“So, where are you all living now?”
“We’re all being accommodated at Marie’s Bakery for now.”
“I’m relieved to hear you have a roof over your heads. Are you eating properly?”
“Yes, we are. There’s food provided, and even outside of work hours, Emily – she works at the shop with us – prepares meals for us.”
Patty explained their current situation to Eliza.
“But, even though we were in the wrong, as a mother, I can’t help but feel it’s wrong to make young children work. Your mother is also working hard, won’t you come back home?”
“That…”
Eliza’s words prompted Patty to turn to Kent for advice.
“I think you should do what you feel is right, Patty.”
“However, you went to the trouble of renovating a room for us to live in…”
“It wasn’t much trouble, so you don’t need to worry about that.”
“Is that so…”
Listening to Kent’s advice, Patty pondered for a moment.
“That’s right… Considering my younger siblings, it’s better to be at home… Okay. I’ve decided to go back home then.”
“Thank you, Patty. This time, I’ll prioritize your feelings and work hard not to make the same mistake.”
Thus, after a discussion between mother and daughter, Patty decided to return home with her younger siblings.
“Kent, I’m so sorry that this conversation has taken over what should have been a place for enjoying drinks. We still have time, so I’ll get back to work now as well.”
Saying this, Eliza stood up and sat down next to Kent, on the opposite side from where Patty had been sitting.
“Mom, what are you doing?”
“Mom? I’m Eliza, a waitress here. Nothing more, nothing less. Now Patty, your glass is empty. Here you go.”
Without paying attention to Patty’s surprised expression at Eliza’s sudden shift to her service persona, Eliza poured more alcohol from the bottle into Patty’s empty glass.
“Mom… I can’t drink anymore… *hic*”
From then on, Eliza used her skillful conversation and techniques to relentlessly push drinks on Patty. Patty, having drunk far too much, finally succumbed to exhaustion and passed out on the spot.
“My, my, she’s already asleep.”
Once Eliza confirmed Patty was asleep, she turned to Kent.
“I apologize for any trouble she may cause in the future, but please continue to look after her. But a boyfriend, huh… She’s truly terrible at lying.”
“You noticed?”
“Yes. I’m her mother, after all. I can tell that much.”
“If you can understand her that well, perhaps she wouldn’t have run away from home?”
“At the time, greed clouded my judgment. I was out of my mind. Hearing you say that truly stings. But I will be more careful from now on to prevent it from happening again.”
Eliza spoke with a renewed sense of determination for the future.
“Will you continue working here, Eliza?”
“Yes. Thanks to the bonus I received from the bottles you brought out, I was able to pay off a significant portion of my debt. However, there’s still a balance remaining, so I’ll need to keep working at this shop for a while until it’s all settled.”
“If you don’t have a place to work after that, I’ll talk to Marie. Please consult me then.”
“Thank you. I will if that happens. Oh, it’s about time already. Shall we extend?”
“Patty’s like this, so let’s just head back.”
“Understood. Well then, please take care of Patty. I’d say ‘don’t be a wolf in disguise,’ but with someone like you, Kent, as a mother, I might even welcome it… Just kidding.”
Eliza said with a mischievous smile as she began preparing for the checkout.
“Thank you for your patronage today. We hope to see you again soon. … Carrying my daughter might be a bit heavy, but please be careful on your way home.”
After settling the bill, Kent left the shop with the drunken Patty on his back, seen off by Eliza.
“Hah, hah, hah… This is getting tough.”
Although he thought she was light for a girl her age, carrying Patty all the way home, which was still quite a distance, was a considerable burden. He reluctantly stopped at a bench in the Central Plaza to rest. The sun had already set, and the surroundings were dimming, but the street stalls and town lights maintained enough brightness in the plaza for people to be seen coming and going.
“A short break.”
“Taking a break? Master, are you going to do something lewd?”
“Huh?”
As he laid Patty down on the bench, Kent suddenly noticed Al standing before him.
“When did you get here?”
“Who knows when.”
Al looked at Kent as if he had witnessed everything.
“By the way, what about the shop?”
“I found it boring staying at the shop today, so I slipped out to come play in town.”
“That’s not good. Won’t Marie be worried?”
“Master, you took time off work to go on a date, didn’t you? That’s the same as playing around, isn’t it? Why am I the only one being scolded? It’s unfair. … Besides, I wasn’t the only one who slipped out.”
Al said, sounding displeased.
“Huh?”
The last thing Al said caught Kent’s attention, and he couldn’t help but ask.
“Actually, I slipped out too.”
“I also left work.”
“Emily and Hanako, you too?”
Kent thought it was just Al, but it turned out Emily and Hanako had also left the shop.
“As a shop-attached fairy, it’s important for me to revitalize the shop. However, given my contract with Master, if the shopkeeper is in an adversarial relationship, I must prioritize Master and will not do anything that benefits an adversary.”
“Emily, I’m not exactly in an adversarial relationship with Marie. We just had a minor disagreement, and ultimately, it was my fault.”
“Even if Master is at fault, we contract fairies must follow Master’s lead, even if it deviates from the righteous path.”
Emily stated firmly.
“Of course, I agree.”
Al seconded Emily’s sentiment.
“…Me too.”
“Hm? Hanako, did you say something just now?”
“…Hm? I didn’t say anything.”
It seemed Hanako had said something, but it was likely his imagination.
“But you were working together this morning, weren’t you?”
“Yes. It was solely to help Master. After Master went to school, we were given time off.”
“With so many people gone, I wonder if Marie’s doing alright.”
Hearing Emily’s words, Kent became concerned about how Marie’s Bakery was faring with its core members absent.
