Chapter 43

Suddenly, Alice made an offer for room and board at the Fixer Office out of the blue.

No matter how you looked at it, it was a proposal I should reject immediately.

Staying at the Fixer Office was like walking straight into a blast zone about to explode, as far as I was concerned.

To begin with, even working there temporarily already had me on edge. And now she wanted me to move in completely?

This was a classic case of penny wise, pound foolish—trading small comfort for big risks.

So, without much thought, I was about to shake my head at Alice.

That is, until I caught sight of her eyes brimming with concern.

“…Come to think of it, this is strange. Why the Fixer Office and not her own place?”

A small sense of unease crept over me.

Did Alice really have a reason to make me stay at the Fixer Office?

Just because she liked me?

If that were the case, she could’ve just let me stay at her house instead.

There was no need to complicate things by bringing up the Fixer Office.

I figured I should at least hear her reasons before rejecting the offer.

Tilting my head lightly, I signaled my curiosity about why she suggested it.

Did my intentions reach her properly?

She bent her knees to meet my gaze and cautiously asked,

“Yuria. I don’t know the full story, but are you planning to wander around the western labyrinth again after work today?”

Of course. I needed a place to live, after all.

I nodded gently in agreement with Alice’s words.

The reason I gave up yesterday and headed to the general store was that it was too late, and the snowstorm was so fierce that I figured going into debt was better than freezing to death on the streets.

But since I somehow survived the night, I planned to search again for a decent spot after work today.

After all, I couldn’t keep living as a homeless person without a home or bed.

As I thought this, Alice sighed softly and said in an exasperated tone,

“And if you can’t find anything, like yesterday… you’re going back to Greg’s general store?”

“…!”

What? How did she know!

Shocked by Alice’s ghostly deduction, I stared at her in panic.

But Alice didn’t react much to my surprise. She scratched her cheek apologetically and gave a roundabout answer,

“Sorry, I found the key by chance while tidying up your coat yesterday. Come to think of it, if we follow the same path where we met yesterday, the general store does come up.”

“…”

“But in my opinion, Greg’s general store doesn’t seem like a good place for Yuria to stay.”

Ah, so she discovered the key while my coat was off.

Relieved that she hadn’t read my mind but half-agreeing with her statement, I conceded.

She wasn’t wrong.

The general store was purely a workplace, and objectively speaking, it wasn’t a great living environment.

The only places to lie down were a wooden table or a sofa, and forget about blankets or pillows—I had to use my coat and clothes as makeshift bedding.

For weak modern bodies, sleeping there wouldn’t relieve fatigue; it would probably just pile it on.

But… that was only when compared to an actual home.

Compared to an old warehouse or the streets, the general store had heating and a lockable door. Honestly, it felt like heaven compared to braving the cold outdoors.

So, when I placed my hands on my hips and looked at her, clearly signaling my resistance, Alice seemed to grow more troubled.

After a long silence, she gently stroked my head and said,

“Yuria… you don’t like being indebted to others, do you?”

“…”

“Though we’ve only known each other for two weeks, I’ve noticed it from watching you. You always try to return what you receive, almost to a fault. I think you’re a very kind person.”

Me, kind? That was logically incorrect.

I wasn’t kind—I was just fearful, emotional, and impulsive.

I wanted to push all future fears onto others.

If they ended up hating me, I’d rather they thought nothing of me.

Isn’t it nice when hard work eventually pays off?

I wanted those who liked me to always be happy and free from suffering.

A selfish, petty coward and fool like anyone else in this world.

So no matter how I thought about it, I wasn’t someone worthy of Alice’s embarrassing praise.

“I-I want to run away… I can’t handle this kind of atmosphere!”

My neck and ears burned with a psychological embarrassment different from the shame I felt yesterday over the pajamas and underwear.

I wanted to flee right then and dunk my head in cold water.

Why did she have to embarrass me like this instead of teasing my body like usual!

Leaning slightly against Alice to steady myself from the dizzying sensation, I tapped her shoulder with my forehead.

Ugh, enough already. If you have something to say, hurry up.

It’s not like I’m staying at the office anyway!

With that unspoken protest loaded with meaning, I signaled my defiance.

“Heheh. So… what I’m trying to say is, you don’t have to think of it as a debt. In fact, Jin will let you stay for just covering food costs.”

“…”

Money wasn’t the issue…

I shook my head vigorously, drained of energy, still in her embrace.

Of course, she couldn’t imagine my situation.

How could she know I was someone reincarnated from another world after reading a comic about Raven?

So my perfectly rational choice probably seemed like childish stubbornness to her.

Still, this was a life-or-death matter for me.

“Still… I appreciate the offer. It’s kind of you to care so much about a temp worker you’ve only known for two weeks and will soon part ways with.”

