"Good morning," Enide greeted Alison with a wide smile. "I didn't expect you to come back, honestly," she whispered, turning slightly away.

  "Uhm... M-miss, I h-have a r-request, if p-possible," Alison lowered her head, her voice barely rising above a whisper.

  Enide’s expression froze for a split second, but she quickly recovered her smile. "Heh... go ahead."

  "Can... can you g-give me f-food in exchange for w-working m-more?"

  "Is that all? I expected something else... my intuitions are off today," Enide laughed, clapping her hands. "But why do you want food? As far as I know, you only need to collect 3 silver a day to get dinner... Oh, I see, one meal isn't enough for you, right?"

  "No... i-it's for pr-precaution."

  "Precaution? Why, is there someone you're sharing your money with?"

  Alison nodded.

  "I have something better for you. I’ll set aside an extra silver piece for you here, and I’ll give you a loaf of bread to take with you. Perhaps we can share breakfast too," Enide said. Alison’s face tightened as Enide’s hand touched her head. "Money isn't an issue," Enide whispered into Alison's ear.

  Alison took a deep breath. "W-why?"

  "Little one," Enide sat down and stared at the closed window of the shop. "I'll tell you the truth, and you can choose not to believe it... I want you to work here, not for any grand reason. I just want someone to look after my shop, nothing more. Besides, I like your facial expressions."

  Alison listened in silence.

  "Even though your face doesn't move much, I can see what you're feeling. It’s strange, sweet, and funny all at the same time." Enide leaned on her hand, gazing at Alison’s face.

  "H-uh... um..." Alison tried to shield her face from Enide's gaze.

  "Anyway, it’s time for work," Enide opened the shop. "Take care of yourself." With that, Enide retreated into her room.

  Alison sat in her usual chair and watched the road for customers.

  "Finally... that witch is gone. Ugh, now I don't have to go to the other side of the village to buy what I need." A customer pulled out a paper with many herb names on it.

  Alison read what she could, weighed the items, and handed them to the man.

  "This is Arnica."

  "Oh." Alison finally understood the "talisman" he was pointing to after the man read it aloud.

  "That will b-be..." Alison went silent for a full minute while the man kept pushing and pulling one of the bags. "3 s-silver."

  "Oh, that’s a lot."

  "No... you t-took a kilo of g-ginger and everything else."

  "How about 2.5?"

  "N-no."

  "My, you're stubborn." The customer handed the money to Alison.

  "Th-thank you."

  "Eh... thank you." The man placed two bronze pieces on Alison's desk and left.

  Alison gathered everything and put it in the money box. After several more customers, Alison heard a faint growl, almost like a whisper, coming from behind the door. Her heart tightened in her chest as she turned slowly toward the door, then turned back to face any potential customers.

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  The money box now contained 15 silver and many bronze pieces. Alison knocked on the door and waited after taking two steps back.

  "Yes?" Enide peered from behind the door, the usual scent drifting out.

  "We are o-out of g-ginger, c-cinnamon, and b-black s-seed."

  "Out?!" Enide emerged from the room, locking the door firmly behind her and heading straight for the money box. She stared at the contents, then at Alison. "Damn, they really were boycotting me." She set the box back, looked outside, and let out a fading laugh before sitting down. "Alison… am I really that scary?"

  "Uh…"

  "Be honest with me, please."

  "Maybe… a l-l-little."

  "Oh… I see." Enide’s lower lip curled over her upper.

  Alison sat in the empty chair next to Enide, staring at her hands folded in her lap.

  "Well… why don't we close early today? Almost everything is sold out anyway." Enide closed the customer service window. "What do you think? Would you like to stay and do some fun things together?"

  Alison climbed down from the chair with sluggish, sloth-like movements, then faced the still-smiling Enide. "O-okay…"

  "Wonderful! Wait a moment, I'll be back." Enide didn't wait for Alison to finish before she disappeared into the room, this time leaving the door slightly ajar.

  Alison stared at the crack in the door, then pulled herself away to face only the wooden part of the door frame. Sweat began to bead on her forehead and neck, though the room wasn't hot.

  "RAAAAH!" A growl erupted from behind the door, but at the same time, it sounded like it was coming from beneath the earth.

