Sometimes, the same went for Wim as well. Still, that didn’t make it okay for him to turn around and try to leave the bar!
You’re mean, Wim!
“I see we’ve got another customer! I’ll lead you right to your seat!” The cow made a preemptive strike and dragged him back inside. Given the situation, she probably had the most power out of the three of us.
Perhaps because of her, I was able to gather my wits enough to act natural. “Hey, Wim. You seem to be doing all right.”
“Well, y’know. Thanks to you.”
“What a coincidence!” the cow said. “Sue got here just a little while ago.”
“Huh. I didn’t know you came here that often, Heidemarie.”
“Yup.”
“She doesn’t want to admit she comes to chat with me.”
“If only she was honest.” Wim joined in on the cow’s haughty teasing with a smile.
“Come on, you two. I’m just here for a quiet drink.”
Just for today, I guess I needed to have some gratitude for the cow. I was thankful she was helping cushion the conversation.
“Hear me out, Wim! Sue doesn’t put any effort into her appearance at all!”
So, she hasn’t given up on that yet.
“Oh, um, yeah. I guess so.”
“Apparently, it’s because she’s embarrassed about what you might say if she changes her style.”
“Hey! Stop it, idiot!”
“Idiot? I won’t treat you like an idiot. I don’t know anything about fashion anyways.” Wim’s reaction was once again ridiculously predictable. “So, you should just wear what you want. Yeah.”
Yup, that’s right. Of course he wouldn’t care.
“Wim? This is when you say you’ll compliment her if she gets a new outfit, not that you won’t react at all.”
“But won’t that put some unnecessary pressure on her?”
The two peered at me out of the corners of their eyes as they conversed. They needed to just cut it out; I had no intention of taking either side. Picking Wim’s would just piss me off, and I wasn’t willing to throw away my dignity to take the cow’s.
However, as I struggled to find an answer, the cow slammed her hands on the table. “Let’s all go shopping together tomorrow!”
“Huh?” Wim and I asked in unison.
“Let’s go buy you some new clothes, Sue! And Wim can tag along too.”
What was she suddenly on about?
“Don’t want to,” I said, trying to sound as cold as possible. “That sounds obnoxious.”
“Huh? What’s wrong with a little shopping? I’m sure you make good money as an elder!”
“I’m not going. Absolutely not.”
“Let’s go, let’s go! Please?”
The cow tended to think that enough pleading would eventually get me to cave, but given the circumstances, that would just mean admitting defeat. That would suck, so I decided to ignore her and ate my food in silence with my cheeks puffed out.
…Even though I didn’t know who or what I was losing to.
Wim, by the way, didn’t know what to do and looked panicked.
“Hmph. Fine.” The cow dropped the act, losing some of her earlier composure. My stubbornness was finally starting to work.
Aha ha ha! I won!
“Then meet me at the town square after lunch, Wim! It’ll be just to two of us!”
“Huh?” Once again, Wim and I spoke in unison.
The next day, I holed up in my study. I wasn’t doing any research and instead sat at my chair hugging my knees. The hands of the clock had already reached their apex, which meant it was already noon. Wim had been completely overpowered by the cow last night, and this shopping trip without me was surely about to begin.
I didn’t care. I didn’t think anything would happen between them, and—
“The ladies of Filburn love to make promising abenteurers their own.”
The cow’s words flashed through my mind.
I shook my head, trying to clear the thoughts. She wasn’t stupid! She at least had standards, which meant she wouldn’t indiscriminately make moves on a guy. I had nothing to worry about.
I glanced at the map I had spread out on the table. The transmission crest was already heading to the square.
Th-that’s right. The wrap on my staff was starting to wear out. It was best to use fine leather on it. Did I still have some left?
“I-I guess I’ve got no choice. I need to go shopping.”
I was an abenteurer, and I wasn’t going to cut any corners when it came to the labyrinth.
They had met at the square and naturally began to shop around the city center. While the cow looked perfectly at ease, Wim’s footsteps were awkward and stiff.
As the two chatted—or really, as the cow talked to Wim—they wandered around and occasionally stopped at some shops.
“Ugh…” Looking at them from the sidelines, they seemed completely like a you know what. Not that I’d actually say what that was! I didn’t really care, of course, but I wasn’t going to put it into words.
However, given how the cow was dressed, it was obvious. Just what was with her outfit? She was in a plain dress that looked easy to move around in. The deep green color and its practicality gave her a calming air, and she somehow managed to look put together and slender without seeming immature. She had purposefully chosen the outfit to make her seem even more charming to those who only saw her at the Nice Perch.
