Chapter 68

Merchant
When I returned from the dormitory, Mr. Abe was waiting in the entrance hall.

"Missy, a merchant has arrived. What do you want to do? Will you come?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!!"

After answering enthusiastically, I parted ways with the three and headed to the dining hall with Mr. Abe.

Inside the dining hall, a man who appeared to be the merchant was already chatting with Arthur.

"Oh, kept you waiting. Missy, this is the merchant who often comes to the mansion—"

The man stood up.

"I'm Taiki from the Murasame Company. Nice to meet ya."

Whoa, it's been a while since I heard Kansai-ish dialect.

Could it be? Maybe his ancestors were isekai-transferred or reincarnated?

It’s so light novel-like, and he totally looks the part of a merchant.

His appearance is like one of those plump, bearded merchants from a famous RPG...

"Nice to meet you, I am Joan, the eldest daughter of the Lampail family. I look forward to doing business with you today."

I bowed my head politely.

"Well now, Arthur told me, but you sure do take after your mother! Such a pretty doll—hard to believe you're only five. I'm looking forward to seeing how you grow up."

"Missy, this guy's shady, but his skills are the real deal."

"So, Taiki, what do you have today?"

"Abe, yer as cold as ever. Today, I’ve got these. First, some seasonings from the Eastern lands. This black liquid is Seuyu. The brown one here is called Meso. And this here is Catsubushi."

"What is this? Just some wood from around here? … Hm? Missy, what's wrong? You okay?"

Mr. Abe looked at the Catsubushi suspiciously, but beside him, I had my head lowered, shoulders trembling.

"Miss Joan, are you alright?"

Arthur asked worriedly.

"Hehehe... Ahahaha! It's hereeeee!!"

I shot up from my seat, raising my fist to the air and shouting.

The three of them stared at me in shock, frozen in place.

Tap, tap, tap... Clatter.

"Joan! What's wrong!?"

Father and Mr. Gray rushed into the dining hall.

"Ah, Father. Sorry, I just got a little too excited..."

"Oh, so that's all it was...? Whew, that's a relief. I thought something serious had happened. Ah, Taiki, it's been a while. How've you been?"

"Well, somehow managing to get by every day. And as always, ya sure are a fine-lookin' man, Master."

"You're the same as ever, I see. So, what caught Joan’s interest?"

"Yes, these seasonings."

"Hm? This... is this driftwood or something?"

"It's Katsuobushi, Father. It makes excellent dashi."

"Huh? Missy-han, ya know what dashi is?"

"Uh, ah, yes... I read about it in a book..."

I should probably keep my past-life memories a secret from Mr. Taiki, right?

But that was a pretty obvious slip-up, wasn’t it?

I glanced at Father. He gently patted my head and said,

"It’s fine, Joan. Taiki is a merchant on the surface, but for our family, he’s part of our 'shadow.'"

"Hm? Shadow?"

"While working as a merchant, he gathers information from various places for us."

Wait, what? So he’s basically a spy?

But can a spy really have that kind of body type?

He's an older man, wouldn't moving around be difficult?

"Ai, Missy. Ain't ya thinkin’ somethin’ rude right now? This is just a disguise."

"Eh!? A disguise?"

"Master, is it alright if I show her?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Well then... Here ya go."

Mr. Taiki stood up, did a casual backflip, and when he landed—there stood a handsome young man.

"Eh!?"

Arthur was just as shocked as I was, having never seen him remove his disguise before.

"Missy, this is my real form. How is it? Too cool to believe?"

His speech pattern had changed as well, no longer using Kansai-ish dialect.

"Y-yes, I'm shocked. That was a really clean backflip... But, um, where did your clothes go?"

"Huh? That’s what surprises you?"

"Ahahaha!"

Father and Mr. Abe burst into laughter.

No, I was genuinely surprised.

I never expected a chubby, bearded old man to actually be a handsome guy...

And he even has a bit of a baby face that tugs at maternal instincts.

"So, Missy, how do you know about dashi?"

"Just call me Joan, Mr. Taiki. Oh, Father, while we're at it, I wanted to ask. Can the private soldiers also stop adding ‘Young lady or miss’ to my name? I’m trying to talk more casually to get closer to them, but having just my name formalized feels weird. Is that okay?"

I gave Father an upturned look, staring at him steadily.

"Ugh... but..."

"Please, Father? Is it a no?"

For the finishing blow, I clasped my hands together and tilted my head.

"Ugh... fine. I allow it. But no calling people just by their name or using nicknames, got it?"

"Yes! Thank you, Father."

"Master, aren't you being way too soft on the young miss?"

Abe and Gray looked exasperated.

"Alright then, Mr. Taiki, Arthur, please drop the honorifics.”

I smiled brightly as I asked them.

"Then, Little Joan, how about working for me in intelligence? With that expression, you could easily deceive men and extract information."

"Taiki!!!"

Father, Gray, and Mr. Abe all yelled in unison.

"Kidding, kidding. But if you're ever interested, let me know."

He winked at me as he said that.

"I'll contact you if that ever happens. Anyway, as for dashi, it’s from my past-life memories."

"Huh!? Little Joan, you have past-life memories?"

"Yes, I’m a five-year-old with past-life memories and a Null attribute."

"For real!? Then, do you know about other seasonings too?"

"Yes, these are very familiar to me. With these, our cooking options will expand greatly. Mr. Taiki, truly, thank you!"

"Wow, so you can cook, huh? That’s impressive."

"Oh, Father! Let’s have a barbecue today! Grandpa and the others are here, and Mr. Taiki too."

"Hmm, yeah, that sounds good. It’s been a while since we’ve had one. Taiki, stay at our place tonight. Gray, there’s an empty room in the servant quarters, right?"

"Yes, there is."

"Alright, decided! Mr. Taiki, stay for dinner!"

"Sweet! Thanks, Little Joan."

A barbecue! Now that I have soy sauce and miso, I can make proper barbecue sauce!

If I manage to win Mr. Taiki’s stomach over, maybe he’ll find some rice for me?

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