Although Paimon's adapted sales jingle sounded a little... strange...
It worked.
Before long, customers began gathering around the stall one after another.
However...
The questions they asked left Lumine with an increasingly bizarre expression.
"Little one, did your boss really run away? With his little maid?"
"If that's true, your boss is awful. He's out there eating, drinking, and enjoying himself while leaving these poor children behind. Look how tiny this one is—she must have been starving."
"Sigh... these two girls are so pitiful. Why don't you come work for me? Food and lodging included!"
"Good thing we have Her Excellency the Shogun here. A terrible boss like that would never exist in Inazuma."
...
"...What does any of this have to do with selling carrots?"
Paimon's mouth twitched.
Weren't you all here to buy carrots?
Why is everyone so interested in gossip?
It's just a sales slogan!
And what do you mean 'starved until she shrank'?
Have you ever seen an adult shrink from hunger?!
I've always been this size!
As for working?
Sorry.
Working for someone else?
Never.
Not in this lifetime.
Even if she couldn't make any money...
She'd rather go back and cling to Boss Han's leg.
Besides...
Who could possibly beat the manga shop when it came to free food and lodging?
Still...
Customers were customers.
For the sake of her grand money-making plan...
Paimon forcibly swallowed all the complaints bubbling inside her and squeezed out a bright smile.
"Handsome gentlemen! Beautiful ladies!"
"Would you like to take a look at our carrots?"
"They're big, delicious, and best of all..."
"They're only 200 Mora each!"
"Oh, right!"
"The carrots!"
Only then did everyone snap out of it.
They'd been drawn over by the catchy jingle and gotten so caught up sympathizing with the girls...
They'd almost forgotten why they came.
Looking down at the neatly arranged carrots...
Many people nodded approvingly.
"These carrots look great."
"They really do."
"They look fresh, and they're dozens of Mora cheaper than the ones sold elsewhere."
"Miss with the golden hair, give me two."
"I'll take five!"
"I'll buy ten!"
...
Seeing the quality of the carrots...
Customers immediately began purchasing them.
Lumine had never run a stall before.
For a while...
She became completely flustered.
"I'll help!"
Seeing Lumine overwhelmed...
Paimon immediately abandoned her shouting and flew over to assist.
Working together...
The two finally managed to handle the first wave of customers.
"Lumine!"
Paimon excitedly counted the earnings.
"Our results are amazing!"
"We sold over a hundred carrots!"
"That means we made over twenty thousand Mora all at once!"
"It's all thanks to you."
Lumine smiled as she gently pinched Paimon's cheek.
She was clearly in an excellent mood as well.
"Hehe!"
"Then let's keep going!"
The sight of Mora completely reignited Paimon's fighting spirit.
She immediately resumed shouting for customers.
Meanwhile...
Lumine replenished the pile of carrots while collecting payments.
At the same time...
Around the corner of the street...
A tall blond young man wearing a black undershirt beneath a red-and-black high-collared jacket arrived nearby.
It was none other than...
Thoma, the Kamisato Clan's housekeeper.
Strictly speaking...
He ought to have been hiding in Komore Teahouse.
But after thinking it over carefully...
He felt that wasn't entirely safe.
Staying in one place forever wasn't a good idea.
If he were discovered...
It might even implicate Lady Ayaka.
After much consideration...
He decided to quietly scout the nearby area instead.
Perhaps he could gather some information about the latest developments concerning himself.
This street was fairly far from Tenshukaku...
So it should be relatively safe.
Just in case...
He also wore a fox mask.
Fox masks were common throughout Inazuma...
So it wouldn't attract attention.
Just as he began surveying the surroundings...
A loud, rhythmic chant drifted toward him.
"Mondstadt! Liyue! Mondstadt! Liyue! Solace Book House Produce Market has gone bankrupt!
Mondstadt and Liyue's biggest produce market has gone bankrupt!
Boss Han! Boss Han! Eating, drinking, and having fun!
He racked up a debt of one hundred million Mora and ran away with his little maid!
We had no choice! We had no choice! We're selling carrots to pay our wages!
Carrots that used to cost one thousand, two thousand, even three thousand Mora—now they're ALL only TWO HUNDRED!
Two hundred! Two hundred! Everything's only two hundred! Everything! Everything! Everything! Two hundred!
If you're passing by, don't miss out! Don't miss out!"
...
"'Solace Book House Produce Market?'"
Thoma froze.
Isn't "Solace Book House"... the name of Boss Han's manga shop?
How did it become a produce market?
Frowning slightly...
He followed the sound.
Sure enough...
A blond girl was selling carrots by the roadside.
Floating beside her was a tiny creature enthusiastically shouting the jingle.
She was obviously the source of the advertisement.
Could these two have been sent by Boss Han?
A thought suddenly occurred to Thoma.
Otherwise...
Why would they happen to use the words "Solace Book House"?
And if he remembered correctly...
There really was a little maid working at the manga shop.
Putting those clues together...
His guess seemed increasingly plausible.
Still...
What surprised Thoma the most...
Was how bold that little floating creature was.
Selling carrots was one thing...
But she actually dared use Boss Han himself as part of the joke!
If Boss Han ever found out...
He'd probably dock their wages.
Thoma chuckled and shook his head.
He didn't dwell on it.
Although he couldn't understand why someone as mysterious as Boss Han would suddenly start selling carrots...
Since he'd received such wonderful rewards from the manga shop...
He felt he ought to help somehow.
For example...
Buying every single carrot at the stall.
After all...
The Kamisato Clan had more than enough people to consume them.
With that thought...
After the previous customers left...
He walked over.
"Buying carrots?"
Paimon greeted him enthusiastically.
"They're big, delicious, and only 200 Mora each!"
Thoma suppressed a smile.
"So..."
"Did your boss really run away?"
"Of course!"
Paimon immediately nodded.
"He was way too much!"
"He didn't even pay our wages before sneaking away overnight!"
"Otherwise we wouldn't be forced to sell these carrots!"
As she spoke...
She even stomped angrily at the empty air.
At first...
She'd felt a little guilty about making up stories about Boss Han.
But after repeating the line so many times...
She'd completely gotten used to it.
Now...
The lies flowed effortlessly.
Besides...
Boss Han wasn't here.
She wasn't worried in the slightest.
"Ahem!"
Watching from beside her...
Lumine's expression became increasingly strange.
She hurriedly coughed twice as a reminder.
It's just a slogan!
Don't get too immersed in the role!
Otherwise you're definitely going to suffer when we get back.
Fortunately...
The reminder worked.
Paimon wisely stopped talking about Boss Han and immediately changed the subject.
"So..."
"Would you like to buy some and give them a try?"
Thoma nodded.
"Sure."
Then he smiled.
"But..."
"How do I know your carrots are actually any good?"
Paimon: "???"
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