Convenience Store Worker From Another World Chapter 167

Episode 167. Contrary to expectations (5)

* * *

Although my sister grumbled at my request, she still granted it.

“This brat, how dare he order an A-class hunter to run errands for feed on his day off?”

“Then what do other A-class hunters do on their days off?”

“I’m going to get nagged while playing games at home. Hey, Puppy, do you want to come with me?”

“I see, Miss Yoon-ha. I think you need to dry your hair a bit.”

After saying that, the two of them went out, and inside the house, I was left with a transparent kitten, presumably 3-4 months old, and a fire sprinkler that showed no signs of stopping. How can I stop that… .

After much thought, I lifted the cat and held it close to the sprinkler.

“Hey. You turned it on, so turn it off.”

“Meow!!”

The water stream hits something invisible and forms a shape that looks exactly like a cat.

“Haaah, yaaaah!!”

You wouldn’t do this to a normal cat, because the water in their ears could cause an infection. But this guy’s a magic cat, right?

So, it probably knows how to magically stop water from entering its ears. This guy seems to hate water so much that he struggles a lot.

It was so unusual that it created a kind of translucent film around my hand that blocked the water. As if that wasn’t enough, the water from the sprinkler gradually decreased and stopped.

Now I have a handle on this guy. I tried talking to him through the translucent membrane.

“You shouldn’t do to others what you don’t like, Inma. Got it?”

“Meow… .”

Okay, I figured it out. Then I tried the same thing on the sink, wash basin, and shower faucet, and it worked. Finally, the gas pipe.

I checked to see where the gas was leaking, and there was a hole the size of a pin in one of the gas valve hoses. I guess this guy must have made it with some magic trick.

This was also solved by pushing the cat’s face in, and at the same time as the sound of his jaws, the covering around the hole gathered into a single point. The gathered covering neatly covered the hole.

I thought about this while looking at it. This guy said he kicked out all the tenants and workers who came to visit. The process must have been similar to what I just experienced.

It would be normal to see water marks or mold on the floor or wallpaper, but I never saw any of that. Unless the landlord cleaned up the water as soon as it came in… .

“Hey. Can you clean up the water on the floor too?”

“… … .”

Now he’s exercising his right to remain silent. Or maybe he’s just tired.

I tried lowering him to the floor while holding his neck, and he was surprised when his feet touched the water, making a splashing sound and creating small ripples.

After that, the water started to flow all at once toward the bathroom like an ebb tide. The water that had filled the gaps between the floorboards, the wallpaper, and even under the sink was all sucked out.

In an instant, the inside of the house became fluffy. While I was looking through the gap in the veranda where all the moisture had disappeared, the front door opened again and my sister and the puppy came in.

As soon as he came in, the puppy shook his body, and his sister came with a phone in one hand and an envelope in the other. As soon as she came in, she checked the inside of the house and opened her eyes slightly wide.

“What? Did you finish cleaning the house in the meantime?”

“He took it. He also blocked the gas pipe while he was at it.”

“Really? You told me to clean up that cat, so you cleaned it up again?”

Cats are among the cleanest pets. They brush their paws after using the toilet, and they spend a quarter of the day grooming themselves.

I wonder if this magic is an extension of that tendency, but honestly, I don’t know. I just shrugged my shoulders, and my sister put her phone away, put the envelope down in front of my nose, and continued talking.

“I told my sister about the cat, and she said that only food would be enough, so I packed a bunch of things for her.”

“The store manager? Have you ever raised a cat?”

“Not my sister, but my sister’s acquaintance. I brought a bowl of rice, water, and snacks. I was going to help clean up the house when I got back…”

“What? Are you going?”

“Go home and wash up. It’s your rare day off, so it’s a bit much to go around looking like a mouse.”

The older sister, who was holding the puppy while talking, asked while gently stroking the puppy’s head while the puppy, who had just turned around, blinked while looking at the house.

“Hey, Puppy. While you’re at it, why don’t you go wash up too?”

“No, when did you get home… What did you just say, Miss Yoon-ha?”

“Let’s wash together. You smell really bad right now because you’re soaking wet.”

“…that.”

The puppy has a trauma from washing. Before he ran away, he was washed in the house he lived in, and he was washed on a washboard as if he was removing the soap.

I thought the way she was looking at me was asking me to stop her, so I gave in to her.

“Go to the store and buy some dog shampoo, sis. If you wash him with soap, he’ll get a skin disease.”

“No, sir…!”

“I didn’t even know that. Have you ever had a pet before?”

“No, that’s not it. I worked part-time at a pet shop. Message me later, sis.”

“Okay. Let’s go, puppy.”

After this conversation, my sister picked up the dog that was lying flat on the floor and left, and now it was really just the two of us left. My hands were starting to go numb after holding onto the scruff of its neck for over ten minutes.

After switching to the other hand, I opened the cat food bowl and food packaging and filled it with food. I placed the cat in front of the full food bowl and watched him quietly.

A few grains of food rustled. One of them was picked up and dropped repeatedly before disappearing into what would be the cat’s mouth. It looked like the cat flicked its tongue a few times before putting it in its mouth.

After that, he started eating in a hurry. I could tell by the sound.

“Woong meow meow… .”

The dog said that this guy smelled like a trash can. Since there was no way there would be anything to eat in an empty house, he must have gone outside and searched through the trash can whenever he was hungry.

