Volume 3 - CH 1.06

Part 6

In the end, I had to endure more shouting and scolding from Moffle-san before my second day at work concluded.

Tomorrow would be Monday, so I’d have to go to work again after school. However, I had no intention of turning up—two days’ worth of part-time work experience was enough. You did your best, Shiina!

Mom asked me “How was work?” the very moment I got home, but I managed to avoid the question by saying that I was tired; I simply wasn’t in the mood to talk about my intention to quit.

And no, I wasn’t joking. I was really going to call it quits.

Still, that did not stop me from noticing some strange changes the next day…

*

“Oh…good morning, Shiina-san.”

The aforementioned girl with a leader’s personality called out to me at the shoe lockers. It wasn’t surprising that she was unanimously voted into the class committee a few days back. At any rate, I assumed this was just another obligatory greeting done to prevent things from getting awkward after bumping to each other.

“Oh hey, good morning.”

For some reason, the girl became dumbfounded at my half-assed response.

Something strange also happened during second period in PE. To begin with, our PE teacher was, to put it nicely, very open. To put it…not very nicely, he was blunt. He would pick on students who lacked enthusiasm and scold them, shouting things like “not loud enough!” He‘d derive satisfaction from the exhaustion of these students, which would give him more energy to scold them.

As you might have guessed, I was a popular target. In fact, I’d only just gotten picked on last week.

“Looks like everyone’s here. Okay! We’ll be doing timed sprints today…oh crap, I forgot to bring my stopwatch. Hey you, the small one!”

The teacher pointed at me.

“Yes?”

“Mind fetching my stopwatch from the staffroom?”

“Okay. Where are they kept at?”

“Huh? Oh uh, just ask any teacher there.”

“Understood.”

I was pretty sure I’d given a very normal answer, but when I turned to leave the gymnasium, I realized the surrounding students were shooting dubious looks at me. Did I say something I shouldn’t have?

And those weren’t the only weird incidents. There were many other strange things that happened throughout the day, most of them ending with a person’s stunned face after I responded to their questions.

*

“Of course they’d be surprised; you rarely even answer in the first place.”

Sento Isuzu-senpai explained to me during our lunch break. I’d intended to have my meals alone as usual, but she came over to my class and invited me. I ended up joining her and having my bento beside a flower bed at the school courtyard.

Isuzu-senpai asked how I was feeling, and so I elaborated on the strange occurrences I noticed throughout the day. Her reply was as previously mentioned.

By the way, I heard that Kanie-senpai skipped school today because he was busy running about raising funds for the park. (Though I’m not very sure why a mere part-time supervisor would need to do that.)

“Eh…?”

I responded to Isuzu-senpai’s explanation in confusion.

“You used to shrivel up every time someone spoke to you, saying nothing but ‘erm’ and ‘sorry.’ However, you actually answered with a ‘Sure, let’s go’ earlier. Even I was surprised.”

“…”

Come to think of it, she was right. Of course, Isuzu-senpai rarely showed any expression on her face, so I wasn’t able to tell that she was shocked. Oh, by the way, I’m no longer addressing her as “Sento-senpai” because she let me use her given name. Besides, “Isuzu-senpai” sounds cuter.

“Moffle can get very strict at times, so I was concerned about whether you were harboring any intention to quit due to the pressure.”

“Is that so? Well…sorry for making you worry…”

“See? You wouldn’t have said so much a week back.”

“Ah…”

Now, even I was shocked. But what exactly caused this?

“M-Moffle-san told me that the cast members in Amaburi were real fairies from the realm of magic.”

Hearing that, Isuzu-senpai frowned slightly.

“Looks like you already know about this, huh? Then again, this information isn’t top-secret or anything of the sort.”

“Speaking of which, could it be that Moffle-san cast a spell on me?”

“I highly doubt it. Lord Moffle’s combat skill is absurd, but he does not possess such a magical power.”

“C-Combat skill…?”

Also, did she just address him as “Lord Moffle”? Seriously, a lord?

“Don’t worry about it. At any rate, he can’t cast spells.”

“Then how am I able to speak so…normally?”

“Who knows…”

Isuzu-san shrugged, then ate her tamago-yaki while still in deep thought. The sight of that adorable motion would captivate anybody.

“Perhaps Moffle’s shock treatment could have played a part in this?”

“Ugh…”

I hate to admit it, but this might actually be true… After getting beaten by him and embarrassed in front of our guests, conversing with students was nothing. I used to get dumbstruck when my PE teacher yelled at me, but comparing him to Moffle-san was like comparing takoyaki to a blue-ringed octopus. I apologize for that weird analogy, but it’s true.

Nonetheless, this was certainly a complicated situation I’d gotten myself in. On one hand, being able to properly talk with people was great. I’d be eternally grateful if I was able to retain this ability.

On the other hand, I didn’t want to acknowledge the fact that this was all thanks to Moffle-san. I simply couldn’t imagine myself apologizing to him and saying “I’ll continue to do my best at Amaburi!” I mean, wouldn’t that imply that I was someone who believed in cults and superstition? I may be small, but I am by no means a little girl!

