Chapter 109

Chapter 109

I didn’t particularly want to expand stores.

I thought we had enough already, and wasn’t it more important to properly manage the existing ‘Lu & Cream’ branches?

[But Irina……]

“No.”

[Whyyyyy!]

I ignored the system’s whining and reviewed the content from this morning’s meeting.

These days, ‘Lu & Cream’ has established itself quite well. However, since we can’t afford to be complacent, the planning team is always busy.

Recently, they’ve been drafting new plans to sell products other than ice cream in the stores.

“While ice cream is our main product, I think it would be good to also sell bakery items that go well with simple beverages.”

[……You suddenly changed the subject?]

“Well, you keep asking why I’m not opening branch stores.”

[Because you aren’t!]

“Because I don’t want to!”

I won’t do it! I won’t.

“I’m not doing the quest.”

I’m on the verge of burnout and seriously need a break.

Work is too much already, and I’m tired of grinding through boring quests just to pick up a few skills or bits of info from the system.

If only I had played a dating sim or story-focused games, such quests would have been very sweet.

Unfortunately, in that distant past that I barely remember, the game I played was a debt-repayment game, and to repay that debt, I had to complete absurd, trivial, and mundane tasks.

So these everyday quests can’t help but be tedious.

[But… this one is really important.]

Moreover, this newly appeared quest wasn’t something that could be resolved just by moving a little more diligently.

The title of the quest was already ‘Expand Stores.’

“I’m already busy with what I’m doing now. Do you know that the biggest cause of business failure is reckless store expansion?”

[That’s true.]

“I’ve already pushed it.”

If it weren’t for the demonic beasts, I wouldn’t have expanded the business so aggressively.

The fact that it didn’t fail despite this reckless expansion right after launch was probably due to Lemiere’s strong capital and the system, my life cheat key.

“So I’m not interested anymore.”

I’ll do it someday when the time comes. From what I could see, there was no particular time limit on the ‘Expand Stores’ quest.

[Fine…]

[Hmph.]

The system seemed to have given up on me.

It was only after a considerable amount of time had passed that I could understand why the system had given me this quest.

However, by then, I had only progressed a little on the quest. And even that wasn’t because I expanded stores for the quest, but at the request of Lemiere, our solid investor.

“What should I do?”

[……]

[……]

“Waaah, I should have just listened to the system back then.”

[…It’s okay, these things happen.]

[Irina was really exhausted at the time.]

Everything started about five months ago. We need to go back to Luwin mansion, where Cassis hadn’t returned for quite some time.

* * *

“Cassis, you’re late today.”

I waved to the disheveled Cassis, who seemed to have had quite a difficult day.

Cassis paused as he was entering. Meanwhile, the butler approached to organize his clothes and handed him a warm towel.

With the butler’s help, he removed his outer garments stained with the sticky fluid of demonic beasts, tidied up his leather gloves, wiped his hands with the warm towel, and tidied his face.

So when he approached me, sitting where the hall was clearly visible, he was much more presentable.

“You’re still awake and not sleeping.”

I pushed up my glasses and grinned.

Well, I’m busy.

“Since you’re preoccupied with dealing with demonic beasts, I should be repaying the debt.”

“…”

Cassis seemed to hesitate for a moment.

I didn’t mean to be sarcastic, but there was some truth to it, so I didn’t correct myself. Cassis seemed to have noticed this about me.

After a brief pause, he said:

“Irina, I’m sorry. It’s not that we’re excluding you from demonic beast matters because we’re disregarding you.”

“I know. Everyone has their area of expertise.”

I cut off Cassis’s words.

“I tend to have talent in trade and business, so this might be better than handling and researching demonic beasts. As Isiel Lemiere thinks.”

Cassis seemed to have a lot to say, but I didn’t give him the chance to speak.

Because although Cassis always grants what I want, he wouldn’t allow anything related to demonic beasts.

He said he was worried about me.

The situation where I was placed in front of a demonic beast at Duke Hellis’s mansion, and then the subsequent hearing. He said nothing good came from me being involved with demonic beasts.

He said he didn’t hire me at Luwin to deal with such dangerous things. My only purpose was to repay the debt.

“So I need your approval. It’s urgent, so I’ve been waiting.”

“Irina.”

“Also, to see your face after a long time.”

But despite his talk of worry and such, I didn’t go north simply to repay a debt, but to prevent the empire’s destruction, and further…

‘If I had to say, I went north to help Cassis.’

