After I accidentally met Eris-san, we realized we were heading to the same destination, so we went together to the Nifty store, where we encountered five of the Seven Princesses. In the end, we ended up entering the store together.

Personally, I was only there to see Canalis-san and had no intention of shopping, but what’s done is done.

Although Eris-san is calm now, when we ran into the Seven Princesses, I could tell she was quite flustered. I thought it might be a good idea to give her a small gift as an apology.

However, Eris-san is a marquis’ daughter, so she can probably buy most things on her own. If I’m going to give her an apology gift, I’d like it to be something rare.

Hmmm, I might consult about this with Canalis-san later.

[The store’s interior design was mostly left to the manager, so I didn’t have much involvement. But looking around now, it does feel quite spacious.]

[It seems like a lot of effort has gone into ensuring that each item has enough space and is easily visible to customers. The store manager must be quite competent.]

There were quite a few people in the store, but it didn’t feel crowded, likely because the number of customers was limited. In fact, the store itself was quite large. Even without considering the café area, the store was spacious, and since it’s a tea brand, there aren’t many large items, so they can afford to use space luxuriously, maintaining an air of openness and luxury.

As I was thinking this while browsing the merchandise, I came across a tea cup set that looked like it was on display. There was a sign that read, “Limited re-release of only 3 sets: Initial Model Tea Cup Set.”

Errr, the price is…… 1, 10, 100, 1000…… 1.2 million R!? That’s 120 million yen!? No matter how high-end this shop is, isn’t that way too expensive…… Arehh? There’s a sold-out sign? Seriously? They’ve already sold all three sets at 120 million yen each? How much did I sell them for at the Archlesia Empire’s Founding Festival again……? I’d rather not think about it; it’s too scary.

This Initial Model refers to the first batch…… meaning it’s the same set I sold at the Archlesia Empire store. The difference between it and the items regularly sold in Nifty lately is that these sets were personally crafted by Nebula and Illness-san.

The cups and other ceramics that Nifty sells in their regular lineup are mass-produced after learning the techniques from Nebula and Illness-san. The initial model, made directly by them, might be rare…… but still, that price is shocking.

[Ah, Eris-san, I’m going to talk to the store manager, so I’ll step out for a moment.]

[Understood. I’ll continue browsing the store, so please take your time.]

Though I was fascinated by the store, I thought it best to talk to Canalis-san about Kuro’s café reservation, so I excused myself from Eris-san and moved on.

After telling a staff member that I wanted to see Canalis-san, I was quickly taken to the back and shown to what seemed to be a reception room.

[My oh my, Kaito-sama, welcome.]

[Hello, Canalis-san…… I could have spoken to you about this at home, but there’s something I’d like to ask you……]

I explained the situation to Canalis-san, who greeted me in her usual cheerful voice, yet expressionless face. I then conveyed the dates I had discussed with Kuro regarding reservations for our visits in Archlesia Empire and Hydra Kingdom.

[Yes, there’s no problem at all. Actually, if it’s Kaito-sama, even if you showed up on the day without notice, it would still be perfectly fine. Tahaa~~ You know, you got a face pass and all.]

[I was just thinking about making sure there wouldn’t be any conflict if Anima or someone else was using the priority seating……]

[Ah, no need to worry about that. Even if there’s overlap, we can just expand the space a little and add more seats as needed, so it’s not a problem at all.]

[I see…… Well then, sorry to trouble you, but I’ll go with those dates.]

[Roger that. By the way, what about today? If you’d like to use the café with your companion, I can get seats ready right away.]

The reservation with Kuro was quickly arranged, and Canalis-san also offered to help with making use of the café today. Speaking of which, Eris-san had mentioned she lost the lottery for café use but won the right to make a purchase at the store…… So inviting her to the café could be a nice gesture.

[I’ll check with Eris-san first, but since we’re here, we’d like to make use of it…… Ahh, and actually, there was some trouble that happened earlier. I caused Eris-san some confusion, so I was thinking of giving her a small apology gift…… Do you have any recommendations?]

[Fumu…… Ahh, I think I have just the thing. We’re planning to launch a service aimed at nobles in the near future, but I can offer her an advance reservation. It’s something that will eventually be available to the general public, so it won’t make her feel too overwhelmed, but it still has a special touch……]

The service Canalis-san described certainly seemed quite appropriate for nobles…… It seemed like something Eris-san would appreciate, so I decided to go with that. After thanking Canalis-san, I left the reception room to reunite with Eris-san.

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [Behold, everyone. Witness the devil make use of good intentions to deliver a body blow straight to the gut……]