In West Grimoir, there was a modest place called Café Laevatain.
That morning, the café hadn't opened yet. The lights were still dim, chairs half-arranged, and the atmosphere quiet enough to hear the faint hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen.
Until...
"This is bad!!"
The sudden shout startled everyone.
A tall man with mixed European and Asian features burst through the café entrance, immediately drawing the attention of the entire staff. Baristas stopped preparing ingredients, waitresses turned from their cleaning duties, even the manager looked up from the register.
"What's wrong, boss?" one of the baristas asked lazily from behind the counter.
"I still can't find it! This is seriously bad!"
"What is?"
The man quickly pulled out a slightly faded blue wallet and opened the ID compartment with a troubled expression.
"All I have is this address: Dewi Ijo Village 58, East Grimoir. But when I try searching for it on GPS? Nothing comes up."
"Dewi Ijo Village?" someone repeated. "I've never heard of it."
"Exactly! Even you locals don't know it, so how am I supposed to?"
The café owner, Robert, let out a frustrated sigh.
He still hadn't managed to find the owner of the pale blue wallet, the same wallet that had been dropped in the alley beside the café several days ago. The owner, a strange red-eyed young man, never returned to claim it.
What made things worse was the address itself. It felt less like a real place and more like something that shouldn't exist at all.
"Have you tried asking people around the area?" one of the waitresses asked.
"I did," Robert replied while rubbing his forehead. "But most people say they know nothing about it. And whenever I mention the village... some of them start acting weird."
"Weird how?"
Robert tapped his temple.
"I don't know. It's like... they don't want me talking about that place."
The room fell briefly silent.
Several staff members exchanged uneasy glances. At this point, the safest option was probably to hand the wallet over to the police.
"What else can we do?" the male chef muttered. "We should handle this legally."
A steward nodded in agreement.
"He's right. This is someone's wallet. Identification documents are important."
Robert stayed quiet for a moment.
His gaze lowered toward the worn blue wallet resting in his hand. Slowly, he opened it again and stared at the owner's photo.
Those ruby-red eyes somehow felt alive.
As if they were staring back at him.
An inexplicable chill crawled across his spine.
"Nope. I still have a Plan B."
"Huh?" Several employees looked at each other in confusion.
*Kling!
The small bell above the entrance rang softly as the café door opened.
"Good morning~!"
A cheerful voice instantly brightened the room.
A girl stepped inside wearing a black skirt and a plain white T-shirt. The atmosphere noticeably softened the moment she appeared.
"Ah, finally. You're here," Robert said excitedly. "My Plan B has arrived."
"What's going on?" the girl asked, glancing around in confusion. "Why's everyone gathered near the entrance?"
"It's about the wallet I texted you about yesterday."
One of her brows lifted slightly.
"Oh? It still hasn't been returned?"
"Impossible," Robert groaned while scratching his head. "I already tried searching for the owner's address, but somehow the universe itself refuses to help me."
Aidera laughed lightly.
"You're being way too dramatic, sir."
A moment later, another person entered through the door.
It was Clara, Aidera's personal maid and also the treasurer of their campus organization. Her sharp gaze swept across the café like a silent storm.
"I give up," Robert muttered before handing the wallet over to Aidera. "The guy never came back, and I still can't find his address."
He folded his arms and let out a long sigh.
"So I'm leaving it to you. I'm pretty sure this belongs to a student from Grimhour Institute... just like you two."
"Huft... fine, Mr Robert. I'll help."
Aidera accepted the wallet, then glanced sideways. A sly grin slowly spread across her face.
"But in exchange, you'll have to hand this café over to me as payment."
"Nooooo!" Robert immediately crossed his arms protectively. "I just moved to this city to build this business, and now you want to steal it from me?!"
Aidera giggled mischievously. "Hehehe."
Her attention returned to the wallet in her hand.
It felt damp and worn out, as though someone had accidentally tossed it into a washing machine before leaving it to dry under the sun.
"Heh... looks like the owner doesn't really care about his belongings either," she muttered.
Curious, Aidera flipped the wallet open. Student ID, photo, and name...
Zeyn Tendou Zaine.
Her fingers suddenly stiffened. The cold face staring back at her felt painfully familiar. She had spoken to him only a few days ago.
And then, something shifted. Her vision blurred violently. The café vanished.
In its place stood a dark corridor drenched in blood inside a massive mansion. Screams echoed from somewhere beyond the walls. Corpses littered the floor like broken dolls.
A boy stood among them. Red eyes, cold, silent. His gaze locked directly onto hers.
