The next day, early in the morning at six o'clock, Gao Wei took Rin from her rented studio apartment to work at Shinos.
"Rin, there usually isn't much to do in the morning. Shinos officially opens for business at lunchtime. Come and help me tidy up my personal kitchen. After we finish preparing the morning ingredients, Big Sister will make you a staff meal."
"Okay."
It could be said that the four core members of Shinos were all seekers on the path of culinary arts. Each of them was a master of French cuisine. Perhaps Shinomiya Kojiro was far ahead, but that didn't diminish the excellence of the other three.
Gao Wei was originally the meat chef before Lucy Hugo in the original text. To further improve her culinary skills, she took on the role of reception to interact with various people and seek inspiration.
Now it seemed Shinos was operating at a very high-end level. The restaurant's top staff all had their own private kitchens. It appeared that Wei, as the front desk manager, not only handled reception but sometimes also participated in cooking dishes.
High position, not high person. No matter how much their position improved, they would not leave their own kitchen. This was probably their way.
In any case, Rin couldn't understand it. She only knew that Wei's cooking was delicious.
Inside the large kitchen, there were also four independent small kitchens. Though small, they were fully equipped. Various knives and cooking utensils were neatly arranged, and fresh ingredients purchased from the morning market were stacked to one side.
As Rin was a child, Wei naturally wouldn't assign her any dirty or strenuous tasks. She simply gave Rin a broom, dustpan, and a clean rag.
"Rin, I'm entrusting the kitchen's hygiene to you."
"Aye~"
A kitchen as clean as new offered no starting point for cleaning. While it was said that Rin was working at the shop, in reality, everyone at Shinos was caring for Rin as a homeless child. If Wei didn't have to come to the shop early to prepare for work, she wouldn't have brought Rin to work at dawn.
Sure enough, after breakfast, Rin was given instructions by Shinomiya Kojiro, like this:
"Next, we need to prepare for lunch. You'll only be in the way here. You can go wherever you want before 12 o'clock, but you must be back by 12. At that time, you'll have a workload that will make you despair."
Shinomiya, why do your words sound like: "Go out and play after breakfast, remember to come back for lunch at 12"?
You really are a good person!
Shinomiya Kojiro, completely unaware that he had already been given two 'good guy' cards, impatiently shooed Rin out to 'free-range' her. He looked less like a boss and more like a dad.
Checking the time, it was only half past seven, still early for nine o'clock. Conveniently, she still had the money "borrowed" yesterday. She needed to find a place to get some equipment first. Fighting in a dress made it hard to move freely. She had long wanted to wear simple, convenient clothes for activity, but her mother never allowed her. She clearly preferred a tomboy style but was forced to act like a lady, honestly.
After visiting three children's clothing stores, Rin could only regretfully conclude that clothes meeting her needs would certainly not appear in the children's clothing section. After all, no children's clothing designer would design children's clothes with the idea of making them convenient for fighting; that would be akin to ruining their own livelihood.
Should she use Projection Magic to project an outfit? But the thought of actually walking around naked on the street felt so shameful... If her magic supply suddenly cut off, she wouldn't want to live.
What Rin wanted were simple, lightweight clothes that allowed for free and extensive movement, and clothes that had presence and style! Unfortunately, no children's clothing factory produced such children's wear.
Checking the time, it was almost time.
"Sigh, never mind. I'll buy one and modify it, then figure out how to get one custom-made later."
Subsequently, Rin went to a store and bought a set of black, tight-fitting, thin outer sweater and matching jeans. But for ease of movement, Rin directly cut the sleeves of the sweater into short sleeves, and the pant legs were cut in half, exposing her knees. On her feet, she wore a pair of flat-heeled knee-high boots. Rin said she actually wanted a stylish item: a trench coat! But considering that only adult stores carried them and no modification would make it suitable, she gave up on the idea.
So, Rin, in this mismatched, delinquent outfit, returned to the alley entrance from yesterday. The four hoodlums who had been waiting there early all shivered in unison the moment they saw Rin. Why four? One had his head stomped into the concrete; whether he was alive or dead was unknown, so he couldn't come.
