Was what I was possessed into not simple fantasy but game fantasy?
[Program is loading…]
Program? I was flustered and couldn’t close my gaping mouth as I held my breath and stared at the letters. It was familiar to me who lived in the 21st century, but I hadn’t thought I’d be able to see it in this world close to fantasy.
Could this novel be fusion? Well, around the time I died, fusion was a popular genre. …Why can’t I remember a single thing about my personal details like who I was or who my family was, but only remember things like this? If that’s the case, I should at least remember what novel this world is…
When my thoughts reached that far, I was briefly irritated at my own stupidity.
[User confirmation…
User <Jack> has been authenticated.
Synchronizing to user.]
[Skill <Glutton (Prototype)> is activating.]
Fine particle powder gathered in the air and became a square panel larger than an adult’s palm. That black thing looked exactly like the E-book reader I used before possession.
I turned on the power with familiar hands. It was a habitual action.
“Oh… Ohhh…”
My voice trembled terribly. However, if this same thing happened to anyone else, they would show this stupid appearance.
The UI that appeared on the reader was very simple, and many things weren’t even turned on. Things like bookstores weren’t activated at all, and there was no function to download books. All I could do with the reader was read novels that were originally installed.
“Ugh… Ughhh…”
Just then, Belly’s pained groans pierced my ears.
I was startled and dropped the reader from my hand. But the reader disappeared like a ghost before even touching the floor. The notification windows that had been before my eyes also disappeared. Like a mirage.
“Are you okay?”
But since what was important now was Belly, I hurriedly checked on him. I worried at the moaning sounds, but Belly’s body actually had less fever than before.
Did symptoms other than fever appear? Since he’d frequently suffered from fever, it wouldn’t be strange for other symptoms to appear. I moved busily, wiping Belly’s cold sweat and such. Belly gazed at me doing that and called out.
“…Jack.”
Before I could feel moved at him calling my name for the first time, Belly’s clear eyes pierced through me. His transparent pupils were somehow inorganic and cold. As if my whole body had frozen, unable to do anything, I quietly looked at Belly.
An air more sunken than any other time filled the space between us. Tension for an unknown reason climbed up my spine.
“I’m… cold.”
Making the tension feel futile, Belly spoke as if somehow acting cute. I relaxed and giggled while covering him more thoroughly with the blanket.
“Very cold?”
“…Yeah.”
Since Belly came, I’d received one more blanket from the manager and we each covered ourselves, but today I’d have to cover Belly with both. I also covered Belly with the blanket I’d been using. Surely this won’t be cold. But Belly looked up at me with somehow dissatisfied eyes.
“Cold.”
“Cold? You’re covered with two blankets?”
Though it was early spring now, the weather had warmed up a lot so it wasn’t that cold. If he felt severe cold in such weather, he was clearly seriously sick. While I was absorbed in thinking of a solution, Belly wriggled his mouth and slipped into the blanket.
After much thought, I took out winter clothes I’d organized in the closet and covered them over Belly to make him as warm as possible. There was no extra blanket, so it couldn’t be helped.
“A bit warmer?”
“…Yeah.”
Though it was a blunt voice, I was relieved that he was at least warm and smiled slightly.
The next day, whether Belly was hot from excessive insulation, he was drenched in sweat, so I had no choice but to wash him with a wet towel in the room. It seemed my treatment was excessive…
This world has relatively distinct four seasons. Spring is when flowers bloom profusely, summer is muggy. Autumn is cool with falling leaves, and winter is cold enough to cut the flesh with falling snow. There were many aspects similar to the world before possession.
Now is the introduction of spring. A warm period when flower buds begin to bloom one by one. Since the air is warm, it’s also a good time to go out and play.
“Ah, I don’t want to go to work…”
But such a good time for picnics has nothing to do with me.
Speaking of my daily life, even before Belly came, it was tavern, bookstore, home, tavern, bookstore, home—an extremely diligent life. Moreover, my hobby itself was reading books, which I could fully enjoy in my room. Even if I didn’t work, this daily life wouldn’t change.
Belly looked at me like that with somehow cold eyes and muttered.
“…Lazy.”
“Hey, Belly-ya. Where else would you find someone as diligent as me?”
