After tidying up, Kazuo took the staff uniform (which was actually an apron with a logo) that Aoi handed him.
After putting it on, the two went downstairs together. By this time, Kiryuuin had already finished breakfast and cleared the table.
"Asama, this morning, let Aoi show you around the shop's merchandise. This afternoon, I'll give you tasks to do," still looking half-asleep, Kiryuuin yawned, giving instructions as he walked towards the back room behind the shop. "Aoi, I'm going to calibrate the racing shoes your school sent yesterday. You're in charge of this guy. If anything comes up, come get me, got it?"
"Okay, big brother! What do you want for lunch? Should I order takeout?"
"Hmm... just some soba noodles from the supermarket, whatever. I don't have any preferences."
After leaving that remark, Kiryuuin directly pulled back the curtain and walked in.
"Honestly, you need to eat nutritious lunches!"
Aoi was clearly dissatisfied with his casual attitude, but Kazuo, being someone with a younger sister himself, could sense that Aoi was the type who particularly liked to stick close to her older brother.
They're a very close brother and sister—
Kazuo couldn't help but think this, and also remembered his sister far away in Seto. His sister had thrown a fit on the phone when she learned he wasn't planning to go back this time. He'd have to find a way to comfort her properly later.
"So, Kazuo, do you have any questions?"
Since there were no customers in the shop, Aoi took on the role of Kazuo's teacher, responsible for getting him familiar with the work.
When this was brought up, Kazuo nodded and said, "To be honest, I know nothing about the equipment used for Horse Racing. I might need to trouble Aoi to spend a lot of time teaching me."
"It's nothing, ordinary people usually don't come to this kind of shop anyway. It's much better to be honest than to pretend to understand. Besides, there are no customers right now, so I'll teach you properly!"
It seemed Aoi was very enthusiastic, waving her small fists. Kazuo also mimicked her, following along.
And so, his seven-day life as a shop assistant began.
.
"First, let's start with racing shoes!"
Like a little teacher, Aoi led Kazuo to the display area filled with various racing shoes.
"Kazuo, do you know how many categories we generally divide races into?"
"Based on the track, there's turf and dirt. In terms of track distance, it should be short-distance, mile, middle-distance, and long-distance, right?"
"Exactly, that's just a preliminary classification. If we expand to racing shoes, there are actually more specific types, but we basically divide them into four categories," Aoi said, taking a racing shoe directly from the display rack. "For example, this one I'm holding, this is a short-distance racing shoe."
A relatively light red running shoe, with dense and evenly distributed ventilation holes on the upper.
"Short-distance racing shoes are relatively light and highly flexible. To allow the athlete to exert force as quickly as possible, we use this elastic sole material."
As she spoke, Aoi even folded the shoe in half, the elastic upper completely forming a ninety-degree angle with the sole.
"The lightness and comfort of this upper are particularly favored by short-distance runners."
"Then there's this, the middle-distance racing shoe. The material is relatively harder. Considering the many large turns in the race, the sides are actually thickened, and this is also to ensure the horseshoe is fixed more securely and firmly."
"For long-distance racing shoes, the materials chosen are also lightweight, but the sole is thickened with shock-absorbing material. Especially in Horse Racing, for long-distance races like 3200m, these cushioned and stable running shoes can provide significant assistance to the athlete."
"As for dirt track racing shoes, they are mostly biased towards this style."
Aoi said, showcasing another leather running shoe in front of Kazuo.
"For example, this one, the toe is relatively pointed, but the narrow design makes the sole very rigid, almost impossible to bend," she said, demonstrating it herself. "But this type of shoe is for relatively harsh tracks, especially for dirt races, offering excellent traction. And along the edge of the midsole, it's specifically designed for specialized horseshoes used when track conditions are more severe."
Once Aoi started talking, she spoke like a machine gun, non-stop. While explaining, she also demonstrated with various shoes, almost detailing every type of racing shoe, its characteristics, effectiveness, adaptability, and advantages.
This not only surprised Kazuo but also filled him with admiration for the girl in front of him.
After Aoi finished speaking, she noticed Kazuo staring at her with an adoring gaze. Coming back to her senses, she scratched her cheek somewhat shyly and said, "Um, I can't help but get excited when I talk about these things... Is it a bit strange...?"
"No, not strange at all! You're really amazing, Aoi! You're around my age, but you know so much!"
What Aoi explained was like opening a door to a new world; the knowledge she imparted deeply impressed him.
He hadn't realized that for athletes, there was such an art to choosing racing shoes.
In general simulated races, everyone in school basically used uniform white running shoes. However, before official competitions, many athletes would come to places like this to purchase racing shoes suitable for themselves.
"It's not that exaggerated... Kazuo, you're overstating it. I'm not as amazing as you say... It's just because my family runs this business. I grew up watching my parents do these things, and through immersion, I naturally learned it."
Although she was speaking the truth, Aoi was still being modest.
Without her own understanding, she wouldn't have been able to combine what she knew to explain it to Kazuo in such detail and easy-to-understand terms.
"But... speaking of which, it seems there are only you two siblings in the shop. Where are your parents?"
Kazuo had heard Aoi say before that Manager Kiryu-in took over this shop from his parents, but he hadn't seen them for so long.
"As for them, they said last year that they were going to open a Branch School in Osaka, so they completely entrusted this old shop to my brother to manage. Although I've always worked at the Academy, if it's a weekend or holiday, I'll come over to help my brother look after the shop."
Although Aoi made it sound easy, it's hard to imagine the difficulty for two young people to manage such a large store.
These two are truly amazing… Kazuo couldn't help but marvel at them in his heart.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
patreon.com/TripleCrown07
If you guys wanna check it out.