Employee Welfare is the Dungeon Master's Duty

At that moment, Lucy, who had been watching the entire situation from the counter, smacked her tail against the floor. Ha, this is really fucking annoying.

At the same time, she transformed into her human form. Of course, Lucy carefully adjusted her magic power to disguise herself as an ordinary beauty. She clung to my arm and glared at Vargas.

"Hey, silver-hair. If you've finished eating, shouldn't you get lost? Why are you clinging to someone else's husband?"

"D-Demonkin?!" Vargas recoiled in horror and reached for her mace.

"Oh my, what are you talking about? I'm just a regular store employee."

Lucy played innocent and buried her face in my chest. "Right, Daon~? I'm just a pretty and cute part-timer, aren't I? Hmm??"

"Uh... Yes, yes. That's correct. Vargas, this is my... assistant."

Vargas scanned Lucy with deeply suspicious eyes. "For some reason I sense a very shady aura coming from this woman... Well, fine. I'll be monitoring you, so don't try any funny business."

Then Vargas slyly grabbed my other arm. "Proper surveillance requires close contact. I need to stick to you so you can't run away."

"What the hell? Let go of that."

"You let go first, you vixen!"

With the Demon King and the Inquisitor hanging from both my arms, I let out a deep sigh while the two women growled at each other.

The hero party from Avalon's Flower. The veteran ladies from the Mage Gallery. And now even an Inquisitor. I couldn't tell anymore whether my dungeon was a harem or a battlefield.

But one thing was certain...

A reliable bodyguard had just been added to the team.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

That night, after business hours ended and all the customers had gone home, I was cleaning up the kitchen. Of course, Vargas had already forcibly occupied one of the second-floor guest rooms.

"Daon."

Vargas entered the kitchen hesitantly. She had taken off her armor and was wearing a thin priestess robe. Her bare face without any makeup was surprisingly pure and lovely.

"Aren't you going to sleep...?"

"I-I couldn't fall asleep."

She pulled something out from behind her. It was a small cross necklace.

"Take this..."

"What is it?"

"I-It's for protection! Using black magic can attract evil spirits, you know! I gave it a special blessing, so wear it!"

She pressed the necklace into my hand, her face turning bright red before she ran away.

"Don't misunderstand! This is purely at the level of protecting the surveillance target!"

Bang!

I stared blankly at the necklace. It was a top-grade artifact radiating a gentle holy power.

"If Lucy sees this, she's going to throw another fit."

I smiled bitterly and tucked the necklace deep into my pocket. The dungeon restaurant's night drew to a close once again—loud, but somehow warm.

The next day.

"Manager. Are you really... sure it's okay for us to go?"

It was late afternoon after the break time. Marie asked hesitantly from the kitchen's back door. Thanks to help from Gonic and Necromancer hyung, along with a high-level black magic Revive, she had been restored to her exact living appearance, complete with a physical body. Soft brown hair. A cute face with light freckles. Although her skin was pale and her body temperature low, she looked exactly like a girl in her early twenties.

"Of course. Marie, you worked yourself to the bone baking five hundred cakes last month. You said you wanted to see the flowers, didn't you?"

"Mmm... They say Kanata's cherry blossoms are incredibly beautiful. I always wanted to see them while I was still alive..."

Marie smiled shyly, fiddling with the edge of her apron. Baron, standing beside her, chimed in. She too had been revived and now looked like a boyish beauty with a short bob ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cut and toned muscles.

"I'd like to check out some blades too. My personal kitchen knife... I mean, my greatsword has gotten a bit dull. I heard the blacksmiths in Kanata are really skilled."

"Perfect. Decision made. Our vacation destination is the Kanata Empire."

I clapped my hands.

At that moment, Lucy, who had been sitting at the counter in human form, perked up with sparkling eyes.

"The empire? They have tons of delicious food there, right?"

"An unbelievable amount. It's the holy land of desserts and a paradise for food lovers."

"Approved. Let's leave right now."

Lucy already looked ready to pack her fork and knife.

The only problem was Kastab.

"Haaah, fuck. I'm not going."

Kastab, who was boiling broth in the corner of the kitchen, declared firmly. He too had been revived and now appeared as a middle-aged man with a charming mustache.

"Why not? Isn't it your hometown, Chef?"

"Hmph. It's the place where that damned emperor had my head cut off. I don't even want to look at that land. That's why even after I died, I left a will to be buried here in my hometown of Luden. I'll just stay behind and guard the dungeon while making broth."

The trauma lingering in his eyes looked deep, yet somehow lonely.

"Ha, instead..." Kastab tossed over a piece of memo paper. "There's a spice shop called 'Pepper Royal' in the central market. Get me some 'Red Salt' and 'Dragon Tail Herb.' Without those, my stew won't taste right."

Our tsundere chef. In the end, all he cared about was cooking.

"Understood. I'll get the highest quality."

And so, the Demon King's Table members' first workshop trip was decided.

Members: Me (Kim Daon), Lady Lucy, Marie, Baron, the Ogre Mage (disguised as a human porter), and escort warrior Vargas (who wasn't even a store employee but insisted on tagging along for the vacation).

The dimensional travel gate. We arrived through the portal that BlackFlameDragon noona had set up, stepping into Kyo, the capital of the Kanata Empire. Oriental-style tiled buildings lined the streets, and cherry blossom trees in full bloom scattered pink petals like rain everywhere.

"Whoa..."

Marie couldn't close her mouth. The fluttering cherry blossom petals reflected in her brown eyes.

"Manager! Look at that! It really looks like snow falling!"

"It's beautiful. It suits you perfectly, Marie."

At my casual words, Marie's pale cheeks flushed red.

"Huh? W-With me? No, I'm a ghost..."

"What ghost? You're our store's greatest patissier."

I picked up a fallen cherry blossom from the roadside and gently tucked it into her hair.

"There. Now you really look like a flower."

"Ah..."

Marie covered her face with both hands, completely flustered. Watching from behind, Lucy's eyebrows twitched.

"Daon."

A chilling voice.

"Uh... Yes, Lucy?"

"Is my head just for decoration? Why aren't you putting one in mine?"

Lucy thrust her head forward. Her red eyes burned with jealousy. I hurriedly picked up the prettiest, largest cherry blossom branch and placed it in her vivid red hair. It had already fallen to the ground. I hadn't broken it. There hadn't been time.

"Lady Lucy is more brilliant than any flower... the blossoms can't even begin to compete."

"Hmph. That silver tongue of yours."

Lucy grumbled with her words, but she gently touched the cherry blossom in her hair and smiled faintly.

We pushed through the crowd and headed toward the food alley. The Ogre Mage had used illusion magic to appear human, looking like a massive bodyguard. Both his hands were already loaded with the mountain of snacks Lucy had bought.

"Daon! That! Buy me that one!"

The place Lucy pointed to was a dango stall.

"It smells so sweet! And sticky!"

"Yes, yes, I'll get it for you."

We sat on a street bench and spread out dango, takoyaki, and yakisoba, launching straight into an eating broadcast. Vargas muttered, "This kind of junk food..." but after accepting the takoyaki I offered and tasting it, her eyes flew wide open.

"Hoo... The texture of the octopus combined with the bonito flakes... Outstanding. This flavor requires purification as well."

In other words, it was delicious.

Meanwhile, Baron was quietly fiddling with her scabbard and pretending to look elsewhere.

"Baron, aren't you going to eat?"

"Ah, I'm not really into sweets."

Yet her gaze remained fixed on the weapon shop across the food alley.