Aqua sat on the small stool provided next to the barbecue uncle's stall, holding the first skewer of meat with both hands, taking small bites, each bite eaten with extreme seriousness and care.
The charred, oily aroma of the barbecue clung to the corners of her mouth, and she carefully licked it away with the tip of her pink tongue, her golden eyes happily narrowing into slits.
Her pure enjoyment of the delicious food, in such a cute manner, was like the most vivid advertisement for the skewer in her hand.
Her unpretentious, happy eating, in the bustling, lively night market, formed a unique and eye-catching scene.
"Look at that little girl, she's eating so deliciously!"
"Silver hair, golden eyes, is it cosplay? So cute!"
"The barbecue she's eating looks good, should we go buy some to try?"
Soon, tourists were attracted.
At first, it was just a few young people who, under the pretense of buying skewers, secretly glanced at Aqua sitting nearby, and also ordered a few skewers from the fierce-looking uncle who was too busy to care about idle matters at the moment.
But things developed beyond everyone's expectations.
Aqua's "eating broadcast"-like infectiousness was too strong; seeing her eat so sweetly, even those who were just passing by had their appetites whetted and stopped to queue.
The line in front of the uncle's barbecue stall grew visibly longer.
"Boss, five skewers of fatty and lean!"
"I want ten skewers! Extra spicy!"
"Add three more chicken wings here!"
The uncle could cope at first, but he was soon overwhelmed by the flood of orders.
He was grilling meat, brushing sauce, collecting money, and giving change all by himself, sweating profusely and fumbling around, the charcoal smoke making the knife scar on his face appear reddish.
Several times he almost mixed up orders or forgot to collect money.
"No, no… I can't handle it…" The uncle looked at the increasingly long queue, feeling overwhelmed.
His gaze swept over Aqua, who was still happily gnawing on her skewer next to him, completely oblivious to the surrounding chaos, or rather, simply not caring.
A thought suddenly popped into his head.
"Hey… little girl," the uncle wiped his sweat and leaned closer to Aqua, speaking in a negotiating tone.
"You see, I'm too busy here. Can you… help me out? Just help collect money and tell me who ordered how many skewers and how much money you collected, that's all! The reward is… tonight's barbecue, all you can eat! Eat as much as you want!"
"All you can eat?!"
These two words were like heavenly music, instantly striking Aqua's heart.
She suddenly looked up, her golden eyes bursting with astonishing light, her mouth still full of meat, and she mumbled indistinctly: "Mmm! Yes! Leave it to me! ~☆"
For unlimited barbecue! She went all out!
The uncle quickly found a piece of cardboard, wrote "Cashier, please queue to pay" with a thick pen, and then took an iron box as a cash register, stuffing it all to Aqua.
Thus, an interesting scene appeared: a silver-haired, barefoot girl.
One hand still holding an unfinished skewer, the other hand holding up a sign with words, like a dutiful (?) little signboard, she sat back on the small stool, with the cash box in front of her.
"You, three fatty and lean skewers, 600 yen, gave 1000, change is 400!"
"The one with the hat behind, five chicken cartilage skewers, 1000 yen, exactly!"
"Auntie in the blue shirt, you haven't paid yet! Two chicken wings, 400 yen!"
"Sir, you overpaid by 500 yen, here, take your change and skewers!"
Aqua's voice was clear and pleasant, and her speaking speed was extremely fast.
With the assistance of the herrscher core of reason's computing and memory capabilities, comparable to a supercomputer, the seemingly chaotic queue in front of her—each person's face, what they ordered, how much they paid, how much change was due, and even who came first—was all like neatly arranged data streams in her mind, perfectly clear and precise!
She could even accurately account for money, collect it, and give change, all while continuing to gnaw on the skewer in her hand, without missing a beat!
However, the uncle miscalculated.
He thought letting Aqua handle the money would lighten his burden, but he didn't expect that Aqua sitting in front of the stall holding the sign, combined with her stunning looks and her "dedicated" demeanor of working while not forgetting to eat meat, generated an even stronger attraction!
"Wow! This signboard girl is so cute!"
"Her work ability is so strong! She calculates so fast!"
"Is she working so hard just for barbecue? So adorable!"
"Quick, take pictures, take pictures!"
More and more people were attracted by this "white-haired, barefoot signboard girl," joining the queue out of curiosity, admiration, or simply to join the fun.
The queue not only didn't shorten but became even longer! The barbecue stall's business boomed to an unprecedented level, the charcoal smoke and the aroma of barbecue mixed with the crowd's clamor, turning this area into the liveliest focal point of the night market.
The uncle looked at the unprecedented spectacle before him, then at the silver-haired girl sitting behind the cash box, accurately handling finances while her cheeks were puffed out and her golden eyes sparkled due to the "all-you-can-eat barbecue" promise, and he wiped his face with a complex expression.
(This little girl… where did this treasure come from…)
However, looking at the rapidly filling cash box, the uncle felt that the barbecue he treated her to tonight… seemed pretty worth it?
Aqua, on the other hand, was completely immersed in the simple joy of "work" in exchange for "unlimited barbecue," oblivious to the commotion she caused, or rather, simply not caring.
For her, being able to eat delicious barbecue and also help the kind uncle who treated her to meat a little bit, this world, as Weak Goodness said, indeed contained many wonderful things to look forward to ~☆
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