『’elcome! ‘elcome! There's a bargain today! And this plump radish is especially recommended! Oh, the beautiful madam over there! Doesn’t it look beautiful just like your own thigh? 』


  Today the shopping street on the Southern Main Street is also filled with lively voices flying about.

  I caught sight of the fierce-looking shopkeeper from the vegetable shop from before, stopping a woman carrying a shopping basket on her arm.

  I wonder why did he used the word 『plump』in his sales pitch…


  Today he doesn’t seem to put on the knee-high socks on the radish, but in spite of that, he compares it with thighs.

  『Oh dear, beautiful you say…………eh, oi. Are you trying to stir me up?　My thighs are more slender and supple than that!　You’re saying I have thick legs just like those radishes over there? 』


  At first, she wasn’t so bad, she looked like a mild, gentle woman, but then her attitude changed as soon as she saw the radish.

  Maybe she was really displeased to be compared to a radish, the shopkeeper was taken aback as she proceeded to talk on and on to him.

  And she might be proud of her legs, as she started to show her supple legs from her side slit one piece.

  『『Oooooooou!』


  Then the men in the surroundings cheered at those sights.

  Ooh, no wonder she shows it off with confidence.

  『No but, aren’t they look like this radish?』


  The fierce-looking shopkeeper said that shamelessly, while he took another radish.

  『It doesn’t even come close to mine! 　Tell me, are my legs so irregular and thick like that!?』


  Maybe that shopkeeper just wanted to look at her legs that way.

  『Indeed, this supple and juicy radish truly suit you madam.』


  The one who interrupted the fierce-looking shopkeeper and woman’s conversation is the slender shopkeeper I saw the other day.

  『Ara, so there is finally someone who ――no, aren’t those radish so hairy!?　I don’t have any hair growing on my legs!』


  『Doha!』


  The moment the woman turns around, she punches the slender shopkeeper and blows him away. Since he had a slender physique, unlike the fierce-looking shopkeeper, he was blown away in an interesting way.

  And yet, he still has the guts to desperately hold onto the radish in his hands. As expected from a pro merchant

  『My legs are smooth you know!』


  「I’ve been going past this street before, but was it always like this.」


  「Hmm, I think you’re right. It will be bad if we get involved, let’s get out of here immediately.」


  Passing the vegetable shop, Eric and I bought sweets after a meal as we walked with difficulty. It’s sprinkled with sugar just like bread. It’s crisp and delicious.

  Even now, the shopping street are still lined up and opened without a break.

  But that doesn’t mean that the place is untidy, on the contrary it is well-organised, and the road is wide and clean. Maintaining such hygiene in this place feels like it will require a lot of manpower.

  I look around the surroundings trying to find something that looks interesting.

  And then suddenly, I catch sight of something green and thorny.

  I wonder what is that. It has a more atrocious thorn than durian and pineapple.

  「What is this?」


  「Err, even I don’t know what that is.」


  「What the heck, you’re useless.」


  「Shut up. But still, as expected from the royal capital, it is impossible for me to recognize every single ingredient there is. In the first place, I’m not a noble from the royal capital you know.」


  I leave the useless Eric behind and went to try and ask the shopkeeper about what that thing is, but the shopkeeper is still busy with other customers.

  『I have been so unlucky these days. Lost my purse, my house got burned, and just when I thought that my husband's job was settled, it was then out of business and collapsed. 』


  『That was truly unfortunate.I don’t know what to say other than you’re so unlucky. 』


  『Right?　Right?』


  『But for such an unlucky housewife like madam, I have something to let you prepare for something like that.』


  『What is it?』


  『It is this Fortune Vase!　As long as you have this, madam’s misfortune will turn into a fortune. In other words, as long as you have this, you will find a purse on the ground, and you can even get a new house. If for example, a nobleman dropped his wallet, then madam found his wallet and return it to him, that nobleman will then give you his mansion as thanks………nay, perhaps after that the nobleman might even fall in love with you at first sight!』


  『Is that true!? 　How much is it!　I’ll buy it!』


  『This Fortune vase, normally I would sell it for one gold coin.』


  『Tha, that much. For me, that much money is…』


  『However, for such an unlucky madam, I will just sell this Fortune Vase for three silver coins!』


  『Bu, buy it, I’ll buy iiittttttt! 』


  Thi, this is so outrageous. This is clearly a scam isn’t it.

  The unlucky woman then took out silver coins from her purse cheerfully and received the Fortune Vase.

  『Wi, with this I will also be lucky.』


  Without realizing that she’s been scammed, the woman carried the ordinary vase with a smile.

  Like carrying her own precious child.

  When the shopkeeper turns his gaze toward Eric and mine, he looks somewhat uncomfortable.

  「Whaat, it’s not a scam.」


  「No, but a Fortune Vase huh………and that price…」


  「That’s because that vase cost around three silver coins, okay?」


  「Oh, is that so?　You’re not lying right?」


  When Eric and I looked at him full of suspicion, the shopkeeper embarrassedly averted his line of sight and scratched his head.

  「In the first place, if I wanted to scam, then I will just raise the price even more. I mean, I think it’s all right to get a more positive outlook with just a three silver coin vase. If you’re being gloomy like that, nothing good will happen to you you know.」


  Indeed. If he wanted to scam people then he can certainly overcharge customers to make them spend more money. And it would be a waste if you get caught when you’re doing your scamming business for a mere three silver coins.

  Although he’s lying, I think it would be good for her since it’s also for the sake of that woman.

  For people who have bad luck, they tend to be pessimistic, and often fail to notice the opportunities in front of them. And if you keep being depressed, sinking into such a gloomy mood while always looking down, you can’t expect good things to happen to you.