“You sing about not wanting to work every day.”
That’s true. But even if I say I don’t want to with my mouth, my body faithfully works, so isn’t this diligent enough? Well, Belly has never properly seen me work and only sees me complaining every day, so I understand him saying this.
“But I’ve never skipped work even once.”
I smiled and stroked Belly’s hair. Belly, who tried to strangle me on the first day, now doesn’t push me away even if he puffs up his cheeks in dissatisfaction when I stroke his hair. That appearance was like a feline animal rather than a reptile.
“…”
But even at my proud answer, Belly only sent a dubious gaze. Hmm, at times like this I regretted that Belly couldn’t move because he was sick. If we could go around together, he’d know how diligent I am.
After washing and changing clothes, I shared breakfast with Belly and headed to work as usual.
But the workplace was particularly tough today. For some reason, from lunchtime, customers trying to drink alcohol instead of eating filled the place. Ordinary customers were already hard, but dealing with drunks was naturally harder.
“Hey! When is what I ordered coming!”
“Coming soon!”
Other kids seemed quite tired, but I enjoy working at the tavern. The secrets spilled by drunks become sweet and enjoyable stories. If I steal and listen like a mouse and happily take it to the guild, it becomes my achievement. It’s truly killing two birds with one stone.
But even usually docile customers, once alcohol enters them, shed their innate species and transform into a new species. That is, bastards.
“Are you little brat disrespecting me right now?! Bring it right now!”
With many customers, serving is inevitably slow, but unable to wait, he shouts with a red face. His companions who would stop him had gone to the bathroom. Guzzling alcohol from broad daylight and cursing at a 10-year-old kid. Aren’t they even ashamed?
But I’m an employee and that son of a bitch is a customer. The customer is king. That’s no different in this world. I wore a smile on my face and dealt with them. Just then, the food that troublemaker ordered came out from the kitchen, so I quickly carried it.
“Here’s your order—”
Splash.
A nose-stinging alcohol smell vibrates. Because the drunk sprayed the alcohol I’d brought over my head. At the unimaginably troublesome behavior, all the customers and employees in the store watched me.
Soon, another flustered employee approached my side. He pulled me back as if protecting me. At the same time, a pitying gaze stabbed at me.
“I’m sorry, customer. Did this kid make some mistake…”
“How does this store educate its employees!”
The sight of him shouting triumphantly as the employee bowed was unsightly. But if I got angry now, I didn’t know how the drunk would act, so I also bowed and apologized.
The drunk’s friend, aghast at the situation that occurred while he’d been to the bathroom, quickly paid and dragged the troublemaker out.
“Haaa…”
“Jay, go to the back and rest a bit.”
The employee who dealt with the drunk instead of me spoke to me considerately. His eyes were full of pity. I gratefully accepted that consideration and headed to the back. The kitchen staff who saw my messy state handed me a towel and said.
“Just go home today.”
“Yeah. You were treated badly.”
When one person spoke, everyone unanimously recommended I rest and leave early. Whether the tavern owner had also seen the commotion, he spoke to me with a stiff face.
“Go home now.”
“But…”
“Go back. You can’t work more in that state.”
Though he spoke sternly, in reality it seemed he was worried that young me had been treated like that. Being people too, their hearts couldn’t help but be concerned.
My job isn’t just working at this tavern. It’s collecting information in this place. In such a situation, should I just go home because I was treated like this? I can’t do that. Normally I would have just washed roughly and worked again.
But… today was different. Was I tired from nursing sick Belly all this time? Strength drained from my limbs and my mood sank with no sign of recovery. In this state, even if I continued work, I couldn’t collect information. In that case, it seemed better to go home early.
“Then… I’ll go home for today.”
“Alright. Go home carefully.”
I accepted the consideration and left the store early. Flower fragrance tickled my nose, but mixed with the alcohol smell from my clothes, it felt like a stench.
“I feel bad…”
Why is this? This isn’t the first time I’ve dealt with drunks. Even seemingly polite people get drunk and reveal their bottom. I’m young and small among employees, so I’m an easy target for them to vent on.
Still, normally I could have consumed even their such behavior interestingly, but today my mood sank endlessly. It was as if someone was grabbing the back of my neck and dragging me down into a deep swamp.
