Guerrilla Barbecue
(Whoa, what’s with this carrot!? It’s crazy expensive!!)
Right after entering the supermarket, I was stunned by the skyrocketed price of the carrots in the produce section and did a double take.
Hmm... a stunted, palm-sized mini carrot, just one, for ¥500. Yeah, you heard that right, ma’am! It’s not for a whole bag; it’s ¥500 for one single carrot. Absolutely mind-blowing.
Even so, shoppers reluctantly bought them. After all, the shelves were nearly empty. If you hesitated too long, you wouldn’t get any at all.
(Ugh… this is seriously a problem…)
I hesitated over the poorly grown carrots that had clearly been neglected due to prolonged evacuation, but I wanted vegetables, so I secured so of these pathetic ones anyway.
(Hmm, I can’t exactly get vegetables in my dungeon back ho…)
I did get so high-grade spirit carrots from the Plant Dungeon once, but those were more dicinal than edible. Well, they were tasty when simred, though.
……
That said, I was broke. I have no money.
I didn’t expect a little shopping trip to blow through a ¥10,000 bill… This is bad. The paynt from Sanada Pharmaceuticals hasn’t co in yet, and the izakaya Murasaki pays at the end of next month for the food I delivered. My wallet was in dire straits.
I even considered setting up a street massage business, but yeah, that wouldn’t fly in Japan.
The cops would imdiately show up, asking, “Hey, what do you think you’re doing? Do you even have a permit?” Yeah, you can’t just set up a street stall without permission here.
As I was thinking all this, I decided to put my craftiness to work this ti…
I prepared a few things and headed out to a busy park near the station, where I took the outrageous step of holding a guerrilla barbecue.
If the police showed up and asked, “Hey, what are you doing in the park?” I’d say, “Well, my house lost electricity and gas because of the stampede, so this is the only way I can eat.” Smooth, right?
I got charcoal from the ho improvent store, and seasonings hadn’t spiked in price much. So there I was, barbecuing crickets’ at—sourced from my Fridge Dungeon—alone in the park like a pro.
The skewers were nothing but cricket at.
Yeah, because vegetables were too expensive. But instead, each skewer was a hearty 200 grams—a full-size barbecue skewer. I grilled them over the charcoal, slathering them with salt and sauce, munching away. The key point was that I grilled them facing the pedestrian walkway, giving off a street food vibe.
Soon enough, the mouth-watering aroma attracted the first guy.
“What are you doing?”
“Huh? Just trying to get a al. My house has no electricity or gas right now…”
“You plan to eat all that at by yourself?”
The guy pointed indignantly at my two cooler boxes, stuffed with at.
Well, I understood his frustration.
If you tried buying this much at at the current prices, ¥200,000 or ¥300,000 wouldn’t even cover it. So, seeing monopolize such a mountain of at rubbed him the wrong way.
“Oh, you want so? Hmm, but I’m not doing this as a business, you know?”
“Don’t be stingy. You’ve got so much—share a little, will you?”
“Well… if you insist, I suppose I could share a bit with you.”
“Great! How much?”
“Alright, I’ll give you so food for ¥1,000 per skewer.”
“Cheap! I’ll take two!”
“Alright, that’ll be ¥2,000. Thanks for your business! But hey, since this isn’t a shop, you’ll have to grill it yourself. Oh, but feel free to use the seasonings.”
“Oh, can I take the ones already grilling?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
Heh heh heh… worked like a charm.
If I were openly grilling and selling at, I’d be arrested in no ti since I don’t have a permit or pay for the location.
But sharing food? Probably legal. A gray area at best. Well, just starting a fire in the park is already risky, but given the stampede left infrastructure in ruins, outdoor cooking was tolerated.
“Hey, kid, are you selling those skewers?”
“Hey, young man, could I get one too?”
See? Once you attract attention, more people start gathering.
“Man, this is rough… I swear I’m not running a business here, but fine—if you want it, it’s ¥1,000 a skewer. Thanks again!”
I stuck to my story: “I was just barbecuing alone when people begged to share so food, so I had no choice.” That’s the fantasy I’m sticking to.
As ti passed, an older man ca rushing in, looking frantic.
“Please! Sell the rest of that at!!”
“Whoa, that’s pretty bold of you. What’s the rush?”
“My elderly parents and a bunch of relatives are sheltering at my house, and everyone’s starving! I’ve searched everywhere for food, but I can’t find enough. So please, I’m begging you! I’ll buy all you have left!”
Ah, so that’s the situation.
The man held out six ¥10,000 bills. I took five and handed one back, giving him the rest of the at, coolers and all.
“A-Are you sure…!?”
“Well, hearing that kind of story, I can’t refuse. You’d better hurry back before soone tries to steal it.”
Hearing this, the others grilling at around laughed.
“With that much at, you’re a pri target!”
“Yeah, you better get moving, buddy!”
“““Hahaha!”””
“Thank you… thank you so much!”
The man clutched the cooler boxes and hurried off, bowing repeatedly as he left. Well, it wasn’t exactly charity, but this was the best I could do.
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