Chapter 111
Chapter 111
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 111
Chapter Title: Aftermath at Saintmaria (3)
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When I woke up, my body felt strangely constrained.
No, it would be more accurate to say I was forced awake by the suffocating feeling.
Did I pull a muscle in my sleep? That's never happened before...
Still groggy from sleep, I slowly looked around and quickly understood the reason.
‘When did these people get into my bed? No wonder I feel so constricted...’
The culprits were none other than two uninvited guests who had snuck into my bed: Sabrina and Alice.
They were clinging to me, pinning my arms down so I couldn't move. Of course, it felt restrictive.
If my memory served me right, I was definitely alone when I fell asleep...
It seemed they had slipped in beside me after I was completely out.
Seriously, there are plenty of other big beds right there. Why did they have to come to mine? I prefer to sleep alone.
I glanced disapprovingly at the two soundly sleeping girls before wriggling my way out of the bed.
I might not have much stamina, but I'm surprisingly flexible.
Even if they tried to annoyingly tangle themselves around me, escaping their encirclement wasn't particularly difficult.
‘What time is it? Hmm... 10 o'clock. So I slept for about six hours.’
*Yawn.* Six hours is a decent amount of sleep.
I ran my fingers through my messy hair to tidy it up.
I gathered the things I had put in my carrier last night.
The fox mask to cover my face, the Tesseract, and the Echo.
They had become precious to me, to the point where I'd feel anxious if even one went missing.
[ Good morning, Mama.... ]
[ I want to go home soon.... ]
Of course, perhaps because they had used up too much of their stored energy in yesterday's intense battle.
Both of them seemed much more lethargic than usual. Well... it couldn't be helped.
I touched the Tesseract and the Echo to my forehead as if to ask them to bear with it a little longer.
I placed the Tesseract inside my clothes and the Echo in my pocket, then quietly left the bedroom.
"...!"
"What, you're up early, Yuria. Kids your age should be sleeping in. You're not some old man."
As I put on my mask and entered the living room, Raven, who was sprawled out on the sofa, greeted me.
He was wearing loose pajamas with a snack stick hanging from his mouth, looking quite roguish.
It was strange. Raven usually had incredibly laid-back sleeping habits.
There was no way he, who had been up until the early hours of the morning, would be awake at such an early time.
‘Ah... Did yesterday's intense fight bring back old habits?’
But on second thought, it was entirely possible.
He had started sleeping a lot only after he was discharged from the military and became a Fixer as a civilian.
If his old habits had resurfaced unconsciously due to the fierce battle with Morte...
It was perfectly understandable that he would be awake at this early hour.
"..."
Well, no need to worry too much about it, then. He was good at managing his own condition.
I returned Raven's greeting, then went to the sink to quickly wash my face before coming back.
I sat on the edge of the sofa where Raven was lying, leaned against the backrest, and took out the Echo.
There wasn't much to do until everyone else woke up, anyway.
I figured I'd just pass the time here until we went out for lunch.
But perhaps my sitting there on the sofa gave him the wrong idea.
Raven, who had been sprawled out, sat up properly and patted the empty space beside him.
"Why are you sitting uncomfortably on the edge like that, kid? Come sit here where it's more comfortable."
"...?"
"If Alice sees you perched there like that, she'll start nagging me about selfishly taking up all the space. Ugh, just imagining it is exhausting."
Ack, I wasn't staging a silent protest for him to make room...
I scratched my head awkwardly before moving inward as he suggested.
Alice did tend to be overprotective, so Raven wasn't wrong.
Since he was the one offering, there was no reason to insist on sitting precariously on the edge of the sofa.
As I got closer, I naturally caught a cool, refreshing scent from Raven.
It seemed he had just washed up. Maybe he couldn't sleep.
"..."
"..."
But even though we were sitting side-by-side on the wide sofa, we didn't really talk.
Raven watched a rather uninteresting-looking show on the large TV screen.
And I was busy using the Echo to browse internet communities and mess with mean people.
Of course, I wasn't using my powers as spectacularly as before, not to the point of leaving people with trauma.
Just something simple, like mixing up the information between a malicious commenter's main and alternate accounts to give them a headache.
I felt a bit bad for the administrator I'd tormented before, so I sent some expensive beef to his home address.
In return, he begged me to stop and gave me a special account, which allowed me to continue my enjoyable trolling life without having to use the Echo's powers too much.
Maybe I should send him some health supplements next time.
I'm not sure how much time passed as we sat on the sofa.
Raven, who had been staring blankly at the TV screen, suddenly spoke without turning his head.
"Yuria, how's work at the general store? Is it manageable?"
"...!"
