I am Rachel. Until recently, I was just a normal high school girl who spent her days playing games, but somehow I was reincarnated into a world similar to that of the game, and I’m enjoying my school life in this other world. At school, I’m surrounded by the country’s prince, Lord Gordon, the minister’s son, Cedric, and the knight commander’s son, Marc. These three are known as the top three handsome guys at school, and I’m living a fulfilling life with them constantly vying for my attention.
However, the villainess, Josette, always shows up with her two cronies to cause trouble. Josette, you’re seriously infuriating. I’ll raise my stats steadily and make sure to achieve a happy ending.
There was a time when I thought and lived like that, but at some point, my game knowledge started becoming useless, and things began to go in a strange direction. The reason for this was that my older brother had also been reincarnated into this world with me. Caro, who was one of the cronies, is now head-over-heels with my older brother and has become like my best friend. Even the villainess, Josette, seems to have feelings for my older brother. While in the game, the three capture targets were to my liking, and I thought it was good, but after coming to this world and actually interacting with them, I started to feel that something was different, and now we’ve become estranged. I decided to be careful not to create any unnecessary flags and live a peaceful life, but…
(I didn’t want to create any unnecessary flags… but I guess it can’t be helped.)
The other day, I found out that bandits were going to attack Marie’s Bakery, where I work and live. To protect the shop, I asked Marc, the knight commander’s son, to mobilize the knights. At that time, he asked me out on a date. I had no choice but to accept if I wanted to protect the shop.
So today, I told my older brother I’d be late for my part-time job and I’m doing a preliminary check for our date. Marc is a noble, so he doesn’t know much about the town. That means I have to do this preparatory research. By the way, the date is tomorrow. Wouldn’t the person who invited someone usually do the preliminary checking, regardless of whether they are nobility or not? Fortunately, since I started working at Marie’s Bakery and get paid well, my finances are not bad, so I think the date expenses will be okay. I also feel like the person who invited should pay for this. They’re nobility, so they have money, right? That’s what I want to say. Since the game’s specifications state that the entire cost of the date will be borne by the protagonist, it’s a tough situation.
Since we were only three months into the game’s first year, around early June, and I wasn’t paid much at my previous part-time job, I mostly spent my dates at inexpensive places like “nearby parks” or “the forest.” This time, it’s also a thank you, so Rachel thought it wouldn’t be right to do that.
After finalizing the date plan, Rachel headed to Marie’s Bakery.
Rachel entered through the back door, went up to the second floor, got ready in her room, and then entered the store.
“I’m home. Huh? A new person?”
Inside the store, there was an unfamiliar woman wearing a T-shirt on top and the uniform skirt on the bottom, working in the dining area.
“Welcome back. Rachel!”
“I’m home, Marie.”
“This is our new hire, Patty. Marc asked me to have her try working here for today. She’s working well, so if she wants to, I may hire her.”
Marie, who was working in the kitchen, which was unusual, replied.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Rachel. Please take care of me.”
“Likewise, I’m Patty. Please take care of me.”
Rachel spoke to Patty as she brought dishes she had cleared into the kitchen.
(She looks normal… Could this be the person Josette mentioned, sitting next to us?)
“Well then, Older Bro… I mean. I’ll go help Marc.”
“Rachel, please do.”
Rachel informed Marie and moved to the workshop to help Marc.
After work, I returned to Marc’s house with Catherine.
“Catherine, thank you for the meal today. It was delicious.”
“I’m glad you think so.”
While preparing dinner, Rachel thanked Catherine for lunch. When dinner preparations were finished, Marc and Marie returned. By the way, when Catherine cooks alone, it turns into a black mass, but when I help her, she can make edible food. This is still a mystery.
Then, a little later, Caro returned by carriage.
“I’m back. Marie, I’m sorry for taking a sudden day off today.”
“It’s alright. Don’t worry about it. It was an important matter, wasn’t it?”
Caro apologized to Marie, who responded kindly.
(It feels comfortable, like being with family.)
Rachel thought that living surrounded by people who felt like family was more enjoyable than living alone in the dormitory. After dinner, my usual routine is to take a bath and then return to my lodging. Lately, I’ve often invited Caro to join me for baths. To be honest, I thought I was straight, but I’ve been feeling something for Caro lately. However, I know she’s in a loving relationship with my brother, and I don’t want to ruin our relationship, so I haven’t told her my feelings. I casually invite her as a friend.
“Caro, let’s take a bath together.”
“Eh? Y-yes. That’s fine.”
Rachel and Caro took off their clothes in the changing room and entered the bathroom.
