Are You Okay?
The sun had set, and the moon had risen to take its place.
The alarm clock shrieked to life.
"Uuuugh..."
Bathed in the evening moonlight seeping through a gap in the curtains, Jinjo pushed herself upright. She was wearing sky-blue microfiber pajamas, a sleep mask still covering her eyes, and she groped blindly across the nightstand until her hand found the source of the noise.
The racket cut off with a clack.
Only then did the bedroom fall quiet.
"Haaaawn... No matter how much I sleep, I am still so drowsy."
She peeled off the mask and rose from the bed, her face still half-lost in dreams.
"How I long to sleep more."
In her heart, she wanted nothing more than to sink back into the sheets and savor her rest. But if she did, Minchul — already toiling away at the convenience store — would only have to push himself that much harder.
She shuffled toward the bathroom and stuck a toothbrush in her mouth. Scrub, scrub. Bubble, bubble. Ptoo. She had pinned her hair back with a headband so it would not get wet while she washed her face, and once she was done she ran a comb through her silver hair, still slightly mussed from sleep.
"Hmm~"
A glance at her reflection in the mirror, and a little tune hummed itself right out of her.
"As expected. Jinjo's beauty is perfect this day as well."
Gazing upon her own flawlessly clean face, she headed for the kitchen in high spirits.
Jinjo's sanctum — or more precisely, Jinjo's house — was an enormous two-story building. Before she was a convenience store manager, she was the strongest of all vampires, and her domain was far too vast for a single occupant. Even the walk from the bathroom to the kitchen took a considerable while. Especially on her short legs.
And yet Jinjo's face was full of smiles.
"Hmm~ hm-hmm~"
She opened the refrigerator. Inside, blood packs were neatly arranged by species — orc, troll, elf, dwarf, and more. Orc blood had a rough flavor, but she had always liked its distinctive smokiness. Troll blood was characterized by a freshness so vivid it seemed still alive. Elf blood had a superb spicy kick, though it was a bit much to drink regularly. Beastkin blood varied wonderfully depending on the nature of the tribe, which she rather enjoyed.
Yes. That was how it used to be.
"Nothing here tempts me."
But what was she to do? She still had to eat if she wanted to satisfy her hunger. She pulled one out and poured it into a wine glass. The pack she had chosen contained the blood of a dog beastkin — the most inoffensive flavor of the lot.
An elegant sip of blood to greet the morning.
"Tsk."
Jinjo clicked her tongue.
"It has no flavor."
In the old days, she would have savored the unique bouquet of each species. These days, though, none of the blood tasted like anything at all. No matter how thoroughly the specialists put their heads together to manage the collection and distribution, it could never compare to blood freshly drawn from a living body.
"Human blood truly is the finest."
The taste of the blood she had drunk directly from Minchul's neck — her employee's neck — lingered on her lips and would not leave. Human blood, from the species with the most delicious blood of all. And she had drawn it straight from the source. Of course it had been extraordinary. The sound of Kim Minchul's heart, pounding beneath her lips with every pull. The warmth radiating from his body. The faint, rough scent of sweat. And the way his breathing grew ragged. It had been the finest of meals, satisfying not only her sense of taste but her hearing, her touch, and her sense of smell as well.
How long had it been since she had last drunk like that? And after drinking that blood, had she not claimed first place in the raid? Perhaps that thrilling memory had simply carved itself too deep. Every last drop of those premium, big-corporation blood packs tasted bland by comparison.
"I want to drink more..."
But she had to consider her vassal's health. If she could not look after her vassal's well-being — not merely as an employer, but as Jinjo herself — then she would be unworthy of the name. And Minchul was her First Vassal now. He was the one she had to take the best care of.
"There is no vampire in this world who thinks of her vassal the way Jinjo does."
Having finished her meal, she set the glass down without a shred of lingering attachment and made her way to the second floor. The space she put far more care into than her bedroom. The most important room in her entire mansion.
The exhibition hall.
"Ahhh..."
There, displayed in all their glory, sat a prism card enshrined in an acrylic case and a limited-edition Asteria of Hellfire figure, layered in the finest preservation magic, showing off her exquisite form.
"Beautiful this day as well. As expected of Goblin Studio — a workshop one can truly trust!"
The quality was so fine it looked as though the figure might start breathing at any moment. Jinjo let out a breath of pure admiration at those languid eyes, that haggard beauty layered over a weary gaze. Wearing white gloves, she did not even dare touch the acrylic case for fear of leaving a fingerprint, merely wriggling her fingers in the air around it.
"Just looking at her melts the stress away. To think she could be this beautiful. As expected of Jinjo's vassal. To pull a figure like this in a single draw..."
It was a figure she never would have obtained if not for Minchul. If he had not yielded it to her, she would not be able to admire this form every morning. Until recently, she had spent blissful hours at Minchul's house admiring Asteria of the Heavens. But now that Asteria of Hellfire was here in her own home, there was no real need to visit Minchul's place...
"Ahem. That said, there is no reason not to admire Asteria of the Heavens as well."
After all, each Asteria possessed a charm all her own.
"This is absolutely not an excuse because I want to go to my vassal's house! What possible reason would I have to visit a house that contains that bothersome World Tree?"
