Vol 5. Chapter 37: What Did He Say?

After detecting the thought that had secretly arisen inside, Shicodale’s head immediately shook like a rattle-drum, while inwardly scolding again and again.

How could such a thing be thought? How could such a strange, absurd, and shady action even come to mind?? This was simply—

But, but, sure enough, it was still so concerning.

The moment that thought came up, Shicodale became very dispirited.

Shicodale really was a bad child, actually having this kind of shady thought.

Should Shicodale go or not??

Ah, no, no! How had the question gone from why such a shady thought had appeared to whether or not to go??

How could Shicodale think like this? How could something like this be done with such peace of mind??

Mm. Sure enough.

Although Shicodale was incomparably curious, Shicodale felt that, sure enough, this still could not be done. This was not only a matter of nature, but also a matter of trust. Vinny had said that he was going to do special training. Could he possibly deceive Shicodale? If Shicodale secretly followed him, would that not mean not trusting Vinny??

If Vinny found out, he would definitely think that too!

So Shicodale could not do that.

After making the decision, Shicodale secretly nodded, as though it was necessary to persuade the self inwardly.

On the other side, Vinny, who had gone out, did not head directly to the arena. Instead, he went to a place the previous him would never have gone.

“Gulp.” Looking at the storefront before him, its signboard brightly lit, the blue-haired girl swallowed with some difficulty.

Was he truly going in?

Agh, he had already walked all the way here. What was he still hesitating over? Seriously, was hesitating over this still useful now??

Since he was already here.

Besides, one either did not do something, or did it very seriously. It was like helping someone. One either did not help, or helped to the very end. Wasn’t the greatest taboo in doing anything precisely touching a little on both sides??

After persuading himself inwardly, Vinny hardened his heart. He straightened his chest and told himself to calm down. Under these circumstances, no one would recognize who he was.

Besides, what was there to be embarrassed about? It was not his first time coming here. It was just that last time, he had mainly come along with other people.

And so, he stepped into this gorgeously decorated shop, where many mannequins dressed in clothing were displayed inside.

“Hello, honored and beautiful young lady. May I ask what you need?” A properly dressed shopping guide walked over. After seeing Vinny enter the shop, she was slightly stunned by his beauty, but her good professional training let her quickly correct her posture.

“Mm, hello. I’d like to buy an outfit.” Vinny used a falsetto. It was his first time doing something like this, making his voice seem somewhat stiff.

The young shopping guide did not mind. From her point of view, this young lady was probably the daughter of some noble family who had only entered school not long ago, had just arrived at Carillian Academy, and had noticed there was a clothing shop in the academy while strolling around, so she had come in curiously to take a look.

“I see. Then what style would you like?” The young shopping guide smiled warmly. “Your style is very suited to formal dresses worn at banquets. With your foundations, I feel you could perfectly carry any style.”

“Uh, no. I’m not here to buy a banquet dress. I just want to buy an everyday outfit. Something simpler is enough.” Vinny shook his head, and that pair of twin tails swayed along with his movement.

“I see. Everyday clothing? Please follow me.” The shopping guide gestured for Vinny to follow. “Then, may I ask what sort of style you want? Minimalist? Something that gives people a very refreshing feeling at first glance? Or something with a stronger sense of design? Or perhaps something a little more ornate?”

“No, nothing ornate. Minimalist is fine. Something that looks very refreshing would be good,” Vinny said.

“All right, I understand. Please follow me.” The shopping guide brought Vinny to an area inside the shop. “The clothes here all lean toward a minimalist style. They have that very pure student look, but they don’t lose their sense of design either. They fit your requirements very well.”

“All right. Thank you. I’ll choose on my own.” Vinny did not want someone else to pick for him. He still wanted to choose an outfit himself.

“Of course. I’ll be nearby. Just call me when you’re ready.” The young shopping guide politely left.

Vinny began choosing clothing himself. These were all original samples used for display. He casually tested the material of these clothes, picked up two hangers with clothing on them, one in each hand, and looked left and right. It just so happened that there was a full-length mirror here, so he held them in front of himself and compared them, imagining how it would feel if he wore this outfit.