Though I’d experienced plenty of embarrassing moments because of her, her kindness came through loud and clear.

And reflecting on my own desire to distance myself from the original plot made me feel like trash.

What kind of good person was I? If she knew my true thoughts, she’d probably despise me.

Even so, my resolve remained unchanged. I planned to decline the offer to stay at the office.

Maybe Raven hadn’t even agreed to it yet.

As I tried to calm my fluttering heart, the door behind me suddenly opened.

And who appeared but Raven himself.

“What? Are you two still here? I need to use the bathroom, so scoot. It’s cramped.”

“Ah, okay.”

Raven shooed us apart, half-hugging each other, and strode toward the bathroom.

Then, the sound of running water echoed from behind the closed door.

The tender atmosphere in the hallway was utterly shattered.

“Ahh, that felt refreshing. Phew… So, what were you two talking about for so long?”

“Jin, well…”

Alice glanced at me, still in her arms, as if asking for permission.

Was she wondering if she should tell him about my homeless state?

What? Hadn’t she told Raven about this yet?

After a brief moment of thought, I nodded indifferently.

It wasn’t something to brag about, nor was it something to hide out of embarrassment.

Being homeless wasn’t such a big deal. Houses collapse sometimes during snowstorms, right?

“Actually…”

With my tacit approval, Alice briefly summarized yesterday’s events for Raven.

From visiting the western labyrinth for work to meeting me on the street and letting me stay at her place for the night.

Thankfully, she omitted private details like my bear-patterned underwear or us cuddling in bed together. That was a relief.

“Hmm, I see. Temp worker, you really don’t have anywhere to go?”

“…”

“Too bad. You should find a place quickly before you catch a cold. Rent’s expensive these days, you know?”

“W-Wait a sec!”

Raven showed signs of losing interest and preparing to leave.

Panicking, Alice grabbed his shoulder.

She clearly hadn’t expected him to brush it off so dryly.

Sigh, I saw this coming.

“B-But that’s not the end! There’s no way she can find a place in this weather with no money!”

“Well… it’ll be tough.”

“But!”

“So what? Unsolicited help can sometimes be crueler than violence. Doesn’t seem like she needs much help anyway.”

“Ugh… True, but…”

Figures. A fixer who doesn’t help unless asked!

I subtly rolled my eyes and silently cheered him on.

Meanwhile, Raven sighed and said,

“And if you’re helping her, why not let her stay at your place? No need to bring her to me. Didn’t you two already sleep together last night?”

“That’s… complicated. My sister lives with me, remember?”

“Huh? Right.”

“I can’t let Yuria meet my sister. It’s for both their sakes. I… don’t want to burden my sister.”

“Huh?”

“…?”

Why was that a problem?

At the same time, Raven and I exchanged puzzled glances.

Deciding to gloss over this part, Raven scratched his head and said,

“Well, whatever. The temp worker doesn’t seem to need help, and I don’t want some kid cramping my happy alone time. Things neither of us wants shouldn’t happen, right?”

“Phew, I’m not trying to force anything. I just… hoped Yuria might change her mind and wanted to persuade her.”

The atmosphere was increasingly leaning toward respecting my wishes.

Come to think of it, there was only one answer from the start.

Alice, who seemed to have changed her mind after bringing me home yesterday, didn’t appear intent on pushing me anymore.

And Raven, being the other party involved, wouldn’t force me if I refused.

As long as my thoughts stayed firm, the likelihood of me staying at the Fixer Office approached zero.

“Just a minor hiccup. Guess I’ll be busy wandering again tonight.”

I relaxed my shoulders, relieved the tension had dissipated.

I’d been worried something irreversible might happen, but now that it was resolved, I felt truly at ease.

Suddenly, a faint whisper reached my ears as I closed them wearily.

It sounded like fragmented emotions, incomplete words.

Frowning, I turned my head toward the source.

At the end of that direction stood Raven, slowly retreating indoors.

“…”

“Huh? What, do you have something to say? E-Eh! What’s gotten into you?”

Acting on instinct, I hastily grabbed Raven.

Following the clearer fragments of language as I got closer, I swiftly stuck my hand into his pants pocket.

While Raven panicked at the sight of my hand in his pocket, I quickly located the source of the sound and pulled it out.

“Yuria?!”

“This… What is this? When did this get in my pocket?”

What emerged was a thin metal fragment smaller than a pinky nail.

And just like that, I recognized its nature.

“This… isn’t this similar to the Tesseract? An invader’s item?”

A piece of a ticking time bomb that shouldn’t exist yet in this timeline.

My expression hardened instantly.

Perhaps… I needed to reconsider my stance.

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