[Eliisa] They like drinking tea!
[Take] Oh? Your reasoning skills are pretty impressive.
[Ume] Take, was it necessary for this question to be based that closely on reality?
[player] What do you mean?
[Ume] The four house owners refer to Ran, Kiku, Take, and me.
[player] What?! Then the person with the plum trees... is you, Ume? You like drinking tea?
[Ume] It's probably more accurate to say that everyone on Champion Street likes tea. And when it comes to clearing your head, nothing beats a strong cup of tea.
[player] I see, then by that logic, Kiku – rather, Jiu Hua – likes crosstalk?
[player] Which means that the one who likes illustrating picture books is Ran.
[Take] And let's leave it at that!
[Ume] You only get this anxious when Ran's name is brought up.
[player] Who is this Ran anyway?
[Ume] Ran spent much of his early years at home due to illness. He often looked after Take and Jiu Hua when they were young.
[player] That sounds like a heartwarming story, no?
[Take] You wouldn't be saying that if your childhood bedtime stories were all about the ghosts of people who died of hanging, starvation, and drowning...
[Ume] Better hope Ran doesn't find out you've been complaining about him behind his back, or you'll be begging Ms. Fuuka to save you again.
[-] Seemingly recalling some traumatic memory, Take's expression shifts as some of the color drains from his face.
[Take] Ahem... Anyway, let's take a look at the test results.
[Take] Miss Hannah, you're sharp when it comes to applied mathematics, but I'm afraid you're just not the right fit for our business's needs.
[Take] Miss Eliisa, you have a gift for mathematics, but I'm afraid it will be a while yet before that gift is fully developed.
[Take] And so, the person we will actually take on as a temp worker is... PLAYER.
[player] Huh... Wait, huh?! What do you mean? I thought I was an interviewer, not an interviewee!
[Take] You can switch seamlessly between the roles of interviewer and interviewee. Believe in yourself, I know you can do it.
[player] No way, I'm not doing it! Besides... I don't even know what a temp worker does.
[Take] What else? Just...
[Ume] Ahem, forgive the interruption, but I believe I have a good reason for you to accept the temp job, PLAYER. Before that, let's circle back to our initial topic.
[player] Our initial topic?
[Ume] Yes – Who is responsible for ransacking the accounting office?
[-] Take and I automatically step back in unison. We can see the guilt written on each other's faces.
[Ume] We've received a lot of complaints on the employee hotline lately, mostly about "the decline in the quality of staff meals with poultry." Apparently, the meat is being cut into chunks that are too small, then overcooked by the chef, resulting in dry, flavorless meals that have to be thrown away and re-made... However, there has been no change to Bamboo Cloud's kitchen staff.
[-] Ume pulls out a "food loss list" and waves it in front of our faces.
[Ume] Jiu Hua has already confessed. Do you two still intend to cover for her?
[-] Ume directs these words to me. Her expression is perfectly amiable, but her eyes are icy.
[Ume] That reminds me – PLAYER, you happened to be alone with Jiu Hua in the courtyard yesterday.
[Ume] You didn't have anything to do with this, did you?
[-] I see, she didn't want me to settle the accounts... she wanted to settle an account with me.
[Ume] Were you involved in the haphazard chopping of ingredients that made things difficult for the kitchen?
[player] I wasn't, honest. I was just helping Jiu Hua round up some runaway chickens, ducks, and pigeons, that’s all.
[Take] Whew... It wasn't me that sold you out this time, Jiu Hua.
[player] What's that supposed to mean?
[Take] Ume is bluffing. Jiu Hua is so stubborn that she'd die before confessing to anything, no matter how many times she's been caught before.
[Ume] It was only a guess, but I must thank you for confirming it. Now, if you could just sign and provide your thumbprint in the "witness" column here, that would be great.
[player] I'm sorry, Jiu Hua, I've been outfoxed...
[-] I close my eyes and firmly press my thumb to the paper.
[Ume] You may now begin your temp work.
[-] Ume regards my signature and thumbprint with satisfaction, then carefully folds up the paper and slips it into her pocket.
[player] How was any of that... related to the temp work?
[-] I've got a bad feeling about this.
[Take] The temp work is... to clean up this place.
[player] Huh? Then why did the interview include math problems?
[Take] Those are account books on the floor. How can they be tidied away without any math skills? Anyway, next is...
[Ume] Next, you and Take will give this room a serious cleaning. Think of it as making amends for your conniving attempt to cover for your "associate's" crimes. As for Jiu Hua, Ran will have a "nice chat" with her later.
[Ume] As for our two interviewees, please follow me out.
[-] After Ume has left with Eliisa and Hannah, I look at the complete and utter chaos of the accounting room. Everything goes dark before my eyes...
[player] Jiu Hua is the culprit. Shouldn't she be here helping us out?
[Take] Forget it, Jiu Hua would be more of a hindrance than a help to us.
[player] I see... Well, unless we want to miss dinner, there's no time to lose. Let's do this!
After several hours of taxing work, Take and I have finally managed to make the room presentable again.
[player] Whew... I'm beat. Looks like Jiu Hua owes me one again.
[Take] PLAYER.
[player] What is it?
[Take] I'm really glad I met you.
[player] Where's this coming from all of a sudden? You're making me blush...
[Take] Because now I know I'm not the only one who will be cleaning up Jiu Hua's messes from now on.
[player] Huh. I was expecting to hear something more... pleasant.
[player] Speaking of Jiu Hua, you two seem like you're about the same age.
[Take] Ume didn't tell you? Jiu Hua is my...
[-] What Take says next is whispered so softly that I can't make out a word of it.
[player] She's your what?
[Take] She's my older sister...
[Take] Hmph. That idiot Jiu Hua was born just 30 minutes before me. She's always saying she's my older sister, but she doesn't act like one, that's for sure.
[player] I see! No wonder you tried to cover for her in front of Ume.
[Take] Anyway, you and I are now officially members of the "Jiu Hua Trouble Cleanup Alliance."
[player] You can't just make up a weird alliance out of nowhere and drag people into it!
[Take] It's settled then. As thanks for your help today, dinner's on me.
[-] Take jumps up from the ground and extends a hand toward me with a smile.
[Take] We'll put it on Jiu Hua's tab.
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