Vol. 3 - Chapter 93 - Katariona Works in a Vendor of a Street Stall at the Summer Festival
After receiving the contract and Ayano-san\'s kind offer to donate the rest to charity, I was on my way home.
"Alicia-sama, do you think she’ll be pleased?"
I imagined Alicia receiving the contract shyly with her head bowed.
"I\'m sure she\'ll be happy. I think you guys should be responsible for the stalls."
"What? Why do we have to be the salespeople?"
Chris protested vehemently against Tojurou-san, who had entrusted us with the stalls.
"You guys are the ones who have successfully executed the negotiations. Moreover, you\'re the only ones who understand the general sales strategy. The princess and the daughter of a powerful nobleman will be the sellers. With this, don’t you think we can anticipate a good turnout?"
Tojurou-san said with a smirk on his face. His expression taunting a clear challenge to us.
"Hmm! I guess we should do it. I\'ll show you more sales than any of the other classes."
And with that, Chris accepted the challenge. Tojurou-san is all too familiar with Chris\'s competitive nature.
"Then you\'ll have to do your best. Now, have a safe trip home."
He turned away and waved his hand. It seemed that Tojurou-san was heading back to the school.
Chris and I headed for the townhouse road. The townhouse is where the carriages from the royal palace come to pick us up.
"Rio, do you have any experience as a saleswoman?"
"I\'ve done a little ...... at the Harvest Festival bazaar."
I once helped my mother organize a bazaar at the harvest festival held in the Marquisate of Grandeur. I worked as a salesperson for a short time on that occasion.
" I see. Well, do you think you can manage?"
"Shall we have Leon as our mascot?"
With a fluffy mascot, we\'re sure to be a hit with the ladies.
The day of the summer festival arrived.
The Hinoshima sweets provided by Ayano-san sold like hotcakes.
It all began with the fulfillment of a female student\'s wish who had purchased the sweets to try them out. She offered the sweets to a boy she had been interested in and asked him to join her to go around the Summer Festival. She was surprised to hear that the boy accepted her invitation.
After hearing the story from the girl, her fellow classmate immediately bought the sweets and gave them to her fiancé. She had been having a hard time getting along with her fiancé and was hoping for a chance to be closer to him. And it turns out that her fiancé liked the sweets from Ayano-san\'s store and was very happy with her gift.
That\'s how the rumor spread and the number of customers increased.
At first, the shop was aimed at boating people, but now some people come on foot to buy sweets.
"I\'m sorry to keep you waiting. Two of these sweets, right? That\'ll be six pieces of silver. Thank you very much!"
While I was working hard selling, I glanced at Chris and saw that she was surprisingly enjoying herself.
As Chris had sneered when it started to get busy, saying, "It\'s so hard to be a salesperson."
Leon, who was sitting at the front of the store, was very popular with the women, even though he kept swiping at them.
"Yurie, I\'ve brought you some more sweets."
Ayano-san put a box of sweets in the back of the stall.
"Thank you, Ayano-san."
She placed the additional sweets on the display.
"You look busy. Have you eaten lunch?"
“No. We haven’t had lunch yet. The customers just keep coming……”
As I looked at the line of stalls, Ayano smiled wickedly murmuring, "hmm".
"You and Chris can take turns eating. In the meantime, I\'ll take over as the salesperson."
"What? Are you sure?"
To be honest, I feel relieved. If this continues, Chris and I won\'t be able to rest until the candy is sold out.
"Then, could you please help us? Chris! You go and take a break."
"You can go first, Rio. I\'ll be fine."
This was Chris\'s first time running a booth. Although she was trying to hide her fatigue, I could tell that she was tired.
"It\'s okay. Chris, you go first."
I gently pushed her toward the back of the stall.
"All right. Okay, I\'ll take a break first."
Chris\'s escorts should be waiting nearby. I\'ll leave the rest area to the guards.
"Welcome."
Ayano-san welcomed the guests with a sales smile. As expected of a professional. She\'s a natural at her job.
“I’m the owner of Peace Retreat.”
(TL: In Japanese: Nagomi- means peace/harmony. And the ‘iori’ part means (the noun) retreat.)
One of the customers seemed to have noticed that Ayano-san was there. By the way, Ayano\'s store is called "Teahouse Peace Retreat".
After about an hour, Chris came back from her break, so we exchanged places and I took a break. I had to feed Leon, so I took him with me.
When we went up the canal to the street, which was slightly lower, Marie was there waving at us.
"Good work, milady. I\'ve made lunch for you."
She was carrying two baskets. About two-thirds of them are for Leon.
"Thank you, Marie. This is great. I was just wondering what to eat."
"There\'s a park over there. Would you like to eat there?"
The park Marie was referring to looked to be a little garden with a fountain.
We sat down on a mat that Marie had laid out in the shade of the park.
"I will prepare the food for you now."
Marie took some things out of a basket and set them up.
"Your lunch is ready, milady. Please enjoy your lunch. Leon-sama, please join us."
I was reminded of the rose garden in the forest. It brought back memories of the mornings we spent together in the rose garden in the forest.
"Is something the matter that I could help you with? Miss?"
"No, it\'s nothing. I just recalled having a meal like this in the rose garden in the forest."
"Oh, yes, that\'s right. When we return to the estate, we\'ll visit the forest again."
“Yes, let’s do that.”
The rose garden in the forest was now being taken care of by the dryad maidens.
When I looked at Leon, I saw that he was already devouring his lunch, probably because he was so hungry.
"Leon, why don\'t you eat a little more slowly?"
When I called him out, Leon stared at me.
"Rio, no matter what happens in the future, I will never leave your side."
Leon spoke to me in telekinesis. He noticed that I was stuck in a trance, reminiscing.
\'Wherever Leon goes, I will follow you."
"Really?"
Leon replied in telekinesis, then curled up and fell asleep.
I wondered if it was my imagination, but I could see the little wings on his back swaying a little.
I had never seen this kind of gesture before. I wondered if there was any meaning behind it. Is it a sign of tremendous joy?
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