As expected, there’s no online booking in this world, so when making a reservation at a restaurant, I physically visited the place to make the booking.

Well, I could have asked Eta or Theta to make the reservation for me, but I wanted to check the location and do a little scouting, so I went there myself.

[When I went to make the reservation, they mentioned they had private rooms available, so I booked a private room. Is that okay with you?]

[Yeeees. Having to spend time leisurely with Kaito-sama certainly sounds lovelyyyyy.]

At first, I just asked for a regular reservation, but the staff suggested a private room, so I went with it. We don’t have to worry about manners too much, and as Illness-san said, it’s better for us to enjoy the meal at our own pace.

Well, anyhow, just like that, we arrived at the restaurant I had looked into beforehand, and the staff guided us to the private room but…… Arehh? This room is more luxurious than I expected…… For a moment, I thought I had mistakenly walked into a super high-end restaurant with a dress code, as the room was so beautiful and spacious.

[……This room is more impressive than I thought.]

[Indeeeeed. This is just my gueeeeess, but it’s probably a room intended for high-ranking nobleeeees. If I were to compare it to Kaito-sama’s woooorld……. This would be a VIP room, wouldn’t iiiiiiit?]

[Ahh, so it’s something like a VIP room huh…… Now that you mention it, when I reserved the course meal, they asked me for a budget limit, and I told them there wasn’t one. Maybe that’s why they mistook me for a noble.]

[Or perhaaaaps, as this restaurant is often used by nobleeeees, they might already know about Kaito-samaaaa?]

When I made the reservation, they explained that they would adjust the wine selection to match the budget, so I told them there was no limit. After all, if I’m going to drink, I want something nice, and besides, I have plenty of money.

Most of my money is entrusted to Anima, but I still have a large amount of white gold coins in my magic box. If I don’t make a conscious effort to spend them on occasions like this, Anima’s sharp financial skills will ensure that my wealth increases faster than I can spend it…… I don’t really use white gold coins for things like everyday necessities or my hobbies though…… I think the only times I’ve used them were when I’m treating Alice for a meal outside or when I bought something special from her…… So most of my white gold coins have only been used on Alice.

[I’ve heard I’m well-known among nobles, but do you think I’m also recognized by restaurants?]

[Many restaurants like this oneeeee are often funded or owned by nobleeeeees, so word might have spread from theeeeeere. MIlady herself also owns a few establishments in the high-end areaaaaa.]

[Heehhh, Lilia-san’s shops huh. That sounds interesting.]

As we sat across from each other, I received a black-painted list of today’s course menu from the staff. I noticed they were preparing what seemed like an aperitif, while I continued my conversation with Illness.

I’ve heard that besides her Flying Dragon Service, Lilia-san is also involved in running shops, but I haven’t talked much with her about it, so I don’t really know what kind of stores she owns.

Incidentally, the VIP room we’re in apparently has a soundproof barrier around the table, so the staff preparing the aperitif nearby can’t hear our conversation. When they enter the barrier, they always announce themselves with an “Excuse our intrusion”, so this place is probably a room nobles use for private discussions.

[Milady owns two stores around this areaaaaa. One of them deals with tabletop interior gooooooods.]

[Tabletop interior goods? That’s a bit unexpected. Ahh, but now that you mention it, Lilia-san’s mansion does have several high-end-looking tabletop decorations, so I guess she has a good eye for that kind of thing?]

[Milady has theeeeese…… peculiar connections through introductions from those who handle modeeeels, so I believe she does have the affinity for iiiiiiit.]

[……Ahh, I see.]

Right, she did buy a lot of those expensive dragon models…… It makes sense that she used the connections she made back then to source tabletop interiors as well.

[The other one is a jewelry stooooore. It was established about a year ago, but it seems to be doing quite weeeeell.]

[A jewelry store…… Ahh, could those be jewelry from the Blue Diamonds and Ice Crystals Isis-san gave her?]

[Yeeees. The jewelry store also includes thooooose, but after thaaaaat, her connections also expandeeeeed, allowing her to consistently source high-quality geeeeeems, so she decided to open the stoooooore.]

[I see……]

As to be expected of a Duchess, Lilia-san seems to be involved in a lot of different ventures. A jewelry store actually sounds like a smart move. If Sieg-san approves, they could even handle Sela’s Midnight Diamonds, which would likely be quite profitable.

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [I think it’s more like Lilia’s connections expanded dramatically thanks to Kaito, and as a result, she ended up getting involved in a lot of different things. As for the jewelry store, Lunamaria did make some foreshadowing comments about it, so it feels like that plot point has finally been picked up after a few years……]