Vignette didn't want to keep arguing with Raphiel. After calming herself down, she turned to Emi Yusa and spoke gently.
She had wanted to say that she was a demon, but after thinking it over, she realized that would only make Emi more wary and hostile. Instead, she decided to let her strength speak for itself and help Emi accept reality.
"I hope this really is just a misunderstanding. If it is, then I apologize. I was too sensitive."
Looking at the demon race members Naruse Mio and Naruse Maria, the angel Raphiel, Vignette, Himeragi Yukina, and Kasugaya Shizuri, Emi Yusa's expression changed several times before she finally lowered her Holy Sword.
If it had only been the Demon King, that would have been one thing. But now there was an angel too. She didn't even have the thought of making a desperate last stand anymore.
Miss Tsukinose had been by her side for so long, and she'd never noticed a thing. If Vignette had wanted to deal with her, she probably could have killed her long ago.
"Phew..."
Seeing Vignette, a demon written as "demon" but read as "angel", convince Emi Yusa to lower her weapon the moment she arrived, Ijichi Nijika let out a huge sigh of relief.
She had never been worried about Mio and the others. She had only been worried that a misunderstanding would escalate into an irreparable conflict.
When it came to fighting bad guys, everyone should work together.
As for infighting... that belonged in bed.
"Alice, weren't you looking for Hero Emilia? Come out and explain the situation to her."
Now that Vignette had arrived, Hachiman pulled Alice, the Church's saint who had been hiding behind him with her hand over her mouth, out into the open.
He had already known that Aoyama Nanami occasionally worked part-time at Ijichi Seika's shop. It was just that he rarely went there himself, so he'd never met her.
But he had never expected Nanami to know Vignette, and even customer service Hero Emilia had shown up. At this point, even if customer service Sakiko appeared next, he wouldn't find it strange.
Hmm!
He should ask Ryou later whether Sakiko was on her "girl band sell-yourself roster."
"Ahem... Hero Emilia, do you remember me? I'm Alice from the Church. I came to this world together with Lady Falma and the others. Inquisitor Crestia from the Church of Ente Isla asked me to look for you while I was here."
Alice pursed her lips, then greeted Emi Yusa with a complicated expression.
She had wanted to step in earlier, but she was afraid that speaking would reveal what she'd just been doing. If Emilia misunderstood and thought Hachiman had done that to her and that she'd betrayed the Church, it would be a disaster.
After all, everyone knew that a Church saint was supposed to remain pure.
It was one thing if Saphie and Falma found out, they were all accomplices serving Lord Hikigaya together.
But Hero Emilia belonged to a different adventurer party that fought the Demon King. She wasn't really one of them.
"Crestia from the Church of Ente Isla... How are Olba and Emi doing now? Oh, right. Alice, do you have a way to return?"
Staring at Alice, as well as Falma and Saphie in clothing from their original world, Emi Yusa let her Holy Sword disappear from her hand as a smile slowly appeared on her face.
"I remember there are summoning rituals specifically meant to summon humans from another world, right? Could Olba summon us back the same way he summoned heroes from another world?"
She didn't actually know Crestia from the Church of Ente Isla.
But with Vignette, who was kinder than an angel, and Church saint Alice personally vouching for them, she had no choice but to truly believe that Naruse Mio and Naruse Maria were not evil demons.
Still, seeing so many people from her original world here, what concerned her most was how to get back.
"Of course there's a way back. It's just that crossing worlds consumes a tremendous amount of energy. The Kingdom of Eos also spent a great deal of effort to send us here. If you want to return with us, you'll have to wait a while."
Alice glanced at Falma, the princess of the human kingdom, and Saphie, the elf mage. She hesitated, then pulled Emi Yusa aside to whisper.
"This world has an extremely high concentration of mana, making it ideal for elves to use magic. The elves also have a teleportation gate that greatly reduces the energy required, so it's much more convenient than our method..."
"As for Archbishop Olba and Emerada..."
"Archbishop Olba declared that you were already dead, and had Emerada and the others imprisoned. However, Inquisitor Crestia noticed something was wrong with him, so she sent me here to investigate what happened to you."
"Emi and the others were imprisoned?"
Emi Yusa had never imagined that after chasing the Demon King into this world alone, her companions would end up imprisoned by the Archbishop.
Why?
He was part of the Church. Had the Archbishop actually betrayed them?
"So, Miss Tsukinose... are you really an angel? Then when you worked part-time with us before, was that just to experience ordinary life?"
Now that the conflict had been resolved and Emi Yusa had gone off to catch up with another girl she knew, Aoyama Nanami let out a sigh of relief before asking Vignette what she'd been wondering.
