Meat, Meat, Meat
Meat, Meat, Meat
Aside from Flora, the only other person who left a missed call was the Association.
Max sat in his chair with a lollipop in his mouth.
Grape flavor.
He savored it while making the call.
─ Bohemian Mercenary Association.
"This is Max. I had some business, so I'm checking my messages late."
─ How is your physical condition?
The same staff member always answered this number. It was always the same staff member who visited as well.
He liked it because he didn't have to explain his situation all over again.
"I received good treatment... no problems."
─ Even if it was cell proliferation treatment, it was a treatment using an early model. You must avoid excessive movement until you've finished all your medication.
"For the time being, I'll try to take only the lightest requests possible. Like finding a cat with a jetpack or exterminating a 1-meter cockroach."
After handling light topics, the conversation shifted toward the request.
It seemed the data had been safely delivered to the client. Max was also curious about what would happen to Gaia Food from now on.
'I wonder.'
Even after all this, would they release new products and grow exponentially like in the past?
Or would they shrink, giving him the sense that he had actually changed the future of the market?
─ Also, we have confirmed the death of Misumi Renya, an executive at Gaia Food. Is it correct that you were the one who dealt with him, Max-nim?
"Yes. I tried to avoid trouble as much as possible, but it turned out that way. If I hadn't reached the 3rd Rank during the battle, I would have been the one dead."
─ ...It is very rare, but not unheard of. Congratulations. As soon as your Rank is verified, we will reflect it in your commission fee.
"Thank you."
─ We will transfer the payment for this request immediately.
With the money sent, the business was concluded.
Max ended the call after saying he would visit the office for the 3rd Rank verification.
Vrrrrt!
The vibration rang out as soon as he hung up.
It notified him of a change in his account balance.
'Let's see how much came in.'
From the 25 million credit commission, the Association took their fee.
Then, 9 million credits were spent on the cell proliferation treatment, and about 300,000 credits went toward separate medication costs.
After the process, the payment left in Max's hands was quite small compared to the difficulty.
However, he wasn't that disappointed.
It had been a thrilling and good experience.
'Since I reached the 3rd Rank, anyway.'
His commission fees would rise from now on.
He would be able to earn enough to forget today's disappointment.
"Whew!"
Max sprawled out on the sofa and looked at the ceiling.
Spacing out for a while wasn't bad at all.
'They say generosity comes from the granary; having a bit of a balance makes my heart feel at ease.'
He should do some shopping before Flora comes over next time.
He felt like he could buy a decent gift to send in return for the food he received.
"Stop! That's enough!"
"Flora Crimsonhowl wins!"
Ellen Clements was defeated in a match at Minerva Academy.
The win rate was back to fifty-fifty.
Ellen reviewed the battle while receiving treatment for her burned areas.
'That wench... her style changed overnight-no.'
The Flora Crimsonhowl that Ellen knew was an extremely cautious type.
The kind who wouldn't even attempt something if the probability wasn't 100%. Would explaining it like that be simple enough?
Anyway, Flora Crimsonhowl was diligent.
She had been that way for all three years Ellen had been competing with her at Minerva Academy.
But today was different.
Flora Crimsonhowl's expression wasn't stiff like usual; it was light. She looked relieved.
The tactics themselves were unconventional and full of surprises, unlike anything she had shown before.
'Did she realize somethin' on her own like a loner... or did someone add salt to a bland kid to season her up?'
She hadn't even gone up a Rank, yet she made such a noticeable change overnight? From an opponent's perspective, it was no small matter.
Perhaps it was a sign of crossing a wall.
'...It's makin' me impatient.'
She wanted to beat Flora. She didn't want to fall behind.
Family honor wasn't the issue. It was just a personal desire.
"Ellen Clements-nim. The treatment is finished."
The Genesis Bio machine stopped.
The skin that had been burned by Flora's flames was now clean.
"Thank you~"
Ellen forced her lips and tone of voice up to show gratitude and headed to the classroom.
Students were swarming the hallway, waiting.
"Sunbae-nim! Is the burn completely treated!?"
"Ellen! Didn't your clothes get ruined from the fire? This is a new arrival coming out soon—."
"This is a burn ointment made by my family!"
Normally, these were conversations she would have accepted with a smile.
But not now. Ellen's sharp molars ground together with a ppudeudeuk.
"Ye idiots! Have ye lost yer sense of timing! Get outta the way and don't block the path!"
At her shout, the path opened like the Red Sea.
Ellen took large strides toward the classroom.
"..."
Upon opening the door, she saw Flora. She was quietly preparing to head back.
It would have been easier if she had teased her, but her attitude remained the same.
'Ah~ my stomach's turnin'.'
Rarely, Ellen didn't declare war by saying she would win next time.
She left Minerva Academy just like that and headed to District 27.
Forcing her downcast mood up, she opened the office door.
"The world's most beautiful part-timer is here for work!"
"Welcome."
Max greeted her as always with a candy in his mouth.
"Ye told me not to come yesterday 'cause of a request, right?"
