Volume 2 - CH 1.09

Part 9

The next applicant was a high-schooler.

The energetic young lady had short chestnut hair and big sparkly eyes.

She filled her flushed cheeks with a deep breath, blowing it out to calm herself before stepping in front of the interviewers.

“Nice to meet you! I am Bandou Biino!”

She has a very clear and outspoken voice. +2 points.

Seiya heard Isuzu mentioning something about this being ‘…another one?’, but he decided to ignore it and let her be for today.

Bandou Biino was wearing her school uniform with a khaki cardigan. According to her CV, she was a first year high school student in the same town as Seiya.

She has a refreshing look and a good sense of style. She’s got an aura that brightens the mood of those she approaches. +1 point.

There was just one problem—

“Uh…let me ask you something, Bandou Biino-san.”

“Sure!”

“What’s with that blood stain…?”

The area from her left abdomen to her waist was stained in red. The crimson fluid was beginning to creep onto her cardigan.

-200 points.

“Oh, my apologies…I was in a rush, you see…” Biino said in embarrassment as she tried to cover the blood-stained area.

Wait, this isn’t something to be embarrassed about…and neither is this a matter of being in a rush or not…

“A-Are you injured?”

“Ah, it’s okay, I promise! This is nothing, really!” Biino frantically waved her hands in denial. The blood that came splashing on the floor from her fingers spelled “ominous”.

Seiya was taken aback, Isuzu widened her eyes and Moffle tilted his head as he attempted to assess the situation.

“I’m okay, really…”

One look and they could tell she wasn’t. Her breathing was becoming erratic and her legs were shivering ever so slightly. She was losing her consciousness along with her blood.

Seiya had thought that Eiko was an impressive applicant, but this Biino was outstanding in her own way.

“Maybe you could start by telling us how you ended up with that…”

“I-It’s okay…! I don’t want to make excuses for coming late! Please just…*cough* let me *cough* continue…!”

Come on, don’t go spewing shōnen manga tropes at me. Not wanting to give excuses is admirable, but for now we need to know the cause of her injuries.

Seiya whispered a “What should we do?” to Isuzu.

(I don’t know. All I’m concerned with is whether that girl is appealing to your…mm—!) After saying those strange words, Isuzu once again…(see above).

Screw this shit. I’ll just leave her alone for now.

In turn, he turned around and whispered the same question to Moffle.

(That’s probably a stab wound, fumo. I’d say she’s lost about a liter of blood, and should be passing out within 10 minutes or so.)

They couldn’t afford to sit back and do nothing.

“C-Call the ambulance!”

“N-No, don’t do that!” Biino exclaimed. “It’s just a light injury! I don’t want to cause any trouble to Amagi Brilliant Park just because of this. I’m…banking everything on this interview…so…”

Seriously…banking even her life on this lame park…

(But that’s some spirit she’s got there…wait could this be…kagebara?) Moffle shuddered as he spoke.

Kagebara was a form of seppuku done by samurais in protest against their own lord.

But then again, that wasn’t something worth doing for a part-time job interview. She’d die even if they hired her.

(I don’t think so…)

(I guess you’re right. Oh?) Right then, Moffle’s smartphone on the table rang.

(The security department’s calling, fumo. Hang on a sec.) Moffle used his paws to pick up the call.

Meanwhile, Biino pleaded to Seiya while struggling to remain standing. “P-Please. Just start the…*cough* interview…”

A streak of blood came trickling out from the corner of her mouth.

Moffle momentarily took the phone away from his ear to tell Seiya, (She appears to have some internal bleeding as well, fumo. We’d better hurry,) before getting back to the call.

(How should I even…)

“Please, hurry! Ask me questions while I’m still conscious!”

“O-Okay,” Seiya nodded at her menacing request. He whispered to Isuzu to “call the ambulance” and began faking an interview.

“Okay, so…your working hours will start at 4 during w-weekdays. You’ll be operating on a closed shift basis—”

“*Cough!*”

“A-Are you following?”

“*Cough!* I’m…fine with that…”

Biino nodded, covering her mouth with her bloody hands.

“W-We’ll go faster then. Next, your choice of roles. Guest Control and Merchandise Cast. Why did you choose these?”

The role of a Guest Control cast member was similar to a tour guide, whereas merchandising would mean working as a salesperson at the shops in Amaburi. Both of them required extensive customer interaction.

“Yes. *Cough* T-That’s because I like…*cough* seeing s-smiles on their…faces…”

Despite having a pale face drenched in cold sweat, Biino managed an unbefitting smile. Only a mortal enemy could smile at this sight.

“Also if you were to get drafted into the child-care department, your probationary period would be doubled compared to other sectors. Is that okay?”

