"Is it tiring to be a noble? Maybe, but many people enjoy it nonetheless," Dahlia said lightly. "Being a noble is still better than being a commoner. A commoner's life has no guarantees, and they have to endure exploitation from the nobles."
"Alright, let's not talk about this topic." Catherine chided, feeling that discussing the pros and cons of nobility was just asking for trouble.
She looked at Elisa and gently invited, "Elisa, we're going shopping. Do you want to come?"
"I can't get away right now. It's almost noon, and the shop will be busy." Elisa shook her head.
"Then when do you have time to get together?" Catherine asked eagerly. She didn't have many friends, and her social circle in the royal capital was quite small—or rather, she had very few true friends.
"Tomorrow, then. Come to my house tomorrow, and we can have a good chat." Elisa said with a soft smile. She was also curious about the outside world. Sedona City was too remote—news from other places took at least a month or two to reach there, sometimes even half a year.
"Alright." Catherine nodded with satisfaction, stood up, and said, "Then we'll go shopping first and come find you tomorrow."
"Mm-hmm!" Elisa responded, accompanying the two to the pizza shop's entrance and watching them leave.
Running into Catherine and Dahlia today was a pleasant surprise for Elisa. If not for her responsibilities at the pizza shop, she might have gone shopping with them right then and there.
After all, Elisa was now the acting manager of the pizza shop. Nicole rarely came by these days—only occasionally to check on cleanliness and other details.
…
"Dahlia, you've been awfully quiet today," Catherine asked curiously. "That's not like you."
"I'm thinking about something," Dahlia said seriously, her expression solemn. "What if Elisa's identity is exposed?"
"Huh? How could that happen? She's doing fine now. No one knows she's an elf." Catherine blinked her golden eyes, a little confused.
"Hopefully... But if her identity is revealed, then..." Dahlia trailed off, but the implication was clear—bounty hunters would swarm in.
"Are you saying... Elisa might expose herself without realizing it?" Catherine frowned.
"No, it's just a possibility," Dahlia sighed helplessly. "It's surprising that Elisa would choose to stay in one place for so long."
"You think she's looking for someone to protect her?" Catherine wasn't slow—she caught the hidden meaning in Dahlia's words.
Dahlia nodded silently. For Elisa to live a stable life long-term, given her sensitive identity and the thousand-gold-coin bounty on her head, finding someone to provide protection was essential.
Otherwise, as time passed, even a small accident could expose her identity as an elf, leading to disaster.
But with someone to shield her, things would be different. At the very least, it would buy her enough time to escape—just like how Catherine and Dahlia had helped cover for her back in the royal capital.
"It'll be fine. Tomorrow, we'll remind her to be more careful." Catherine said gently.
A flicker of worry crossed her eyes. She knew Dahlia was right—working in a restaurant increased the chances of exposure. If the city grew a few times larger in the future, then…
Dahlia gazed up at the sky, recalling the joy in Elisa's eyes just moments ago. Telling her to change jobs was probably out of the question—she seemed to have sunk too deeply into this peaceful life.
The identity of the White-Haired Enchantress was likely something Elisa had buried within herself. Now, she was just a shop assistant at a shop with a strange name.
"Don't overthink it. Everything's fine, isn't it?" Catherine gently hugged Dahlia's arm, trying to change the subject. "Where to next?"
"Hmm, over there."
With that, Dahlia led Catherine across the street. Her teal eyes scanned the surroundings, searching for a sign—the one belonging to the Realm Perfume Shop.
Soon, Dahlia spotted the Realm Perfume Shop and, without hesitation, dragged Catherine toward it.
"Huh? That carriage... Isn't it the one we rode yesterday?" Dahlia noticed a larger carriage parked by the entrance.
The carriage had left a strong impression on her—it was the very one that had picked them up that day. Could it be that Lord Lucas was inside the shop?
"A perfume shop? Wait, is it buying perfumes?" Catherine asked in surprise.
"You're overthinking it," Dahlia rolled her eyes with a chuckle. "They sell perfumes here."
"Ah?" Catherine's eyes widened as she stared at Dahlia in disbelief. "A perfume shop here in this remote place? Isn't that just asking to go broke?"
Perfume wasn't just water, after all. You couldn't simply open a shop and expect to have real perfume to sell. Catherine still remembered hearing news from other cities—people had been diluting perfumes with water, creating low-quality knock offs to make a profit.
"Let's go in and see for ourselves." Dahlia said, pulling Catherine along as she pushed open the door.
"Welcome to Realm Perfume!" A sweet voice greeted them the moment they stepped inside.
Dahlia looked around. The shop wasn't large, but its decor was remarkably exquisite—several times more elegant than the perfume shops in the royal capital, aside from being smaller.
Scanning the room, she only saw two people inside. None of the familiar figures she expected. Her gaze shifted toward the staircase. Could they be upstairs?
"Do you really sell perfume here?" Catherine asked quickly.
"Yes, we have several types of perfume." The shop assistant replied with a polite smile.
"Do you have this kind?" Catherine pulled a piece of animal hide from her pocket, carefully placed it on the counter, and slowly unfolded it to reveal two black ceramic bottles.
She looked at the stunned shop assistant with a smug smile. See? I knew it. This place must be selling knockoffs—set up in this remote town just to scam those little nobles who can't tell the difference.
"..." Dahlia covered her face. She hadn't even had time to stop this foolish woman before she whipped out her perfume. Ugh, that habit of jumping to conclusions is going to get her in trouble one day…
"Um... Sorry, miss, but we don't have this kind of perfume in our store." The shop assistant said, her expression tinged with confusion. These black, ugly bottles... Are they really perfume?
"Huh? But this is authentic perfume! How could a perfume shop not have it?" Catherine's eyes glinted with a hint of mischief. She had a feeling she'd be selling these two bottles today.
This shop screamed knockoff to her. If the owner realized she had genuine perfume, they'd definitely be eager to buy it. That was her strategy, after all.
"Authentic perfume?" The assistant blinked, eyeing Catherine with a puzzled expression before glancing back at the two bottles on the counter.
She hesitated. Judging by the women's elegant clothing, they were clearly from wealthy, noble backgrounds—and they didn't seem like scammers either.
"Um, excuse me, I'll go get our store manager." The assistant said softly.
Leaving the other staff member to tend the shop, she headed upstairs—after all, the city lord himself and Manager Nicole were here today.
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