I took my hand off of the cat and it was eating without making a fuss. I read what was written on the food bag and spoke to the cat.

“Hey. That’s high protein, Kitty.”

“… … .”

“If you cause trouble again, I’ll reduce the rations.”

I don’t know what might happen if I let him out, so I think I’ll have to keep him like this for the time being. At least he’s a well-behaved guy when he’s eating… .

* * *

After confirming that the food had stopped shrinking, I put everything except my boxer shorts in the dryer and went to bed. Since I didn’t have a single towel at home, I had no choice but to wring out a T-shirt and dry myself.

When I woke up, it was dark outside. I turned on the light and checked the food bowl, but the amount of food was much lower than when I last checked. The plastic bag that I had taken out was full of fingernail marks―

“Grumble… Grumble… .”

I can hear a rustling sound coming from inside the room connected to the living room. Given the cat’s nature, I’d say it’s probably hiding from me and sleeping.

As I was looking, it occurred to me that I hadn’t given the dog water. I opened another bowl and filled it with water and food, then took out some clothes and put them on.

It’s 9:30. If you don’t get ready now, you’ll be late. He finished talking into the room.

“I left food and water in the living room, so from now on, don’t dig through the trash can and just eat your food. Got it?”

“…Grrrrrr…”

“I’ll buy you a toilet tomorrow, so do whatever you want today.”

I did everything I could. Thinking that, I went out and exited the alley where the two-room building was. As soon as I entered the large intersection, a pretty sight unfolded.

The streets were dazzling. Streetlights, neon signs, department stores, restaurants, bars, convenience stores lining the sidewalks, and countless other buildings.

Since there are so many schools in this area, the commercial district must be developed as well. I had only guessed this in my head, but now I can clearly feel it.

Just two months ago, I would never have dreamed that I would be living in a place like Hongdae. Just walk a little further to the scramble intersection.

While waiting for the crosswalk signal to change, I listened to the voices coming from all directions.

“How did you do on your aptitude test? If I’m unlucky, I’ll have to transfer to a non-magical department.”

“They say I have an aptitude for power magic, but I’m also close to it.”

“Hey kids, I’m at the crosswalk right now. Where the hell is the restaurant? Do you have any meat left for me to eat?”

“Yes, Professor… Yes. Urgent matter, yes. We’re running low on potion reagents. Come back. Yes… … .”

“Sir, please contact the dwarf workshop we work with for that matter—”

Various races are continuing their own stories. Two high school kobolds who are depressed because they failed the aptitude test, an orc who seems to be going to a meat restaurant to meet a friend, a graduate student who is suffering even after 10 p.m., and an office worker who seems to work in a metal-related business.

Among them, I focused on the story of the orc looking for a restaurant, and it seemed like the meat that this orc was eating was frog legs. What kind of 2m tall guys gather together and eat frog legs?

“You haven’t even eaten half of it in an hour? Okay, just wait. I’ll go and eat the rest.”

That frog must be pretty big. Halfway through, the traffic light turned green, and I crossed the crosswalk, half-swept by the crowd.

While walking, I bumped my thigh into the shoulder of a dwarf, and the shoulder was like a boulder, so I was thrown back and almost fell down. While I was hesitating, the dwarf turned around and bowed his head.

“Oh. Sorry.”

“No. What.”

It was a natural reaction, so I just lowered my head. As I passed by, random thoughts came to mind. What is my race, where am I from, what is my identity?

It seems like no one cares. Well, how could I care now about a problem that no customer cared about while I was working there?

If this is how I feel, I don’t think there will be any problems living in this neighborhood in the future. As long as I resolve issues like resident registration, contracts, and insurance.

I walked all the way to the place where I could see the castle in the school district. I could see the subway station entrance in front of the convenience store, and among the people coming and going, I could see many different races entering the store.

As I entered the store, I saw three or four customers walking around the store, choosing items. The store manager also looked in my direction when the doorbell rang.

“Oh, Chan is here. Did you sleep well today?”

“So-so. Manager, how was your afternoon shift today?”

“It wasn’t a joke. Just take a look.”

The store manager points to the POS machine. I checked the sales, and they were 1.5 times higher than what was recorded at the intersection at this time.

“A ton of high school kids came. I guess it’s because something big happened today.”

“I overheard the kids talking on the way to work. They were both on the verge of depression.”

“The kids who came in droves were all the same. If there was someone who said they did well on the test, I would beat them with my bag.”

“It’s the same in this neighborhood.”

“By the way, Chan-i, has the problem been resolved?”

“Uh… yes. I was going to tell you that anyway.”

I fed him and watched him, and he slept well. I don’t think he’ll have any problems if I feed him well in the future. I asked him right after explaining.

“That cat in our house, is it a spirit?”

“If it’s like what Chan and Yoon-ha said, then about 99%. I’ll have to see the rest myself to know… But Chan-ah.”

“yes.”

“If possible, let’s talk about that kid when no one else is around. If they hear about it, it’ll cause trouble in some way.”

I was just finally getting along, so what’s the problem this time?

Just as I was about to open my mouth to ask, the front door bell rang and another customer came in. After coming in, he glanced at us, put his bag down on the table, and stood in front of the counter.

Then he just stares at us both. When we both remain silent, he blinks his silver eyes a couple of times and opens his mouth.

“Hello, brother.”

“As you said, there has been a problem, store manager.”

“That’s not what we were talking about….”