"I'm actually a demon. But I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell Yusa that for now. I don't want her misunderstanding things again."
Vignette smiled awkwardly, but answered anyway.
"As for the part-time job... you could say it was to experience ordinary life, or you could say it was to earn money. Back then, my living expenses weren't really enough. But that's no longer a problem."
Now the weekly allowance from the Underworld was more than she could spend. There was no reason to keep working.
She just didn't say that out loud, since she didn't want to hurt Nanami's feelings.
"A demon... I see. If you don't need to work part-time anymore, then you can focus on your studies."
Nanami blinked. She had almost said there was no way Vignette could be a demon, but then she remembered that demons, angels, and elves had all once been fantasy creatures to her. Since she had no idea what reality was actually like, she accepted it and sincerely wished the gentle Vignette well.
If every demon was like Vignette, then there'd be nothing to fear about going to hell.
"Excuse me, Aoyama-san. Do you have any free time this week? I have a part-time maid job I'd like you to consider."
After listening to Nanami and Vignette, as well as Emilia and the others, Yukinoshita Yukino, who had recently finished discussing cooperation details with Sayuri Sawamura, suddenly spoke up.
"Huh? A part-time maid job?"
Nanami stared blankly at Yukino, who had suddenly approached her about work.
"Yes. I'm Yukinoshita Yukino. Like Nijika and the others, I'm a student at Sobu High. We're holding a small private doujin convention over the next couple of days, and we're still looking for on-site staff who can wear maid outfits."
Yukino calmly explained, "If you don't mind wearing a maid outfit, Aoyama-san, please consider it. The pay is 3,000 yen an hour, and overtime is 6,000 yen an hour. If you perform well, you'll also receive priority for future part-time jobs."
Normally, the private convention would either be held at Rurisen's house or at the Service Club, with Tsubaki Rurisen and Shion handling the staffing.
But her older sister Haruno was the Service Club's vice president, so she naturally had the authority to arrange staff as well.
"Three thousand yen an hour, and overtime doubles it? Th-That's so much!"
Nanami had been about to decline politely, but she couldn't help crying out when she heard the hourly wage.
It was just event staff work at a convention, and at most she'd have to wear a maid outfit. As long as it wasn't too revealing, the pay was incredible.
"It's not really that much. Our private convention places a great deal of importance on confidentiality. It isn't open to the public. As temporary staff, everything you see and hear during work must remain confidential."
Yukino then looked toward Hachiman.
"What do you think, President? Miss Vignette? Should we raise the pay a little more?"
Even though she'd joined later, after all this time she more or less understood Hachiman's personality.
He wouldn't take the initiative, force anyone, or refuse anyone.
But spending money to bring people closer to him and then waiting for them to throw themselves at him, that was completely acceptable.
If Nanami could resist the temptation, that was fine too.
Compared to the cost of hiring an entire idol group for entertainment, bringing in an innocent high school girl like Nanami as part-time staff was incredibly cost-effective.
Normally, since her sister Haruno had already gone to recruit from an idol training school, Yukino wouldn't bother with this sort of thing. But since she'd happened to run into Nanami and discovered that she knew Ijichi Nijika and Hero Emilia from another world, she figured this was a good opportunity to earn some points with Hachiman.
Small circles were built through connections.
If she brought Nanami into the group, then Nijika, who was close to her, would gradually become an ally as well.
She might even be able to win Hero Emilia over, and through her, draw Alice, Falma, and the other visitors from another world onto her side.
"Uh... Hachiman, what do you think?"
Vignette hesitated without offering an opinion and simply looked at Hachiman.
"Sure. Since this is Aoyama-san's first time joining one of our events, it's fine to increase the pay a bit."
Hachiman smiled and nodded without hesitation.
He understood Nanami better than Yukino did and knew what this well-paying job really implied.
But this was only their first meeting. It wouldn't be appropriate for him to invite her directly.
He hadn't expected Yukino to be so proactive. He'd been wondering how to bring it up with Nijika so she could invite Nanami herself.
"No, no, that's not necessary! The pay is already really high! B-But... could I ask about the work schedule? I still have to help Manager Seika at her shop tonight, and I already have another part-time job tomorrow. If I can't find someone to cover my shift, I might still have to go."
Seeing Hachiman and Yukino wanting to raise her pay even more, Nanami hurriedly waved her hands.
She had been trying to decline earlier because she'd thought Yukino was only offering her the job out of consideration for Vignette and the others.
If the job genuinely paid this well, then she wouldn't feel embarrassed accepting it.
