CH 106

Ever since the four got together that day, they’ve been seeing each other often. There were times when all five of us would get together and have a discussion, and often when someone couldn’t come because of some business, only a few of us would meet up. So we all gathered and shared our wisdom, but there was still no solution. Alexandra’s current situation is not easy.

It’s already been a month and a half since school started, and nearly 2 weeks have passed since everyone started meeting up. However, if there is no solution, does that mean that there is nothing we can do about it? Without at least more information and corroboration, nothing can be done.

“Miss Flora, if you don’t prepare quickly, everyone will already be here,” Katharina said.

“Yes, I understand,” I said.

Well, all I have to do is get Katharina to change my clothes and prepare the rest of my appearance, so all I have to do is stand in front of the full-length mirror… since I’m taking it easy, Katharina urged me to come here quickly.

“I never thought that the five of us would go out together, but…” I said.

“No, it’s not acceptable for any of us to rush ahead and go out with you alone, Miss Flora,” Katharina said. “It’s fine to make a promise to go out with you alone after everyone is present, but at this point, this is inevitable.”

Today, Katharina, Louisa, Claudia, and Mikoto are going to show up at the new opening of Caanza Trading Frim’s second royal capital store. Of course, I’m just going as a guest, so I can’t go dressed like a noble. I go dressed like a commoner, like how I went out with Louisa before.

I also told Mikoto and Claudia, who were originally royalty or nobility, to dress like commoners because we are incognito today. Since Claudia is a knight, she originally lived a life similar to that of a commoner and said that there was no problem with her clothes or blending in with the commoners.

If there is a problem, is it going to be Mikoto? Mikoto is a princess, and she was originally raised in the Demon Country with different customs, so I’m worried about whether she can blend in with the commoners.

Even though Katharina should have been raised in a decent noble family, her disguise was perfect. No matter how you look at her, she looks like an ordinary town girl. In order to be able to handle any kind of mission, she blended in with the common people and learned a lot about disguise.

It’s not a manga, and I was wondering when she’d use that kind of skill, but I finally realized that she could use it in an unexpected situation. I think Isabella and Helmut are the same, but when they’re gathering information, they probably dress like commoners like Katharina is doing now. There are many things that are more convenient to gather information among the commoners.

It’s not a spy movie and you might think it’s just a fantasy world, but that’s not the case. Most of the old ninjas were spies who disguised themselves as ordinary people and gathered information, or conversely spread false information and caused confusion. There is no such thing as in manga or anime where you fight using inexplicably magical ninjitsu techniques. 1

“Miss Flora…… are you really going out in this outfit?” Katharina asked.

“Huh? Is something wrong?” I asked.

I finished changing clothes, so I checked my appearance in the large mirror. There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s not much different from the town girl’s clothes I wore to disguise myself when I went out with Louisa last time. Of course, I don’t wear the exact same clothes. It’s been quite a few days since then, and if you’re a commoner, you probably don’t have that many clothes in general, but if you meet the same person last time and they think they’re dressed in the same outfit, it doesn’t leave a good impression. So the clothes themselves are new.

The design and color are different, and you can tell at a glance that it’s clearly different from the previous clothes. On top of that, I had the clothes that ordinary town girls wear prepared, which you could find anywhere. I pick up the skirt in front of the mirror and check it, but there’s nothing particularly strange about it. I’m perfectly dressed as a town girl.

“Wouldn’t it be better to dress a little more like usual…?” Katharina says, hesitating.

What does she mean, “like usual”? Does she mean that I’ll seem to be the daughter of House Carruthers or Head of House Caan? Then I can’t go dressed like that. Today’s purpose is to inspect incognito as a commoner customer.

“Wouldn’t it be strange if I dressed like a noble?” I said.

“That’s exactly it…” Katharina said, muttering so quietly it was hard for me to hear. “… It’s better to match your whole body a little more… an outfit that suits your face and gestures, Miss Flora…”

“Miss Flora, your guests have arrived,” someone from outside said with a knock on the door.

