Humming, humming, hum, hum…
Josette walked along, humming a tune as she considered the next street stall to visit. The melody that unconsciously escaped her lips was one Rachel often sang. Some of the lyrics sounded like they were from a foreign language. She didn’t remember them well, but because the melody was easy to remember, it seemed to have lodged itself in her mind.
This song was actually the theme song for a game called “Tale of school in another world,” but Josette had no way of knowing that. Incidentally, the voice actress who played Josette was the one who sang this song. If Rachel, who loved this game, had seen Josette singing with the same voice, she might have been extremely excited.
“Hey, Josette, are you alone today? How about you stay and eat?”
“Hmm, I wonder. I think I’ll look around a little longer before deciding.”
“I see. Please stop by again.”
As she browsed the street stalls, familiar shopkeepers called out to Josette.
“It’s a difficult choice. I’d jump at anything new.”
Josette enjoyed eating, but she wasn’t a big eater, so the amount she could consume was limited. Therefore, she had to carefully consider what to eat.
“Oh? I haven’t seen that shop before. Maybe it’s a new establishment.”
Josette was curious about what kind of food a new shop might offer, so she decided to head there. However, someone appeared to block her way.
“Hmph, I’ve been looking for you. Your boyfriend isn’t with you, is he?”
“Um, who are you?”
“Tch, you say that. We took care of things earlier. If you think about it that way, you’d know, right?”
The man had the appearance of a swordsman, but Josette had no recollection of him at all.
“I found you!”
As it became a bit of a commotion, the guards who had lost sight of Josette hurried to approach her.
“Oh? What’s this, are you being chased? This way. Come with me.”
“Huh? Huh?”
The swordsman-like man seemed to misunderstand and thought Josette was being chased, so he grabbed her hand and started running.
“Hey, wait!”
The swordsman-like man and Josette disappeared into the crowd, successfully escaping the Duke’s family guards.
“Huff, huff. We’re safe now.”
“Um, could you please let go of my hand?”
“Oh, sorry.”
The swordsman-like man hurriedly let go of Josette’s hand when she spoke.
“If you’re that strong, there are bound to be people who don’t think well of you. Well, I don’t intend to ask your reasons. I just want to get my business done.”
“Is that so? Then, what is it that you need from me?”
Josette had no prior acquaintance with the swordsman-like man and couldn’t at all anticipate what he wanted from her.
“That’s right. I wanted to give you this.”
“What is it?”
Josette received a small bag from the man. It felt heavy for its size, suggesting it contained some kind of metal.
“I’ve definitely handed it over. So, I’ll be going now. Be careful not to be found by those people from earlier.”
With those words, the swordsman-like man left.
“What was that all about? What’s in the bag I just received… Oh.”
The bag contained five gold coins.
“With this much, I can go to the love hotel I went to with Kent the other day every day. Oh, what am I thinking…”
Josette realized she had started a strange calculation out loud and blushed, even though no one was watching.
“By the way… where am I?”
Because her hand had been pulled, she had no idea how she had moved or where she had gone. The guards had also lost sight of her, so she was completely lost. When she goes out to visit street stalls alone, she wears commoner’s clothes instead of aristocratic clothes so as not to stand out. She had ordered these clothes from a small shop run by a couple who make clothes for commoners, a tip from Caro. They were skilled and did excellent work. Because she wore clothes like that, she didn’t stand out and a certain degree of safety was ensured.
“I should be heading back soon…”
She had intended to stop after one more stall, but she had been dragged away then, so a considerable amount of time had passed. Josette decided to just walk, hoping to find a familiar building. The surroundings had already grown dark, and there were few people walking on the streets. Suddenly, she saw what looked like a brightly lit restaurant in front of her. Hoping it might offer a clue to her way back, Josette decided to stop by.
“Welcome!”
A cheerful voice greeted her as she entered the shop. Inside… there were table seats and counter seats, and the space was about the same size as the dining space at Marie’s Bakery.
“Um, are you open?”
“We’re all right! As you can see, there are no other customers, so please take any seat you like.”
The one who guided her was a girl about Catherine’s age. Looking around, there were no other staff members besides her.
“What do you serve here?”
Josette casually sat down at a table seat and asked the shop girl.
“Actually, due to various circumstances, I’m a bit embarrassed to say this, but this is all we can offer right now.”
Saying that, the girl handed Josette a menu written on a wooden board.
“It’s unusual to have a menu,”
“Yes, I thought this way customers would better understand what we can provide.”
Lately, Josette had been visiting various street stalls and restaurants whenever she had free time, but menus were usually given verbally or posted on walls. Marie’s Bakery displayed their menu on a menu board and a whiteboard installed on the wall, so she had assumed this was the norm and that other shops followed a similar format, but she later learned this was not the case. Therefore, Josette was surprised just by the fact that they used a menu. However, that was the extent of the good points, as the handwriting on the menu was so messy that she struggled to read it.
“But the writing is very messy…”
“I’m sorry… actually, I wrote that myself.”
“You, you’re not attending school yet, are you?”
“Yes, I asked various people and studied on my own.”
Josette didn’t say it out loud, but she was moved by the girl’s determination to study writing while helping at the shop.
“Um… I hate to say it, but looking at the menu, customers won’t come if it’s like this.”
The contents written on the menu were so meager that Josette could only say this. First, there were only dishes that involved serving raw ingredients as they were, or cutting and plating them. There wasn’t a single item that required cooking with fire. As for drinks, there were of course no alcoholic beverages, and only something that seemed like plant extract dissolved in water.
“I knew it… this shop was originally run by my mother, but she got sick and couldn’t come to work. So, I’m trying my best to keep the shop going by myself, but I’m not a very good cook, and customers stopped coming. I’ve tried to think of ways to fix it, but nothing has worked…”
“When did your mother get sick? And your father?”
“My mother started feeling unwell about a month ago and has been bedridden since. My father passed away three years ago.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve heard something painful.”
“No, it’s all right.”
“I see. Well then, may I order?”
“Huh? Y-yes.”
Josette pulled herself together and decided to place an order. She thought this would be the most helpful thing she could do.
“Then, I’ll have grated radish, cucumber sticks, and carrot juice, please.”
“Ah, thank you. I’ll go make it now, so please wait a moment.”
The girl scurried into the shop’s kitchen and began preparing the order. The sound of vegetables being grated could be heard throughout the shop.
“Meeting here must be fate. Is there anything I can do to help?”
While waiting for the food to be prepared, Josette rested her chin on her hand, pondering if there was any good solution. Just then, the shop’s door was unceremoniously pushed open.
