Seeing the shy Kefnie in front of him, Claude could only roll his eyes at Eriksson. Is this the surprise you were talking about?
Yet, Eriksson didn't have the slightest bit of self-awareness. Instead, he gleefully thought that he had done a good deed. "Surprised, right?
Alright, Kefnie, I've brought Claude over. You take care of him. I'll go over there and take a look. I won't disturb the two of you anymore. "
"Sigh …" Claude didn't manage to pull Eriksson back. With a wave of his sleeves, he disappeared into the crowd outside the tent without leaving a trace of Claude's resentment behind.
The atmosphere was rather awkward. Even though he was an experienced transmigrator in his past life, he still felt rather uncomfortable in front of the girl.
"Ahem … Hello, Kefnie. I didn't expect to see you here."
Claude tried to strike up a conversation as he tried to think of a way to find Eriksson and give him a good beating.
The pretty girl blushed. "I'm glad to see you here too.
Oh, by the way, do you want something to drink? "
It was only then that Claude noticed that she was holding a large wooden plate and was wearing a maid's dress. "You, you're here …"
"This is Mermaid Tavern's temporary stall. I'm working here tonight as a temporary maid."
The girl didn't seem embarrassed by her attire and instead introduced her job generously.
"Oh, I see."
Claude breathed a sigh of relief. It was fine as long as she didn't want to have a date with him. It seemed that he was overthinking things.
Eriksson probably knew about her situation, which was why he brought her here. He just wanted her to meet him.
After all, Kefnie was the girl Claude liked before he transmigrated and Eriksson was well aware of that.
"Then, tell me what you have to drink. I'm feeling a little thirsty."
Claude felt much more at ease. Since that was the case, he might as well take a break there instead of having to squeeze through the crowd when he went out.
"Then, you can sit here. The tables here are all empty."
Kefnie smiled when she saw that Claude wanted something to drink. "We have honey milk tea, honey flower tea, honey apple juice, honey cucumber juice, honey assorted fruit tea, honey blueberry juice, honey orange juice …"
"Why is there so much honey?" asked Claude as he sat down.
"Because tonight is the night of welcoming the new students!
Boss said to let everyone have a sweet night … "
Alright, the sweetest part of the night is honey. Claude was defeated by the simple answer. "I'll have a cup of honey milk tea."
"Okay, five sunars." Kefnie looked at Claude eagerly, waiting for him to pay.
Five sunars … Claude was speechless. A cup of honey milk tea that cost one sunar normally cost quintupled in an instant. What a sweet night.
However, Claude paid the bill without any hesitation. Once he entered the tent, he could only wait to be ripped off. Who told him to order?
"Thank you. Please wait for a moment. The honey milk tea will be served soon." Kefnie smiled like a flower after receiving the money and turned around to serve the milk tea to Claude.
The tent wasn't small at all. It was roughly 30 square meters in size and half of the space was occupied by a counter in the middle.
There were also tables for four around the counter. The setup was similar to that of a tavern.
There weren't many people in the tent at the moment. Of the dozen or so tables, only the one blocked by the counter seemed more lively. Quite a few of the tables were occupied. Claude's side was much more deserted. He was the only one occupying a table.
Not long after, Kefnie returned with the honey milk tea.
"Business doesn't look too good here. So many tables are empty.
The tents at the wargod plaza are filled with people. I heard that the ale there is sold at a low price … "Claude tried to strike up a conversation. He was rather bothered by the expensive milk tea.
The girl giggled. "Of course not. It's still early. Many people have just finished dinner and haven't had anything to drink yet.
In another hour or so, you'll know that this place will be packed to the brim.
The more expensive it is, the better to let the young gentlemen show off their wealth in front of the ladies they just met. If it's cheap, there won't be as many customers. "
Claude was a little surprised. "Heh, you thought of all that?"
"No, it's my sister. She's serving the guests over there."
"That makes sense. We're really impressed with you two sisters."
Claude took a sip of the honey milk tea. "It's a little too sweet. Kefnie, how much honey did you add?"
"Is it really sweet?"
The girl blinked. "I added two spoonfuls of honey for you. If you think it's too sweet, drink half of it first. I'll fill it up with light milk tea for you. That way, it won't be too sweet."
"Is there a refill?" Claude asked.
The girl shook her head with a smile. "There's no refill. It's just a special treat for you. You're my first customer tonight."
"How about this, Kefnie. Can you get me an empty cup?"
The girl handed an empty cup to Claude, who poured half of the honey milk tea into the empty cup.
"Can you fill this half cup with light milk tea?" Claude asked.
So, the girl filled the cup with honey milk tea and brought it over. "What about the cup on the table?"
"May I have the honor of treating the kind and beautiful Kefnie to this cup of honey milk tea?"
The girl didn't say anything and took a sip. "Wow, it's really too sweet. No, I want some light milk tea too."
Then, the two of them each held a cup of honey milk tea and sipped it slowly.
"It's really nice to be able to drink a cup of warm milk tea in such cold weather."
The girl half-closed her eyes. "When I was young, Father liked to put me on his shoulders and bring Mother and Sister to the shrine of Mother Earth to wait for the new year.
I remember asking Father to buy me a cup of milk tea and slowly drink it there. I didn't think that I'd end up selling milk tea to others when I grew up. "
"Ugh … Sorry for reminding you of the past." Claude felt rather embarrassed. Some bad habits couldn't be changed.
