Susan gulped.
"Sir...?" she asked, hoping she had misheard him.
"You heard me," Boros replied.
"I said tell them all to leave."
This time he didn't lower his voice.
Everyone in the reception heard him clearly.
Silence lingered for a second.
Then the room exploded.
"What the hell does he mean by that?!"
"Yeah!"
"Who does this guy think he is?!"
"Throwing the owner out and now this?!"
Voices rose from every corner of the inn.
Several guests stood from their seats.
Others moved closer.
Within moments, a crowd had begun forming around Boros.
"Please calm down," Susan said quickly.
Surprisingly, the room quieted.
She took a deep breath.
"Allow me to explain what happened."
Everyone turned toward her.
"After a discussion with Mr. Rocky, this gentleman was able to reach an agreement and purchase this establishment."
She gestured toward Boros.
"As of a few minutes ago, he is the legal owner of this inn."
The crowd immediately erupted again.
"Bullshit!"
"That greedy bastard would've never sold!"
"He must've forced him!"
"Or threatened him!"
"Maybe he didn't even pay!"
"Yeah!"
"He probably took it!"
Boros stepped forward and stopped beside Susan.
The noise gradually died down.
Everyone could tell he intended to speak.
"If I had done that," Boros said calmly, "none of you would still be alive."
The room froze.
Boros tilted his head slightly.
"Wouldn't make much sense to leave witnesses behind, would it?"
Silence.
Several people instinctively swallowed.
Whether they wanted to admit it or not, the silver-haired giant was terrifying.
His height alone was enough to draw attention.
Then there was what they had just watched him do to Rocky.
And the fact that he wore Spine-Wear. Which meant he was an adventurer.
"Who the hell is this guy?" someone whispered.
"No idea."
"I've never seen him before."
"Tch."
A broad-shouldered man stepped forward from the crowd.
"We've got plenty of Adventurers staying here too, you know."
He folded his arms.
"You're acting like you could take all of us by yourself."
Boros didn't answer.
He simply looked at him.
For a brief moment—
The man's entire body locked up.
His breathing stopped.
It felt as though an invisible mountain had suddenly fallen onto his shoulders.
Cold sweat poured down his face.
Then the pressure vanished.
The man staggered backward into the crowd.
His legs nearly gave out beneath him.
'W-What the hell was that...?'
His chest heaved.
'That Nexus...'
'It felt like he was crushing me alive.'
The crowd immediately noticed his reaction.
And nobody stepped forward after that.
Boros looked around the room.
"If you're worried about the money you've already paid, you'll be refunded."
He pointed toward Susan.
"Speak with Susan and the other receptionists."
Then he turned and started walking away.
The crowd instinctively parted to make room for him.
At the back of the reception hall stood a staircase leading to the upper floors.
Boros placed a foot on the first step.
Then glanced over his shoulder.
"If anyone has complaints..."
A grin spread across his face.
"I'm upstairs."
He continued climbing.
"I'll be happy to hear every single one of them."
Not a single person followed him.
...
Several hours later, a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in," Boros called.
The door opened and Akeno and Kinuko stepped inside.
They found Boros leaning against the balcony railing, staring out at the city below.
The evening lights had already begun to spread across the streets.
Akeno walked over and leaned against the railing beside him.
"It sure took a while to refund all those customers."
"How many were there?" Boros asked without taking his eyes off the city.
"Well over a hundred," Kinuko answered.
"And apparently this wasn't even a busy week."
Boros whistled softly.
"That's a lot of people."
"Yeah," Akeno said.
"But they're all gone now."
She pointed outside.
"You probably saw most of them leaving from up here."
"I did."
Boros nodded.
"So everyone's gone?"
"The customers are," Kinuko replied.
"But the staff are still here."
Akeno grinned.
"Susan's actually on her way up right now."
"She wants to take you to them so you can explain what exactly is happening."
As if on cue, another knock sounded.
The door opened and Susan stepped inside.
She approached the balcony cautiously.
Boros finally turned away from the view and sat down in one of the chairs.
"So?"
Susan straightened.
"We successfully refunded all the customers, sir."
She clasped her hands together.
"The inn is now empty."
"Other than the staff, there's nobody left."
Boros let out a slow breath.
"Good."
"You can all leave too."
Silence.
Susan blinked.
"...Sir?"
"The staff," Boros clarified.
"Send them home."
Confusion spread across everyone's faces.
"I'm not your boss."
He shrugged.
"And I'm not interested in running a business."
"So I don't need staff."
"B-But sir..." Susan stammered.
She lowered her head.
"Some of us rely on this job."
"My family relies on this job."
"Most of the staff do."
Her voice grew quieter.
"Finding another place and working our way back up won't be easy."
Before anyone could stop her, Susan dropped to her knees.
"Please reconsider, sir."
Boros stared at her.
Akeno immediately stepped forward.
"She has a point, Shiro."
Boros looked at her.
"If they managed to put up with that fat bastard for years, some of them must really need the job."
"Well what do you want me to do?" Boros asked.
"I already said I don't plan on running an inn."
He gestured around the room.
"I bought this place because I felt like it."
"Not because I wanted employees."
"But still—" Akeno started.
"That's it."
Both Boros and Akeno turned toward Kinuko.
"You have an idea?" Akeno asked.
Kinuko nodded.
"Yes."
Then she looked directly at Boros.
"Shiro."
"This place is huge."
Boros raised an eyebrow.
"So?"
"So there's no way the three of us can maintain it ourselves."
She folded her arms.
"We have Adventurer work."
"Missions."
"Training."
"Guild activities."
"You really think we're going to spend our free time cleaning hundreds of rooms?"
Boros opened his mouth.
Then paused.
"Exactly!" Akeno jumped in.
"You can keep the staff and just have them maintain the place."
She pointed at herself.
"Because I am definitely not cleaning anything."
Kinuko nodded.
"Neither am I."
"Traitors," Boros muttered.
Akeno grinned.
"That's called teamwork."
Boros rubbed his forehead.
The more he thought about it, the more annoying the alternative sounded.
Cleaning the inn themselves was impossible.
Leaving it abandoned would eventually ruin the property.
And hiring entirely new people later would be a pain.
"...Fine."
Susan looked up instantly.
"The staff can stay."
Her eyes widened. "Really?"
"Yeah."
Boros waved a hand dismissively.
"They can keep their jobs."
Susan's shoulders visibly relaxed.
"Thank you, sir."
Tears began forming in her eyes. "Thank you so much."
"Don't cry."
Boros pointed at her.
"Stand up."
Akeno quickly helped Susan back to her feet.
Once she was standing, Boros rose from his chair.
"Alright."
He stretched his shoulders.
"Take me to the rest of the staff."
Susan nodded immediately.
"Yes, sir."