  「Heeー, could it be, you have a feeling for that woman?」


  「Oi, she’s married right?」


  「Shu, shut up. If you’re not customers then go somewhere else!」


  When Eric and I make fun of him, the shopkeeper's face - from his face to his ears - turns bright red and he tries to drive us away.

  「I see. I guess you want the person you like to be happy.」


  At the end of our gaze, is a woman who starts running with springy steps as if there are wings growing on her back.

  She looks so positive that one can hardly recognize her from the woman before…


  『Uwaaaaaaaaaaa!　My, my Fortune Vasseeee!』


  She stumbled over her own legs, then she lost her balance and the Fortune Vase flew out of her hands. The vase fell to the hard floor, and the sound of the vase breaking resounded in the shopping street.

  「「「…………………」」」


  The woman’s face that looks so happy, makes a complete change into a sorrowful face, as if it was the end of the world.

  The Fortune Vase was tragically broken into small pieces. And as if to not let her own fortune to also scatter away, the woman tried to gather all of the broken pieces.

  That woman might be really unfortunate. Sometimes, it is important to look where you walk.

  「Hey, why don’t you go there, shopkeeper. If she stays like that, she will hurt herself with the broken pieces.」


  The shopkeeper ran to her side in silence.

  I wonder how he will make that woman stay positive.

  I got thirsty, so I continued to stroll along the street with juice in one hand.

  There are a lot of people here, since the butcher’s shop, vegetables shop, and a few fishmongers are located around this area.

  Even though something like seafoods are mostly sent to the high-class restaurants, nobles and royalties, still they have a lot of seafoods left to let them open fishmonger throughout the royal capital.

  This is also thanks to the magic tools made by the Ice Princess.

  Would you make something like a cooler for our house please?

  Oh well, it’s cool in the countryside, and I’ll just freeze my whole room when it’s necessary to do so. Though, people will get angry if I overdid it.

  Consequently, in order to attract the attention of the housewives who came to buy seafood, the shopkeeper from the other shops are frantically touting their goods. Voices that sounded like a roar were reverberating around the place, and it was like in the middle of war.

  There are two figures of girls around the same age as me that unexpectedly caught my attention at the butcher’s shop and the vegetables shop.

  They look similar, so I guess they’re twins huh.

  『『Umm, mother is sick so………so I want to make some food to make her feel better again…』』


  With overlapping voices, they said it with upturned eyes.

  Those big eyes of theirs are moist, appearing as if they’re about to cry anytime.

  And when you look at their face, they look pale for some reason.

  And since their mother fell sick, they surely hadn’t eaten anything decent.

  Then what about their father… No, if they have a father, then they would not behave like that. Most likely, their father has passed away early on.

  『But, we………we don’t have that much money.』


  『………mother can not work anymore. And father is not around.』


  『Umm!　Please give us some nourishing foods using this silver coin earned by the two of us!』


  『That’s, is that zooo……it must be hard on you twoー girls *sob*』


  『To think that you’re going to work hard on behalf of your mother. Uncle is impressed you know.』


  Hearing the seemingly sad stories from the pitiful girls, the butcher’s shop shopkeeper and vegetables shop shopkeeper cried.

  After that, the shopkeepers went back inside their shops and returned with a big basket in their hands.

  『Here, come and take it.』


  『Eh? 　But, I can’t afford such a big and delicious-looking meat……』


  『It’s okay, ojou-chan. You don’t have to pay for it. Come on, you can now let your mother eat this.』


  The butcher’s shop shopkeeper forced the girls to take the basket after saying that.

  『Come, this too. These vegetables and fruits are good for one’s health. There are a lot, come and take them. Of course you also don’t need to pay for these.』


  『……eh, but!』


  『You girls are still children, so there is no need to hold back, you know. If you’re in trouble, you can always ask for our help okay…』


  『『Yes! Thank you very much!』』


  『Mm-hmm, as expected, children’s smiling face are much better.』


  When the twin girls bow their heads, and they start running with smiles on their faces while holding the basket that was filled to bursting.

  The shopkeepers see them off with warm expressions.

  「That’s the kindness from the people of the royal capital, huh.」


  「Yeah.」


  Eric and I watched the twins' hair sways as they ran energetically with gentle expressions.

  「If they’re so devoted to their mother to that extent, they will be alright I guess.」


  I silently nodded at Eric’s words.

  ――After that I walked down the street with Eric for a while, and I heard the sluggish voice of a woman at a corner on the street.

  『Ran-chan, Rin-chan, did you bought a lotー?』


  『Ah, okaasan! 』


  And the one who answers that, is one of the twin girls.

  「「Haa?」」


  Eric and mine’s weird-sounding voices overlap with each other.

  Before our thought process could keep up with what’s happening, the twins were already hugging the woman, while calling her okaasan.

  『Okaasan!　Today you see, I got a big meat for free!』


  『I also got a lot of vegetables and fruits!　It’s free of course!』


  The twin girls said all that with an innocent smile on their faces. Why were childrens able to say those words without malice so frankly… If those shopkeepers were listening to this in person, they would cry you know?

  「……haa?　Eeh?　What about her illness?」


  Eric somehow manages to squeeze out a hoarse voice.

  『Ara ara, in that case let’s have a steak with a lot of vegetables today alright. Otousan also will be back after a long time, so it’s just right in time.』


  『『Yaayyy!』』


  The twin girls and their mother walked away while looking really happy.

  「……your father has passed away, right? 」


  Eric’s words, who sounds like he was talking in delirium, entered my ears very clearly.

  Aah, I guess he was quite moved by the twins, so now the shock of seeing that is great.

  What about me? 　Me, well……I’m already used to such things.

  So this is the battle fought between customers and shopkeepers in the royal capital… That’s terrible.