I Became the Cute One in the Problem-Solving Team

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The story seems to be wrapping up to some extent.

Greg stood up nonchalantly as if he had no further business here.

“Well then, I’ll be on my way.”

“Oh, Greg, are you leaving right now?”

“Yeah. I plan to catch a flight for lunch today. There’s no need to drag it out.”

It seemed like he was planning to board a plane and head abroad straight away.

So that’s why he brought me here right after coming to work.

Maybe it was an orc’s fiery nature? The way he charged forward without a hint of hesitation or worry was truly quintessential Greg.

After giving such a brusque reply to Alice, who had asked him a question, he turned his gaze toward Raven.

“Thanks again, Raven.”

“Don’t mention it. I owe you from before. We need to help each other out… By the way, is there a service next time? Like a free consultation or something?”

“I’ll think about it.”

Greg nodded slowly with a look that said, “I can’t help it.”

Since I had received that much help, perhaps it was within acceptable bounds.

Feeling somehow guilty for it, I couldn’t help but think it was all because of me. Sorry, boss!

As I watched their conversation with bated breath,

Greg glanced at me one last time, still trapped in Alice’s embrace, and said,

“Yuria.”

“…?”

“Stay healthy. I’ll be back soon.”

“…!”

I beamed at his words and nodded vigorously.

Of course, with the mask covering my entire face, he probably couldn’t see my expression!

‘Still, I should at least say goodbye.’

I carefully tapped Alice’s arm resting on my shoulder to ask her to let me go, then I scampered over to Greg.

Honestly, I wasn’t particularly attached to farewells.

As long as I wasn’t dying, I’d surely meet him again somewhere in this world.

When I looked up and thought about sharing the same sky, I didn’t feel sad or melancholy at all.

Besides, Greg wasn’t leaving forever; he was just going abroad for a little while, right?

That’s why I could send him off with a relaxed smile.

“…!”

Have a safe trip.

In response to his words, I opened my palm wide and offered it to Greg.

Did my simple gesture convey what I wanted?

Greg grinned wide enough to show his teeth and placed his giant hand over my tiny palm.

And that was my farewell.

Greg lightly nodded to Raven and Alice, then left the office without a second thought.

It was a truly cool exit, not looking back even once.

“He’s gone.”

“He really left.”

“….”

With his large presence gone, it felt as if the space around us had expanded.

Well, it made sense since Greg was over 2 meters tall.

I watched his figure disappear into a dot in the distance through the window, blinking in a daze.

He really did leave. I suddenly felt the reality of being left alone here.

“…Yuria looks forlorn from the back. Do you miss him that much?”

“You look like a cat staring at a fishbowl.”

“Ah! I think I know what you mean! The fishbowl cat!”

…Who looks like a cat staring at a fishbowl? I’m not that upset!

I shot a sidelong glare at Raven and Alice, who were whispering amongst themselves, and let out a small sigh internally.

A month from now, huh.

It felt like that time, which would probably seem short once it passed, felt incredibly long in this moment.

*

From the general manager of ‘Greg’s General Store’ to a temporary part-timer at ‘Crawley Fixer’s Office.’

My highly anticipated first job, now drastically reduced in status, was as follows.

“Um… I don’t really have anything for you to do right now. Would you like to sit and take a break?”

That was nothing but a break!

Well… what could a rookie just stepping into any job be expected to do?

Especially since I came in as a parachute hire thanks to a friend, I sat quietly on the sofa, trying to blend in as much as possible.

Let’s remember. It’s more important to do well than to work hard.

But even more important than doing well is not sticking out.

I always had to keep in mind that I could be easily replaced as just another cog in society. Never fall into the illusion of being the unique one that could never be replaced; that’s a crucial virtue for surviving in the workforce…

“Hey, can you make coffee?”

“…?”

Sudden coffee?

As I tilted my head in confusion at the unexpected question, Alice chimed in as if to ask for me.

“What’s with the coffee? Jin can’t drink bitter stuff. He only drinks it if it has five sugar cubes or more—totally childlike taste.”

“Shut it. I’m an employee, so I have to do something. It’s not like I can just follow you around like a kid. It’d be enough to serve coffee when a client comes in.”

I see. So my role is to be a hostess serving coffee or tea when clients show up.

That wasn’t a bad job at all. No, actually, it was quite good!

In fact, it wasn’t too different from what I did at Greg’s store.

Besides, wandering around Night Haven with my pathetic body without any psychokinesis…

Yeah, no matter how I think about it, that was dangerous. What if I got shot in the back of the head?

Yet, was there something I didn’t like about this arrangement?

Alice pouted and expressed her discontent toward Raven.

“I want to wander outside with Yuria… Ugh, evil boss, immediately free Yuria!”

