"Ooh, it's coming out!"
"Careful! Careful! You'll spill it all on the floor!"
A crowd of Roman citizens had gathered to watch as the first batch of liquid soap poured out.
The first finished product after countless rounds of trial and error.
"Go on—try it, sir."
A worker approached, holding a bowl containing the freshly made liquid soap.
I reached out and applied the faint golden liquid to my palm.
The texture was similar to olive oil, but it was slightly smoother and had a better fragrance.
"This will do."
I said, washing my hands in the river water. As I rubbed my hands in the water, white foam formed.
That was proof it worked. The onlookers saw the lather, gasped, and murmured to each other.
"Wait, what on earth is that?"
"I thought it was olive oil, but it foams up when it touches water."
I smirked at their chatter. This was real liquid soap—far more effective than plain olive oil
"So, what will you name it, Young Master? You can't just call it olive oil, can you?"
"Name? A name..."
Felix's question made me pause. What I made was Castile-style liquid soap, named after a region in Spain.
But that place-name didn't exist in Hispania yet, so I needed a new one.
"How about Palmolive?"
"Palmolive... doesn't sound bad."
Hearing my suggestion, Felix nodded in agreement.
In Latin, Palma meant the palm of a hand.
It was an intuitive name suitable for soap.
Though actually, it's the name of a famous soap brand from the 21st century.
I looked at the amphoras (jars) filled with liquid soap, no, Palmolive. We only made three amphoras today, but this was just the beginning stage.
Once full-scale production begins and the workers become proficient at the work, we'd be able to produce hundreds of amphoras a day.
The division of labor I introduced was for such mass production in the first place.
I asked in a low voice so only Felix could hear.
"How are the workers? Do they seem to have gained some confidence?"
"The pay is so generous that everyone seems to be working enthusiastically."
Felix yawned as he answered.
"That alone is not enough."
I replied.
Generous wages, easy-to-learn tasks.
All of these were important, but in fact, the most important thing was motivation.
Work harder, earn more. This kind of incentive was the most effective for motivation according to my experience.
"Everyone, listen up!"
I shouted, looking at the employees.
All the workers were exhausted from two days of Palmolive production.
I stretched out an arm.
"From now on, in addition to your base pay, you will receive a share of the profits as a bonus."
"Bonus?"
"What do you mean by bonus?"
Hearing my words, the workers tilted their heads.
Only then did I realize I had misspoken.
Right—*bonus* doesn't mean that in Latin. Bonus was a Latin word meaning good, noble, or brave.
I spoke again.
"I mean that a certain proportion of the sales generated from this factory will be given to you as extra pay."
"A proportion of the sales?"
All the workers gasped in astonishment.
Felix was the same.
"The success of this factory depends not only on me but also on your hands. If you work hard, there will be rewards to match."
"Hahaha, then it really is a Bonus, sir!"
"Hahahaha! Yes, it's a bonus!"
Hearing my words, the workers shouted cheerfully.
"Full-scale production starts tomorrow, and I'll give you some extra money today, so go relax and have fun with your families or friends!"
Felix hurriedly approached me and whispered in a low voice.
"Young Master! Why do something that causes such a loss! The salary we already give them is above average!"
"The workers here aren't slaves; they are free citizens and freedmen."
I replied.
Which meant there were plenty of reasons to treat them well.
In Rome, free citizens had the privilege of exercising political power.
What if I capture their hearts while increasing employment in the future?
In the 20th century, Henry Ford significantly raised workers' wages to prevent turnover and simultaneously gained their support.
It was also the secret to Ford becoming a national brand in America.
"Yeah! Long live Caesar!"
The workers roared back. It was a stark contrast to how exhausted they were just moments ago.
As expected, nothing motivated people like money.
Meanwhile, like the employees, I was also overwhelmed with emotion in many ways.
Palmolive wasn't just liquid soap.
It could be used for almost everything in life, such as shampoo, cleaning, dishwashing, etc.
"Felix, let's go check the condition of the goods ourselves now."
"To the public bathhouse?"
"Yeah, where else would be a better place to test this than a bathhouse?"
Crowds were already gathering around to watch.
I had to make the most of those people's curiosity.
"Seeing this, I don't know if you're generous or just kind, Young Master."
