To celebrate the surge in reviews and points, I’ll do one more!
With gratitude to those who left ratings and bookmarks, and to Mr. Furukawa Amolo! Fire!! (lol)
Kuroko-chan is being held high up.
She seems scared of being nearly two meters off the ground and is looking at me as if asking for help.
It looks like her skirt might fly up too, it’s naturally scary, isn’t it… this.
“Hey, hey, don’t be so rough with someone you just met… I’m sorry, Kuroko-chan. Wakako is always like this when she sees small girls. She doesn’t mean any real harm, so please forgive her. Wakako, stay! You’re too excited! Easy now, easy!”
As I say that, Wakako puts Kuroko-chan down, releasing her.
“Sooooorry! I just couldn’t help myself… and by the way, am I some kind of horse?”
“It’s kinda the same thing… What were you doing?”
“What could I help it! Such a cute child! Owner, you’re so unfair! You probably did some questionable things like peeking at her changing or giving her a piggyback ride!”
“Nothing like that happened! Right, Kuroko-chan!”
“Hmm? Oh… yeah, that’s right. But I was surprised… However, looking down from a high place was a little fun. Having a high vantage point is nice. Well, if she’s a friend of the Owner, I’ll let this much rudeness slide with a laugh. But you have quite some strength. To be lifted so easily… it’s been since my father did it for me.”
Well, she’s Wakako after all.
Or rather, I apologize… she’s a really ill-behaved person…
And what’s with that reply as if that was the topic we were discussing… Wakako is glaring at me.
I guess she’s going to say all sorts of untrue things about me later.
“Heh heh heh… I’m trained, you see. I’m far beyond any flimsy guy! By the way, how’s the diner coming along? Santos and Kukrika and I worked hard on it to make it feel like a Japanese-style diner!”
Well, she’s Wakako! She could bring it down with just a flick of her finger!
Speaking of which, I wondered where Mimi and Momo were, and found them in a corner, covered with just a towel on their bellies, sprawled out.
They seem to have fallen fast asleep after that… both of them are lightly defeated after a battle… good job!
But as expected of Wakako… she probably found them to be a nuisance, but she’s kind to little children.
She didn’t play any pranks… did she?
“That’s right… it’s come along quite nicely! Compared to the refugee camp cafeteria before, it’s a world of difference! The ceiling… you didn’t manage to get to that, did you…”
Looking up at the ceiling, it’s blue… on top of a blue tarp, a pile of large leaves, just like the usual refugee camp style.
“It can’t be helped. It rains a lot here, after all. For waterproofing, I think a blue tarp is the best. Well, if it were a black waterproof sheet, it would have a more chic atmosphere, but we couldn’t quite manage that. If we were to do that, we’d need about ten people for a whole day. By the way, could it be… that Kuroko-chan is the very first new customer?”
“Is that how it is? Hey, Mr. Santos! Do you have any prototype children’s lunches? And our dinner too!”
“Yup, Owner! Well, I’ve made a few to try out. Perhaps we’ll have this young lady taste them, is that it?”
“Yeah, I thought it would be good to get her opinion since she seems to be around the same age as that princess.”
“That’s helpful. Kukrika is similar, but her opinion isn’t reliable… she just says everything is delicious, so it’s not much of a reference.”
“Ugh… I’m sorry! But Master’s cooking is all delicious!”
“Don’t worry about it, Kukrika! I understand how you feel. Mr. Santos, for now, just bring out the prototypes. She says she’s hungry! And please bring dessert too! This girl came all the way to the convenience store by herself to buy it with a gold coin, just for the dessert.”
As I say that, she blushes a little and glares at me resentfully.
Oops, even though she’s small, she’s a proper lady… that was a bit insensitive.
“If you only have gold coins, it’s like being penniless. Is that why you were working part-time? Hahaha! That’s great! In that case, since you’re here, how about eating it fresh off the stove? It’ll be ready soon, so please wait a moment, young lady!”
Mr. Santos smiles broadly.
But his smile is quite menacing, and Kuroko-chan also wears a strained smile.
“I-I’m sorry… Since you’re going to all this trouble, I expect it to be incredibly delicious!”
“Leave it to me! I’ll give you the best meal that will surprise even an aristocrat!”
As he says that, Mr. Santos turns and leaves.
When it comes to lack of tact, Mr. Santos is even better than me.
Well, trying to teach dwarves about human social norms is pretty much useless.
“Kuroko-chan, I’m sorry. For now, you can come up! ”
“Y-yes… In that case, excuse me.”
With that, Kuroko-chan takes off her shoes, steps onto the tatami, and sits down neatly, even tidying up our shoes too.
Wow… she knows the proper etiquette for entering a tatami room… or rather, how does she know?
“Are these shoes okay here?”
“Yes, you can just line them up there. And you’re quite knowledgeable. Do aristocrats in the capital get taught such manners?”
“Y-yes… something like that. There are certain people who are very strict about manners, so I picked them up whether I liked it or not. Although, it has come in handy in unexpected ways. Thanks to that, I didn’t make a fool of myself by stepping on the tatami with my shoes on.”
“You know tatami well. That’s right… you’re not supposed to wear shoes on tatami. …But I’m sorry. I should have prepared slippers. Your socks will get dirty, right?”
Looking closely, she was wearing frilly socks made of lace.
Everyone else is wearing sandals with bare feet, so just that alone shows she pays attention to fine details in her fashion.
…As expected, a young lady from a good family is different.