The leader looked around cautiously and said to Rin, "Follow me."
Rin calmly followed the four delinquents, not saying a word. She ignored the sinister look they showed the moment they turned their heads, still sucking on a lollipop, not putting them in her eyes at all.
Following the four delinquents, they turned left and right into another alley. Rin sniffed the pungent smell in the air and the dirty, messy alleyway, frowning in disdain. "As expected, a gathering place for rats. This is perfectly suited."
The four delinquents dared not respond, enduring it with gritted teeth. Finally, they led Rin to a small red door deep in the alley.
Opening the door, it wasn't a room but a staircase leading underground. The Delinquent Youth leading the way said to Rin, "We're here, the boss is inside."
"We're here?" Rin, with a lollipop in her mouth, scanned the four Delinquent Youths.
"We're here."
"Alright, then please lead the way." With that, Rin raised her hand and grabbed the two closest Delinquent Youths... Boom! The door of the underground nightclub crashed to the ground, followed by four human-shaped objects flying in and rolling like gourds across the floor until they stopped inside, motionless.
"Glue on the floor, ether gas, heat powder, bear traps. I don't understand if this is what this guy set up, or if you guys did. It's strange. According to the usual routine, shouldn't you all be laughing and blocking the entrance when you hear your opponent is a Little Girl? What, did your IQs finally come online?"
With a lollipop in her mouth and her hands in her pockets, she walked in unhurriedly. Her bright and lively twin-tails were now tied into a neat and capable single ponytail. Her emerald eyes were calm and unrestrained, not bothering to look at the dozens of tall, burly Delinquent Youths in the room. She scoffed, "Tch," at the guys knocked down by the four flying bodies.
Rin's gaze swept across the room. All the Delinquent Youths looked at her cautiously. Rin, calm and composed, spoke loudly, "Tell your leader to come out and talk!"
Rin saw the bewildered expressions of the Delinquent Youths as they looked around, and immediately realized that the slang in Japan wasn't the same as in her great Celestial Empire. So she cleared her throat, "Tell your boss to come out and talk!"
This one should be internationally understood, right?
After that, unexpectedly, a tall, attractive woman walked out from behind the crowd to the front, looking at Rin with a hostile stance. "I am Orie Shiroi, what do you want with me?"
Rin raised an eyebrow at her and said, "You set up all the traps along the way?"
"That's right. I wouldn't treat an opponent who can gravely injure my subordinates in one blow as a child."
"Oh, quite cautious, I like that about you. I'm mainly here for three things. First, I'm here to say thank you."
"Thank you?"
"That's right. Yesterday, I just arrived in Misaki Town, penniless and stranded on the streets. Thanks to your well-trained brothers who took pity on me, they specially gave me 180,000 yen in relief money, which helped me out of a difficult situation. So I specifically came to say, thank you!" She clasped her hands towards Orie Shiroi.
Orie Shiroi frowned and scanned the four unconscious guys. Clearly, everyone understood Rin's words.
Calamity and fortune have no door, they are invited by people themselves.
"Second, I want to ask you about something. I wonder if you know about the Tohno Family."
"Of course, the number one family in Misaki Town, a famous zaibatsu nationwide, who doesn't know them?"
"Then, has the Tohno Family adopted a pair of five or six-year-old red-haired twin sisters from outside in the past few years?"
Orie Shiroi glanced left and right, and a minion-like guy popped out and said, "Boss, it seems there was such a thing. About half a year ago, everyone was discussing how that old scoundrel Tohno Shinkyu actually had a taste for that."
Rin couldn't help but frown in distress.
Was she too late? It seems she can only force her way into the Tohno Family. This matter needs long-term planning, but thankfully, that old scoundrel Tohno Shinkyu violated Kohaku on her eighth birthday. Kohaku is the same age as me, which means there are still three years. It won't be too late to go after the Fourth Holy Grail War is over.
Rin nodded to herself, then took the lollipop out of her mouth and held it in her hand. With an imposing gesture, she pointed and said, "Then for the third thing, from today onwards, this territory belongs to me!"