"Hehehe…" Margaret's cute laughter is muffled by the hustle and bustle of Lakeview town's center as Arthur kisses her in his arms. But despite the many people around doing different things, many stop to see why that girl looks so happy.
Aria shakes her head, seeing that scene, but her expression is content and warm. "Do you really want to make a commotion for everyone to see how much you love each other?"
"Oh," Arthur puts Margaret down as he notices dozens of judging glances upon them. She appears shy but proud at the sa ti, a contradictory combination that makes her look even cuter, so he kisses her lips once more. "I can't help myself when you're so adorable, honey."
"It's your fault~" She complains while embracing him and hiding her face in his chest like a scared bunny.
"Oh my~" Aria sighs. "Are you going to do this all day, aren't you? I need to buy the materials I ca for, so why don't you explore around the square? The best shops are around here, so you don't need to go far." She looks at Eve. "Do you want to co with Mommy, dear?"
"Nops," Eve shakes her head while standing by Arthur's side. "I want to stroll with Big Brother."
"Of course, little one~" Aria giggles. "Just be careful. The laws of Eldoria condemn unprovoked attacks, but of course, the nobles don't care about following the laws themself. Also," she points to the gold dallions on Arthur and Eve's necks, the gifts from Alicia. "I've put another spell on them. Just press it if you're in trouble, and Mommy be there in a second."
"We'll be fine," Arthur is quite confident in his current strength since, in the latest training sessions with Blood Golems, he managed to defeat a few of the Elite Rank ones without using his Intent and several ones together using it.
"Alright," Aria takes a small leather bag full of coins and hands it to Arthur. "I've left so silver coins in there, but most of them are golden."
Arthur learned about Eldoria's coins with Aria when he was just a kid; those coins are also the standard across most continents: the most basic coin is bronze, which is worth a ripe apple; a silver coin is worth a hundred bronze, and you can rent a room in a good tavern for one night with them; the gold coin is the most valuable, worth a hundred silver coins, and you can buy a house with few of them.
"Thanks, Mom," Arthur understands how those gold coins are a significant amount, the result of the artifacts that Aria makes and sells to rchants occasionally. 'Money isn't a problem for soone powerful like her, but I'd like to earn my own money in the future...'
"Have fun, baby~" Leaving those words behind, Aria heads to the potion shop.
Arthur holds one hand of Eve and another of Margaret as he looks around. "There are so many shops and people everywhere... where should we go?"
Margaret also feels lost, her eyes wandering over all those shops, and one catches her attention due to a large showcase full of chic clothes on wooden mannequins. "There, that looks nice." She points like an excited child.
"I see, let's go there then," He walks towards the shop with his two cute girls around. Just based on the door, which is made of shiny dark wood and thin glass with gold trim, he can see that the place is quite luxurious. On the wooden signboard above the door is written Drummonds' String and Needle.
As soon as Arthur opens the door and enters the store, it hits a bell that makes a pleasant sound, *Ding-Ding* and a girl in a pink dress quickly cos out to greet them; her clothes look like those of a delicate doll, but her face is quite ordinary, making her low beauty seem worse compared to Margaret.
Before even greeting the trio, the girl's eyes wander over their bodies, analyzing every detail. 'No insignias? Simple and dusty clothes... but this girl is a beauty and the little one even more...' She notices Margaret's confused and friendly look, which leaves her with a bitter taste in her mouth. "Who are you?"
The girl's aggressive tone makes Margaret retreat closer to Arthur, who removes his hood, revealing his face. He dislikes the attitude and gaze of the girl and returns it with a cold expression. "Is this the proper way to welco custors?"
"Eeh-h-hh-h..." The girl is speechless upon seeing how handso Arthur is. 'Damn, his noble lineage must be of the purest type... no, he might actually be a prince!'
"Oi, oi," Arthur waves his hand in front of the girl's face. "Are you broken?"
But she continues staring at him with wide eyes, drool starting to form at the corner of her lips. "I... uhh..." She tries to compose herself. "I just haven't seen you before, and I know all the noble families in Lakeview..."
Arthur shakes his head, finding the girl even more ridiculous. "Does one need to be noble to shop here? Isn't having the money to pay enough?"
"Huh?" The girl is confused by Arthur's disdain for the nobility. "Well... we only serve nobles... it's just that..."
