Chapter 8 Breaking Prohibited Matters
A few days after Rhiannon received her first paycheck, she disguised herself as a commoner and quietly slipped out of Mrs. Wezelt (or Wezel(?))'s townhouse.
As usual, Kaine wasn't with her.
That's because Rhiannon was secretly planning to buy a gift for Kaine.
(If Kaine says there's nothing she wants, then I'll just pick something myself. And Kaine will be so impressed by my taste that he'll be moved to tears!)
Rhiannon had already decided in her heart that she would get a ribbon to tie Kaine's hair.
In fact, the ribbon Kaine always wore was a black velvet one, and it was always the same.
Rhiannon often thought, (It'd be nice if he wore a different color ribbon sometimes...)
A ribbon would be affordable, and it wouldn't be something that would cause any trouble if received.
With that in mind, Rhiannon was heading to Maysale Boutique, trying not to get caught by Kaine.
(Maysale Boutique is on the 'Forbidden List 24, do not go to any of the stores on this list,' but a little bit should be okay, right?)
After all, Maysale Boutique had just opened last year and was a hot topic as a large department store.
It seemed Mrs. Wezelt had been there several times.
There was no way Rhiannon, who loved shopping, wouldn't be curious about it.
By the way, Kaine had been forcibly dragged along by Mrs. Wezelt as a pack mule for shopping.
Since both Mrs. Wezelt and Rhiannon were obviously accomplices, Kaine shouldn't be back at the townhouse for a while.
Maysale Boutique was a magnificent stone building located in the middle of the bustling town.
The display windows showcased the latest trendy dresses.
As Rhiannon opened the polished glass door, she gasped at the dazzling sight of the store inside.
"Wow, this is amazing...! So this is Maysale Boutique, boasting the best selection in the capital!"
Inside the store, a dizzying array of colorful dresses and accessories were crammed together.
For Rhiannon, who had an insatiable love for shopping, it felt like paradise.
She had to hold back the impulse to shout, "I'll buy this whole shelf right here!" Taking a deep breath, Rhiannon began to wander around the store, glancing about.
She couldn't stay too long, though, since she had a promise to keep with Kaine.
She quickly spotted what she was looking for.
A row of ribbons made her let out a small squeal of delight.
Without hesitation, Rhiannon picked up a deep red ribbon from the variety on display.
It would surely look stunning against Kaine's glossy black hair.
"I think I'll go with this one... Oh, this ribbon tie is so cute!"
Even though she was supposed to be picking out a ribbon for Kaine, Rhiannon found herself distracted by a silk ribbon tie on the neighboring shelf.
It was made of the same material as the ribbon she had just chosen for Kaine, with white lace at the ends.
The price wasn't too steep either.
"Maybe I should buy this ribbon tie as a little treat for myself. But, hmm... do I already have something similar?"
As Rhiannon mumbled to herself, pondering her decision, someone suddenly bumped into her from behind with a lot of force.
"Eek!"
"...Huh!?"
Rhiannon barely managed to keep her balance, but the person who bumped into her fell hard onto the floor.
When she turned around, she saw a teenage girl with pink-brown hair tied in 2 pigtails sitting on the ground, looking up at her.
The girl seemed to be about Rhiannon's age, and her big brown eyes were slightly glistening with tears.
Surprised, Rhiannon looked down at the girl.
"You bumped into me and then just fell over like that? What a strange way to collide!"
The moment she said that, Rhiannon made a "Oh no!" face.
Surprised by the suddenness of it all, Rhiannon ended up speaking in a snarky way typical of a villainess.
Plus, with her sharp features, she might accidentally scare the other person without meaning to.
Sure enough, the person she bumped into looked frightened.
"Uh, s-sorry! I didn't mean to...!"
"...It's fine. Just be more aware of your surroundings next time."
With that, Rhiannon hesitantly reached out her hand.
"Uh, um... are you hurt?"
"Wait, what?"
The beautiful girl with pink-brown hair widened her eyes in surprise.
"What a surprise! You're not mad?"
"Surprised? How rude of you to say that when you don't even know me well.... I might look like someone who gets misunderstood easily, but I'm not mad, so you can relax."
"But, normally, it wouldn't be weird to be mad.... I mean, you would be, right?"
"What do you mean? Did you bump into me on purpose to make me angry?"
"N-No, of course not!"
The beautiful girl shook her head vigorously with a nervous smile and used Rhiannon's hand to stand up.
After confirming that the other person wasn't hurt, Rhiannon said, "Well then," and turned on her heel.
She decided it was best not to scare her any further.
If she carelessly gave someone a bad impression, it could lead to Rhiannon's doom flag being raised.
(I found the ribbon for Kaine's present, so I'm done here. Plus, I'm already breaking Rule 24, so I shouldn't stick around too long.... I want a cute ribbon tie for myself, but I guess I'll have to give that up.)
