Chapter 59
Chapter 59: You Might Make a Killing
The next day, the earliest riser was Rui Mengmeng. By the time Adrian and the others came downstairs, Rui Mengmeng had already wiped down all the tables and chairs. This was a rule she had followed from her time working in a restaurant. In addition to cleaning the tables immediately after customers finished eating, she would also wipe down all the tables and chairs before opening and again after closing.
New employees often showed extra enthusiasm during the first few days after joining. Some would quickly blend in with the experienced staff, while others maintained their enthusiasm until the end of the probation period before gradually returning to their normal state.
Rui Mengmeng was probably still in that enthusiastic phase.
Adrian looked at the industrious Rui Mengmeng and said, "You don't need to wake up so early. We don't open until around eleven anyway."
"Oh, it's okay, boss. Today, I feel like I have endless energy!" Rui Mengmeng flexed her arm, appearing full of vitality.
Adrian didn't bother correcting her use of "boss" as he found it easier. It probably suited Rui Mengmeng's habits better.
At that moment, Tom went outside to get milk and newspapers, returned, and tugged at Adrian's clothes. He pointed to three bottles of milk and gestured towards the number of people in the tavern.
"Oh, right. Tom, when you go for your morning jog later, could you also ask Mika to order some more milk?" Adrian patted Tom's head and then turned to Rui Mengmeng, "We go jogging every day. Would you like to join us?"
Rui Mengmeng mentally noted her morning tasks of fetching milk and newspapers. She then looked at Adrian and Artoria in their workout clothes and nodded, "Jogging? Let me change into my workout clothes."
From her demeanor, it seemed like she might view the group jog as a team-building activity or a part of company culture, similar to how hair salons and hotels have daily morning meetings.
Due to their daily combat training, Adrian sported a yellow and black striped workout outfit, reminiscent of Bruce Lee, and occasionally playfully shouted, "Aaaah!" imitating martial arts sounds.
Artoria wore a blue workout outfit, Rui Mengmeng donned black, and Tom switched into a classic red workout attire.
If they had one more person join them wearing a green workout outfit, they would resemble the Five Fortunes.
Adrian's stamina had significantly improved, running about ten kilometers in half an hour. He could even attempt breaking a world record if he pushed himself harder. The nickname "Running Adrian" was well deserved.
As usual, Tom followed the pattern of jogging for a short while before feigning tiredness and refusing to continue. He ended up becoming Adrian's makeshift weight.
Artoria had no trouble with the exercise, but Rui Mengmeng, despite becoming a super warrior just yesterday, managed to run ten kilometers without any problems. Not surprising considering her experience of fighting alongside Azure in the Gorge-class ship and being subjected to a 50,000-meter freestyle punishment from Lina.
Unable to encounter Mika directly that day, Adrian went to the dairy station to pay and place the order.
For breakfast, Tom continued to prepare the meal, and Rui Mengmeng followed along to assist, showing genuine interest in learning.
Throughout the morning, Rui Mengmeng stuck close to Tom, who was acting as her teacher. Given the wide range of disciplines at Tom's Teaching Institute, she hadn't decided on anything beyond culinary skills.
Tom wasn't always in the mood to teach, often succumbing to laziness. Occasionally, he would instruct Rui Mengmeng to pour tea, water, or give her a shoulder massage.
Under different circumstances, one might suspect Tom of having ulterior motives, but in the current context, anyone who saw it would assume Rui Mengmeng was just playing around with him.
Both Tom and Rui Mengmeng benefitted from this arrangement, leaving Adrian sweating it out during his sword training.
When the tavern opened at noon, customers gradually arrived. Rui Mengmeng carried trays of drinks to different tables.
Familiar patrons sat directly at the bar, raising their glasses to Adrian and asking, "Little brother Adrian, where did you find such a beautiful waitress?"
Adrian responded with a slightly off-topic question, "Why do you all keep asking that? She just joined yesterday. Our housekeeper sits here every day, and I don't hear you praising her like this. Isn't she pretty?"
"Tch." Taking a sip of his drink, the man looked at Artoria and whispered, "It's different. Artoria is definitely beautiful, but... well, you wouldn't understand."
He wanted to say that apart from Artoria's good looks, she had nothing else to offer. Her aura was too intimidating, making it difficult for them to approach her. Rui Mengmeng, on the other hand, was different. She seemed approachable and easy to tease.
He was about to say more, but he stopped himself to avoid trouble.
Adrian looked at him disdainfully, "Let me tell you all, don't entertain any crooked ideas. If anything happens, you're responsible for your own consequences. I won't cover medical or funeral expenses."
"Isn't that a bit too serious? I'm not that type of person."
Right, you're just a straightforward pervert, someone who has impure thoughts but lacks the courage to act on them. Ignoring him, Adrian turned to Rui Mengmeng, "If anyone tries to bully you, don't hesitate to fight back. Don't be polite."
"Huh?" Rui Mengmeng hadn't seen her boss instructing an employee to physically confront a customer before and expressed uncertainty, "But what if I hit too hard?"
Adrian didn't mind, "If you're not comfortable using your hands, use your feet."
"..."
Wouldn't that make it worse... Nevertheless, Rui Mengmeng eventually understood Adrian's point. If it was for self-defense, the force used didn't matter.
With Rui Mengmeng around, Adrian found himself with more free time. He could sit at the bar, sip tea, read newspapers, and wait for payment.
Despite appearances, he wasn't truly idle; he paid close attention to the conversations of the customers.
Two patrons began discussing the previous day's appearance of the Celestial Dragon People in Sabaody Archipelago. Openly discussing the grandeur of the Celestial Dragon People's display was acceptable as long as they didn't criticize or complain.
However, the conversation began to feel stifling, prompting them to switch to another topic.
One of them, with slightly rounder eyes, changed the subject mysteriously, "Have you heard? There was an explosion in the lawless zone yesterday."
Adrian perked up. This was the kind of information he wanted to know.
The other, seemingly uninterested, retorted, "What's so surprising? It wouldn't be big news if the lawless zone didn't have explosions once in a while. When those guys start fighting, anything can happen."
The round-eyed man hesitated, "Well... that might be true, but this time it's different. It seems like a 'Human Dwelling' was blown up. The entire building was sent
flying."
"A 'Human Human Dwelling,' huh." The disinterested one suddenly became intrigued, "That's not a good place. If it got blown up, it probably deserved it. Tell us more."
The round-eyed man grinned, "Sure, but you're buying this round."
"Fine, go on!"
"Hehe, that place had suffered greatly. Who knows how much explosive was used. Rumor has it the entire building was in the air for ten minutes. When it finally landed, not a single piece of wood remained intact."
The uninterested man denied part of the story, "Being in the air for ten minutes is definitely an exaggeration. But considering the lack of damage, it probably had some significant power. What about the people inside?"
The round-eyed man seemed to accept the correction, shaking his head as he replied, "They all died, of course. There were four people with collars and two without. They were probably slaves, employees, or customers. Their bodies were charred black... tsk, tsk, tsk..."
"Those who engage in such activities deserve to die. But those four slaves were unlucky. Wait, hold on a second. Did a single 'Human Dwelling' have only four slaves?"
"They say that some were rescued. Maybe that 'Human Dwelling' had some extraordinarily valuable slaves. Then their relatives came to seek revenge and ended up blowing up the building."