Negai o Kanaete Moraou to Akuma o Shōkan Shitakedo, Kawaikattanode Kekkonshimashita ~ Akuma no Nīdzu

The day started early for Fiore Leotal, a receptionist in the mercenary guild.

First, she checked and organized quest documents. Unfinished quests would be affixed to the wall, so the guild’s mercenaries could accept them.

Cleaning the guild was also part of her job description.

Sometimes people would come in drunk and throw up, or reported completed quests while still covered in blood, so it needed to be cleaned thoroughly or it would become filthy very quickly.

After cleaning and affixing the quests on the wall… It was time for the guild’s morning to begin.

“He isn’t coming today either…”

Fiore whispered, while looking at the entrance.

She was waiting for Theo Asper, who in the last two years, visited the guild almost every day.

He was a frail looking small boy, who wasn’t blessed with a strong body, even considering he was only fourteen years old.

Why did such a boy join the mercenary guild and accept jobs?

When she asked him that question, she could not contain her tears when the boy told her about his life.

Abandoned by his parents before he was old enough to remember, and adopted by an elderly couple who passed on before he reached adulthood, he had no choice but survive on his own.

His identity was unclear and he could not find a regular job, so he had no choice but to join this world, that wasn’t stable to say the least.

Fiore was concerned, so she tried to look out for him.

She tried to send safe quests his way and introduce him to other jobs, but safe jobs were few, and the pay was low.

Unfortunately, there were very few other places that would hire him.

Still, he was never discouraged, and kept working for the guild as an assistant for other parties.

Unfortunately this meant other people could use him how they pleased…

“Hey, is Theo here yet?”

A party of three man chatted while sitting at a table.

It seemed they were looking for Theo, just like Fiore, but for a completely different reason.

“We need him to carry our stuff.”

“Yeah, we’re hiring him.”

“Did he take a day off without permission? Damn kid…”

The people talking about Theo in such a disrespectful manner hired him many times to carry their luggage.

Surely he made their work a lot simpler, but there was not a shred of gratitude.

[This is why people in the mercenary guild are…!]

Fiore heard everything from her counter, and tried her hardest not let it show on her face how much it irritated her that these people were using Theo.

At that point, Fiore already saw Theo almost like a little brother.

They were about the same height, and his androgynous face was very cute, almost to the point where he could be mistaken for a girl.

Black hair with black eyes was a little uncommon, but that just added to his pet like cuteness.

What was even cuter, was that when she told him directly that she thought he was cute, he responded by saying ‘C-cute? I think I’ve been gaining some muscle lately…’, rolling up his sleeves, and trying his hardest to flex his muscles.

His muscles were about as big as Fiore’s.

This was why men like those three took advantage of him.

When it came time to split the rewards, Theo didn’t get a tenth of what the others got.

He received as much as he would if he did safer quests, but Theo never complained about his pay.

“I’m only helping, so I’m glad to be getting paid at all.”

He would say with a strained smile.

No matter how heavy the luggage he was carrying, and no matter how difficult it was to extract materials off monsters, he never received a fair payment.

The guild didn’t interfere in the way parties would split their rewards, and Fiore never expected this rule to cause her so much irritation.

“I think it’s about time we make him fight too. That weakling’s probably just gonna die right away though.”

“Fine by me, who cares if he dies?”

“Ha, I guess that’s true!”

“Hahahaha!”

At that point, it wasn’t just Fiore glaring at them, it was every receptionist in the guild.

Fiore wasn’t the only receptionist that was concerned about Theo.

Theo was popular among them. He was a ray of sunshine in the middle of all the ruffians they had to deal with. They adored him as a little brother or a pet.

Fiore wasn’t alone in her irritation about the unfavorable treatment Theo received. Those men would often invite the receptionists to leave with them at night, but they would always hear no as a response.

Conversely, most would say yes if it was Theo asking. Most receptionists wanted to give the hardworking Theo a break.

[Me included, of course…]

Thought Fiore, as her face became red.

It would be her first time, and likely his as well, and she didn’t think she would do a good job taking the lead.

But what she really had to think about was Theo.

It seemed like Theo had been kicked out of yet another party three days before, and the shock was so severe, he hadn’t shown his face in the guild since.

There were times when such a thing happened and he would not go to the guild the day after, but Fiore was worried because three days had passed already.

As she thought about Theo, she saw someone coming in. She only saw it through the corner of her eye, but she immediately knew it was Theo.

She quickly turned in his direction, and was relieved to see the usual lively face, but just as she was going to talk…

“Helvi! This is the mercenary guild!”

“Hou, I see.”

She saw an unbelievably gorgeous woman by his side.