Greg’s general store had its owner return after a whole month.
As Greg took a quick look around the interior, he muttered in surprise,
“Much cleaner than I expected… Did you take care of it, Yuria?”
“…!”
“…Thank you. I’m glad you treated it with care.”
He smiled at me, a genuine smile without a speck of insincerity.
Guess he was moved by how spotless the place was despite being left for over a month.
Well, I didn’t do it for praise or anything.
But seeing him happy makes my daily morning cleaning feel worthwhile.
I thought to myself while crossing my arms nonchalantly and glancing away.
“So this is Greg’s shop? Wow, it’s even tidier than I imagined. And not too cramped either.”
Karen, who had just come inside, casually remarked as she looked around.
Judging by how she inspected every corner, it seemed the place met her standards as a renowned artisan. Huh, I felt kinda proud.
Greg responded lightly to Karen, as if it was only natural.
“No idea what you imagined, but I’m not really into messy places. And isn’t this a bit small for a top-tier artisan like you?”
“Hmm, flashy things aren’t really my style. Actually, this compact setup with just the essentials… appeals to me more.”
“Glad to hear that.”
There was no hint of dishonesty in Karen’s demeanor.
The shop wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t uncomfortably cramped either.
No need to twist her words into sarcasm.
Good thing she didn’t actually dislike it. I might’ve gotten a bit snarky if she did. Phew.
After finishing our tour of the display shelves, warehouse, and workshop, we gathered around a table in the shop.
Greg calmly spoke, looking at both me and Karen.
“Then… let’s start with the contract. Yuria, last time we got interrupted, so we didn’t get to it, right? Since Karen’s signing now, we can do yours together.”
“Sounds good.”
“…!”
I don’t exactly have an identity, so a contract wouldn’t mean much to me.
Still, I nodded vigorously in agreement with his suggestion.
Come to think of it, last time got derailed by the Blood Night incident.
At the Fixer Office, I just ended up with a verbal agreement when I worked part-time there.
This would technically be my first written contract.
Even so, I’d probably skim through it casually before just signing my name.
“Let’s start with Karen. You have quite the expertise with artifacts. It’d be best to contract you as an artisan. Our main income comes from buying antiques and reselling them to those in need with a markup. When we get broken artifacts, we can fix them and sell them for more… Here’s a rough base salary. Plus, you’ll get over half the profit from items you handle.”
“Hmm… This percentage seems slightly higher than the industry average. Are you sure it’s okay?”
“Coincidentally, due to our location, we don’t get many customers. If I can secure a top-tier artisan under these conditions, it’s a win for us.”
“Well then… I’ll gratefully accept your kindness. Thank you.”
“…?”
Greg and Karen exchanged some complicated talk. Truly! This is the dialogue between a top appraiser and a top artisan!
Aside from Greg offering Karen pretty generous terms, I didn’t catch much else.
Whatever… No need to know the industry details.
It’s not like I’m going to become an appraiser like Greg or an artifact artisan like Karen.
Karen owed Greg, and Greg gave her the best treatment possible.
That much info should be enough to tuck away in my head.
“Are we done?”
“Mm, I’ve confirmed everything.”
Scribble scribble.
Karen signed her name at the bottom of the contract without much thought.
She trusted Greg more than the content itself. Didn’t seem like she needed much time to deliberate.
After checking the returned contract once more, Greg handed a copy to Karen and approached me.
“Next is Yuria.”
“…!”
“Your job won’t differ much from before. Sit at the register, greet customers, call me if they want to buy or sell something, and occasionally clean or manage inventory when you’re free. Familiar stuff, right?”
Mm-hmm, same old tasks.
I managed to multiply this shop’s profits several times over with just that.
I crossed my arms and nodded confidently as if to say just that.
Of course, since I can’t speak, I’m not much different from a balloon doll sitting at the register.
But just being able to keep customers from running off scared after meeting Greg made my role worthwhile.
Honestly, anyone who meets Greg for the first time without knowing better would find him terrifying.
The sheer intimidation of a muscle-bound orc towering over two meters is beyond imagination.
“I’ll pay you a monthly salary. Weekends off, five days a week on weekdays. Morning to early evening. Multiply the hours worked by the hourly rate… roughly this much. What do you think?”
Like I had a choice. These were the best terms I could ask for.
Already way better than what I got at the Fixer Office.
