Crunch crunch
Mmm… The apple that entered my mouth is very sweet. But I don’t indulge in the luxury of savoring the taste, and instead vigorously chew and swallow it.
Glug, having barely managed to swallow the apple past my throat and empty my mouth,
Swish
Crunch crunch
Once again, neatly cut pieces of apple pushed their way into my mouth. Without a word, I accepted and once again vigorously chewed and swallowed.
And again, again, again…
The only sound inside the hospital room is the crunching as I chew the apple.
…Can someone let me out of here?
*
The first thing I saw upon opening my eyes was an unfamiliar ceiling. After briefly wondering if this was my room, I immediately recalled the situation before I passed out.
Attempting to abruptly sit up to get a sense of the situation, I noticed something pressing down on my stomach and found myself in an awkward position where I couldn’t move. All I could do was slightly lift my head.
Looking down to see the cause of the weight, I found a black cat – Meow – curled up on top of the blanket covering my stomach. I wondered why it was here sleeping instead of its usual spots in the sunny areas for naps.
Could it be that my stomach felt like a waterbed to Meow? The gentle up and down movement as I breathed might have felt like a comfortable rocking chair.
I slowly tried to sit up so as not to wake Meow.
“Meow~”
As expected, trying to move without waking it was impossible. Meow immediately woke up, leaped off my stomach, and dashed out the slightly open door.
Judging by the presence of Meow and the bed that resembles a hospital bed, this must be the Academy infirmary. I never had a reason to visit normally, but I guess this is what it looks like when I end up hospitalized.
Tap tap tap
While I was idly daydreaming, I heard footsteps outside the room. The door opened with a creak, and Presia entered.
“Ah, Boss.”
I could tell from the running footsteps before she entered that she had rushed here, yet now she walked slowly as if nothing had happened and gently sat in the chair next to the bed.
Speaking of which, if she noticed I woke up and rushed here, it must have been because Meow ran out of the room.
“Lie back down.”
Although I could have easily resisted the small, untrained hands of a young girl pushing me back, I complied and lay back down without opposition.
“Does anything hurt?”
I had many things I wanted to ask, but Presia got the first question in. It wouldn’t be polite to answer a question with another question, so I first checked my body’s condition. While I’d need to try moving around to know for sure, I didn’t feel any immediate discomfort or pain.
“Probably not?”
“That’s a relief.”
After our short exchange, the room fell silent again. Feeling uncomfortable with the quiet, I was about to ask my questions when Presia spoke up first.
“Um… That…”
However, the hesitant attitude was unlike the usual Presia I knew. She always carried herself with confidence, even in the middle of the day when most people were sluggish or when she was feeling tired.
Therefore, this current state of Presia was quite refreshing to me.
“I… I’m sorry…”
After much deliberation, the words that finally came out were an apology.
?
“Excuse me? Why are you apologizing, Boss?”
“Because of my work… You got hurt trying to protect me, didn’t you…”
The girl in front of me seemed to genuinely believe that my injury (though my current condition makes me question if I was even injured) was her fault.
“No. I’m someone who gets paid by Boss, so it’s only natural. You should use me more in situations like this. Of course, it was unexpected, but that’s due to issues with your superiors, not your fault.”
Despite my words of comfort, Presia’s expression didn’t seem to improve. In fact, her shoulders slumped further and her head hung lower.
“It’s because our relationship is just a monetary one…”
At that moment, I understood why Presia was so down. I could empathize with her feelings. Though I have many friends now, before coming to the Academy, I had no one like a friend.
I don’t know what kind of life she’s led, but it certainly hasn’t been an easy one. Therefore, I placed my hand on the small hand resting on the bed above me.
“Well, while our relationship is legally bound through a contract, that doesn’t mean we can’t be friends privately, right?”
“Really…?”
Only then did Presia slowly lift her head and look at me with the eyes of a girl her age.
