Chapter 543:
The Bear Walks Around Yufaria
AFTER FINDING OUT that Shia was going on amagic exchange trip for school, Noa and I decided to head to Yufaria. Once we got to the town, we checked into a bougie inn before preparing to go meet Shia. We polished off our breakfast and got ready to head out.
Okay, now what…
I wasn’t sure what to do. It’d been a while since I felt like this. Again, I repeat: I, Yuna, wasn’t sure what to do.
“Yuna, is something the matter? Do you not want to see Shia?” Noa asked, noticing my internal conflict brewing.
“No, I’m happy to go see her, but…”
“But…something is on your mind.”
“We’re supposed to meet Shia today in front of the campus, right?”
“Yes, and since we have some time, we were going to walk there.”
“Yeah, that’s right. But Shia actually asked me to wear a school uniform when I see her. She said it’d be easier to get into the school if I look like a student.”
Shia had mentioned this to me as I was going home. I doubted Yufaria’s academy would let me inside dressed as a bear anyway, so I agreed. I’d thought it would be fine, since I had worn a school uniform to the academy festival before, but now that I had to actually get changed, I was hesitating.
“Is that what you’re worried about?”
“Yeah.”
“I like your bear outfit, but I think you look nice in your uniform too,” Noa replied directly, without the slightest hint of embarrassment. “Remember, this isn’t Crimonia or the capital, so wearing a uniform might be better.”
She was right. People were definitely staring at me yesterday when we headed to the inn.
“If anything happened, we could ask Father for help in Crimonia or Mother for help in the capital, but here...”
I had to agree. We didn’t know anyone here. This wasn’t like back home or the elves’ village or even the Land of Wa. It wouldn’t be an issue if it were just me, but this time, Noa was here. If I attracted negative attention, Noa could get in trouble too. My bear onesie was the ultimate protective gear, but it wasn’t exactly subtle.
After brooding for a while, I decided to change into the school uniform, since I wasn’t the only one this would affect. Besides, as long as I had my bear shoes and bear gloves, I’d be able to handle everything but an ambush.
“Yuna, you look wonderful! Wait, you’re still wearing the bear shoes and gloves?”
Noa looked at my feet and hands. Well, of course, I can’t take those off.
“My gloves are my item bag, though.”
And I can’t summon Kumayuru and Kumakyu without them, I added silently.
“These shoes are magic items, so if anything happens, they’ll help me move faster and protect you, Noa.”
“We’re in town, so I don’t think anything dangerous will happen. We should be fine.”
“You can’t be sure. You’re cute—a creep might try to approach you or something.”
“I think they would be more likely to approach you than me, Yuna.”
Me? That seemed totally unbelievable. Not a single guy had ever approached me since I came to this world, or for that matter, even in my old world. To be fair, in my old world, I hadn’t even gone to school. I was a shut-in back then, and in this world, I dressed as a bear. Even putting all that aside, I doubted anybody would ever try to hit on me.
Honestly, they’d be more likely to try to start a fight and hit me than to hit on me.
After getting changed into the school uniform, Noa and I decided to go for a walk until we needed to meet with Shia.
I didn’t mind wearing the uniform, but my legs sure were cold. Especially my thighs. My bear onesie was always temperature controlled, so I didn’t really have to pay attention to the weather. Now that I had to deal with the wind on my thighs, I resolved not to take that for granted again.
Why was I so much more embarrassed by wearing a uniform than a bear onesie? The uniform was way more “normal.” I guess I just wasn’t used to these clothes. That must be the source of the embarrassment. Manga sometimes had scenes with a girl feeling embarrassed by wearing clothes she wasn’t used to—that was how I felt at the moment.
“Can’t I just change back into my usual clothes?”
“No. Let’s go, Yuna.”
Noa took my hand, and we started to walk.
“You don’t have to drag me.”
It wasn’t like I could be embarrassed forever, so I tried to let it go.
“So where’d you like to go?”
“I would like to see the lake. And I’d like to wander around the streets and see the shops too.”
Cliff had told Noa to explore the town. Apparently, that was also part of her education as an aristocrat.
“In that case, let’s head to the lake first.”
We could take a look around town on the way and stop by any stores that caught our eye.
“Good.”
We set off toward the lake.
“It’s not very much like Crimonia, is it?”
“Yeah, it’s really busy too.”
The road to the lake was wide, with many carriages passing by on it. A lot of the buildings along the road were big too. They were just as big as the buildings in the capital. Crimonia wasn’t such a small town itself, but Yufaria was just plain bigger.
“Yufaria got this big because it stands in the middle of several towns and villages. It’s become a center of commerce as well.”
“For a tourist, you sure know a lot about Yufaria,” I said.
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“I’ve studied the important towns in the vicinity of the capital. Crimonia has been catching up lately, by the way. Thanks to the road connecting it to Mileela, a lot more people are coming to Crimonia…though Father’s been busy as a result.”
“I’m sorry.”
Okay so, officially, I was the one who’d “found” the tunnel connecting Mileela to Crimonia. But in actuality, I opened up trade by digging the tunnel myself, which meant more people and goods were going back and forth. Apparently, that had been occupying a lot of Cliff’s time.
“It’s not your fault, Yuna. And it’s been more manageable lately, so it’s all right. More people also means more money in the town. As the feudal lord, Father should thank you. You don’t need to apologize.”
When it came down to it, no matter how young she was, she was still the daughter of a feudal lord. She understood exactly what kinds of benefits the increased trade would bring Crimonia.
“Though he did mention that more people meant more bad people as well. But that is the feudal lord’s job—in other words, my father’s.”
Noa was positively glowing. I tried to remember what I was like as a ten-year-old. I only had memories of playing on my consoles and computer. That might have been when my grandfather started teaching me about stocks though.
We looked around the streets and did some window shopping.
Noa seemed to be enjoying herself. No one was paying me much attention, but I still just didn’t feel comfortable. I doubted anyone would attack me from behind, but without my usual defenses, I felt uneasy. I considered summoning Kumakyu or Kumayuru in their cub form, but I decided against it because it’d just attract attention. If I did that, it’d defeat the whole purpose of wearing a uniform.
“It’s the lake, Yuna. I can see the lake!”
Noa ran over. I walked over, following her.
“It’s so big, Yuna!”
Noa was right. It was huge. I saw an island at the middle of the lake with a large building on it, and a bridge connecting it to the mainland.
“That’s Yufaria’s academy.”
Shia had told me about the academy on the island in the middle of the lake too. Guess that was it. We had plans to meet up with Shia on the other side of the bridge, but we still had time before we needed to meet her.
“Want to stroll around the lake?”
“Yes!” Noa replied, running off energetically.
I was glad I’d brought Noa, since she seemed to be enjoying herself. Soon, we’d see Shia in action and make some great memories together.
Since I’d gone through the effort of changing into a uniform for her, Shia needed to put in her fair share of effort too. I decided to make sure to get her fired up once I saw her.