(Sorry for lack of uploads: I'm close to finals for university so I'm focusing on that)
"I hold start heading back soon. Oh, and by the way, that woman won't remember what happened earlier. Perhaps that's for the best. She'll recall when needed anyway," Sereitini remarked before bidding farewell and leaving the convenience store, having tucked away the fear and regret.
"Thank you for keeping the photos safe, Mr. Hyunwoo. Well, it's getting late, so I'll take my leave now," Alenica expressed her gratitude with a bright smile as she woke up shortly after and received the photos.
True to Sereitini's words, Alencia couldn't recollect the fights that had transpired just minutes ago. It seemed like her memory stopped right at the convenience store, where she had arrived to retrieve the photos, and then resumed afterward.
Could this be due to the effects of what they were talking about earlier, like being captured or contaminated?.
-Kim Hyunwoo-
[Do you know anything about this, store manager?]
-Store Manager-
[Even if I did, unless it's work-related, there's no reason for me to disclose it. It pertains to the U.C. Convenience Store and its relationship with Headquarters and Space-1221. We just need to focus on our assigned tasks and do them well.]
The store manager didn't appear overly concerned about the situation. From what I gathered, there might be someone higher up in authority, possibly related to the previous convenience store owners rather than the current store manager.
As the store manager suggested, it might not be relevant to me, and even if it were, it would be a matter concerning U.C. Convenience Store Headquarters.
In other words, it had nothing to do with me.
After all, I'm just an ordinary part-timer.
Furthermore, it seemed the U.C. Convenience Store didn't seem to play a significant role, and my job was simply selling items from other universes and providing information, just like I had been doing.
-Store Manager-
[And now, it’s closing time. You should have a quick dinner and get ready for the additional 8-hour shift starting today.]
Thus,I should focus on my work.
As a bonus, thanks to Seretini who caused a commotion and left, apologized and gave me two gold coins this time.
Since she couldn’t provide medical treatment like Alencia, she compensated with money.
I suppose she has a conscience.
I'll save this money and use it to buy what I need at Rocket Pang when the time comes.
Now that my headache is almost gone, I should think positively and consider the extra
money I earned while passing the time.
Being positive is better than feeling depressed.
*******************
For dinner, I had a hearty meal of Baek Sunsaeng’s Gourmet Lunch Box Tonkatsu, which I had prepared earlier during the day.
Normally, these lunch boxes aren’t the healthiest option.
Speaking of which, people in Universe-1221 surprisingly didn’t buy fried food often.
To be more precise, they initially bought lunch boxes but stopped because they were cold and soggy, leaving a bad aftertaste.
-Store Manager-
[They don’t have microwaves in this universe, which is why you should include instructions on how to heat the lunchbox in the product descriptions. You know, these items used to sell quite well.]
Come to think of it, the store manager was right.
But the outer material being made of plastic, I shouldn’t use a microwave recklessly, and there might be quite a few problems with consuming lunch boxes in this universe.
-Kim Hyun-woo-
[But why is everything so intact here?]
I decided to ask the store manager before starting my second shift, out of curiosity.
-Store Manager-
[Shouldn’t it be intact?]
-Kim Hyun-woo-
[No, it’s not like that. They had such a huge fight during the day, but there doesn’t seem to be a single place that’s broken. Considering the intensity of the fight, it’s surprising that nothing collapsed.]
Judging by the way they fought, it would have taken us several days to open the convenience store, but there was no sign of anything being damaged or broken as if there was no fight at all.
There wasn’t even a trace of bullet holes.
-Store Manager-
[That’s true. Even if there were any damages, it would have been limited to Kim Hyun-woo’s head.]
What a bummer….
-Store Manager-
[Our store is built to withstand shocks during interstellar travel and observation. It is sturdy enough to withstand impacts greater than typical air defense structures. Unless it’s an explosion from a star, there’s no need to worry about the building collapsing.]
I’m not sure how powerful a star explosion is, but it sounds like it could easily withstand multiple nuclear bombs.
Despite its unassuming appearance, this place seems quite solid. It looks like the reinforced steel was well incorporated into the building's construction.
-Store Manager-
[I hope you have a safe evening shift. There won’t be any special changes compared to the morning shift. I won’t interfere for the next 8 hours, and if there are any issues in the convenience store, most of them can be resolved by pressing the red button.]
-Kim Hyun-woo-
[Understood. Since there was an incident during the day, I assume it’ll be relatively calm in the evening, right?.]
And the clock hit 6:00 PM
Although the sun hadn’t fully set, the evening glow was visible, and people were still out and about on the streets.
It seemed like there would be customers even in the evening.
However, like any other convenience store, the types of customers varied depending on the operating hours. Stores near schools would see a rush of students during the day, but later during the evening, it would be slow.
“Oh! Is this the store I heard about? It seems like they’re open in the evening now!.”
Sure enough, a confident and flamboyant voice could be heard.
Soon, the footsteps of three men entered the convenience store.
I greeted them casually as I browsed Rocket Pang and they responded in kind, starting to explore the convenience store.
