Artist's commentary
The next day, we had breakfast, but Futo-chan seems rather unlively.
Somehow, it seems she found out about the noises she was making last night. "I'm a bit fuzzy on the details of our little trip. When should we go?" I asked, trying to ease the tension. "Hmm? Oh... I am fine with whenever you want," she replied with a startled expression, as if she wasn't expecting a question. "...May I entrust it to you?" "Leave it to me!" I answered, to which she pouted and said, "Do not mimic me!" puffing out her cheeks and smiling. With the atmosphere eased I started up some conversation, focusing on Futo-chan. Perhaps she was also trying to find a way to break the ice. After some time passed, we went into town. As we passed some food stands heading into a bustling area, she let out an amazed, "Ohh...." "This place is rather busy," she said while gushing with curiosity about the things lined up at one food stand. We wandered around leisurely, chatting about the contents of the various stands. Futo-chan was quite curious about all of the things and people around her.
Finally, we came to a shop filled with things that had come from all sorts of places. The owner was a bit odd, but there were so many interesting things lined up that it was my favorite as well. There, Futo-chan let out an awe-struck shout; not surprising given how varied the things in there were. But she had her interest focused on a small vanity case. It was lacquered, had various gold studs, and was imprinted with characters I had never seen before. "Ah, you must have a good eye to have taken an interest in that. I'll sell it to you cheap," he told Futo-chan. He was as aggressive a salesman as ever. "No, I..." she objected while panicking. "It's fine. I'll buy it for you," I offered. She declined in an apologetic tone, "No... I can not allow myself to burden you any further." Sensing the kind of situation we were in, the owner let us have it for a very cheap price. For that, I told him how much I loved his shop and how I would come again; I'm sure he'll overcharge me a good bit next time. "Thank you, my lord," Futo-chan said afterwards. "It wasn't a lot of money," I replied. "No, I am truly indebted to you..." she trailed off with a sad expression. I guess it really bothered her. "It's just my nature to help people who need it, so don't worry about it," I reassured her. "Is that so...? Thank you. I will treasure it," she said, clutching the box tightly... to be continued