"Yah!"
However, what followed wasn't Meow-Da's continued speech, but a girl's startled cry—one that sounded low, like a mature young woman, yet simultaneously slightly childish.
This somewhat contradictory feeling left Andrew unable to distinguish the age of the person outside for a moment.
Although he didn't know exactly what had happened outside.
Faced with this sudden situation, Andrew, worried about some accident, immediately put down the work in his hands and prepared to go out and see what was going on.
However, before he could push open the workshop door, Meow-Da had already walked in with incomparable excitement, dragging a young girl along.
As the workshop door was pushed open.
Andrew saw a woman standing at the shop entrance, being pulled by Meow-Da. She looked unmotivated and sported a gigantic shark tail.
Hmm... No.
After Andrew saw the girl's appearance clearly, he retracted his evaluation from just a moment ago.
Although the voice he heard sounded a bit low, giving Andrew the initial illusion that the other party might be a high school student.
After careful observation, Andrew immediately changed his original judgment.
Based on the girl's face, which looked very tender, her height, which clearly hadn't finished developing, and her facial features that definitely hadn't fully matured yet.
In Andrew's opinion, calling her a 'young woman' was honestly a bit of a stretch.
And the student uniform she wore underneath her hoodie perfectly corroborated this judgment Andrew had made.
New Eridu's school uniforms were completely different from those long-sleeved, long-pant tracksuits of his first life. Instead, they were a perfect combination of a vibrant blazer, white shirt, short skirt, and small leather shoes.
Paired with the black tights the girl wore on her legs.
Looking at the outfit combination alone, it appeared full of youthful vitality.
It was just that she wasn't wearing the matching blazer jacket properly; instead, she had pulled a loose, oversized hoodie over it.
It was this hoodie's concealment that prevented Andrew from distinguishing her approximate age at first glance.
Although her short black hair had been combed as neatly as possible, amidst the soft strands, following the girl's movements...
In the gentle swaying, the red color hidden within was revealed.
The two black moles at the corner of her right eye didn't spoil this very tender-looking girl's perfect face. On the contrary, they made her beautiful features harmonious, full of charm while being beautiful.
Although she hadn't fully bloomed yet, even Andrew could tell.
As long as she was allowed to continue developing for another year or two, she would definitely be a top-tier beauty comparable to Belle and the others.
However.
What left the deepest impression on Andrew, aside from that unique, large tail belonging to a Thiren, wasn't the girl's appearance.
Rather, it was the expression on her face. Unlike the youthful vitality on the faces of ordinary student girls one might meet, hers was a visible listlessness, as if she couldn't work up the energy for anything—a look of being done with life.
Listless and dispirited, she looked as if she were about to fall asleep the very next moment. This energy-saving state completely destroyed all the youthful aura about her.
Looking at her drowsy appearance.
Andrew looked her up and down carefully. Only then did he discover, via the uniform not covered by the hoodie...
The school emblem on the girl's uniform...
Seemed to be the uniform of a public junior high school?
And it was the kind that leaned towards being a welfare institution?
The reason Andrew had an impression of this school was purely because he learned about it through chatting with the director when Nicole took him to the orphanage earlier.
Many orphans in New Eridu who had no father or mother would enter this academy to study under the government's arrangement.
And many orphans from that orphanage were no exception.
Precisely because, in Andrew's memory, this was one of the few instances of pure kindness in this city.
That was why Andrew remembered this matter deeply afterwards.
Looking at the lazy girl and the incomparably excited Meow-Da in front of him, Andrew—who seriously suspected Meow-Da had treated this Thiren like a fish and caught her—rubbed his forehead with some helplessness.
After hesitating for a split second, he spoke directly to this girl who looked like she might fall asleep even while standing:
"Excuse me, is there something you need by coming in here?"
However, facing Andrew's question, the listless-looking girl forced herself to perk up. She raised her head with great confusion and asked back:
"Aren't you guys recruiting a temp worker here?"
And Meow-Da immediately jumped out, speaking with incomparable pride:
"That's right, we are recruiting, meow! Boss, I just pasted the notice up exactly as you ordered, and she came saying she wanted to apply, meow! The mission is directly accomplished perfectly, meow!"
