A Glimpse of the Truth

Karina-chan here. I got the lotion — my business in this town is done!

I departed from the port town of Véraldo—

 

 

—or so it would seem; after leaving through the gate, I teleported back inside the town.

See, I need to time my arrival in Solasidor to be 5–8 days from now. Too much alone time is boring — unhealthy, even. You get it, right?

Oh, and of course I took a delivery request bound for Solasidor at the Adventurers' Guild. Gotta earn that sweet pocket money. The cargo's tucked away in storage space, so I can enjoy sightseeing in Véraldo without a care in the world.

To avoid leaving a money trail, I sealed my ID and converted 7 silvers into cash beforehand. That's my budget for this stay.

If I spend it all, I'll retreat to storage space and chill alone until it's time to "arrive" in Solasidor.

I also want to try modding the massager — whoops, I mean toy — I bought from the alchemy shop!

First order of business: seafood, like a proper port town!

If possible, I'd also like to get my hands on some girl's socks. I really want at least one dose of the period-skip pill…

But asking for socks outright seems tough. I'm willing to pay, but the embarrassment factor is the real sticking point…

"To the stalls!"

Food stalls lined the street, the smell of grilled squid and shellfish wafting through the air. The place was quite lively.

Oh! Scallops! … With butter!? Makes me crave soy sauce… and sake.

Wait — there's no soy sauce in this world, but I do have the wine I squeezed out of those pirates yesterday.

Seafood pairs with white wine, right? Ah, but given my drinking habits, daytime drinking out in public is a bad idea.

In that case, I'll buy the hot-off-the-grill scallops, take them to go, and drink at home!

"Mister! Two scallops!"

"You got it!"

I suppressed my desire to eat them on the spot, bought the scallops, and pretended to slip them into my backpack while actually storing them away. Can't forget to put them in a small wooden box first for camouflage.

"Huh? Not eating here? I'd rather you eat 'em while they're hot."

"Hm? Ah, a gift. I'll reheat them at home."

"I see. Well, don't blame me if your stomach rebels."

"I know, I know."

Time doesn't pass inside, so it's fine.

Yup, buying a backpack was the right call. Those DIY wooden boxes too.

"By the way, where can I buy fresh fish?"

"The morning market, though it's over for today… There's also a regular fishmonger."

"I might check it out. Can you tell me where it is?"

"Sure, the place is…"

Since I'd bought some scallops from him, the old man was happy to tell me all sorts of things.

Could also be because I'm pretty! … Or both.

"Thanks! Any other recommended stalls?"

"Grilled kraken. Stay away from the grilled merman though — way too gnarly."

"Kraken's basically squid, so that's fine. Merman — yeah, I'll pass."

Following his advice, I asked each stall for recommendations and bought heaps of seafood — several servings of everything.

… Oh?

A beautiful vendor!

"Oh my, miss. Will you buy our seaside stew too? Can you really eat that much?"

"I'm bringing it to a place full of hungry kids. It'll be fine."

"I see. An orphanage?"

"Something like that."

Bandana on her head, short pants — she had a pirate vibe going, and she was gorgeous.

This is promising a nice SP return!!

She seemed like the friendly type too. Maybe if I asked, I could get her socks… I steeled myself and popped the question.

"By the way, lovely lady… this is sudden and probably surprising, but… would you sell me your socks!?"

"Huh!? S-socks?"

"I'll pay! I need a beautiful woman's socks to treat my sick little sister!"

"What kind of sickness is that!?"

Probably something wrong with the brain.

"Er, like, as an ingredient for a magic potion or something?"

"Ah, got it. Potion material… Sorry, I can't sell my socks."

"I'll pay a mid silver!"

"It's not that — I'm wearing sandals. I don't own anything as fancy as socks. Sorry."

"Wha… what…?"

I learned a truth about the world.

Just because a beauty is a beauty doesn't mean she wears socks…!