Three days had already passed since Alice tricked me into meeting Crow, the doctor.
In other words, it meant that Greg had arrived at his first weekend back in Night Haven.
Looking back on what happened during that time… yep, absolutely nothing happened.
I’d wake up early at the office, have breakfast with Raven, then head to work at the general store.
At the store, I’d quietly sit by the register and greet customers. During the downtime, I’d sweep the floor or dust off items.
After having lunch with Greg and Karen, I’d continue working similarly through the afternoon, leaving early evening.
Then I’d return to the office, eat dinner, roll around in the closet for a bit, and sleep in my room.
Compared to life at the office, this was just an endless loop of mundane tasks.
But strangely, I didn’t feel bored or tired of it.
If anything, it would be weirder if every day was filled with spectacular missions.
Honestly, I kind of liked this pace. The office was a bit too intense for me.
‘Come to think of it, I heard there was some big commotion while I was gone. Like stopping a gas leak or something?’
Man, they really went through a lot.
Thinking that to myself, I took a huge bite out of my bacon-and-cheese toast.
The salty-sweet flavor spread across my mouth, and before I knew it, a smile crept onto my face.
Today I made this using random ingredients from the fridge, but maybe I’m better at cooking than I thought?
Feeling quite satisfied, I quietly swung my legs back and forth on the chair when suddenly—
Raven, who had been eating my homemade toast from across the table, spoke up.
“Not going out today?”
“…?”
“You’ve been going out every weekend. Thought you might have plans today.”
Is that so? Have I really been going out every weekend?
Tilting my head at his comment, I tried to recall.
Now that he mentioned it… ever since I started living here, I don’t think I’ve spent a single quiet weekend at home.
Sabrina or Alice always dragged me out to play, and just last week, I ended up on a sudden trip.
Oh right. If that’s the case, this is probably my first relaxed holiday.
Nodding in agreement, Raven smirked and said,
“You’re not going out, huh? Just curious. Oh, speaking of which, there was something I wanted to ask.”
“…?”
“Does your general store close during Night Week? It starts next Friday, you know, Night Week.”
Night Week.
It was the year-end holiday period designated by the Dragon Mayor.
Of course, it wasn’t an official national holiday.
It was more like a recommended rest period specific to Night Haven.
Whether you rested or not was entirely up to you.
However, businesses that gave their employees time off during this period received some perks.
Perhaps because the Dragon Mayor, with his overwhelming power and support, declared it as such, Night Week had become a big event where the entire city took a break for a week.
‘For ordinary office workers, sure. But places like restaurants and movie theaters will probably burn the midnight oil during this time.’
And that was fine too.
There was something meaningful about making extra profit during these special occasions.
Still, it was fascinating that a city could establish its own holiday week like this.
But adding “Dragon Mayor” to the name somehow made it sound plausible. I guess I was slowly becoming a true resident of Night Haven.
Anyway, I should answer his question.
Does the store close during Night Week? Yes, it does.
-We’ll be closing the shop temporarily during Night Week. You guys should go out and have fun.
-Um… I don’t really have anywhere to go. Can I still come by?
-Well, even if we’re not open for business, I’ll leave the door unlocked. Feel free to drop by if you’re bored.
-…!
I recalled that conversation from a few days ago.
Greg had mentioned that there was no need to come to work during Night Week.
Maybe it was because Karen, who was new to town, was around.
Even so, it seemed like he planned to spend time at the general store instead of completely shutting it down.
But either way, I wouldn’t have to go to work. I nodded at Raven, agreeing with him.
Seeing my response, Raven scratched his neck in relief and asked,
“How about we all go somewhere together during Night Week? Alice has been pestering me nonstop to ask you.”
“…!”
“I think we’ll gather with David’s group and take a car trip outside Night Haven. It’ll be a nice little change of pace.”
Oh, this sounds serious.
If it’s David’s group, will Sabrina and Raine join too?
That definitely sounds fun. It feels like a year-end group trip!
Well… knowing this guy’s luck, we’ll probably get caught up in some kind of incident.
But hey, that’ll make for good memories too. We’ll solve it eventually.
After rolling my eyes around in thought, I expressed my agreement.
Did he understand my meaning? Raven sighed in relief.
Alice must’ve pushed him hard to ask me.
I briefly wondered how he would’ve reacted if I refused, though I wasn’t planning to.
Suddenly, a question popped into my mind.
Going on a trip sounds great, but where exactly are we going in this cold winter weather?
