Ludwig sighed as he heard what the woman in front of him called him. "Selena, I'll remind you again. The Hero is another guy. You know that blonde guy, right? The one with a smile as bright as the sun and heart as wide as the ocean. I'm just his plus one."
"And I'll remind you again, Hero." Selena opened her mouth. "You are the one who heard our pledge, not that guy with a smile as bright as the sun and heart as wide as the ocean.
"It's because he didn't have the same ability as m-"
But before Ludwig could finish, Selena interjected. "But he's capable enough to do what you can, and you know it. He could help us move in a normal way if he's brave enough. But no, he listened to those disgusting humans and left us in the Demon Realm to wait for our death. But you, you helped. You are our Hero, not him."
Knowing that arguing about the point with Selena would only end in his loss, he stepped back. He decided to be satisfied by the fact that his identity as the helper to this community was still a tightly guarded secret.
"Selena, Ludwig required some help from you. Let's enter first." Greito said at that moment.
"Ah, where's my manner!" Selena said in an apologetic tone. "Please, make yourself at home."
The human and two demons walked into the house. Before long, they sat on the sofas in the living room. "What kind of assistance do you need, Hero?"
Ludwig looked at Greito at that moment, but he just moved his chin towards Selena—telling him to say it to her himself. "I need workers for my restaurant."
Selena's eyes opened wide, but then a smile bloomed on her face. "You finally opened your restaurant, Hero? Congratulations!"
"Yeah, well. Thank you." Ludwig scratched his cheek.
"But Hero, will it be okay for you to employ demons?" Selena asked.
Ludwig looked at Greito with the corner of his eyes. Then, he saw the minotaur nodded, so he explained the power of his restaurant to Selena. Her face went through so many colours and emotions throughout his explanation. Only after she calmed down did she open her mouth again.
"That is an incredible ability." Selana said. "And thank you for thinking about us first."
"It's not something you should thank me for. After all, I choose the demon because it will make it easier for me. Moreover, by choosing the demons, I wouldn't have to visit the merchant guild."
"Still, let me thank you." Selana said. "Any requirements you need for your workers?"
But before Ludwig explained his requirements to Selena, Greito beat him to it. "Give him the kids, Selena. They should be enough for the job Ludwig needs them to do."
Selena looked at Greito for a few moments, then she nodded in understanding. "Please wait a little bit, I'll call the kids." She then rose to her feet and walked deeper into the house. Before long, she returned to the living room with five young demons in tow. Three girls and two boys.
They looked curiously at him, a natural course of action as he was a human. The buzzing curiosity wrapped in silence continued until Selena opened her mouth. "Introduce yourself to the He-"
"Kuhum." Ludwig interjected before Selena could finish.
"T-to the human, I mean." Selena stuttered.
Ludwig looked at her with an exasperated face. Why was it so hard for her to call him by his name? At this rate, she would probably start a religion about him in the near future. A grim future he didn't look forward to.
"My name is Zhark." A boy with black hair and black eyes with a single horn in his forehead said.
"My name is Bilo." Another boy with goat legs and brown hair introduced himself.
"My name is Vilera, nice to meet you." This time, it's the girl with long black hair and a tail that introduced herself.
"My name is Valerie." Another girl that looked almost the same as the girl before introduced herself. But unlike the calm introduction from the girl from before, this one tone was full of happy energy.
"M-my n-name is F-finka, n-nice to meet you." The last girl was the shortest of them all. A girl with silvery hair that looked almost the same as Ludwig's own and black eyes.
Ludwig smiled and looked at each and everyone of them. "My name is Ludwig, nice to meet you. You have heard why I'm here I hope?"
"Yes." The five said in unison.
"Good." Ludwig nodded. "The work I need you to do in my restaurant is simple. Serving the food, taking away dirty dishes from the customer's table, and helping me wash dishes. Does anyone have any questions?"
One of the girls, Vilera, raised her hands. Ludwig nodded his head and she opened her mouth. "Since you are human, will we be okay? WIll we be in danger?"
Ludwig smiled. It was a sharp question, evidence that she was smart. "Don't worry. Nothing bad will happen to you inside my restaurant."
"I see." Vilera nodded thoughtfully. "But if it's a restaurant, wouldn't employing demons hurt your business? Or did you think about casting Illusion magic on us?"
"The simple answer is no to both. You can show yourself proudly in my restaurant and no one will even think badly of you. The business will also not get affected by your presence." Ludwig explained. "If you want to know why, and you eventually will if you decide to work for me, I will need you to sign a Blood Contract with me. Don't worry, if you end up not wanting to work for me by the end of the explanation, it's fine."
