Source
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n0573je/11/
“Oh, Inami san. I’ve been waiting for you.”
“S-sorry, I’m late !”
I had been asking the store clerk to let me know when the lean meat chunks arrived, and just this morning, I received a call that they had arrived.
At that time, I had also told them the time I would be at the store, but when I looked at my watch, it was more than 20 minutes overdue. When I bowed my head, the clerk’s stern face relaxed and he laughed.
“I was watching from here. It can’t be helped if you have such a cute girlfriend with you.”
“No. She’s not my girlfriend.
“All right. Well, here’s what you ordered.”
A chunk of meat was placed on the showcase with a thud. It was a two-kilogram piece of red meat.
It was a very impressive piece of meat, which is rarely seen, and Haku san exclaimed, [Ohh !]
“A-are we gonna eat this today !? It’s so big ! It’s definitely delicious!!”
“I’ll cook it next time, so please wait a bit.”
“Hmm? Is this gonna be in the video that Inami san is putting out?”
“I’d rather call it a stream…well, yes. For some reason, I’m filming it with her.”
“You could’ve told me that. Missy, tell what meat you like from here. I’ll give you a freebie.”
“You don’t mind !? You’re so kind, Mister ! Thank you !”
“H-hehe, well.”
……The clerk, who is famous for his stern face, fell with a single blow.
What’s with that melting expression? You wouldn’t do that in front of your wife.
“Well, let’s see…….I’ll have this !”
“Oh, sure. This one tastes good, too, so put it in.”
“Eh, really !?”
“And you can have this one and this one, too. It’s good.”
“Yay ! Thanks !”
“And this one and this one too…..okay, this one’s on the house too !”
I was going to buy some meat for tonight’s barbeque here, but before I could say a word, the clerk started piling up the meat. It was service after service, and by all accounts it was more than a hunk of red meat.
“……U-um, are you sure it’s fine? I’ll pay for it, okay?”
“You idiot ! Don’t make me pull back something that I had already served you once ! I’m sure you’ll be able to cook it properly and feed her, Inami san !”
“H-haa…yes, I understand…”
I only gave the money for the lean meat, and in return I was given back meat that was more expensive than the price that I pay.
From now on, I will shop at this store as much as possible.
Otherwise, I feel bad about this.
“Well then, let’s go home.”
We did not turn back the way we came, but went ahead to go through the shopping district. This way is closer to home.
Haku san hummed happily as she and I each held half a bag of meat. I know it’s a little late for this, but it’s a talent to be able to accept goodwill like this without hesitation. I can never be like her.
“By any chance, are you famous?”
“Eh? Why is that?”
“Because everyone I talked to today knows about you.”
Oh, that’s what you mean. I didn’t explain it to her.
“Do you remember the old lady at the taiyaki shop we first met? She is the president of this shopping district.”
“You mean she’s the boss !? That’s super awesome !”
“The president’s grandchild also owns a store here, and she watches my channel. She’s a talkative person, so I’ve taken the liberty of promoting her here and there.”
What a good thing it is to spread rumors.
Just as I passed by the clothing store, a pudding-headed gal jumped out.
It was Nekomiya, the Inami Kitchen viewer I was just talking about and the one who had spread my name in the shopping district.
“W-wait, wait ! This is crazy ! This is really crazy !”
I don’t know what she was saying because her vocabulary is too limited, but something seemed to be wrong and she was busily circling around us. After a while, she stopped, and then she approached Haku san and looked into her face. Haku san seemed to have no idea what was going on, and her eyes went black and white.
“Your skin is so beautiful, your hair is so shiny, your style is so good, you look like a doll…….! Wow, you’re so cute….cute, cute, cute ! You’re even cuter than you look in the video
!”
“Nekomiya san, it’s rude if you stare at her too much.”
“Ah ! R-right ! I’m sorry
!”
She quickly moved away and smiled in a friendly manner.
“I’m Nekomiya ! I work here in a clothing store, and I’m also a viewer from Inami san’s early days ! Nice to meet ya !”
She grabbed Haku’s hand and shook it enthusiastically.
Haku san looked at me with her eyes and asked for my help, so I introduced her as the granddaughter of the president we were talking about earlier.
“The boss’s granddaughter !? So you mean she’s a big person……!?”
“You’re right ! I’m a very important person !”
“Haku san, you don’t have to be so extra formal. Nekomiya san, please don’t get carried away. This person is gonna take it seriously.”
In the first place, there’s something strange about calling the president of a shopping district the boss.
Nekomiya san who can join the conversation is also amazing. What does that mean? Doesn’t she feel something strange?
“Well, Inami san, the number of subscribers on your channel has increased tremendously ! You’ve already surpassed 110,000 subscribers ! Congrats !”
“Ah, yes. Thank you very much.”
Yes. Just yesterday I surpassed 100,000 members, but when I looked this morning, I was at 110,000.
It’s all thanks to Haku san. I can’t thank her enough.
“I didn’t understand the first part about the assassin, but I love Haku san’s delicious reaction, it’s so addictive ! It’s refreshing to see Inami san cooking so quickly and efficiently, and their interplay is hilarious, and the pauses are just right without being dull ! There’s a certain demand for foreigner food reporters, but when it’s a beautiful girl, the numbers are growing fast ! If you edit the video and make it into a movie, it’ll grow even more ! You can even make your own clips and publish them ! If you want, I’ll help you !”
I didn’t understand more than half of what she was saying as she spoke so quickly, but she was just coming at me so fast that the pressure was tremendous.
Nekomiya san has been watching my channel since I had 1,000 subscribers or so, and every time we met, she would make suggestions on how to do things like this or that. She is also quite accurate, and I actually tried what she said, which resulted in a considerable increase in growth.
