“Then, you must know some excellent information.”

“Are you already getting up? You can rest a bit more if you like.”

“No, it’s fine. I have to check the counseling room at the academy and there’s much work to be done.”

Veronica, who was about to get drunk, seemed to have gotten up as soon as the thought of helping students crossed her mind.

"Next time, come to the academy. You did well today."

“Today?”

“Right now, I’m temporarily working here. I don’t know if this will be helpful, but please accept this. It’s an entrance gift.”

An entrance gift? What is this?

I looked at the object Veronica handed me.

A beautiful jewel shining in blue.

Even though I don’t know much about jewels, I could tell this was an incredibly valuable one.

No matter how I think about it, this was not something ordinary.

Considering Veronica's nature and authority, I couldn't believe she gave me a jewel.

"If something happens, contact me. I'll be waiting."

I wanted to return the jewel, thinking I couldn’t accept something like this, but Veronica had already left the shop at some point.

I wondered if she left while I was hesitating.

She left, and I was left holding the jewel.

It felt like a new recruit who just received their first paycheck.

Did Veronica really leave the shop?

Did I dream about waiting for her for so long while the manager was away?

I thought about that a lot.

My daily life hadn’t changed much recently, even though Veronica’s visit was real.

I was still working at the bartender job the manager gave me.

Nothing much changed, except that the jewels Veronica gave me were now stacked neatly in a corner.

I couldn’t tell anyone.

“Olympia.”

“Yes?”

“When I was away, did Veronica ever come by?”

“Oh, yes, she came by once.”

“...She left something?”

“She left these jewels.”

One day, the manager suddenly asked me about Veronica's visit.

Without saying much, I showed him the jewels she left, and he took a deep breath.

“I told you not to accept such things.”

Did she often leave such payment methods? How much money does she have to spend it like this?

“What should we do?”

“Veronica gave them to you, so you should keep them.”

“Keep them? But it’s like payment for alcohol...”

“Alright. I’ll keep them for now.”

The manager spoke to me as if he had thought of something.

“Don’t accept such things next time, just give them back.”

Ah.

So, I thought the manager might have had similar experiences before. But I couldn’t predict how he would react.

A few days later, when I received the jewels with a smile, the manager took something thick out of his pocket and handed it to me.

“What’s this?”

“Take it. Veronica told me. She said you should come to the academy today.”

“Oh, boss! But...!”

Ah.

And then I realized I had forgotten to tell the manager something.

Probably because I was immersed in my part-time job.

While I was talking, the manager’s face seemed to understand everything I was saying.

But he let me continue.

“Alright, alright. Suddenly quitting a part-time job isn’t a big deal.”

“Sorry…”

“It’s okay. Take this retirement money. I’m going to miss you.”

“I’ll accept it.”

“...”

I felt conflicted about receiving the retirement money.

I had never received retirement money as a part-time worker.

But I couldn’t refuse, seeing the manager’s face.

“Oh, I won't take the retirement money. I don’t want to be a criminal...”

“Boss...!”

“If you refuse, I’ll start crying. Just take it.”

“Oh, okay! I’ll take it!”

Knowing it was a performance, but still unable to refuse, I accepted the envelope. The manager laughed and hugged me.

“Boss? What is this…”

“Recently, I’ve enjoyed the past few months, Olympia.”

“...”

The manager hugged me and patted my back as if he were comforting me.

For a while, I felt a sense of relief that I had never felt before.

I couldn’t reject his hug.

“Take care.”

I greeted the manager with a relieved heart.

I felt that this kind of greeting was okay.

The manager replied in a low voice.

“I will.”

That was enough for me.

I looked around and felt amazed.

Would the background of the game I played become the background of my real life?

Seeing the academy, which is a background of the game, was amazing.

Veronica didn’t seem to notice me much, but the principal smiled.

“It’s amazing to see.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“It’s okay. You’ll continue to work here, right?”

The principal smiled kindly and said, as if she had been expecting it.

“It’s okay. I’m happy to see you here.”

She spoke as if she were talking to a child.

The principal said.

“Have you thought about it?”

“Yes.”

“Where should the counseling room be?”

“On the first floor.”

“Okay, but isn’t there a bigger problem?”

The principal smiled and explained.

“The students are doing well, but they are nervous.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

I couldn’t understand why the principal was so focused on the counseling room.

But I agreed with her.

“Yes, it’s good to have it on the first floor.”

The principal nodded.

I looked around the space set up for the counseling room.

It was a room with a bed, a bookshelf filled with novels and comics, and other essentials.

I smiled while looking around.

“This will be the background of the game I enjoyed.”

______________________________________

⚫ Author's Comment (Writer's Testimonial)

Now it’s the second episode, and the sales of the book are already more than seven volumes... What mission?

It seems like the protagonist is living in a small side story...

Anyway, it turned out like this.