friend, the airhead, so bluntly? Could you provide a more detailed explanation?"
"Ah, my apologies. I’m sorry, Hairen."
"Enol is calling me an airhead too!! And Yuki-shonen, you didn't even apologize properly, did you!? Sota!! Sota!! Why are you just spacing out?!"
"Ah, oh, sorry. As Enol said, Yuki-san. Could you please give us a detailed explanation of your 'company'?"
"Hey!! First, deny that I'm an airhead!"
"P-please calm down, Hairen-sama. You are not an airhead. I, Arge, know this to be true. You are simply… a bit absent-minded. More importantly, Yuki-sama, could you explain what you meant by leaving it to my own judgment?"
"Even Arge!? Am I being ignored?!"
" " "Yes, yes. Calm down, Hairen. If you keep snapping at Yuki-san, you’re just going to lose." " "
Hairen was being noisy in the background, but since Lilishe-dono and the others were handling her, I decided to leave her be.
However, the words that had just slipped out of my mouth were the ones I used to practice during job hunting. Back then, I would attend joint corporate briefings and listen to explanations from companies I had never seen or heard of before. I always believed that practice was everything.
…Wait. Since the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a public institution, is "company" the wrong term?
But since they are building it from scratch, is it the same as a new business venture?
Then again, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is an organization for the nation of Weed. Would it be more accurate to say I want to work for the "nation"?
No, I was the one invited, so surely a minor slip like that is fine? Besides, I’m not a citizen of Weed. If that’s the case, wouldn't saying I want to work for the "nation" be incorrect?
As these thoughts swirled in my head, Yuki-san sat down, looking satisfied.
"Right. Even if I call it a Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it’s a concept that no one but Sota-san would really understand, and I’m sure Sota-san himself has plenty of questions. This isn't the place to discuss such things with so many people around. Shall we move to a different location?"
"Indeed. This is not the place to talk, especially in a dining area."
And so, we relocated to the Weed government building to hear the details.
In short, the situation was as follows:
* The diplomatic management by Yuki-san and his inner circle was exceeding their capacity.
* As a solution, they wanted to establish a Ministry of Foreign Affairs to appoint a Vice-Minister, coordinate diplomats, and manage foreign relations.
* However, they lacked someone to put at the helm.
* They needed someone with free time, someone they could trust, and someone with knowledge of other nations and the necessary capability.
* And then, they remembered that Sota-san and his group were currently being hosted by Weed.
That led us to where we are now.
"I understand the situation, but..."
"Indeed. We are, for all intents and purposes, newcomers here."
"Besides, we aren't even citizens of Weed..."
"I don't get it. Explain it simply."
I ignored Hairen. I didn't feel this was a matter that should be left to us. Entrusting the diplomatic management of Weed to foreigners was madness.
I voiced this concern, but Yuki-san countered immediately.
"Actually, that’s not quite the case. You are newcomers, that’s true, but Weed is still an emerging nation—it hasn't even been five years since its founding. It’s common for people from outside to rise to positions of power. In that sense, since you have our seal of approval, there shouldn't be much pushback."
I see. It was similar to when I helped Fable build Haiden. We gathered talent from all over.
"Furthermore, Sota-san, you are Japanese, just like me, Taiki-kun, and Taizo-san. You understood what I meant by 'Ministry of Foreign Affairs,' and you’re the only one who can truly grasp my intentions. Taiki-kun and Taizo-san are already the heads of their respective nations or Prime Ministers, after all."
"I see..."
So that’s why Yuki-san brought the proposal to me first.
"Regarding Arge-dono's concern about affiliation, it would be difficult for you and Enol-san to return to the front lines of Haiden. The same goes for Arge-dono. Well, if Arge-dono were to play her cards right, assuming she wasn't officially dead, she might be able to return, but helping us would only be temporary."
"Indeed. For Haiden, our existence is, in a sense, a headache."
"True. We are a presence they cannot ignore. Perhaps living as citizens of Weed, as Yuki-dono suggests, would put the people of Haiden at ease."
"I see. That is why you said you would leave it to my judgment."
"Hey, hey, why are you ignoring me?!"
I didn't have time to deal with Hairen now. Wasting time explaining things to an airhead was a luxury I couldn't afford.
I understood the reasons. But hearing the explanation raised a new question.
"However, why now? You have been managing the diplomacy yourself until now, haven't you, Yuki-san? Even if you are reaching your limit, it’s not as if you’ll collapse immediately. Besides, making such a change now would surely bring its own set of problems, wouldn't it?"
"Ah, right. You don't know the full details yet. My apologies. I suppose we were a bit rushed. You may have heard bits and pieces, but we are facing a major problem of our own. It’s not just that the number of diplomatic destinations has increased."
And so, Yuki-san began to explain in detail why he had decided that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs needed to be established right now.