It’s not Isabella. It’s another House Carruthers servant. Usually, there are only three people with me: Helmut, Isabella, and Katharina. And today I gave two of them a day off. Even if I say it’s an inspection, it’s like going out to play, so it would be better for the two of them to take a good rest once in a while.

“Then let’s go, Katharina,” I said.

“… Right,” Katharina said.

It looked like she was trying to say more but ultimately did not, so I ignore her. When I left the room and headed for the entrance, all three of the others were waiting for me.

Louisa is no different than usual. She’s originally a commoner, so if she acts normally, she’ll be able to blend in with the people around her. Claudia herself is from a poor Knighthood, so you could say that she lives the same life as a commoner. Even if Louisa and Claudia are walking together in the town now, there is no sense that anything is off.

Compared to that, Mikoto… is this some kind of joke?

“What is with that…?” I asked. “Mikoto, isn’t that a bit strange?”

The other three nodded at my words. That’s what everyone thought.

“What? What’s wrong?” Mikoto asked like she really was clueless.

How should I put it…? Mikoto is like that. She doesn’t know what a commoner is. Is it natural for her or is her sense out of alignment?

“It’s definitely not noble’s attire, isn’t it?” Mikoto asked. “So it means that anything should be fine so long as it’s not something a noble would wear…”

Yes, Mikoto’s appearance is different from that of high-ranking nobles. But wearing a flashy red robe, she’s like a witch that came straight out of a manga or anime! That kind of feeling is strange. There is absolutely no commoner dressed like that.

There are mages in this world, and mages have an outfit suitable for mages. But if a girl dressed like a gaudy witch walks around a commoner town, she’s nothing but conspicuous. She is clearly alien.

“That’s what you’re saying about me, but what about you, Floto? Frankly speaking, you don’t look like a commoner at all,” Mikoto countered.

“Mm-mm,” Louisa said, agreeing immediately.

What is wrong with my appearance? Except for Mikoto, all four of us are dressed alike. Nothing is wrong.

“I asked Louisa about it, Mikoto and I laughed it off, but we can’t laugh at this now…” Claudia said, shaking her head. “She was right.”

“Right?” Mikoto said.

Louisa turned away as if she didn’t want to be asked, but what is wrong with me?

“Anyway, we can’t leave like this. Miss Flora and Mikoto will wear the clothes I choose,” Katharina said.

“Huh? Hold up! Why even me…?” Mikoto said.

“Please come with me!” Katharina said.

Like this, Mikoto and I were brought back to the room to change clothes again without question.

5 people walk downtown. In the end, I and Mikoto were forced to change into clothes that were different from our original appearances. But there is one thing I am not convinced of. I’m dressed like a wealthy merchant’s daughter rather than a commoner’s daughter. I wasn’t forced to dress like an aristocrat, so this much is still within the acceptable range. What’s more unconvincing is…

“Haa~ the clothes Floto wore! Mufufu…!” Mikoto giggled. “I can still smell her and feel her warmth! It’s like she’s hugging me right now. Fufufu…!”

Yes, for some reason, Mikoto is wearing the commoner’s clothes I was wearing. I can’t believe this. In this case, wouldn’t it be better if only Mikoto changed clothes while I kept wearing those clothes? Why am I not allowed to wear this look, and why did Mikoto get it, instead? I don’t understand this change of clothes at all.

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And although Mikoto is in a good mood now, when she first had her clothes changed, she was already angry. The reason is… the clothes she was wearing were too big for her… and it’s not the size. In a way, we’re the same size, but the proportions are different.

When I was wearing those clothes, I had a breast pouch, but when Mikoto wore them…

“Hold up… are you thinking about something unnecessary just now?” Mikoto said.

“Hieh…!” I squealed. “I-I can’t be, can I?”

I couldn’t look straight at Mikoto who suddenly turned around and said that to me. Scary. She knows why I was thinking about breasts. ESP? 2 No, she was a mage… is it a secret spell handed down in demonic lineages? She was still looking at me with suspicion, but she seemed to have given up after a while because I was trying to deflect and resumed walking forward.

