บท 7: First Day
After leaving the room she looked down the corridor. All the occupied rooms were still locked, they weren't in a hurry to wake it seemed. Veronica didn't linger further and she made her way downstairs.
The main room was still empty. On the door the sign that says 'Open' was not flipped yet, James and the children were nowhere to be seen either.
She moved into the kitchen, here Suze was already preparing the breakfast with the help of Sofie. After a quick good morning she moved on and went to the corridor where the bath was located. With the Sun already up there was no need to light gas lamps.
She walked to the restroom door then entered the one next to it. The room was smaller than the restroom, it only had a bathtub, a couple of shelves with cleaning products and a towel rack. The bathtub was made of ceramic, it was nothing fancy just plain white. This was already a luxury in most places, but judging by her salary and the amount of food located in the kitchen and pantry, they could afford it.
'This raises another question. Where do they get the money from, because an inn, even the best would not be able to afford these. They even have plumbing for the bathtub!'
While thinking about where they get this much money from. She touched the still surface of water, the temperature was okay, but it was a bit cold. They probably reused the water for each family member, they weren't rich after all.
One bath full of water everyday was a horrible amount of money. Counting by standard cost of water per cubic meter, which is around 25 eura and this bath seems to be around 1.75 meter times 1.25 meter times 0.5 meter. That means the bath can hold 1.1 cubic meter, which means they have to pay 27.5 eura or 275 coppen each day.
While counting all of this out she took of her robe and went into the lukewarm water. It felt nice on her skin, she preferred scolding hot water, but she will take what she can get. There was a sponge on the shelf which she grabbed, then she smelt all of the cleaning products and chose one that resembled cinnamon and peach. She poured some on the already watered sponge and began scrubbing her body.
With the calmness all around her and the light movement of water on her skin, she began to lose herself in the serenity... Well, until suddenly the door handle turned and a head popped in. With a small yelp of surprise Veronica covered her breasts and waist area. The head's owner smiled at her and she laughed at her shyness.
"Come on Veronica, breakfast is almost ready..."
Then Suze smelt the air and looked at her cleaning products, with a slightly annoyed face she looked at Veronica. A smile appeared on her face, but it wasn't the usual kind one. This one seemed to be mocking and a bit angry.
"I don't think I allowed you to use my soaps for washing. It is okay now, but never use it again."
With that she closed the door and walked away. It took a bit for Veronica's heart to calm down. It felt horrible, realizing what she had done. She acted before thinking, because they let her use everything she didn't even felt the need to ask.
With a bit of shame, she stood up and stepped out of the bath. Then she grabbed a towel and began getting rid of all the water droplets on her skin.
When she was finished, she pulled on her undergarment, then the brown dress. It took a bit of time, but she was finally done. The dress looked okay on her, not an exact measurement, but no ankle was showing which was the main concern.
The woman dresses in the Free Cities funnily enough are the most grave. They can't show elbow, shoulder, cleavage or ankle. The Dracon Empire on the other hand are way less serious, there you can wear a dress that only ends above the ankle, but it still can't show cleavage.
The most forgiving out of every nation is the Tessalion Matriarchy. There woman can walk naked if they want to, but don't get it wrong, man have the same rights as woman in the Matriarchy, only they are always ruled by a Queen and her daughters.
Veronica left the bathroom at the same time when the bell began signaling seven. She went into the kitchen, everyone was there and seated already. She sat down between Suze and Sofie, then was about to apologize to her when James spoke with a bright smile.
"Don't worry about Suze, just don't use those soaps or shampoos, she collects them. Even she doesn't use it, we have a communal soap that the whole family uses. I know its not very hygienic, but we don't have infinite money. Anyway, Sofie should have put out a toothbrush as well. Now just enjoy the meal, then your first day will begin."
'Somehow knowing that even she doesn't use them makes me feel even worse.'
Turning towards the food she saw all the options, there were some boiled eggs, some toast, there was butter as well and cut fruits and vegetables like tomatoes, cucumber, etc. There was meat too, sliced smoked ham and cooked sausages, then there was the cheese, some smoked, some regular.
She wasn't too hungry, so she only ate a toast with some butter, ham and cheese. Also she took an apple. Everyone began to eat, this meal wasn't as tasty as the dinner, but it was still better, than a lot of food she ate back on Earth.
They were done fairly quickly, then everyone went on their way. James opened the inn and stood in the bar. Ann and Jamie prepared to leave for school. Sofie, Suze and Veronica made quick work of the dishes, they washed and rinsed everything within minutes, then also put away all the excess food.
Veronica then excused herself and went to the restroom to wash her teeth and go to the toilet. When she was done the first of the customers had already arrived, currently she had nothing to do since there weren't many people, some ordered breakfast meals and Suze began cooking immediately.
She stayed near James at the kitchen door in case the food was ready and needed to be brought out. In the meantime she observed the few customers already here. There was a couple who were currently residing in the inn, then there were some sailors who started the day by getting drunk, there are also a some people who seemed to be friends with James and his family. These people also ate breakfast here, instead of an actual restaurant or cafe.
"Veronica these ones are ready.", came the shout from the kitchen. She hurriedly took them away and brought them to the ones who ordered it. When she was done, she returned to her post.
The hours went by quickly and soon it was about 11 am. She brought out the meals, took payment and gave it to James, when they were done with their meals or drinks she took away their empty plates and glasses, she also cleaned them when Suze wasn't available. This part of her job was easy and kind of fun, she loved to interact with new people and this was a perfect place for it.
During the hours she learned a couple more things about this world, for example that this area of the world is a hotbed for piracy, which explains the dreadnaughts in the harbor. She also heard some sailors speak of the ascended, some fantasy tale of people with magical powers. She dismissed it as some myth of this world.
Sadly the fun part of her job was about to come to an end, because now that not many people will arrive until the midday rush, she had to start cleaning. And that cleaning included the communal restroom, which many of the drunken sailors used before they left.
With a grimace on her face she slowly approached it, there were cleaning supplies with her and also a cloth for reducing the smell.
She made quick work of the cleaning, it was by far the worst thing she ever had to do and she even began to fantasize that waking up next to a brothel would have been less disgusting than this. At least she would also get some miniscule enjoyment out of that.
Anyway, it was done. Although she knew that before finishing at night she will have to clean it again, but that was future Veronica's problem and suffering. The current Veronica was just happy to be done with it. She also mopped up the main room, the kitchen and every other corridor or room where no one was currently living.
After getting everything cleaned she was already tired, but sadly the bell sounded 1 pm which meant the midday rush will begin soon. With a heavy sigh she went back to her place next to the kitchen door and waited. Soon enough, the first of the customers came and she went back to work.
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