Ever since Kim Minchul had joined her convenience store, nothing but pleasant things had happened. Just knowing that the figures she had only ever seen from afar — or watched other people flex online — now resided within her own domain was enough to put her in a good mood. On top of that, Kim Minchul was good at his job. He had an excellent reputation among the customers, and he handled problem patrons superbly. He never caused unnecessary trouble, and his shelf organization was more than satisfactory. From a store manager's standpoint, he was a perfect 100. No — a 120-point employee.
"I do hope he keeps working here."
She was happily admiring the figure and listing off her vassal's virtues when she remembered the lich who was supposed to come today.
"Old man Belarus... surely he has not said anything strange to my vassal again?"
The skeleton geezer had said he would stop by the convenience store to pick something up. He already had a prior record of trying to sweet-talk Minchul with promises of eternal life, so she could not help but feel uneasy. Archmage Lich, Belarus. The thought of that slippery old fox pulling some scheme on her vassal niggled at her.
"This will not do. I must get to work at once!"
Unable to shake the anxiety, Jinjo hurriedly changed clothes and left the house.
The convenience store bell chimed as she threw the door open and strode inside with full momentum.
"Vassal! Did you wait for me? Jinjo has arrived for her shift!"
She beamed at Minchul, who was holding down the counter. So nothing had happened after all.
"That old man did not say anything strange again, did he?"
"Nothing like that, but... Manager, who exactly is Director Belarus?"
"Don't tell me that old man did something to you?"
"No, it's not that..."
"Vassal, why do you look like that?"
She sounded genuinely worried.
After Priella left, I searched the Convenience Store Gallery for information on Belarus.
When I first met him, I had taken him for a courteous lich. But after hearing Priella's story, that did not seem to be the case.
The manager hadn't seemed particularly fond of him either.
Hadn't she said Endless Operation was a black company? The Convenience Store Gallery was the best medium for finding information about this world, so I had come to rely on it often. And when I searched for Belarus...
Strong, polite, and never caused trouble. A model customer. That was the general assessment of Belarus.
But when I dug a little deeper, it was not as though I only found glowing reviews.
A being who would do anything to achieve his goals. A vicious boss. It was not as though only good things were being said about him.
Then again, if he was the kind of skeleton who could burn down the World Tree and the Elven Wood, it would be weirder if people only had nice things to say.
I did not know how much deeper his history with Priella ran, but he did not seem like someone I could get along with casually.
"I'd better be careful from now on."
I was in the middle of that thought when the manager arrived for her shift.
"That old man did not say anything strange again, did he?"
If anyone would know a little more about Belarus, it would be the manager. They seemed to know each other, at least.
"Manager, who exactly is Director Belarus?"
"Don't tell me that old man did something to you?"
At my question, the manager's brow furrowed slightly.
"No, it's not that..."
She fell silent for a moment, her eyes sliding sideways.
"Don't tell me that old man ran into the Scrounger Elf?"
Scrounger Elf. That was the manager's usual nickname for Priella — a pet name she had earned by frequently walking off with the discarded lunchboxes.
"Yes."
"Tsk. I suppose the Elven Queen did not show her best side."
She had swapped her usual nickname for "Elven Queen," and she let out a heavy sigh.
"...He is not the sort of fellow you want to get deeply involved with."
"I heard he burned the World Tree."
"That is why every last elf curses his name."
Priella's face flashed through my mind — the way she had glared at Belarus as though she meant to kill him on the spot. Of course she had. He was the one who had smashed her entire homeland to pieces. Whatever his reasons, there was no way she could look at him kindly.
"Do not be fooled by his courteous manner. Personally, he is the last man Jinjo would ever wish to become entangled with."
The manager clicked her tongue, a bitter look on her face.
"The two of you aren't going to fight, are you?"
"They will not. Ever since Taepyeong City was founded, the Demon King's Army and humanity have ceased their fighting. There is a pact in place to prevent it, besides. A minor quarrel might be overlooked, but that old fossil has no desire to cross that line either."
She finished speaking and gave a little shrug.
"Priella will pull through. That elf may look scruffy, but she is by no means a weak one."
The manager patted me on the back. There was genuine faith in Priella in those words. She called her the Scrounger Elf, but she cared more than I had realized.
"What a relief."
"Pardon? What is?"
"That the old man did not reveal his scheming nature and trick Jinjo's vassal — her First Vassal — into some unfair contract with that End-whatever company! Ohohoho!"
"I wasn't planning on going in the first place."
"Yes! A wise decision! You shall walk with Jinjo for all your days! Indeed, indeed!"
The manager threw her shoulders back and laughed with gusto.
"Ah, yes. Tomorrow is your day off, is it not?"
"Yes, I'm planning to rest thoroughly."
"Good. You have been through something unpleasant today. Resting well and recovering is the right thing to do at a time like this."
My second day off since coming to Taepyeong City. Tomorrow, I was going to stay home and rest properly. Roll around on the bed and not set a single foot outside of it.
I had just finished laying out this grand holiday plan when a text came in.
It was Lumina, the one with a motorcycle helmet for a profile picture.