  Alison’s face lost its stillness, her skin turning the color of a bleak prison wall. She began taking slow, cautious steps toward the exit.

  "Damn it!" Enide’s scream echoed from behind the door, followed by heavy footsteps—rapid, like the thumping of Alison’s heart as she pressed herself against the wall.

  The door was thrown open with a resounding crash. When the wood cleared from Alison's vision, a monster appeared. In shape and size, it looked like a smaller Branch Skipper, but its eyes weren't entirely black; they had white sclera with pupils, and its front limbs looked more like hands.

  The creature stared at Alison, who began bolting for the door before it leaped at her. Alison tripped on a piece of uneven flooring, her face slamming into the door first. She didn't get the chance to turn around fully before the monster struck again, its teeth sinking deep into her arm.

  Enide appeared behind the monster, plunging a sword into its head. A dark gray fluid—smelling worse than regular Branch Skipper blood—leaked out. Alison gritted her teeth, her widened eyes fixed on Enide.

  Alison began to crawl backward, leaning against the door. Enide grabbed her head and pressed her index finger firmly into Alison’s forehead. Alison didn't resist; her eyes slowly drifted shut until she became like a consciousless doll.

  "Luckily, she didn't scream," Enide sighed, then grabbed Alison’s arm. "Amazing… her arm didn't break." Blood from Alison's wound dripped onto Enide's hand. She quickly fetched alcohol and gauze, wrapping Alison’s wound.

  Enide stood with her hands on her hips, scanning the scene. "What a mess… ugh." She sighed, focusing first on the dead monster, then on the small pool of blood from Alison’s wound. "This is my chance."

  Enide went to the room, brought a tube, and filled it with the scattered blood from the floor. Then she fetched perfume, mixed it with alcohol, and poured it over the ground after dragging the monster's carcass back inside and locking it. She moved Alison away from the gray fluid, cleaned the floor, and sprayed aromatic extracts—mostly violet. She cleaned the stains on Alison’s clothes, deciding to leave her on the floor where she was. "Wait! Is the shirt not gray?! … Anyway, I’ll do my best."

  Enide sat on the chair and stared at Alison. "It would have been fun to exchange opinions on the novel." She leaned her head on her hand.

  "Ugh…" Alison whispered, clutching her head while still lying on the floor.

  "Good morning."

  "Huh…" Alison looked around. "W-what h-happened?"

  "You fell asleep. That’s what happened."

  Alison noticed the bandage on her arm.

  "That," Enide pointed to the wound. "A monkey sneaked in from the nearby forest and bit you."

  "A m-monkey?"

  "Yes, a monkey. They’re rare, but they exist. Don't worry about rabies; it was a fat, healthy monkey. The worst it’ll do is a minor infection."

  "Ugh." Alison gripped her head with both hands.

  "Are you hungry? I have some sweets and rice cakes in the cabinet over there," Enide pointed to a shelf.

  "Ohhh…" Alison lay back down on the floor.

  "Are you alright?" Enide crouched, one knee on the ground. "I overdid it," she whispered to herself. "Alison, what’s the last thing you remember?"

  "S-sleeping…" The words came out from between Alison’s teeth, crushed in her throat.

  "Sleeping?" Enide put her hand to her chin, pursing her lips. "It’s still early; you can lie here until sunset approaches."

  Enide brought the rice cakes, sweets, and 5 silver pieces, placing them near Alison. She made sure to lock the room door. "Leave whenever you want." Enide walked out of the shop.

  Alison stared at the wooden wall until the shafts of light piercing through the storefront cracks began to fade.

  "Ugh." Alison sat up and unwrapped the bandage. She saw the deep gashes that had pierced her flesh from the bottom of her wrist to the start of her upper arm. "A m-monkey?" she thought. She turned to her right and found the cakes and the money. She took a bite of one; the puffed rice crunched in her mouth but left no flavor other than old rice. Two more followed into her stomach, and the remaining two were stuffed into her pocket.

  Alison knelt and then stood. "I h-have to f-find a n-new j-job."

  She headed for the door. "I f-forgot the m-money." She went back, took the coins, and left.