"Ah~ I wonder if any easygoing customers will show up?"
This place was Abydos, situated within the academy city of Kivotos.
The person slumped over in a chair here was named Yami, a male student and the proprietor of this dust-laden toy store.
"Well~ I guess there probably isn't anyone who'd trek all the way out to a desert like this just to buy toys, huh?"
Most of Abydos lay buried beneath the sand.
This was due to a phenomenon known as desertification. In its prime, Abydos had been renowned even within Kivotos, and it had made valiant efforts to halt the encroachment of the desert.
However, the outcome was failure. Despite pouring every last penny they had into the fight, they could not repel the sands. Yami, for all intents and purposes, was still affiliated with Abydos.
"Though I haven't really been there much lately."
As just mentioned, Abydos's desperate struggle against the desert had left it burdened with a staggering amount of debt. And so, Yami was operating this store, which he'd stumbled upon by chance, as a means of earning money.
"It's a big problem, though, when you don't have any customers."
If things got truly dire, he'd have to pack up his wares and personally travel to Millennium or Gehenna to sell them.
Trinity was an option too, technically. But the young ladies there were so bound by their infernal rules that trying to sell anything within their territory meant risking capture by the Justice Task Force.
He'd actually come close to being apprehended while selling goods once, so he had absolutely no desire to go near Trinity, let alone pass through it.
That left Millennium and Gehenna...
"Since I'm thinking about it anyway, maybe I should just go sell things now?"
If he put it off until later, he knew he might not go at all out of sheer laziness. It seemed best to pack his bags and head out immediately.
"Millennium would be the best bet first, right? Gehenna is such a chaotic mess, they practically live by 'Might is Right!'"
He carefully placed the toys into the bundle he'd pulled from a drawer. His personal creed, after all, was: I might scam you, but I wouldn't sell you a defective product.
That was his philosophy.
If someone didn't understand what he meant by that, well, that wasn't his problem to worry about.
Ding!
Just as he'd finished packing and was getting ready to leave, the shop bell above the door chimed, signaling someone had entered.
'Finally, a customer!!' Yami thought, dropping the bundle he was holding and turning his head.
"Hue~ I really think it's just too much to make this old man walk all that way~"
"Why are you here at this hour...?"
But Yami's fleeting excitement quickly deflated the moment he saw who had walked in.
Because the person standing in the doorway was none other than...
"Haa~am, Kouhai-kun, why the long face? Did this old man stumble into a place I shouldn't be?"
It was Takanashi Hoshino, a senior from the very Abydos school he attended.
Why would she be here, of all places...?
"Aren't you busy with the Sukeban who recently attacked and occupied the school?"
"Oh, that little thing? This old man finished it off quick as a flash~ I just came by because I was thinking about my dear Kouhai-kun and wanted to visit after a while."
"Please don't laboriously twist your words and say you came here because the Sukeban attack ruined the atmosphere for your nap."
"Euek? Mwoa, already busted, huh?"
Hoshino declared, "Well, if I'm busted, can't be helped~" and proceeded to pull out the futon and pillow she'd brought, getting ready to lie down on the sofa and sleep.
"Alright, I'll sleep well~"
"Haah..."
He wanted to smack Hoshino on the head for her utterly brazen decision to sleep just because she'd been caught, but she had seemed particularly exhausted lately. So, he decided to just leave her be.
Besides, someone needed to watch the store.
"I'm heading to Millennium to sell some things. Please keep an eye on the store until I get back and make sure no thieves break in."
"Eong~"
"If you get hungry, there are a few slices of pizza left in the fridge in the back. Heat them up and eat them."
"Eong~"
"Are you actually listening?"
"Eong~"
"Ugh..."
Given her utterly weary responses, Yami debated whether she was truly listening, but her halo was shining as usual, so he figured it would be fine. With a sigh, Yami stepped outside.
He walked across the seemingly endless expanse of sand, heading towards the Kivotos Wide Area Railway line that connected the different academies, and set off towards his destination: Millennium.