The Fantasy World Fanatic Wants To Leave Work

33 – Convenience Store Fairies (3)

The dwarves left relatively early compared to yesterday.

They mentioned that unless there are at least three men, drinking alone with a full beard isn’t much fun.

Well, I didn’t mind the dwarves leaving early; it was actually quieter and more peaceful, which I preferred.

The guests who visited bought simple snacks at most, and right now, only Diana and I were inside the convenience store.

“By the way, why are you staying in the convenience store all the time?”

So, why is Diana here?

I understand that there isn’t much to do, so she’s in the convenience store, but it’s a bit unsettling that someone other than me is constantly in the convenience store.

“Well, I did say that if I quietly stay here, it’s okay, didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did say that, but…”

I probably mentioned it thinking about that day when I had just undergone physical therapy with the knights. The night shift at the convenience store is so uneventful that all I do is browse the Tree Wiki or U.C. Convenience Store system, but Diana doesn’t do anything and just keeps staring at me.

Isn’t she bored?

“…Aren’t you bored, sitting in the same position for hours?”

“Not really. It’s not a big deal if you think of it as photosynthesizing like the forest trees during the day.”

It seemed like I had chosen the wrong topic for questioning.

From Diana’s words, it appeared that they photosynthesize in the forest during the daytime, but did they actually transform into trees or something?

They just stood there in the forest, basking in the sunlight and the breeze, not doing much else.

[Elves (Cosmos-1221)]

[Characteristics: Some elves, living in harmony with the forest, often transform into forest plants, mainly trees, and undergo photosynthesis through sunlight. They sometimes lure insects by appearing as real plants and catch and eat them.]

Was I mistaken about elves all this time?

I had always thought that elves were beautiful and haughty natives of the forest, but the elves of Cosmos-1221 seemed more like a blend of humans and plants.

Transforming into a plant and luring insects to eat them was quite different from any elf I had ever imagined.

“If there’s dirt or water, elves can transform into any plant they want, regardless of size. Originally, elves were part of the forest’s flora. Would you like to see it in action?”

“Here?”

“Yes.”

Diana approached a large potted plant that was a decoration in the convenience store.

She inserted her finger into the soil of the potted plant, and as her body shrank, it gradually transformed to resemble the succulent plant.

“Is this for real?”

So, as a plant, they could mimic any kind, no matter what?

“What do you think? It’s like magic, right? Even if scary monsters appear, elves can hide their bodies like this.”

Diana returned to her original form and lightly dusted herself off.

If you could transform into a plant, what else could you do?

“Can you produce fruits or something in that state?”

“Probably, if we wanted to. I heard that some elves even have flowers blooming on their heads.”

“In that case, to produce fruits, would you need to transfer pollen like bees? And what happens to the plants that grow from those seeds? Are they elves or just plants?”

Surprisingly, it’s intriguing.

If new elves are born by doing that, it’s almost as if elves become a form of as*xual reproduction.

They might even be able to reproduce on their own.

“W-Why would you think of such a distorted idea?!”

In response to my question, Diana’s face turned red and she showed a very flustered expression.

Is that true? Do elves reproduce like that? This is not a fact mentioned on the Tree Wiki. Could it be that I’m not the first one to come up with this idea?

Just to be sure, I looked it up again, but there was no mention of this reproductive method on the Tree Wiki either.

Doesn’t this have some worth in being seriously researched?

After all, it’s related to the birth of life.

Ding dong-

“Now that I think about it, it’s curious. Since there is an elf right in front of us, we can try it out, right?”

“Ah, please come in.”

As if on cue, Halo, the sorceress of the White Magic Tower, came running into the convenience store right before midnight.

“Eek!”

“What’s wrong? Why are you so scared?”

When Seretiny entered the convenience store, Diana hastily went behind the counter and hid behind me.

Her trembling figure reminded me of the time she was severely beaten by the knights.

“T-That’s Seretiny, the owner of the White Magic Tower! What are you doing?! Quickly, report her by any means necessary like yesterday and drive away that crazy sorceress!”