Felix said with a sigh.
"Even at the insurance company, you give incentive pay every time workers sell insurance, don't you?"
"That's right."
"Just that money alone must amount to tens of thousands of sestertii."
"Felix, I'm neither kind nor particularly generous."
I could always buy a bunch of slaves and force them to work. But that had clear limitations.
"Would a slave who only gets three meals a day have any reason to work hard?"
"Probably not."
"If the reward is the same no matter how hard you work, there's no reason to make an effort."
"Then couldn't you just whip them? Every slave I know fears the whip."
"They'd just do the bare minimum—enough to avoid the lash. Whipping provides some motivation, but it's insufficient. I thought you, as a slave, would know that."
"I work my fingers to the bone by your side, Young Master."
"Then should I whip you more to cheer you up?"
"How could someone as merciful and benevolent as you do something barbaric like whipping?"
"You talk well. After saying we should whip them just a moment ago."
"Ahem."
While chatting, the two of us arrived in front of a public bathhouse.
Public bathhouse.
These bathhouses, which people usually associate with Rome, were built throughout Rome starting from the 2nd century BC.
Of course, the grand Thermae capable of accommodating thousands of people at once did not exist yet.
But even in this Republican era, hundreds of public bathhouses existed in Rome.
A crowd of people who were watching the water wheel flocked to the bathhouse following us.
"The fee is 1 as. Are you leaving the slave outside?"
"We'll go in together."
"Then it's 2 asses. Are you checking that amphora?"
"No, I need to use this for the bath."
"You are free to use perfumes, but nothing too strong. Other customers complain because of the smell."
The bathhouse owner looked surprised as he watched the crowd following us.
"Did something happen somewhere?"
"Something did happen."
After paying the bathhouse owner, I headed to the inner bath with Felix.
Passing through the changing room, a humid heat hit us.
Still, numerous people followed the two of us into the bathhouse.
"Look at that. I think he's trying to apply that olive oil from earlier to his body."
"Is that really for applying to the body?"
"It must be something special."
Receiving everyone's gaze at once, I slightly wet my body and then rubbed the liquid between my palms.
Bathing naked in front of dozens of strangers wasn't exactly comfortable.
Even though I planned this, it was still embarrassing.
"Where are you going, Felix? You have to apply it too."
"Me too?"
Felix, who was trying to slip into the bath, answered.
"Don't try to run away, apply it quickly. I told you it's good for the body."
"The scent seems better than I expected."
"Of course, I put in everything that smells good, from walnuts to flower petals."
Felix, who showed reluctance at first, began to follow suit and apply Palmolive as I applied it without hesitation.
"But do we really have to wash in front of so many people like this?"
"Those people are the key."
I answered with a laugh.
People who believe I started insurance after receiving a revelation from the gods.
Then what will they think when they see this liquid soap?
Having applied Palmolive all over my body, I scooped water from the bath and poured it over myself.
With the refreshing sound of water splashing, the white foam washed away in an instant.
"Yes, this is it!"
A refreshing feeling I haven't felt in a long time made me exclaim involuntarily.
As expected, it felt dozens of times more refreshing than just wiping the body with olive oil.
Slathering your body in sticky olive oil and scraping it off with a bronze strigil was never a pleasant experience, no matter how you spun it.
Splash———
Felix also poured water over his body.
"This feels amazing!"
The people watching us whispered again looking stunned.
"Look at that foam over there."
"Can such foam come out of olive oil?"
Felix came close to me and whispered.
"Now those people will spread rumors. That you created a unique olive oil after receiving a revelation, Young Master."
"That alone would be great promotion."
But this wasn't enough.
What should I do to teach more Roman citizens the benefits of soap?
There was no concept of germs in Rome right now.
But I couldn't teach biology directly to the citizens either.
That was not only inefficient but would take too long.
Teaching everyone in Rome would take a lifetime. Maybe longer.
How can I persuade citizens to buy this Palmolive, which is more expensive than regular olive oil?
"Those people are already showing interest in the Palmolive we made. Wouldn't anyone want to use it if given a chance to try it once?"
Then everyone would be able to experience the effect of soap firsthand.
To think I was struggling with such a simple answer right in front of me.
I felt ridiculous.
"That was it! People have to try it for themselves!"