"Tsk," Arthur is about to turn and leave the store with Margaret and Eve, but then a mature female voice sounds from the back of the building. "What nonsense are you spouting, foolish girl?" The girl looks back, scared and regretful. "Mada Drummond, it's not-"
"Shut up!" A woman erges with calm steps; she appears to be about fifty years old, with so wrinkles on her face that doesn't look as simple as that of a commoner. Also, Arthur can sense that she has noble lineage based on her amount of Astral Energy, as well as her grade nine of the Elite Rank.
While the girl is dressed like a doll, the older woman wears a fine blue dress that matches her silvery-blue hair. Her eyes clearly show her disappointnt when speaking to the girl. "Leave us."
The girl rushes to the back of the store while the woman throws a curious and friendly look at Arthur and especially Margaret. "I apologize for such a shaful welco... Ah, I need soone like her to handle those silly young ladies of the nobility…"
The woman's gentle eyes sparkle as she observes the trio. "But look at you, such a cute couple… you are so of the most interesting people to have entered this shop in decades. Oh, where are my manners?" The woman bows respectfully. "I am Josephine Drummond, the owner of this store, at your service."
Margaret and Eve are confused, but Arthur sees no malice in the tired eyes of the older woman, just harmless curiosity. "Hey, I'm Arthur, and these cuties are Margaret and little Eve." He speaks proudly. "We ca to find so clothes and fabrics that please my wife."
Eve stays hidden behind Arthur, but Margaret bows friendly to Josephine, making the older woman smile. "You are quite interesting, dear; without noble lineage but more beautiful than any noble lady in this city, and your Astral Energy is already so impressive…"
Arthur dislikes how the older woman gazes at Margaret as if she were a freak, so he hugs her. "Yeah, I'm lucky to have such a beautiful wife, but how about you show us the clothes?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry," Josephine bows again with an apologetic expression. "It's just rare for sothing to be so interesting to impress these old bones nowadays…" She gestures for Margaret to follow. "Co on, dear, I will show you our finest products."
Margaret looks at Arthur, using ntal communication to speak to him. 'What do you think? She seems like a decent person.' He nods. 'Yes, she does; go ahead, I'm right behind you.'
She kisses Arthur before following Josephine through the store while Arthur follows them, playfully engaging with little Eve. Josephine shows many high-quality clothes, fabrics, and threads to Margaret, who has her eyes sparkling all the ti with thoughts of how she can use those to look beautiful and please Arthur more.
But nothing catches Margaret's attention like a black and white short dress inside a custom display case at the back of the store. The fabric of the dress seems to shimr, creating vivid patterns that change as one looks at it, a perfect combination of elegance, comfort, and practicality.
"Oh, you like that one, don't you?" Josephine smiles, seeing Margaret srized by the dress. "It's my latest creation, probably my masterpiece, made from a super resilient yet also light as a feather fabric; it's not just a dress but a rare artifact with defensive and utility enchantnts." The old woman explains proudly.
Hearing all these pompous words, Margaret feels down. "That must be absolutely expensive... not for soone like ."
"Soone like you?" Josephine asks in a sarcastic tone. "I doubt this dress would look better on any other girl; you really seem perfect for it with your beautiful black hair and flawless skin. But indeed, it is quite expensive, yet your husband seems willing to give you anything, and I can make a special price because I took a liking to you."
"Really?" Margaret may be innocent, but she isn't naive and begins to doubt the old woman's intentions. "Why would you give a discount on your most expensive piece?"
"Hahaha..." Josephine laughs. "I already have plenty of money, dear. And at my age, it matters even less. Making clothes has been my life since ever, but I only sell to those spoiled ladies... I'd like to see soone like you wearing this dress, especially if it makes them die of jealousy."
Margaret is still hesitant, but then she hears Arthur's voice in her mind. 'Take the dress; it will look great on you.' So she nods to Josephine. "We'll take it!"
"Excellent choice," Josephine takes the dress from the display and leads Margaret to one of the private rooms to make adjustnts to it based on her body.
anwhile, Arthur continues to play with Eve in the store, but he stops when he hears the doorbell. He sees a girl running in, and the first girl who had greeted him badly reappears. They seem to be good friends and start to talk loudly.
"My Master is coming to pick up the dress; she will wear it at tonight's banquet!"
"Oh, great! You're going to give a nice tip for informing you in advance about it, right? I bet all the young Ladies of Lakeview would fight tooth and nail for this treasure, you know."
"Of course, my Master rewards good servants, don't worry."
As he listens to the girls' conversation, Arthur reaches the sa conclusion as Nyx, who speaks in his mind. 'What are the chances of this young Lady coming to pick up the dress that Margaret is wearing right now?'
'Yeah, I already sll trouble…'
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