Chapter 63: Perks of a Part-Time Job

The college trio arrived at the shop together.

Looking through the large glass window from the outside, Irene, Mira, and Ga-Eun couldn’t spot a single difference in the building’s exterior.

The moment they pushed the front door open, however, all three stood frozen in utter confusion.

"Did... did we walk into the wrong place?!" Irene gasped, blinking rapidly.

"No way?! Isn’t this the cafe?!" Ga-Eun insisted, her eyes wide.

As if refusing to believe what their own eyes were registering, the three of them began repeatedly opening, closing, and re-opening the door.

Sitting behind the counter with a bowl of noodles, Donape raised an eyebrow, his irritation mounting. "What the hell are you three doing with my door?! Stop acting like country bumpkins and hurry up inside. You’re out there embarrassing yourselves like people who don’t know how a door works."

Recognizing the familiar voice, Irene, Mira, and Ga-Eun paused before stepping inside. They tried to act casual, yet their heads kept turning in complete awe at the shop’s massive internal upgrade.

"Shopkeeper, what on earth happened here?!" Irene asked, taking a seat at the counter. Her eyes darted continuously toward the back, staring at the neat rows of fifty sleek VR Capsules.

"Geez. How long have you girls been coming here? Why are you so surprised?" Donape explained vaguely, slurping another mouthful of Spirit-Infused Noodles before washing it down with a gulp of Origins Fountain Water. "It’s completely normal. The shop was upgraded to accommodate more customers."

Irene remained intensely curious about how the interior had expanded into a massive lounge while the outer warehouse frame hadn’t changed an inch. But watching Donape eat and drink with such unbridled satisfaction slowly made her mouth water.

Gulping for breath, Irene leaned over the counter. "What is that you’re eating?!"

"This? Spirit-Infused Noodles," Donape replied, pointing up at the digital menu screen while still chewing. "The broth hits your tongue with an explosive, velvety richness that defies modern culinary science—deeply savory, bursting with umami, and carrying a delicate garlic-and-marrow finish."

He swallowed, his tone turning dramatically solemn. "The moment you swallow it, a comforting wave of gentle heat travels down your throat and pools directly into your lower abdomen. You’ll experience an incredible sensation, as if a lukewarm spring current is massaging your Dantian, soothing raw internal pathways and effortlessly expanding your internal vessels from the inside out."

Irene, Mira, and Ga-Eun completely froze. They didn’t have the slightest clue what a "Dantian" or "internal vessel" was supposed to mean.

Yet, staring at the steaming, deep-porcelain bowl—holding a rich, milky-white broth that shimmered with a subtle, pearlescent glow beneath the lights—they knew one thing for certain: they had to order it immediately to satisfy their curiosity.

Looking up at the digital menu board, Irene, Mira, and Ga-Eun gasped at the expanded offerings.

"Wow! Look at all these new items! Now this feels like a proper cafe," Irene said, pleasantly surprised.

With such a variety, she and her friends could easily hang out here to handle their college homework while enjoying the delicacies.

After all, the three of them weren’t overly obsessed with playing games, even though they knew the physical benefits—their reaction speed and body dexterity were already noticeably sharper compared to before.

"Ah, the operational schedule changed too," Ga-Eun noted, scrolling down the screen before turning to the counter. "But Shopkeeper... is it possible to add cheaper items? Something around 5 to 10 BC for food or drinks would be great."

"That’s not up to me," Donape replied, finishing off his morning noodles. "I told you, girls, before: that divine lightning up there is the boss. I’m just an underpaid worker here."

Irene, Mira, and Ga-Eun exchanged silent glances. They had known about the lightning before, but their rational minds had kept refusing to accept it.

Noticing their skeptical expressions, Donape decided to give them a gentle reality check.

"Girls, stop doubting what’s right in front of your eyes," Donape said, setting his empty bowl down. "Look around this shop. How big is this space to fit fifty VR Capsules, when the building outside hasn’t changed at all? It’s still the same shabby, rundown former warehouse, right?"

He took a slow sip of his Obsidian Roast Coffee before continuing.

"There is no technology in this world that can bend space like this. It’s time to accept that the supernatural and superhuman aren’t fiction—they’re real. So a lightning bolt owning a shop isn’t a superstition anymore."

Though they still couldn’t fully comprehend the mechanics, their mental resistance was crumbling. Standing inside a spatial miracle that expanded a small building into a massive lounge without altering its exterior made it hard to argue.

