Chapter 76: Just Pick Something Already

The market was as lively as ever. Lots of people were passing back and forth to buy what they needed, from clothes and food to materials for making weapons.

One of those people was Mira, who was having a hard time picking out clothes for Evelyn and Elysia.

She held her chin with one hand, her forehead creased from thinking so hard.

Elysia had already said any clothes were fine, as long as they were comfortable and covered their private parts. So what exactly was Mira thinking about so hard?

Money wasn’t the problem. Elias always sent Mira a pretty big amount every month. Even though the money she received kept growing, Mira still struggled to spend it all.

Well, she was a really thrifty girl, after all.

Sometimes, Mira was even confused by how much Elias sent. It wasn’t always one gold coin. Her brother could sometimes send two to four gold coins, even twice in one month.

A single gold coin was already a huge deal for a commoner like her. So how could Elias send that much in one month?

That obviously wouldn’t be possible unless he did something that raised his pay. Or maybe he sold something worth about a gold coin.

And the right answer was the second one.

So, what exactly was Mira thinking about?

’What are their bust sizes, exactly?’

It might sound trivial to most people. But for a girl like Mira, choosing clothes that fit properly was important.

If it was too big, the clothes would look weird. On the other hand, if it was too small, the person wearing it would obviously feel uncomfortable.

Thinking about this was almost draining all of Mira’s brain cells.

"Little girl, what kind of clothes do you actually want? You’ve been standing there doing nothing for thirty minutes."

The shopkeeper, who’d been waiting on Mira all this time, finally complained in a bored voice.

Realizing she really had been there too long, Mira swept her eyes over the different clothes hanging along the walls. Then her eyes landed on a long white dress with puffed sleeves and a lace-trimmed hem.

The top of the dress had a floral corset with a mix of pink and green. The straps crossing the back gave it a sweet look, while the white fabric hanging down to the ankles made the dress look simple and elegant at the same time.

Mira then shifted her gaze to another dress not far from it.

That dress had an almost identical design, with a long ivory skirt and puffed sleeves. But its corset was black with tiny flower patterns, plus a black ribbon decorating the waist.

Both dresses looked simple, but each had its own charm. And most importantly, their designs were similar enough for a pair of twin sisters to wear.

"Ah, I think these will work..."

The shopkeeper glanced at the dresses before looking back at Mira.

"Anything else to confirm? Like bust or waist size?"

"...D-cup... Maybe."

’Let’s just go with the closest one.’

"And the waist size?"

"That one seems right."

"Alright."

The shopkeeper hurried to get both dresses ready after Mira paid twenty silver coins.

Once the payment was done, the shopkeeper folded both dresses neatly before wrapping them in a sheet of thick paper. Then she tied the bundle with a small string and handed it to Mira.

"Pleasure doing business with you, little girl."

"Thank you."

After returning the shopkeeper’s smile, Mira hurried toward the village with the bundle in her right hand.

While she was walking, she happened to spot a familiar figure scratching his head while looking at a shop.

"Big Bro? What’s he doing here?"

Mira walked toward Elias. But before she got close, she suddenly stopped and smiled mischievously.

She started walking again, slowly this time, trying to approach her brother without being noticed.

Once she was right behind Elias, Mira raised both hands and went up on her tiptoes. She was trying to reach her brother’s eyes, but unfortunately, her hands still couldn’t reach.

Mira tried standing even higher on her tiptoes, hoping it would work this time. But instead of covering Elias’s eyes, she lost her balance and crashed into her brother’s back.

*Bump.

"Ah!"

Elias, who felt something hit his back, looked around in shock before he started yelling.

"Who bumped into me?! Use your eyes to look and your feet to walk—"

Before he could finish, Elias saw a girl in front of him. The angry expression on his face turned to shock and panic right away.

"M-Mira?! What are you doing here?"

"Ugh... I failed at our guessing game. Why did you grow so tall that I can’t even reach your eyes?"

Seeing his sister pouting with her cheeks puffed out was the most delightful sight for Elias.

’Just as I thought. My sister’s the cutest!’

"Hahaha! That’s your own fault for being short."

Teased by her brother, Mira put both hands on her hips and huffed.

"Hmph! I can still grow, you know."

"Grow?"

Hearing his sister, Elias stepped closer and placed his palm on top of Mira’s head, like he was measuring her height.

"See? You’re still shoulder height, like always. It’s been four months, you know."

Hearing her brother’s teasing, Mira started pounding on Elias’s chest a few times to vent her annoyance.

*Thump! Thump!

"You’re the weird one! Growing a few centimeters in just four months!"

"Ouch! S-sorry. That hurts, stop!"

That was a lie. The damage Elias took was zero, while the stamina Mira spent was a hundred.

Of course, Elias couldn’t say the punches didn’t hurt. Because if he did, the thing he feared most would happen.

