episode_0085

085 – The Onions are Too Pungent # 3

It was a mistake to post a warning not to approach, saying that a terrifying spider lived at the main entrance of the Pandora Market.

“Is it a spider scary enough for even Joy to warn about?”

“Humph, a mere spider isn’t scary to a full-power user like me!”

At first, stories about the spider spread among Helltubers who filmed and uploaded videos to social media. This was because they, sensitive to information, quickly bit the bait.

━Meow…!

“Agh! It’s a real lion spider!”

“Run away!”

“If you get bitten, it’s at least seven weeks of recovery!”

「Our team, ‘We Want to Know Everything,’ awaits stories and tips about the ‘Golden Spider’ located at the main entrance of the Pandora Market.」

The broadcasting industry, which had been looking for a hot topic, also jumped in.

“If it’s that spider, I know it well. Was it about 100 years ago from now? A restaurant owner raised a spider as big as a dog. That one also had a very yellowish color.”

“You ask what happened to the store owner? I don’t know. From a certain point, they weren’t seen. That place was a really good restaurant. Since the store owner didn’t open, customer traffic dwindled…”

“That one is probably waiting for its owner. Its owner cherished Nureongi a lot, you see. Oh, my, they wouldn’t have cherished their own child that much.”

The spider’s name, as known from the broadcast, was ‘Nureongi’.

As a spider endlessly waiting for an owner who disappeared 100 years ago, it touched people’s hearts.

‘To wait for someone for 100 years in the same spot?’

Honestly, even I shed a few tears when I heard this story.

The problem was that the story of Nureongi spread so widely among people that an endless line of people formed at the main entrance to see it.

“Selling snacks exclusively for lion spiders!”

“Selling lion spider dolls!”

And merchants, who appeared from who knows where and when, started soliciting customers everywhere—even though the prices were so expensive one might wonder if they were rip-offs, there was a frenzy because there was no stock.

Damn it—.

Watching the long line, I kicked the ground with my foot with a thud.

But didn’t the piece of rock that had been dug up sparkle with a golden light? Thinking I might have found a gold vein again, I was casually covering it with soil when—

Someone approached me, and their eyes shone with admiration.

“Storytelling is the foundation of business. People naturally get enthusiastic about stories. Everyone, at some point in their lives, has waited for someone they wanted to meet, right? That’s why they empathize with Nureongi.”

He was the Head of the Development Division for this Pandora Market.

The Head of Division, with his long red hair fluttering in the wind, asked me.

“Vice Head Joy, you focused on a ‘spider’ that could have been ignored and passed by, extracted a story, and drew people’s attention. Did you learn marketing at school or something?”

“Not at all.”

“You’re a natural talent. But it’s just luck in the end. It’s not like I haven’t tried such things myself. As I’ve said many times, people tend to get bored quickly, so this kind of popularity stunt won’t last long.”

I also hoped it would be as the Head of Division said.

However, the line of people coming to see Nureongi only grew, never diminished.

“A golden spider as huge as a bull, you can pet it however you want. How can you resist that?”

“I was scared because they said it was a ferocious lion spider, but it’s incredibly gentle!”

━Meow…!

“But why does a lion spider meow?”

“You fool, the reason is—”

“Whatever it is, I want to take it home and raise it. It also seems good at chasing away hell cockroaches.”

It really does chase away hell cockroaches well.

Because that one is here, hell cockroaches couldn’t even get close to this main entrance. Thanks to that, restaurants where hygiene is important could establish themselves on this main entrance street.

‘Its owner might have raised it to chase away hell cockroaches.’

Many people coveted the lion spider Nureongi.

Wouldn’t it be better if it worked out that way?

If someone takes that one away, the customers who flocked to this market will go there, won’t they?

“Spider! Let’s go with me! I, Hedone, will take good care of you for life! I’ll take pictures every day and upload them to social media! I’ll give you treat paste every day!”

━Grrr…!

The spider Nureongi never made a displeased sound to people who petted it carelessly, but it never allowed itself to leave the main entrance.

‘Is it really waiting for its owner?’

If it stays like this, Nureongi might become the mascot and landmark of this market!

When that thought occurred to me, I couldn’t possibly stand still.

Expert.

I had no choice but to call a spider release expert—.

# # #

“Joy ssi, I heard the news that you were demoted to Pandora Market.”

Arachne ssi was a famous producer at an entertainment agency and an informant for many executives. She was an attractive woman, so much so that it wouldn’t be strange if she became a married woman at any time.

She looked at me and narrowed her eyes.

“They say even the most skilled can make a mistake. Even Joy ssi, who was running far ahead, has a time to stumble. But there was such a rumor: that Joy ssi intended this demotion.”

“Intended?”

Is it possible someone noticed my ‘strategy to intentionally get demoted and even fired to escape to the surface’—?

If that gets discovered, I might really be judged for impiety and become a hell cockroach.

So as I was breaking out in a cold sweat from tension, Arachne ssi added.

“This market, you see. Before the business renewal, it was a workplace everyone wanted to be assigned to, wasn’t it? And it was a place overflowing with all sorts of opportunities. Even Prince Zagreus…”

She was about to say something but then Ms. Arachne closed her mouth.