“Of course. Or rather, did you only see me as just an employee? If you did, it’s like I was the only one who thought we were friends…”
Doridori
I made a small joke, but Presia’s head started shaking back and forth furiously. Her long hair flapping about was rather cute, but she’d surely get dizzy if she kept that up, so I stopped her.
“Will you continue to work with me then…?”
Though her voice was soft and hesitant, it carried an undertone of hope as she asked me.
Of course my answer was already decided.
“Of course. And according to the contract, we can’t arbitrarily terminate it without mutual consent, right? I certainly don’t plan to break the contract.”
It seemed like Presia remembered the terms she wrote in the contract. She nodded while taking my hand in both of hers.
“Yes. I’ll never break the contract for the rest of my life.”
For life… I hadn’t thought that far ahead, but seeing the joyful Presia in front of me, I didn’t feel the need to point it out.
Thinking about it, getting paid 5 gold coins per month for life isn’t a bad deal. Especially since I only work when needed and get bonuses as well. I might just keep this job for life.
“Oh, by the way, what happened to that Demon?”
Since Presia seemed to have calmed down, I decided to ask the question on my mind. While I remember injuring one of the Demon’s hands just before blacking out, I don’t know what happened after.
“Yeah. I killed it.”
It’s strange hearing someone say they killed another so casually with such a cheerful voice.
“Boss did it alone?”
“Yeah.”
It seems our Boss is even stronger than I imagined.
“And regarding the pay for the injuries you sustained during the cleanup operation… I’ll make sure you’re compensated separately.”
“Excuse me? Why would you do that, Boss?”
“Because you got hurt doing my work. Of course I should take care of it.”
“No. While getting paid is good, it wasn’t your fault. If anything, it was the fault of the Academy and Pelches. You should claim compensation from them later.”
Whether the higher-ups will actually provide compensation is questionable, but I don’t intend to accept money from our Boss. We already have the agreed-upon allowance, and I chose to protect the Boss voluntarily.
“Alright…? Alright then.”
Presia tilted her head for a moment, then stood up.
“In that case, Alicia, rest well. I’ll go collect a large sum from them.”
“Ah…?”
Presia said this ridiculous statement as casually as saying she’s going for a walk, then left the infirmary.
Uh… Will she be alright…? Still, Presia is a professor, unlike me who’s just a student, so she’ll probably be fine.
Yeah. I’ll just trust Presia and rest as she said. Besides, the Academy is in the middle of classes anyway. When else would I get a chance to play hooky?
Tap tap tap tap
Just as I was lying back down to take a nap, I heard running footsteps outside the door again. This time, the infirmary door didn’t creak open quietly…
BAM!
Startled by the sudden intrusion, I looked toward the door before regaining my composure. First, El appeared in my line of sight, then Anne and Yuli followed.
“Umm… Hi?”
I awkwardly raised my hand in greeting, and El – her eyes half-full with tears – approached me.
“You are truly…!”
“El, wait…”
Before I could say anything to her, she acted faster.
The determined El quickly approached and hugged me.
Surprising as it was, it was heartwarming to see El worry about me like this. Looking back, it’s quite amusing that I, who once tried to assassinate El, am now receiving her sincere concern. Life is unpredictable, they say.
I awkwardly moved my hand, which was half-raised, to pat El on the back.
“We were all worried, but El was particularly concerned, so you have an obligation to indulge her whim.”
“We’ll come back later, El. Take care, Alicia.”
Whether they planned it from the beginning or not, Anne and Yuli lightly waved goodbye and left the infirmary. Following Anne’s words, I continued to comfort El by patting her on the back. Gradually, El’s trembling body seemed to calm down.
However, just as her body stopped shaking with worry, it began to tremble again – this time more like shaking in anger.
?
Then El suddenly lifted her head. Naturally, our eyes met.
The look in El’s eyes wasn’t one of worry… rather…
Not worry…
Hmm…?
