New Employees

Who the hell holds interviews in the middle of the night?!

Naturally, Angell ignored the strange knocking.

But the other party showed no sign of stopping.

"Excuse me, is anyone there? I brought people for an interview according to the agreement!"

The female voice called out three times in a stiff tone.

Just as she called out for the third time, the Alchemy Workshop's door creaked open by itself.

The doors of Magic Gear were specially made.

A Magic Circle had been placed on this door. Even without specifically locking it, Commoners could not enter while the shop was closed. Moreover, because Mithril had been angry about Angell and Enlise returning late tonight, he had specifically locked the door.

Yet now, the door still opened on its own.

As though welcoming an honored guest.

Unnatural blood-red moonlight immediately flowed in from outside, spreading across the floor like a scarlet carpet. The Adventurer's Guild hostess stood at the end of that carpet with her head lowered.

During the day, her figure had seemed fairly normal, even graceful. But now, her lower abdomen bulged unnaturally, larger than that of a woman carrying triplets, making anyone who saw it shudder in fear.

Cradling that enormous belly, the hostess let out a giggling laugh.

She twisted her head in a contortion that would have broken an ordinary person's neck, then raised her face and spoke again like a gramophone with a broken needle:

"Sorry for disturbing you. According to the agreement, I..."

Her words cut off.

She saw that the carpet of bloody moonlight had been severed halfway through, while the workshop beyond was pitch-black.

That darkness was clearly a living creature. It even had a faintly furry texture—the kind of fur that made one's skin crawl, so dreadful that no one dared stare directly at it. And within that hairy darkness, two eyes had opened, one gold and one purple, like two moons, one waxing and one waning.

The owner of the workshop sat between those enormous eyes, his body nearly merged with that horrifying darkness. Yet the exposed parts of his face appeared so fair that they seemed to glow.

He stretched out a pale arm and stroked the darkness beside him as if petting a cat, curling his lips into a smile.

"Thanks for your hard work. I've been waiting for you!"

Bad! I'll die!

I'll die!

I'll die!

The hostess's pupils quivered and shrank. Terror appeared on her waxwork-stiff face.

She spun around and staggered toward the exit.

But with such a huge belly, how fast could she possibly run?

Especially when that furry darkness had already extended a massive claw.

The hostess had barely taken two steps before that huge claw seized her by the neck, cutting off her voice and dragging her back. The workshop door slammed shut with a bang.

The blood-red moonlight was shut outside and receded like a tide. Then the extinguished streetlamps lit up again as though nothing had happened, casting a dim yellow glow.

The workshop remained completely dark.

The hostess was hurled heavily onto the floor, lying on her back with nothing above her but darkness.

Her body was suppressed by the darkness's power, unable to move.

Footsteps approached her.

"But I really didn't expect the Adventurer's Guild to have become not only a Monster nest, but also a place for such strange business," Angell said. "It seems my predecessor made a deal with you too?"

He was merely asking a question, but the hostess... the Monster felt bone-piercing killing intent.

The Monster could not help screaming, "N-No, it wasn't like that! We did make a deal, but we weren't the ones who drove the Workshop to ruin!"

"Oh?" The footsteps paused.

Thinking that Angell cared about this topic, the Monster hurriedly said, "Actually, according to the terms of our deal, he provided us with food, and we guaranteed the Workshop's profits. We were on the same side!"

"Food?" Angell asked. "Himself?"

"Of course not! Who would want to eat such a filthy, greasy, stupid middle-aged fat man?! What we ate was..." The Monster hesitated, not stupid enough to reveal what it should not. "A-Anyway, it was a fair trade. That fat man went bankrupt before he could deliver the goods, and we couldn't save him... Come to think of it, we're the victims here!"

By the end, the Monster sounded somewhat aggrieved.

"Do you want to know who designed the Workshop's bankruptcy? We have some clues!" the Monster said, desperately rolling her eyes as she tried to see Angell's expression.

Angell's face was cold and detached. "I don't particularly care how the Workshop went bankrupt before."

"Th-Then, do you want to find the missing former owner of the Workshop?" the Monster asked ingratiatingly. "We can help you!"

"That unworthy descendant got what he deserved." Angell's voice became even colder.

Got what he deserved.

Then those of us who did business with such an "unworthy descendant" are...

Having caught the implication in Angell's words, the Monster could no longer maintain her glamorous beauty's shell. Her entire body melted like slime, while only her lower abdomen remained grotesquely swollen, with human-shaped things struggling inside.

Wriggling that horrifying body, the Monster shrieked, "It was humans who came looking for us!"

"That's true," Angell actually nodded.

Hearing that, the Monster looked over with the faint remnants of hope, only to see Angell raise his Magic Wand. "But I never intended to cause you trouble either! I was simply recruiting."

As he said this, a vivid smile appeared on Angell's face, utterly at odds with his pallid complexion.

"You were the ones who came looking for me."

The Magic Wand came down.

The commotion in the workshop's hall did not disturb the upper floor.

The furry darkness devoured every sound, gently wrapping the sleeping girl like a blanket.

And so, Enlise had a beautiful dream for the first time in a long while.

She dreamed that she stood in the ruined Orphanage, but this time, before she could feel afraid, a warm hand settled on her shoulder.

