The eyes are protruding but still energetic, the face is full of deep furrows and wrinkles, and the gray-black complexion adds a bit of majesty.
Just a trace of drool dripping from the corner of his mouth reduced his impression of the other party's intelligence.
But it also adds a lot of extra-civilized and barbaric momentum.
Animusfia was shocked by the scene before her.
Although he had expected that the real body of "Genghis Khan" might be unsatisfactory, the reality was too unsatisfactory.
"So... that's a dog?"
"I'm afraid so, Director."
Dr. Roman looked at "Genghis Khan" in the arms of the clerk and the lady carefully, and then said:
"And a pug."
Animusfia walked over to the Chaldean staff.
"So, 'Genghis Khan' is actually your pet?"
The clerk, who was immersed in the joy of being reunited with her pet, froze in place as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on her from the beginning.
Then he sighed and turned around slowly.
".....yes."
"It looks like not only me but also others don't know."
Animusfia turned to look at Roman.
Roman honestly spread his hands and shook his head, indicating that he didn't know either.
"yes."
Like a student who was caught playing a prank by a teacher, the clerk held "Genghis Khan" in her arms and lowered her head tightly.
Animusfia looked at the pug in the clerk's arms that was staring at him without any fear and asked curiously:
"I'm curious when it came to Chaldea."
"...I don't know the exact time, but not long after I joined the company, I ran into this kid in the corridor."
"It was already two years ago when you joined the company, right?"
Roman added.
".....Indeed it is."
"So you have been keeping a dog in Chaldea since you joined the job, and you have maintained it for two years without being exposed?"
Animusfia said meaningfully.
"It doesn't matter how you punish me now, Director. But at least this child! Can this child stay?"
Like a prisoner about to be sentenced.
"Director, it's somewhat bad to do this..."
Roman on the side also excused himself.
"No, don't make me look like a villain. When did I say I would be punished?"
"Director Animusfia, won't you punish me?"
The clerk girl raised her head hopefully.
"Of course not."
Animusfia said somewhat depressedly.
"I was just about to ask you why you have been hiding it from everyone all this time. Could it be that the previous director did not allow Chaldea to keep pets?"
Roman recalled the instructions issued by the previous two directors of Chaldea.
"To be honest, Chaldea has no regulations about pets at all. There are rules for the management of experimental animals."
"Then why have you been hiding this from everyone?"
"...No, if your predecessor, Director Olga Marie, would not have allowed employees of Chaldea to keep pets without permission."
The staff member holding "Genghis Khan" paused and said.
The bossy look of Olga Marie in the past seemed to appear in front of Roman's eyes.
"That said, it does make some sense..."
"Yes, Doctor Roman."
Roman and the staff nodded together.
"No, no matter how good the former director is, it's me who should make the decision now. Do I look like the kind of person who would leave a life that can think freely and independently in the ice and snow and let it fend for itself?"
Animusfia took a long breath and continued:
"Well, in short, you don't need to worry too much about this, just keep it with peace of mind... If you look closely, this guy is really ugly."
"Eh————? Isn't it cute!"
The clerk lady looks weak, but she is exceptionally tough in some aspects.
"...Cute, of course it's cute. To use the popular Internet term, it's ugly."
"Director, being ugly is no longer popular."
Roman leaned into Animusfia's ear and added.
"you shut up!"
In short, Animusfia finally spent a lot of time convincing the staff that she really thought "Genghis Khan" was cute.
The staff member returned to his room with "Genghis Khan" in his arms contentedly.
...
After seeing off the staff, Animusfia looked at the messy canteen and thought a little.
"Doctor Roman."
"What's wrong, Director?"
"Do you think the cafeteria is more messy than when we came here before?"
Roman nodded after taking a cursory glance at the cafeteria.
"And 'Genghis Khan' walked out of the mess hall, right?"
Roman nodded again.
"Then who was the person who inspected the canteen before?"
Animusfia's eyes peeked out from the gap in the bandage and stared at Roman.
"..."
In silence, Roman pointed at Animusfia, and then pointed at himself.
“There may be a risk of missing someone else, but if it’s me and you——————.”
Animusfia did not finish her words.
"At that time, there was absolutely nothing in the cafeteria except you and me, the director. I can be sure."
