Chapter 11 - Re-encounter
Despite making such a vow, I ended up breaking four bowls.
However, this time, there were causes other than myself.
Even though it was clear that the washing couldn't keep up, the manager kept piling up dirty dishes.
They toppled over, leading to today's disaster.
Part of it was that I was slow, but the biggest factor was the labor shortage.
Last week, one part-timer quit.
So, the shop that had been run by four people now had to be managed by three. It was only natural for strain to appear somewhere, and it manifested as a mountain of unwashed dishes.
When the manager said, "You're slow. Switch with me," and took over the dishwashing, he couldn't keep up either.
If the same problem occurs even when switching staff positions, then there simply aren't enough people. That should be the responsibility of the person managing personnel.
But being unable to honestly admit his mistakes was the manager's personality.
Everything was blamed on me, and I was yelled at in front of the customers. It was the usual pattern.
"What are you thinking? Huh? Are you trying to put us out of business?"
I apologized and took the scolding in silence. However, in my head, Angelica's smile was playing on a full screen.
Thanks to that, I didn't feel down at all.
Some noisy customer was making a fuss nearby, but the popcorn was delicious and the lead actress was cute; I felt great.
Is this the power of a beloved daughter?
I felt so happy it was hard to believe I was in the middle of being berated by a greasy old man in a ramen shop kitchen.
Papa's going to work hard.
I need to quit this shop soon and find a job that utilizes my strengths.
Once I receive this month's pay, I'll say goodbye and start my visits to Hello Work.
That's the responsibility of a man with a family.
"There's no way you'll ever have a family, Nakamoto. Someone like you is going to die alone. You'll become a stinking, rotting corpse and keep being a nuisance to others even after you're dead. Just get out of here for today. Looking at your face makes me want to punch you."
I was an employee full of problems, but I thought the manager's comments were also a bit excessive.
Even though he ended up hiring someone like me because his foul mouth kept part-timers away.
A black employer and a black employee—a cracked pot with a mended lid.
I did feel some gratitude for him picking me up, so I didn't talk back.
I went down to the changing room as told and took off my uniform.
Looking at the clock, it was just about to turn two in the afternoon.
I'll just think of it as having more time to choose souvenirs.
I punched my time card and finished work an hour earlier than scheduled.
Stretching, I walked down the chilly road.
My destination was the nearest convenience store.
I had to prepare souvenirs for Angelica.
I'd withdraw money from the ATM and buy clothes or food to take home.
She'll definitely be happy. She might even say she loves her papa. Well, she says that even if I don't do anything.
With a smile on my face, I walked on.
Then, I realized a certain problem and stopped in my tracks.
Me, buying clothes for a girl.
That meant I would also be purchasing underwear.
Well, rather, that should be the top priority. It concerned hygiene, after all. Angelica had already been wearing the same panties for two days.
But, thinking normally... can I buy them?
A man in his thirties, buying women's underwear?
I heard they sell them at convenience stores around here, but even so, it was a matter requiring immense courage.
I wondered what the clerk would think.
I'd be very grateful if they interpreted it as me being asked by a girlfriend or wife.
But what if they didn't?
'Ugh, did you see that? That middle-aged guy just bought women's panties.'
'Disgusting. He's probably going to wear them or put them on his head himself.'
'No way, what a pervert. Is that a cross-dressing habit? He must be a former Summoned Hero. And now he's called the Master of Plate Breaking. Ugh, how gross.'
It wasn't just tough. A bit of strange paranoia had mixed in, which was proof of how cornered I felt.
What should I do? If buying them at a store was impossible, should I use online shopping?
No, that would take until tomorrow at the earliest to arrive. She was a girl like a well-groomed cat; it was only human to want to give her clean underwear as soon as possible.<
Humanity, huh.
I'm acting like quite the overprotective father, I thought to myself.
What's wrong with being overprotective?
I am the man who lost Elsa in the worst way possible and gained the [Skill: Fatherhood] in exchange.
What's wrong with being a doting papa?
That's right. I swore I would be a proper father this time.
I'll buy what I need at the convenience store quickly, and then stop by a clothing store.
I shifted my mindset and started walking again.
After advancing a few hundred meters, the game center from yesterday came into view. The arcade where I was mistaken for a voyeur and ended up punching a high schooler with a weird name.
As I happened to pass by the entrance, the automatic doors opened with a whir.
A high school girl came out from inside.
She had long black hair and a sophisticated profile.
Her loosely worn blazer uniform featured a skirt length above the knee.
"Ah."
The girl who wet herself yesterday. The girl who was called Rio.
"..."
Our eyes met. I wondered what it would be.
Would she spout grievances, or call her friends for retaliation?
Either way, nothing good was likely to happen if I lingered, so it would be best to leave immediately.
I looked away from Rio and walked away at a brisk pace.
She's a waste of a girl, though.
She'd be beautiful if she acted normally. She didn't seem like a gyaru either.
Based on looks alone, she seemed like the type of girl who would belong to the popular group in class.
And yet she was dating a guy with a lion name and acting like a delinquent.
A total waste of talent.
As I was indulging in my blunt and rude impressions, I heard the sound of a girl panting from behind me. The sound of someone who had just been sprinting at full speed.
"...Wait... You... walk too fast..."
It was Rio.
I've been stopped from behind again, I thought as I turned around and said,
"What is it? A retaliatory visit?"
"It's not... like that..."
For now, she seemed unable to even speak, so I waited for her breathing to steady. Rio was out of breath for a while, but she gradually calmed down.
Eventually, she brushed back her disheveled hair and tightly grabbed my sleeve.
The strength in her fingertips conveyed her determination not to let go.
"Just what are you? You're definitely not normal. Leo's wounds from being punched yesterday are healing rapidly, and new teeth are even growing in."
Leo... that must be King Leo-kun.
The only one I had cast recovery magic on was that brat.
"That's just the power of the wild. He's the King of Beasts, so his regenerative power must be on another level."
"Don't play dumb. You're the one who did that."
I see. She was curious about the mysterious regeneration phenomenon and had called out to me, the likely culprit.
Did she have an unusual amount of courage, or could she just not resist her curiosity?
"Old ma... Mister, you're an esper or something, right?"
I had no obligation to answer. Angelica was waiting, and I had to get home quickly.
When I shook off my sleeve and stepped forward, Rio followed after me.
"Wait... I'll apologize! Everything yesterday was a mistake! I admit it. I'm sorry."
In front of the public, she bowed her head deeply. The angle was a perfect ninety degrees.
Could you stop that? When a middle-aged man and a young girl are in this kind of composition, I'm inevitably seen as the villain.
"Raise your head. What do you want with me? I'm in a hurry."
Rio looked up at my face, breathing heavily. Her eyes were like those of someone begging for mercy.
When she made a face like that, she looked a lot like Elsa. A sense of déjà vu spread through me.
"I want you to help Leo."
The girl who was not Elsa said in a squeezed-out voice.