--- Yae Shrine ---
After Li Mu dealt with the mechs that came to play the role of extras, he finally had time to address Sakura's situation.
However, he noticed that even after accepting employment, Sakura's face still carried a look of worry.
"Sakura, what are you thinking about?"
Sakura looked at Li Mu, fell silent for a moment, and said, "BOSS, I'm worried about Chrysalis. They won't let traitors go, and it might implicate you."
Hearing Sakura's words, Li Mu laughed, showing no sign of concern.
"Fire-MOTH might give me some pause, but Chrysalis? Just a roadside mutt, not even qualified to sit at the table."
Hearing the relaxed tone in Li Mu's voice, Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed her new boss wasn't worried about Chrysalis's retaliation.
However, out of professional integrity, she still offered a reminder.
"BOSS, they have a lot of people."
"It's fine, I'll just kill them all."
Sakura choked on Li Mu's words. After thinking for a moment, she said cautiously, "BOSS, isn't that... a bit too extreme?"
Li Mu nodded.
"To be honest, it does seem a bit extreme..."
Sakura breathed a sigh of relief, but soon she heard Li Mu say:
"In that case, I won't touch their families. After all, sins don't extend to family members."
Sakura's expression almost cracked. She was tongue-tied.
"As long as... you're happy."
"Alright, the person we're waiting for is here." Li Mu looked towards the entrance of the shrine.
Sakura followed his gaze. When she saw the person appearing in her line of sight, her eyes filled with disbelief.
It was a girl who looked 90% like her, currently wearing a shrine maiden outfit and looking around curiously.
"Rin, how did you get out of the hospital?!"
Sakura ran over hurriedly and hugged her, her face full of anxiety. Rin suffered from a strange illness and could only survive in the hospital.
Rin looked puzzled.
"Didn't you ask me to come, Big Sister?"
But soon, a smile appeared on her face, and she hugged Sakura back, nuzzling her gently.
"Also, Big Sister, I'm all better now!"
Only then did Sakura notice that the disgusting purple markings originally on her sister's neck had disappeared.
"This... how is this possible?"
Li Mu's voice came from the side.
"Oh, I told you, I can cure it."
Looking at the two hugging pink-haired girls, Li Mu chuckled softly.
It was just Honkai sickness, wasn't it?
Anti-Honkai serum from the System Shop, 10 Crystals a shot. As long as they hadn't turned into a Zombie yet, one shot and they'd be skipping around.
And the price was just the cost of one meal from MEI.
After confirming that Rin showed no signs of Honkai infection, Sakura hugged Rin and wept bitterly.
"Big Sister, don't cry..."
Li Mu consciously left the space to the two of them and waited quietly in front of the shrine's statue.
Not long after, Sakura composed herself and walked behind Li Mu, holding Rin's hand.
Sakura had a hundred feelings mixed in her heart, but in the end, a thousand words merged into one sentence.
"Thank you."
Li Mu turned around and found Sakura's face filled with determination.
Although his system wasn't a favorability-farming system, at this moment, he felt as if "Favorability UP UP UP" signs were popping up above Sakura's head.
"Alright, since I've paid the salary, you should work for me now."
"Sakura will not decline any task, no matter the difficulty."
Hearing Li Mu's words, a fierce light appeared in Sakura's eyes. From now on, she was the most steadfast guard of Li Mu!
"BOSS, please tell me the target's name!"
Because Rin was beside her, Sakura didn't explicitly say who she needed to kill, but as an assassin, her task was nothing more than killing.
Since he saved her sister's life, her life belonged to him.
Looking at the highly motivated Sakura, Li Mu nodded with satisfaction.
"Very good. Starting today, you are the Guuji (Head Priestess) here."
"Huh?"
The situation seemed different from what Sakura had expected. She thought Li Mu hired her for her combat ability.
Li Mu leaned closer to Sakura and placed his hand on Rin's head, rubbing it. This caused Rin to squint her eyes gently, and if one listened closely, there seemed to be a soft purring sound.
Like some kind of large canine.
"As for your sister, she is the Kannushi (Head Priest) of this shrine."
"This shrine is named 'Yae Shrine,' and the deity enshrined here is 'Higokumaru.' From now on, you two are the shrine maidens of Yae Shrine."
"You... want me to be a shrine maiden?"
Sakura felt her brain was about to crash. Asking her, an assassin who made a living by killing and whose hands were stained with blood, to be a shrine maiden, praying for blessings and warding off evil for people...
She felt that if the deity of Yae Shrine, "Higokumaru," really existed, the first thing it would do was smack her to death.
"Hmm? You're not willing?"
Sakura shook her head. Since he cured her sister, her debt of gratitude was unrepayable. Naturally, whatever he said, she would do.
"Sakura has no objections, if this is your arrangement."
"Very good. Starting today, you are the Guuji of Yae Shrine." A strange smile played on Li Mu's face. "Following the Far East custom of adding titles to names, you are now Yae Sakura Guuji."
Then he rubbed Rin's head again.
"As for Rin, she is Yae Rin."
"Sakura has no objections."
The moment Sakura agreed, Li Mu's gaze drifted to the System panel. A greyed-out mission on the interface finally changed.
[In a certain shrine in the distant Far East, a past buried for 500 years lies hidden.]
[Chronicle Mission: Check-In Sakura Samsara]
[Reward: Divine Key - Jizo Mitama]
[Mission Status: Divine Key not activated / Key Character not detected: Kallen Kaslana]
Chronicle Mission... this broken system was copying the game system again.
However, Chronicle Missions were easy to understand. They were independent missions distinct from the main storyline. Not doing them wouldn't affect the main plot, but completing them would yield huge rewards.
Li Mu was happy about this, but Sakura was confused.
Regarding Li Mu's arrangement, Sakura's attitude was... that's it?
Being a shrine maiden at a shrine was simply too easy. It even made her feel like the boss was getting the short end of the stick.
You gave me such a high salary just to let me slack off in a shrine?
Such lenient conditions made Sakura feel uneasy. After hesitating, she asked tactfully, "BOSS, do I only work here as a shrine maiden?"
"As the Guuji of Yae Shrine," Li Mu corrected her, then added, "Of course I'm not letting you slack off here. You have a second job to do."
Hearing this, Sakura secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
That's more like it, that's more like it...
"Besides the work of Yae Guuji, you also need to serve as the Head of the Defense Department at MEI Corp, responsible for MEI Corp's security. This is right up your alley, so it shouldn't be difficult."
"Sakura has no objections."
Although given Li Mu's salary, even with two jobs the offer was excessively generous, Sakura felt much more at ease.
But soon Li Mu spoke again: "On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, you go to the Defense Department. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, come to the shrine as Guuji. Only on Saturdays and Sundays can you arrange your time freely."
"Huh?" Sakura was extremely surprised. "There are weekends off?"
Hearing this, Li Mu frowned.
"Don't push your luck."
"I can give you weekends off at most. You must work eight hours a day. Benefits are limited to the basic social insurance and housing fund, plus at most a meal allowance and travel subsidy."
"Aside from statutory holidays, I can give you at most three months of leave a year. Not a day more!"