Chapitre 15: Selling and Boasting
What should Mei do now? Order a glass of water directly from the shop owner? This kind of extra service costs more.
Kouro had previously said that he would handle it. But even if it was only a small fee, it would be rude to order it directly without Kouro's opinion.
But she was also a little embarrassed, thinking that she would choke during dinner, isn't that something a woman shouldn't do?
Mei who was thinking frantically, suddenly heard Kouro's voice.
"Excuse me! Please give me two glasses of orange juice."
Of course, this kind of restaurant wouldn't have water on the menu, so Kouro could only order juice.
Did he see her choking at this time or just happen to order a drink? Mei didn't know.
Just as she was relieved and feeling lucky, she heard Kouro whisper beside her.
"No need to rush to eat, are you too hungry? Should I order another set of food for you?"
Hearing Kouro's words made Raiden Mei even more embarrassed.
"No!"
She already knew that Kouro was joking with her to lighten the awkward atmosphere a little.
Even so Mei now felt that her impression was a little bad in Kouro's eyes.
After all, what girl would choke during dinner together?
If Kouro knew what Mei was thinking, he could only say that she was thinking too much.
Mei felt much better after drinking the orange juice.
Remembering Kouro's earlier joke, Mei was sure that Kouro ordered the orange juice after seeing her choke.
Actually, Kouro forgot to order a drink so he ordered orange juice which also happened to be at the time when Mei was choking on food.
Mei thought Kouro's observations and attentiveness were somewhat similar to hers.
For Mei this was a very new experience for her, because back when she was a young lady of the ME company a lot of people gathered around her.
But unfortunately they were just ordinary high school students who still didn't really understand the 'big picture' except for a few people.
Other than empty praise, and a familiarity that knew no situation, Mei didn't get much more.
For a long time she had played the role of taking care of others and for the first time she was taken care of by others with such care, it honestly felt... Very comfortable.
"Did you bring someone you like on a date, young man?"
The shopkeeper asked this curiously when she saw that there were no customers other than the two young people in front of her.
At this moment while standing beside the U-shaped table, the shopkeeper looked at Kouro with great interest, waiting to see this youngster show a shy expression as his secret was revealed.
Of course, the shopkeeper asked this after observing carefully.
After seeing Mei's movements and the concern expressed by Kouro when ordering a drink for Mei (coincidentally), she was convinced that the two of them were not siblings.
The current shopkeeper was like a close friend or a gossip who only asked out of curiosity.
Otherwise, if you inadvertently state something that doesn't match the facts and leave customers unsatisfied, you will fail as a shopkeeper.
"Well, I'm not very familiar with the neighborhood. Is there a good place to introduce? A place where girls can feel comfortable." Kouro asked while drinking an orange ice.
Contrary to the shopkeeper's expectations, Kouro not only didn't show any shyness like a young man on his first date but even asked her.
This kind of calmness made the shopkeeper sigh and think of the excitement of youth, but she didn't show it and answered right away.
"Since you enjoyed my cooking that makes me feel happy. I'll give you a small piece of advice. "
After saying that, she then whispered near Kouro with a suspicious expression.
"If you want to buy a small gift for the girl you like. You can walk down the street here for 20 meters. There is a high quality and cheap accessories shop like my restaurant."
"I understand, thank you. " Kouro said sincerely
Mei who was beside him at this moment looked flushed and vaporized after hearing the shop owner say 'The girl you like'.
'Wh-what in the eyes of outsiders, me and Kouro look like a dating couple?'
Her mind was full of these things which made her not pay attention to Kouro and the shop owner's conversation.
After finishing eating and paying, Kouro naturally followed the shopkeeper's recommendation and walked to the accessories shop with Mei, the girl looked hesitant before saying.
"No need to buy these things for me..."
Mei who was used to being independent was not used to Kouro's attention.
To be honest, even though she said so, her heart said otherwise.
This was not surprising after all Mei was ultimately a young girl who also felt happy to be noticed by someone.
"Eh... But it's a shame to come here without buying a memento. Besides, you've also taught me swordsmanship and even specially made Strawberry Daifuku sweets for me. Think of it as a thank you gift from me. "
Kouro did not pay heed to Mei's words, he looked at some of the accessories that were on sale whether it was from bracelets, necklaces, rings and so on.
"They all look very nice, is there anything you like, Mei-senpai?"
"I... I don't know, it's up to you Kouro." Mei did not know which one to choose because as Kouro said that the accessories on sale were all good.
Mei had no experience in things like this, even more so because her high emotional intelligence made her overthink so as not to trouble Kouro.
Moreover, none of her classmates had given accessories as gifts before.
They mostly only gave food or even snacks other than maybe perfume and soap.
"Then, let's take a look together."
Kouro entered the accessories store with Mei, the store was not considered luxurious, but it still looked good.
As the shop owner had said before, the Accessories shop was of high quality but at a low price.
Of course it depended on the type of accessories.
This shop could not be confused with those in lonely and remote places, even Kouro felt that he was in a mall considering how complete the accessories in this shop were.
At this moment, Kouro had a crisis: he had to choose the right accessories for Mei.
In fact, to prevent the wrong choice, he even paid special attention to Mei's view of accessories.
This was such a strain on his consciousness and concentration that Kouro felt his training was nothing compared to this.
Kouro could only shake his head as women were indeed complicated creatures.
After walking around Kouro saw Mei staring at a certain accessory on a shelf, he followed her gaze and approached the accessory which turned out to be a white headband with special flower embroidery.
"What do you think of this?"
Finding that Kouro seemed to have chosen something for her, Mei's first reaction was not to look at what he had chosen, but to look at the price on the shelf.
'So expensive! ' Mei thought with her eyebrows slightly twitching.
As a result before she could utter words, she heard Kouro speaking beside her.
"Is a headband like this suitable? For a young lady like you, is the price too cheap? Or...."
Seeing Kouro intending to choose something even more expensive, Mei who had originally refused spoke up quickly.
"This is it, don't change it, no need to buy other accessories... Also, I'm not a young lady anymore, so there's no need to buy anything expensive."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone