“Hey, I’m here to work with the angel!”
“Is this the place where I can work alongside an angel?”
“I heard there was an angel working here—”
“Rejected. Rejected. And rejected.”
I sighed as I turned down applicant after applicant. They were all here for the open job positions— but none of them were qualified for it. Some of them were outraged about my decision. They thought that just because they had the right Class for the opening, I would have immediately accepted them.
“But I am a Level 14 [Bartender]!” a man exclaimed.
“I’ve worked as a [Tavern Wench] for over five years!” an elderly woman said. “You’re losing out on an amazing employee!”
However, I knew that none of them met the qualifications for the job. Because my qualification was simple— I wanted someone who was actually going to continue working at my restaurant once Guardian Angel Z357 left.
Because he was going to leave. He had only agreed to temporarily work at Bucky’s Out of this World Restaurant. And while we weren’t close friends or whatever, I got the sense that he was… quite dedicated to the World System. Since his current objective was to save the world and deal with the Sect of Abyssal Thorns, I wasn’t going to stop him… I was just going to delay him a tiny bit for my own benefit.
Anyways, Z was leaving. And every single one of the job applicants I had gotten so far would have left when he did. So I rejected them all. I closed my eyes as I leant back in my chair, wondering how I was going to find a proper employee.
“...maybe I can ask Nolan for some references,” I muttered under my breath.
And a cough drew my attention. I looked up, staring at Harlan. My only current real employee. He had been staying over here in this restaurant since he started working for me— he stayed behind while Xakor left to restock on ingredients, and the angel vanished for whatever reason.
Harla cleared his throat as he spoke. “I could help you deal with this whole process if you’d like, Amelia. You’ve been at it all day.”
“No need.” I waved a hand dismissively. “You’re on your day off. Go and relax, alright?”
He pursed his lips in response. “Are you sure? I could—”
“Yeah, don’t worry about it,” I cut him off. I got to my feet as he scratched the back of his head. I started for the doorway, glancing back at him briefly. “That was all my interviews for today. I’ve got something else I need to do now.”
“Oh, alright.” And he watched me go.
I went to find Dorien. I had promised the [Druid] I would help him with his issue yesterday. It didn’t seem like it was going to be too difficult to resolve. Or at least, he reassured me that it wasn’t going to be a big problem for me.
I didn’t know him that well. But Noele vouched that he was a good guy. And he had also offered to supply my restaurant with some ‘malim juice’. It had a fizzy taste to it while also being— like a soda. Knowing how well drinks like pepsi and coke sold back on Earth, I was pretty sure that the malim juice would be a big hit here in Vacuos too.
…maybe. I didn’t know that for certain considering how my food stall back in Windrip completely flopped. Maybe this world just had different tastes to mine. However, I was willing to bet on this gambit. The malim juice should sell well with all the attention my restaurant had been receiving so far.
“But I will need to do some rebranding because ‘malim juice’ is a terrible name…” I murmured.
I found Dorien a minute later. The [Druid] was waiting for me at the edge of Wolfwater. He blinked when he saw me, before narrowing his eyes.
“Is Noele not coming with us?” he asked, and I shook my head.
“She’s busy with some other stuff,” I said dismissively. “So what’s up? What’s this thing you need my help with?”
Dorien nodded slowly and began to explain. “You see, there is this colony of bees in the Vox Forest that’s…”
—--
As Amelia went to help Dorien, Noele tried her best to help Saros. Not that the blonde girl could provide much help on her own. The two adventurers were going to go up against Ar’elith— the First Lich King himself.
Well… he was still dead. But some [Necromancer] called Tristan Devon who just happened to be a member of the Sect of the Abyssal was trying to revive the Lich King. And both Noele and Saros were trying to stop that from happening.
The consequences would be calamitous— maybe even apocalyptic. Ar’elith was said to be an SSS-ranked threat due to his army of elite undead. That was before he was even empowered by the Void… which was a very real possibility right now. At that point, he might as well have been equal to Level 100 in power.
He might even become more powerful than that. Like an angel.
The possibility made Noele shiver in fear. It was a dire situation— one that Amelia wasn’t going to help them with for now.
The blonde girl could understand her mentor’s decision. Not just because of how busy Amelia was today, but because she couldn’t just solve every problem Vacuos faced for them. Especially when she wasn’t even the one who was responsible for causing this crisis.
In fact, it could be said that Amelia had already done her part beforehand. She was the one who killed Ar’elith, and she supposedly helped… stop the Void? Kill the Voidgod? Noele wasn’t entirely sure, but she just knew her mentor did something in the Fractured Realm.
So Amelia had already helped out with the very same problems in the past. And sure, she could help out again now. But that would have made Noele and everyone in Vacuos overly-reliant on the brown-haired woman. The blonde girl believed that she should at least try to solve the problem herself before falling back on her mentor’s help.
However, that didn’t mean that Noele was going to reject other forms of help when she could get it. For example…
Is this where we will locate the Void? a voice in her head asked.
Noele glanced back. She saw a metallic figure standing behind her. One with twelve eyes and a pair of dove-like wings. It was Guardian Angel Z357. Or rather— he was Guardian Angel Z357, and he had offered both adventurers his help.
She couldn’t believe it. Well, she could believe it more now than she would have a few weeks ago… and if this had happened a few weeks ago, she would have believed it more than a few months ago.
The blonde girl was starting to get numb to her own disbelief. But reality was at a point where incredibly ridiculous things kept happening around her— and that was what this was: it was incredibly ridiculous.
Which was, somehow, an inappropriate description of a literal angel offering her his aid. It should have been considered to be ‘completely impossible’ or ‘the result of a fever dream’. But the fact that it was reduced to just ‘incredibly ridiculous’ spoke volumes of how insane things had been since Noele met her mentor.
In any case, Guardian Angel Z357 was here to help. He had apparently eavesdropped on both Saros and Noele’s conversation with Amelia back at Bucky’s Out of this World Restaurant. While it wasn’t exactly a comprehensive explanation— not that there really was one— the angel wanted to offer his help.
It was his task to destroy the Void, and that was why he was now following the two adventurers much to their disbelief.
I do not detect any essence originating from the Void here in this farm, Guardian Angel Z357 continued.
Saros exchanged a glance with the blonde girl. He wore a pleading look on his face, hoping that she would be the one to reply. The entire time since Z357 approached them, the gnome had let Noele do the talking. Otherwise, if he tried to speak, he would just stumble over his words, making a fool of himself.
It was an understandable reaction. Unlike her, yesterday was the first time Saros had a chance to even see the Guardian Angel. She wasn’t sure if he even fully comprehended Z357’s existence until… just a few minutes ago.
The blonde girl sighed. She obliged the gnome, doing him this favor and answering the angel.
“No,” she said as she shook her head. “This is not where we’ll be finding the… uh, Void.”
Then why have we come to this location? asked Guardian Angel Z357.
“We’re here to pick up another ally.” She stepped forward and pushed the door of her parents’ farm open without further elaboration.
Nolan and Nicole waited inside, going about their own business. They raised their heads to greet the blonde girl, only to pause when they saw her company.
“That’s… the angel!” Nolan exclaimed with wide eyes.
Nicole immediately got to her feet as she dropped the book she’d been reading. “What’s the angel doing here?”
“Sorry, we’re not here to stay,” Noele said quickly. “We’re just here to pick up Garron, then we’ll be off.”
“Wait, can’t the angel stay for some tea?” her mama protested. “Dorien gave me these delicious tea leaves that we can share.”
“We’re in a bit of a rush,” the blonde girl said, before gesturing at the mouth-less face of the angel. “Also, I don’t think Guardian Angel Z357 can… drink?”
Affirmative, he confirmed. I do not have the necessary organs to consume matter into my body.
“Oh.” Nicole deflated.
Nolan patted his wife’s shoulder comfortingly. “There, there…”
“Garron?” Noele called out, stepping past her parents. “Are you there? We need your help!”
She heard a shuffling coming from one of the spare rooms. A moment later, the Steel Tank emerged with a curious frown on his face.
“I’m here—” He paused as he noticed the angel. “What’s going on?”
Noele shook her head. “It’s a bit complicated. Can we explain on the way there?”
Garron narrowed his eyes. He saw the look on her face. And he nodded slowly. “Of course— just give me a moment to gather my equipment.”
“Thanks, I knew I could count on you.” She returned with a smile.
When he was ready, the three adventurers stepped outside of the farm along with the angel. Nolan and Nicole watched from a distance as Garron folded his arms.
“So where are we going?” he asked.
“We’re heading to Arelioth’s Pass,” Saros spoke up for the first time in a while. He was pointedly not making eye contact with the angel— which was quite the feat considering Z357’s twelve eyes. “It is to the south of the Sofron River… at the border between the Astrad Kingdom and Kingdom of Kal.”
“I don’t think the angel knows where any of those places are even located at,” Noele said as she glanced back for confirmation.
Affirmative, Guardian Angel Z357 said. I am not familiar with those locations.
“Oh.” The gnome blinked.
The blonde girl nodded at the angel. “We’ll just guide you there. The more important question is— can you bring us there?”
He just tilted his head back at her in response.
“By that I mean fly us there… without harming us,” she quickly clarified. “Time is of the essence, and it’ll take us at least a day to get there on our own. So we’ll need your help.”
“Are you crazy?” Saros sputtered, staring at the blonde girl in horror. “You can’t just ask an angel to carry us like some kind of horse… woah, waitaminute—”
The gnome waved his arms wildly in the air as Guardian Angel Z357 proceeded to pick up the three adventurers like they weighed nothing. Noele glanced between Saros and Garron before taking in a deep breath. She held the angel’s gaze as they slowly began to ascend to the air.
“Just don’t fly too fast,” she said, bracing herself.
I will travel with utmost haste without harming your bodily function, Guardian Angel Z357 simply replied.
Then he took off. Noele closed her eyes, wincing as she felt the wind brushing against her face. Her hair whipped behind her, and she tightened her grip around the angel’s hand… before she blinked.
Noele raised her head as she watched Wolfwater slowly in the distance. They were traveling fast, but not that fast. Which was an odd observation considering that both Garron and Saros were screaming out of their minds.
“Honestly, I think I’m just too used to Amelia,” the blonde girl muttered under her breath.
And the group of four flew on for Arelioth’s Pass.
MelasD
You can read up to 15 chapters ahead on my patreon here!
Join my discord and subscribe to my subreddit!
Or follow me on twitter!
“Hey, I’m here to work with the angel!”
“Is this the place where I can work alongside an angel?”
“I heard there was an angel working here—”
“Rejected. Rejected. And rejected.”
I sighed as I turned down applicant after applicant. They were all here for the open job positions— but none of them were qualified for it. Some of them were outraged about my decision. They thought that just because they had the right Class for the opening, I would have immediately accepted them.
“But I am a Level 14 [Bartender]!” a man exclaimed.
“I’ve worked as a [Tavern Wench] for over five years!” an elderly woman said. “You’re losing out on an amazing employee!”
However, I knew that none of them met the qualifications for the job. Because my qualification was simple— I wanted someone who was actually going to continue working at my restaurant once Guardian Angel Z357 left.
Because he was going to leave. He had only agreed to temporarily work at Bucky’s Out of this World Restaurant. And while we weren’t close friends or whatever, I got the sense that he was… quite dedicated to the World System. Since his current objective was to save the world and deal with the Sect of Abyssal Thorns, I wasn’t going to stop him… I was just going to delay him a tiny bit for my own benefit.
Anyways, Z was leaving. And every single one of the job applicants I had gotten so far would have left when he did. So I rejected them all. I closed my eyes as I leant back in my chair, wondering how I was going to find a proper employee.
“...maybe I can ask Nolan for some references,” I muttered under my breath.
And a cough drew my attention. I looked up, staring at Harlan. My only current real employee. He had been staying over here in this restaurant since he started working for me— he stayed behind while Xakor left to restock on ingredients, and the angel vanished for whatever reason.
Harla cleared his throat as he spoke. “I could help you deal with this whole process if you’d like, Amelia. You’ve been at it all day.”
“No need.” I waved a hand dismissively. “You’re on your day off. Go and relax, alright?”
He pursed his lips in response. “Are you sure? I could—”
“Yeah, don’t worry about it,” I cut him off. I got to my feet as he scratched the back of his head. I started for the doorway, glancing back at him briefly. “That was all my interviews for today. I’ve got something else I need to do now.”
“Oh, alright.” And he watched me go.
I went to find Dorien. I had promised the [Druid] I would help him with his issue yesterday. It didn’t seem like it was going to be too difficult to resolve. Or at least, he reassured me that it wasn’t going to be a big problem for me.
I didn’t know him that well. But Noele vouched that he was a good guy. And he had also offered to supply my restaurant with some ‘malim juice’. It had a fizzy taste to it while also being— like a soda. Knowing how well drinks like pepsi and coke sold back on Earth, I was pretty sure that the malim juice would be a big hit here in Vacuos too.
…maybe. I didn’t know that for certain considering how my food stall back in Windrip completely flopped. Maybe this world just had different tastes to mine. However, I was willing to bet on this gambit. The malim juice should sell well with all the attention my restaurant had been receiving so far.
“But I will need to do some rebranding because ‘malim juice’ is a terrible name…” I murmured.
I found Dorien a minute later. The [Druid] was waiting for me at the edge of Wolfwater. He blinked when he saw me, before narrowing his eyes.
“Is Noele not coming with us?” he asked, and I shook my head.
“She’s busy with some other stuff,” I said dismissively. “So what’s up? What’s this thing you need my help with?”
Dorien nodded slowly and began to explain. “You see, there is this colony of bees in the Vox Forest that’s…”
—--
As Amelia went to help Dorien, Noele tried her best to help Saros. Not that the blonde girl could provide much help on her own. The two adventurers were going to go up against Ar’elith— the First Lich King himself.
Well… he was still dead. But some [Necromancer] called Tristan Devon who just happened to be a member of the Sect of the Abyssal was trying to revive the Lich King. And both Noele and Saros were trying to stop that from happening.
The consequences would be calamitous— maybe even apocalyptic. Ar’elith was said to be an SSS-ranked threat due to his army of elite undead. That was before he was even empowered by the Void… which was a very real possibility right now. At that point, he might as well have been equal to Level 100 in power.
He might even become more powerful than that. Like an angel.
The possibility made Noele shiver in fear. It was a dire situation— one that Amelia wasn’t going to help them with for now.
The blonde girl could understand her mentor’s decision. Not just because of how busy Amelia was today, but because she couldn’t just solve every problem Vacuos faced for them. Especially when she wasn’t even the one who was responsible for causing this crisis.
In fact, it could be said that Amelia had already done her part beforehand. She was the one who killed Ar’elith, and she supposedly helped… stop the Void? Kill the Voidgod? Noele wasn’t entirely sure, but she just knew her mentor did something in the Fractured Realm.
So Amelia had already helped out with the very same problems in the past. And sure, she could help out again now. But that would have made Noele and everyone in Vacuos overly-reliant on the brown-haired woman. The blonde girl believed that she should at least try to solve the problem herself before falling back on her mentor’s help.
However, that didn’t mean that Noele was going to reject other forms of help when she could get it. For example…
Is this where we will locate the Void? a voice in her head asked.
Noele glanced back. She saw a metallic figure standing behind her. One with twelve eyes and a pair of dove-like wings. It was Guardian Angel Z357. Or rather— he was Guardian Angel Z357, and he had offered both adventurers his help.
She couldn’t believe it. Well, she could believe it more now than she would have a few weeks ago… and if this had happened a few weeks ago, she would have believed it more than a few months ago.
The blonde girl was starting to get numb to her own disbelief. But reality was at a point where incredibly ridiculous things kept happening around her— and that was what this was: it was incredibly ridiculous.
Which was, somehow, an inappropriate description of a literal angel offering her his aid. It should have been considered to be ‘completely impossible’ or ‘the result of a fever dream’. But the fact that it was reduced to just ‘incredibly ridiculous’ spoke volumes of how insane things had been since Noele met her mentor.
In any case, Guardian Angel Z357 was here to help. He had apparently eavesdropped on both Saros and Noele’s conversation with Amelia back at Bucky’s Out of this World Restaurant. While it wasn’t exactly a comprehensive explanation— not that there really was one— the angel wanted to offer his help.
It was his task to destroy the Void, and that was why he was now following the two adventurers much to their disbelief.
I do not detect any essence originating from the Void here in this farm, Guardian Angel Z357 continued.
Saros exchanged a glance with the blonde girl. He wore a pleading look on his face, hoping that she would be the one to reply. The entire time since Z357 approached them, the gnome had let Noele do the talking. Otherwise, if he tried to speak, he would just stumble over his words, making a fool of himself.
It was an understandable reaction. Unlike her, yesterday was the first time Saros had a chance to even see the Guardian Angel. She wasn’t sure if he even fully comprehended Z357’s existence until… just a few minutes ago.
The blonde girl sighed. She obliged the gnome, doing him this favor and answering the angel.
“No,” she said as she shook her head. “This is not where we’ll be finding the… uh, Void.”
Then why have we come to this location? asked Guardian Angel Z357.
“We’re here to pick up another ally.” She stepped forward and pushed the door of her parents’ farm open without further elaboration.
Nolan and Nicole waited inside, going about their own business. They raised their heads to greet the blonde girl, only to pause when they saw her company.
“That’s… the angel!” Nolan exclaimed with wide eyes.
Nicole immediately got to her feet as she dropped the book she’d been reading. “What’s the angel doing here?”
“Sorry, we’re not here to stay,” Noele said quickly. “We’re just here to pick up Garron, then we’ll be off.”
“Wait, can’t the angel stay for some tea?” her mama protested. “Dorien gave me these delicious tea leaves that we can share.”
“We’re in a bit of a rush,” the blonde girl said, before gesturing at the mouth-less face of the angel. “Also, I don’t think Guardian Angel Z357 can… drink?”
Affirmative, he confirmed. I do not have the necessary organs to consume matter into my body.
“Oh.” Nicole deflated.
Nolan patted his wife’s shoulder comfortingly. “There, there…”
“Garron?” Noele called out, stepping past her parents. “Are you there? We need your help!”
She heard a shuffling coming from one of the spare rooms. A moment later, the Steel Tank emerged with a curious frown on his face.
“I’m here—” He paused as he noticed the angel. “What’s going on?”
Noele shook her head. “It’s a bit complicated. Can we explain on the way there?”
Garron narrowed his eyes. He saw the look on her face. And he nodded slowly. “Of course— just give me a moment to gather my equipment.”
“Thanks, I knew I could count on you.” She returned with a smile.
When he was ready, the three adventurers stepped outside of the farm along with the angel. Nolan and Nicole watched from a distance as Garron folded his arms.
“So where are we going?” he asked.
“We’re heading to Arelioth’s Pass,” Saros spoke up for the first time in a while. He was pointedly not making eye contact with the angel— which was quite the feat considering Z357’s twelve eyes. “It is to the south of the Sofron River… at the border between the Astrad Kingdom and Kingdom of Kal.”
“I don’t think the angel knows where any of those places are even located at,” Noele said as she glanced back for confirmation.
Affirmative, Guardian Angel Z357 said. I am not familiar with those locations.
“Oh.” The gnome blinked.
The blonde girl nodded at the angel. “We’ll just guide you there. The more important question is— can you bring us there?”
He just tilted his head back at her in response.
“By that I mean fly us there… without harming us,” she quickly clarified. “Time is of the essence, and it’ll take us at least a day to get there on our own. So we’ll need your help.”
“Are you crazy?” Saros sputtered, staring at the blonde girl in horror. “You can’t just ask an angel to carry us like some kind of horse… woah, waitaminute—”
The gnome waved his arms wildly in the air as Guardian Angel Z357 proceeded to pick up the three adventurers like they weighed nothing. Noele glanced between Saros and Garron before taking in a deep breath. She held the angel’s gaze as they slowly began to ascend to the air.
“Just don’t fly too fast,” she said, bracing herself.
I will travel with utmost haste without harming your bodily function, Guardian Angel Z357 simply replied.
Then he took off. Noele closed her eyes, wincing as she felt the wind brushing against her face. Her hair whipped behind her, and she tightened her grip around the angel’s hand… before she blinked.
Noele raised her head as she watched Wolfwater slowly in the distance. They were traveling fast, but not that fast. Which was an odd observation considering that both Garron and Saros were screaming out of their minds.
“Honestly, I think I’m just too used to Amelia,” the blonde girl muttered under her breath.
And the group of four flew on for Arelioth’s Pass.
MelasD
You can read up to 15 chapters ahead on my patreon here!
Join my discord and subscribe to my subreddit!
Or follow me on twitter!
