Volume 3 - CH 98

In the evening, as soon as the shop closed, Falk came to visit. He’s wearing his usual rough outfit, but he’s holding a short sword in his hand.

Alme was taken aback by his solemn appearance.

“M-Mr. Falk, that sword is…!?”

“I heard that a demon appeared in front of the shop.”

“Umm, it’s not a demon, it’s just that a man is wandering around…”

“It’s similar.”

She was about to say “How can humans and demons be so similar?” but she held back. It is true that she was a bit relieved that Falk is here.

Aside from Falk, who is ready to cut down any foe, she felt grateful.

‘Thank you for your concern. I mean, I’m sorry…to call you out with your busy schedule.”

“I just came here on my own, so don’t worry about it. Now then, shall we wait for the demon to appear at the shop? I’ll cut it to pieces, so please stay inside, Miss Alme.”

“Hey! It would be a disaster if a priest caused such an injury!”

“If I cut it down, I’ll just heal it. If it starts to move, though, I’ll cut it again.”

“Hey… don’t say scary things! Is this a new type of torture…!?”

Falk said something outrageous with a straight face. Alme was scared that she couldn’t tell if he was joking or serious.

While chatting about this and that, they decided to wait inside the front door for the time being.

The suspicious man has been showing up at the storefront at a similar time every day for the past week.

Alme is sure he will show his face again today and as they were talking, a figure appeared in the small plaza.

A sneak peek through the window by the front door. The man walked up to the shop and stood there in a daze. Falk frowned at the lifeless figure.

“Isn’t it really a demon or something? Look at that vacant look in his eyes…”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen him up close, but… is he okay?”

“Let’s talk to him.”

“Please be careful.”

After whispering a conversation, Falk quickly went outside.

Without hesitation, he approached the man with long strides and called out to him while holding the sword firmly in his hand.

“Do you need something from this shop?”

“…What!? Ah! I’m sorry! I’m not a suspicious person!”

The man yelled when he noticed Falk’s sword. With that momentum, he stumbled back over an uneven spot in the stone ground, fell over, and landed on his buttocks.

Falk, still holding his sword, rushed over to look down on him.

“No matter how you look at it, it’s suspicious. Standing in front of people’s shop every day at dusk.”

“Tch, it’s not…! It’s not! I have something to talk to the shopkeeper about! I was just waiting for the timing to talk to her…!”

“Tell me or I’ll cut you down.”

“Hic…!!”

Glaring at the man, Falk pulled his sword from its sheath.

Alme watched the situation through the gap in the entrance door and broke out in a cold sweat. Falk’s killing intent had increased. He looked as if he might seriously cut him.

(What should I do!? I should stop him!)

So she thought and opened the door.

The man who had been on his buttocks cowered to protect himself. At the same time, a magic shield appeared in his hand. Immediately, a cool air flowed around him.

Both Falk, who was facing him, and Alme, who was watching from a distance, were blinded by the sudden magic.

The transparent shield seems to be made of ice. He seemed to have activated ice magic on the spur of the moment.

The ice shield is very thin, just for comfort. The magic is probably as strong as Alme’s or just a little stronger.

The man raised his voice while crouching with an ice shield.

“Hey, please don’t…! I was just curious about the ice cream shop’s recruitment…! I’m sorry!”

“Recruitment……? Is that for an employee?”

“Oh, did you come here to apply!?”

“Yes, that’s right…! Also, I want to talk to you a little bit more…!”

Something he wanted to talk to her about. Alme walked out the front door and walked up to the man but before she could, she was pulled behind Falk.

It can’t be helped, so she popped her head out from behind his back and tried to talk to the man on the ground.

“Um, did you really come here to apply…? You were wandering around for about a week…”

“Oh, it’s true, it’s true…! I’m Cordell Dort! I’m a chef! Uh, I’m not lying! I don’t care if you call the police!”

A man calling himself Cordell, with his bright orange hair disheveled, made a desperate expression. His face from his front looks a little older than Falk.

Falk questioned him without lowering his sword.

“For a man of your stature, your actions seem quite inexplicable.”

“…… sorry …… I didn’t have the courage to talk to the owner ……”

“What is there to hold you back from applying for a job? …… or did you have some other feelings for her that weren’t job-related? What exactly is it about the conversation that requires courage?”

Falk’s voice lowered. He is poking Cordell’s ice shield with the tip of his sword, scrabbling at it. The pressure is terrifying…

Cordell talked about the situation while dripping cold sweat.

“Yes… Hey, there’s something I want to talk about apart from the application… There’s something I want to apologize for.”

“…What do you want to apologize for?”

“Eh, to me?”

“Eh… Um, actually, I was working at ‘another ice cream shop’ until recently… I wanted to apologize for that…”

“Is that so?”

Alme looked at Falk.

Cordell lowered his ice shield and put both hands on the ground.

Alme had seen this posture before in this small plaza. This is the so-called dogeza. She never thought that a second person would do the same here.

“I’m sorry… I ended up giving your shop’s ice cream recipe to the Desmond family… The ice cream I ate at this shop was recreated at the shop over there…”

“Well…! By the way, that Shirotaka ice cream over there…!”

“…I was making…”

He was the one who created that artistic falcon sculpture ice cream.

Alme was surprised when she saw that Shirotaka milk ice cream in front of her, but she never thought she would meet the creator himself.

Surprise, upset, and a slightly strange impression. Involuntarily, she almost let out an excited voice, “Oh,” but it felt out of place, so she swallowed it.

With his head down, Cordell began to talk about himself.

