11 – 11. Peaceful Morning at the Convenience Store (1)
Welcome to the one and only U.C Convenience Store in the universe!
For our customers who use our U.C Convenience Store, we always prepare products imported from various universes with the highest quality.
Moreover, our U.C Convenience Store employees are like dream guides who always treat our customers kindly.
But be careful!
Dreams are something that, once you fall into, you cannot escape from, like a dream without a guide, you will fall into a dream that you can never wake up from forever!
What? You say it’s better to keep dreaming?
You say wasting your life in a fantasy full of happiness and running the happiness circuit suits your taste?
Oh no! Unfortunately, if customers continue to dream for too long, they will appear!
They are beings that wander the universe, feasting on the intellect in dreams.
They can swallow your entire head, along with your brain, and swallow the dream, trapping you in eternal nightmares!
But still, that’s the better option!
If, unfortunately, the customers wake up from the dream because of them, from then on, customers will also become one with them and wander the universe.
Without settling anywhere, becoming a lost child who wanders the universe alone, yet with them, forever.
That is the end of the destiny they possess.
So if you don’t want to become like them, it’s time to wake up from the dream, right?
Wake up! Our diligent and virtuous U.C Convenience Store employee cannot rest yet!
Have a strong and powerful morning, wake up and start your day~♪
“Thud!”
“What the hell…”
I tossed and turned in response to the alarm sound filled with incomprehensible preferences, eventually falling off the bed.
Fortunately, it wasn’t a hard fall, but it was the kind of morning that made expletives slip out involuntarily.
Furthermore, the clock already pointed to 8 AM.
Perhaps that’s why the terrifying song, which felt like a nightmare even if you only heard it a moment ago, announced the morning.
From Noble mtl dot com
As soon as I got up, that eerie song stopped.
I even questioned whether it was the right song in the first place.
“Did I faint or something?”
I rose from bed, clutching my throbbing head.
The last memory that lingered before I lost consciousness resurfaced.
It seemed like I had fallen asleep while inspecting TreeWiki and RocketPang concurrently, and because I had left the system on while sleeping, my eyes stung, and my head throbbed.
It felt like sleeping uncomfortably with the lights still on in the room.
In my heart, I wanted to sleep for another three hours like this, but reality wouldn’t wait for someone like me. So, I quickly washed my face, combed my hair, and prepared to get ready for work.
[Category: Intellectual Entity, King]
[King Zular Khan (Space-1221)]
[Date of Birth: July 29th]
[Age: 351]
[Species: Humanoid]
[Physical: 220cm / 170kg]
[Occupation: King of Warriors]
[Hobby: Fighting with the strong]
[Affiliation: Kingdom of Animals]
“Wow, this is a complete giant…”
Instead of watching the morning news, browsing TreeWiki for knowledge proved to be more enjoyable than I had expected.
It felt like an intrusion into personal privacy, but TreeWiki provided fairly detailed information about famous individuals from Space-1221.
[Overview]
[Known as the most powerful creature on the surface of Space-1221. Despite having a relatively small stature for a humanoid, Zular Khan overcame numerous other humanoids with his might and led a revolution, ascending to the position of a leader.]
But if this is considered small in stature, what in the world are the other humanoids like?
Sure, the pig and the wolf I met yesterday were just about my size, but…
[Detailed Information]
[Censored]
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find out more details as it kept getting censored. But maybe when my level goes up, I’ll be able to read those as well.
[Category: Intelligent Being, Angel]
[Matangju Ceretini of the White Matang (Cosmos-1221)]
[Birth: October 4th]
[Age: (Censored)]
[Species: (Censored)]
[Body: 154cm / 44kg]
[Occupation: Matangju of the White Matang]
[Hobby: Shooting]
[Affiliation: Archangel]
[Overview]
[Matangju of the White Matang in Cosmos-1221, a master of white magic and a witch born under the protection of angels, with a golden halo on her head. She is also the only known witch with wings formed among the existing white witches.]
“She may be called a witch, but she looks like an angel.”
Since her species is also censored, there is a possibility that she is a real angel.
As I read the information on Treewiki, I prepared to open the store.
In fact, I didn’t have much else to do besides working at the convenience store, so it was without a doubt that I fell asleep last night after continuously digging through people in Treewiki like this.
[Category: Intelligent Being, Demon]
[Matangju Erebus of the Black Matang (Cosmos-1221)]
[Birth: June 6th]
[Age: (Censored)]
[Species: (Censored)]
[Body: 166cm / 56kg]
[Occupation: Matangju of the Black Matang]
[Hobby: (Censored)]
[Affiliation: (Censored)]
[Access to the knowledge of this intelligent being is prohibited.]
In this way, there are also individuals who possess almost no accessible information like this.
It goes beyond simple censorship and becomes a complete ban on access.
My speculation, but individuals like these seem dangerous at first glance, commonly enjoying acts of murder or engaging in risky rituals.
Still, people like that probably wouldn’t come here.
This is the “Papal State,” after all.