Her head spun harder and harder, nausea clawing at her stomach as panic rose in her chest. She was about to scream when a sudden tap on her shoulder snapped everything apart.
"Milady, what happened?!" Clara asked in alarm.
Her body jerked as she returned to the present. Cold sweat clung to her skin. She blinked rapidly, confused.
"What... what happened?" she murmured blankly.
"You suddenly zoned out," Clara said, her expression beginning to fill with worry. "Are you feeling unwell?"
"Huh...? I... I..." Aidera stammered. "I'm... fine."
But she wasn't. Both of her hands were trembling.
She didn't understand what had just happened. It felt too vivid to be imagination, yet too absurd to be real. And judging from everyone's faces, she had clearly worried the people around her.
At some point, the wallet had slipped from her hand. Her gaze slowly lowered toward it. Zeyn's face resurfaced in her mind once more. She remembered those crimson eyes…
Trying to take control of the situation, Clara suddenly stepped forward and made a decision on her own.
"Mr. Robert," she said seriously, "it seems Miss Ai isn't feeling well. We would like permission to take the day off."
"Huh? Umm... okay." Robert rubbed his chin awkwardly. "If you're exhausted, you should just go home and rest."
"Perhaps this is the result of accumulated fatigue," Clara added calmly. "She barely rested since yesterday because of organizational matters."
"Clay, wait a second." Aidera gently tapped Clara's shoulder.
The bob-haired girl turned around.
To her surprise, Aidera was already smiling again.
"I'm okay. We don't need to go home. Nothing even happened."
"Milady..." Clara frowned slightly. "But your face turned completely pale earlier. Are you certain you're alright?"
Aidera laughed awkwardly and waved her hand dismissively.
"I'm totally fine. I was just imagining something stupid, that's all."
"...Umm, are you sure?"
Aidera took a slow breath, forcing herself to calm down.
"I'm fine," she said while picking the wallet back up. "I already came to work. I can't let personal issues ruin my productivity."
Then, as if nothing had happened, she smiled and headed toward the employee room to change clothes.
"A waitress shouldn't look gloomy, right? Isn't that what you taught me, sir?"
Robert still looked uncertain, but eventually sighed in defeat.
"Hm... if you say so. Alright then, everyone get ready. The café's opening soon."
"Yes, sir," the staff answered together.
* * *
Working at a café was exhausting.
Not physically alone, but emotionally.
A waitress was expected to smile no matter what kind of chaos was happening inside her head. And today, Aidera was painfully aware of it.
Since morning, her head had been throbbing nonstop. On top of that, she still had presentations for three different courses tomorrow. Yet despite everything, she continued greeting customers with the same bright smile.
"You should rest for a bit, Milady," Clara whispered while gently massaging her shoulder.
"I am," Aidera replied flatly before taking a sip from her water bottle.
"Milady, you really don't need a part-time job like this. You're already busy enough being the organization's secretary. Why burden yourself further?"
"Why not? Lots of students work part-time," Aidera answered casually. "Think of it as... staying grounded."
"But you're not ordinary. Serving people like this is beneath your status."
"Clay... we already talked about this." Aidera sighed tiredly. "No titles in public."
"Even so, my loyalty does not disappear simply because we're pretending to live normally."
Aidera smiled helplessly, "Then trust me instead. Let me enjoy being a normal girl for a while."
Clara lowered her gaze slightly.
"I still don't understand," she admitted quietly. "Why would someone like you want a normal life?"
For a brief moment, Aidera fell silent. Then she gave a small shrug.
"Because being rich is exhausting too," she said lightly. "I just chose a different kind of exhaustion."
Clara still looked unconvinced.
Trying to change the mood, Aidera suddenly handed her the pale blue wallet.
"Here. Your side quest for the week. Find the owner, amd we'll return it on Monday."
Clara's eyes immediately sparkled.
"Understood! I'll find this man even if I have to cross mountains and oceans!"
"Okay, okay, don't get too excited." she laughed softly. "Now get back to work."
The maid quickly returned toward the counter with renewed energy.
Left alone for a moment, Aidera leaned against the wall and pulled out her wireless earbuds. She opened her phone, scrolling aimlessly through playlists.
Music usually helped calm her mind.
"Hmm... maybe lo-fi today," she murmured.
A few seconds later, she uploaded a selfie onto social media alongside a cheerful caption. Just another cute café worker surviving a busy weekend shift.
Nothing suspicious. Nothing strange. But deep inside her mind, the image of that red-eyed boy still lingered. Quietly. Unsettlingly.
As if his gaze had never truly left her.
* * * *