Convenience stores are usually a haven for tired salarymen seeking solace, a place where they could feel a sense of stability by being treated as customers themselves.
Typically, these customers could be a bit troublesome, but as long as they weren’t too intoxicated, things usually went smoothly.
The real challenge arose when they became loud and rowdy while drunk.
"Hmm, is this the beer section? There are so many options, and some of them look quite interesting. Any recommendations?.”
"What about that one? Its label reminds me of the beer from our hometown. But what's the deal with non-alcoholic beer? Why would anyone drink beer without alcohol?.”
I overheard their conversation as they browsed the beer selection.
Non-alcoholic beer seemed puzzling to them, but I understood its appeal to those who enjoyed the taste of beer without the intoxicating effects.
Sometimes, I, too, would drink non-alcoholic beer when I felt melancholy.
"Some good snacks to pair with drinks… Ah, here they are! Oh, dried squid. It must be a favorite for people living near the coast."
Soon, the gentlemen approached the counter, each with their chosen items in hand.
But something seemed amiss.
Where were the customers?.
The items were on the counter, but there was no sign of them?
I wondered if they went to look at other products, so I searched the shelves for the missing customers, but I couldn't find them anywhere.
Something felt off, so I decided to personally look for them.
It didn't seem like they had gone to the restroom, and their sudden disappearance right after placing their items on the counter was peculiar.
Suddenly, I collided with someone and stumbled backward.
"Be careful. Are you alright, young one?," a voice exclaimed.
Confused, I realized there was a customer in front of me, someone who hadn't been there just moments ago.
How did they appear so suddenly?.
But then I noticed.
They hadn't suddenly appeared; they had been there the whole time, just obscured from view due to their small stature.
"Watch out. Sometimes people on the street don’t see us and bump into us, then end up hitting their heads on the pavement. Hahahaha!" chuckled the bearded, kindly middle-aged man, who stood at about the height of a middle schooler.
Then, realization dawned on me. He was a dwarf, less than 12 cm tall, making him hard to spot amidst the items on the counter.
"Sorry if that was rude... Are you a dwarf, by any chance?," I asked tentatively.
"Yeah, I’m a dwarf. Looks like you’ve never seen one before, huh?," he replied with a hint of amusement.
The sight of a dwarf was truly remarkable. While I had read about dwarves on Tree Wiki, this was my first encounter with one in person.
As he reached out to help me up, I was struck by the strength in his grip. Despite the leather gloves, his hand felt as solid as stone.
"What’s wrong, Lagos? Did you run into another human again?" one of the other customers inquired as they emerged from behind the display shelves.
"Yeah! This makes it the second time today," Lagos responded.
I hadn't noticed their presence earlier, as I had been engrossed in reading Tree Wiki.
"Sorry again. Are you hurt anywhere?," I asked, concerned.
"Well, I’m fine! It could happen. It’s a common thing for us, so don’t worry! And I didn’t even feel like I bumped into anything just now!." Lagos reassured me.
The dwarves, smaller than most middle school students, each carried a full glass of beer that almost towered over them.
For a moment, I contemplated whether I should ask for their identification cards.
Despite looking older than my father, their diminutive height made them seem like local kids.
[Dwarf (Space-1221)]
[Summary: Long-standing inhabitants of the land, similar to elves.]
[Characteristics: Dwarves develop thick beards upon reaching adulthood, regardless of gender. Occasionally, some dwarves may not grow beards but compensate with hair growth elsewhere. Typically easygoing and laid-back, they don’t tend to become violent when intoxicated but rather become boisterous.]
Fortunately, all I had to do to verify their adulthood is by checking for beards; all of them sported lush facial hair, indicating they were clearly adults.
However, I wondered whether Space-1221 had identification cards.
“You have quite a bit of luggage. Would it be possible to store them in a box over there instead of using bags?,” I suggested, swiftly calculating the space required.
The convenience store offered boxes for customers to pack their purchases, which seemed more suitable given the quantity of items the dwarves had brought.
Roughly speaking, each dwarf brought at least one box of beer, and even the side dishes were full, so there wasn’t enough to put in a plastic bag.
"Oh? We plan to drink everything here. Can't we also eat here?," one of the dwarves inquired.
"In that case, you're welcome to use the table over there," I replied.
It seemed they intended to feast inside the store. While drinking inside a convenience store was typically not allowed, I didn't see it as a major issue in this instance.
The space inside the U.C. convenience store was huge, so it should be alright.
Occasionally, customers would indulge in alcohol here without causing much disturbance.
Surprisingly, those who drank within the store weren't overly rowdy; it was the ones who arrived already intoxicated who tended to be noisy.
Moreover, according to Tree Wiki, dwarves weren’t known to cause much trouble when intoxicated, likely only becoming a bit noisy at most.
"The table is a bit high, but it’s wide and nice. I can drink here," one of the dwarves remarked.
Yet, at that moment, I remained unaware.
There was a specific reason why Tree Wiki explicitly mentioned that "Dwarves don’t get violent when they’re drunk, but they are very noisy."
Frankly, I wasn’t eager to personally discover the reason behind that statement.
