Chapter 42:

Mac Mans the Till

It’s My First Time Working Late Nights at a Convenience Store, and If I Keep Getting Demon Lords, Kappa and Other Oddballs as Customers, I’m Giving My Two-Weeks’ Notice


“Haru, could I ask you for a favor?”

 

Just as I was about to head home yesterday, my manager suddenly called out to me.

 

That’s a first. I wonder what he wants?


“Sure, what is it?”


I’d be willing to do just about anything he could ask of me.

 

“I know you’ve always been on the graveyard shift, but would you be able to come in for the afternoon shift the day after tomorrow?”

 

“Seriously?!”


After all these late nights of dealing with nothing but weirdos, I might finally get to interact with actual human beings?!  


“I mean, I don’t really mind either way...but did something come up?”

 

“Well, we have a new hire starting that day, so I was hoping that you could show him the ropes. And, he said he knows you? That you’re friends? The job can be difficult to adjust to at first, so it might be nice to have a friendly face nearby.”


“...Wait, really?”


I know someone who’d be willing to do shift work at a convenience store?

 

Huh. I wonder who it is? No one comes to mind...


You’d think they’d have come to ask me for insider interview tips — or at least what it’s like to work in a convenience store — but it hasn’t come up at all.


...No, seriously, who is it?


“He’s rather handsome, with his blonde hair and blue eyes. Maybe he’s a foreigner? When the interview started, he was so nervous he was shaking. But, he had the biggest smile when he was talking about you. Gave a proper apology for the recording incident, too. He’s a good kid.”


I...don’t know any foreigners. Okay, this is getting a little creepy.


And this guy was probably just trembling because he was terrified of my manager, like most sensible people.

 

“We don’t have a lot of people on shift that day, so I don’t have anyone else to call in. I’d rather not put you on the spot, but if you could come in, that would be a big help.”


“Uh... Sure, no problem. ”

It’s only ever just the two of us on the late-night shift, so it might be kind of nice to work a bustling afternoon block. The difference must be like, well, night and day.

 

What would it be like to get some normal customers?  


That thought alone has me eagerly awaiting the slight change to my usual schedule.  


***

 

Anyways, this marks the start of my first afternoon shift.


When I step into the break room to get changed, I’m greeted with...


“Yo, Murry! My main man!”

 

The hero saunters up to me in a stupidly energetic and overly familiar manner.


...I should’ve known.


“What on earth possessed you to get a job here?”

 

“It’s for my next vid, man! I’m gonna call it ‘Mac Mans the Till’! And as an added bonus, I get to hang out with you! I’d have been cool with the late-night shift, but I heard there weren’t enough people working this one.”


Standing there in his black jeans and his uniform shirt, he flicks his hair with a flashy grin.


His blond hair and blue eyes aren’t too common here, so he gets bonus style points without even trying.


Seriously, the only good thing about him is his looks.

 

“I brought my sunglasses, in case I’m TOO handsome for this place and we gotta dial it back a little.”

 

“Don’t you DARE wear those while you’re on the clock.”

 

“Oh, dude! We should take a picture of us in our uniforms! My fans’d eat it up! I bet you’d get mad clout from being seen with a snacc like me! Uh, I don’t mean that in a bad way. I’m just sayin’!”


“Look, just give it a rest, would you?”


Does this guy ever shut up?


“Hey, you eatin’ well, bruh? Like, you’re kinda scrawny. Me? I got jacked from beating up monsters all the freaking time. My strength stats are all As! Why don’t we go hit up the gym sometime? Chicks go for guys who lift, yeah?”


Mac whips off his shirt, flexing and posing as he rambles on about himself. We haven’t even started work, and he’s already pushing the limits of my patience.

 

Why is it that just talking to him wears me out? ...You know, I think I get why he doesn’t really have any friends.

 

We go and trade places with my manager, who’s already out on the floor.


“Thank you for coming in, Haru. I’ve got some office work to take care of — but if anything happens, just call.”


He pats my shoulder with a heavy hand, then lumbers off to the break room.


Our shift starts at 9 AM.


I’ve only got a few hours to drill just enough sense into him to survive the lunch rush.


Today’s roster consists of myself, our newbie hire, and a woman around our age who’s wearing glasses, with her hair tied back in a braid.


I suppose I’d better introduce myself, seeing as it’s my first daytime shift.


So, I head over to the girl stocking the shelves.


“Hi, I’m Haru Muramatsu. I usually work the graveyard shift here, but I’ll be joining you for the day.”


“Oh, um... Hi. I’m Yukari Ando. It’s nice to meet you.”

 

She says this with a bright smile. Yep. She’s another decent person.


“And this guy’s our newest hir—"


“You can call me Mac. And I must say — it’s a real treat to be working alongside such a lovely lady.”

 

Mac casually compliments our coworker as he takes her hand and gives it a light kiss.  


“Oh, um, could you let go...?”


