@Dreamaker
From what I was able to understand, I think Noboru was speaking "as a fellow manager," i.e., him managing his daifuku shop, he knows the struggle.
I thought theJapanese raws felt about as vague, which is why I didn't try to specify as well.
EN:
"That was a lie, wasn't it?"
"About the theater being fine."
"Even I could tell as a manager myself."
"These times just aren't that simple."
JP:
「嘘ですよね?」
「劇場が大丈夫って」
「これでも僕も経営者ですからわかります」
「今の時代そんなに簡単じゃない。。。」