“Yeah, like that will happen. You’re just gonna sneak off for shopping midway, aren’t you? A cute enthusiast like you wouldn’t just go for a stroll.”

“Ahem… I’m not sure what you’re talking about~”

Seems like I hit the nail on the head.

I silently applauded Raven for cutting off Alice’s suspicious scheme in advance.

Thank goodness. If Alice dragged me off again, there was a high probability that something more than what I was currently wearing would be showing up.

That… would definitely require some mental preparation.

No, I hope such a thing won’t happen. Honestly, it’s embarrassing!

“For now, Alice, don’t butt in. We can’t get anything done. Ahem, anyway. So you can serve coffee or tea, right? Good.”

I guess the thoughts swirling in my head had begun to organize.

As Raven continued his thoughts, he brought over a piece of paper, scribbled something on it with a pen, and handed it to me.

“Alright, come in by 9 in the morning, 10 at the latest. Then we’ll have lunch together. Leave at 6 in the evening. Your main duties are to guide clients to the reception room and serve snacks or tea. When there are no clients, you have free time. You can play games or read a book in the office; it doesn’t matter. Got it?”

“….”

“Great, seems you understood properly. And as for the pay… It’s not too hard of a job, so around this much. Enough to get by for about a month. Okay?”

“…!”

I nodded vigorously at Raven’s proposal, almost to the point of my head coming off.

Good. No, it was just the best. I can’t believe there’s such an absurdly sweet job available in this world.

9 to 6, lunch provided, low work intensity, and even free time when there’s no work!

The only downside was the amount being low, but since I wasn’t planning to stay here forever,

For someone like me who was destined to wander the streets for a month, it was an incredibly generous offer deserving of gratitude.

“The contract… Did you say you don’t have a status? Well, that makes it kind of pointless. But don’t worry, I don’t plan on skipping out on it.”

“If Jin tries to skip out, I’ll make sure to break his back to make him pay. Don’t worry!”

“Hey, when you say it, it sounds serious. Don’t make that kind of joke.”

“Not joking!”

“….”

Alice looked at Raven with a slightly creepy smile.

Even I could tell beside her that it was a 100% serious expression. No, it’s scary.

Anyway, this way my part-time job situation had been arranged. Now all that was left was to get into action.

Honestly, since I had nothing much to do when I got home today, I decided to start working right away.

‘Still, I have some experience greeting customers from Greg’s store. It shouldn’t be too hard!’

…Though, perhaps I was underestimating things.

How could I have missed this?

This place, Crawley Fixer’s Office, was the very backdrop for the fixers in the comic…

A chaotic place with all sorts of unique characters flooding in like they were being sucked into a drain!

“Ugh! Fixer! Please help me!”

“Yes, ma’am. What seems to be the problem? Just tell me.”

“We, we…! Etherlion-Darkfeathered-Ciaran-Floraelris-Spectralisen escaped from their cage…! Ugh!”

“I’m sorry, but could you please repeat that name again?”

“Etherlion-Darkfeathered-Ciaran-Floraelris-Spectralisen! Hey! Are you even paying attention to what I’m saying?!”

A punk-looking middle-aged woman, a reptilian, came in asking to find her uniquely named creature from another world.

“Apologies. I’m looking for a restroom.”

“…There are plenty of restrooms around Night Haven.”

“I have a severe case of OCD, so I can’t use a toilet that’s already been used, no matter whose it was.”

“How about trying to place some paper on the toilet seat?”

“…I’ll give that a try.”

A cyclops in old warrior garb suffering from OCD was looking for a restroom that had never been used before!

It was getting hard to distinguish whether this was a fixer’s office or just a general errand service.

“Now that I think about it… At the beginning of the original story, Raven’s fixer ranking was certainly outside the top ranks.”

Raven’s skills themselves didn’t seem to have any problems.

He possessed enough power to be called a tier 1 within the city.

However, being an excellent fighter didn’t automatically make one an excellent fixer.

A fixer is, after all, a contractor who fulfills the client’s purpose. Their ability and reputation are proven only by the track record they’ve built.

Plus, with Raven not wanting to be in the spotlight for a while, he had been receiving missions sporadically.

Considering the office’s location, which mostly welcomed people leading tough lives day by day, perhaps that was to be expected.

‘Doesn’t seem like such a sweet job, does it…?’

Anyway, maybe because Raven’s fixer office had those characteristics,

My workload turned out to be tougher than I expected.

First off, I had to welcome all these odd individuals?!

Half of them didn’t even seem like they’d sit down quietly!

Fortunately, every job has its ups and downs.

In the midst of busily receiving clients, I realized before I knew it that the sun was setting, and night was upon us.

It was finally time—the hour I had been eagerly waiting for, the end of the workday.