Alissa lifted her head, tears still streaming, but determination flickering in her amber eyes.
"If you don't find us... We will find you!"
That fierce look. She ans every word.
The day crawled forward with agonising slowness.
Elara arrived first, her usual radiant smile faltering when she noticed the atmosphere.
"Why does everyone look like soone died?"
How to explain without explaining?
"My shop relocates tomorrow. I won't be here anymore."
The princess went very still. Her amber eyes darted between Noah and his employees, processing implications with royal efficiency.
"Relocates where?"
"Sowhere else."
Elara's composure cracked slightly. "For how long?"
"Unknown."
"I see."
"In that case, I'll take all your remaining iced tea. Every bottle."
Of course, she would.
The twelve bottles that lined his shelf disappeared instantly, granting him 120 golden coins and 120 shop points.
"Don't look at like that. If this is goodbye, I'm not leaving anything behind. Can I also get the bread?"
Noah shook his head.
"There is a custor who always buys the bread for . I think she will want it. I can't let you take everything, princess. Sorry."
Valeria's arrival an hour later triggered the sa pattern—one look at the atmosphere, and one explanation about relocation.
"All the bread. Every loaf."
The twelve loaves were sold for a total of 36 golden coins. He didn't sell it for 4 coins because Valeria was very good to him.
"Good." Her green eyes held fierce protectiveness. "Can't let healing bread like this vanish into whatever void you're heading toward."
After both sales, his shop points skyrocketed to 960 points, which made him frustrated. Had he made a bigger deal with the princess, he would have made the cut.
With his stocks completely gone, Noa simply waited for the ti to arrive.
Unfortunately for him, he would be teleported before he could make enough to get a thousand.
Before she left, Valeria reiterated the sa line as Elara.
"When you return—and you will return—we'll be waiting."
...
[Warning: Teleportation comnces in 10 minutes. Please prepare for relocation.]
Noah's stomach twisted into knots.
'Ten minutes. That's all we have left.'
Alissa sat beside Kip on the floor, both clinging to each other like shipwreck survivors. Grix organised cleaning supplies, desperate for so kind of distraction.
'They're all staying until the end. Even knowing it'll hurt more.'
Five minutes crawled by in agonising silence. Every tick felt like a hamr blow against his chest.
[System Warning: 5 minutes remaining.]
"It's ti." Noah's voice cracked despite his efforts. "You need to go."
Alissa's ears drooped as she rose slowly. Her amber eyes glistened with unshed tears, but determination flickered beneath the grief.
"We'll find you," she whispered.
Kip nodded frantically, small hands clenched into fists. "Wherever you go, we'll follow."
Even Grix straightened his hunched shoulders. "Grix will rember Master Noah always."
Don't cry. Don't you dare cry in front of them.
They filed out slowly, each backwards glance feeling like a dagger between Noah's ribs. The door chid one final ti as Grix disappeared into the alleyway.
Noah was alone.
[Teleportation in progress...]
The world dissolved.
Outside the abandoned alleyway, three figures huddled together in shared misery. Valeria had arrived monts before the deadline.
"Nothing happened." She raised an eyebrow, checking her pocket watch. "I thought his whole shop would vanish. Turns out he's pulling a prank on us."
As she opened the door, the sign 'Idle store' above the door vanished.
The door swung open.
Nothing.
Empty room.
Completely empty with nothing inside.
No counter. No shelves. No trace that Noah had ever existed in this space.
Just bare stone walls and dust motes dancing in fading sunlight.
"He... actually... vanished."
Her words hung in the air like smoke from an extinguished candle.
Alissa's composure finally shattered. Tears stread down her furry cheeks as the reality struck ho. Kip buried his face against his sister's shoulder, his small body shaking with silent sobs.
Grix stared at the empty space, his weathered features creased with confusion and loss. He didn't care like the other two. He had also lost his master a few days prior, and now he once again lost another one.
"Master Noah really gone," he whispered.
Valeria's hand dropped from the doorfra. Even her composure cracked slightly at the sight of absolute emptiness where warmth and friendship had flourished.
'He wasn't lying. Whatever he was, wherever he ca from... it was real.'
The Silver Wolf captain cleared her throat roughly. "Co on. Let's get you three settled sowhere safe."
'The least I can do is honour his last request.'
They walked away from the empty alley, leaving behind only mories.
Noah's surroundings snapped back to awareness with suddenness.
'Please be a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Please be sowhere I can build a mansion and hoard gold in peace.'
His eyes opened to chaos through the window.
Hundreds of creatures milled through what could only be described as a bustling plaza. But these weren't human shoppers—they were demons. Actual, honest-to-god demons with horns, tails, and skin ranging from deep red to midnight blue.
This is not a wasteland. This is very much not a wasteland.
A massive demon with ram's horns noticed his shop first. The creature's eyes widened to dinner-plate proportions.
"There is a shop here? I never knew that!!" he bellowed in a loud voice.
The demon closed on his window, only to lock eyes with Noah, before his eyes widened.
"HUMAN SPECIES ALERT!"
'Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit.'
Within seconds, Noah's humble bakery was surrounded by curious demons pressing their faces against his two windows. Dozens of eyes—so glowing, so multi-colored, all intensely focused on him—created a kaleidoscope of supernatural attention.
I wanted isolation. I got the exact opposite.
A particularly enterprising demon began rattling his door handle.
'Human. They know I'm human. In demon territory. This is fine. Everything is fine.'
More demons joined the crowd. Soon, his shop was surrounded by demons.
Noah gulped before consoling himself.
Rember, Noah. You're immortal inside the shop. Immortal. They can't actually kill you here.
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