TSWJ 1

Chapter 1

The Recruitment Test

In my previous life, there was a saying: “Seven parts luck, three parts skill.”

It meant that luck accounted for seventy percent of success, while talent and effort made up the remaining thirty. In other words, luck was what ultimately determined whether you succeeded or failed.

And now…

As I watched the sign being taken down from my bankrupt shop, I was painfully reminded of that saying.

A worker approached me and asked,

“What should we do with the sign? Will you be taking it with you, Boss?”

“…Just dispose of it however you see fit.”

“Are you sure we can take it? You can’t ask us to return it later, you know.”

Even if I asked for it back, what would I do with it?

I didn’t have enough money to open a second shop.

“Excuse meee… I’m sorry to bother you when you’re busy…”

“What can I do for you?”

“I saw a notice in the plaza saying that the shop was giving away its merchandise for free because it was closing down. Where is it?”

Holding back my tears, I pointed toward my shop.

“You can go in there…”

“Oh! Thank you so much!”

The woman dashed inside and came back out with a chair, smiling happily.

Yeah… At least you can smile.

I won’t be able to for a while…

‘What am I supposed to do now?’

I had started this business to make money, but all I had left was debt.

A hundred million worth of it, at that.

‘A job… Is there anywhere I could get hired?’

‘This won’t be easy.’

My first job had been at a merchant company. Not just any company, either, but one of the five largest and most prestigious in the capital.

However, as someone who had lived in the modern world in my previous life, sexual harassment from my superior was something I simply couldn’t tolerate.

I tried to find another job, but perhaps my former boss had spread some nasty rumors about me, because every opportunity seemed to slip through my fingers.

So I scraped together every last bit of money I had and opened this magic potion shop.

I was confident, too. After all, I had been reincarnated into the world of a novel I had read in my previous life: Holding the Leash of You, the Arrogant One.

Although I hadn’t even appeared in the original story, I thought I could make a decent living by taking advantage of the information I knew about the novel.

But then, one day, someone broke into my shop…

And suddenly, strange rumors about my magic potions began spreading.

‘First, the ceiling suddenly collapsed. I worked my butt off getting it repaired, only for them to put up construction barriers right in front of my shop for months because of roadwork…’

And then, last month, a store opened directly across from mine, run by one of the major merchant companies.

The moment I saw it, I knew.

‘Then what the hell am I supposed to live on?!’

Just as I was sinking into despair, something happened.

Quite literally, a single sheet of paper came fluttering through the wind and slipped right between my foot and the ground.

It felt like a divine revelation, so I stared at the paper.

What was this?

[Lumiere Dessert & Tea Salon — Now Hiring New Staff]

Lumiere Dessert & Tea Salon, filled with the sweet aroma of delicious treats, is looking for new members to join our family!

Qualifications: Anyone in good physical health is welcome!

Job Description: Serving beverages and desserts.

Work Environment: A stable atmosphere with friendly, family-like colleagues.

Salary and Conditions: Satisfactory wages guaranteed for diligent employees! Hazard pay can be negotiated separately.

Anyone in good physical health was welcome.

And hazard pay could be negotiated separately?

Could this possibly be…

‘The perfect job for me?!’

The next day, I headed to the location listed on the flyer.

I didn’t have any other options at the moment.

‘If it doesn’t work out, then so be it. It doesn’t cost me anything to apply, so I might as well give it a shot.’

Although I was practically throwing in the towel, that didn’t mean I had made absolutely no preparations.

I had visited several dessert shops in the area to conduct a little market research, and I had put on the prettiest outfit I owned.

Since the shop’s exterior was pink and covered in lace, I had assumed they were hiring café maids. I had even prepared a simple customer service manual.

But something was strange.

When I arrived at the appointed time, I was led somewhere other than the inside of the shop.

“Please wait here.”

The shabby, gloomy building was filled with people who looked downright intimidating.

One man was nearly two meters tall. Another had a face covered in scars.

Someone else was wearing a sleeveless shirt, showing off his bulging arm muscles as if he wasn’t cold at all.

What the…

Why does this feel like the opening scene of a Hunter exam?

“Hey, you. I haven’t seen you around before.”

While I was looking around in confusion, the man with the sleeveless shirt and bulging muscles spoke to me.

“What’s with that outfit? Do you think this exam is a joke?”

I really didn’t want to hear that from someone wearing a sleeveless shirt in January.

“I’ll have you know, this is already my third year here. Do you think a rookie like you belongs in a place like this?”

Why would someone repeat their maid exams for three years?

Are they recruiting the world’s greatest maid or something?

Just then, another person standing nearby stepped forward.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. People like that are usually the veterans.”

“What? Y-You think so?”

“Wouldn’t someone dress like that only if they were confident they could easily beat the likes of us?”

“Hmm. You have a point.”

And just like that, I had somehow become a strong contender for the title of the world’s greatest maid.

…But seriously, were they actually hiring maids here?

“Last year’s successful candidate was just like that guy. Don’t you remember? That one who—”

Those burly men are going to serve desserts in a café?

‘No. Don’t be prejudiced.’

I had to be understanding. When I was little, I had once written “police car” as my dream job, too.

Who was I to judge someone else’s aspirations?

“Hmph. Don’t go crying about how weak you are once things get started.”

That was exactly what I wanted to say to him.

I had come here fully prepared to sing “Make it delicious!” in Japanese and then repeat the whole thing in Chinese for three verses.

It hadn’t been an easy decision for me.

Do you have any idea how timid I am?

And you’re wondering how someone that timid ever thought about running a business?

…Do you really have to bring up my painful past?

“Thank you all for coming here today. We will now begin the examination.”

At the words of a young man who looked like a café manager, tension filled the room.

“Before we begin in earnest, please put down all the weapons you are carrying.”

“What?!”

“If even a single weapon is discovered during the examination, you will be disqualified.”

And then, one by one, people actually began pulling weapons they had hidden on their persons and laying them down.

Soon, people who appeared to be staff members came to collect them all.

Weren’t a maid’s weapons supposed to be kindness and encouragement?

Why are people pulling out things like daggers?

Are they planning to say, ‘Customers, please behave with some decorum’… and then enforce it physically?

“Now, please check the papers you were given when you entered. Make sure no one else can see yours.”

I did as instructed.

There was nothing special about the palm-sized piece of paper. It simply had a small blue circle printed on it.

“Most of you will probably have a blue mark. Those of you holding papers marked with blue ink should consider yourselves members of the same team.”

“If we’re on the same team, does that mean there are enemies among us?”

“Yes. Although there are very few of them, some people have papers marked with red ink.”

The manager then flashed a sly smile.

“From this moment on, your task is to identify everyone carrying a red mark.”

A commotion broke out as people began murmuring among themselves.

“As I mentioned earlier, you may not use weapons. Violence is also prohibited. Furthermore, you are not allowed to show your papers to one another.”

“Then how are we supposed to find them?”

“That is the challenge of this examination.”

“Damn it. So we have to use our heads.”

This wasn’t what they had expected. One by one, people began grumbling.

I was just as bewildered as everyone else.

This is…

‘Isn’t this just a game of Mafia?!’

Do maids these days need to be skilled at this sort of thing, too?