Magic Warrior Chapter 27 (Patreon)

Clothing Store

On the right is Claire; on the left is the slave girl I picked up.

--Flowers on both hands!

If I were a man, I would be overjoyed.

"My name is Claire, but you haven't told me your name yet, have you?"

"My name is Rilfana."

I was trying to escape from the reality of what to do when Claire asked me my name. Good job.

"I'm Mina. Nice to meet you, Rilfana-chan."

"Thank you for taking me in, Mina-sama, and it's nice to meet you, Mina-sama and Claire-sama."

"You don't have to say 'sama'!"

Rilfana bowed beautifully, while Claire turned red and flustered. It's an interesting scene that I don't see very often.

I don't want to be called like that either, but it would be difficult for me to ask her to change it right away, given my position.

"Let's go find a clothing store for now, I don't think I want to walk around with Rilfana in those clothes."

"Um...no, thank you. But is Mina-sama's errand alright?"

"No, it's fine. I'm not in such a hurry."

It's a pity that she's still in her dirty, tattered clothes. I don't know if the shoes she is wearing have been used for a long time or if they are cheap, but the seams are almost torn to shreds.

It is a pity that they are still dirty and tattered. I don't know if the shoes he is wearing have been used for a long time or if they are cheap ones, but the seams of them are almost torn to shreds. I'm not sure if it's for entertainment, or if it's to go eat something delicious, but my dad has given me quite a bit of money, so I'm sure I'll have enough for clothes even before the redemption.

◇

The town of Gardia is a long oval-shaped east-west surrounded by a stone wall.

The town is divided into a cross-section with a road running straight from the north gate to the south gate and from the west gate to the east gate.

The center of the cross, which coincides with the center of the town, is said to be the central square, with a fountain and benches set up in the center, serving as a resting area for the town's residents.

These streets are wide and there is space for stalls between the sidewalks and the road for horse-drawn carriages. Most of the stalls are located near the central square, but during New Year's festivals and other festivities, the streets are sometimes lined from one end of the town to the other.

The town is divided into the northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast wards based on this cross-shaped central street.

Around the center where the streets intersect, there seem to be major facilities such as adventurers' guilds, merchants' guilds, and town halls, as well as general stores.

The wartime fortress was located in the northern part of the northeastern district, on the opposite side of the gate from where we entered.

Today, there stands a lord's mansion where the Earl of Howling, who governs this area, lives. Surrounding it are the residences of the nobles who assist him, so it could be called a small aristocratic district. Many stores selling luxury goods and luxury items are also located in this section of the city.

The other three districts have a similar structure, with the commercial district near the main street, the industrial district surrounding the commercial district where workers work and live, and the residential district at the outer edge of the town.

Walk straight down the central avenue, looking at the stores.

Near the south gate, there are many stores for adventurers, such as apothecaries, general stores, weapon shops, and armor shops, and toward the center, there are more stores for daily necessities, such as clothing stores, shoe stores, and book stores, as well as doctors.

Near the central plaza are bakeries, snack stores, coffee shops, restaurants, and inns.

Despite these trends, the variety of stores and the many people happily walking around the rows of stores reminded me of a Japanese townscape for the first time in a long time.

This may be mainly due to the fact that most of the stores are made of glass.

Many of the stores are not made of large, transparent single panes of glass like in Japan, but rather are made of several small, normal-sized panes of glass in a layout that allows customers to see the products inside.

Having lived in a village all my life, I found the neat rows of tall buildings with more than three floors to be very urban.

In Tokyo, Japan, I was used to seeing buildings with tens of stories in a row.

The sound of bells echoed through the city. The bell rang once after a beat. It must be ringing near the center of the town, and it is very loud and resonant.

"What is that sound...?"

"It's the bell for one in the afternoon, Claire-sama."

"Oh, I've heard it before from my father!"

"Many people have a snack during this bell, right?"

Claire seems to know. Of course, I have no idea.

Rilfana was speaking in a polite way, but I wonder if she is speaking in her own dialect.

Rilfana told me that the bell she mentioned earlier rings seven times a day, except for midnight, when it rings every three hours, and then it rings again at midnight.

I guess that means it rings every three hours, but not at midnight.

Most of the people who freely walk around the town at this time are adventurers.

Most adventurers wear leather light armor and swords or spears. Among the humans, there were long-eared elves in light armor with bows on their backs, small but stout dwarves with rugged hatchets and hand axes hanging from their arms, and a few beastmen with fluffy ears.

There are those with flawed armor and weapons that look as if they have been used for a long time, and there are groups of people walking happily in shiny metal armor that they may have just bought.

--This is a fantasy world!

As I was enjoying myself, I saw a group of people wearing metal armor that looked as if they had just bought it. In addition, there was a lady walking around in bikini armor that was obviously more skin-colored than the rest of her body, which made me wonder if it was even defensible.

I think such armor is only worn by those who have good style.

I found a clothing store as I was walking along, feeling a little off.

As I walked along, I occasionally caught glimpses of glances. I wonder if they see me as an upstart who has come out of the countryside. Maybe it's because I have a slave with me.

"Let's try this place!"

From the outside, the store seemed to carry a wide range of women's clothing, including shoes.

The price tags near the entrance did not look expensive. At any rate, it seemed suitable for buying a few pieces of clothing. There was also a magic bag, so I decided to buy Rilfana's clothes in bulk.