“By the way, if you need any heavy lifting done, or something’s out of your reach, just shout. I’m totally the tallest person here, and my strength stats are practically maxed out, so I can totally lend a hand!!”


I quickly smack the hero upside the head.

 

“I’m so, SO sorry about him!”

 

I bow my head in apology for this loser, then drag him back behind the register.

 

“Dude! Don’t hit on your coworkers. Don’t bother people, period. Don’t show off. You’re here to work, not to rack up new followers. Feel free to jot this all down if you think you might forget it.”


“I wasn’t showing off! Having a long list of skills is all part of being a bitchin’ adventurer, man.”

Great. And I’m the one who gets to teach this shitty influencer how to cater to customers and work the register.

 

But, the hero manages to pick it all up surprisingly quickly. In about an hour, he’s retained most of the basics of good service.


“Yo, is there anything else I should know?”


“Well...”


Ding-a-ling-a-ling...  


“Welcome, irasshaimase...”


“Irasshaimaseeee!”


Our first customer is an elderly woman.


Mac calls out the greeting nice and strong, in a booming voice that echoes through the store.


The older lady gets one of those vitamin drinks and brings it up to the register.

 

“Dude, lemme take this one.”

 

“What? Wait, hold on a second!”


Sure, he’s picked everything up quickly — but it was all theoretical. Mac steps in front of me, to start the transaction.


“Welcome, irasshaimase!”


“My, aren’t you chipper. Are you new here?”


“You betcha, Granny! Ooh, I hear this stuff is great for your health. No wonder you look so radiant! Well, that’ll be one hundred fifty yen.”


“Goodness me, how kind of you to say that.  It’s not every day a woman my age gets compliments from handsome young men. Why, it almost makes me feel like a girl again.”


“Aw, don’t say that! I’m sure you’re just as beautiful as you ever were, Granny. But, thank you for your patronage! It’s a hot one today, so take care to drink plenty of water, okay?”

 

“Why, thank you. You’re such a sweet child; I wish I had a grandson like you. I’ll be sure to stop by another time.”  


“You’re more than welcome to, Granny! Take care on your way home, alright? And thanks for dropping by!”

 

Mac sees the older woman off with a smile and a wave, waiting until she’s out of sight before he turns back to me.

 

“So? How was that?”


Oh my god, he’s some kind of silver-tongued monster.


“Honestly, I thought you did a great job. But not everyone’s going to want to stop for a chat, so keep that in mind.”


“Huh? Who wouldn’t be thrilled to talk to a straight up hottie like me?”


“See, THAT’s the kind of thing you’d be better off keeping to yourself.”


Ding-a-ling-a-ling...  


“Irasshaimaseeee!”


Our next customer is a much younger guy.


“Oh, hell. It’s a dude. Murry, swap in for me.”


“Huh?”

 

He’s only dealt with one customer, and he’s already trying to tap out.


“You don’t mean to say that you’re ONLY going to talk to the female clientele, do you?”

 

“Sure, man. I’ll take care of all the ladies, and you can have the dudes.”


Mac rattles off this nonsense with a bright grin.

 

“It doesn’t work like that! Are you going to take this seriously, or what?!”

 

“But, I’m no good at dealing with bros!”


“Too bad! Shut up and do your job!”


It’s not like I’ve ever gotten a say in who I deal with on a given day! If Mac thinks he can just turn tail and run, he’s got another thing coming.


Since it’s still early enough in the morning, we haven’t been overwhelmed by more customers than we  can handle. But, there’s a stark difference between the way that loser treats the male and female customers — which is problematic, to say the least.


“Thank you for working the register all morning. I took care of everything else, so we should be ready to go for the lunch rush.”


It’s 11 AM.


While I’ve been walking Mac through the basics, Yukari’s taken on all the other day-to-day tasks that need to be done to run a convenience store.


“Thanks, Yukari. If it weren’t for you, I’d have never gotten that hopeless her-...uh...Mac trained on the till in time.”


“Don’t worry about it. Our manager gave me a heads up, so I was expecting it. By the way, are you guys friends?”


“Not just friends, we’re BEST friends.” 

 

Mac, seriously! Stay out of this!

 

“...Huh, you don’t say. So, are the two of you going to be working the afternoon shift from now on?”


“No, I think it’ll just be the one time, since Mac’s pretty much gotten the hang of working the register.”

 

“Oh, really? That’s a shame.”

 

I guess she’s fallen victim to his charms, too.  

 

“Eh, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Mac’s going to be on the afternoon shifts, and I’ve still got my usual graveyard ones.”

 

“Ah. That’s not what I... No, never mind. Good luck, guys.”


With that vague reply, Yukari glances away, then hurries off to open the second register.

 

Meanwhile, I go give our manager a quick report on Mac’s progress. Since it IS his first day here, it’s decided that he shouldn’t be left alone at the register just yet.


Ding-a-ling-a-ling...  


It’s 11:30.

 

The start of the dreaded lunch rush.


And my own personal hell.