This place known as “U.C. Convenience Store 1221” is divided into four major factions, and these four factions are made up of individuals I observed from above.
The Sui, the White Mages, and the Black Mages, and it’s likely that the Church’s faction, the Papal State, is included with them.
According to the information I found on Triviki, the Sui surprisingly get along well with the other factions, but not so much with the rest.
The Sui tend to remain in small, independent groups within their faction, and especially the White Mages and the Black Mages are bitter enemies. The Papal State, thanks to the conflicts caused by these two, is constantly in turmoil.
[Heavenly Demon War (U.C. 1221)]
[A great war that occurred long ago, just before God redefined U.C. 1221. The leaders of angels and demons, along with numerous subordinates, were on the brink of destroying the world.]
It’s probably the influence of this war that happened a very long time ago. Grudges that have been passed down from generation to generation tend to grow even stronger with each passing generation.
Still, what works to my advantage is that the Saint, Alensia, came here, and there is no doubt that this damned U.C. Convenience Store is located in the Papal State.
If leaders of one faction visit another faction, even to a convenience store like this, it must be quite rare, don’t you think?
Moreover, it seemed that at least the people here were not facing major problems in their lives when I looked at the scenery outside the convenience store. Well, it’s uncertain to conclude that Alensia is just like a cult based on her alone.
If the information from the Papal State had not been censored, I could have known for sure. It’s a shame.
“Many kids come here.”
The sunshine is warm, the air is fresh, and people’s expressions are brighter than where I used to live. The convenience store I used to work at was located in an industrial zone, so the daily lives of those who worked there always looked gloomy.
Moreover, the neighborhood itself wasn’t that great, so I had been thinking of moving soon.
How could a walk to change my mood make me feel worse? The unpleasant smell of smog and the remnants of factories scattered all around dirty one’s mood.
Although the rent was cheaper because it was a relative’s building, the distance from the university and transportation costs were also factors that made me think moving was the better option.
The room was nice, and as much as the rent was cheap, I felt a bit regretful, but that’s just how it goes, you gain something, you lose something.
“The sky is so clear…”
Anyway, the conclusion is that the weather is really nice today.
Even though it’s not the convenience store’s opening time yet, I open the entrance wide and enjoy the fresh air, taking a deep breath.
Warm sunlight bathes me as the songs of birds reach my ears.
As I enjoy the melody, I naturally reach out towards the entrance–
[Access has been blocked.]
“…Damn.”
That was all I could do.
My outstretched hand was blocked by the blue barrier and I couldn’t move forward anymore.
Just 5cm more and I would be able to see the bright and sunny world unfold, but here I was trapped in this damn convenience store unable to go outside.
Looking up at the free sky from here is the end.
It feels as if I’ve become a black-haired beast in a zoo cage.
And just then, someone who came to watch that black-haired beast from the zoo appears.
-Mr. Store Manager-
[Have you woken up? I thought you would sleep in, but you’re already done getting ready, surprising.]
This store manager, no matter how you think about it, seems like that alarm sound is his taste…
Even if it’s not the manager’s hobby, there’s no way I wouldn’t know that it’s set to that alarm sound.
Is he purposely trying to piss me off?
Thud!
“?”
Suddenly, a small pill and a 500ml bottle of water fell on the counter.
-Mr. Store Manager-
[This is for the welfare of the employees. We still have about 10 minutes until opening time, so please have a simple breakfast and take it with you. Even if it’s not disposed of, I can give you one lunch box.]
“…Poison? Are you telling me to eat it and die?”
-Mr. Store Manager-
[I went through the trouble of preparing it, and instead of being thankful, you have to say that?]
No, I mean, it’s strange that he prepared it.
I’m grateful, but someone who harbors such grateful feelings makes me suspicious.
-Mr. Store Manager-
[Do as you please. I won’t interfere for 8 hours this time either. And don’t have any unnecessary misconceptions that you’ll be given a vacation this week without pressing the red button.]
After examining it closely, it looked similar to the multivitamins that my adult relatives used to take every day.
The store manager does a lot of nice things for me, but for now, this is just a multivitamin sold in convenience stores.
“Is this the employee welfare of taking vitamins, a bottle of water, and eating lunch boxes 24/7?”
-Mr. Store Manager-
[Do you have any complaints?]
I have a lot. I have so many complaints.
But still, it’s not all bad.
After all, what’s the point of longing for freedom here and spiraling into depression alone? Will anything change?
In that case, it’s better to think positively, to think positively.
Rather than despairing and feeling trapped here, it’s better to have hope, believing that there will be a way to escape somehow, while chasing after that hope.
Besides, there were many interesting things in Rocket Pang, so perhaps the situation isn’t so hopeless after all.
“…I should eat the most expensive lunchbox.”
Let’s start with breakfast.
Today, I have to face eight hours with unruly beasts and human hybrids, as well as troublesome nobles.
To do that, it’s also important to replenish my energy during this spare time.
Even ghosts who eat and die have good complexions.