Medusa | Novella

|3|

The casino was much quieter this time. Probably because of the assassination of the Duchess. I couldn't help but smile to myself, a bit proud of my handiwork. I knew Crocodile was losing a significant amount of money because of the chaos, and I found the thought greatly amusing.

Unfortunately, despite all my demands, I was back in the skimpy showgirl outfit—gold coins jingling with every step, the thin fabric barely covering anything. It seemed no matter how many times I fought it, I was destined to parade around in this ridiculous getup until this mission was done.

I made my rounds, serving drinks, balancing my tray as I weaved through the crowd. The usual customers eyed me like prey, but I had mastered the art of ignoring their hungry gazes. It was just another part of the job—another act I had to play until I got closer to Crocodile.

As I moved through the crowd, I ran into a familiar face. The blonde boy from before—the one who had helped me pick up the tray after my run-in with the Duchess. His blue eyes lit up when he saw me, and he approached with a kind of enthusiasm that made me want to run away immediately.

"Hey, I've been meaning to introduce myself," he said, scratching the back of his head, a shy grin on his face. "I'm Cedric."

I glanced at him briefly, already planning my escape. "Nice," I replied curtly, brushing him off. I didn't have the time or patience to entertain pleasantries, especially not from someone who looked so... naive. 

But Cedric didn't take the hint. He followed me persistently as I moved to the next table, rattling off questions about how long I'd been working here and other pointless chatter I had no interest in. His kindness was misplaced, but worse than that, it was exhausting. He didn't seem to realise this was a den of vipers, and someone like him could be eaten alive.

After a few minutes of him trailing behind me, I finally stopped and turned towards him. "Listen," I said, narrowing my eyes. "Stop being so talkative. Someone's going to kill you if you keep running your mouth like that."

To my annoyance, he beamed at me completely unfazed by my words. "You're actually really nice, you know that?" he said, as if I'd complimented him instead of warned him about his certain death.

I scoffed. "Kind? No. Smart enough to see when someone's walking straight into danger? Yes."

Cedric didn't seem to care. He grinned again, looking like I'd just made his day, and I sighed. He was hopeless. Just as I considered ditching him - professionally this time—Cedric's manager, a balding, rotund man with a permanent scared look in his eyes, was barreling towards us, his face twisted in anger.

"You!" he barked at Cedric, grabbing his arm. "I told you to stop wasting time! We've got tables to serve!"

Cedric winced but didn't argue, the cheerfulness in his face fading as he tried to explain. "I was just—"

"I don't want your excuses! Get back to work before I dock your pay!" the manager snapped.

I couldn't explain it, but something about the way Cedric shrank under the man's verbal assault irked me. The boy might've been irritating, but he didn't deserve to be treated like that. You see, I'm very passionate about worker's rights.

"Back off," I said, my voice low but firm.

The manager blinked, clearly surprised by my intervention. "What business is this of yours?"

"I don't like seeing idiots get scolded like that. He's an adult so talk to him like one," I replied, keeping my voice calm. 

The manager looked fuming, but he wasn't my manager, I could say what I wanted. Unlike the bumbling buffoon following me around.