I lightly dusted off Rilfana's rags and tatters, then entered the store.

"Welcome!"

I opened the door to the sound of a bell ringing in my ears. A waiter immediately came out to answer the door.

The clerk who came out was a petite female elf with pointed ears.

She was wearing a cute apron, but she looked fluffy and slightly sleepy.

The store was crammed full of merchandise, but there seemed to be no other customers at the moment.

"I'd like to get some clothes for this girl, but I'd also like to get some normal clothes, something to wear as a nightgown, underwear, and comfortable shoes for walking."

"Yes, sir. Please wait a moment."

The elf clerk looked at me and Rilfana in turn, smiled at us, and then pulled Rilfana's hand and escorted her to the fitting room... or rather, to the back of the store.

I looked at Rilfana alternately, smiled at her, and then pulled her by the hand and took her to the back of the store, not to the fitting room.

"My dad gave us some money, so we can buy some clothes if we like..."

"Yes!"

Claire and I decided to wait and look at the merchandise.

There seemed to be a wide selection of tops, including cut-and-sewn, blouses, Y-shirts, tunics, and so on.

Since the weather will be chilly from now on, it seems that many of the items are made of knitwear and other warm materials.

The seams indicate that they are sewn by some kind of machine or "magic machine," but whether they are made by hand or it's a store obsession, they don't have exactly the same clothes.

"Big sis, what kind of clothes do you like?"

Claire is puzzled by the sheer number. In the village, I only wear the clothes my mother sews or buy at the market, so I don't have this many to choose from.

I didn't put much effort into being fashionable in Japan either, but maybe I'll pick something that looks safe?

"I like this one here and this one here."

White shirt, beige cardigan, denim bottoms...I don't have any, so a similar pants style. Maybe a tunic on top?

Claire would look good in a cute style. White shirt with black border and black flared skirt. It's not interesting, but I think a simple one-piece is also possible.

I put them together as quickly as I could and put them on the hanger rack in front of Claire.

I wonder if there are colors that match Claire's red hair. Piles and piles of them.

It's autumn, so I guess red and orange are the warm colors. The piles are piling up.

"Big sis, that's enough!

It had been a while since I had been shopping, and I was a little excited.

I suddenly realized that just trying on the clothes was a lot of work.

"...Well, I guess you can just pick the one you like from this list!"

"Umm, yes."

Somehow she seemed to get the idea of how they should be combined, and Claire decided to choose from the pile of clothes for now.

Two fitting rooms were set up in the back of the store, hidden from view from outside. The fitting rooms were curtained off with mirrors, which is common in Japan. In front of the fitting rooms, there were some reasonably priced accessories, which gave a glimpse of a sales strategy aimed at customers buying at the same time.

--The mirror.

In the village, you can only see the reflection of yourself in the window or in the surface of the river, but in a mirror with a clear reflection, you can discover something different.

I think she is beautiful, but I still have a strong image that she looks just like the character in the game, and I still can't get used to this image of myself.

When I think of myself when I am not looking at my reflection in a mirror, I can only picture Minagi Kainagi, whom I used to see every day when I washed my face or brushed my teeth.

"Well, what do you think?"

"A khaki tunic and navy skinny pants would be nice."

A loose, fluffy top and thin silhouette bottoms.

Claire, a little embarrassed by her first fashionable outfit, folds her hands and nods her head in agreement. From the outside, it was the gesture of an old man.

Neither Rilfana nor the waitress returned, so I played along with Claire's fashion show. It's fun to dress up my pretty sister.

"Here you go! Oh, my goodness! It's nice!"

When the clerk with Rilfana returns, she sees Claire and starts complimenting her. While calling out "that's nice," she pulls a note out of her apron pocket and begins to draw something.

"Mi, Mina-sama..."

Rilfana, the one in the back, is fidgeting with a face as red as a boiled octopus.

I thought it took her a long time, but I guessed she had taken a bath, and the dirt on her skin was gone and the dust in her hair had been removed, leaving her clean.

--The problem is her clothes.

What, uh, maid's uniform?

Rilfana's large breasts are open to the chest to emphasize her small melons, and the skirt, which is reminiscent of an apron, is mini enough to show off her thighs. The skirt is so mini that even the thighs can be seen. The top and bottom seem to be separated, but the navel is bare.

If you look closely, you can see that this choker is designed to look like a collar!

If I told you that this was a maid's uniform, you would probably either laugh or get angry.

At the very least, the decency of the person who is wearing it is certain to be questioned.

The "slave collar" that she wears as a bracelet is said to be able to tell which kind of slave she is by the color of her jewelry, so the shopkeeper who noticed may have gone to the trouble of making her wear it.

You'd be amazed at the variety and directionality of this store's merchandise!

"Well, as expected, this is..., it's, it's embarrassing..."

I'm not going to let Rilfana wake up to something.

"Um...just normal clothes, please."

"Oh? I understand."

The elf clerk, who had been looking at Claire's clothes and trying her best to write something down, realized that she had made a mistake and took Rilfana away, her face and voice turning sleepy.

That clerk seemed to be active when it came to clothes.

Claire did not seem to see Rilfana's attire because the clerk and I were in the shadows, and she was craning her neck to see what was going on.