Extra Chapter: The Innkeeper of the Overnight Branch
Tonight there were far fewer people staying at the inn than usual.
Rather, there was no one.
The only ones here are me, the cow girl, and the owner in the back of the kitchen. Sitting at the counter inevitably puts me face to face with the cow girl.
“So I’m telling Sue-chan you really need to dress better,” she said.
“I told you it’s fine,” I replied.
“If you really think that way, I won’t say any more. But Sue-chan, I’ve seen you sneak glances at beautiful, fashionable adult women walking by.”
“Don’t look at me like you’ve got me figured out!”
I come to the inn to drink alone like this every so often.
My conversation partner, reluctantly, is mostly the cow girl. She annoyingly talks to me a lot even though I just want to drink quietly.
…Well, if she wants to talk, I guess I shouldn’t be stingy about it.
“Come ooon, you’re so stubborn. You’ll regret it when you’re thirty and haven’t changed,” she pressed.
“It’s just my nature,” I said.
“Hmm.”
Ah, she made that annoying face.
“Well then, I’ll play my trump card,” she continued.
“I can pretty much guess what you’re going to say. Stop it. I’ll crush this place using my authority as a Sage,” I threatened.
“Since Vim-san joined [Night Dragonflies] as a provisional member, I’ve been hearing his name around the bar a lot more, you know.”
Bringing up Vim was about half as expected. But I was a little surprised she’d mention other girls.
“….Go on,” I said.
“What about that Sage authority?” she asked.
“On hold. Come on, hurry it up,” I demanded.
“Oh fine, fine,” she snorted pretentiously.
It’s annoying when she snorts like that, but I have no choice but to hear her out.
“The thrill for us Pheelbron girls is reeling in promising adventurers, but ever since Vim became famous, suspicions have emerged that he’s actually promising in all sorts of ways.”
“….What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.
“The days of targeting seemingly cool, rich, popular guys are over. Now it’s a point of pride to boast ‘I found this hidden gem no one else noticed!’ Rather than competing to ruthlessly win over men indiscriminately, it’s more stylish to find something other women overlooked.”
“What’s that about?” I said.
“For some, how hidden he is has become more important than whether he’s actually promising. Vim is perfect for that.”
“I see… So in the end, it’s still competing, huh?”
“I won’t deny it,” she admitted.
“Geez. Sounds like you girls have time to kill, huh?”
“How rude! We’re entering marriageable age! This is when girls should show the vigor and freshness of life with pride!” she declared.
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, looking up at the cow girl.
Her outfit, though intended for service, brazenly flaunted her personal tastes. Much taller than me, but just modest enough not to hurt the pride of an average guy. Stylish chestnut hair woven to match the trends. A cute, fairly high voice, yet with sufficient warmth.
And most of all, huge boobs. No way she’d have trouble with guys.
She’s my opposite in every way, really.
I’m just a country girl who came out to dive in the labyrinth. I don’t live with marriage in mind. Between labyrinth conquests and magic research, I’m constantly busy.
“So, is Sue-chan going to stay like this?” she asked.
“What?” I said.
“Vim will be taken by someone sooner or later if you just keep stalking him. How long do you plan to do that?”
“It’s not stalking, I told you! I have a proper, concrete objective!”
“What’s this ‘objective’?” she pressed.
“….Not telling.”
“Oh ho. I see, I see.”
She took a step back with a hint of intimidation. Then she cleared her throat several times to compose herself and said:
“[…I don’t know your objective or methods, but surely the means have overtaken the ends?]”
It was in a silly, artificially lowered voice. Oh, she was bending her knees to act shorter.
“Whose impression are you doing, huh?” I growled.
“Aw, so you are self-aware,” she teased.
She was really getting on my nerves now. Maybe I should just head home.
“But Sue-chan, let’s have a serious talk for a bit,” she continued.
Sensing my irritation, the cow girl suppressed her joking manner and mixed in a solemn tone.
That made me swallow what I had been about to spit out.