Slowly, the three of them were starting to see the world like Butler Lee—accepting the unbelievable things this shop produced after trying so hard to deny it.

"But... even so," Ga-Eun muttered softly, looking down at her limited funds. "The prices are still too expensive for regular students, no matter how wonderful the benefits are."

"Well, there is a way," Donape said, leaning forward across the counter with a serious expression.

"Huh? Really? What is it?!" Mira asked eagerly, while Irene and Ga-Eun leaned in to listen.

"Working part-time as a shopkeeper here."

Hearing those words, all three girls recoiled in shock.

"Wait! Is that really an option?!" Irene asked, her eyes lighting up. "Can all three of us do it?!"

"No," Donape shook his head. "I can only hire one person for now. The perk is that you get to eat and drink anything on the menu for free—excluding game access and VR Capsule playtime."

"For real?!" Ga-Eun asked, her breath catching. "What about the salary? What are the work hours?!"

Seeing how radiant Ga-Eun’s face became, Irene and Mira looked at each other with quiet smiles.

If there was only one opening, Ga-Eun without a doubt was the perfect fit.

Irene and Mira could comfortably afford the shop’s prices for casual entertainment, so they weren’t desperate.

But Ga-Eun was different—she juggled multiple part-time jobs just to cover her daily living expenses and college tuition, which was why she often couldn’t join them at the cafe.

Still, they needed to make sure the work conditions were fair and doable, since Ga-Eun would be working not for fun, but for actual survival.

"The shift is a minimum of 6 hours a day and up to 12 to 14 hours depending on the day," Donape explained clearly.

"The store operates from opening to closing, and the pay is 1 BC per hour. You can consume food and beverages free of charge, but only during your active working hours—if you’re off the clock, you pay full price. You can work every day without breaks, but you’re allowed a maximum of one day off per week. Taking more than one day off a week results in immediate termination without warning."

Ga-Eun stood quietly, her brain rapidly crunching the numbers.

1 BC per hour... It actually wasn’t a bad offer at all.

If she worked a full 14-hour weekend shift, she’d make 14 BC in a single day—not to mention saving a fortune on meals by eating the shop’s stat-enhancing food for free during her shifts. That kind of pay and dietary boost would instantly solve her daily survival struggles.

It also wouldn’t hinder her university schedule, since she could scale her shifts down to the six-hour minimum whenever she had heavy classes.

She turned to look at Irene and Mira.

"Why are you looking at us? Take the offer!" Irene smiled. "It’ll be great seeing you here every day. We can study and hang out together. Besides, the work doesn’t look that hard—just look at the Shopkeeper as an example." She glanced toward Donape, who practically spent his days gaming after showing customers to their capsules.

While 1 BC per hour wasn’t an absurd salary on paper, having daily food and drinks completely covered meant Ga-Eun could save every single coin for her college tuition.

"You should drop those part-time jobs that are far from your boarding house and campus," Mira added supportively. "Keep the ones that pay well, but for anything that conflicts with this shift, just weigh which one offers better overall benefits."

Ga-Eun nodded gratefully, looking at her friends before turning back to face Donape.

"I accept the job! When do I start?! Today?! Does that mean these noodles are free right now?!"

"Tomorrow," Donape chuckled, handing her his smartphone. "Here, add my contact. We can use it to arrange your weekly shift schedule and track your pay."

"Oh! Add me too, so we can text if anything comes up!" Irene chimed in.

"Add me as well," Mira said, leaning over.

After exchanging contacts, Irene caught a glimpse of Donape’s profile name and gasped softly.

"Oh! Your full name is Alexander Donape? That’s so cool! Are you Britannian like us?"

"No, I’m Baekian," Donape replied smoothly. "My father was Britannian. But speaking of new things—since you girls are finally starting to accept superhuman and supernatural reality... what do you think about magic?"

Successfully brushing off questions about his personal background, Donape instantly piqued their interest.

"Huh? Magic?!" Mira asked, her words dragging out in uncertainty.

"What about magic? Don’t tell me this place can bring actual magic into reality?!" Irene asked, torn between disbelief and growing fascination. "That’s impossible... right? ...Right?"

"See for yourselves," Donape said, pointing up at the glowing menu board. "There’s a brand-new game called Magic Academy: First Semester. Since martial arts wasn’t really your thing, I figured magic might be more your interest."