"Hah, right. Come to think of it, that's what you were doing before you started working part-time at our agency. Of course, it wouldn't be hard. I asked a stupid question."
*Pfft.* Seeing me nod vigorously, Raven let out a light laugh, as if realizing he'd asked something unnecessary.
After all, the whole reason I was entrusted to the agency was because I couldn't work at the general store anymore.
It seemed he'd belatedly realized it was a strange question.
Well, since I was living in his house, he could ask me hundreds of times and I wouldn't really mind.
He chuckled to himself for a moment, then rummaged through his pocket and suddenly handed me something.
What was he giving me? I took the object from him, feeling puzzled.
I realized it was a small, thin bracelet made of metal.
"...?"
"It's a gift. That mask you're wearing, Greg gave it to you, right? I realized that as your boss, I've never given you anything. Just think of it as a farewell gift."
"..."
A farewell gift... but we see each other at home every day.
Unsure how to react, I stared at the bracelet in my palm for a moment before bowing my head deeply in thanks.
Still, he'd given it to me with sincerity.
There was no reason to refuse. I should accept it gratefully.
The bracelet was a chain bracelet made of interlocking metal rings.
Perhaps because it was an inconspicuous silver color, lightweight, and quite thin.
It didn't feel cumbersome when I put it on my wrist. Hmm, I like that it's so subtle you can barely feel it.
I showed the bracelet on my wrist to Raven, as if showing it off.
He smiled slightly, as if to say it suited me, and said nonchalantly.
"That's a lucky charm bracelet. Try to wear it every day if you can. It's a good one."
"...?"
A lucky charm bracelet? It doesn't really look like one.
As I tilted my head in confusion, Raven just shrugged as if he had nothing more to say and turned his head back to the TV.
Still, just receiving a gift was a happy occasion.
Feeling a little bashful, I poked Raven's shoulder with my finger.
A male tsundere is annoying. I'll let it slide just this once.
That was basically what I meant. Though I doubt he got the message.
*
A little more time passed, and the rest of the group emerged from the bedroom one by one.
Third place was Reine. Fourth was David. Fifth and sixth were Alice and Sabrina, side by side.
Looking at it this way, it seemed to be in order of diligence.
I was quite pleased with myself for taking second place among these people.
And as the group gathered in the living room after quickly washing up, Alice, who was wringing water from her hair, asked Raven.
"Jin, are we going home today?"
"Huh? Why? Are you eager to go home?"
"No... it's not that. It's just, after what happened yesterday..."
Alice's question was perfectly reasonable.
The undead incident had happened just yesterday—not even half a day ago, time-wise.
Now that everyone was awake, it was natural to wonder if we were heading home immediately.
Most people shocked by the incident would probably be heading straight home.
What were we going to do? Everyone looked at Raven, as if waiting for his answer.
"If even one person here wants to go home, we'll go. But honestly, don't you feel a little sorry for the hotel?"
"Uh, in what way?"
"Saintmaria wasn't really at fault for this incident. If anything, they're the victims who got unfairly caught up in this mess. Who would've guessed a necromancer would use the chaos to sneak into the hotel?"
That was true.
While you could argue they failed to prevent the incident, which means they weren't entirely without fault,
the idea that a criminal would secretly infiltrate the premises and commit an act of terror...
was something no one without the power of foresight could have predicted. It was practically a natural disaster.
And amidst all that, they had hired Fixers in advance and managed to reduce the casualties to zero.
It was no exaggeration to say that Saintmaria had done the best they could.
"That... is certainly true."
"Right. So it's better for people like us to stay and liven things up. This is also a proper duty for a Fixer."
"Jin...!"
Alice looked genuinely moved by Raven's words.
By nature, she was an exceptionally kind person who couldn't bear not to lend a helping hand.
She seemed deeply touched by Raven's suggestion that they should personally step up and help the hotel.
However, David, seeming to have noticed a contradiction in his argument, adjusted his glasses, their lenses glinting as he spoke.
"Your real reason?"
"Hehehe, the owner asked us to stay in exchange for free use of all the facilities... They want us to help create an image that the hotel is safe now! How could I pass this up? It's been ages since I could eat my fill without worrying about the bill!"
"Wow..."
"So, it was business."
Of course. He shouldn't have put on airs earlier if this was the case.
The group's gazes toward Raven turned cold.
Still, I chuckled quietly to myself.
This was so like Raven. For me, it was just amusing.
"Alright then, let's start with lunch today! Let's go! It's my treat!"
"Is it... really your treat?"
"The free benefits were earned by Mr. Raven for his proven skills. So, the expression isn't exactly wrong."
And so, we followed the very confident Raven to the restaurant area.
To be able to eat as much hotel food as we wanted without worrying about money. This was definitely a profitable deal.