Waving my arms dramatically, I gestured to Raven, asking where we were headed.
After interpreting my exaggerated body language, he quickly answered,
“Oh, where are we going? Hmm, probably near the sea. Obviously, we’re not swimming in this weather. We’ll stay at a hotel overlooking the winter ocean. Alice really wants to check out the pool there.”
“…!!”
Wait, was that why she bought a swimsuit?
No wonder she was eyeing it so intently earlier…
Her meticulous—and frankly terrifying—plan sent shivers down my spine.
At least we weren’t actually swimming in the ocean in this weather.
Relieved, I shoved the rest of my toast into my mouth.
“The toast was delicious.”
Raven stuffed the last piece of toast into his mouth and complimented me.
This guy! He’s buttering me up so I’ll keep cooking for him later!
I watched him suspiciously as he started reading the newspaper while still seated at the table.
I was used to eating alone, so I could’ve left without issue.
But I appreciated him staying until the end. Guess I should finish eating quickly.
After finishing my toast, I tossed both our plates into the dishwasher.
Adding some detergent and pressing the button, the machine bubbled up and began its work.
In two hours, the dishes would pop out spotless and dry.
Convenience truly came from good technology.
“Haaah. What should I do today? Maybe I’ll look for some new movies.”
“…”
Watching the dishwasher clean the dishes, I turned toward the office only to see Raven sprawled lazily on the couch.
Maybe it was because he was wearing cozy pajamas instead of his usual suit, but he looked especially carefree.
Though, everyone probably felt this relaxed on their days off.
Quietly observing him from afar, I slipped into his room and closed the door behind me.
‘Since there’s nothing to do right now, I might as well hang out in the closet. I also need to feed Tesseract some Rift Energy.’
I stepped into the now-cozy closet and used telekinesis to connect Tesseract to the rift.
Just like plugging an appliance into an outlet, energy began filling Tesseract.
Last time, after collecting for two weeks, it could only maintain an adult form for five minutes.
This time, I wanted to save at least a month’s worth, just in case.
[ Nyom nyom… Delicious! Power surging! ]
Did Tesseract enjoy the energy?
Its cheerful voice echoed loudly in my head.
Good, grow strong and healthy.
Someday, we’ll definitely need your power.
Smiling at Tesseract’s excited reaction, I flopped down onto the freshly washed, fragrant blanket.
Lying upside-down, I pulled Echo out of my pajama pocket and placed it gently on my forehead.
‘Echo, show me some interesting videos.’
[ Ah, yes! I’ll play a popular video people love recently! ]
Zzzz.
Without any input from me, Echo’s screen lit up, and a video began playing.
So this is what it feels like to use an AI assistant.
Having things spoon-fed to you without lifting a finger—it doesn’t get easier than this.
The video was a vlog of someone raising a cute lizard from another world.
The tiny flames it breathed out were adorable and made me want one as a pet!
Next was a video of beastmen doing strange challenges.
Then came sexy elf ladies playing traditional elven instruments.
After that, a succubus telling funny stories from another world…
‘…Wait, why are all these videos about non-human races? Despite all the talk about discrimination, they’re clearly still popular.’
Still, the content was entertaining.
As expected from videos chosen by the masses—they were reliably enjoyable, if not particularly deep.
It made sense why Echo had suggested them.
But my tastes didn’t quite align.
While they were fun, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing.
Ah, maybe I just don’t fit in with the trends of this era. That thought made me a little sad.
Lost in thought, I rolled around under the covers with Echo still in hand when suddenly—
A question shot through my mind like an arrow.
Come to think of it, Echo can clearly interfere with the internet using supernatural means.
How far can Echo’s abilities go? Is there a limit?
‘Hmm, I’m curious. Let’s try something. Echo, can you create an anonymous account that can’t be traced back to me?’
[ Ah, um… Yes! I’ll give it a try! ]
‘And leave a comment on the last video I watched. The content doesn’t matter.’
[ Uh… C-can I copy random comments nearby? ]
‘Sure, if that’s what you want.’
[ Ah! Th-thank you! ]
Was this really something to thank me for?
I tilted my head, puzzled, but decided it didn’t matter and waited for Echo to post the comment.
Soon enough, a comment appeared under the video from the anonymous account Echo created.
The content was a bit random, but I couldn’t contain my excitement.
Whoa, it worked! Not only can it browse, but it can post comments too. Impressive!
At that moment, a mischievous idea popped into my head.
If I can exert influence online… maybe I can pull off a little prank?
