Chapter 91

Our summer vacation at my parents’ house came to an end, and we safely returned to the employee dormitory in the suburbs of the Royal Capital.

“Ah~ feels like we’re finally back home.”

I found myself nodding at Cerulia’s words. It’s strange, considering I lived at my parents’ house for a much longer period of time.

“I feel the same. Yawn… I’m exhausted from the carriage ride, so I’m going to go take a nap.”

Mary yawned and disappeared into the bedroom area. It’s a mystery why the “Progenitor of Indescribable Nightmares” gets tired from mere travel, but I guess being an ancient entity doesn’t necessarily correlate with physical stamina.

“I’m starting to feel a bit tired too. Cerulia, I’m going to take a nap, so could you wake me up in about thirty minutes?”

“Understood, Master. I’ll clean the other rooms until you wake up.”

“You should relax too, Cerulia. It’ll be a hassle to cook starting today; why don’t we just eat out in the city tonight?”

Cerulia is such a hard worker that if I don’t occasionally build in “non-work” elements, she might actually collapse from overwork.

“But it’s on days like this that I most want you to eat my home cooking,” Cerulia said, clasping her hands together. Her little gestures are always so cute.

“Urgh… I mean, I want to eat your cooking too, Cerulia… but I feel like a relationship where I rely on you too much isn’t good, or…”

“But I am your familiar, Master, so it isn’t strange at all.”

Darn it. I’m about to be logically defeated. But here, I have to be firm—for Cerulia’s sake, we’re going out to eat—

“Whoa! What is THIS!?” Mary’s voice echoed through the dorm.

Since a great demon was screaming, something truly incredible must have happened. Both Cerulia and I rushed to Mary’s room immediately.

For the record, Cerulia and I share a room, while Mary has her own. It’s a privacy thing, but also because you can’t fit that many beds in one room.

“Maybe it’s just a cockroach,” Cerulia suggested.

“Now that you mention it, when she saw a sea slater, Mary did say that sea slaters and cockroaches are the only things she can’t stand.”

Still, a cockroach is a shock in its own right, so I hoped it was something else.

When I opened the door to Mary’s room, I saw another door at the back.

There shouldn’t be a room at the back of Mary’s room. I know the layout of this building.

“Huh? What’s going on? Is there some kind of purple illusion magic at work…?”

“Doesn’t look like it, and it feels solid. Basically, a door has appeared out of nowhere…”

Mary’s expression was a fifty-fifty split between surprise and indignation.

“Who performed this unauthorized construction while I was away…? I’m going to give them a nightmare where they undergo stress interviews for thirty days straight.”

That is a nightmare that grinds down the soul. The worst part about a stress interview is that even if you pass, the fact they did a stress interview in the first place means the company environment is probably garbage. So, at the point of the interview, you’ve already confirmed a “loss,” which just kills your motivation.

In the novels I used to read, there was a time when “violent heroines” were in demand, but that was only allowed because the heroine was cute. (Incidentally, in novels girls read, there were often “alpha-male” types who bossed the girl around).

If someone with a face like a smashed-in orc is violent toward you, they’re just a target to be neutralized; your heart doesn’t skip a beat. It’s just a “loss.” Stress interviews have that same feeling of “loss.”

I’ve digressed into stress interviews, so let’s get back to it.

“Um, Miss Mary, by the way, did you try opening the door?”

Cerulia was probably the most level-headed among us.

“No. Not yet. If it’s something that connects to another world, that would be a problem, right? If they know I’m the one living here and they’re picking a fight, they might be a formidable enemy.”

I see… that kind of risk is possible.

“Then we have to investigate carefully.”

“But investigating carefully is a pain, so I’m just going to open it.”

Click.

“Hey! You’re opening it anyway!?”

She acknowledges the risk but just ignores it. That’s the “strong style” only Mary can pull off.

However, no problems occurred.

Beyond the door was just a perfectly ordinary room, styled almost exactly like Mary’s.

It was a bit bleak, though—no sense of being lived in. With just a bed, a desk, and a light that turned on with a simple spell, it gave the impression of a room in an inn.

“It’s an ordinary room.”

“Yeah, looks pretty ordinary to me too.”

Cerulia suggested, “Why don’t we check from the outside?” and when we went out to look, a new room had purely and simply been added to the building.

For now, we knew it wasn’t magic or anything, but how did this happen?

“The President should be in the office today; I’ll go ask her.”

That was the fastest way.

Incidentally, Cerulia and Mary were bored, so they tagged along.

“Ah~ That’s right, that’s right! I forgot to tell you. I’m so sorry.”

When President Kelkel says she’s sorry, I have no choice but to forgive her. The issue was the reason.

“Why has a room been added like that? If it’s a perk, I’m happy, but…”

“Remember I mentioned that someone named Aliénor would be coming for the mini-study abroad program starting in September?”

“Ah, right, right. She’ll be learning here at this company for a while.”

Aliénor is a so-called “self-employed” Dark Mage from Morco Forest, where her family has made a living through dark magic for generations. She’s exquisitely clumsy, but there’s something likeable about her. Also, we did end up doing a Sabbat together…

“I was thinking about where to have Aliénor-san stay, and I thought it would be best to just expand the employee dormitory and have her live there~. So, that’s why it’s in that shape.”

““WHAAAAT!?”” “Oh my.”

Mary and I cried out in shock, while Cerulia actually looked quite pleased.