I Picked up a Corrupted Heroine (The Secret Boss), and When I Spoiled Her, She Became Uncontrollably Affectionate With Me - Chapter 8-9

Chapter 8: The Witch of the End Uses Her Power for ○○

“Hey, Vice Guild Master? Got a minute?”

A few days later, I was working at the Adventurer Guild when Mina came up to me.

“What’s up?”

“Actually… it looks like a new staff member is starting today.”

“Huh? A new person!? This isn’t the usual time we hire newbies…”

“Yeah. But the Guild Master decided it on his own…”

“For real…”

I wish he’d given me a heads-up. Or maybe he saw how busy we’ve been lately and did it as a favor?

“…Well, it’s done now, so nothing we can do…”

“True.”

“By the way, has the new person shown up yet?”

“Not yet. But they should be here any minute—”

Right then, someone knocked on the door.

Looks like they arrived just in time.

“Come in.”

The person who stepped inside was a really beautiful woman with long silver hair. She looked about sixteen or seventeen.

As soon as she saw me, she gave a gentle smile and said,

“Excuse me. I’ll be working here starting today. My name is… Ri… I mean, Sia.”

“Oh, we were just talking about you. I’m Asta, the Vice Guild Master. Nice to meet you, Sia.”

“Yes, nice to meet you too.”

Sia stared straight at me with clear red eyes like rubies. Now that I think about it, they were the same color as Ria’s.

If Ria grew up, maybe she’d look like this…

“Vice Guild Master? Is something wrong?”

“Ah, no! Nothing at all. Um… did the Guild Master tell you what the job involves?”

“Yes! I can handle most tasks.”

“Wow, that’s reassuring. Alright then… let’s start with checking request forms. I’ll give you the urgent ones first.”

“Got it. By the way… where should I sit?”

“Let’s see…”

I looked around for an open seat, and it turned out the only one left was right next to mine.

“You can sit next to me for now. It’ll be easier to teach you stuff that way anyway.”

“Understood!”

I had Sia sit beside me and put part of the big stack of request forms on her desk.

“Th-there’s so many…”

“Yeah, we get at least 1,500 a day. Everyone splits them up, checks them, and then me and the Guild Master stamp the final ones.”

“…I see… that explains why there’s so much work.”

“Explains?”

“Oh, never mind. I’ll get started right away.”

“Go for it.”

About ten minutes after I gave Sia the request forms to check—

“—All done.”

She had finished checking all hundred of them.

“Wha— that was fast!?”

“Was it? I just did it normally…”

“Hang on, let me check…”

I grabbed one form at random from her pile.

The problem spots were marked perfectly, and she’d caught every little detail.

“…That’s amazing…”

This girl might be a real find.

With skills like this, she could probably work as a clerk for the country or some noble instead of here at the guild…?

“Hehe, is it that impressive?”

“Yeah… it’s really impressive.”

Sia looked at me with this wanting expression.

“Um… Sia?”

While I was wondering what was up, she tilted her head down a little toward me. Did she want me to pat her head?

Without thinking, I reached out and stroked her hair.

“Mm…”

Sia made a happy face.

…Wait, what is this situation?

I quickly pulled my hand back.

“Sia? What’s going on?”

“…I worked hard, so don’t you think I deserve a little reward?”

“Uh, well… I guess… maybe?”

“So, could you pat my head like that every now and then…?”

Sia looked up at me with sweet, pleading eyes. It was a pretty weird—kinda perverted—request.

But strangely, I didn’t mind it. It felt just like when Ria gets clingy with me—

“Uh… sure.”

Before I knew it, I’d nodded.

My hand somehow ended up back on Sia’s head, gently stroking her hair.

“Hehe… thank you.”

“Uh… yeah.”

Sia seemed satisfied and went back to work.

What am I even doing…?

After that, she asked for head pats a few more times, and for some reason I couldn’t say no. Why…?

“Well… whatever.”

There were some strange things, but Sia’s work speed was crazy fast.

She handled every task I gave her quickly and smoothly—

“—No way, it looks like we’ll actually get out on time…!?”

Getting off on time? How many years has it been?

I was honestly moved.

“Sia… thank you so much…”

“No need to thank me. I only did what I could.”

Sia gave a humble answer and smiled softly.

Great personality, super fast and accurate work. She was like a goddess.

“Alright, we can finish the rest ourselves, so you can head home first, Sia.”

“Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

With that, Sia left early.

She really was an incredible new hire…

Who is she, exactly?

Maybe she’s actually from a noble family and got a top education…? Or some super talented character from the game that I just didn’t know about…?