If he hadn't transmigrated, if he could make a girl reminisce about the past and listen to her talk for an hour or two, then he wouldn't feel lonely at night.
But he was in the other world and his body hadn't matured yet. Treating Kefnie to a cup of honey milk tea was a natural habit in his past life. It wasn't a trick.
"It's none of your business …" The girl held the milk tea in her hands, her eyes blurred. "I always think of my childhood. How beautiful it was back then. My father and mother were by our side. Life was so happy … But one day, Uncle Mennaro suddenly brought news of my father's misfortune. It was as if the sky had collapsed … My mother was bedridden … After more than a year, she left us to look for my father …"
Sister hugged me and told me not to cry, but I couldn't stop my tears.
Later, Sister went to work and I was really scared staying at home alone. I'd always hug my teddy bear and cry in a corner. She told me to be strong. She said that I was too weak and that I'd be at a disadvantage in the future. So, she told me to study. She said that I'd understand more after studying and that I'd be able to live independently, find a good job, and marry a good family. "
"You'll get what you want. You're a good girl. Sensible, obedient, and cute. You'll definitely be happy in the future," Claude said in despair. That was all he could do to console her.
The fact that a girl confided in you meant that she liked you.
However, Claude didn't want to be in a relationship. He focused all his attention on learning magic. When he became a magus, he wanted to be like the wind and appreciate the beauty and grandeur of the other world he transmigrated to.
He didn't want to spend the rest of his life in this small town, marrying a wife and having children.
Besides, his father, Morssen, had already arranged a path for him to enlist in the army. A year or so after he graduated next year, he would head to Nubissia to serve his godfather, the viceroy of the Tyrrsim region, or what was his name, Viscount Morssen?
If he were to fall in love with Kefnie now, it would be a cruel pain for the innocent girl if they were to separate at that time.
"Thank you," the girl said shyly, "I was really rude just now. I don't know why, but the moment I took a sip of the milk tea, I started reminiscing about my childhood. I even said a bunch of nonsense to you. Sorry for making a fool out of myself."
"It's fine. We're classmates. We should help each other out," Claude said, emphasizing that they were classmates. He wasn't sure if the girl would understand.
"Then I'll head over first. Someone's calling for me." The girl hurried off, leaving her half-drunk milk tea on the table.
By the time Claude finished his cup of milk tea, the number of people in the tent had increased.
The girl was right. None of the men who came to Luna Square that night lacked money, especially when it came to new acquaintances. They all paid for the drinks without hesitation and even ordered whatever was more expensive.
At the same time, to show their gentlemanly demeanor, they even ordered different kinds of milk tea and other beverages for their female companions to try.
The girl started getting busy once the number of guests increased. She walked past Claude countless times without saying a word and only gave him an apologetic look.
Claude prepared to leave. He felt a little embarrassed to take up an entire table by himself, not to mention that he had already finished his milk tea.
But before he left, Eriksson came with Welikro. When he saw the half-empty cup of milk tea on the table, he asked Claude who he was with and where he was.
Claude said that there wasn't much business there, so he treated Kefnie to a cup of milk tea.
"Looks like it's going well. You should thank me for bringing you here," Eriksson said with a smug smile.
Claude ignored him and asked, "Where's your sister?
Didn't your father tell you to follow her? "
"She told me to stay away from her and not get in the way of her finding a partner," Welikro said with a helpless shrug.
Eriksson laughed heartily. "Your father also told you to look after your sister and not lose her.
Why didn't he think about it? Is that even possible?
Your sister is even stronger than a she-bear. How could she possibly lose herself? "
Anyone would think that Welikro's sister was a burly man if they looked at her from behind.
Yet, she was a woman and a smart one at that. Even her father, who was known as the top hunter in Whitestag, was subservient to her, not to mention Welikro, who was still underage.
Her father often lamented that if his daughter was a man, his family's meteoric rise would only be a matter of time.
"Don't make fun of Welikro's sister. What do you want to drink? It's on me," said Claude, trying to smooth things over to prevent Welikro from flying into a rage.
Even though Welikro was afraid of his sister, he couldn't stand Eriksson making fun of her.
Eriksson understood that and ordered a glass of honey blueberry juice while Welikro ordered a glass of assorted honey fruit tea.
Claude's order was a little strange. He ordered a glass of black tea and made it clear that he didn't want anything else.
The three of them sat there and chatted as they waited for the new year bell to ring.
"By the way, I found it strange when I was at the wargod shrine last night. Why did our mayor, Baron Robert, stand up to welcome Sir Fux?
Isn't he a baron? Sir Fux can't be considered a noble in terms of rank, "Claude said.
Eriksson pursed his lips. "Mayor Robert's title of baron is inherited. His grandfather fought in the civil war and was conferred the title by Stellin IX. It can be passed down for three generations, but it's over for his generation.
He didn't become the mayor because of his talent, but because he bribed his connections. That's why the heads of the various departments in town don't really respect him.
"Sir Fux is different. He's the only councilor in Whitestag and the political resources he wields aren't something Mayor Robert can compare to. So, even though he's not a real noble, a fallen baron like Mayor Robert doesn't have the right to put on airs in front of him."
Claude nodded. I see. No wonder my father didn't include Mayor Robert in the trade route.
Not long after, the New Year's bell finally rang. Whether it was the people in the tents or the crowd in the square, they all let out deafening cheers ….