Convenience Store Worker From Another World Chapter 97

Episode 97. Business is bad, the car is too big (2)

This is the third time today that this surrogate werewolf elder has come to visit me. The first time was when there was a triple-pileup on the road ahead, and the second time was when he gave me advice right before my practical exam.

He was a person who gave me a lot of shock and fear with every visit, and thanks to that, there are a few things I can’t forget. For example, what kind of cigarettes he usually smoked.

“Can I have a pack of One Blue please?”

“It’s here.”

I took out a picture that was in good condition and prepared change. I took out the change according to the price and gave it to him, and he fiddled with his hat as if he was embarrassed.

“Thank you for your consideration, but please give me anything you want, sir.”

“I’ll do that next time. Anyway, you asked me how I was doing.”

I’ve been doing pretty well, and I have some evidence to prove it. When I took out my certificate booklet from under the counter and put it on, the old man’s eyes widened slightly as he looked at me.

“Oh, I see you passed.”

“Yes. I did as you advised and it worked out.”

You need a trigger and your mindset is important. He gave me advice based on his own experience. Thanks to this advice, I was able to understand a little bit about how to handle my body.

The little dragon could also help, and it was useful when taking the practical exam. If it were up to me, I would have boiled some red ginseng for the old man to take care of his health, but…

“I’ll just accept your kind words, sir. I just don’t like what I write.”

He declined. It is a gift of red ginseng, but the amount is too much to give away, and it would be burdensome for the recipient.

“Then let me buy you a cup of coffee. I’m thirsty right now, but I don’t want to drink it alone.”

“If that’s the case.”

I think this is okay. I still don’t know what kind of coffee the elderly person likes, so we decided to each choose our own. I always drink Americano.

A little while later, the old man brought me hot chocolate. Uh… .

“This was delicious, boss.”

Wasn’t the statement that you can’t eat bitter things an attempt at beating around the bush?

“I’ll buy the ice cup.”

“…Uh. No, if we don’t take it together, you won’t get the 100 won discount. Give it to me.”

I came to my senses halfway through. There’s no law that says a silver-haired old gentleman wearing a hat can’t drink hot chocolate. I paid the bill and poured some hot chocolate into an ice cup for him, and he drank half of it in an instant with a straw.

Then, he looked out the front door and spoke softly.

“At first I thought I took the wrong road, sir.”

“yes?”

“Because I can’t see this convenience store.”

I think you’re talking about the forklift outside. I had forgotten for a moment, but as soon as I saw it, I felt a sense of emptiness. How do you really do that?

“I know this will be very inconvenient.”

“I guess so. Thinking about what you said, I think other guests will probably miss it too.”

“Did you report it?”

“I don’t plan on doing it. Even if I call the police, I don’t think they’ll tow it away….”

The only deal the police can make is to tag the driver and contact the owner on his behalf, but there’s nothing the police can’t do. How can they contact the driver if they don’t have his contact information?

If by chance an elf officer were to show up, I would pay some attention, but this town has more than just one police officer. All he’d do would be tell me to wait and leave. And.

“It’s obvious that if I stick a label on them, they’ll think I’m picking a fight with them.”

There are no pedestrians walking around right now because the soccer game is in full swing, and there are no bars within a 20m radius. The only store with lights on is this one convenience store.

In this situation, if a ticket is attached to your car, who would the owner suspect? They would barge into the store and ask, “Hey, did you report it to the police?”

I don’t like being treated like a fool, and I hate it even more when a sane person is forced to be treated like a fool… No, parking a forklift in front of a convenience store with its lights on and going out for a drink is not something a sane person would do.

“The more I think about it, the angrier I get. Should I just report it and see?”

“No. As the boss said, there seems to be no need to cause trouble.”

“… Well, I was just saying that.”

What’s the point of reporting it? You’ll feel better for a while, but then you’ll get into an argument with the guy who came looking for you and then you’ll feel twice as bad.

I don’t know when, but I guess I have no choice but to wait for the car owners to come and take the car away. Just when I was about to give up, the old man quietly called out to me.

“president.”

“yes.”

“This is my personal business, so you don’t have to worry about it, boss.”

What are you going to do?

I didn’t understand it at first, so I just ignored it. The old man took off his hat, gave it to me, and went out the front door… .

He stood behind one of the two vans and began to look closely at the rear bumper, but the part he was looking at was slightly dented— Wait a minute.

“Sir, what are you trying to do right now―”

“This area seems okay.”

I think it would be okay there, but wouldn’t it be better to reconsider?

Before I could even begin to speak, the old man grabbed the bumper with one hand and let out a small “Huh.”

After that, he lifted it up.

Immediately after lifting it, he adjusted his grip on the bumper like a weightlifter, wondering if it wasn’t as heavy as he had thought. He tried to lean his body to the side while still holding it, but I couldn’t see the angle.

“Boss. I can’t see ahead, so can I ask you a favor?”