“—Nah, no way.”

Time to finish my last bit of work and get out of here…

But I never imagined that “no way” would actually turn out to be true.

—

Chapter 9: The Witch of the End Asks About the Person She Likes

[Sia side]

Sia had finished her first job at the guild and was already on her way home ahead of Asta.

“Phew… I guess I am a little tired.”

When she got home, Sia stretched her arms out with a small yawn.

It was a fairly big two-story house—Asta’s house.
Sia opened the door without hesitation and stepped inside.

Then, as if she just remembered, she muttered in the living room.

“—Oh yeah, I can undo the magic now.”

Sia put her hand on her chest—

“<Veil of Jealousy>”

In the next moment, a veil that hadn’t been visible before appeared around her and quietly peeled away.

What appeared was a black-haired girl—Ria.

“Hehe, the witch’s power really is super handy…! I can’t believe I can change my appearance freely…!”

Ria’s idea had been a bold move—turn into a guild worker with a different look and finish the job fast.

She was originally raised to become a saint in a noble family, even if it was only by duty. Guild work was a piece of cake for her.

“Now then… I wonder if my double is working properly?”

Ria looked toward the kitchen.
A girl who looked exactly like her was cooking there.

“Hehe, who would’ve thought I could summon a double with the witch’s power…! Now I can focus completely on spending time with Asta!”

The witch’s power, which was supposed to bring chaos and the end of the world, was being used for something extremely peaceful like housework and disguises.

“All that’s left is to wait for Asta…! I bet he’ll be happy… I wonder when he’ll get back~”

Ria hummed a little song while she waited for Asta to come home.

—◇—◇—◇—

“Phew… It’s been a while since I got home almost on time…!”

I grinned to myself in front of the entrance.

I’d been coming home super late every night, so Ria was probably going to be surprised.

“I’m home~”

As soon as I opened the door, I heard quick footsteps and Ria came running over.

“Welcome home…! Asta, you’re early today!”

Ria greeted me with a big smile on her face.

“Turns out work finished really fast today…! I actually made it home on time for once.”

“That’s great…! Dinner’s already ready, so should we eat soon? Or do you want a bath first?”

“If dinner’s ready, I’ll have that first before it gets cold.”

“Got it! I’ll get it ready!”

“Thanks, you’re a big help.”

After a short wait, Ria brought over some gratin.
It looked seriously delicious…!

“Alright, let’s eat.”

“Y-yeah…!”

I took one bite of the gratin.

“—This is good…! Ria, did you level up your cooking skills?”

“Hehe, you can tell? I actually practiced a bit…!”

Ria puffed out her chest proudly.

She really is a sweet, hardworking girl.
Honestly, when I first met her I thought she was a crazy girl who tried to kill me.

But the truth was, Ria just got wary around others because of past trauma. Deep down she was kind.

“…I’m really glad I picked you up back then.”

“W-what’s this all of a sudden…?”

“Oh, sorry. Just thinking out loud.”

I gave a small shrug and kept eating the gratin.

After that I took a bath, and since I was pretty sleep-deprived I went to bed early.

“…Asta… can I sleep with you?”

Sure enough, Ria snuck into my bedroom.

“Of course you can. Come here.”

“Thank you…!”

Ria climbed into the bed and snuggled right up against me.

“I’m so happy I get to sleep with you again after so long… All that hard work paid off.”

“Hard work?”

“Hehe, that’s my little secret!”

Ria lightly hugged my arm.

After that, a short silence fell between us.
But strangely, it wasn’t uncomfortable. It actually felt peaceful.

“Asta… do you have someone you like?”

Ria suddenly broke the silence and dropped a bomb.

“W-where did that come from…? It’s like one of those late-night school trip talks…”

“I don’t really get what a school trip is… but I just wondered. So, do you have someone you like? Or not?”

“Well, it’s…”

Ever since I came to this world I’ve been so busy I never had time to think about romance…

But…

“Not really… but if I had to pick one, maybe there’s one person.”

“…H-huh? Who exactly is it?”

Ria leaned forward, hanging on my words.

“…It’s a secret. She’s way too high-class for someone like me… and she already has someone.”

“So it’s an unrequited love…?”

“Pretty much… Well, I was born a commoner so I pretty much gave up from the start. I don’t think about it much.”

This love was never going to happen.
It was basically the same as falling for a celebrity or an idol.

Maybe even worse.

After all, the person I like is completely out of reach, and she’s fated to end up with the ‘protagonist.’

—I had been in love with the game’s main heroine, the saint Alicia, ever since before I reincarnated.