“You seem unhappy about this.”

Isuzu-senpai commented as she observed me from the side.

“Huh? E-Erm…sorry…”

“Your bad habit’s back.”

Isuzu-senpai snorted (in amusement, or in disgust? I don’t know…), and deftly tossed the last side dish of her bento into her mouth. That piece of chicken karaage looked incredibly appetizing.

“At any rate, do you wish to continue working at the park?”

“Erm… Well…”

This was certainly troubling. I’d originally intended to inform her of my resignation via email or something, so I hadn’t mentally prepared myself to tell her this in person.

“Erm…sorry…sorry…”

And just like that, I reverted to my original self. Furthermore, the frustration was causing my voice to get softer, causing the problem to spiral.

“Erm…rest…today…”

I wasn’t able to tell her that I’d like to quit; this was the most I could manage.

“I see. I’ll let them know, then.”

Isuzu-senpai continued with her meal without saying anything further.

*

Whenever I had a horrible day, I would drown myself in a session of karaoke.

First up, a warm-up with vocaloid songs like Matryoshka, Senbonzakura and Setsuna Trip. Singing about 5 or 6 of such songs would prepare my vocal cords sufficiently.

Next, Anisongs! I poured out my emotions with my recent favourite, Yasashisa no Riyuu (Hyouka), followed by Swinging (The Tower of Druaga) and Minami Kaze (Fullmetal Panic!), all of which were awesome songs. Next on the playlist was The Real Fork Blues(Cowboy Bebop). It was categorized as “Blues,” but was in fact more of an Enka. Though that didn’t really matter. After all, the next segment would be solely Enka.

After singing songs like Kita Sakaba and Michinoku Hitori Tabi, I somehow got into the mood for some western songs.

Shall I do it? I was able to sing the English songs I liked despite the lyrics, not due to silly and immature competitive tendencies, but because I listened to a bunch of Dad’s CDs back then. As such, I’d memorized a lot of English phrases, resulting in surprisingly good English test scores in school.

I started with Nirvana’s songs. The first one up was Smells Like Teen Spirit. That song was surprisingly good when one felt down, capable of firing someone up in the midst of the all the darkness.

Speaking of firing up, I continued to sing other similar songs.

The next one was by the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Because I was feeling down (this has become a frequent line of mine…), I went with It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World that had a soothing feel to it. Shouting “Nothing! Nothing!” while throwing my fist in the air felt great.

And thanks to JB (this was what we called James Brown), I was really fired up now! I moved on to Living in America, which was really cheerful and whacky. I never understood why a timid girl like me would enjoy a song like this. Strange, I’d say.

But anyway, all hail America! I just want to speed on an expressway from coast to coast!

We can go anywhere! Atlanta! Chicago! L.A.! Woooooooooooo!

LIVING IN AMERICA!

Right then, I almost choked.

“…!?”

I was singing inside a karaoke room, so it was normal to be surrounded by soundproof walls on all four sides. What wasn’t normal, was that there were three creatures peeking through the smoked glass door.

Unsurprisingly, the culprits were Moffle-san, Macaron-san and Tiramie-san. The three of them had their faces pressed against the door, giving strangely serious expressions that were almost indiscernible from frowns.

There was an awkward silence as the lyrics continued rolling on the old brown monitor, and Moffle-san waved his paws signaling me to go on. Of course, there was no way I could do that as I remained frozen in shock.

Moffle-san and gang sighed and made their way into the room.

“I guess we did interrupt your session, didn’t we? Our bad, mi.”

“We come to this karaoke bar often, ron. Every time we’re here, the receptionist tells us that there’s an amazing singer in the house, but we never got a chance to see who that person was.”

“Who would’ve known that legendary singer was you, fumo.”

It sounded like the receptionist (the one who always compliments me) was the one who asked them to eavesdrop on me.

While the doors in each karaoke room were labelled “soundproof,” I guess that was all just a lie, since sound could still be heard if one were to stand outside.

Before we knew it, the clock had struck 9.

Amaburi’s closing time today was 7. It wasn’t strange for the three of them to drop by the karaoke bar beside Amaburi’s nearest train station on the way home. (Then again, it’s REALLY strange for theme park mascots to come strutting along and singing in a karaoke bar…)

“E-Erm…”

My eyes began to turn watery in panic, and Moffle-san tried to calm me down with a “mofu.”

“Isuzu told me you’re resting, fumo. I guess this counts as a ‘rest’ too, so stop crying.”

“Erm, but…”

“That isn’t to say I’m not angry, fumo.”

“Hiiiiii!?”

Macaron-san gently patted my shoulders that were stiff in fear.

“Don’t worry, ron. This guy’s old fashioned, so he’ll never raise a hand against a woman, ron.”

“Macaron…”

Moffle-san muttered in irritation.

“But I guess that’s fine, isn’t it? Consider this favor thanks for your treat, ron.”

“My…treat…?”

“Your voice, mi. Your singing voice is legendary like the part-timer outside described, and I was completely entranced by it, mi! Let’s sing together in Alamo next time!”

“A…Alamo?”