’Mira’s gonna sulk at me.’

Hearing her brother, Mira finally stopped hitting him and stood there with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Just this once."

Elias dropped to his knees in front of Mira right away, like he’d just received something way more precious than gold.

"Thank you for your kindness and wisdom, Princess."

Mira’s face turned red at her brother’s silly behavior. She looked around and realized a few people were staring at them.

"B-Big Bro! What are you doing? Don’t embarrass me, stand up..."

"What a shame. I could’ve done this forever. But since it’s the Princess’s order, of course I’ll obey."

"That’s even worse! Hurry and stand up...!"

Mira hugged Elias’s arm, trying to help him up.

Elias, seeing his sister struggle to lift him, could only smile and snort before finally standing back up.

He dusted off his pants before looking at Mira.

"What are you doing here?"

"I bought clothes for Lady Evelyn and Elysia. They said they didn’t bring anything when they came here, not even clothes. So I bought some for them."

Hearing that, Elias could only smile wryly, remembering what happened when they all left for Valebrook Village.

"What about you, Big Bro? What are you doing here?"

Elias was startled when Mira asked that.

Sweat broke out on his face right away and his body started fidgeting.

Actually, Elias had been sent by Aunt Centipede to buy ingredients for Mira’s birthday. Not just ingredients, there were also a few things needed to complete the birthday party.

But of course, Elias couldn’t tell Mira that.

It was so hard to lie when his sister was looking at him with such innocent eyes.

He’d rather be told to eat horse manure than lie to his little sister!

’Ugh! I’m sorry, Mira! Your Big Bro doesn’t want to either, but I have no choice!’

Seeing Elias suddenly shed tears even though his face stayed flat, Mira raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What’s wrong with you, Big Bro?"

Elias wiped his tears on reflex with his hand before smiling at Mira like everything was normal.

"What did you ask? Ah, right. Aunt Centipede told me to buy flour. She said it’s for her insects. But she didn’t say what kind of flour she meant."

"Flour? What kind of insect did Auntie find this time?"

"W-who knows. I was just told to buy it."

"Hmm..."

While Mira went quiet, thinking about Aunt Centipede’s new insect and what kind of flour it needed, Elias panicked and quickly changed the subject.

"Ah! Weren’t you with the two Ladies earlier? You’d better hurry back. They might get lost or confused."

"Ah! You’re right! See you, Big Bro. I’ll ask Aunt Centipede about it later!"

Mira then ran off, waving her hand at Elias.

Once Mira was far enough away, Elias patted his chest and let out a sigh of relief.

*Phew~

"That was close..."

* * *

After walking for a while, Mira finally reached the village. It was already getting late in the afternoon, and the sky was slowly turning orange.

As soon as she entered the village, Mira started to notice a few things she found odd.

A few villagers suddenly avoided her when she greeted them or tried to talk to them. Some even ran off the moment they saw Mira.

The village also felt quieter than usual.

Sure, it was almost night. But the atmosphere today felt different.

"What’s going on?"

While Mira was scratching her head in confusion, she turned around to head toward the bathhouse.

But the moment she turned, she found the Village Chief tiptoeing along like someone about to steal livestock.

And then their eyes met.

"Village Chief!"

The Village Chief jumped in shock when Mira suddenly called out to him.

"M-Mira?"

’Oh no! What do I do... And I was being so careful.’

Mira walked up to the Village Chief, whose face was now dripping with sweat.

"Village Chief, what are you doing? Why are you walking like someone trying to steal livestock?"

"Don’t talk nonsense! How could a man of noble character like me steal livestock?!"

"Then what are you doing?"

"I-I was just..."

"Hmm? Just...?"

"Just..."

The Village Chief really couldn’t think of a lie while being stared at by Mira’s glowing blood-red eyes! Instead, he got even more nervous and sweated even harder.

’Idiot! Say something! Think of something! Livestock! An excuse! Birthday... Ah, right!’

"I was just looking for my livestock that ran off. It’s almost night, so I was searching for it. I saw it pass by around this house earlier."

"Ah, really? Want me to help?"

The Village Chief raised his hands and shook his head hard. His movements were even exaggerated, just to turn down her help.

"No, no! You don’t need to help me. Aren’t you supposed to be with the Nocturne ladies?"

"Ah! You’re right!"

Mira flinched when she remembered. Then she ran toward the bathhouse while saying:

"Hope you find it soon, Village Chief!"

After Mira left, the Village Chief let out a long sigh while patting his own back.

"I’m too old for this."

On the other side, after reaching the bathhouse, Mira rushed inside, panting.

"Ladies~ I bought you some clothe—"

Her face, which had been beaming with a bright smile, instantly went blank when she saw something inside the bathhouse.

"...What the heck is this?"

* * *