Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: A Very Stable Start (5)
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Logistics sorted out nice and easy.
Shelves cleaned spotless.
The floor's so clean I can see my face in it.
And after scrubbing the (incredibly thick) outer glass walls...
"……."
I got a glimpse of the sorrow of a small business owner.
Wow, for real.
Is this legit? Like, actually happening?
'And to think not a single customer would show up.'
Truth be told, things had started off great.
I'd taken one look at the opaque glass walls and the street view beyond the entrance.
Sure, there were some normal-looking folks out there,
but mostly it was just staggering drunks, like a zombie virus had broken out.
Falling forward, tumbling backward, swaying side to side.
Like a bunch of otters or something.
How much booze do these guys chug?
Scary-looking dudes with thick, filthy beards and grimy tattoos covering their faces and hands.
Personally, security around here felt especially bad even for Area 49.
Anyway, I was genuinely praying for some 'normal, sane customers' to drop by.
But no such luck.
Current time's around 1 PM.
Considering I started work last night at dinner time, I've already blown past a standard part-timer's shift.
And yet, I wasn't feeling tired at all.
Just bored out of my mind.
This guy's free... so free...
"Well, nothing left to clean, huh."
Back in the modern world, I'd kill time with a smartphone or computer, but with zilch to my name, options were slim.
[Dyu?]
"……."
[Dyu....]
I ignored the turret's barrel as best I could.
No ladder in the storeroom, so wiping the one popping in and out of the ceiling was a no-go.
Leaning back in the metal chair, it tilts to the point where it feels like it'll tip over.
'So, how late do I work anyway?'
No way it's 24 hours, right?
There were living quarters inside the shop, sure, but they couldn't seriously expect me to live here full-time.
Eh, whatever.
I kept leaning back in the creaky metal chair, enjoying the precarious balance act.
Ding-a-ling.
The entrance bell rang right then.
Clang! Crash! My chair slammed upright with a racket.
Oof, scared the crap outta me.
But I played it cool, no panic showing.
Acted like I'd been standing the whole time and greeted the customer naturally.
"Ahem, welcome."
Even threw in an awkward fake cough for good measure.
The 'customer' who pushed through the frosted glass door was a pint-sized kid.
Top of their head barely reached my chest.
Since entering the game, my bigger build made it hard to judge sizes,
but no doubt about it—they were small.
Messy hair covering their whole face, ragged and dirty clothes to boot.
The kid was hunched over, body curled up tight.
Anyone could see they were scared stiff.
[Dyu.]
With the shop's mascot turret—kinda like a grocery store mascot—moving around inside,
leave it like that and the kid'd bolt without looking back. Future was crystal clear.
"Up you go."
I hopped over the counter.
The kid flinched hard, but no signs of bolting out yet.
"What're you here to buy, kiddo? Errand for mom?"
My voice came out super friendly.
Seeing the terrified kid reminded me of my little sister back home.
'I vanished outta nowhere—wonder if she's worried.'
- Gimme allowance!
'Nah, probably not.'
I shoved the thought of my sister outta my head.
And looked down at the fidgeting kid.
Oh, right.
Height difference makes people instinctively scared.
Same in the wild.
That's why they say raise your arms overhead when facing bears or boars—to look bigger.
So, I squatted down in front of the kid, trying to seem approachable.
"…!!"
Not expecting that, the kid backed up a few steps in panic.
In that moment,
the long hair hiding their face shifted a bit.
Revealing big, round eyes.
Huge, deep-colored pupils.
I reached out without thinking and brushed the kid's hair aside.
Exposing a pale forehead and their shocked expression.
"Huh? You're cute—why hide your face...?"
I couldn't finish the sentence.
The kid slapped my hand away quick as a flash and turned to run.
Whoa, hey?
"Kid!! Wait, customer!"
Don't go!
My pathetic plea hung in the air alone.
Ding-a-ling-a-ling.