“N-Not a problem at all. *Cough* I really love…seeing kids smile!”

Her expression became more horrifying than ever. If she ever worked in child-care, 100 out of 100 children would cry in terror.

“N-Noted.”

Any further questioning would not help in their decision-making. All that was left was to leave her to the medical authorities.

“We’ll contact you with the outcome of your application at a later date. L-Let’s just focus on stopping the bleeding for now.”

“Please don’t do that!”

“Just be quiet and let us help you!”

“S-Sorry…but I still have many…*cough* things to impress you with…”

“Erm…” Seiya was still traumatized by the sight of Biino gasping for air. Moffle, who had just ended his call, tapped Seiya on the shoulder.

(What is it?)

(The guy from the security department called, fumo. He said there was a strange incident at Amagi Station earlier. Some weirdo stabbed a female high school student…)

(Hey…!)

(It appears that they apprehended the culprit, but the victim said she was fine and fled the scene on her bike, fumo.)

(I-I see…)

(It’s making the news headlines, fumo. The security officer called to let us know just in case.)

Seiya had a better picture of the whole situation now.

Insisting on an interview despite being the victim of a slasher was an admirable act. +1 point. But I’d appreciate if she could consider the trouble imposed. -100 points.

Nonetheless, tending to her injuries was now their top priority.

“Bandou Biino-san. I can feel your passion and drive from your actions. I cannot guarantee anything, but consider yourself hired in advance.”

“T-Thank you so…*cough* much!”

“We took the liberty of calling the ambulance earlier, so please get in. And hey, don’t go spacing out on me now…give me a break…”

Seiya stood up and went over. Biino had begun to slip off her chair and landed into his arms.

“I’m sorry…” Laying in Seiya’s arms that were becoming soaked in blood, Biino repeated the same words over and over.

“Hasn’t the ambulance arrived yet? Let’s bring her out to speed things up. Hey Moffle, quit playing with your phone and help out!”

Seiya raised his voice at Moffle who was still busy talking on the phone.

“Wait, fumo. It’s the guy from the security department.”

“Seriously…”

“I never…intended to be late for the interview…”

“I-I got it, you were spectacular back there.”

“There’s one more thing…that I need to apologize about.”

Suddenly, the door to the meeting room swung open.

The one who entered was a masked, half-naked man holding a kitchen knife that was dripping with blood.

“W-What on earth…?”

“Fuu…fuu…”

The weirdo was wearing a pair of briefs and had a stocking on his head, which was surprising because despite that he was managing deep heaves.

Could this be the next applicant? No way, no one in their right mind would come for a job interview dressed like this—

“Seiya, Seiya!”

“W-What?”

“The security dude wants to tell you that the criminal has yet to be caught, fumo!”

“What did you say…!?”

“Also, a strange man just intruded our park, fumo! They were too freaked out to even raise the alarms…”

They turned to face Biino, who nodded at them.

“My apologies… That’s my brother…”

“Your…b-brother!?”

“He didn’t want me to get a part time job, you see…”

And so he stabbed you? Seriously? And why is he staring at you so intently…this is some serious obsession gone wrong!

“Fuu…fuu…” Still panting heavily, the man took a step towards them.

“Okay, calm down. Let’s talk this over, no bloodshed needed.”

“Fuu…fuu…” He held up the knife.

“Oh shit uh… You really intend on stabbing the great Seiya? It would be humanity’s loss, and I’m pretty good in combat, you know. But then again I’ve never had an actual fight…but that’s a minor detail. I’m really strong, I think… Prepare yourself!”

“You gotta be pretty thick headed to have the time to spew such things, fumo.”

“Shut up! He’s striking!”

“Fu—!”

The man started swinging his knife as he ran over. Seiya was his first target.

“Woah woah woah!!”

Seiya used his body to protect Biino and held up the pipe chair as a shield.

A huge impact followed.

The knife penetrated the back of the chair. A few centimeters more and Seiya would’ve grown a head shorter.

“You punk…!” Seiya twisted the chair and kicked the man away. He staggered a few steps back and lost grip of the knife.

“Hey guys, do something!”

With that, Isuzu drew her musket and drilled four Pain Bringers into the man. She tag-teamed with Moffle, who followed up with a one-two punch and a swift uppercut.

“Fuu—!”

He flew up, just missing the ceiling before crashing to the ground. Moffle turned his back towards the mess and wiped his paws with a piece of a handkerchief.

The half-naked man could no longer move.

“Mofu… He’ll be on a liquid diet for a while, fumo,” Moffle proclaimed in pride, having said one of the top 100 catch phrases every man should say in their lifetime.

“Seeing you lot makes me feel like a mercenary camp would suit you guys better than to this park.”