Chapter 13
“Waaah!”
Lenea, who came out of the cell phone store, was touching everything with the wonder of a child who had just received her first gift.
As for Ms. Kim, who had done all the heavy lifting, she let out a sigh with her arms folded.
“W-well, it's better not to buy things from places like this. You can get ripped off.”
“I know, I know, but I need to contact him right away. This is the only nearby place.”
I should be contacting Mr. Han Hyojae right away, shouldn't I? He'll probably be wondering why I didn't get in touch yesterday.
“Give me the boss's and Ms. Kim's numbers! I'll save them!”
“Yo, you just need to hold it up like this. L-like this—”
When the two phones were held together, the numbers really did transfer.
It was so amazing that I gasped too, and Lenea smiled brightly, holding out her phone toward me as well.
“Come on! Boss should do it too!”
“I don't make private contact with customers, you know?”
“Boss, try living a little younger.”
With a sigh, I held my phone out toward the two women.
I thought there was some amazing function like this too—.
“...It doesn't work?”
The number wouldn't transfer.
I thought maybe Bluetooth had to be on, but Ms. Kim, who had been glancing over, clicked her tongue.
“B-Boss's phone isn't compatible. It's an old model. Just exchange numbers the old-fashioned way.”
“...”
At Ms. Kim's words, the grandma immediately puffed herself up.
“Exactly, try living a little younger! My goodness, who painstakingly types phone numbers one by one these days!”
“What is she even talking about? You've had that cellphone for less than five minutes, Grandma.”
“Yeah, but not now, right? It's the latest Milotic model, isn't it? Milotic 10, no less? That's at least twice as strong as the boss's Milotic 5, right?”
Man, now I want to switch phones.
After exchanging numbers, we returned to the company.
At the door, I grabbed the 'Out on Business' sign. I checked to see whether anyone had called while we were gone, but unfortunately no one had.
“Huff! Huff!”
Lenea, who had been gripping the hem of my clothes tightly the whole way here, was catching her breath in short gasps.
Before contacting Han Hyojae, she said she needed to prepare herself first.
“W-what should I say when I call?”
“Hello.”
“Smack!”
Another headbutt.
“I know even the basics, you know! That's not what I was asking!”
“Haaah, just make the call. I've already told him. Since she's not used to this sort of thing, she might feel a little awkward, but please just think of her as cute.”
“Boss—!”
Isn't this just basic courtesy?
Just like a restaurant leaves out ingredients a customer is allergic to.
Our Meracle customizes its service for each and every customer.
“Don't feel pressured; just leave a text. He might be working right now.”
“Ahh! That makes sense!”
Seeing her so happy makes the work feel worthwhile again.
Sitting in the corner, Lenea immediately sent a text. Ms. Kim crouched beside her and gave her all sorts of advice.
Hm.
‘But doesn't she go home?’
This isn't a rest stop or anything.
We're a matchmaking service, not a place that provides dates.
“How about sending it like this?”
“No, no. Make it lighter. Who writes fifteen lines for a first greeting?”
“But if I don't do it like this, how will they know what kind of person I am—.”
The two of them huddled over one phone looked rather nice.
While I sorted other customers' files, matched people up, and sent texts, I kept working.
“A, a reply came in! It came! He says he wants to meet right after work today?!”
Lenea shouted in surprise.
It looked like she truly hadn't expected a reply.
Lenea's gaze shot straight to me.
“It was true!”
“You weren't lying to me!”
At that look, I grinned at her.
“Meracle, after all. Our office may be a little small, but we're the sleeping dragon of this industry.”
“Haa! Haa! H-how do I reply? He says he wants to meet after work today?”
She flat-out ignored me and discussed how to reply to Han Hyojae with Ms. Kim.
Watching them like that made it look like friends helping each other with their love lives.
“Say you'll meet him. Looking at the time, that's three hours from now.”
“Three hours from now?! I, I thought at least meeting would be about three days later!”
“E-even for an elf, that's ridiculously slow dating progress! Th-that's impossible!”
Meeting three days after contacting each other—what kind of move is that?
Even the conservative martial artists on the fifth floor wouldn't go that far.
“B-but! I haven't prepared anything at all!”
“I'll handle the styling, so don't worry.”
Confidently, Ms. Kim stood up.
She even said she'd prepare a separate outfit for me and held out her hand.
“Boss, the card.”
“You're going to rent clothes from the costume shop? That place is expensive.”
There's a clothing-rental shop nearby, and we've made a contract with them. But it's pretty expensive, so we don't use it often.
“Y-you can't go out wearing that.”
“...”
Lenea, trembling as she looked at her phone, was dressed far too modern to be called a grandmother.
A white hoodie, a skirt, and stockings.
You'd think she'd be cold dressed like that in this weather, but elves usually live outdoors, so they're pretty resistant to the cold.