Her attitude showed she couldn’t carelessly speak about precious information.

It didn’t matter anyway.

“Ms. Arachne, you know a lot about spiders, right?”

“I’m a spider expert.”

“Then you’d also know how to get Nureongi out of this main entrance. Because that one is staying in that one spot like that, it’s quite a nuisance.”

“If it’s Nureongi, I’ve heard of it too. It’s a poor spider that doesn’t even eat well while waiting for its owner who won’t return, isn’t it?”

Arachne ssi, her eyes moist with tears.

She grabbed my hand.

“Joy ssi, you want to give that spider freedom, don’t you? That heart of yours, thinking of the spider, is truly warm; it even makes me tear up. All right. I’ll help with this specifically pro bono!”

…It wasn’t exactly for the spider, though.

If I revealed that, it seemed she wouldn’t cooperate.

And.

It would be better for Nureongi to leave the main entrance; it would be good for it too.

Even in this Soul Society, 100 years is quite a long time.

I don’t know why, but the fact that its owner hasn’t returned for 100 years means….

“You’re Nureongi.”

━Meow.

The former spider, Arachne ssi, and the current lion spider, Nureongi, met.

Arachne ssi alternately raised and lowered her left and right arms. Nureongi also, exactly like that, raised and lowered its left and right forelegs.

“What was that just now?”

“It’s a spider greeting. It’s to signal that there’s no hostility. But now that I see it, it seems this Nureongi’s eyesight is very bad. It can’t see me very well.”

Its eyes can’t see?

As it is, people are flocking due to Nureongi’s tragic story, so if the rumor spreads that it’s also blind, people will likely feel even more sorrow and become more interested….

“Still, perhaps because it eats well the food people give it, its health condition is very good. Its golden fur also shines brightly and glossily.”

“So, can you get this one to leave this spot?”

“I’ll have to talk to it. Ahem. Woof woof—Hooooong—Grrrrrr—.”

Arachne ssi made strange sounds, which startled me.

I nearly had a heart attack.

Soon Nureongi also responded to this strange cry.

━Meow.

“Hmm, this is difficult.”

“Why?”

“It said it was asked to guard the store well until its owner returns. So it says that no matter what happens, it must protect this store.”

The rumor about the spider waiting for its owner for 100 years was true.

This one was fixed to this spot for the promise to guard the store.

It was like that even when this market was in its heyday.

It was like that even after customers disappeared and it became a ghost market.

It will probably be like that in the future too.

‘The owner must have been a resident of Happy World.’

I went to the Happy World headquarters.

I hit Krauser’s desk, where he was sleeping face down, with my palm with a thud—and he woke up with a start.

“Gyaah! Ahem, I wasn’t sleeping; I was just meditating for a moment. So who… Ah, it’s my friend Joy! What brings you today?”

“I’d like to see the resident list of Happy World. With documents related to 「Pandora Market」. Ones from 100 years ago would be even better. Just grant permission. I know the location.”

“Perfect. Because I don’t know where the resident list documents are!”

Krauser, this guy.

Even working so carelessly like this, you don’t get fired?

A job so secure it’s like an iron rice bowl, with full and lifelong employment, is this harmful.

I took the access card for the document storage room and searched for documents related to 「Pandora Market」. And among the documents piled high with dust, I could find something strange.

「────」

「──.」

「─────」

On all documents related to Pandora Market, weren’t there cross-outs like the above, covering the text?

It was my first time seeing such documents.

All past documents related to Pandora Market were like this.

“Manager Bones nim, do you know what happened with this?”

I went to the Chairman’s fishing spot and asked Manager Bones nim.

Manager Bones, having worked at Happy World for a long time, would surely know what this was.

“This is censorship. The records were erased under the permission of the Moirai, the Fates. Joy, it would be best not to carelessly access censored documents.”

Documents censored by the Fates?

Why the need to censor Pandora Market?

The important thing was that the information about Nureongi’s owner was all censored and couldn’t be known.

So while I was deep in thought, Manager Bones laughed loudly.

“Joy, I thought you, having been demoted, would be greatly discouraged and heartbroken. But seeing you put your best efforts even in a new position, I truly have a lot to learn.”

“Even if it looks like this, I am disheartened.”

“Stop complaining! In this Soul Society, failing twice in a row is several times harder than succeeding twice in a row. Do you know why? Because a person who has fallen once cannot easily get up.”

“…….”

“A person who has experienced a great failure, due to that intense frustration, naturally hesitates and fears to challenge again. So they cannot get up again. That’s why the second challenge ends without even an attempt.”

Failing twice means.

Despite having experienced one failure, they overcame the frustration and challenged again.

“A person who has failed twice can also fail three times. And a person who has failed three times can also fail four times. The fact that you can keep failing. That is also a great strength.”

It leaves a sour taste in my mouth because I keep failing.

Still, it was fortunate that Manager Bones finally spoke.

“Go find a living witness of the Pandora Market. If it’s her, who has stayed in the market the longest, she’ll have more accurate memories than most documents.”

“Who is that?”

“Do you know why Pandora Market is called Pandora Market? It’s because Pandora is there.”

Pandora!

She was a woman I had met before.