“… I didn’t have a place to stay in my hometown in the countryside… I had a lot of things to do, and I was forced to come to Luorio… My wallet was empty, and I was so desperate to get a job that I joined the Desmond family…. But there’s no opportunities for advancement, and I was always on a low salary, living on the edge… when I heard about an offer to become an executive chef at a new shop, I jumped at the chance! Later on, I was feeling kind of bad about it, but I didn’t have the courage to give up my current lifestyle… so I did as I was ordered and made an ice cream recipe…and here I am. The shop was closed for no good reason. I was kicked out and ended up unemployed…”

Cordell crawled on the ground and spilled out his story in a gravelly voice. Seeing this, even Alme looked somewhat reluctant.

Alme knows the emptiness of suddenly having a blank slate for the future.

Falk, too, had lowered the sword he was pointing at before he knew it.

All three people present, including Cordell, who is currently in progress, are all faces who have had trouble making ends meet.

In the midst of an indescribable atmosphere, Cordell raised his exhausted body.

“… I’m already tired… I have no place to go back to, and I’m running out of energy and money. I found a job advertisement on a bulletin board…”

“Is that why you came to my house?”

“Yeah…I have a useless work history, but I have experience making ice cream…and I can use ice magic…Also, it’s nothing more than self-redemption, but I hope I can be of help to you…But it’s hard to talk to you…I don’t have the courage to apologize, I’m a hopeless person….I don’t even have the qualifications to apply…”

Sighing deeply, he bowed his head once more.

“I’m sorry for wandering around the shop. I made you feel scared… I won’t be coming anymore, so please forgive me… I’ve caused you trouble…”

After apologizing, Cordell stood up dazed. He turned his back to them and started walking away.

Putting his hand on his shoulder, Falk stopped him.

“Wait. What are you going to do now?”

“What do you mean… I’ll roll over there and wait until I turn into a corpse…”

“I understand your desire to become a corpse, but humans are surprisingly capable of resilience. There are humans who have become priests out of the depths of despair due to the hardships of life and family discord!”

“That’s right, Mr. Cordell! There are people who have been cheated on by their fiancés, saddled with debt, and ripped to shreds by robbers, and are still living surprisingly well!”

“Umm, yeah…?”

Cordell stopped walking as Alme and Falk grabbed his arm.

Alme greets him again, facing him head-on.

“Mr. Cordell, if you don’t mind, I would like to talk to you a little more inside the shop. I am Alme Titty, the owner of the ice cream shop and I would be happy to interview you.”

“What… are you sure…? A useless, pathetic guy like me applied…”

“Far from being useless, Mr. Cordell is someone who can become an force to be reckoned with. I can’t afford to miss this chance. Why don’t you make a fresh start in a different environment?”

Alme smiled and held out her hand. Cordell’s eyes bulged and he accepted the handshake.

“…I didn’t think you would give me such warm words…thank you, Alme-chan!”

“Hey, you’re overly familiar! Call her the owner!”

Just before a warm handshake was exchanged, Falk slapped Cordell’s hand.

“Ow! I’m just a little emotional! Let me at least shake her hand! Or, are you related to the ice cream shop? If so, let’s shake hands together! I’m Cordell Dort, by the way! Nice to meet you!”

“Hey!”

“Gee, I’m glad you’re feeling better…”

Cordell grabbed Alme and Falk’s hands together and swung them around.

He seemed to be rapidly regaining his energy, but he was more boisterous than she expected.

After that, they entered the shop for the time being, and the three of them surrounded a table.

Cordell has only been in Luorio for about a year and a half. He has been working as a chef for about six years, including his time in his hometown. His responsibilities at the Desmonds’ house were mainly desserts.

On top of being able to make sweets and ice cream, he’s also an ice mage. And he has no other job now, so he can work hard.

As an opening member, there is no better talent.

Roughly the process of making ice cream, the work content, and the amount of salary. After they had a general discussion about training schedules, working days and such, he was given a job offer as soon as possible.

Once the proper contract documents are prepared and signed at a later date, he will be a full-fledged employee.

He was a different person, chatting and enjoying himself, a far cry from his initial lifeless demeanor.

Both Alme and Falk were relieved that he stopped seeking death for the time being.

“Then, I will hand over the documents on the training day.”

“Thank you, please~. I’m looking forward to making ice cream with you! Come to think of it, the Shirotaka-chan ice cream at Alme-chan’s shop is rounder than the one over there, isn’t it? What do you think? Why don’t you compete with them and turn them into five-headed falcons? I can make them!”

“Well, that’s a little…”

The Shirotaka ice cream at Campbellina’s shop was about three heads tall. In addition, the head and body are piled up. In his hands, I’m sure a fine falcon will be made.

But if that happens, it will be different from the shop’s mascot…

With a strained smile, Falk, who was sitting next to her, let out an annoyed groan.

“I like the round shape of that ice cream.”

“Huh~? Isn’t it round like a chick?”

“Since Shirotaka prefers chicks. I would like to ask you to leave it as is.”

“Ahaha, that’s not true~! What are you saying so confidently? Mr. Shirotaka, the prince of the temple, would definitely like a good-looking falcon. I’ll bet 10,000 G on it!”

Puffing out his chest, Cordell spoke in good spirits.

At the same time, Falk quickly removed the necklace of his disguise. In the glittering magic light, Shirotaka said.

“Then, I’ll take 10,000 G.”

“…sorry…I only have 300 G in my wallet.”

Cordell opened his mouth wide and muttered with a surprised expression.

“Uh, can I buy you dinner instead?”

“I’ll pay for it, just for the excitement of hiring the first employee of the new shop.”

“…Thank you for the meal…I’ll do my best to make a perfect white falcon…”

Cordell’s dazed voice was hilarious, and Alme and Falk both laughed.