She herself is an influencer with a considerable following on Instagram and TikTok.
In an effort to rejuvenate this shopping district with a high average age, she has opened a store that caters to young people, and it is thriving.
“……..”
Gently, Haku san interrupted between me and Nekomiya san.
For some reason, she looked up at me and puffed out her cheeks.
‘I’ll help you too…..! Reaction, food report, and clipping……I-I’ll help you too……!”
“I’m pretty you don’t understand what Nekomiya san was talking about.”
“I do understand ! I know everything—“
“Haku san has already helped me tremendously, so if you do anything more, I’ll die from regret.”
“Inami, you’re gonna die !? No, you can’t do that !”
“No, that was just an analogy……”
She looks so shocked, has she forgotten that she’s here to kill me? No, it would be better if she just forget about it for the rest of her life.
“Anyway, please stay as you are, Haku san. You don’t have to compete with Nekomiya san. It makes me happiest when you say it’s delicious.”
“I-is that so……?”
“Yes.”
“…..Got it.”
As if she had regained her confidence, she smiled in good spirits and returned to her original expression.
Nekomiya san, who was watching the scene, turned to me with a nasty smile.
“What kind of weakness did you use to exploit such a cute girl and turn her into your girlfriend…?”
“Please don’t badmouth me. She’s not my girlfriend.”
Even if she were my girlfriend, what kind of weakness she has?
What do you think I am?
“I mean, Inami san. You’re getting a huge amount of money via streaming, ain’t cha? Don’t you want some clothes right now?”
Go ahead, Nekomiya san points to her store with her thumb.
I sigh and take one look at the meat in my hand.
“The earnings are at the end of the month, so there’s not a penny in my wallet yet. I can’t spend time picking out clothes when I’m holding raw goods in the first place.”
“Ah ! Then, how about a coat for Haku san !? I’ll go get one that fits her perfectly !”
“N-no, no—“
She didn’t listen to me at all, just talked and went back into the store.
Just as I was about to leave, she came back.
“Here it is, here. Haku san, try it on !”
What Nekomiya san was holding was a beige trench coat.
It goes well with Haku san’s appearance, not to mention the suit.
“Nekomiya san’s store also deals with this kind of thing. They don’t seem to fit the atmosphere of your store at all.”
“A friend of mine went out of business, and I bought the stock at that time. I haven’t decided how I’m gonna sell them yet, but for now I’ve removed them because I thought they would definitely suit Haku san !”
So she was preparing to sell it to me when I came to the shopping district someday?
I can respect her thick-headedness when it goes this far.
……But it really looks good on her.
I think it really enhances Haku san’s beauty and presence.
“By the way, how much does this cost?”
“The regular price is about 300,000 yen, but I’ll give you a special price of 30,000 yen.”
“No way !? No, that’s absolutely ridiculous ! Isn’t the price about that much to begin with !?”
“R-rude ! We don’t do business like that ! I’m buying things at a bargain price, and I’m giving you a discount to celebrate the increase in your subscribers! To be honest, I’m in the red !”
That’s a sly way of putting it.
I couldn’t resist buying it if she said that much, so I pulled my wallet out of my pocket.
“Um, erm……I-Inami……?”
I was just about to give my credit card when Haku san spoke up.
“What’s wrong? Did you perhaps not like the coat?”
“I-it’s not that ! I’m happy with anything Inami gives me !
[But……] he mumbled helplessly and walked toward the store.
“If you’re gonna buy it anyway, I’d like it if the two of us can get matching things. I think something like that would be cute, but…d-don’t you think so?”
Key chains for a few hundred yen lined up in the store.
She pointed at them and knitted her eyebrows.
The fragile expression on her face was so lovely that it looked as if it would shatter if touched even a little bit. I couldn’t stand the heat on my cheeks and fell on my face. and cowered on the spot.
“Ohhh god…….so cute….! ! So cute, I want to take her home…! !”
“No, Nekomiya san, you can’t do that. It’s a crime.”
“No, I mean, did you see !? She was so pure that I thought my eyes were going to collapse ! !In fact, there’s even a third eye that opens ! !”
I don’t quite understand what she means, but I can relate to the emotion.
Matching key chains rather than a three hundred thousand yen coat. I manage to keep my composure, too, but the corners of my mouth relax when I let my guard down.
“Okay, I got it ! This is a great service ! You only need to pay for the keychain, so please bring the coat as a bonus!”
“No, no, no, no ! That thing has a list price of 300,000, right !?”
“Hmm…..well, the price was originally going to be sold for 30,000. “
She says it like it’s nothing, but my heart aches as I don’t know how much I’ve already received for it today.
However, Haku san didn’t particularly care and smiled brightly, [Thank you !]. Seeing this, Nekomiya san returns it with a smile that has a high viscosity.
“Which key chain would you choose? I think this one is cute.”
“Then, let’s go with that one.”
“Think about it ! Or rather, Inami san decides!”
“Eh……? Ah….well, then……”
It was the first time in my life that I had ever given something to the opposite sex.
Even though I was nervous, I chose a fluffy rabbit keychain.
I had just enough change to pay the bill on the spot. Nekomiya san takes the change and puts it in her pocket.
“Inami, thank you ! I’ll treasure it forever !”
“Y-you should take care of your coat more than that for the rest of your life. You can always buy a keychain.”
Haku san’s cheeks turned red when I said this with a sigh.
“Of course I’ll take good care of the coat, okay? But I’ve always longed to have matching things with someone else’s. ……Ehehehe. I’ve given you another one of my firsts !”
Wrapping the rabbit key chain in her hands, Haku san peeked out her white teeth with a grin.
The words are sure to cause misunderstandings, and Nekomiya san let out a groan again and fainted in agony.
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