Epilogue

That day, just like always, Raul showed up to his shift at Magic Shop Leon, Royal Capital Store, spotted Fino loitering on the sales floor, and called out to her the same way he always did.

"Yo, Fino. Mornin'."

"Good morning, Raul-san."

… And then he froze, mouth hanging open.

The voice that came back at him was nothing like her usual rough manner. It was an unbelievably soft, gentle tone. Cradling a basket stuffed with blue flowers, the girl gave a graceful little bow, and with a demure motion held out a single bloom toward him.

"Welcome to Magic Shop Leon, Royal Capital Store. If you'd like, please take one of these flowers?"

The girl narrowed her large eyes and smiled with delicate poise. A sweet, adorable voice that tickled the ear.

"… Uh, Fino, did you hit your head or something?"

He found himself accepting the flower she pressed into his hand, and the moment Raul asked the question, the girl's mouth stretched into a wide grin.

"Hah hah hah! How about it, Raul, surprised?!"

Fino puffed out her chest proudly and bounced up to look him in the face.

"I practiced the Manager's gestures and tone in front of the mirror last night! How was it, pretty good, right?! I wanna be just like the Manager, and fast!"

"… … … …"

"Hey! How was it, how was it?!"

Her captivating ice-blue eyes sparkled with anticipation as she gazed up at him.

Raul reflexively glanced away and muttered,

"… Yeah, not bad, I guess."

"Hmm, that's all, huh."

She nodded easily enough. Then Fino clenched her fist tight and made a grand declaration.

"But! I'm definitely going to pull it off! I'll steal every single one of the Manager's regulars and make them my customers! Fuhaha, I'll start by taking down the middle-aged and senior crowd!"

"… Knock yourself out."

… Ahh, nope. It's depressing how completely back-to-normal Fino is.

Sighing in exasperation, and somewhere underneath that, in relief, Raul absently looked down at the flower she'd just handed him.

"By the way, this flower… is it some kind of corporate campaign?"

"Nope."

Fino shook her head, basket still dangling from her hand.

"I thought I'd give them as presents to the customers who shop at our store, so I woke up early and went out picking. How about it, pretty nice flower, isn't it?"

… Honestly, yeah. The shape was a little unusual, but the blue blossoms clustered into spikes did resemble orchids. Against all odds, it really was a pretty flower.

"Huh, even you come up with a decent idea once in a while."

"Fuhaha, you may praise me!"

"… Don't get cocky. So what kind of flower is it?"

"What, humans don't even know that?"

Fino snorted smugly through her nose and triumphantly raised her index finger.

"Listen, Raul! This is what's called aconite, and the main active ingredient is… hey, Raul, why are you throwing it out?!"

"Are you trying with all your might to put this store out of business?!"

Raul snatched the flower basket out of her arms and, at the speed of light, mercilessly dumped its contents into the trash, hollering at her at the top of his lungs, and then…

Letting out a breath in front of the pouting girl, Raul suddenly realized something.

… This isn't where I'm supposed to be. That bitter, churning feeling that had been swirling around inside him all this time… somewhere along the way, it had completely vanished.

To be acknowledged as a [Hero]. To show off his power. He'd chased that dream and failed, but he'd kept clinging to the leftover regrets, muttering "I'm different from other people" inside his own head at the slightest provocation and looking down on everyone around him. That version of himself felt like a lie now… It was as if the curse that had been chaining him down for so long had finally been lifted.

"Raul, do you also think I should become the [Demon King]?"

… If. If this demonkin girl ever asked him that again…

Then this time, Raul thought, he wouldn't hesitate for a second.

"… Oh, right."

Fino slapped Raul's shoulder casually and continued in her usual high-handed tone.

"Raul, once I become the Manager, I'll make you my Assistant Manager!"

"… Hah?"

For a moment the abruptness of the statement didn't register. Then, after a beat, Raul's head shot up.

"Hey, hold up! Like hell I'd ever be your subordinate! Don't underestimate your senior coworker!"

"Hoho."

Fino narrowed her eyes mischievously, looking thoroughly entertained.

"Then it's a contest. Whoever becomes the Manager first wins!"

"You're on! And anyway, you're just a part-timer, where do you get off mouthing off like that?!"

"Fuhaha! Who do you think I am?! A handicap that size is just about fair!"

"Like hell! Run your mouth after you've made full employee first!"

Tit-for-tat. But after carelessly accepting Fino's challenge in the heat of the moment, Raul found himself turning the words over in his head.

… The Manager, huh.

It looked busy, looked exhausting, came with responsibility… aiming to become the Manager wasn't something Raul, who'd grudgingly taken this job in the first place, had ever once considered before. But still.

… Manager Raul. Yeah, not half bad.

Just like Fino had resolved to change herself, demonkin though she was. Maybe, Raul thought, it was about time that he, the one who couldn't become a [Hero]…

"… … … … haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah."

A deep, drawn-out sigh, one that sounded like the embodiment of pure karmic suffering, came drifting in from somewhere.

"Assistant Manager!" "Assistant Manager, good morn…" "I hope this company explodes… … … … …."

Raul and Fino turned at the same time, and there, muttering before them, was the Assistant Manager, his eyes murkier than a backstreet drainage ditch.

"In the end I didn't get to take yesterday off, so why am I just normally clocked in for work again today… that's messed up… this should be a day off… haa, won't a meteor just hit the store already… actually, on second thought, the world might as well end."

… The kind of statement that would get you reported to the authorities on the spot if you said it on a public street. The Assistant Manager radiated a depressing, gloomy aura.

"Raul… the Assistant Manager is broken…"

"… Yeah, it's fine, it's fine. He gets like this all the time."

Fino looked a little spooked, and Raul reflexively shrugged… And then.

"Oh my, oh my."

A gospel from an angel reached their ears. They looked up to find the Manager, her chestnut hair drifting softly, standing there at some point with a gentle smile as she surveyed her subordinates.

"Good morning, Raul-kun, Fino-chan. It's about time to open up shop… There, Visor-kun, pull yourself together, all right?"

"Yeah!" "Yes!" "… Yup."

The Assistant Manager reluctantly lifted his face at the Manager's voice. Raul and Fino each broke into bright smiles, and toward the customers stepping in through the door the Manager had just unlocked, they all called out together in full voice.

""""Welcome in! Welcome to Magic Shop Leon!""""