Sure, the difficulty level there was almost nonexistent, plus room and board were provided.
But that felt more like pocket money than earning real cash.
Completely satisfied with Greg’s offer, I enthusiastically gave a thumbs-up.
“Hmm, looks like you’re pleased.”
“How cute.”
“…”
Hehe, at this rate, I’ll be rich in no time if I work for a year.
Swinging my legs on the chair, I immediately picked up the pen on the table.
I hadn’t really written anything before, but surely I could write my own name.
Confidently placing the pen where names go at the bottom of the contract…
Thunk.
The moment the pen touched the paper, I suddenly felt like the world was stretching out endlessly.
It was an unreal sensation, as if someone forcefully stretched light and time like rubber.
If I stayed like this any longer, it felt like my consciousness would be buried deep somewhere.
A voice in my mind urgently whispered to let go of the pen.
Don’t say it.
Don’t convey the meaning.
Don’t let it be understood…
My frozen hand felt like it was pierced through my lungs and gripping my heart tightly.
The voice slithered into my ears and etched itself deeply into my brain.
But then, one fleeting question passed through my mind.
Wait, this isn’t my voice.
Who are you? And what happens if I don’t let go?
[Mama, no!]
Thud!
When I came to, I had already dropped the pen.
In front of me was Greg, and beside me, Karen. Both wore concerned expressions as they looked at me.
And I… blinked in confusion.
The brief moment between picking up the pen and dropping it was completely missing from my memory.
It was strange. Definitely strange.
For some reason, my instincts screamed at me not to pick up the pen again.
Seeing me blink in bewilderment, Greg furrowed his brow slightly, picked up the rolling pen, and said calmly,
“Looks like writing is difficult for you. That’s fine. This is just a formality anyway. I’ll write your name for you.”
“Uh, wait, this is…”
“Enough. It seems you haven’t realized yet, so we’ll discuss this later.”
“…?”
I tilted my head at Karen flustered and Greg stopping her.
Especially Karen—she seemed incredibly anxious, like she couldn’t leave this alone.
Did I cause this somehow?
I didn’t know the exact reason, but I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
“And I think I heard Tesseract’s voice just now… Ugh, my head feels fuzzy. Do you know anything about this?”
[Huh? Mama, why would I?]
“Never mind.”
Tesseract’s innocent voice echoed in my mind.
Yep, she doesn’t know. That settles it.
Still feeling a bit puzzled, I decided to think about it later when I had clearer answers. No point obsessing over what I don’t know.
Nothing unusual happened afterward.
Greg, having been away for so long, seemed intent on checking the inventory again.
He told me I could take today off and start work tomorrow.
True, I had meticulously cleaned every corner of the shop.
But I didn’t know anything about managing goods, so I only wiped them clean.
It was still necessary to check if any items for sale had issues.
Wouldn’t want to sell defective products and have angry customers returning them.
“Uh… So that’s it for today? It’s still morning?”
Suddenly finding myself free in the early morning felt odd.
It was like finishing school early on the first day with no classes. Nice, but awkward.
Now that I had nothing to do, I could go back to the office-turned-home and relax.
But after all the effort I put in, leaving so soon felt a bit disappointing.
Maybe there’s something I can help with, even without much knowledge?
Thinking this, I approached Greg and circled around him playfully.
Things like moving boxes or wiping dirty spots—I could definitely handle those. My silent protest said, “Give me something to do!”
“Hmm. Yuria.”
“…?”
“Someone might be looking for you. Go sit quietly on that sofa over there.”
“…”
Perhaps my hovering around was getting in the way.
He sent me off to the sofa near the register.
Sniff sniff, sorry for not being useful.
I quietly watched Karen inspecting items next to Greg before plopping down onto the sofa.
But who’s this person looking for me? I don’t know many people.
I sat neatly on the sofa, quietly staring at the shop entrance.
Not long after, someone appeared, likely the person Greg mentioned.
“Yuria, I’m here!”
“…!”
To my surprise, it was none other than Alice, the pink-haired beauty.
Huh? Isn’t this the time she should be at work? Why’s she here?
As I tilted my head in confusion, she grinned brightly and said,
“Sis will treat you to tonkatsu! Wanna come along?”
“…?”
Tonkatsu? Suddenly?
I could only stare blankly at Alice’s unexpected invitation.