My first customer in about 12 hours fled the shop just like that...
I learned a harsh lesson: clerks who are too friendly scare customers off for good.
"……."
My face isn't scary enough to cause that, right?
No way. Gotta be. Better not be.
Somehow, my eyes felt misty.
Risk City, Area 49.
When she heard the rumor of a new 'grocery store' opening there,
the girl moved fastest—for her starving companions.
Ding-a-ling.
A bell chime that didn't fit the grim city's vibe at all.
Followed by a warm scent brushing her nose.
Not cold metal, stale drugs, or acrid gunpowder.
Maybe it was her imagination,
but stepping inside the grocery store, she felt a cozy breeze, like warm air blowing.
A heartwarming atmosphere and air, rare in Risk City.
'...A totally normal shop?'
This place was blatantly different.
Cut off completely from the outside.
An environment none of her companions, her included, had ever experienced.
"Ahem, welcome."
An awkward greeting.
The sharp-featured man—clerk or thug?—in front of her
didn't radiate the vicious aura everyone in Risk City exuded, like hostility on a knife's edge.
Maybe that's why.
She bowed deeper, curling her body tighter.
The warm vibe felt scorching instead,
like her hidden blade might get found out.
"What're you here to buy? Errand for mom?"
When the clueless man reached for her hair,
if she hadn't barely stopped her spring-loaded blade, this story would've gone differently.
'Kid? How old do you think I am...'
Grumpy thoughts swirled in her mouth, but she didn't spit them out.
Just turned and ran far away.
Her feet carried her from the shop, but her gaze flicked back unconsciously.
'...What the hell.'
This feeling, his intent.
All unknown.
To unravel the mystery,
Grr rumble...
clutching her still-hungry belly,
she decided to secretly scope out the brightly lit grocery store.
Roughly 24 hours.
That was my limit.
"Yawn, getting sleepy now..."
Eyelids drooping bit by bit.
I could tough it out longer, but no reason to force heavy eyes open.
Boss—Christine probably didn't expect me to keep the shop open nonstop for 24 hours straight.
'Stamina's definitely up.'
Vision, hearing, size, endurance—all improved.
Didn't test it proper, but stacking heavy stock all day without a single muscle ache?
Strength's way up too.
A body fit for the game's 'protagonist.' But as a lifelong average Joe, no ideas on what to do with it.
Still hadn't gotten a feel for this world either.
'If only I could get online.'
In a cyberpunk world, do you need some weird brain chip to search?
Unpleasant thought hit immediately.
Human bodies aren't computers, dude.
Still, there had to be standalone terminals for net access.
'Sell some goods first, make some cash.'
The shop's sales go to the boss, you say?
She'd understand some skimming.
Hey, gotta eat to live.
If she was touchy about money, she'd have warned me before leaving.
I nodded to myself, recalling Christine's nonchalant vibe. Yeah.
"Oh."
Come to think of it, when I dozed off earlier, I spotted daily essentials deeper in the building.
My shut-in fear of the outside lingered, but I couldn't hole up forever.
Can't live in here my whole life.
Had to survive this world for now, at least.
First-day trauma kept anxiety bubbling, sure.
But my body moved easier than expected.
Was I always this brave?
That kind of thought.
"Be right back."
[Dyu?]
"Yeah."
Told the turret I'd gotten used to,
then pushed open the frosted door and headed out.
Glanced around—no shady figures in sight.
Late evening, so relying on busted streetlights, but daytime or night, bad security's the same.
Night might even be better for sneaking.
A rusty wind carried metal dust scent.
I remembered the route, so straight shot without detours wouldn't take long.
Plenty of think-time had sorted my head a bit.
Mind felt calmer amid the chaos.
'Yeah, worrying won't change squat.'
People live here too—no sudden weirdness.
Except one thing nagging me.
Like when I first dropped into this world.
The chance of weird noises again.
"Oh, crap."