"Right. I had to be out."
"Then ye shoulda told me to guard the office. Ye said it's not good to leave it empty."
"I was thinking of doing that next time, so I was going to have your fingerprints registered today."
"Hoo-un~"
Ellen, who was heading to put her bag down, stopped in her tracks.
Her nose twitched.
Though not as sharp as a beastkin's, her nose, which was more sensitive than an average person's, caught a scent.
'This suspicious smell...?'
It was faint enough to be called a trace, but something similar to Flora Crimsonhowl's scent lingered in the air.
But she immediately denied it. It wasn't realistic.
'No way. There's no way that wench would've come all the way here.'
Was her nose broken because her mental state was weird? Today's defeat must have left a particularly deep wound.
Ellen pulled herself together and popped a lollipop into her mouth. She watched Max quietly browsing the news beside her, then her eyes widened.
"What's this! Oppaya, did ye go up to the 3rd Rank?"
"As expected, you noticed right away."
"Of course! Ye can't hide from my eyes!"
"I went up during a request. I got lucky."
"Oh~ shouldn't we have a celebration party or somethin' for this?"
At Ellen's response, Max, who was looking at the news, turned his head.
A piercing gaze.
Ellen tilted her head as if asking what was wrong.
"Why ye lookin' at me like that? Am I that pretty?"
"You haven't eaten, right? Let's go have dinner."
"Eh."
"I'll buy you meat."
Watching Max grab his coat, Ellen expressed her doubt.
"Ye always ate energy jelly to save money, is it okay to eat out?"
"It's fine once in a while."
Max led the way.
They headed to a meat restaurant he had seen while looking around the office.
He sat across from Ellen with a heating grill between them.
Max ordered the meat and fiddled with the ordering tablet.
"Anything to drink?"
"Zero-calorie soda! Pineapple flavor!"
Receiving the plates, Max placed the meat on the grill.
Chiiiik! The delicious sound stimulated their hunger.
"Congrats on reachin' the 3rd Rank, Oppaya. There should be a celebratory occasion like this."
"This isn't a celebratory occasion. The 3rd Rank isn't that big of a deal."
"Then what is it?"
Max continued the conversation while flipping the meat with tongs.
"I don't know if the meat in the District 20s will suit Ellen's taste, but if you eat meat, you can forget most bad things."
Ellen's expression became subtle.
She turned on her smartphone camera to check her face. After moving her facial muscles here and there, she put the phone back, seemingly unsure.
"...How embarrassin'. Was it that obvious?"
"It's hard to say it was obvious externally. It's just a hunch. The atmosphere you gave off was like that."
"What's this. Oppaya, ye got some intuition. Have ye flirted with girls before?"
"I wish it were for that kind of experience. It's thanks to spending my days reading the room back when I was a salaryman."
Max didn't ask why her mood had dropped so much.
Because they were simply in a boss-employee relationship.
Even if Ellen acted friendly, he shouldn't misunderstand. He was certain that their distance hadn't reached that point yet.
"But Oppaya, ye know one thing but not the other."
"What don't I know?"
"A meat restaurant is bad sense for a first date with a girl. The smell sticks and oil splatters, y'know. Keep that in mind 'cause it's important."
"What date... I came here because it's an office dinner."
Ellen chuckled as if she liked the joke she threw and his reaction.
Max let out a deep sigh and grabbed the scissors.
'Still, well, she looks better than before. Even making jokes.'
Checking Ellen's condition, Max expertly cut the golden-brown meat.
He piled the cooked meat onto Ellen's front plate.
"When you're young, meat first. Humans can become happy as long as they're eating meat."
"Stop sayin' weird things. Oppaya, there ain't that much of an age gap between us."
"I'm just telling you what I heard from someone. They said it's perfect if you eat in the order of beef, beef, pork, chicken, beef, beef, entrails, entrails."
"What's that. Never heard of it."
Ellen let out a hollow laugh as if it were absurd and began devouring the meat.
The cost of the dinner was three times more than Max had expected.
..
..
When Max and Ellen returned after finishing their dinner.
A woman was standing in front of the office, fiddling with her phone.
It was a face Max knew.
The Bohemian Association staff member he had been meeting all this time. She must have come to check his Rank.
Seeing him, she put the phone she was holding into her inner pocket.
"Max-nim. You've arrived just in time. I was about to try calling you."
"It's for the Rank check, right? I didn't expect you to come so soon."
"Yes. I happened to be in the neighborhood for business."
Max climbed the stairs to open the door.
Ellen, who was following behind him, showed curiosity.
"Who is it? A guest?"
"A staff member from the Mercenary Association."
"Ah~"
The Association staff member took in Max climbing the stairs and the girl behind him.
"!?"
Upon identifying the girl, the staff member squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again. She rubbed her eyes vigorously, regardless of whether fingerprints were left on her glasses.
"Uh...?"
It was impossible to understand why she was in District 27, but it was a face that was impossible not to recognize.
The staff member froze like a statue upon identifying Ellen Clements.