As expected of Huawo Clothiers’ clothing. While possessing a sense of design, it did not lack beauty either. Even if he casually took two pieces that did not originally match, pairing them together still had its own flavor. As for the material, even Vinny, someone who did not understand clothing, felt with a touch that the texture was excellent. One glance was enough to know it was superb fabric.

At this moment, he noticed the pendulum clock on the wall inside the shop.

Mm? It seemed to be getting late. He should hurry up, choose an outfit, buy it, and leave. He could not delay any longer. It was only one outfit. As long as it looked different from usual, that would be fine.

He should still choose a little. Just choose a little. Putting some care into it was always right.

Mm. This gray-white pleated skirt was pretty good. It was not eye-catching, and used a special material. When light fell on it, it had an almost matte effect. Very nice. It was just that the design of the style felt somewhat similar to the school uniform, so it did not feel very different. Better forget it.

This one, though very different from the school uniform in style, was not a style he liked, and the design did not make him feel much either.

No, no. These few outfits looked all right at first glance, but wearing them would just feel like they did not suit him very well.

No matter what, it at least had to match his own taste, and the score had to be sufficient, right?

He did not ask for full marks, but out of one hundred, it should at least get an eighty-five, right? It could not merely scrape past the passing line, right?

In any case, these two pieces definitely would not do. But there were still many clothes. There was nothing wrong with looking at a few more, was there? It would not take much time.

Whether or not some compulsive tendency had acted up, Vinny put those two pieces of clothing back and began selecting between the racks again.

Eh, eh. This one’s color was good, and matched his hair color very well. Simple and clear, yet also made one’s eyes light up.

Not bad. This one, then!

Vinny picked up this top and short skirt, just thinking of going to pay, when with a glance from the corner of his eye, he saw another very suitable style.

Wait, this set is??

Vinny turned around and, surprised, took down another outfit. In front of the full-length mirror, he held it before himself and compared it.

This one felt even more suitable?

Moreover, in terms of color, would she like it better?

Now, Vinny fell into hesitation.

Like a large, swaying balance scale, with one item placed on each side, he could not make a choice no matter what.

This one, right? Clothes had to suit his own taste. Satisfying his own taste was most important. Only then would it make others feel pleased when looking at it too.

But the color of this one would suit her tastes more, right? Wasn’t wearing clothes for other people to see? Sure enough, it had to be this one.

Aaaaah!

Vinny stared at the mirror, big eyes facing big eyes, and looked rather helplessly at the blue-haired girl in the mirror holding one outfit in each hand, tangled beyond belief.

No, hurry up and choose. Isn’t it just one outfit? Just quickly choose one set and be done with it, right?

Mm! Done. No wasting time. No hesitating. This set, then!

But the neckline design of this set seemed inferior to the other one?

Vinny noticed another small detail, and the decision he had finally made was once again suspended in midair.

Awooo, it was so hard to choose. It was still so hard to choose! This was fundamentally not something he could choose just by gritting his teeth. Which set should he choose??

Vinny had never known that he actually suffered from such severe choice paralysis.

In the mirror, the ice-blue-haired girl’s mouth had turned wavy, like a crab that had crawled ashore, making “gulp, gulp” sounds.

“Miss, may I ask if you’ve run into some problem?” Just as Vinny was tangled beyond belief, the young shopping guide walked forward with a somewhat puzzled expression.

“Ah, yes.” Vinny nodded a little woodenly, head moving up and down. “I’ve run into trouble.”

“Do these clothes not suit your taste?”

“No. They all suit it quite well. It’s precisely because they all suit it quite well that...” Vinny said, tangled. “I don’t know which set I should buy.”

He also did not want to buy both sets. If he carried one set on the road back and Aesphyra saw it, she would definitely know that he had bought another set.

Then the nature of the matter would be different!

Buying one set might only be because he was being attentive and not perfunctory. But buying two sets—whether there was an element of “he really liked them” in that, anyone would be able to see!

No, no. He was the dignified Camella Royal Capital’s notorious young master. If this matter spread back, how would he keep mixing on that street in the Royal Capital in the future? Although his reputation had not been good to begin with, the nature of this was completely different!

Moreover, why did he have to buy two sets?

Could he really like these clothes??

