Suddenly, it hit me. Fina-san and the others left their homes to earn money, right? And yet… they haven’t gone back to their village in this whole year at all. Is that ok?
It’s a good opportunity, so I might as well try asking them. If they do say that they want to take a vacation and visit their home, then it won’t be a problem since I can work in their place after I get my inheritance. I’ll be treating it as paid vacation, but I wonder if it’s alright to give them money for the trip as well.
“Right. Fina-san, Maria-san, mind if I ask you two something for a bit?” [Ryouma]
“What is it?” [Fina]
“Please ask us whatever you want, Boss~.” [Maria]
“Jeanne-san and you two left your village in order to make money, right? Do you have any plans of going back to your village?” [Ryouma]
The moment I asked that, the two of them immediately looked at each other, and panicked. Then with a docile expression, they answered.
“None… as of now…” [Maria]
“None of us three have any plans of going back. Umm… Boss? Are we being fired?” [Fina]
Eh!? Why did they take it that way!?
“You’re not. You’re not being fired at all. I’m just asking since I’m worrying whether it’s alright for you three not to see bring home money to your family and see them. After all, you three are working out here to provide for your family, right?” [Ryouma]
I answered immediately, and the two seemed to have calmed down, breathing out sighs of relief. After that, I asked Carm-san to explain to me why the two had that sort of misunderstanding.
First off, this world does have its postal service, so people who leave home to work are able to communicate with their families via letters. And through the merchant guild, though they do have to pay a fee, they are also able to send money back home.
Also, it’s normal for such workers not to go home unless the reason is because of a life-endangering illness or a funeral service. Because of that the question “Do you have any plans of going back to your village?” was interpreted as, “Is there anyone amongst you that doesn’t mind retiring?”
“My deepest apologies for surprising you two. I don’t have any intentions of dismissing either of you, so please rest assured. In fact, I wish for you all to continue to work with me in the following years. I was just wondering whether it’d be a good idea to create an opportunity for you three to visit your home once a year.” [Ryouma]
They seem to have finally understood when I said those words. Although they were still quite shocked when they heard that on top of being given a long leave, their travel expenses would also be paid for. They were indeed happy that to have the opportunity to meet their relatives again without losing their job. After all, even though it’s accepted in this world that going home isn’t possible unless one loses their job, they still can’t help of wanting to see their families, right?
After having lunch together, I discussed the concept of paid vacations and salaries with Carm-san.
As a result, it was decided that it’ll be possible for the employees to file for a vacation leave ahead of time, in which they’ll then be allowed to leave for a significant period of time. And with enough money provided to allow one to stay at the cheapest inns – although no food is included in the calculations – and the least amount of days required, the employees will have a much easier time visiting their families.