Sefina paused for a moment when she heard the enthusiastic greeting, tinged with a peculiar accent.
This voice… somehow sounds familiar?
The next second, a petite figure hurried over from beside a nearby shelf, her face beaming with a business-like, dazzling smile, meeting Sefina’s lifted gaze head-on.
Sefina’s wine-red eyes instantly locked onto a pair of lively eyes like spinning obsidian beads, as well as the pair of black cat ears on the other’s head, twitching slightly with her movements, and the long black tail lazily swaying behind her.
It was Lisika!
“Da… Da…” Lisika’s smile froze for a moment, clearly recognizing Sefina. The word “Boss” almost slipped from her lips.
Sefina’s heart jolted. Her wine-red eyes glared over with a clear warning.
Frightened by that look, Lisika forcibly swallowed the word “Boss” that had nearly blurted out, almost choking herself in the process.
However, the first “Da—” had already been clearly heard by both Mia and Kefi standing nearby.
Mia, always quick-tongued and blunt, asked directly, “Da—what? Miss Sefina, do you know this shop clerk?”
Kefi also glanced over curiously and doubtfully, her gaze shifting back and forth between Sefina and the cat-eared clerk.
Lisika reacted quickly, hurriedly smoothing things over, her face quickly plastered with an apologetic smile as she explained, “Da… Da… valued customers! Welcome, meow! I mean, it’s obvious you’re all discerning, valued customers!” She tried to cover her earlier slip with exaggerated enthusiasm.
Sefina sighed silently, feeling a headache coming on. She really hadn’t expected to run into her here—should she call this luck or misfortune?
She recalled that Lisika had indeed mentioned recently that they’d rented a shop in the capital—on one hand, to earn some profit for daily expenses and to keep their information network running, and on the other, to serve as a contact point.
She just hadn’t expected it would be this very clothing store.
While Mia and Kefi’s attention was diverted by Lisika’s words, Sefina quickly shot Lisika a look, signaling her not to say anything inappropriate and to treat them as normal customers.
Lisika caught on immediately, her expression shifting into pure professionalism.
Skirting around Sefina, she enthusiastically greeted Mia and Kefi: “Ladies, come see our shop’s new arrivals! These are all styles that are incredibly popular among noble young ladies in the capital right now!”
She led them to a display area where several exquisitely designed dresses were hanging.
There was a pale green A-line dress made of smooth silk, embroidered with intricate vine patterns.
A mist-blue evening dress, layered with lightweight gauze and dotted with tiny pearls.
And a wine-red velvet dress with crisp lines that accentuated the waist.
Mia stared wide-eyed at these gorgeous, beautiful clothes, unable to resist reaching out to touch the sleeve of a dress.
The silky coolness under her fingers told her that the material was several grades above Oselenka Academy’s uniform, and far superior to the rough linen clothes worn by commoners.
“So pretty…” she whispered in awe.
“Would you ladies like to try something on?” Lisika asked enthusiastically.
At this, Mia’s excitement deflated a little, like a pricked balloon. She murmured, “Um… maybe not.”
She patted her not-so-bulging coin pouch, knowing full well these expensive-looking dresses were far out of reach for a student of humble means like her.
But Lisika waved her hand cheerfully and said, “Don’t worry! Since we’ve just opened, there are loads of special offers! Right now, every customer gets two items at seventy percent off! It’s a rare opportunity, meow!”
Lisika thought to herself: These two are Boss’s students, after all, maybe their relationship is special. No way I can treat them badly! Anyway, even selling at cost won’t be a loss!
“Seventy percent off?” Kefi repeated softly, a calculating gleam in her eyes.
If the original price was too much for her, seventy percent off… might just be within her reach?
Mia’s eyes lit up again, sparkling like stars reignited. “Seventy percent off?! Really? If it’s seventy percent off…”
She quickly did some mental math. With her saved allowance, maybe she could buy two of the less expensive ones!
After all, a girl’s wardrobe can never be too full!
What girl could ever refuse beautiful new clothes on sale?
Sefina watched as Lisika, full of enthusiasm, smoothly covered up the earlier slip and deftly guided her two students, letting out a silent sigh of relief.
She watched as Mia and Kefi, under Lisika’s coaxing, each picked out an outfit and gleefully rushed into the fitting rooms.
After a while, the curtains of the fitting room pulled open.
Mia had chosen a lively orange knee-length dress, its skirt flaring like flower petals, making her ash-gray short hair look even more playful. She looked like a little ball of sunshine, bursting with energy.
Kefi had picked a more serene pale blue, cinched-waist gown.
The dress was embroidered with simple snowflake patterns in silver thread, complementing her calm demeanor, making her look like a quiet girl from a scholarly family.
Seeing her students shine so much more brightly in their new outfits than in their identical uniforms, Sefina nodded slightly to herself. It was nice to relax like this once in a while.
Just as Sefina thought the afternoon would pass smoothly in this pleasant, relaxed shopping atmosphere, she picked up her takeout coffee from the café and took a gentle sip, preparing to enjoy a moment of leisure—
But the next second, Lisika, like she was unveiling a treasure, swept aside a curtain at the back of the store with a flourish, her voice carrying a hint of pride and mystery:
“By the way, by the way! We also have some extra special new arrivals! They’re completely different from the ordinary styles out front, but they’re really, really beautiful! I guarantee you haven’t seen them before!”
The clothes revealed behind the curtain nearly made Sefina spray her coffee—
There it was.
A white shirt paired with a checkered pleated skirt—classic JK uniform!
And a white sailor top with a light blue pleated skirt—a fresh sailor outfit!
There were also Lolita Dresses, decorated with layers of lace and ribbons, standard black-and-white maid outfits, and all sorts of pleated skirts in different colors and fabrics.
Sefina’s mind was in chaos as she looked at these all-too-familiar “new arrivals.”
These… why are these clothes here?!
Hah, really unpredictable.
It dawned on her in an instant—these must be the rough sketches she’d drawn long ago, on a night when she missed her previous life on Earth.
She’d drawn them absentmindedly, not realizing Lisika would see them, find them fascinating, and beg persistently for the designs.
She never expected Lisika to actually make all of them, and boldly hang them up for sale in the shop!
Mia, for her part, showed great interest in these unique styles.
She curiously reached out to feel the fabric of the JK uniform shirt, then picked up a pleated skirt and said in surprise, “These clothes feel a bit strange… but they’re really pretty! They look so easy to move around in!”
Kefi blushed as she looked at the skirts, which were obviously much shorter than usual, barely reaching the knees. She whispered, “Th-they’re so short… Going out like this… Isn’t that a bit much?”
But Mia was already overwhelmed by the novelty and the temptation of a sale.
Without another word, she shoved a JK uniform into Kefi’s hands, grabbed a sailor outfit for herself, and dragged the reluctant—though ultimately unresisting—Kefi toward the changing rooms.
“Just try them on! It doesn’t cost anything to try!” she urged. Then, ignoring Kefi’s feeble protest, Mia pulled her off toward the fitting room again.
Watching all this unfold, Sefina could only helplessly hold her forehead, feeling the coffee she’d just drunk turn strangely complicated in her mouth.