Stop joking, okay! He was the Camella Royal Capital’s notorious young master. Would he like clothes like these?!

“I see.” The young shopping guide thought for a moment. “That doesn’t conflict. These two outfits can be mixed and matched, and the effect is very good when they’re mixed together. If you really like them, you can consider buying both.”

“Uh, no. One set is enough.” Vinny hesitated.

“Do you have some concern? If it’s convenient, could you tell me?” The young shopping guide found it strange. Looking at Vinny’s reaction, it did not seem to be a matter of not having enough money. This young lady clearly liked them very much, but simply refused to buy both sets together. That was very strange.

Was there some unspeakable reason behind this? There shouldn’t be, right?

“Well, no. I just think it’s unnecessary.” Vinny’s answer came out somewhat halting.

“Oh, I see. Then I recommend that you buy that matte deep-white style. After all, that one is about to sell out. As for the other style, it’s still fine,” the young shopping guide recommended.

“Ahh??” Vinny froze. “It’s already going to sell out?”

“Yes. This is a new summer seasonal limited style our clothiers released this year. It’s very popular,” the shopping guide said.

“This—then after it sells out, will it rerun?” Perhaps because he had played too many mobile games in his previous life, Vinny was immediately hooked by the words “limited style,” and hurriedly asked.

“Rerun? Do you mean whether the same style will be opened for sale again in the future? That will not happen.” The young shopping guide shook her head.

“Ah?! Why?”

“Miss, our Huawo Clothiers’ seasonal styles all have a limited number. Every season, every year, we sell new styles, and will not sell the old styles previously sold,” the young shopping guide explained. Apart from that, she was also somewhat puzzled.

This young lady did not seem like someone who often patronized Huawo Clothiers. Otherwise, how could she not even know this?

“Ahh.” Vinny froze in place, opened his mouth, and stared blankly at the beautiful girl in the mirror holding two sets of clothes, unable to decide what to do.

This feeling was like in his previous life, when playing a mobile game, a character he liked released two especially pretty skins, and he was torn over which one to buy. Then he looked and discovered both were limited! He had no choice but to buy them!

Ha, haha.

What was this? This hunger marketing or whatever had truly been mastered by Huawo Clothiers, huh??

But it was only one piece of clothing. Just a consumable. There was no need to buy something this expensive in the first place, right?

“Then, the other set is also...?”

“As for the other set, it isn’t a summer limited style. It is a periodic limited-quantity style, the kind that will be gone once sold out,” the young shopping guide said. “In addition, as long as the clothes are bought from our clothiers, we provide lifelong mending service. As long as it is not too large an area of scraping damage, we can restore it to almost its original appearance.”

“What?!” Upon hearing this, Vinny was once again tempted.

“How about you change to another piece? If you really cannot decide.” Even the young shopping guide felt a little helpless at Vinny’s tangled appearance. “Our shop only has these few limited or limited-quantity styles. The others are not. They can be bought all year round. What do you think?”

Vinny said nothing, but his hands showed absolutely no intention of putting down the clothes he held. They were like crab pincers that had clamped onto something. If the claws in claw machines were this fierce, they would guarantee a one-hundred-percent hit rate, and not a single prize would escape.

“Actually, after you buy them, you can store them in our shop first,” the young shopping guide sighed, unintentionally mentioning this.

“Ahh? You should’ve said that earlier!”

“Uh?” The young shopping guide’s face was full of confusion.

“Fine. You can store them, right? Then good! I’ll take one of each of these two styles!” Vinny gritted his teeth, his expression like a blue octopus about to hiss.

“Ah, ah?” The young shopping guide froze.

He had been tangled for so long earlier and unwilling to buy them. Why had he suddenly made up his mind?

This change left the young shopping guide somewhat unable to make sense of it.

“What? Don’t tell me you’re out of stock??”

“No, nothing like that. Of course we still have stock. Please wait a moment. I’ll go bring the inventory for you.” The young shopping guide shook her head, politely said so, then turned and left.

Although it was very strange, who would refuse business?

Vinny, silent in place, became alone again.

He fell wordless, looking at the blue-haired girl in the mirror clutching two sets of women’s clothing and refusing to let go. For a moment, it felt somewhat unfamiliar.

No, what had he just said?