「Miss, please slow down! You’ll get dirt all over your socks!」 Takako, a member of the help at the Takahara household, kept up as quickly as she could next to the lively heiress of the Takahara’s trading company.

She liked Mieko, she truly did. After all, it was thanks to Mieko’s very existence that Takako was able to work at all-anything relating to Mieko’s daily needs and comforts, Takako was there to provide it. An afternoon of running around town chaperoning a hopelessly naive nineteen-year-old, however, was more than what she bargained for when she originally planned to go for a “quick shopping trip.”

「I’m sorry Takako, I’m just so-」 Mieko balled her hands into fists as she slowed her pace. 「Agh! Can you believe him!? I can’t believe we’re the same bloodline! I want to see my birth records!」

A sigh flew from Takako as she gripped the handles on her shopping bag. 「Miss, I’m certain your father wants to see Mister Kamoi as much as you, he’s just not…」 She paused, wavering whether or not to finish voicing her thoughts in front of her employer’s daughter. 「Well, your father has always been rather stoic, hasn’t he?」

「That’s the polite way of putting it.」 Mieko harrumphed, eyes jumping up and down the street with a hand fussing through her bobbed hair.

「Ah, oh my, are you searching for him?」 Takako placed a hand on Mieko’s shoulder, her black waves brushing against Mieko’s cheek as the younger girl turned red.

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

Ever since Takako could remember, Mieko would always insist that they stop at the Ishikawa’s storefront to buy the most ridiculous things.

One fishing hook please!

Oh! Ryusuke, what is this made of?

Ryu-kun, can you show me where you keep the matsuba crabs?

You’re so knowledgeable about seafood, Ryu-kun!

「So what if I am?」 Mieko’s squeaky defense jolted Takako out of her humorous daydreaming. 「That was the one good thing about Kazuma being gone, he wasn’t scaring away anyone who wanted to talk to me!」

「I believe you mean any boys who wanted to talk to you.」

「Whatever, as long as he’s not home, I’m going to take full advantage of it! Oh-!」

Takako nearly fell flat on her face, taking Mieko down with her as the heiress skidded to a halt at the street corner.

「Look! Look, look.」 Mieko’s voice fell to a low whisper, one hand grasping at Takako’s sleeve while the other pointed at a foreign girl sitting in the nearby park.

「Miss, it’s not polite to poin-」

「Do you think she’s lost? Look at her! Why is she here? I think she’s lost.」

Before Takako could reason with her about how most people in public don’t enjoy being harassed by strangers, Mieko was already five steps away from her and headed towards the foreigner.

With another sigh, Takako trotted after Mieko.

The poor, unsuspecting foreigner.