“That… yes. Just a moment.”

Damn, I don’t know. Any other sharp tips?

I tried to ignore the squeaking noise coming from the rear bumper, and stood in front of the car to check the direction of the wheels. Thankfully, they hadn’t broken the wheels.

“The front wheels are parallel, so just keep going, sir! I’ll tell you when it’s time to stop!”

“All right.”

Following a small answer, the forklift began to approach me with brisk strides.

The 1.8t forklift was rocking up and down to match the old man’s steps. The more I looked at it, the more I thought there was a bug in the physics engine. I’ve seen all sorts of things in life…

As I tried to shake off the cognitive dissonance that was creeping up on me and guided the car (physics) about thirty steps, the view in front of the convenience store became quite clear. I immediately shouted.

“I think you can put it down!”

At the same time as he spoke, a thud. A creaking sound vibrated from every corner of the car body. After confirming that the car had come to a complete stop, I asked the old man how he was doing.

“Are you okay? Your arm, your back, anywhere―”

“There was a little dust on my hands, but it was okay.”

All you have to do is clench and unclench your fist a couple of times and then tap the soot off your top. The back of the forklift is much heavier, so let’s say it’s about 1.2 tons.

This old man just deadlifted 1,200kg. He did 1:1,200?

He said that he was fine except for the dirt on his hands. Instead of working as a delivery driver, shouldn’t he open a gym under his name? It seems like three generations of his family could live without worrying about retirement funds.

“I’m thinking of clearing the car in the back as well. What do you think?”

“I don’t think you need to go that far.”

I don’t want or need to see the entire store. Even if you only see half of the sign, you’ll know there’s a convenience store here.

In addition, I couldn’t bring myself to see the same sight one more time. Even just looking at the area around the rear bumper that the old man had lifted up, it was a bit more dented than before… .

“No, isn’t it?”

Even though I have never lifted a forklift with one hand, I can imagine it. If the weight of a forklift is all concentrated on the surface area of an adult male’s palm, it is normal for the bumper to bend to some extent.

But nothing has changed. It’s not just a matter of saying that with your arm bent toward the old man, but for real. After watching for a long time, I was finally able to come to a plausible conclusion.

“Sir. I don’t know much about this, but is this something you did using magic?”

“It can’t be as grandiose as magic. I don’t have any talent for magic… Of course, I’m not saying I lifted it with just brute force.”

If you hadn’t added something along the way, I would have asked you what kind of protein you were eating. The old man seemed to think that he needed to add more explanation, so he slightly rolled up one of his sleeves.

He rolled up his sleeves, extended his hand so that his palm was visible, and continued speaking.

“I just used a little magic trick. You probably can’t see it now though―”

“I think you mean this fog. It’s dark blue, like dry ice.”

There was something wrapped around the old man’s hand that he couldn’t find any words to express. Earlier, he was only looking at the front wheels while guiding the car into park, but when he strained his eyes, he could see something.

Let’s say the old man opens his eyes wide, as if he was quite surprised.

“… I thought you wouldn’t see me, but I had momentarily forgotten that you are an extraordinary person, sir.”

“You are extraordinary, but this is all you can do. Can I ask you another question?”

“Of course. Anyway, right now I’m concentrating the magical power inside my body into my hands… .”

It is said that as you train, you can use your magical power for more diverse purposes. For example, you can send magical power to the rear bumper of a forklift instead of your palm to enhance its hardness.

By concentrating your magic power on a desired point, you can even select and remove just one brick from the floor walkway.

“I just tried to slightly shake the ground with my magic… I’m not sure if I explained it well.”

It’s an explanation, and this old man really did take the brick out.

And it’s so clean, without a single crack. Am I really asking you to put this in? It looks like a lot of pedestrians are going to fall over.

Fortunately, the old man put it in himself. He put it in the floor and rubbed it once with his foot, and the brick carefully went back into place as if he had never fallen out.

“If you are prepared for something like this, I can teach you some simple magic usage techniques.”

“I’m fine. The tow truck company has to make a living, too.”

The old man looked slightly sullen, but I can’t help it. My body has absolutely no magic power. What good would it do for someone without even a single drop of magic to learn how to use it?

I don’t even know the exact principle, but I’ve gained some knowledge. Magic power isn’t just used to cast spells; it can do all sorts of things.

Anyway, the car was moved and the bumper was safe, so there shouldn’t be any more trouble. I went back to the store with the old man and finished the drinks I had bought earlier.

I took two sips, and the old man took the remaining half in one shot. While the old man was throwing away his cup, I checked how much of the soccer game was going on on my phone. It was 43 minutes into the second half.

Considering the extra time, it seemed like it would be busy in 7 minutes. After thinking about a topic for a short conversation, I asked the old man.

“How have you been, sir?”

“Of course, I had a good time.”

He said he was doing well, but there was a strange sense of discomfort in his tone. He continued.

“I play baduk and gateball too….”