“Well then, Caro, I’ll wash you.”
“Thank you. Please do.”
Rachel applied body soap to a sponge for washing and began to wash Caro’s body.
(Caro is so soft. This squishy feeling is something else.)
She wasn’t fat, but Caro’s body was soft and had a bouncy elasticity. It felt quite nice to touch.
“Rachel, you’re tickling me.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Eek eek.”
“Your way of touching is like Marc’s.”
“Oh really, so this is how you do it with Older Brother. Here I go!”
“Kya! I’m angry now. Take that!”
It seems I went too far, and Caro retaliated, and we both tumbled down in a tangle. Caro ended up underneath, and I was on top, and we were staring at each other.
(Seriously, why is she looking at me with such a cute face?)
“Mwah”
“Eh?”
I impulsively kissed Caro on the lips.
“Caro was so cute, I couldn’t help myself. Teehee.”
“Oh, Rachel. Here’s a kiss back. Mwah.”
After some teasing, the two of them soaked in the bathtub to warm up.
“Actually, I have to leave this house soon.”
“Eh? What about Older Brother?”
Caro said to Rachel.
“I want to stay with Marc, but once that business is settled, I’ll have to return to the mansion.”
“I see, then I can’t help it. But since we’ll still see each other at school, I don’t think we’ll drift apart. At school, nobles and commoners are treated equally.”
“That’s true, but I don’t think I’ll be able to work here anymore, and I’ll miss not having as much contact with Marc.”
“I don’t think you need to worry about that. I’m sure things will work out for the best.”
“Hearing you say that makes me feel a little better.”
Rachel wasn’t entirely sure, but she had a feeling things would work out.
“Well then, good night. See you tomorrow.”
Rachel got out of the bath, got ready, and returned to her boarding house.
“I’m home.”
Rachel entered the store through the back entrance and went up to the second floor.
(As always, Emily’s presence disappears after closing. In the morning, when I wake up, she’s already cleaning the store…)
Emily never leaves the store. Up until now, I thought she was a shut-in, but she doesn’t seem to eat, and now I can’t even sense her presence.
“This is definitely strange. Does Older Brother know about this?”
Though I knew it was wrong, my curiosity got the better of me, and Rachel opened the door to Emily’s room.
“Emily, are you there?”
There was no sign of anyone in the room, and the furnishings inside showed no signs of use.
(What does this mean?)
Rachel was starting to feel anxious. Then, she heard the sound of the door opening from downstairs.
“Rachel, Older Sister. Sorry, I forgot something, so I’m coming into the store.”
Catherine’s voice could be heard from downstairs. She seemed to have come to retrieve a forgotten item. Rachel hurriedly went downstairs to Catherine.
“Catherine, isn’t this building strange?”
“What’s wrong, Older Sister? You seem so flustered.”
To the confused Catherine, Rachel explained the situation.
“So that’s what it is. Emily… is she here?”
Catherine pointed to an empty spot inside the store and said so. For a while, I couldn’t see the shop-attached fairy, but now that Emily’s power has returned, Catherine can see Emily even when others can’t.
“Um… I don’t see anything?”
“Emily, can you show yourself for a bit? Older Sister can’t see you.”
Suddenly, Emily appeared right in front of me with a “pop.”
“Kyaaa!”
Rachel screamed in surprise.
“I’ve startled you. I apologize.”
Emily apologized to Rachel.
Then, Catherine and Emily explained the situation.
“A shop-attached fairy? I never knew.”
Hearing the explanation, Rachel seemed to understand, nodding her head. They were told not to tell anyone else, but Marc had said beforehand that it was okay to tell Rachel if she found out about it, so Emily answered without hiding anything.
“I was really surprised. I thought it was a ghost or something.”
“I am a noble fairy, so I don’t like being compared to ghosts. I disappear outside of business hours to conserve my magic. But I apologize for startling you.”
With the mystery solved and sleepiness setting in, they dispersed, and Rachel went to bed.
Morning arrived. It was Saturday, so school and work were off. However, Rachel felt a sense of dread this morning because of her date with Marc. She prepared breakfast in the kitchen on the first floor and quickly ate it. Then, she returned to her room and began getting ready to go out. Rachel possessed four types of casual wear for spring, summer, autumn, and winter, based on the game’s initial equipment. For dates, she had to wear the outfit appropriate for the season, or her affection level would drop. It was summer now, so she had to wear her summer casual wear, but since she had no intention of raising his affection level, she deliberately chose her spring casual wear. After getting ready, she headed to their meeting place. By the way, school rules require students to wear their uniforms when going out, but very few people strictly adhere to this.