Enlise looked up and saw the rarely smiling Mr. Angell smiling at her. Then he raised the Magic Wand in his hand—

Bang!

The entire Orphanage shattered like glass.

The fragments drifted down like Snowflakes from a star-filled sky. To the sound of reindeer hooves, a Forest blanketed in white snow sprang up around them. In the familiar snow-white clearing, only one table remained.

Enlise looked closer and discovered that it was a Game Table.

But there was no game on the table now. Instead, there was a towering mountain of cakes. Mr. Black Cat sat at its very peak, blissfully eating a cake pie covered in dried fish.

"Do you want some too?" Mr. Angell asked, handing Enlise a cup of sweet drink. "When you feel cold, sweet things really are the best, aren't they?"

"Yes."

Enlise answered with a smile.

Then hunger woke her up.

Enlise sat up in bed blankly and rubbed her stomach, unable to understand why she was so hungry.

She had eaten properly last night, hadn't she?

But when she noticed that it was already broad daylight outside the window, she hurriedly jumped out of bed.

Cleaning and tidying the Workshop;

Fresh vegetables that could only be bought in the morning;

Breakfast for Mr. Angell and Mr. Black Cat;

And she still had to get ready for school!

Enlise was very busy every morning!

Enlise dressed as fast as she could, hurriedly opened her door, and was just about to rush downstairs when a shadow darted past her feet.

"Meow—"

Enlise immediately lost her balance and pitched forward uncontrollably.

Luckily, someone caught her.

"Thank you, Mr. Angell," Enlise said, blushing as she thanked him. It felt a little like the scene from her dream.

But why was Mr. Angell here so early in the morning? Had he stayed up all night again?

Enlise worriedly looked at the dark circles beneath Angell's eyes, which seemed even heavier than yesterday's, and decided she would find time to persuade him to break this bad habit.

But before that, Enlise had not forgotten the creature that had nearly tripped her. "Sorry, I didn't step on you, did I, Mr. Black Cat—"

Enlise froze.

The creature sitting obediently before her was not the Black Cat she knew, but an unfamiliar cat with milk-colored fur all over its body, except for a black patch covering its narrow, melon-seed-shaped face.

"Oh, right. The Adventurer's Guild sent over the new employees today," Angell said as though he had only just remembered.

Pointing at the unfamiliar cat, he said, "Let me introduce you. This is our new Receptionist No. 1. His name is... Siamese. Yes, just call him Siamese."

"Meow—" Siamese let out a babyish meow.

It was unclear whether he was satisfied with this lazily chosen name or protesting it.

"A new... waiter?" Enlise asked blankly.

But Angell's introduction was not over.

He picked up Siamese and led Enlise to the hall, introducing them as they walked. "The one mopping the floor in a little hat is Cleaner No. 1, Tabby. The one carrying a tray in boots is Waiter No. 2, Maine. The one holding a broom is Cleaner No. 2, Big Orange. The Calico wearing a little bow tie and hiding in the corner to slack off is... Calico."

Their names were fairly easy to remember.

Although there were some words she had never heard before, she could tell most of their names just by looking at their appearances.

Still, Enlise felt absurdly as if she had not woken from her dream. "The Adventurer's Guild sent people—Cats—over this early... No, why are the new employees Cats?"

"Why not? Isn't Mithril a cat too?" Angell asked strangely. "Besides, they fit my requirements pretty well, don't they?"

"..." Enlise was stunned.

She carefully recalled Angell's recruitment requirements from before. They really did... seem quite suitable.

At that moment, a voice came from behind Enlise.

"Miss, are you dissatisfied with us, meow?"

Enlise turned around and saw that a group of Cats had somehow gathered behind her. The bow-tied Calico looked at her with tears in his eyes. "It's our first time working outside. If there's anything we do poorly, please point it out. We'll correct it immediately. Please don't fire us!"

"Meow—" The other Cats wailed along with him.

Enlise's heart immediately melted.

"No, I didn't mean that. I was just surprised," Enlise said anxiously. "Actually, I'm quite happy to have such adorable coworkers..."

"Then, to celebrate our meeting, let's shake hands!" said the Maine Coon wearing boots.

He was the largest cat of them all, nearly half a person tall.

Enlise hesitated as she looked at him, then placed her hand on the Maine Coon's paw pad.

"P-Please take care of me?" Enlise said.

Seeing this, Calico immediately pounced on Enlise too. "I want one too, meow!"

"Meow!" Me too!

"MeowMeow!"

All the Cats pounced toward Enlise.

Enlise was quickly buried beneath Cats.

Even Siamese, who was being held by Angell, eagerly wanted to run over and join in. But Angell stepped on his shadow. "Slow down. Don't blow your cover."

Siamese turned to look and discovered that under the sunlight, his shadow was not shaped like a cat, but like a child of seven or eight.

He hurriedly shook his body, and his shadow changed into the shape of a cat accordingly.

"Meow!" Thank you, Mr. Angell.

Siamese called out.

He was still too young to make human sounds, but for a Mage, this level of cat language was no problem.

Angell nodded.

Only after watching Siamese rush into the group of Cats did he lower his eyes. "What are you thanking me for? Haven't I become a capitalist exploiting child labor?"

But regardless of what Angell thought, the customers warmly welcomed the arrival of the cat waiters.