Surprisingly, Diana spoke the correct words.

However, even though it’s the right thing to say, if she acts so recklessly in front of her, she might really get beaten up.

“hehehe, that’s why I love elves. They have long lifespans but have poor memories, so even if they have a taste of something hot in the past, they forget it. That’s why there’s a flavor of educating them.”

Seretiny laughed mischievously and Halo started to sparkle brightly.

“Do you know what that is? It’s a wonderful and effective means of teaching elves to fear. Firstly, violence-“

Whoosh!

“Eek!”

Diana screamed as she saw flames shooting up to the ceiling.

“And the other is the magic of fire.”

Seretiny took out a flamethrower from somewhere and showed it off.

The flamethrower had the logo of ‘THE Boring Company’ on it, and on the back, it said ‘This is not a flamethrower.’ I confirmed the product name written on it.

Where on earth did they see that it’s not a flamethrower? And where on earth did they see that it’s a magic of fire?

“Step aside, I’ll show that elf the taste of heat once again. But do you prefer rare or well-done?”

“I prefer medium-well.”

I’ve never really had steak before, but rare seemed too off-putting due to the blood, and well-done was too overcooked.

“What are you even talking about?! It’s not just a loose screw or two! How can you follow an angel? It’s just a deranged pyromaniac arsonist!”

Diana shakes my pants while sticking them.

But even if she looked like that, what we have in front of us now is indeed an angel.

And the shock of the angel’s true nature was even greater for me.

Certainly, the angels I know are supposed to be kind and lend a hand to the lost, but the angel in front of us right now is the kind that points a gun at the lost.

From Noble mtl dot com

In summary, it’s easier to just give up.

I moved away quietly, not wanting to be roasted for no reason.

“And the charcoal made by elves is of very high quality and imparts a wonderful flavor when grilling meat.”

Seretini aimed the flamethrower at Diana as if to say he had been waiting.

“Yaaah!!!”

Puff!

Finally, whether she couldn’t hold her sanity anymore, Diana foamed at the mouth and collapsed.

Surprisingly, she’s a tender-hearted kid.

“Are you really scared of fire?”

Maybe he just wanted to give her a scare, but Seretini put away the flamethrower without turning Diana into charcoal.

By the way, that flamethrower looks tempting even to me.

Should I look for one at the rocket pawn shop?

It seems like it would be good to use when getting rid of pests.

“Of course, in the past, the elves used to crawl up without fear until the master led the battalion and set fire to the World Tree. Maybe that’s why it became a trauma.”

“…What?”

So what does that mean?

“Until the elves show you the difference in strength, they’re as fearless as bumblebees. They think they’re hot stuff because they have a stronger body and convenient abilities than you might think. Come to think of it, a puppy might be more suitable than a bumblebee.”

I wondered if I had misheard, but fortunately, my ears were functioning properly.

“Is it okay, though? I mean, isn’t the World Tree supposed to be sacred or something?”

“Originally, we were going to blow it up with explosives, but me and my comrades stopped it from being burned down. If such a massive tree exploded, the post-processing would have been a pain.”

Despite the extraordinary words, Seretini casually packs up the flamethrower.

“Anyway, it burned quite well, probably because it’s sacred. Unfortunately, it only burned half that day due to heavy rain.”

[World Tree (Space-1221)]

[Overview: The oldest tree in Space-1221, revered by the elves. It has been damaged in the past by arsonists, causing half of the world tree to be lost. The arsonists also left indecipherable graffiti on the trunk of the world tree.]

I found some related information on Tree Wiki.

Pictures of the tree before it was burned and after it was burned.

And even a picture of the graffiti on the tree trunk.

As I roughly read it, I tried to read the graffiti that was in the picture.

“…Is the world tree just a big pile of firewood?”

“Oh, that graffiti was personally written by the master. He asked the elf chief to hold a gun to his head and write it. The chief kindly wrote it for him.”

But then, wasn’t it written personally…?

One thing was clear.

Seretini’s master must not be normal.