It was the closing time for the evening at the gallery cafe [Gold coin].
Well, it may be a little longer because we canāt turn away customers at exactly the closing timeā¦ā¦
Thereās also, cleaning and tidying up.
Some shitty customers in this world donāt want to leave even when itās closing time, but apparently, most of the customers here have a lot of common sense and generally leave within 10 minutes before closing time.
And for some reason, the regulars are kicking out the remaining stubborn customers by saying, <The more customers remain, the greater the risk to Rudina-chan and Shirua-chan>.
Iām thankful for thatā¦
They live here, so itās not like the girls will have to walk home alone late at night, but the later the store closes, the greater the chance of being robbed.
The longer they finish their work, the more dangerous it becomes since the closing procedures cannot be done because the last customer refuses to leave, so the staff will be left vulnerable in the store.
But once thatās done, the shutters will be lowered, several heinous security devices will be set up, and the lights in the store will be turned off, so they wonāt suddenly become a victim of a break-in.
Itās impossible to get upstairs in the dark since you have to clear the first floor of the building and go up the stairs without tripping the security system.
This place is pretty close to the police station, butā¦ā¦ just because I chose to live in such a location, it doesnāt mean that the danger is completely gone.
I canāt help but think that the government has its hands in it and is protecting us from the shadows, but since I didnāt ask for it, I donāt know if there really is a secret security detail or not. So, Iām not stupid enough to assume that there are such things.
Well, letās just say Iām blessed with a good group of regulars. Iām so grateful for that.\n
One of these days, we can come up with something like customer appreciation days, tickets, discount coupons, point cards, and so on.
But we canāt invite them to our first-anniversary party or anything like that.
Itās suicide for the business to give special treatment to only a few customers or certain regulars.
Those who are given special treatment tend to get carried away and will start acting like they own the place. They would enter the counter without permission and try to help, or give instructions to other customers as if they belonged to the store.
And of course, it wonāt be fun for those who werenāt given special treatment.
Besides, these two girls are the only ones that work there. There are bound to be people who will misunderstand or think crazy things.
ā¦ā¦Yeah, the line between the customer and the staff should never be crossed.
I told Rudina and Shirua to go upstairs when they had finished cleaning up everything in the store.
And since tomorrow is a regular holiday, thereās no need to prepare anything. So they should be able to finish earlier than usual.
Now then, it will take a little longer for them to come upstairs, soā¦ā¦
Kon KonĀ (TN: Knocking sfx)
Kita kita!*Ā (TN: Theyāre here)
[Come on in!]Ā Mitsuha
Rudina turns the doorknob and steps into the room, and Shirua stands behind her.\nPanpan, Pa ~ n!
[Kya~]Ā Rudina
At the sound of the party popper, Rudina was shocked in surprise, Shirua reflexively crouched and put her right hand inside her skirt, then she looked at my faceā¦ā¦ and slowly pulled her <right hand that didnāt have anything> out of her skirt.
Noā¦ā¦
No no no no no no no no no!
What was she trying to do just now?ā¦ā¦ Wait, this girl, what was she trying to <take out> from her skirtā¦ā¦.
She suddenly put her right hand inside her skirt, right?
Thatās the same place Iām equipping my Walther PPS, right?
And, in a position where Rudina is exactly sandwiched between me and Shiruaā¦
ā¦ā¦Iām scared right now!!
[A, ah,Ā ano, ha, haha, Happy Birthday! Itās Shiruaās birthday today, so I thought Iād wish her a happy birthdayā¦ā¦]Ā Mitsuha
Yes, Iām an employer. So, of course, I have the personal records of my employees. Thatās why I know their birthdays.
Well, they both say that they donāt know <their real birthdays>, but they each say that the day they entered the orphanage or the day they were picked up is their birthday.
It seems their actual age is unknown, but since infantsā ages donāt deviate that much, itās probably around a year or so at most. Itās not a big problem.
Anyway, no matter what the truth may be, today is Shiruaās 18th birthday here at the Gallery Cafe <Gold Coin>.\n\n[Ah,Ā youāve never been to a <birthday party> in your life? Youāve never been invited to someone elseās, let alone have your own? And you thought that such a rare event was something that you would never be a part of in your life, that it was a pipe dream comparable to being invited to a royal ballā¦ā¦]Ā Mitsuha
Shirua, who still looked strange, nodded her head.
[What about Rudina?]Ā Mitsuha
[Ah, Iām at the orphanageā¦ā¦. Everyone whose birthday was in the same month will be celebrated together in one day. There was only one extra dish for dinner, but we got songs to celebrate and handmade dolls were given to usā¦ā¦
Oh, orphanages seem to do such things as well, donāt they? A few fun and events should never be neglected for the sake of the children, right?
Thatās why they never expect such an event in [Gold Coin].
ā¦ā¦In this country, though, when you turn 15, youāre considered an adult.
Well, that doesnāt matter.
Iāve prepared a proper gift for her.
Letās have some fun with Shirua todayā¦ā¦ when she comes back to her senses.
Oh right, Shirua is 18 years old, but the oldest of the three is me, who is 19 years old.
However, I would appear to be the youngest from anyoneās perspective.
ā¦ā¦Where do they look to determine that?Ā (TC: Her chest.)