(Menger - Ehadi)

The familiar chirping of sparrows echoed in my ears, awakening me once again in the tiredness of the early morning. It woke up the woman in the whole city of Moboris who least wanted to get up and work. But precisely because I was so afraid of work, I was more punctual and diligent than anyone else. Once life loses its regular rhythm, the nightmare named debt grows bigger and bigger like a snowball.

I opened my eyes and numbly put on the few sets of knight armor that I could wear to go out and meet people. Today, there were still a mess of tasks waiting for me, and the rewards that came with the huge workload were only declining profits.

In fact, Miss Blue Farmer was not entirely wrong yesterday. If I had abandoned this Casa do Penedo early on and obediently returned to the capital to become a knight, my life would definitely be much more comfortable now. I might have even found a young and promising nobleman and enjoyed a life of food, drink, and pleasure every day, instead of staying in this city filled with all kinds of odd people and things.

My life was like a leaking water tank that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't fill.

And the first scoundrel to poke a hole in the water tank was my grandfather, my dear grandpa.

Just like I inherited Casa do Penedo from my father, my grandfather inherited everything from his own grandpa and became the 9th Guild Master of Casa do Penedo. Frankly speaking, as a mage, my grandfather was undoubtedly talented, but his management skills were inversely proportional to his magical talent! In just a few short years, he had turned the whole Casa do Penedo into chaos and turmoil with continuous reforms, and he couldn't bear the immense pressure brought by repeated failures. In the end, he silently left us without saying a word. Well, don't misunderstand, he didn't run away to commit suicide, but left behind a letter and went off to another place.

After my grandfather irresponsibly ran away, my father, as the only son in the family, smoothly took over the mess left behind by his father. At that time, after my grandfather's turmoil, Casa do Penedo, which was once highly regarded in the border cities, was already severely damaged, losing many high-level adventurers and falling from a platinum-level guild to a second-rate gold-level guild.

After my father took over Casa do Penedo, he immediately abolished all the reforms implemented by my grandfather and returned the guild to the operational mode of my great-grandfather's era. He believed that all the disasters were caused by his father's unnecessary reforms. But in fact, even if the old system was followed, the situation of Casa do Penedo did not improve significantly, and it gradually declined.

Later, just as I had just completed the graduation exam for advanced knights, bad news came from my hometown that both my parents had died in a gold-level adventure. This news was like a bolt from the blue, instantly plunging my joyous return home into a dead silence. It also caused me to not sign the enlistment papers and instead decide to return home to inherit my father's half-life of hard work and become the 11th Guild Master of Casa do Penedo.

It wasn't until shortly after I officially signed the inheritance deed that I discovered the hole in the water tank had expanded to a frightening size. The condition of the entire Casa do Penedo could be described as teetering on the brink of collapse. No matter how hard I tried to patch up this collapsing tower, at most I could only delay its collapse. Now, I even vaguely began to look forward to its collapse and destruction, as that would be a release.

"Alright, stop daydreaming."

I washed my face and switched to a serious work mode. My mind began to recall the list of tasks I had to complete today, and then I thought of a pitiful little girl, "Little Blue..."

Just thinking of Miss Blue Farmer, I couldn't help but have a headache again. Dealing with the mountain of affairs at Casa do Penedo alone was already overwhelming for me, and now I had this amnesiac person with an unknown situation. I was instantly caught in a dilemma. However, no matter how you put it, she had once saved my life, so I couldn't just abandon her as an orphan.

So, I knocked on her door early.However, she didn't seem to have the habit of waking up early at 5 a.m. The door was opened after a while.

"Good morning, Chairman Ehader."

"Good morning, Little Blue."

She rubbed her panda eyes in greeting, as if she didn't get a good night's sleep. Then I noticed that she was still wearing the same light blue dress, which was already covered in dirty dust after a long journey.

"Sorry, I should have prepared some clothes for you."

Upon hearing my apology, she frowned in confusion, and then looked down at her clothes following my gaze. She showed a clear expression of understanding and smiled, saying, "No, you have already helped me a lot."

"Do you have any plans for yourself?"

At this point, I glanced quickly at the clock in her room, and my heart sank. In fifteen minutes, I had to go to the butcher Peter to talk about the meat supply. To be honest, I really hoped that this amnesiac girl in front of me wouldn't bring me too much extra trouble. It would be best if she woke up from her sleep and remembered her own memories, leaving my Casa do Penedo immediately.

"I want to work here with you. Is that okay?"

"What? Say that again?"

She wanted to work at Casa do Penedo?

I actually understood her words very clearly, but I still looked incredulous. Didn't she just tell me to step back and open up the sky yesterday? How come she turned around and volunteered for this bottomless pit of Casa do Penedo today?

But she stubbornly aroused a touch of tenderness in me. With a calm and serious tone, she stated her decision, "I want to work at Casa do Penedo. I can accept any position as long as it's not illegal. And until the situation at this adventurers' guild improves, I won't ask for any salary. Just providing me with food and accommodation will be enough, Chairman Ehader."

No job preferences, no salary?

"Sorry, even if Casa do Penedo is in decline, it doesn't need anyone's sympathy."

A thin anger rose in my heart, and I immediately coldly rejected Miss Blue Nong's request. But she didn't seem to intend to give up. Instead, she smiled and asked me, "Chairman Ehader, when I sympathize with your Casa do Penedo, aren't you sympathizing with my situation as well? If you consider my sympathy as an insult, then what is your sympathy?"

"No, the reason I sympathize with you, Little Blue, is because... because..."

Faced with Miss Blue Nong's counter-question, I was suddenly at a loss for words. Seeing my hesitant appearance, the girl's smile deepened. She advised, "If I hadn't accepted your help back then, I would probably still be stuck in that horrible forest, wouldn't I? In fact, it's inevitable for people to encounter difficulties in their lives. Is it truly a sign of strength to resist the help offered by others?"

Being lectured.

I was actually being lectured by a young girl who was only twelve or thirteen years old!

And yet I couldn't refute her loudly. At the same time, she forced me to admit my present weakness. Although I had extraordinary talent in wielding knives and guns, I truly didn't have the ability to resurrect the Casa do Penedo left by my ancestors. If no unexpected events occurred, I was afraid I could only witness its decline, just like my father did, using all my efforts.

But even if another underage girl helped, what could Casa do Penedo change?

I sighed and helplessly said, "I will pay you a salary, but do you know how to do anything?"

At this point, her delicate face wrinkled seriously. After a while, she smiled coyly and replied, "I should know how to do various things, but in reality, I don't know what position I can handle!"

What does it mean to know how to do various things?

Is this the attitude a job applicant should have?

With a forehead full of black lines, I scrutinized the confident little girl in front of me and sighed, "In five minutes, I will go out to talk business with the butcher Peter. Wait a while and go downstairs to find Berany by yourself. She's the white-haired, sharp-tongued waitress. Let her arrange some simple tasks for you. As for other matters, we'll talk about them later."

……

……