Where’s that? I somehow feel that I’ve seen that name somewhere before, though…

“It’s the love hotel near Amaburi, fumo. A little word of advice: Stay away from this perverted dog.”

“T-That’s mean, mi! I’m just trying to deepen my bonds with this loli…”

“Shut up, (fumo/ron)!”

“mi…”

Tiramie-san fell silent at their rude remarks.

“…Anyway, you’ve showed us a spectacle, young lady. Never thought we’d find a diamond in a rough! If you’d like, we could change your assignment and let you work under my music theatre, ron.”

“O-Okay…”

I gave a standard response, not knowing what Macaron-san meant. “Showed us a spectacle”? “Diamond in the rough”? What was he saying? I was just singing for personal enjoyment, perhaps he was referring to that?

If that’s the case, I’m honored. But isn’t he exaggerating this? Right then, I had a flashback of a painful experience…

It was back in my 2nd year of middle-school when we had a class excursion. On the way there, the popular girls were singing along to idol songs on the bus and everybody was having fun.

Eventually, it was my turn to sing. I controlled my urge to cry and sang, and for some reason everybody fell silent; nobody said a single word. To this day, I believe it was due to how horribly I sang. The girl who sang before me never spoke to me ever again.

Even now, I haven’t figured how I should interpret their reaction to my singing.

“Okay, whatever, ron. Let’s get the ball rolling! What song should I start with…”

Macaron-san picked a remote control and began to fiddle with it.

“While you’re taking your time, I’ll go first, mi!”

“H-Hey!”

Tiramie-san went in and grabbed the other remote control. Without caring about manners, he hit the “start” button and a fast-tempo song started playing. It was an opening song to a recent popular anime.

“E-Erm…”

“(Lyrics:) Go-ki-gen-you dou-ka-shi-ta, mi? Kao-wo-mi-re-ba, isshun-de-wa-ka-ru, mi! Hooligan, Hooligan! We need no principles, mi!”

Tiramie-san began making up his own lyrics midway through the song. He’s beyond help…

Just like that, the “soundproof” doors were closed and the 4-man karaoke session began. Macaron-san, who had finished singing, was hitting a tambourine while Moffle-san struggled to decide the next song. Tiramie-san, whose song had just entered the bridge, screamed.

“…Take a strike, and win the match! I’m a fan of the Hanshin Tigers!”

After each of the three had their turn, I was forced to join in.

Macaron-san started with Ai Senshi from a Gundam show, upsetting the other mascots. According to their logic, that song was supposed to be saved for last.

Moffle-san picked some western song that I’ve never heard of and sang with passion. It was Body Count by Ice-T, with its genre being a mix of rap and metal. To put it simply, it was a tune that would make you want to stand up.

“Tell us what to do!?”

“Puff you!”

“TELL US WHAT TO DO!?”

“PUFF YOU!”

I clapped my hands, ignoring my suspicions on those being vulgarities.

More than 2 hours had passed, and Moffle-san and gang got increasingly fired up. Whenever I tried to escape from the place, one of them would grab me and tell me to sing more.

I was getting increasingly desperate. I ended up giving George Michael’s I Want Your Sex a shot. I tried my best to sing in a tone that matched its sleazy lyrics.

“WOAH!! Don’t suddenly grow up on me brat!”

“What a song, ron! Your dad ain’t gonna forgive you!”

“This is bad, mi. A cute voice doing such lewd lyrics! I’m gonna report this to Agnes-san, mi!”

All three of them were fully hyped. This pretty much showed they were just old perverted men. And as we sang more songs, more drinks were downed as well. The three ended up completely drunk.

Everyone sang along to Galaxy Cyclone Braiger and Akuu Daisakusen Srungle, followed by Gyakuten! Ippatsuman’s Ah, Sankan-Oh.

“Aww yeah! Yamamoto Masayuki-sensei’s the best, ron! His songs are brilliant!”

“I feel sick, mi… Can’t believe I could get drunk from cheap alcohol…”

“Come on, let’s go, fumo. This place’s stingy. They’ll charge us more if we stay any longer.”

I was afraid that they’d make this my treat, but thankfully Moffle-san paid for tonight’s fees.

“E-Erm, I guess I’ll be going…”

I said the moment we left the karaoke bar.

“What’re you talkin’ ‘bout, ron!? We’re gonna bring you to somewhere much more awesome, ron!”

“The night’s still young, mi! Ugh…”

Tiramie-san puked behind a nearby electricity pole. Utterly disgusting. Macaron-san grabbed my shoulders, trying to take me somewhere else.

“W-Wait…Moffle-san!”

I turned to Moffle-san for help. Moffle-san was scary, but he was undoubtedly the most mature and good-willed among them. Surely he could talk some sense into them and let me free?

“Mofu… *Hick*”

Moffle-san’s eyes were blank. He held a bottle of sake on his right paw and drank from it.

“M-Moffle-san?”

“Just come.”

“Eh?”

“I said just come, fumo. Come with us!”

“Wait…hey…”

“I said, just come with us, fumo. It’ll be an experience for you; there’s no need to be afraid.”

“Iyaaa…!!”

And just like that, I was dragged off into the dark side of town.