“Hey! Don’t let her fool you, Wim…” Despite my threats, I couldn’t show myself. Not that I was limited in what I could do, of course! I just didn’t want to butt in.
I booted up the wiretap stone and brought it to my ear. With all the background noise, it was hard to pick up on their conversation.
‹Jeez! Tee hee hee!›
‹Well… Aha ha ha.›
Those were what I finally managed to make out.
I screamed internally. I couldn’t listen to this! I looked up to the sky and noticed the sun was already nearing the horizon. Given that the cow had requested they meet in the afternoon, she must have calculated the time. She had ensured that the sun would be setting by the end of their shopping trip, I was certain of it!
The two returned to the town square just as the sun was setting. A few people were around, like couples who looked even more charming in the golden glow of the sun. Which, I realized, was practically everyone who was there at this time of day.
“Ugh…”
I had suffered total defeat. I wasn’t sure exactly who or what I had lost against, but that’s what it felt like. I wanted to go back in time to last night at the Nice Perch.
The two faced each other and seemed to whisper amongst themselves. I didn’t need to eavesdrop at this point. They had to be discussing what restaurant they would head to for dinner.
I should just do what I came here to do and then go home. Wim and the cow hooking up wasn’t going to change anything. I had never been after that in the first place. But I was still really curious, so I decided to activate the wiretap stone and listen in for just a moment.
‹We’re done here, Sue.›
It was as if someone had whispered right into my ear.
“Eek!” I was so shocked that I let out a yelp. The cow had caught sight of me and was beckoning me over. For a moment, I contemplated running, but that was impossible. Wim had now noticed me too.
“If you were going to come in the first place, you should have joined us sooner.”
“Y-y-you’re wrong, Wim! Th-this was just a coincidence! I just came to buy some parts to fix the handle of my staff,” I said, offering a pitiful excuse.
The cow watched the exchange and let out a big sigh. “You shouldn’t have let him go free in the first place if it was going to cause you so much panic.”
“Wh-what are you talking about?”
“I’m heading back to the tavern, so take your time together, okay?”
“Hmm?” I asked.
“Thank you for today, Wim,” the cow said.
“Oh, yeah… Me too.”
Once Wim had given her a small bow, the cow headed off in the direction of the Nice Perch. She shrugged as if she had just been completely defeated.
“Seriously! She’s got such a bad attitude! I’d love a chance to meet whoever raised her.”
“I don’t think you’re in any position to say that yourself.”
“She’s a woman who uses her sex appeal to mess with innocent young boys! She’s shallow beyond belief! Don’t fall for her tricks, Wim.”
All righty, somehow, nothing happened! Cheers to Wim for being a wuss and the cow for being all bark and no bite!
As those thoughts passed through my mind, I noticed Wim was squinting at me. “Wh-what? Don’t look at me like that.”
“I’m not really one to talk, but don’t you think this is the reason you don’t have any friends?”
“Agh! Who cares! This is just how I’ve decided to live my life!”
“Well, whatever. Oh, um, I bought you this.” Wim suddenly handed me a paper bag.
“What is it?”
“Earrings. Um, the clip-on kind.”
“Earrings?”
I couldn’t really understand what was happening, but I accepted them anyway.
Huh. He gave me some earrings. Does that make these a present?
“Huh?”
“If you’re too embarrassed to change all at once, then you can start by getting some new accessories to try on. Oh, and these are magnetic, so they apparently don’t really hurt even if you’ve never tried any other clip-on earrings before.”
My skin suddenly felt itchy. Something I couldn’t describe was welling up inside my chest.
No, I knew what this was. I’d read about it in books before, but I hesitated to put a name to it, even if it was only in my own mind.
“I didn’t think you were so considerate, W—”
“That’s what Grete said, anyway.”
“Hey!” Now that I finally understood what was happening, it was my turn to slump my shoulders. So, the two had spent the whole day going from store to store just to buy me these. “Just what is that cow up to?”
But secretly, I was relieved. Wait, not that I was ever worried! Who was the idiot worrying about all this stupid stuff?
Now that I had come back to my senses, it didn’t make any sense for the two of them to hook up when this was supposed to be a shopping trip for the three of us anyway.
I was seriously fed up with myself.
“Hmm… Maybe you think Grete was after me, but I think you’re wrong about that, Heidemarie,” said Wim, looking to be in deep thought.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I’m not really close to Grete in the first place. She just chats with me sometimes because I’m her customer. We talked way more today than we ever have before. I didn’t really get why she was dragging me around anyway.”
“Huh? You’re only confusing me more, Wim.”
“If anything, I think Grete was trying to tease you, Heidemarie. Not me.”
“Huh?”