28: Shocked Speechless - Part 1

"It's nice to meet you again. I will introduce myself again. I am Aria Duskwood, and I will be your co-worker from today. I took time to think and decided that it would be best for me to work and repay my debt to this store."

Aria Duskwood sounded sure of herself and her decision. Her determination was enough to make Liam feel speechless.

He had been the one to ask Aria to rethink her decision, and now that she had, he had nothing else to say to her. If she wanted to work a low-end retail job despite being a talented and well-recognized magician, then it was her choice.

"So, what do I need to do first?"

Aria asked in a questioning voice. She awkwardly held the boxes in her hand, causing her to almost drop them before she quickly caught herself.

Seeing her handle these boxes made Liam's heart skip a beat, and he immediately decided that this was not something Aria could handle.

"Maybe we should try out something new today. How about you work the front counter? It's not much work, and all you need to do is register how much someone spent on buying something. Come, I will show you."

Liam took Aria to the front counter and showed her how to work it. After about five minutes of explaining, it was time for Aria to try it.

However, as soon as she looked at the counter and all the available options, her expression looked worried.

"Ugh, how did you work the counter again? You press that button and—"

"No, not that one! That one will reset everything. It's the green button beside it that you need to press."

Liam was quick to correct Aria, making her look flushed. The shocked expression on her face clearly told Liam that Aria had made a mistake.

And despite this clear indication of her being in the wrong, the female just bit her lip and gave Liam a small glare before speaking in a resolute and calm voice.

"Of course, I knew that! I was just testing to see if you were paying attention or not. I can easily take care of this counter. You can leave me alone to work now."

Aria assured him, but Liam felt a sense of dread every time he walked away from Aria. He could not bring himself to leave Aria alone to work on the counter, especially when she kept trying to reach for the erase button over the one that opened the sales option.

'I better keep an eye on her. I am afraid that we will go under if I leave Aria alone for too long.'

Liam decided this, and he was in the right to do so. It did not even take Aria five minutes to mess up, but she looked so confident that it was impossible to tell.

Still, Liam had to correct her three times, and he could tell that Aria was getting frustrated by now.

It took another hour to make her feel comfortable enough to use the counter system. But by then, Liam had noticed another problem—no one was heading to the counter to buy anything.

There were a few people in the store, but none of them approached the counter, even after they had decided on what to buy. Somehow, Liam had a feeling that this was related to Aria. But the female herself did not seem to have noticed this.

"Hey, can you handle the counter for a minute? I need to use the restroom."

Aria asked, but she did not wait to hear Liam's answer before she left. She was just doing everything at her pace, not considering anyone else as she walked around.

Liam had no choice but to work the counter once she was gone, and people instantly headed toward him to make their purchase.

"Hey, ring me up for this. And hurry up!"

"No, me first!"

"I don't care who is first! Just make it quick before that devil comes back."

Almost a dozen people (Liam did not realize just how many people were in the store) who wanted to finalize their purchase stormed the front counter, and he helped out as many of them as he could before Aria came back.

Seeing Aria head back, most of the people in the line quickly went back to shopping. It was clear that they were avoiding her on purpose.

"Hey, did we finally make a sale? Let me see what we are selling. Hey, isn't this pot—"

[System warning: Aria Duskwood's magical aura is out of control. She will break the magical tool if she touches it.]

Aria Duskwood was fast, but somehow, Liam was even faster, and he managed to grab her arm and pull it back before Aria could grab the purchase.

"Please do not touch the customer's product. It is the first rule of working here. Miss Aria doesn't want to get fired on her first day, right?"

Liam asked as his heart thundered in his chest and his skin prickled for him to let go. Half of it was psychological on his part, but he could also feel the physical sensation of Aria's magic under his hand that made him let go quickly.

The poor female was red-faced and looked flustered. But she did not try to reach out for the purchase again, and Liam was able to take care of it just fine.

Once Liam made the first sale with Aria, it became evident that he was someone the people could trust. And suddenly, the sales returned to normal, making Liam sigh in relief.

Finally, his sense of peace was returning to him, and the day ended on a high note. Even Aria looked satisfied, and it was time to close the shop for the day.

His boss, Lucas Smith, came down to check up on him and to see what was happening, only to look relieved and shocked that the shop was still somehow standing.