Hearing this, Andrew fell silent for a moment.
Although he had a bit of a premonition, hearing such a young girl say she was really here to apply still made Andrew feel a bit caught off guard.
After all, letting a junior high student come out to work on her own... truly made him feel somewhat speechless.
At least, for someone from the Flower Planter nation.
Junior high was a time that should be spent squandering youth on campus.
Working or whatever...
Should at least wait until eighteen and becoming an adult, or after going to high school, right?
So, regarding the girl's request, Andrew subconsciously blurted out in surprise:
"You... are coming out to work at such a young age?"
However.
Regarding Andrew's surprise, the girl was incomparably accustomed to it. Instead, she couldn't understand what Andrew was surprised about.
She immediately asked back in confusion:
"But, isn't this a very common situation?"
But no matter what, this was the place where she planned to make money temporarily.
regarding Andrew's reaction, although she found it a bit strange, she still said calmly:
"Although orphans living in New Eridu get government subsidies for tuition and housing, they come out to work on their own once they are a little over ten years old! Besides, I'm already in the first year of junior high."
Hearing these words, Andrew couldn't help but say helplessly in his heart:
But since it's the first year of junior high, that's at most fourteen years old...
And it's the second half of the year for first-years; saying she's an elementary schooler wouldn't be wrong either.
However, the girl's next words could be considered to have resolved Andrew's confusion, allowing his worrying mood to relax a bit.
"Although basic living is guaranteed, anything beyond that—if there's something extra I want—I still have to buy it through working."
So, the children he saw working in those shops before... was it very likely they weren't actually the shop owners' children as he had understood?
Taking a slight deep breath, Andrew suppressed the sympathy that had just overflowed slightly.
After all, after thinking about it carefully. It made sense.
Andrew realized that in this hellhole called New Eridu where people died every day, the existence of orphans was simply too common.
Usually, the military, the city administration, and TOPS would fight so hard their dog brains nearly popped out.
Although they were just children with citizenship certificates, the guarantee for newborns was something everyone tacitly agreed upon and worked towards together.
If nothing else.
The fact that the higher-ups could ensure so many orphans had food, shelter, and school to attend was already decent enough.
It was certainly better than the higher-ups of some countries who would let their bottom-rung citizens wander the streets every day, numbing themselves daily with alcohol and marijuana, and then turning into creatures that were neither human nor ghost, going around engaging in 'zero-dollar shopping'.
They were all relying on their own hands and feet, working hard to make their lives better.
Casually sympathizing with others from a high horse—that was actually a denial of their efforts and a true offense.
And according to what Nicole said.
At least New Eridu's guarantee for them would only completely stop after they graduated from junior high.
As for if they could get into high school.
Then starting from high school, the tuition fees needed for school would have to be paid entirely out of their own pockets.
His thoughts came to an abrupt halt here.
Andrew shook his head to stop his wild thoughts, then looked up at the girl in front of him. His attitude also became as gentle as possible.
He nodded and immediately agreed, saying:
"You want to apply for this position? Of course, you can."
However, only then did Andrew remember he hadn't introduced himself yet.
So he immediately said:
"My name is Andrew. I'm an ordinary blacksmith, and also the store manager of this shop. What is your name?"
"Ellen. Just call me Ellen."
Regarding Andrew's self-introduction.
Ellen didn't choose to hide anything either; she nodded naturally and stated her name.
Subsequently.
After knowing her name, partly out of curiosity and partly as insurance just in case.
Andrew couldn't help but ask:
"By the way, since you came out to work, Ellen, is there something you want to buy?"
"Umm..."
Being asked suddenly.
Although she swished her tail subconsciously out of a bit of embarrassment, after hesitating for a moment, Ellen still truthfully said with a hint of shyness:
"Isn't the weather dry in autumn? I... I just wanted to save money through working to buy a new model of tail moisturizing balm that was just released recently..."
"Tail moisturizing balm? There's such a thing?"
Andrew couldn't help but freeze for a moment upon hearing this, then he realized his slip of the tongue.
