Chapter 1: A Quiet Life, Interrupted

My name is Chihaya Sayo. I am sixteen years old. I live in the northern part of Tenguu City, and I am unmarried.

I work part-time at a maid cafe. I make it home by ten at night, no later.

I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I sleep from four or five in the morning, ensuring I get a good three hours.

Before I go to bed, I down a glass of iced cola and browse short videos on my phone until I fall asleep. The sleep is always shallow, barely lasting till dawn.

I carry that fatigue and drowsiness through another day, just like some overworked corporate s*ave. Even King Yama must wonder why I have not come to check in yet.

I only want to say: I ask for nothing more than to go on living with a calm, peaceful heart. I refuse to fuss about victory or defeat, gain or loss. Those only bring me trouble and enemies. That is how content I am. These are my values.

But…

A girl with dark circles under her eyes like a panda glared into the bathroom mirror at the reflection of her own sickly self, as if a single wind could carry her away. Her pale red eyes were full of anger and confusion.

In her previous life, she had served capitalists like a beast of burden, exhausting herself thoroughly. She had thrown herself into transmigration, hoping for a quiet, unremarkable, and happy life.

So why, of all places, had she landed in Tenguu City, where buildings got renovated more quickly than the soil was plowed? And why did her identity here seem just a little…

“Sayo-chan? Are you feeling under the weather?”

A woman’s voice brought Sayo out of her drowsy daze. Sayo turned to find a tall woman in butler’s clothes standing there in front of her.

The woman was Kanon Miho, owner of the Enmu Maid Cafe and Sayo’s boss.

As a boss who was pretty celebrated among the anime shut-ins across Tenguu City, Kanon Miho did not care for a life of laying in bed and watching money pile up. She chose to join the front lines of her own maid cafe.

“Seeing beautiful boys and girls every day keeps my mood bright,” was Kanon Miho’s explanation.

“I…”

Before Sayo could even answer, she felt a pair of warm hands brushing her cheeks, carrying the scent of gardenias. The hands kneaded her face, soft and unhealthy pale, but pretty like polished white jade.

Maybe because the owner was controlling her strength, the girl felt no pain. Instead, all on her own, she relaxed and leaned her head into those warm palms, just like a soft little kitten will press its head into its owner’s hand and slowly stick its tongue out.

Wait a second!

The girl smacked away the fragrant hands and suppressed the dangerous idea that had been forming in her head.

She liked this smell very much. It resembled the aroma of an excellent ingredient after careful cooking, tempting her to eat the finished dish. Yes, she wanted to eat it in the literal sense.

Ever since coming into this world, Sayo had felt something had changed in her body. Every day at the maid cafe, whenever she looked at her cute co-workers or her handsome boss, her very first instinct was to “eat” them.

As if she were a monster that survived by eating people… But then again, this was Tenguu City. Surely there were no man-eating beasts in this world, right?

Maybe the body she occupied now used to belong to some closeted psycho criminal?

“Sayo is adorable, isn’t she!”

Kanon’s cheeks were already tinged red. Her ivory-white hands, instead of stopping, started rubbing the poor girl’s delicate face with more energy.

“I can tell you stayed up all night again. I keep telling you, you are young, take care of yourself. At your age you don’t feel the wear, but that will catch up to you later…”

As she spoke, her fingertips climbed up, barely rubbing the girl’s eye sockets. Even Sayo, a woman who normally cared only about appetite, felt her heart skip a beat.

To be honest, Kanon Miho was stunning. Unlike her sweet name, her personality and manner were that of a cool, handsome older brother, with a certain charming fortitude in her expression.

Set aside the rest. If she ever stood at the subway station in this butler get-up, at least ten or more girls would ask to exchange contacts within half an hour.

Of course, the most amazing thing about her was that rich gardenia perfume. Sayo could not help but sink into it. She only had to reach out her hand, take hold of the delicate flower branch before her, and she would get to taste the dish she had been craving.

Just as Sayo had made her decision, the beautiful woman pulled back her hands and gave Sayo a mild, gentle smile.

“If you keep wearing that expression, it will impact your work. I will grant you a paid day off today. Go home and get some proper rest. You’re the star waitress at Enmu, after all. If your health fails, I would be upset… for at least half a week!”