"I thought so at the time, but there is no doubt that 'Genghis Khan' finally walked out of the cafeteria."
"Is it possible that it was somewhere else before and entered the canteen after we left?"
"If that was the case, others would have discovered it long ago."
Animusfia denied.
"In other words, 'Genghis Khan' is both in the cafeteria and not in the cafeteria..."
Roman put his hand on his chin and muttered thoughtfully.
"Is it possible————?!"
He remembered what happened to him at noon.
"Dr. Roman, I was actually thinking about whether what you said at noon was true. You did say that you entered a maze, right?"
"That's right! There's absolutely no way I'm hallucinating!"
"So let's check, approximately how long have you been in the so-called 'Maze'?"
While thinking about it, Roman stretched out his hand to rub his hair, and said with some distress:
"I don't remember how long I stayed in that maze..."
"Don't you even have a rough guess?"
"No."
After receiving the answer, Animusfia began his deduction:
"Assuming that the maze really exists, the speed of time inside and outside should be different. It's really hard to judge without going in personally."
"But the environment in that labyrinth was like not being in Chaldea. I remember this very clearly."
Animusfia turned her attention to the bowls and plates piled up in the cafeteria.
"Anyway, it probably has something to do with these empty bowls. In order to prevent anyone else from accidentally breaking in, I would like to ask you to put all these away overnight. Dr. Roman."
After saying that, Animusfia stood up and prepared to leave the cafeteria.
"Am I alone with this stuff? All night long?!"
"Sorry, doctor, although I want to help you, I can't."
Animusfia shook her body from side to side to show that she couldn't use her hands.
"Think of it as a warm-up after five days of long sleep, doctor."
The sound that reached Roman's ears disappeared as Animusfiya left, leaving only Roman and the dishes on the ground looking at each other.
Chaldea seemed particularly quiet at night.
Presumably even if there is a person on duty at night, there won't be too much noise.
In the real apocalypse, all human beings in the outside world are extinct, and even history begins to burn.
Chaldea, located in the Antarctic, has ushered in a rare and false peace.
Even though everyone knows that the Sword of Damocles still hangs above their heads, no one can refuse this short-term peace.
In the silence, Roman tidied up Chaldea's canteen alone.
Only his bent breath and the slight collision of dishes and porcelain echoed in the empty room.
"Oh, oh, isn't this Romani?"
A slightly teasing greeting broke the silence in the cafeteria.
Without looking back, Roman knew who it was.
"It's so late. I didn't expect our genius to come to a place like this."
However, he stood up and turned to the visitor.
Da Vinci, who exuded the charm of a mature woman, leaned against the door frame of the cafeteria and looked at Roman with a half-smile.
This is the so-called Mona Lisa's smile.
If he hadn't known the other party's true face, I'm afraid Roman would have fallen long ago.
"Because the new director said that a poor doctor just woke up and was going to spend the whole night cleaning up in the cafeteria, so I came here."
"Since you know, why don't you come and help quickly."
Roman said angrily.
"And who do you think caused me to sleep for five whole days?"
Da Vinci walked to Roman's side and said in an exaggerated tone while tidying up:
"I still don't know who it is, but I don't know who it is? It's really too much!"
"Apologise to me quickly!"
"Hey, why? I've obviously never done anything sorry to you."
"Oh. Forget it, it's up to you."
Roman didn't have any other good way to make the genius apologize.
However, if Da Vinci came to clean up the canteen with him, it would be considered her apology.
.....
"Thanks."
After finally clearing away all the dishes in the canteen, Roman suddenly said to Da Vinci.
"Thank you for letting me sleep for five days?"
"It's not that! It means you are willing to help me clean it up! By the way, you just admitted that you poured the medicine on me, right?"
Roman's finally brewing emotions were completely destroyed by Da Vinci's words.
"Then don't go into the details. Besides, it would be too miserable for you to do everything by yourself. Besides, the Chaldean doctor might have entered some mysterious maze again."
"That's why I thank you."
Roman and Da Vinci walked out of the canteen that had been tidied up.
"Not to mention that, as a pastime after work, do you want to have a cup of tea?"
"It's what I asked for."
The two people's voices gradually faded away.
