“Please enjoy the hero’s special course meal! It’s a set made up of the hero’s favorite dishes! Academy students also get a discount!”
In the rather bustling crowd, I walked holding Anne’s hand tightly so as not to get separated.
During this time, at the sound of a shopkeeper’s call, I turned my head to find an unfamiliar store that seemed entirely new to the eye.
Even more so, the menu claimed to showcase my favorite dishes, but included a salad primarily made up of wild grasses as part of the course.
This was certainly not one of the dishes I enjoyed.
It’s most likely a scheme taking advantage of the Celestial Festival by using the name of the hero to make a quick profit.
While a part of me, being the actual person, feels a little irritated, it seems the people buying don’t genuinely expect authenticity but rather are in the mood for festival fun and are pulling out their wallets for that.
Considering all, it’s trivial to nitpick, and I don’t intend to comment on it.
However, I still approached the employee enthusiastically calling out to customers.
Just because I have to say this one thing.
“I never ordered the salad, and I won’t eat it, so don’t start spreading strange rumors. Change it to the meat menu.”
Selian and Yuli always nag us to eat vegetables, but Anne and I are die-hard carnivores.
The very idea of mixing a salad into my meal is unacceptable.
“What you like or dislike, it’s none of my…”
At first, they regarded me as just another nitpicky customer, but midway through my sentence, they recognized me and stopped suddenly, looking shocked.
Having achieved my purpose, I took Anne’s hand again and disappeared into the crowd, where shortly after, the shopkeeper’s calls resumed.
“Hero’s special set! No salad here! Just meat! Directly confirmed by the hero himself!”
Yeah, yeah. If this helps establish the carnivores’ reputation, I’m content.
Turning to Anne, I saw her giving a thumbs-up for my action.
Considering today as another small but good deed done, while walking along the street, I asked Anne.
“Nevertheless, we are heading to the Academy this afternoon, right? Is there anywhere you’d like to visit?”
“Hmm? Not particularly.”
Sure, expecting a plan from Anne was my mistake. That’s not to say I had a proper plan either.
Without a plan, we ended up wandering aimlessly and eventually entered a nearby shop.
While walking, I saw a familiar sign, and walked into the shop where I bought my costume before.
It was the shop where my friends brought me, insisting I should look more heroic and got a tailored outfit for me.
A place where I became the laughingstock during a mini-fashion show.
As soon as we entered, my eyes caught a mannequin.
Had it been a regular mannequin, I might have glanced and moved on, but my eyes were glued because it was dressed exactly in the outfit I wore at the opening ceremony just a little while ago.
Though accessories were purchased separately, so the hair accessory given by Mariel wasn’t included.
Next to the mannequin, a shop employee was enthusiastically promoting, just like we saw at the food stall earlier.
“The hero wore this at the opening ceremony! All customers can purchase this set from our shop. If interested, please contact nearby staff!”
At this level, maybe there should be a model fee, but speaking up now might result in being mobbed like after the opening ceremony, so I decided to let it go.
“One hero set, please! The size is…”
“Wait a moment, Anne!”
I was distracted by the mannequin for a brief second, and when I realized, Anne was already engaging a store employee nearby.
“Even if you buy an outfit you won’t wear along with armor, what good does it do? It’s not your style either.”
True, Anne was included in the consideration when picking the outfit, but it was tailored towards me, not according to her personal style.
Even if Anne comes from an aristocratic family, it’s not good to waste money on clothes she won’t even wear.
This, beyond just my stubbornness, is a typical reasonable thought process for anyone.
Therefore, when I tried to hold her back, Anne remained rooted like an eternal World Tree.
“Since it’s registered under Anne Clein, I’ll leave the size and delivery details to you!”
Despite my attempt to dissuade her, Anne ultimately bought the ‘hero set,’ a duplicate of the outfit I wore at the opening ceremony.
Once her purchase was confirmed, she finally came along willingly with me.
“…You’re clearly not going to wear it. Why was it necessary to buy it?”
“Hehe… it’s a souvenir of sorts?”
Hearing her absurd excuse, I couldn’t help but chuckle quietly.
Deciding to leave my concerns for later, as I prepared to get a gift for Anne’s tournament participation encouragement, an employee who took Anne’s order came running hurriedly towards us, asking Anne:
“Ms. Anne Clein, did you order the hero’s set?”
“Yes? What about it?”
“In reviewing our order lists, we noticed two previous orders with the same delivery address. I’m just confirming, but are these two additional orders correct?”
…
Just to confirm, I asked the employee before Anne responded:
“By any chance, what are the names of the previous orderers?”
“Normally we wouldn’t disclose this due to privacy concerns, but since the delivery address is the same, the Academy dormitory, it’s fine. They’re from Selian Deretia and Yuri Atillea.”
…
…
I raised my hands to cover my reddening face on behalf of Anne and the absent two.
Why does my embarrassment have to bear all the weight?
“Is there any issue…”
“Ah, no! The orders are correct, so please send my set to the same address!”
Even as the employee returned to their post after hearing Anne’s response, I couldn’t bring myself to uncover my face.
Selian… Yuri… you claimed to have plans, yet when did you come and go from here?
Regardless, despite now being a noble, my title is mostly in name only, and I still don’t understand the extravagant spending habits of real nobles.
Isn’t it more profitable to enjoy a delicious meal rather than buy clothes that won’t be worn?
“Let’s leave that aside and go check out our original purpose.”
Ignoring everything that happened since entering the shop, I moved to a new section.
Upon arrival, we found a corner filled with various accessories.
It seems each accessory here is handmade, since I didn’t see the same ribbons and headbands that Mariel and I exchanged as gifts before.
The other accessories on display were all of different designs.
“Do you want to try this one?”
Among the many accessories, I picked up a white-flowered headband.
Considering Anne’s active nature, it was likely a cumbersome choice, yet it didn’t matter.
Indeed, once I placed it on her head, it was clear it was a perfect fit.
The white flower blossoming among her fiery red hair created an unexpectedly harmonious beauty, making it difficult to associate this refined look with the usual mischievous Anne.
“Yes. I like it. I don’t need to see the others. This one will do.”
Anne’s moment of contemplation by the accessory display was gone, and now she was smiling while gently touching the flower on her head through the mirror.
Fortunately, Anne seemed satisfied as well.
“Alright, that’s my gift to you for working hard in the tournament. Now that you’ve received this gift in advance, losing is not an option.”
“Yes! I’ll destroy them all!”
Looking at Anne’s bright smile, revealing all her teeth, I considered whether she’d really break the arms and legs of the students she faced—but with divine healing magic, bone fractures are easily mended, so it’s not really a problem.
Anyway, as long as I’m not the target, there shouldn’t be much issue.
I’ll just take a moment of silence for the person who’ll face Anne in the tournament.
*
“Shall we head to the Academy soon?”
I’ve already bought a gift for Anne, and we spent the rest of the time enjoying various sights together.
After watching the wandering bard sing at the fountain and throwing some coins, we joined a group praying briefly.
Whenever something interesting caught our eye, we just participated.
By the time lunch rolled around after brunch, my stomach was growling again.
Even while wandering the streets with Anne, the Academy was brimming with things to enjoy, see, and eat.
Students free from financial concerns might as well be the ones who truly enjoy the festival.
“Hmm… It might be a little early, but we can always go early and wait.”
While I was overwhelmed simply scheduling individual meetings, Anne seemed to have already arranged a time plan with the two in advance.
While I wondered what our class had prepared that it was kept secret from me, I headed to the Academy and our classroom filled with anticipation.