Ludwig could see the five- no the four demons contemplating. Valerie was the only one who still had that beaming smile on her face, practically sending happiness all over the room. But with the nudge from Selena and Greito, the contemplation didn't take long to finish.
"We are willing to sign a Blood Contract with you." Vilera said. From what Ludwig seen until now, it seemed like she was the spokesperson of the group
"Thank you." Ludwig said before dishing five parchment from his Storage Dimension. Putting the five parchment on the table in front of him, Ludwig stated his condition. "This Blood Contract will bind party B to adhere to Party A's wishes. Party B should not, in any condition, tell anyone about the ability of Party B's restaurant as well as the location of Party B. At the same time, Party A will provide adequate pay and security to Party B if they decide to work for Party A."
Once Ludwig finished, he bit the tip of his thumb and let blood dripped into the parchments. Red glow covered the room soon after, once it subsided the five young demons walked and also dropped their blood into it.
Another red glow made its presence in the room before subsiding. Then, Ludwig opened his mouth. "My restaurant is special. It can connect to many other worlds aside from Ortus. If you decide to work for me, you'll find humans, monsters, elves frequenting the restaurant. But don't worry, they are good people."
What followed after that was something Ludwig had experienced before. Round of questions and answers. But Ludwig entertained all the questions the young demons had with patience. He even told them about the System's Functions he had. After all, it was all necessary information for them who would stand in the front line of the restaurant.
Just before noon, the round of questions and answers was finally done. Thankfully, all five young demons decided to work for him.
"Thank you." Ludwig nodded to the five young demons. "Your pay will be 7 gold coins every month. You guys will also get 2 rest days in a week. But I'm sorry I can't let you all have the same vacation. Maybe 1 or 2 people in a day?"
But rather than answer, only silence reigned. Selena was looking at him with wide eyes, the same as Greito. At the same time, the five young demons were just standing there.
"What's wrong?" Ludwig asked.
"H-H… Human. The pay is too much! You already gave them a place to live and food. I don't think they need 10 gold coins a month." Selena opened her mouth.
"Indeed." Greito nodded. "I think 4 gold coins is fair. You offered too much."
Ludwig chuckled as soon as he heard their words. He also knew that 4 or 5 gold coins a month was fair pay for jobs like waitressing in Ortus. But his restaurant was anything but a normal restaurant which could be found in Ortus. To be a waitress in his restaurant, the young demons had to be able to explain the power of his restaurant to any new customers, dispelling their worries, and calming them down. Moreover, there's Rimuru, the cats, and that invisible dragon. The chaosmaker of the restaurant.
Ludwig just waved his hands. "Nah. I think 7 gold coins is the minimum because of all the things they will experience in my restaurant."
After Ludwig waved their worries away, the two adult demons fell into a silence. Since he had things to do soon, Ludwig opened his mouth again. "Are you guys ready? I need to open the restaurant soon. If you are not ready, I can return here to take you guys to the restaurant tomorrow."
Vilera opened her mouth at that moment. "Please wait a little bit, we don't have much, so it shouldn't take long for us to gather our things."
"Sure." Ludwig said with a smile and the five young demons quickly disappeared into the house again.
"Hero, thank you for taking them all." Selena said.
"I told you a long time ago to call me Ludwig. Why did you keep calling me Hero?" Ludwig sighed.
"H-how can I call someone like you by your name…"
"Do you think calling me Human is better?" Ludwig chuckled.
"N-no." Selena stuttered. "I apologize."
"That's why I told you to call me Ludwig."
"I-I will try, L-ludwig." Selena stuttered, his voice became smaller and smaller through the end of the sentence.
"Good." Ludwig nodded. Then, Ludwig made a mental note on his head. He had to ask Rimuru about the production methods he could give him and gave it to this village soon. Well, he had thought about asking him to take the demons from this village and integrate it to his city, but his city was not complete yet. Moreover, his city was still riddled with problems like shortage of food and housing. So, he didn't dare to ask just yet. The production methods of some products was the most he could ask for now.
Before long, the five demons returned to the living room with bags in hands. Ludwig dropped Greito back into his home first. Then, he transported the young demons to the restaurant, one by one.
Once everyone gathered in the living quarters after they picked their room, Ludwig opened his mouth. "Do you want to start working today or tomorrow?"
The five young demons looked towards each other before nodding. "We can start working right away."
"Okay. For now, the only thing you guys should do is clean the dining area, I'll do the preparation myself." Ludwig started. "If by the service hours new customers come in, I'll ask you to explain the ability of this restaurant. Understood?"
"Yes." The five young demons said in unison.
Just like that, the new day started for the restaurant. But unlike before, Ludwig was not alone in the restaurant before the operational hours started. He had five young demons with him. His employees.