“Only half a week?”

Sayo mumbled. But her hands were already fast at work, taking off the cute little bell that hung around her slender neck. A bold idea suddenly crossed her mind.

If she stayed up late more often from now on, would she be able to enjoy many more paid days off like this?

“Not allowed,” Kanon saw through her guilty thought and frowned, scolding softly.

“You’re only sixteen. At your age, how can you be tossing and turning in bed? All right, once or maybe twice is acceptable, but not a third time. If this happens a second time, I will knock some money off your salary! And once your commission and perfect attendance are figured in, that adds up to about…”

As she watched her boss counting on her fingers, Sayo felt sweat begin to run down her back.

Her base pay at this cafe was not very high. In Tenguu City, where rent is a real issue, it could barely feed and house her. The part that actually raised her into a comfortable middle-class lifestyle came from her commission on guests.

At first Sayo had really resisted the job. In her previous life she had been a perfectly principled, ethical young adult. How could she let herself wear a maid outfit with cat ears and a jingling bell, like a pet cat, to serve customers their food? The thing is, they paid too much.

I have to say, two-dimensional money is ridiculously easy. Put on the cat ears and maid dress, coo a few sweet lines, and piles of cash will fly right out of those otaku pockets into the store register, leaving her with a huge commission.

But if the owner took away her commission, she would not be able to spend any money on in-game purchases for a month. And what about her position as the guild leader of her faction?

Once she had thought it all through, Sayo became extremely serious. She bowed deeply, a precise 90 degrees, and declared in a loud, firm voice.

“I understand. I will make sure of it!”

“Oh, you…”

Kanon’s eyes narrowed into slits. She reached out and patted the girl’s lowered head gently.

Well, the feeling is like high-quality silk, nice to the touch.

“Go on home. Remember to rest up.”

“Yes!”

Perhaps all wage earners on earth are the same. The moment she heard that she could go home and take the day off, all the fatigue that had pressed upon her left. She went back to the staff changing room with practiced ease, peeled off the shameful cat-ear maid outfit, and shoved it into her bag. Then she slipped into a frumpy black jacket and left the maid cafe through the staff-only exit.

Bright sunlight slipped through the clouds and fell on the girl’s slim, elegant figure. All at once Sayo’s mood turned brighter with the sun, and even for a moment she forgot all her worries.

Whatever. She was, after all, a simple, small-minded person. If only she could go on living quietly and safely like this…

“Emergency announcement. A spacequake precursor has just been observed in this area. This is not a training exercise. Please proceed to the nearest shelter immediately. I repeat. Emergency announcement…”

The signboards at both sides of the road suddenly lit up with red warning lights, accompanied by a harsh, grating siren.

This was… a spacequake.

Although the citizens had rehearsed it countless times, panic erupted in an instant. People fought among each other, charging to the nearest shelters.

Sayo instinctively tried to follow the crowd, but after only two or three strides, she lost control and crashed to the ground.

She was panting. It was as if something was slowly gripping her heart, and all the blood in her body suddenly froze.

To keep herself from being trampled by the stream of people charging from behind, she had no choice but to drag her nearly helpless body into the nearest alley.

What was going on?

Anger. Fear. Dread. All sorts of emotions poured endlessly into the girl’s chest. She could clearly feel her heart contracting and expanding frantically, and every heartbeat brought sharp pain all over her body, as if someone was squeezing her heart in their hand.

Sayo tried to scream, but the violent pulse robbed her of any strength to make a sound. She could only let that damn heart continue contracting forward at its steady rhythm.

A heart attack?

This body had… heart disease? Why had she not known before?

Or was it because she had stayed up late for so long? If so, that was…

Looking at the street that was slowly emptying, the pain seemed to get a little weaker.

No. Maybe she was just getting used to the pain? Or was she approaching death?

Forget it. Either way, she could not change the outcome, so at least…

Sayo struggled to prop herself up to see, in a more comfortable position, the core of the spacequake, which was like a black hole. In less than the time it takes a breath, the core violently expanded outward, and in the blink of an eye swallowed the girl’s tiny, pathetic body.

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