But if the pay became even higher, then it really would be because of Vignette's and Nijika's connections.
"Don't worry, Nanami. Ryou and I can help out at my sister's place."
Nijika immediately volunteered to fill in.
"Nijika, aren't you joining the convention and cosplaying this time?"
Hachiman looked at her with a smile.
"Uh... I-I think I'll sit this one out..."
Sensing the hidden meaning in his words, Nijika's heart skipped a beat as she answered with difficulty.
What cosplay?
She knew perfectly well he'd be the one playing with her.
Although it wasn't her first time, and she'd already done all kinds of things in front of Yumiko before, dressing up as one of Hachiman's favorite characters wasn't really a big deal anymore.
But if Nanami joined too, that changed everything.
Even if she truly refused, Hachiman would probably just hold her while using invisibility magic and appear in front of Nanami.
And that would still be awful.
Afterward, whenever Nanami came to help at her sister's shop, Nijika wouldn't even know how to face her.
"Hm? Is something making it inconvenient for you, Nijika?"
Nanami looked at her hesitantly.
"N-No, it's nothing. I was just worried you're pushing yourself too hard. I'll join the convention with you and work as a part-time maid too!"
Seeing Nanami beginning to get suspicious, Nijika hurriedly denied it, forcing a cheerful smile while sighing inwardly.
Forget it.
If they were going together, then they were going together.
She'd just treat it as working a part-time job with Nanami.
That way... Hachiman probably wouldn't be able to mess with her too much... right?
"Nijika, you're working too? If you're still recruiting staff, could we ask a few more people?"
Nanami immediately thought of Emi Yusa, who was also short on money.
"Yusa only started working recently, and the customer service center couldn't advance her much salary yet, so that's why she came to work part-time with me today."
Working several part-time jobs wasn't a problem for her at all.
But with such a great opportunity, how could she not share it with her fellow coworkers who were struggling alongside her?
"Uh... we can ask her..."
Nijika's expression stiffened as a bad feeling washed over her.
Nanami could probably be kept in the dark with invisibility magic.
But if Emi Yusa saw how outrageous things were at the convention...
Wouldn't she pull out her sword in shame and fury and denounce them?
"..."
Watching Nanami, who never forgot others whenever something good came along, Vignette sighed to herself.
She wanted to say that this job wasn't entirely a good thing.
But when the words reached her lips, she held them back.
She had talked with Nanami before and knew that her circumstances weren't good.
There was only one reason Nanami would appear at a public entertainment venue like a convention on weekends, work.
Her family didn't support her dream very much. She worked multiple part-time jobs by herself to pursue it, yet often couldn't even afford proper meals and sometimes went hungry at the end of the month.
If she remembered correctly, Nanami wanted to become a voice actress.
Joining the Service Club would probably make that dream easy to achieve.
Though... within the Service Club, there was an extremely high chance she'd achieve that dream in a way so embarrassing it might make her want to disappear.
———
After many twists and turns, Hero Emilia, or rather, Emi Yusa, ultimately went from enemy to ally. Himeragi Yukina and Kasugaya Shizuri both put their weapons back into their black guitar cases.
Aoyama Nanami, who had just landed a high-paying part-time job, and the conflicted Vignette also briefly explained how the three of them knew each other.
They had met while working at the customer service center of a mobile communications company and had once worked at neighboring desks.
Nanami was a high school student and only worked there occasionally as temporary staff.
Vignette no longer went at all.
Only Emi Yusa, who had lied about her age, worked there full-time as a phone operator.
Church saint Alice quietly added for Hachiman that Emi Yusa wasn't actually twenty years old. In reality, she was about the same age as Nanami and Vignette.
Thanks to her excellent reputation, hardworking part-timer Aoyama Nanami had been introduced to this convention job before school vacation had even begun. She had also brought along Emi Yusa, who had only recently rented a place and was struggling with living expenses.
While working at the convention venue, Nanami happened to run into Ijichi Nijika, Yamada Ryou, and the others, and they happily chatted for a while.
Then, the moment Emi Yusa sensed demonic energy, she immediately rushed over at an extraordinary speed.
Realizing Emi wasn't an ordinary person, Nijika hurried after her with Nanami, worried that she might accidentally clash with members of the Service Club.
Things unfolded exactly as Nijika had feared.
Emi Yusa mistook Naruse Mio and Naruse Maria for the same kind of evil demons that the goddess and angel Suzumi Shizumi and the others fought against.
If Nijika hadn't arrived in time, Emi, who had attacked first because of the misunderstanding, would probably have been subdued on the spot instead of calmly talking with everyone now.