"Why? It's a long distance to the Imperial City, so it's hard to take Cashew with you."
Kyle looked at me in surprise. Under his gaze, I calmly spoke my mind.
"A rat the size of a chestnut... no, it's hard to take a demon beast with you. You can take him to a famous mathematician in the Imperial City to get him tested and feed him delicious food. His Highness is worried about leaving Cashew for days on end."
"Hmm."
"But never inject magic! No, just get him tested. Weren't you going to take me with you anyway?"
Kyle seemed to think for a moment, then nodded, then thought again. Still, I could guess what he was thinking just by looking at his face. He was now thinking about which cage to put Cashew in, what cushions to put on him, and what snacks to pack. If you looked at his subtly softened eyes or the slight upward curve of his mouth, it was most likely.
'You might like it, but you don't show it.'
I smiled and nodded contentedly.
As a result, both Cashew and Shu were able to get on the carriage to the Imperial Palace. The problem was that the Imperial City was definitely not a distance that could be reached in a couple of hours.
'System. Open a store.'
As if in response to my words, the blue system window flashed. Soon, delicious and pretty-looking items appeared in front of me. I'd felt it before, but the more I used hearts and miracles, the more gorgeous the shop became.
"You have a lot of trouble, too."
Every time it updated, I stayed up all night, and there were some 'salty' corners where my appearance when making the game overlapped. As a developer, I was more familiar with the night than during the day, but I was stressed out in that kind of life. People should see the light and live. At that time, I would have believed that my body was molding. But I happened to be possessed by a nocturnal animal. Life is not like my heart.
I brushed off my thoughts with a sigh and turned the pages of the store with my hands. At first, it was only one or two pages, but now it was about four pages. Let me see. We should save the miracle numbers as much as possible, but since we have the sincerity to make it, let's start with window shopping.
'Oh, it looks delicious. This looks delicious, too.'
It seemed that there were all kinds of desserts made with nuts. I was only used to food like soup and hamburgers, so I kept looking at such openly and beautifully decorated food. Why, good-looking food tastes good. Of course, Kyle's cookies and bread were great, but the temptation to put the dessert in my mouth was...
'Wait. Is that why you made it like this?'
I squinted to stare, and a system window appeared out of thin air.
[⚆_⚆]
That's it, that's it. After all, you don't live by appearances.
I waved my hand roughly and suddenly checked the item that caught my eye. It looked like it had been updated this time, and there was a loud tag on the tip saying [NEW!].
NEW! [Emergency Light Toffeenut Candy x5 | Miracle Decreases 0.5% | Senses an oncoming creature while holding candy in its mouth.]
It was a gracious item that cost 0.5% of the miracle value and gave 5 candies. In addition, the effect was good, so once I bought it, it would be useful at any time. I bought toffee nut candy right away without any hesitation. The individually wrapped small candy looked like it would taste like caramel when you put it in your mouth. Even if I wanted to eat it right away, I put up with it.
"Is it over?"
"What?"
"He pointed his finger in the air."
"..."
I kept my mouth shut like a dumb man who had eaten honey. The good news was that Kyle didn't ask me for an explanation. Had he decided to do that now? Because I did a lot of weird things... I didn't know if it was fortunate or unfortunate.
"I will prepare the clothes in the same dimensions as before."
"Are you going to take care of mine? It's okay."
"In the Imperial City, it is common to ignore others because of their attire. The clothes you have in the North will not be enough."
Kyle's voice was soft, but I couldn't hear it casually. I knew. I knew better than anyone else. This was Kyle's own experience, and it was the way the nobles of the Imperial Castle treated the members of the North. Aside from the original, I was also treated like that. Anyway, the things I've eaten enough to get old were like stars.
I rubbed the back of my head and nodded. It was not a matter of burden. This had to do with Kyle's reputation.
"Thank you, then."
"I'm the one."
Two weeks until the engagement ceremony between Sen and Belial. It was just enough time to get ready.
"You can put this over there, oh, put that over there."
"How long does it take to get to the Imperial City?"
"If I couldn't, I wouldn't have been able to go for a year!"
"Hold the reins well. Check the carriage again!"
From early in the morning, Blake Castle was a bustling market. Even I, who couldn't be woken up by any sound, woke up early in the morning. I glared through the curtains where the light was seeping in. It was still dusk, so I thought it was six o'clock.
— (It's today.)