She handles consideration and its opposite very skillfully. Stepping back just makes her take me more. Even more irritating.
“Your clothing stands out terribly. Haven’t you noticed people staring as you pass by?”
“Well, I guess so, now and then. Especially since I’m a Sage – something of a celebrity.”
“I see…so that’s how you thought about it?”
“What’s with that knowing attitude?” I protested.
“Look, Sue-chan, listen,” she asserted, staring straight at me.
“?”
“You stand out because of how weird your clothes and behavior are. Your equipment for diving may be your own business, but your casual wear is the worst. Your fashion and hair are oddly childish and tacky. You probably think it’s innocuous, but you’re aggressively showcasing what makes you conspicuously ugly!”
“W-w-what? Robes?” I stammered.
“Yes! Even after growing up, you’re still wearing the same things parents make little girls wear so their underwear doesn’t show! You have to become aware of this! “
“Is that so…?”
“Yes! And on top of that, you’re cocky and rude, and your tininess makes you even more noticeable! You couldn’t stand out more!”
She sure wasn’t holding back even though I was listening seriously…
“Look, cross your legs properly!” she ordered.
I looked down at my own knees.
I thought they were closed pretty well…
“Snugly, you hear me? Train until relaxing like that comes naturally. It’s a lady’s habit.”
“I don’t care for that perverted culture–“
“Don’t call it culture! You can’t choose when you’re born! It’s common sense! Adult manners!”
“That may be true, but…”
Well, she wasn’t stupid despite her udders draining her nutrients. Lewd as she could be, she spoke as someone who grasped social propriety.
Accepting it to some degree as legitimate advice probably wouldn’t hurt.
She seemed skilled at life. And she looked like she was having fun.
The entrance chime rang out.
“Welcoome!”
She immediately switched to her business smile and voice.
Now that was professional. Her attention to appearance from working service had clearly honed her instincts.
“It’s Vim! Fancy seeing you!”
The visitor was Vim.
Damn. My actions here had been completely reckless. I hadn’t checked his transmitter seal at all the last few hours. I’d assumed he was holed up at the guest house since it was his day off.
Our eyes met.
We both froze.
Normally I’d give a cheerful “Hey Vim!” but that wasn’t possible now.
Awkward.
Truthfully, our relationship wasn’t that casual. He was an irreplaceable friend, and I intended to rush to his side if anything happened, but that was if I was mentally prepared. Unexpected encounters like this were still painful compared to how open we used to be as childhood friends.
Vim probably felt similarly.
That said, it would be wrong to just turn around and walk out now that I was inside the shop. Pretty cold, Vim.
“Table for one! Right this way!”
The cow girl took the initiative to defuse the situation, pulling Vim along.
Maybe she was the strongest one here now.
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Thanks to her, I at least readied myself to act normal.
“Yo, you’re looking well, Vim.”
“….Yeah, more or less. Thanks to you.”
“What a coincidence finding you two here. Sue-chan’s been here for a while now,” she said.
“….Oh, that’s right. Heidemarie comes here sometimes too.”
“That’s right.”
“She came to talk but doesn’t want to admit it,” the cow girl teased.
“….If only she could be more straightforward,” Vim laughed.
He went along with the cow girl’s jest, to my annoyance.
“Cut it out, both of you! I just came to drink alone, that’s all,” I asserted.
With the cow girl serving as a buffer, it was a relief to have her keeping the conversation going.
“Listen, Vim – Sue-chan doesn’t care about dressing well at all,” she said.
She still wasn’t giving up, huh?
“Oh, I guess she doesn’t, kind of,” Vim replied.
“She says she’d be too embarrassed to wear new clothes in case you reacted to them!”
“Hey, cut it out, idiot!” I shouted.
“Um, I don’t really get clothes and stuff anyway,” said Vim, smiling awkwardly.
Vim reacted as awkwardly as expected.
“Just do what you like. That’s what I think,” he muttered.
Oh, I’m sure you don’t care at all.
“Vim, when it’s like that, you should declare you’ll [react] rather than [not react]!” insisted the cow girl.
