Just past seven o'clock, the automatic door slid open with a chime.
A white-haired old man strolled in with his hands behind his back. He stopped in front of the newspaper rack, pulled out two newspapers, tucked them under his arm, and then walked up to the cash register as usual, fishing out some loose change from his pocket.
“The usual, two newspapers. Is there anything new today...” He looked up, squinting to see the person standing behind the register, and his voice trailed off.
“Isn't this young Tian Gong? You're back?”
“...My shifts were scheduled last week, and I'm starting work as normal today.” Qiluo took the change, stacked the coins one by one into the register slots, then pulled off a shopping bag, packed the newspapers, and handed them over.
The old man took the newspapers but didn't leave immediately, standing in front of the register and looking her up and down.
“Are you feeling alright now? I heard from Murai earlier that you ran into that kind of thing in the store and took a long leave of absence. Young people nowadays, it's really not easy for you to come back to work after experiencing something like that.”
As he spoke, he pulled a piece of candy from his pocket and placed it on the counter. The wrapper was wrinkled; it was one of those old-fashioned fruit candies, a freebie picked up from a supermarket checkout counter. “This is for you, to help you calm your nerves.”
Qiluo remembered this old man. Since her first day working here, he had come in every day to buy two newspapers—one for himself and one for an elderly neighbor who had trouble getting around.
On rainy days, he would buy an extra bag of bread, and on sunny days, he would stand by the register a little longer to chat with the staff about the weather.
She picked up the candy, slipped it into her apron pocket, and softly said thank you. Only then did the old man nod in satisfaction, leisurely walking out of the store with the newspapers under his arm as the automatic doors slowly closed behind him.
Not long after, the automatic door opened again.
A businessman in a suit walked in, his tie hanging loosely around his collar, a briefcase in hand, and dark circles under his eyes.
He walked to the register, placed a can of coffee and a bag of bread on the counter, and casually grabbed a pack of throat lozenges from a nearby shelf. He kept his head down the entire time, his movements as practiced as muscle memory.
“These, and a top-up card—” He looked up, his hand freezing mid-air as he saw the person behind the register.
“Huh? Tian Gong? You're finally back! I heard about what happened to you before, so I thought you'd resigned.”
“Are you alright? Were you hurt? I know a friend who works in logistics at the Association. If you need any certificates issued or need to go through any insurance processes, I can ask for you—”
Mid-sentence, he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, his briefcase nearly slipping from his arm.
“Sorry, professional habit. I talk too much when I get nervous.”
“It's fine.” Qiluo scanned his items one by one and pushed them over in a bag.
He took the bag and was about to say something else when his phone suddenly rang.
He glanced at the caller ID, his expression changing slightly. He answered the phone and whispered, “I'm on my way back.” After hanging up, he gave Qiluo an apologetic smile, grabbed his briefcase and bag, and hurriedly pushed open the door, disappearing into the evening crowd.
The convenience store's door chimed all evening. Perhaps because it was her first day back, Qiluo felt like there were significantly more customers than usual.
Far more than before.
Qiluo dragged the last box of drinks out from the backroom to unbox them, squatting in front of the display cooler to stock the bottled teas one by one.
The cool air from the cooler brushed against her face when she suddenly felt a gaze on her back.
Turning around, she saw Misa Tachibana sitting in her wheelchair at the end of the aisle, holding an inventory sheet. There was no telling how long she had been watching.
Seeing Qiluo look back, she flipped to the next page of the inventory sheet and said flatly, “You can finish restocking after your shift handover. You have ten minutes left. Go sit in the breakroom for a bit. You can take a pudding from the fridge; consider it an employee benefit.”
Qiluo closed the cooler door, folded the empty cardboard box, stuffed it into the recycling bin, washed her hands, and took a pudding from the fridge.
She hesitated at the entrance of the breakroom for a moment. Misa Tachibana was sitting by the window, holding a steaming cup of coffee. Seeing her enter, she gestured toward the opposite chair with her chin.
“Have a seat.” Misa Tachibana set her coffee cup on the table. “Since it's your first day back, I haven't had a chance to properly chat with you. Murai mentioned you to me, saying you're a diligent girl. It's really not easy to come to work as usual after experiencing something like that.”
“I heard about your encounter with the Erosion Body last time. How has your sleep been lately? Have you had any nightmares?”
“No, I just occasionally dream about things from the past.” Qiluo peeled open the pudding wrapper and scooped a bite with her plastic spoon. “They aren't scary dreams, just my old school days.”
She was referring to the academy in her original world, but Misa Tachibana would likely interpret it as her time before transferring.
“That's good.” Misa Tachibana picked up her coffee cup and gently blew on the rim. “If you feel unwell in any way, let me know anytime.”
Qiluo chewed her pudding, her gaze unconsciously drifting toward Misa Tachibana's left shoulder.
Her uniform was still buttoned all the way to the top, completely hiding her contract mark. However, the contract mark was engraved on her magic circuits; as long as Qiluo maintained her detection array, she could catch a faint fluctuation through the fabric of the uniform.
“Have you worked at other branches for a long time, Store Owner?” Qiluo looked up, her spoon still in her mouth.
Right now, she wanted to spend as much time as possible with Misa Tachibana.
Let me have a closer look!
“Almost ten years,” Misa Tachibana recalled quietly. “After leaving the inpatient department, I couldn't find any other work, so I started at a convenience store. It was just a part-time job at first, then I became a full-time employee, and later, the Store Owner. I've just been working like this year after year.”
“The inpatient department?”
Lightweaver naturally knew the reason behind that hospitalization, but this was the first time Qiluo Tian Gong was hearing of it.
“I had an accident in the past. You could call it an occupational hazard,” Misa Tachibana said, her hand silently resting on her left shoulder before quickly dropping it.
“What about now? Does it still act up?”
“Occasionally. My shoulder gets sore when the weather is bad, but it's much better than before.”
Misa Tachibana realized that this girl had been asking all the questions, while she hadn't made an effort to get to know her.
Thus, she also wanted to learn more about this Tian Gong classmate.
“What about you? Are you used to the work at the convenience store? I heard you just transferred from abroad. Have you made any new friends here?”
“Mhm, everyone here is really nice. My classmates often have lunch together, and sometimes we walk home together after school.”
Qiluo scraped the last bit of pudding clean, her plastic spoon making a scraping sound against the bottom of the empty cup.
Misa Tachibana watched her flick the cup, finding it inexplicably amusing. “That's good. Murai said you didn't know how to do anything when you first arrived, but now you're already an experienced clerk.”
Rate on N.U.