However, as Rhiannon tried to leave quickly, the girl stopped her by grabbing her arm.
"W-Wait, Ms. Rhiannon!"
Rhiannon turned back, looking puzzled.
"...How do you know my name? Have we met somewhere before?"
"Oh, right.... Um, well, I'm also a bit of nobility, and I saw you at a party a while back!"
"Ah, I see."
Rhiannon easily accepted the excuses of the flustered beautiful girl.
The girl tilted her head cutely, reminiscent of a small animal.
"By the way, don't you want that ribbon tie, Ms. Rhiannon? I thought you might want it since you've been staring at it for a while..."
"W-well, I was thinking about buying it, you know? But I wanted to take a little more time to consider it..."
"Eh! That ribbon tie is super cute, so it might sell out really fast, don't you think? I think it goes really well with your outfit today!"
"R-really...?"
"Yeah! It matches your hair color too! And how about that bag over there?"
"Um, you're really pushing for someone who isn't even a store employee, aren't you?"
Even as she said that, Rhiannon was completely swept up in the pace of the pink-brown-haired girl.
It was no ordinary person who would innocently strike up a conversation with Rhiannon, who was meeting her for the first time.
She was a rare breed.
For some reason, the beautiful girl kept recommending things that suited Rhiannon and showering her with compliments.
At first, Rhiannon had been wary of the sudden approach, but as she was pampered, she gradually started to feel good about it.
Before she knew it, Rhiannon had made a complete round of the store.
"Ms. Rhiannon, you're so beautiful, it's enviable how everything suits you!"
"W-well, I'll admit that I'm beautiful! I'm known as the Pearl of Tortone Kingdom, you know."
"Wow~!"
"When you say that, it doesn't feel bad at all!"
Completely elated from the flattery, Rhiannon let out a high-pitched laugh, "Ohoho." With the girl's encouragement, before she knew it, Rhiannon was holding a bunch of dresses and bags.
"I really want all of this and that!"
Rhiannon was completely oblivious.
Occasionally, a dark shadow of malice would flicker across the cute smile of the girl in front of her.
"Ms. Rhiannon, the checkout is over there! Since you're buying so much, shouldn't we call that butler too?"
Rhiannon almost nodded at the words of the charming girl for a moment.
However, after hesitating, Rhiannon slowly shook her head.
The items the girl had picked out were all lovely, but with the pocket money Rhiannon had, there was no way she could afford them.
"...It's a shame, but I can't buy all of this. I have to put them back."
"Eh! B-but the Clahsen family is rich, right!? You can buy at least this much..."
"Yeah, sure, my family is wealthy, but... earning money isn't something that comes easy."
Even after selling bread every day until she was exhausted, the wages from a month's work wouldn't be enough to buy a single dress.
Rhiannon was thoroughly ashamed of her past spending habits.
She reluctantly put each item back on the shelf, leaving only the ribbon tie she was considering buying and a ribbon for Kaine in her hands.
"I guess I'll buy this ribbon tie since it's a special occasion. Thanks for pushing me to do it."
"Eh, what's this? This is weird... It's different from the game's story..."
The girl muttered with a confused look on her face.
Rhiannon tilted her head.
"Um, the game's story? What do you mean?"
"N-no, it's nothing! Just forget it!"
The girl flashed a smile that seemed to cover up her confusion.
Rhiannon peered at the girl's face with concern.
"Um, are you okay? You look a bit pale──."
"I-I'm fine!"
"Really?"
"More importantly, I want to chat more with you, Ms. Rhiannon! I'm having a tea party with my friends soon, would you come? I'll make sure to send you an invitation!"
"Eh, m-me at a tea party!?"
"Yeah, I really want you to come. Please!"
Rhiannon was taken aback when the adorable girl looked up at her with pleading eyes.
Following Kaine's rules, Rhiannon had been holed up in the townhouse, which meant she still didn't have any friends in the capital.
This was the first time she had been invited to a tea party like this.
"Well, I guess I could go..."
Rhiannon nodded while trying to suppress her inner excitement, turning her head away a bit.
(Ah, my dream tea party! I can't believe I got invited to a place like this! Breaking the rules was totally worth it!)
The girl smiled brightly at Rhiannon, who was silently cheering in her heart.
"Alright, it's settled then! You should be getting an invitation soon! Let's meet again at the tea party!"
"Wait! I-I still haven't heard your name!"
"Oh, I didn't introduce myself yet? My name is Sarah. Sarah Belts!"
Rhiannon's eyes widened at the girl who introduced herself with a cheerful smile.
Sarah Belts. The girl that Kaine called a wicked woman to be avoided.
(Sarah Belts, huh!? Can such a cute girl really be the one to ruin me?)
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)