“Hah, that's true. All right.”
To clear out this 1,901-year-old dead stock, we should spend a little. Besides, she's a premium customer.
After quickly checking her measurements, Ms. Kim went outside.
Lenea was still trembling.
With a sigh, I opened the counseling room door.
“Come on, let's do a little practice run.”
“Huh? A rehearsal?”
“Seeing you shake like that, I don't think you'll be able to do it properly when you go, so we should at least practice.”
At the thought that she could practice, she followed after me with a slightly brighter expression.
“You even provide this kind of service?”
“Not usually. You're my first customer.”
It was something I came up with on the spot, but if it works, I should try running it properly later.
For a small business like ours, it's important to try a little of everything.
And if something sticks, that's great.
We faced each other in the counseling room.
When I gestured with my chin, Lenea fidgeted, then awkwardly blurted out.
“I, I am a former elf queen, 1,901 years old! My name is Lenea Barlosa Deklen Fiola—!”
“Stop! Stop! What is this? Did you come here to fight or something? Calm down and try again.”
“A-again?”
“Try saying it calmly. Don't get nervous. Keep the name short: Lenea. And don't mention your age.”
“...”
“Oh, and fix your manner of speech too. Let's keep it strictly polite.”
After taking a deep breath, she met my eyes. Then, looking a little awkward, she introduced herself.
“H-hello. My name is Lenea.”
It's awkward, but not bad.
“Yes, hello. My name is Han Hyojae.”
I try to go with the Han Hyojae I remember as closely as possible.
Sharp and capable, the kind of person who gets things done.
“I got off work a little late. I've been busy these days.”
“Oh, it's okay...”
“Even though we met through a matchmaking agency, I hope there's some exchange of feelings. I don't want to live like a storefront display.”
“I do too.”
Lenea nodded earnestly, to the point that she even forgot my instruction to change her speech.
“I want that too. I wish there were someone I could truly share my heart with.”
“...”
“I know it sounds silly to say this at my age, but—.”
Clenching her fist tightly, Lenea met my eyes and shouted.
“I want love—! I want to fall in love!”
“...”
“S-sorry. I got too excited.”
If this were Han Hyojae, what would he say here?
Mimicking him after only speaking with him once or twice was harder than I expected.
So here—.
Just... like Kim Juseon.
“I appreciate the sincerity. Please take good care of me too.”
“Ah.”
“Let's do our best together.”
“Yes! Let's do our best together!”
A bright smile spread across her lips.
* * *
On the way to the café where the date was to take place.
They insisted we come along too, so we were being dragged along with them.
It's just like a game.
As if being the one to throw the game were some kind of privilege.
It's ridiculous how, as hard-to-sell stock, she's making one request after another.
And yet I feel miserable for having to go along with it.
And today's customer is just one person.
Even that was the employee from the phone store, who came but left without signing a contract.
He said he was still too young to feel the need for marriage, or something like that.
Thanks to that, I got serious about clearing out the dead stock.
I'm definitely going to make this one happen today.
Of course, even saying that, there's not much I can actually do.
Still, Lenea wasn't cowering like she had been earlier.
“Easy, isn't it?”
If anything, she was getting a little too cocky.
The image training with me had been easier than expected, and it seemed like she had enjoyed it.
“I didn't know because I hadn't tried it! But once I did, it was this easy! Hahaha! Watch from afar! I'm going to get myself a boyfriend!”
A brazen shout.
But that was far better than shaking in fear without any confidence.
Thanks to Ms. Kim's styling, she had completely gotten rid of the 1,901-year-old vibe.
She looked like she was only about twenty, at most.
Inside the café.
Ms. Kim and I took seats a fair distance away, and Lenea ordered coffee on her own.
“You got this, customer.”
“Fighting!”
“I-I can do it! For a happy married life!”
Since Han Hyojae would recognize our faces, we were already fully disguised with masks and hats.
“Boss, I want cake.”
“Buy it with your own money. I gave you last month's salary.”
“Stingy. The man is supposed to pay.”
“The matchmaking agency employee has a very old-fashioned view of dating.”
“...That's mean.”
Though she grumbled, she still went and bought the cake herself.
“Boss, have some too.”
“...Then I'd be the bad guy, wouldn't I?”
“Th-that's why I'm telling you to eat it.”
With a playful smile, Ms. Kim stabbed the cake with a fork and fed it to me.
While eating the cake, I looked toward Lenea.
‘Looks like she's still nervous.’
She'd said she was confident, but she still looked fidgety as she waited.
Well, of course she'd be nervous; this was a blind date 1,901 years in the making.
“Boss, he's here.”
No sooner had Ms. Kim finished speaking than the café door opened—.
Mr. Han Hyojae stepped inside.