GalaxyTL
“Oh, right. I forgot to report something important. I brought Meg-chan’s clothes.”
That was fast! Eh? What? That doesn’t make sense. I was only measured a little while ago? I don’t know how long I spent observing the spirits, but it couldn’t have been that long. Kei-san, sensing my surprise, immediately explained.
“I only brought the essentials for now. New underwear, sleepwear, and an outfit for tomorrow. They were overjoyed to make them for you when I told them about you.”
They said they’d just adjusted existing clothes to a smaller size because I needed them right away, which was why it was so fast. Still, that was fast… Those artisans are amazing.
“She’s a very kind lady. She said she’d love to make you even more cute outfits and asked if I could bring you to her shop. Would that be alright?”
“Of courshe! But… I don’t have money…”
I like cute clothes. I’m still a woman, after all! However, during my corporate slave days, I always wore the same kind of clothes. I’d plan to go shopping on my days off, all excited, but I’d end up sleeping the whole day and never get around to it. No time to wear them! My motivation would fizzle out… In short, I was never into fashion.
But I did enjoy looking at magazines and getting excited about them. I didn’t have the time or money to spend on anything other than living expenses, so I had a decent amount saved up.
But now, it was the opposite. I had the time to go shopping and dress up, but… I had no money!
“Don’t worry about something like that. Let me buy them for you. And I’m sure there are plenty of others who’d be happy to provide you with clothes, Meg-chan.”
Well, that’s what adults say when a child brings up something like that. I’m sure I’d say the same thing if a child said that to me. I get it, but I’m an adult on the inside, so it’s hard to just accept it. So, here’s the solution!
“Then, I’ll pay you back when I gwo up!”
Activating my ultimate move, “I’ll pay you back when I’m an adult working!” I declared confidently, raising a fist. Kei-san’s eyes widened. They then burst into laughter. H-Hey, I’m serious!
“Oh, you’re so cute. Alright, alright. I’ll be looking forward to it, okay?”
“You can count on it!”
They laughed again when I replied. Guh, it was true that I didn’t have a job or even know what I could do, but! Just you wait, I thought, secretly fired up. Burn, baby, burn!
We examined the clothes they brought. The sleepwear was a nightgown. Cream-colored, with no frills, but that’s ideal for sleepwear. Decorations just get in the way. It did have one pocket, and most importantly, the fabric was incredibly soft. I could probably have a good night’s sleep in this…!
The outfit for tomorrow was a simple light blue dress. A straight, one-piece design, the kind you pull over your head, hiding your figure. Well, there was no figure to hide with this child’s body…!
The fabric was sturdier than the nightgown but still felt amazing against my skin. It had three-quarter sleeves, and when I tried it on, the length reached just past my knees. It had cute lace trim on the sleeves and hem. Simple yet stylish!
And the underwear… Surprisingly, it wasn’t that different from what I wore in my original world. I was expecting something more like… pumpkin pants or bloomers. Now that I thought about it, everyone’s clothing, while having a foreign feel, had good tailoring, something that reminded me of my original world. Maybe even women’s undergarments were bras here. Not that I needed to worry about that for a while… Though back then, even though a sports bra was enough, I wore a regular bra! Ugh, self-inflicted damage!
I packed the clothes I’d checked, my heart filled with mixed feelings. I wanted to change into them after my bath tonight. I made a mental note to thank the lady for preparing them first thing when we went to the shop.
As we were putting things away, Kei-san, who’d been helping me, said, “Well, let me tell you a bit about myself,” and began talking.
“…I’m a Flower Serpent demi-human. Our eyesight is poor. Ah, but it’s not an inconvenience. We can sense heat, so we don’t need it.”
Oh, I had hoped to ask about Kei-san’s race eventually, but it seemed the opportunity had arisen sooner than I expected. I listened intently to their story.
“But I can barely make out people’s faces. I was so moved when I came to Ortus and the skilled artisans here made these glasses for me. I’d never realized how beautiful the world was. How fascinating people’s faces are. And ever since then, I’ve been obsessed with all things cute. Strange, isn’t it?”
Kei-san laughed self-deprecatingly. Oh, so that’s what happened. I had this image of demi-humans being superior to humans, but that wasn’t the case.
In the first place, there was no superior or inferior. Everyone had their own unique characteristics. In other words, individuality. And…
“Flower Sherpent, you shaid…”
“Ah, is it your first time hearing that?”
“Yes.”
I replied honestly, and they said it was only natural for me not to know because it was a rare species. I felt a sense of relief.
Apparently, they were called Flower Serpents because their white scales were interspersed with yellow ones, creating a pattern that resembled flowers, and their movements were said to resemble a graceful dance. It was true that the white snake descending to the ground earlier was beautiful. So it was literally a “Flower Serpent,” huh.
When I first saw them, I was so surprised that I only registered a white snake, but next time, I wanted to look for those yellow scales.
Kei-san continued sharing all sorts of things with me. Everyone in this guild had their own area of expertise. Like departments in a company.
Kei-san was in charge of information and intelligence gathering, just like Gil-san. They were incredibly skilled at concealing their presence… but since they couldn’t fly, traveling took time, so they specialized in domestic affairs. And Gil-san specialized in foreign affairs. I see. So Gil-san would be away a lot. It made me a little sad.
“As you can probably tell by watching Sauradite, she’s the leader. She handles things like reception, administration, paperwork, and all that. Schlie Letziano is more of a behind-the-scenes guy. He takes care of things like networking, maneuvering, strategizing… And those muscleheads, Juma and Veronika, are basically the execution force. They’ll do anything as long as you give them instructions.”
There were also those in charge of medical care, food, procuring weapons and equipment, negotiating, cleaning, and even specialists who maintained the facilities. It really was like a company.
They explained all sorts of things about the guild in a fun and engaging way; it was easy to understand and never got boring. Kei-san was a great storyteller. I wasn’t sure if it was because of their handsomeness or their experience in intelligence work.
As we talked, time flew by.