Betrothed to My Sister's Ex

“Hello there… young lady with beautiful skin.”

Suddenly being called out like that, I stopped what I was doing.

This was the alley east of the Artisan District in the royal capital, where the main street was lined on both sides with entertainment establishments—commonly known as the Fragrance District. Among them was a high-class establishment called Flower Blizzard, said to gather first-class beauties.

At night, prostitutes revealing deep cleavage posed seductively through the windows to attract customers. But during the daytime when the place was closed, they spent their time wearing no makeup and plain clothes, just like ordinary town girls.

…So it wasn’t strange that someone might mistake me, who was squatting in front of the shop in plain civilian clothes without any allure, doing my work, for a prostitute—I forced a bright smile and turned around.

“Y-yes? What is it?”

A sweet, drawn-out high-pitched voice. This usually disarms most people, man or woman.

But the woman’s facial muscles didn’t even twitch. She probably had been expressionless even before I turned to look. With her dark eyes half-lidded, standing rigidly at the shopfront, she said in exactly the same tone as before:

“I am looking for someone. Has a strange customer come to your shop? A seventeen-year-old boy who pays but doesn’t want a woman, asking to be hidden for a while?”

“Hmm? I don’t recall anything like that.”

“Are you sure? It would be better for your own sake not to hide anything—”

“Hey! What are you bothering Tunic-chan for?!”

Before I could speak, a shrill voice came from inside the shop, and a woman of mature age appeared. She was the landlady of this brothel. She strode heavily over, rolled up her sleeves, and confronted the emotionless woman.

“Do you want something from this girl? Let me tell you, the products Tunic-chan supplies are perfectly legitimate—no, the best in this area. All the prostitutes at Flower Blizzard are addicted to her soap. And there’s not even a trace of any suspicious medicine in it—”

“Oh, don’t worry, ma’am. Calm down.”

I smiled warmly and patted the landlady’s back.

“She just asked if there was a strange customer and inquired about how busy the shop was—nothing aggressive.”

“Huh? Then that means you were mistaken for a prostitute? That’s something to be angry about.”

The landlady huffed indignantly. Even though she herself used to be a prostitute. I stifled a laugh.

“But still, I was complimented on having beautiful skin. If they thought I was in the same trade as you ladies, I’m honored.”

Watching that exchange, the visitor looked puzzled.

“…I didn’t expect to see a woman wandering around here who isn’t connected to any shop.”

“So does that mean you’re a prostitute too?” I said. “Though you don’t seem very friendly for one.”

The woman’s face showed a flicker of surprise. Though the change was barely noticeable—just a tiny shift in her eyes. If it weren’t for me, I’d have missed it. She was still young and not unattractive, but she wasn’t cut out for customer service.

I lifted the basket I was holding to show her. Inside were soaps which I carefully placed on a shelf with a clink.

“I’m a wholesaler. My father is an apothecary, and I’m just here to deliver his goods.”

“An apothecary’s daughter?”

“Yes, yes. But it’s not like we sell officially approved medicines. It’s more like old-fashioned, quasi-magical health foods.”

“Don’t be modest. Your beautiful skin soap and bath additives have become indispensable to us.”

“Ahaha, thanks to you, Flower Blizzard has been doing well.”

I took out a small package from the basket and handed it to the expressionless woman.

“Please, here’s a sample of the facial soap. If you like it, you can buy more at Pendragon Pharmacy. There’s a sign on Tool Street.”

“Pendragon…?”

For the first time, the woman’s eyebrows twitched. It must have been a surprise—Pendragon is a noble family name. But I just smiled quietly and didn’t say anything else, so she didn’t press further.