36화
“You look like a dog.”
“…”
Everyone except Karha fell silent for a moment.
It was kind of… true, but also робот
System: a little awkward.
Maybe it was the tone of voice.
Still, it didn’t seem like he’d been found out.
As Chesha sighed in relief, Ishuel let out a heavy breath.
“Please.”
“He does look like our dog, though.”
“Sure, but it sounds a bit weird to others, so just shut up.”
“Ugh.”
Having fended off his twin with sharp words, Ishuel pushed Karha aside and stepped toward Hata.
His face was full of a gentle smile.
He was clearly pleased with the hats on display.
“Impressive work.”
“T-Thank you,” Hata stammered nervously.
His eyes darted around, unable to meet Ishuel’s gaze.
He’d safely passed the first hurdle: avoiding Karha’s suspicion.
But now came the second challenge: not showing how thrilled he was to see Chesha.
Hata struggled to avoid her eyes.
Thank goodness his ears and tail were hidden.
If his tail were out, it’d probably be wagging wildly.
While Hata tried his best, Ishuel smiled kindly and asked, “Do you have any gentleman’s hats for an adult and a boy, or maybe something suitable for this little one?”
Ishuel pulled back his hood, then Chesha’s.
The moment Hata saw her, he couldn’t hold back.
Covering his mouth, he mumbled, “So cute…”
His heartfelt words made Ishuel beam with pride.
For some reason, whenever Chesha got a compliment, the twins acted like they’d been praised themselves.
‘I don’t get why,’ Chesha thought, puzzled.
Meanwhile, Hata eagerly brought out the hats he’d prepared.
“There are lots of baby hats! And hair accessories too.”
Besides the ones made for the boutique order, Hata had been diligently crafting hats for baby Chesha for a while.
Having tidied the shop early that morning, he’d polished his old creations, so there was plenty to show.
In no time, a dozen hats and hairpieces lined the counter.
All perfectly suited for Chesha.
Ishuel’s eyes sparkled.
“I’ll take them all!”
He held a ribbon accessory up to Chesha’s head.
“Really excellent… Way better than the capital’s top artisans. No, incomparable.”
Hata’s lips twitched upward at the flood of praise.
Trying not to seem too excited, he cleared his throat and said primly, “Ahem, glad you like them. I’ll grab some hats for the gentleman and young masters too.”
But his retreating figure was already brimming with excitement.
When Hata returned with more hats, Ishuel’s face bloomed like a spring flower.
His voice turned soft as a breeze.
“I’ll take all of these too. What about wide-brimmed hats? I need one for myself. I like these two out here, but any other recommendations?”
Having studied the Basilian family’s tastes while staying at their estate, Hata had picked out exactly what Ishuel would love.
“Perfect…!”
Ishuel was head over heels for Hata’s hats.
Blushing with excitement, he tried one on and asked Chesha, “What do you think?”
That’s when Karha, who’d been idly wandering the shop, sauntered over.
“Hey, shopkeeper,” he said casually.
“Do you make potions here too?”
“What?” Hata’s eyes went wide.
Visibly nervous, he looked startled as Karha tilted his head.
“Well… I heard something about a fairy baby before.”
“I-I don’t know about that…”
“Oh, I wasn’t snooping. Just happened to see inside the back.”
Hata, unprepared for talk of potions, broke into a cold sweat.
It seemed they needed to divert Karha’s attention.
But Chesha didn’t have to step in.
Someone was already there to protect Hata.
“What does that matter!” Ishuel snapped, cutting Karha off.
“Why’re you looking for a fairy baby? She’s right here!”
He thrust Chesha in front of Karha and shouted, “Stop harassing the shopkeeper with nonsense! We need him to keep making hats!”
“Uh, okay…”
Overwhelmed by Ishuel’s intensity, Karha fell silent.
Safely past the crisis, Hata looked at Ishuel with newfound fondness.
Karha might not get it, but Ishuel and Hata were bound to get along well from now on.
As the situation settled, Chesha thought to herself, ‘So Karha was definitely investigating something at the shop that day.’
There was no other reason he’d have gone into the hidden lab.
While she mulled over Karha’s actions, Ishuel finished his hat purchases.
To say he bought the whole shop wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration.
Now a wealthy man, Hata glanced at Chesha as he took Ishuel’s payment.
Nod.
Chesha gave a subtle nod.
Hata took a deep breath.
Then he carried out Chesha’s mission.
“Um, are you interested in clothes?”
“Clothes?”
“There’s a boutique that sells clothes that go perfectly with Hata’s hats.”
Hata paused, struggling.
Praising Miya’s boutique, which he loathed, wasn’t easy.
Normally, Hata wouldn’t spit in their direction.
But for Chesha’s sake, he pushed through.
“I can take you there if you want!”
Sure enough, Ishuel’s interest was piqued.
He looked at Karha with eager eyes.
No one could say no to Ishuel in that moment.
Karha, yawning boredly on a chair in the corner, asked with half-closed eyes, “Wanna go?”
“Yeah!”
“Fine, let’s go… You’d kill me if we didn’t…”
Despite Karha’s grumbling, Ishuel grinned brightly.
He was clearly thrilled.
Chesha, having successfully steered them toward Miya’s boutique, clenched one fist tightly.
‘Good. It’s going smoothly.’
But if things always went so smoothly, the backworld wouldn’t be the backworld.
Arriving at their destination with Hata’s guidance, the twins let out short exclamations.
“Whoa.”
“Wow.”
Karha and Ishuel each voiced different sounds of awe as they stared at Miya’s boutique.
It had a quintessentially backworld appearance.
Iron-barred windows.
Walls adorned with giant scissor and needle-shaped metal decorations.
The massive door was solid iron…
“What’s with this door handle?”
A small hand axe was embedded in it.
Ishuel muttered in confusion, eyeing the smiling face painted on the door.
Then he looked up at the sign.
<M~iya’s Boutique>
The sign was chaotic.
Jagged lettering with wavy marks—utter madness.
Most striking was the carriage atop the roof.
A black carriage with a giant skull and the word “Miya” in huge letters, mounted as decoration.
‘Why on earth would they put that up there?’
It was a taste Chesha could never get used to.
She’d grown accustomed to it, but coming with first-time visitors made it freshly embarrassing.
‘Please don’t do anything weird.’
Chesha held onto that small hope.
But her hope was dashed.
The moment they entered the boutique, her face turned red.
“Oooh. Hoo. Hoo. Hoot.”
With a strange laugh, Miya appeared, making odd hand gestures.
“Little noble brats in a backworld boutique…”
She bared her teeth with a growl-like sound.
“These spoiled kids need to learn how scary the backworld is!”
She was even wearing claw-like weapons on her hands.
- Miya clashed the sharp claw weapons together and let out a high-pitched laugh.
“Oooh-hoot! The tender flesh of noble young masters is just a snack for us backworld folks!”
Posing like a villainous boss, she shouted, “You’re dead meat today!”
It was a horrifying sight Chesha could barely stand to watch…