With so many different types of Thirens in New Eridu, having specialized Thiren products was only natural.
It was just that Ellen's words made his gaze drift uncontrollably to the shark tail behind her that was unconsciously swaying left and right.
To be honest.
Having been in New Eridu for so long, most of the time he encountered cat Thirens or dog Thirens.
This was truly the first time Andrew had seen a shark Thiren.
Especially this shark tail, which looked very moist and sleek at first glance—one could tell the girl usually paid great attention to maintaining it well.
Its smooth appearance made Andrew start to get curious about what it actually felt like.
However, before Andrew's words could even leave his mouth.
The girl in front of him seemed to have predicted it long ago. She very alertly hugged her tail into her arms to protect it, looking at Andrew with extreme vigilance as she said:
"Want to touch? No way!!"
She was all too familiar with Andrew's look.
As a rare shark Thiren, and one with such a maverick, large shark tail behind her to boot.
Especially as she grew older.
Her tail was also becoming larger with time. This led to her encountering who-knows-how-many people curious to touch her tail.
The curious look Andrew just revealed—she was all too familiar with it, having seen it many times.
So before Andrew could speak.
Ellen decisively chose to strike first and refused flatly.
For her, something like a tail was very private. Unless it was someone close enough, she absolutely couldn't let them touch it!
No.
Even very close people couldn't touch it casually!
So, even if it was the boss of the place where she would be working next, it was a no-go!
At worst, she just wouldn't do this job!
It was just that the content of this shop's recruitment was much more relaxing than those jobs she found before.
If the hourly wage was also decent...
If possible, Ellen actually didn't really want to give it up.
After all, relatively speaking.
If she could do work that didn't require effort, then compared to other things, the point about 'not requiring effort' was naturally more important.
Just as Ellen fell into a dilemma.
Andrew, whose curiosity had merely been acting up for a moment, immediately waved his hand to indicate he had no thoughts in that regard.
After all, in the Monster Hunter world.
The habits he learned when facing the Lynians made Andrew know long ago that the body organs of many beast-people weren't things one could touch casually.
Like the Blango leader's coquettish bangs.
And the Thirens of New Eridu were the same.
So Andrew hurriedly comforted her, saying:
"Relax, relax, don't get excited. I promise, I absolutely won't touch your tail without seeking your permission first."
However, although Andrew promised, Ellen still harbored a bit of suspicion.
Seeing her gaze staring fixatedly, Andrew quickly changed the subject and said:
"Since there are no problems, you can try doing this job first. As for the remuneration... before discussing remuneration, I have to ask you a question first."
Hearing that Andrew indeed didn't intend to launch a sudden surprise attack, Ellen couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Subsequently, her attention was successfully diverted by the word 'remuneration'.
As long as she could work and buy the things she wanted, Ellen naturally had no reason to refuse the question Andrew mentioned.
She nodded and said:
"Alright, ask away."
Hearing this, Andrew didn't hesitate and asked directly:
"That moisturizing balm you want to buy... how much does one bottle cost?"
"Hmm?"
Although she didn't quite understand why Andrew suddenly asked this.
Ellen still answered truthfully:
"One box, I recall... is about five thousand four hundred and thirty-five Dennies. If I need to use it for a winter, I calculated it would take at least three boxes."
Holy crap.
Sure enough, even in a different world, things like cosmetics or skincare products are ridiculously expensive...
Converted to the purchasing power of RMB, this bottle would be worth more than five hundred.
If she wants to buy it, it is indeed a considerable sum for a student.
However.
After knowing the specific pricing of the item Ellen wanted to buy, Andrew felt confident in his heart.
So he spoke directly:
"In that case..."
Andrew thought for a moment.
After roughly estimating a remuneration that would be considered relatively generous and could lighten Ellen's burden, while the amount shouldn't be too outrageous, he continued:
"I have three outfits that need to be made here. For every one you assist me in completing, I'll give you thirty thousand Dennies as remuneration. How about that?"
Mm.
Normally, there wouldn't be any problem.
If not for the fact that when Andrew was estimating the price reference... he referred to his own hourly wage.
____
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