I kicked myself up with a recoil and stretched. And although I really didn't want to, I wore Kyle's handmade strawberry sweater that I had tucked away in the corner of my hiding place. Of course, my limbs were short, and I could only wear them after rolling in the sawdust a few times. But even if I thought about it again, the size was really amazing.
— (Whew, it's my eighth.)
I shook off my messy sweater and stared at the door for a moment before using 'Load'. Kyle didn't seem to have time to take care of me yet. However, holding the hamster cage in his arms and commanding him was a lot less 'Gao.' It was a problem for me, too.
'Come on, then...'
I used 'Import' in the corner. I closed my eyes slightly in the bright light, and I found myself in a familiar room. On the bed, Kyle's clothes were neatly placed. I took off my sweater, put it in my inventory, and changed into it.
The fine silk gently wrapped around my body and flowed down gracefully. There was no fancy decoration, but it definitely had a luxurious feel. Even the gold thread did not feel like it had been placed in vain.
'The pants fit my waist perfectly.'
As I looked at myself in the mirror, I raised my eyebrows at a thought that flashed through my mind.
"...How do you know my size?"
He really didn't know. I didn't think he measured it while I was sleeping, and he never asked me. At that moment, a loud knock rang out. I turned and opened the door. Outside, a familiar servant stood in front of me, unable to hide his excited face.
"His Highness Kyle has asked you to bring the Demon Mathematician."
"Thank you. But before that, I have somewhere to stop."
"What?"
I led the way to the study with a servant who blinked suspiciously. Then, I unfolded the black cloth I had prepared in advance, covered the hamster house, and hugged him. Now we must defend this unconditionally. At least half a day, necessarily.
"Let's go."
The servant tilted his head and looked at me, but hurried to his feet. I followed along and checked my miracle numbers. Yesterday, I bought a couple of cookies and candy, and the miracle figure was just 20 percent. This was also a feat that was achieved thanks to the fact that they were unable to break the system and cut the price of cookies. Thanks to that, I had to protest to the system all day.
[(￣へ￣)]
"Hey, do I want to make a good profit?"
...I'm making money for good.
"You can get on this wagon."
The servant who led me outside bowed his head and walked away. Seeing that his steps were light and seemed to fly away, he seemed to be getting on the carriage bound for the Imperial City. I don't know. I heard that it was the Imperial City he was going to for the first time in a year. It's exciting. I had heard that the climate and atmosphere of the Imperial City and the northern part of the city were as opposite as they were in such a distance, so I felt like I was in a foreign country. Of course, Kyle.
"Shu."
"Grand Duke!"
I jumped up. I felt like my heart was pounding and sticking out through my skin. I turned my head to see Kyle looking at me with his cape up.
"Give me a little cheer!"
"I didn't know you could jump so high."
"Oh! Really! Don't make fun of me."
I muttered silently, and he put a cloak around my shoulders and laughed lowly.
"I told you to call me, but I thought I would have to go around the castle for a lap or two. Were you in the room?"
"Someone even brought me my own clothes, of course. Oh, I also brought Cashew. You don't have to go to the study."
I winked at the hamster house in my hand and squeezed the hem of the cloth tightly. I can never open it. Don't think to kick it.
"Good job. I'll take it with me now."
Kyle reached into the hamster house. I spun around, avoiding his hand.
"Ah. It's enough for me to hug him. You don't just play while you go, so leave the Cashews to me and get to work."
"Well, just one look..."
"Child! How much time now! Let's not disturb his sleep. There is such a thing as a demon beast's life."
I hurriedly pushed him into the carriage so that he wouldn't be more interested. Then I sat down and hugged the hamster house as if it were a sacred jar. Kyle followed me and sat down across from me.
"I won't take it away, so you can relax your strength."
"Really, you won't?"
"...Did you just live deceived?"
I think that's the case. I couldn't say that, but I relaxed my hands and shoulders. My shoulders, which had been tense the whole time, were a little stiff. As I was moving around with a grunting sound, he suddenly took out a rustling bag.
"Still, I have to give you food..."
"I gave it to you, I did!"
I clung to the window like a bullet. I glared at him with wary eyes, and he burst out laughing.
"...Is it good?"
'It's okay to make fun of you, you bastard?'
Soon, Kyle's face tilted at an angle, with only a gentle smile on his face. He tilted his chin and looked straight at me and opened his mouth.
"I always feel good when I'm with you."
Just in time, the carriage started moving, and a breeze blew in through the small window that was slightly opened. Likewise, I tilted my chin and turned my head away with a fat face. The tips of my ears were a little hot. Even though the wind was cool enough.