"Oh, you're here." Peter immediately dropped his eyes from the paperwork he had been reading when the door of his own small office opened.
In there, he saw Rocky entering. Rocky had an unexplainable look on his face. When he saw it, the corner of his lips rose into a small smile. He already knew why the man was here.
"Did you see our new employees?" Peter asked. He made the tone of his voice calm and composed as if he was serious about it.
Rocky stood at the door for a few seconds after Peter spoke. The truth was, he was actually nervous to be here. He just gathered his courage so he could talk to the director.
Rocky's mouth opened, but it closed again. His hand fidgeted behind his back.
'Why am I here alone with the director?' he was regretting his decision now, but he had to man up. For the sake of the store!
"Director…" Rocky finally gained the courage to talk. "What's the meaning of those employees outside?"
'Oh shit, did I sound rude?'' Rocky immediately pressed his lips together when he heard the tone of his voice.
However, Peter seemed not to mind it. He just leaned back in his office chair calmly and smiled. His fingers tapped lightly on the armrest as if the question was completely ordinary.
"Oh. Them?" he said casually. "Those are our new hires."
Rocky blinked. He was expecting Peter to lash out at him or scold him for his tone, but he didn't. Instead, he just answered normally. So for the next part, he decided to tone down his tone a little.
"Yes, I heard that part," he replied carefully. "But… Director… those men…" He struggled to find the right words. "They're… unusual."
"What's unusual?" Peter raised his brow slightly.
Rocky scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"They're standing at the entrance like guards, Director. They're shouting greetings, and they're howling!"
As if the universe wanted to prove its point, a distant echo suddenly traveled through the office walls.
"Awooooo!"
"That..." Rocky slowly pointed toward the door.
"Yes. I heard it." Peter simply nodded.
"But Director!" Rocky said, his voice rising slightly. "Customers might be scared!"
Peter folded his hands on the desk. His expression stayed calm and composed. Of course, that's what he wanted! He just couldn't say it out loud, though.
"Rocky," he said patiently. "You are looking at this the wrong way."
A look of curiosity flashed on Rocky's face when he heard that.
"These men," Peter continued, "bring something unique to our store."
"Unique?" Rocky's eye twitched.
"Yes," Peter said confidently. "With their addition, when customers walk into our store, they will remember Sunshine Market immediately. That will set us apart from others."
Rocky's mouth slowly opened again, but he didn't dare disrupt Peter's words.
"In business, standing out is important."
Rocky stood there in silence as his brain tried very hard to process the logic behind Peter's words.
"Director… with all respect…" he said weakly. "They look like they could start a war..."
"Don't worry they won't," Peter smiled widely.
Rocky felt like a balloon slowly losing air. His shoulders dropped and a defeated sigh escaped from his mouth.
"You really plan to keep them, director?"
"Of course."
Rocky stood there quietly for a few seconds. His final bit of hope slowly disappearing.
"I… Understood, Director."
He slowly turned around and walked toward the door. He looked completely hopeless. When he left, the office became quiet again. Peter let out a small sigh at that..
"I can't help but pity Rocky a little," he muttered to himself. The poor man looked like he had aged ten years in the last hour.
"But oh well." Peter picked up the paperwork on his desk again, and a small smile slowly appeared on his face.
"In the end, I have to put myself first."
Peter stared at the pile of paperwork on his desk, and the smile on his face slowly faded.
"Ugh." He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temple.
"I don't even want to do anything," he muttered.
But there were still reports to read. This is still a ob anyway so he has financial summaries,, sales records, and inventory logs to digest.
Peter flipped one page lazily, and what greeted him was tables filled with numbers. He winced slightly at that.
"I still need to read this stuff if I want to know how to destroy this store properly." He sighed and shook his head.
Running a failing business was surprisingly tiring.
"But at least this is easier than making the store succeed," he murmured to himself. Now that would have been true suffering if he had made this store succeed.
Peter placed the paper down and stretched his arms behind his head. Then he spoke casually into the empty office.
"Hey, MoniMoni."
A soft mechanical voice echoed in his mind immediately.
[Yes, Host?]
"When will my system fund be replenished, again?"
[There are still 22 days remaining before the current cycle ends, Host.]
"22 days?" He winced again. He slowly sank deeper into his chair and turned to amuse himself.
"That's still so long…" Peter sighed.
"I guess I can look at our reports and see if we still have some money to spare to the business. After all, I already have a new plan in my head. Bwahahaha!" He laughed out loud.