The four people who followed me, naturally, had no sense of the value of money in this world.
Of course, that didn’t mean they lacked objective judgment, so they didn’t just randomly ask me to buy them things.
In fact, if you use manufactured goods as a standard, it’s practically impossible to distinguish between Earth and Irellexia.
This was because most items in Irellexia were handmade. Of course, that didn’t mean all handmade items were expensive…
but there was a significant difference compared to this world, where you could easily buy a ceramic plate for less than 5,000 won.
And the quality of the products being made was also different.
For items like clothes, ceramics, or glassware, where higher prices often meant a higher proportion of handcrafting, the situation might be different.
But for items mass-produced in factories by machines, mistakes that occur in rough manual production processes were significantly reduced.
In other words… when viewed from the perspective of Irellexia, the manufactured goods of this world actually looked quite expensive.
Maybe because of that, the four people following me constantly watched my reactions.
It seemed there were quite a few things they were interested in.
“……”
Hmm, since we seem to have more time left than I expected, why don’t we take this chance to browse through a discount store?
But first, let’s buy some clothes.
*
First, I bought clothes to replace the party members’ loose outfits. Afterward, we wandered around the mart, picking up various items.
Inside the discount store, there was a section with books not quite what you’d call a full-fledged bookstore, but enough to gather a decent selection.
However, it wasn’t a place to leisurely browse for books; it primarily featured trendy, best-selling titles meant to catch the eye of passersby. Naturally, there were no books dedicated to learning Korean.
As a substitute, Dana picked out children’s fairy tale books.
“The font is large, the writing is simple, and most old stories usually carry universal morals from the culture they come from.”
When I asked if such books would suffice, Dana nodded vigorously in agreement.
Kalia showed considerable interest in the clothes we were shopping for.
“Maybe it’s because you’re used to seeing me in armor, but believe it or not, I’m the daughter of a noble family. I’ve always been curious about the trends that circulate among women attending balls.”
Come to think of it, whenever she took off her armor and wore dresses, they always came in a variety of designs. It wasn’t just someone else picking them out for her after all.
“So many different styles of clothing! I can’t believe things like this exist!”
Surprisingly, Fia picked out a few items that might have made the goddess herself faint in shock. While the clothes weren’t exactly inappropriate for everyday life apart from being a bit short they weren’t anything to cause a major issue……..
But with her face practically screaming “thump-thump” from excitement, I wasn’t sure how to respond.
Still, since the outfits were socially acceptable, I decided to let it slide.
“Hm? What’s this? Is this a plant too?”
As expected of an elf, Arna showed an interest in unfamiliar plants.
What she held up was a small cactus, the kind you’d place in a corner of your desk to grow leisurely.
“These spines are leaves? So they’ve undergone extreme transformation to survive in hot, dry environments. How fascinating.”
Ah, right. In her world, traveling to desert regions was practically unheard of.
While it was said that lands of sand existed farther south, elves rarely ventured beyond the forests.
Even Arna, who had chosen to leave her homeland, once thought there was no reason to step outside. It wasn’t surprising that this was her first time seeing such a plant.
And so, our first shopping trip came to an end.
The expenses were lower than I had anticipated.
Judging by their reactions, it seemed the experience was quite enjoyable for them. On the way back, they chatted quietly among themselves. Dana even asked me how credit cards worked, which caught me off guard.
…Right.
Even though they hadn’t been in this world for long, they were still adults.
I couldn’t just keep them cooped up at home while I was away.
They could speak the language, and they were mindful of the differences between their culture and this world, so letting them wander on their own likely wouldn’t lead to problems……..
But, money was an issue.
Should I just give them cash? If so, how much should I give them, and how often?
It wasn’t about being stingy with money. It’s just that carrying too much cash might raise suspicion. In this day and age, who conducts all their transactions in cash?
Walking down the quiet night street, I pondered the matter seriously.
*
In the end, the girl who said she’d come back tomorrow never showed up.
“Did I do something wrong?”
My sister touched her cheek with a thoughtful expression as she spoke.
“Maybe you don’t need to worry about it too much?”
Honestly, it was on my mind a little too. But it’s not like I could go looking for a girl whose name I didn’t even know and bring her back to the bakery.
Maybe her promise to “come back tomorrow” was just empty words.
Or perhaps she realized after entering that she had come to the wrong place and quickly left out of embarrassment.
It’s also possible she remembered this bakery from when it was still under the church’s name, but upon realizing the owner wasn’t the same as the one mentioned in the reviews, she left awkwardly, saying she’d return.
Although, judging by her demeanor, it didn’t seem to be that kind of reaction.
The reason my sister was still hung up on it was likely because that girl’s behavior was so similar to mine the first time I walked into this bakery. Maybe she thought the girl, like me, carried some kind of burden.
“If she really wanted to come here, she’d definitely come back.”
“You think so?”
At my words, my sister seemed reassured and smiled faintly.
We finished tidying up the shop and stepped outside.
The days were growing noticeably shorter now. While it wasn’t yet cold enough to truly feel like winter, and the midday temperatures weren’t too bad, it was enough to make me realize that a whole season had passed since my sister and I reunited.
In that time, not much had happened. Aside from attending a wedding with her and seeing Mom once, there wasn’t much else.
Still, I wasn’t impatient.
How to put it…
It’s because, well…it felt like being at home.
Every day when I came here, my sister was there. Her number was saved in my phone. Even when we ran into Yuri, with her naturally sociable nature, she’d given me her number too.
So, even though I hadn’t yet met Mom again, I felt like it was only a matter of time something that would happen naturally.
And when I went back home, I wasn’t alone anymore.
The comrades I had risked my life fighting alongside, my friends, were all there with me.
So I didn’t need to feel lonely anymore.
Even if they eventually returned to where they came from, the evidence that we had all been here together would remain.
“Did you know?”
As we walked under the night sky, my sister suddenly spoke up.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Oh, it’s nothing big.”
Noona smiled at me.
“Before you came, I used to walk this road alone every day. Back then, I never really thought about it being scary or lonely or anything like that.”
Under the streetlight, Noona’s face looked incredibly beautiful.
“Now, though, I think I might feel a bit scared walking alone. It’s a short walk, but being able to talk with you like this makes me so grateful.”
“Ah…”
For a moment, I had no idea how to respond, so I just stood there, my mouth slightly open.
“Well, it’s… I mean, we’re just walking the same way, right…?”
I blurted out something completely unremarkable in my rush to say something.
As I spiraled into self-reproach, Noona just chuckled softly at me.
“Still.”
She tilted her head back to gaze at the sky. The half-full moon seemed especially bright.
“Still, it’s nice, not being bored.”
Her head turned slightly back toward me, and her smile shone brighter than the moon above.
“To be honest, I hope you’ll stay here for a long, long time.”
“…..”
“…I guess it’s not great to work in a place like this for too long, huh…?”
When I didn’t respond right away, too busy thinking of what to say, Noona mumbled as if feeling a bit awkward.
She was probably worrying about me since I was just a part-timer here.
“Well… if you…”
After finally coming up with something to say, I stammered,
“If you stay here for a long, long time, then I’ll stay with you.”
That was all I could manage to say.
“…..”
Noona didn’t reply for a while after hearing my words.
Even as we walked close to her house, she remained silent, and I started to feel anxious. Did I say something too presumptuous?
We’ve only just gotten to know each other. Was it too much to say something like that?
But just as if to completely blow away my worries,
Noona stopped in front of her house, turned to me, and said,
“Thank you.”
Her response filled me with gratitude.