Mikoto isn’t small, either. Considering her age and physique, it’s rather normal. Especially from my sensibilities… Ah! I see. Many Japanese people don’t have big breasts. In that sense, being normal would be included in a slightly smaller category in this country.

I once commented that Claudia’s breasts aren’t that big. She’s visibly smaller than me. But Mikoto might be nothing more than a standard Japanese woman. Even smaller than Claudia. I don’t know what the standard Japanese size is… anyway, there was a lot of the breast pouch left over because of her smaller breasts compared to mine. Katharina repaired it with needlework in no time. After that, Mikoto finally put on her current outfit in a good mood.

Anyway, it seems taboo to touch on this topic too much, so I’ll forget about it. While doing that, I arrived at a place where a large crowd had already formed. Apparently, the new opening seems to be popular as it is.

“We’re going to eat inside the store, so it looks like we’ll line up over there. Shall we head there now?” I said.

The line of customers lined up seems to be mostly for crepe takeout. It doesn’t make sense for us to line up for the window facing the street. We stand in line for the dine-in cafe. The line is short here, but you never know when your turn will come. You have to wait until there are seats available. I can understand why most people line up for takeout.

It took a little longer than the takeout queue, but we finally got inside the store, so we ordered. I had Mille crepes and tea today. Everyone looked at the samples in the showcase and said they weren’t sure which one was good.

While everyone is choosing an order, I check the interior of the store, the customer service, and the customers’ reactions. The building was just bought from the original owner and only the interior work was done, so it was enough to renovate the store in a month. Only the plate glass seemed to have been the problem, and the plate glass was delivered on schedule, so there was no delay in the construction.

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The sales clerks’ education is still a bit lax. Or rather, they’re not used to this kind of style fundamentally. Most of the clerks are veteran staff who originally worked at Caanza, and there are only a few completely new staff. Still, it’s a little slow because this store is a completely new type of store, so the store clerks are unfamiliar. It would be a cruel thing to ask for perfection from the beginning because they will get used to it and improve problems with time.

Customer reaction has been excellent. The wait is a little long, but it also reflects the high expectations. Customers are smacking their lips over the regular crepes and Mille crepes that they eat for the first time. It seems that we can secure a certain number of repeaters because we can hear conversations about what to eat next time and what else to get.

From inside the café, you can see the products of Caanza Trading Firm next door. Many visitors were fascinated by the large sheet glass. While eating crepes at a cafe, if you turn your gaze to the side, you can see the products of the company well along with the prices. There were quite a few customers who were interested in moving over there and those who were watching.

The shop assistants are also calling out to them to browse and take a look while at the cafe, and there are many female customers here already. It seems that there are quite a lot of female customers are led to the general products store because the company’s products are placed in a position that is easiest for them to see.

After everyone finished ordering, we moved to our seats and talked while eating.

“So swe~eet!”

“This one is delicious too.”

It seems that my female friends are reacting well. When I asked Louisa and Claudia, they said that the price was reasonable and easy to buy, so it seems that the setting is just right for the common people. The price and line-up have been difficult, so I’m happy to think that it’s going well.

While having a conversation with everyone, I also eavesdrop on the flow and conversation of the customers. In Japan, you can see customers who stay for a long time, but there are not many customers who stay long here. The reason seems to be that the neighboring store is gathering interest and customers are immediately leaving for there. Thanks to that, the rotation of the seats in the store is fast. Could it be an unexpected synergistic effect?

And while eating a Mille crepe and observing……

“What the…?!” I said as I stood up from my seat.

“Miss Flora?” Katharina said.

“Hey! Katharina! It’s Floto now!” I hissed.

Mikoto followed me, but I couldn’t afford to worry about such things. A woman passing by just now…

“I’m going to leave my seat for a moment!” I said.

“Ah! Floto!?” Mikoto cried.

It must not be a mistake. I found one of the people I’ve been looking for. I left the half-eaten Mille crepe and everyone behind then chased the person I saw leaving the restaurant.