The meeting place was the Central Plaza, and Rachel arrived on time. She had considered being late, but she thought it would be rude to the person she was going on a date with as a thank you.
(Hmm, he’s not here… I feel like I’ve been waiting for about an hour already…)
“Sorry. Did you wait long?”
“No, not at all.”
Actually, I wanted to say, “Don’t keep me waiting for an hour, you damn brat,” but I held back.
“Oh? It seems like it’s going to be a little hot today, but are you okay in that outfit?”
“Perhaps… should I have worn something lighter?”
“Not at all. So, where are you taking me today?”
(Yes! I gained 3 affection points for my outfit choice!)
“Well, let’s go see a play today.”
“Sounds good. Then let’s head to the theater right away.”
Rachel and Marc arrived at the theater.
(Now, what genre should I choose here… hmm.)
Rachel chose a genre that wouldn’t affect Marc’s evaluation either way. If she lowers his affection too much during the date, he’ll get angry and leave. To avoid that, she needed to balance things and be careful not to raise his affection.
“The play was interesting, wasn’t it?”
Rachel said to Marc with a forced smile.
“Y-yes. It was interesting.”
Marc replied, trying to match Rachel’s sentiment.
“Well then, it’s about time for lunch. I’ve made a reservation at a restaurant today, so let’s eat there.”
“Great. I was just getting hungry.”
Saying that, Rachel arrived in front of a very formal, high-class restaurant.
“We’ve arrived.”
“Huh? Are we going in here?”
Marc looked very surprised. The restaurant Rachel had chosen was a formal establishment frequented by upper aristocrats. However, the shopkeeper was impartial and provided meals to commoners as long as they could pay. As the son of the knight commander, he was a middle aristocrat, so he wouldn’t normally frequent a place like this.
(It’s going to cost a bit, but Marc’s affection level doesn’t change with high-class places, so I can’t help it.)
“We’ve been expecting you, Lady Rachel, Lord Marc.”
A waiter dressed in formal black attire guided Rachel and Marc to their seats. Looking around, she saw a few customers, who appeared to be high-ranking nobles or wealthy merchants in expensive clothing, enjoying their meals.
“Rachel, are you sure about the money for a place like this?”
Marc asked Rachel, looking worried. Hearing his words, Rachel sensed that Marc’s pocket money probably wouldn’t cover the bill here.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine,”
Rachel told Marc.
Rachel finished her meal without any problems, exhibiting table manners befitting a noble. Marc seemed a bit awkward, but he managed to finish his meal.
(About half of my part-time earnings are gone now…)
Rachel thought as she paid the bill and put away her slightly lighter wallet. After that, they were to spend time window shopping in the commercial district, and the day’s mission would be complete. Of course, this choice was also made because it wouldn’t affect his affection level.
However, something unexpected happened here. As they headed to the commercial district, they coincidentally met Kent, Caro, Marie, and Catherine.
“Oh? Isn’t that Rachel? Is she on a date?”
“Wow, Rachel, Older Sister, you’re on a date with a handsome guy!”
Marie and Catherine, who didn’t know the circumstances, started talking to her.
“Um, um…”
In the face of this sudden turn of events, Rachel couldn’t come up with a clever remark.
“Isn’t that Caroline? Are you out shopping?”
Since Caro was among the four and knew Marc, Rachel spoke to her first.
“My, Lord Marc, good day. Yes, we four came to the commercial district to shop. I apologize. Although we didn’t know, my companions have intruded.”
Caro replied politely.
(She understands the situation so quickly, as expected of Caro.)
“We have somewhere to go now, so please excuse us.”
Kent exchanged a look with Marie and Catherine, then said to Marc before disappearing into the crowd.
“The beautiful lady from earlier, are you acquainted with her?”
“Eh?”
After Kent and his group left, Marc abruptly asked. At first, Rachel wondered who he was referring to, but she realized he meant Marie.
“Yes, well. She’s the shopkeeper at my part-time job.”
“I see. I understand.”
As Rachel answered, Marc seemed to ponder for a moment.
After that, they spent time window shopping without incident.
“I had fun today. I’m sorry for making you go through all this trouble.”
“No, on the contrary, I’m grateful you accepted my unreasonable request.”
“Well then, I’ll see you at school.”
“Yes, see you at school.”
Rachel successfully completed the date event without any problems.
“It was painful to spend money to avoid affecting his affection level, but this probably won’t happen again, so it’s fine. I can just earn the money I spent again.”
Feeling a sense of accomplishment from completing her first date event in a long time, Rachel headed home.
