58. A Leisurely Afternoon in Ji’s Youthful Days. (Please Vote for Us)

To wash away the fatigue of Saturday, Tsukimi Jinguuji slept until noon. When he came downstairs, he found breakfast on the table, long since gone cold—his mother had evidently left early. He ate it as two meals in one, gave his hair a casual tidy, and prepared to leave for his part-time job.

He walked to the station, switched shifts with the previous worker, donned a dark green work apron, and had barely settled at the cash register before the bell at the entrance chimed.

“Welcome—”

“Hey there, Luna-chan! Are you working hard?” The manager, Kyoko Nagumo, entered, and Tsukimi, who had just vacated his seat, sat back down.

“What’s with that attitude?”

“It was you, Miss Nagumo, who said there’s no need to be overly polite to those women who come just to see me, stay all afternoon without buying anything.”

“I’m the manager. Are you trying to argue?” As expected, Tsukimi received a light knock on the head.

He touched the spot she’d struck, speaking calmly, “You’re not on duty today, are you, Miss Nagumo? Are you here to supervise my work?”

“That’s part of the reason, but mainly I came to introduce a newcomer to the environment.”

“A newcomer?”

“I mentioned it before, didn’t I? Since you can only work weekends now, I need someone for the weekdays.”

Tsukimi nodded.

“Well, that’s true, but actually, she’s my niece—my sister’s child. The appointed time is near; I hope she hasn’t gotten lost.”

Tsukimi’s interest was minimal. He flipped through his book, not caring about Kyoko Nagumo’s niece.

About ten minutes later, the bell chimed again, accompanied by the rustic creak of the door. Light, cheerful footsteps entered.

The boy, reading with his head lowered, perked up his ears and glanced toward the entrance from beneath his bangs.

A short figure, vivid hair, dressed in denim overalls—oddly, only the right strap was fastened, the left hung loose, revealing a cartoon pattern on the white T-shirt underneath.

Her large, lively eyes brimmed with curiosity for everything around her—like an animal seeing the world for the first time.

In short, she looked troublesome.

And she was not a nephew, but a niece.

“Ah... Yo-chan, come over here!” Miss Nagumo’s smile radiated—one she’d never show Tsukimi, reserved only for “pets,” pure doting, almost exactly that expression.

“Oh! Good afternoon, Auntie.” The little creature bowed politely.

“Don’t call me auntie!”

“Un... Uncle?”

...

“I’m just kidding, Kyoko can’t handle teasing.” Yes, that peculiar Kansai accent was unmistakable.

Hoshino Morino had said she was from Nagoya, but Tsukimi always assumed Kyoko Nagumo was a Tokyo native.

“Tsukimi, this is Yo, my sister’s child. She came to Tokyo from Kansai for school and is living with me. I’m her guardian, for now.”

Thank you for the background, he thought.

“So, she’s going to work here?”

“That’s right.”

“Weekdays, after school?”

“Yes. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays—three days a week. It should lighten my load a bit.”

“Yo, this afternoon you’ll follow him to learn the store’s routines and book arrangements. I know you’re smart and will get the hang of it quickly, but no slacking, understood?”

“Got it! Hello, mister... Huh? Huh! Isn’t that Senior Jinguuji?!”

Only now noticing—how slow. Tsukimi thought, closing his book with nonchalance and raising a hand in greeting, “Hey, little animal.”

Kyoko Nagumo was surprised they knew each other, but then recalled Tsukimi and Yo attended the same high school—it was plausible they’d met.

“Since you know each other, that makes things easier. I have a date this afternoon, so I’m leaving her in your care. That’s okay, right?”

Tsukimi glanced at her wordlessly. From her tone, it was as if he had any say in the matter.

Thus, Kyoko Nagumo left the petite girl behind, swaying her mountainous chest, and departed with flair.

Tsukimi looked silently at the left-behind double-A girl.

“So, you’re Miss Nagumo’s niece?”

“Yep! Kyoko is mom’s younger sister. She moved to Tokyo alone when she was young.”

So, they’re blood relatives.

“You really didn’t inherit any genes, did you?”

“I’m telling the president you’re a pervert, senior.”

“Why is this always your move?”

“Because you like the president, senior.”

“There’s nothing like that.”

“Oh, shy are we? Didn’t expect you to be so innocent—pfft, pfft!” Ignoring her words, Tsukimi took a dark green work apron from the storage cabinet beneath the register and tossed it to her.

“In any case, put the apron on first.”

Due to her height, the apron looked more like a long garment on Yo. Tsukimi imagined her lining up nine coins on the register—certainly a sight that would amuse.

Yo spun in place several times; Tsukimi was genuinely concerned she might trip over the apron.

The little animal grinned, stretching her arms wide. “Hey, senior, take a photo for me! I want to send it to mom.”

“Sure, sure.”

“Ugh... Senior, your photography skills are awful.”

“You talk too much.”

Although Tsukimi would have liked a leisurely afternoon, Kyoko Nagumo had given clear instructions—if he taught her nothing, he’d surely be scolded.

So, he began with the register, showing her how to scan items, settle accounts, and give change.

Despite looking as airheaded as Sakura Sakamoto, Yo was genuinely smart. For example, with the bookshelves, she only needed a couple of rounds through the store to memorize most of the book locations.

If Tsukimi’s photographic memory was thanks to his “system,” Yo was probably a real genius—even Tsukimi was impressed.

Once he’d taught her enough, he let Yo sit at the register while he took his novel to the corner lounge.

Some might call this workplace bullying or laziness, but Tsukimi saw it as an essential part of mentoring—when faced with a newly hatched fledgling, one must let it learn to spread its wings.

In any case, it seemed his leisurely afternoon had finally arrived.

“Senior Jinguuji, what should I do?”

“Open the drawer to your right. See the book under the envelopes?”

“Hmm... Norwegian Wood?”

“That’s right.”

“And then?”

“Read it.”