SWNOVELXO Volume 1 Chapter 16 - Clown
The winning party I had with Kaede-chan ended just before 9 o’clock.
Of course, Kaede-chan went back to her house.
Even though she said she didn’t want to go home today, she went home as usual.
Well, it can’t be helped.
That night, I fell asleep quickly, and the next day I went shopping.
Then, I bought various kinds of bags and began making item bags.
I made them in 5 kg, 10 kg, 50 kg, 100 kg, and 1000 kg sizes, two of each.
Due to handling a lot of rubber bands, honestly, my hands smell like rubber.
And from the various experiments I’ve done, I learned that an item bag can fit inside another item bag.
But only if it’s empty.
For some reason, if there’s something inside one item bag, it can’t be put into another.
So, I stored the empty item bags meant for sale in my own white bag.
Additionally, I made a lot of potions and medicines and stored them too.
While doing these tasks, it became nighttime. Around 9 o’clock, Kaede-chan came to visit.
It seems she brought me some underwear, and she also shared dinner with me.
I invited her to eat and drink together at my place, but she declined because she had preparations for the next day.
It’s a pity.
But the dinner was delicious.
I think Kaede-chan would make a good wife.
After eating the discounted deli food Kaede-chan gave me, I drank beer alone and went to bed.
The next day, I packed a change of clothes into my bag and left the house.
Then, I took the train to Ikebukuro and entered a restroom stall in a nearby park.
It’s sad to have to transform into a woman and change clothes in a toilet, but it can’t be helped.
Eleanor Ocean will undoubtedly become famous.
And just like the “fame tax” suggests, with fame, it becomes harder to live peacefully.
That’s why it’s better for me and Eleanor Ocean not to be associated, and I shouldn’t link the two identities.
My dream of doing a regular job, getting married, having kids, and leading a life has already ended.
My new dream has become to have a lot of money, marry a cute wife, and leisurely enjoy life.
To achieve that, I need to use Eleanor Ocean as a cover.
That’s what Kaede-chan said.
Well, she’s right, so I can’t really complain.
After changing, I put on colored contact lenses and exited the stall.
I wondered if anyone would be surprised to see a woman coming out of the men’s toilet, but luckily, there was no one around.
I quickly left the toilet and headed to the Ikebukuro Guild.
Once I arrived at the Ikebukuro Guild, I went straight to Kaede-chan’s reception desk.
As always, it was quiet and empty.
Honestly, they don’t need 8 receptionists.
“Hello.”
I greeted Kaede-chan as I approached.
“Yes, hello. Eleanor, do you have a moment?”
“Oh? What’s up?”
“Hehe… Actually, our Guild Master wants to talk to you. Do you have the time?”
Hey, she laughed!
“I’m available.”
“In that case, please follow me.”
Kaede-chan went to the end of the reception desk and let me inside.
We then walked further in together.
“You laughed, didn’t you?”
I whispered my complaint.
“Because your ‘Oh? What’s up?’ with your hand on your cheek was too much. Who are you trying to be, a posh madam?”
“It’s mysterious! I’m being mysterious!”
“Okay, okay. Look, we’re here. Just don’t mess up.”
You’re the one more likely to.
Stop laughing.
“Branch Chief, I’ve brought Eleanor Ocean.”
“Come in.”
A woman’s voice was heard from inside.
“Branch Chief? Not Guild Master?”
I asked, curious.
“Guild Master is a nickname. She’s the Chief of the Ikebukuro Branch.”
I see.
While I was understanding this, Kaede-chan opened the door, and we both entered.
Inside, the room was moderately spacious with two sofas for guests in the front and a table between them.
In the back, a wavy-haired black-haired woman sat at a desk.
Is this Kaede-chan’s boss?
She looks around my age or older… It’s hard to tell with women.
But to be a Guild Master, she must be older, right?
“Please, have a seat.”
The Guild Master stood up from her desk, walked to the sofa, and gestured for me to sit.
I took a seat as recommended, and opposite me sat Mr. Gilmus and Kaede-chan.
“Ugh…”
“What are you doing here?”
“Well, it seems like the right place, but it’s lonely.”
“What can I help you with?”
I tried not to show my loneliness and asked mysteriously.
“Well, first of all, are you a native of this country?”
“Yes, I was both born and raised here.”
“How about your parents?”
“Do I need to answer? Well, alright. They’re dead. That’s it.”
In truth, they are alive.
My dad is abroad, teaching swordsmanship and performing, and my mom went with him.
“Sorry… By any chance, did you previously sell a recovery potion at this store?”
Mr. Gilmus said, placing a photograph on the table.
Looking at the photograph, I recognized the exterior of a shop I had visited before.
“I don’t know.”
“How about this?”
He then showed a photo probably taken from a surveillance camera.
In it was a woman with long blonde hair dressed in a black robe.
Of course, it was me.
“Is that me? Hm, I don’t remember. Could it be someone who looks like me?”
“It’s a very distinctive appearance, don’t you think?”
I think so too!
“Oh? Are you saying I’m strange?”
“No, sorry… Are you saying you didn’t sell the recovery potion here?”
I didn’t even know the product number, so I didn’t sell it.
“I don’t know. I don’t remember. That’s all.”
Kaede-chan strictly told me to keep saying I don’t know and I don’t remember.
“I see… alright. Moving on, you acquired your adventurer’s qualification here. Is that correct?”
“I think I might have.”
I was also told not to make any definitive statements.
But I think this question should be fine.
“Why are your address and phone number fake?”
“Hmm, did I make a mistake?”
I just wrote them randomly.
“It’s fine. We failed to check that. You went to the frontier for the first time the other day and dropped five recovery potions. Then you sold them here. Am I wrong?”
“It might be.”
“Are those potions genuinely dropped?”
I made them!
“If not, then what?”
“Stolen goods?”
“Stolen from where? And where’s the proof that the potion I sold is the same?”
There’s no such proof.
“There isn’t…”
“Then there’s no problem, right?”
“Right… That’s all. You’re in the clear. I’ll report this to the higher-ups.”
Mr. Gilmus clapped his hands.
“Go on.”
“Now, the main question. Elenora Ocean, you made the recovery potion using your alchemy skill, correct?”
“Yes.”
In fact, Kaede-chan had already informed me.
All the previous exchanges were just formalities to get our stories straight.
The real issue starts now.
“Let me check, does it actually say ‘alchemy’ here?”
Mr. Gilmus showed me Elenora Ocean’s status card.
“Yes, right here.”
I pointed to the alchemy skill on the status card.
“I can’t see it.”
“I can’t see it either.”
Neither Mr. Gilmus nor Kaede-chan could see it.
“Maybe only I can see it. Or perhaps only those with a similar star-marked skill can.”
“Hmm… I’ve never heard of that. Kaede, bring all the status cards.”
Mr. Gilmus looked troubled, but he gave instructions to Kaede-chan next to him.
“Huh? All of them?”
“Yes. I need to check.”
“O-okay.”
Kaede-chan quickly stood up and left the room.
“She’s cute, isn’t she?”
As Kaede-chan left, Mr. Gilmus asked.
“Perhaps.”
“Just to confirm, are you two dating? Hajime Okita.”
We’ve been found out.