“….Wouldn’t that put kind of a lot of pressure on her?” asked Vim.
Vim and the cow girl glanced my way as they talked.
Stop it, both of you! I don’t want to take either side. Siding with Vim would be irritating, and siding with the cow girl would mean throwing away my dignity.
As I hesitated on how to answer, the cow girl clapped her hands together.
“How about we go shopping together tomorrow, all three of us?”
“Huh?” Vim and I uttered in unison again.
“Let’s buy some clothes for Sue-chan! And you can come too, Vim!”
What’s this so suddenly?
“No thanks, too much trouble,” I refused flatly.
“Aw, come on, let’s go shopping. You’re a Sage, so you’ve got money, right?”
“I’m not going. Absolutely not.”
“Come ooon,” she wheedled.
She seemed to think I’d cave if she pushed me.
Backing down here would be pathetic. Annoyed, I resolutely ignored her and just stuffed my face silently.
…I wasn’t even sure what I was fighting at this point.
Meanwhile, Vim was flustered, not knowing what to do.
“Fine, fine,” the cow girl conceded, dropping the formal speech. Her leisurely demeanor from before had faded. My stubbornness had finally worked, it seemed.
Ha! I won.
“Well, I’ll be getting back to the shop. Enjoy your time together, you two.”
“Hm?”
“Vim, thank you for today.”
“Oh…sure.”
Vim bowed to see her off, then the cow girl hurriedly headed back toward the inn.
It was like getting stabbed in the back. My strength evaporated.
“Geez, what a wicked girl. I’d like to meet her parents,” I complained.
“That’s a bit much coming from you,” Vim countered.
“She’s trying to toy with an innocent boy’s heart using her vapid feminine wiles. Utterly shallow.”
“You shouldn’t be fooled by someone like that, Vim.”
“Someone like what now?” said a voice behind me.
I’d gotten carried away, so I couldn’t back out now. No, I wasn’t fixated on things like that. Absolutely not.
But Vim looked at me askance.
“What? Don’t look at me like that,” I protested.
“I can be dense, but isn’t that why you don’t have any friends?”
“Who cares about friends! It’s the way I live!”
“Well, whatever. Oh yeah, I got this,” he said abruptly, handing me a paper bag.
“….What’s this?”
“Earrings. Not piercings, but clip-ons.”
“Clip-ons?”
I was confused. I took them anyway.
What was this?
Vim bought earrings and gave them to me?
So, a present?
“Huh?”
“I figured even if it’s embarrassing to totally transform, you could start small with changing up your accessories a bit. Oh, and these are magnetic, so they shouldn’t hurt much even if it’s your first time wearing them.”
An indescribable, ticklish feeling welled up.
Well, I knew about those kinds of things from books. But even in my heart of hearts, putting these emotions into words made me hesitate.
“To think you’re the sort of man who would show this kind of consideration, I never imag–“
“That’s what Grate-san told me to say,” Vim interjected.
“Hey!”
Finally realizing, I went limp again.
So the two of them had been going store to store today to buy these?
“What was that cow girl trying to accomplish…?”
I was truly relieved.
Who and where was the fool who had worried for no reason?
Looking back, it was odd from the start – it began with three people shopping, so fretting over some alleged romance between the remaining two was weird.
Right. That’s right. Honestly.
“But, I don’t think Grate-san thought I was interested or anything,” Vim pondered aloud. “More like she wanted to tease Heidemarie.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Grate-san and I weren’t really that close in the first place. She usually just casually talks to me as part of her work. We probably talked way more today than normal. So I didn’t really get why she was dragging me around.”
“Hm? Even more confusing now.”
Vim nodded repeatedly, seeming to consider and verify various things before concluding:
“If anything, more than messing with me, Grate-san wanted to poke fun at Heidemarie.”
“….Eh?”
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Pair of socially awkward childhood friends are confused but Vim may, surprisingly, be sharper than Heidemarie. Low self-esteem debuff is simply getting in his way.