Because I wanted to help Cassis, who had helped me during my worst moments, in the same way.

Given the circumstances, while Cassis was out diligently exterminating demonic beasts, I couldn’t help but feel a little self-deprecating, having been left out of all the information.

What was I working so hard for, why did I head north?

And could I ultimately prevent the destruction?

‘But looking at it differently, by repaying Luwin’s debt, I’ve allowed Cassis to focus on demonic beasts.’

[Yes.]

‘So I wonder if this is how we’re meant to prevent the destruction.’

[That’s true.]

[In fact, the original intention was closer to this.]

[That understanding exists solely between you and us. It doesn’t involve Cassis or Luwin.]

‘Right.’

So what I’m doing is quite justified.

I handed Cassis a folder of documents and then swiftly turned around.

“I’ll be going now.”

Cassis’s face, which I glimpsed, wasn’t looking too good. Hmph, but what can I do?

Goodbye, goodbye.

However, just as I was about to take a step to return to my room, there was a hand holding me back from behind.

“Wait a moment!”

The hand that had lightly touched my shoulder fell away as I hesitated. When I turned my head slightly, there was Cassis, looking at a loss.

“I’m sorry.”

“…”

“I know why you’re acting like this.”

Cassis apologized.

“But I’m worried.”

He spoke rather desperately.

I quietly waited for Cassis’s words.

“You’re already struggling with just ‘Lu & Cream.’ You’re excessively hardworking and intense. I respect you for that. But it frightens me to see you not taking care of your health at all.”

“…”

“If I throw ‘demonic beasts’ at you while you’re already struggling, won’t you end up ignoring ‘Lu & Cream’?”

Cassis wasn’t asking. He was stating a fact—one so accurate, I couldn’t even bring myself to deny it.

“Irina Seike, you’ll accomplish everything perfectly, even if it means reducing your sleep time. You shouldn’t be able to do it perfectly, but you will.”

“But that’s my job.”

“I’m afraid of that.”

Cassis was already standing in front of me. He had been lightly holding my forearm for some time and spoke with a pleading voice.

“So I hope you won’t be too upset.”

I didn’t answer and kept silent.

Cassis continued:

“I did think it might be right to share with you, but today I thought I was right not to do so.”

“Why?”

Rather than feeling bad or unpleasant, I felt a bit anxious. What new issue could there be?

Cassis stared down at me for a moment.

Cassis, who always neatly arranged his bangs to reveal half of his forehead, had his hair covering his forehead today, suggesting that the battle had been quite intense.

Cassis, who always looked more mature than his age, now appeared appropriately his age with his forehead covered.

He said:

“I originally had something to tell Irina today.”

“Yes.”

He showed a slight smile.

I blankly stared at that handsome face. His smile wasn’t the pure and clear kind, but rather a kind one with a touch of pity, as if thinking, ‘What should I do about this?’

He spoke soothingly:

“I think I’ll have to leave the mansion for an extended period.”

My heart sank. As if reflecting my feelings, a system notification sounded.

Ding!

[SYSTEM | Quest ‘The Beginning of Destruction’ has arrived.]

What arrived simultaneously with Cassis’s words was a quest with an ominous name.

I urgently grabbed Cassis.

“Why?”

“I think I need to go far away.”

“How far?”

“To Jenoria.”

Jenoria is the massive mountain range that separates the Jackmüller Empire and the Yuphis Kingdom.

The mountains are very high and treacherous, with extremely few people having crossed them.

Because of this, the Yuphis Kingdom and the Empire didn’t even know of each other’s existence until a sea route was opened, vaguely believing there was an unknown land beyond.

So the Jenoria Mountains have been, and still are, an unknown space to the empire’s people for a very long time.

“Jenoria…”

“It’s not a big deal. I just heard news that demonic beasts have appeared there.”

I cut off Cassis’s words as he tried to soothe me, making it sound like nothing, just a trip to a slightly distant place.

“Demonic beasts, I see.”

“…”

“And the damage seems quite severe.”

And that Jenoria Mountain range belongs to the Adela County, located in the northeastern part of the empire.

“Has a village been completely annihilated?”

One of the small villages in the Adela County was where Princess Leilyranda grew up from a very young age, and it appears for the first time in the original story when it’s destroyed by the appearance of demonic beasts.