A Flat-Chest Believer Reincarnated in a World Where Women with Small Breasts Aren't Treated as Women ~ I Ended Up with a Flat-Chested Harem. - Chapter 11

As soon as we entered the general city area, the number of people on the streets increased significantly, and the air filled with noise and chatter.

Occasionally, I noticed passersby glancing at Risty. They were probably thinking something like, “Oh, a flat-chested woman. That must be her older brother, no way they’re lovers.” Maybe it was just my paranoia, but it irritated me a bit.

Worried that I might have made a mistake by bringing Risty out here, I glanced at her to check her expression. Although she seemed a little nervous, she was smiling and didn’t appear to be bothered by the stares. Good.

After walking a bit further, we arrived at the place known as the “Southern Market.” It was lively, with many people busy shopping, filling the area with energy.

“We’ve arrived. It’s been a while since I’ve been here. Do you come here often, Risty?” I asked.

“No, I often pass by in a carriage, but I haven’t actually entered the market in years. Still, I like how bustling it is,” she replied.

“It’s a sign of the prosperity of the Rolique Kingdom. I was thinking we could browse around the stalls. Does that sound good?” I suggested.

“Yes, that sounds perfect,” she agreed with a smile.

The market consisted of a large open square surrounded by buildings. Stall vendors lined the square, while the buildings housed more established shops.

Naturally, the indoor shops offered higher-quality goods. However, Risty was royalty, and I was a high-ranking noble, so neither of us had much use for regular shop goods. The truly high-end products never appeared on shelves—they were brought directly to us by major merchants. The street stalls, on the other hand, often sold bizarre and unique items, making it much more interesting. You could find all sorts of “miscellaneous-looking things” whose purpose was hard to guess.

I had a decent amount of money in my wallet—about the equivalent of an ordinary craftsman’s yearly wages. It was a bit heavy with all the gold and silver coins jingling together.

We wandered around the stalls, browsing the wares. The smell of food from the nearby food stalls was tempting, but we already had plans for lunch, so we had to resist for now.

“There are quite a few traveling merchants around. That’s a good sign,” I noted.

There were stalls run by local merchants, shops selling products directly from nearby villages, and traveling merchants who moved from town to town. It was the traveling merchants’ stalls that caught our attention the most.

The presence of traveling merchants indicated that the kingdom’s economy was thriving. They believed they could sell their goods here, which was a great indicator of the country’s prosperity.

Both the previous and current rulers of the Rolique royal family had governed well, avoiding unnecessary wars and winning those that couldn’t be avoided. It was no surprise that the kingdom was doing well.

The stalls offered a variety of items—wooden carvings of birds, ceramic plates, some sort of black lump. There were also accessories, though none were of high enough quality for Risty to wear.

“Oh, that’s a lovely painting,” Risty said, her gaze landing on one of the stalls.

I looked in the direction she was pointing and saw two paintings resting in the corner of a simple stall, where products were laid out on a cloth on the ground. The paintings weren’t framed. One was a landscape of mountains—clearly not from around here, based on the vegetation. The other depicted white flowers with a castle in the background.

While I wasn’t an art expert by any means, both paintings appeared to be quite skilled.

Let’s buy them. The stall was run by a man with black hair, likely in his thirties.

“How much for these paintings?” I asked.

The merchant turned toward me and hesitated for a moment, his face twitching slightly as he noticed the quality of our clothing.

“Uh, both are two medium silver coins each, but… I painted them myself during my travels. They’re not much, really,” he stammered.

So, he painted these himself? Impressive.

“I’ll take both. But the price is a little low. Let me pay a bit more,” I said, handing him six medium silver coins.

“Oh, I-I couldn’t possibly accept that much,” he protested.

“Please, allow me,” I insisted.

After repeating myself, the merchant finally relented, thanking me profusely as he pocketed the coins and handed over the paintings. I felt like I had made a good purchase.

“If you ever visit the Gustique territory, I’d recommend checking out the lake north of the city of Remilba. The scenery is perfect for painting,” I said as I turned to walk away.

“Shall we hang these somewhere in the Gustique mansion?” I asked.

“Yes, especially the one with the flowers—it’s beautiful,” Risty agreed.

I had bought something a bit bulky. The paintings were about A3 in size, and carrying them around would be cumbersome. I was considering buying a bag when, as if on cue, Rita appeared out of nowhere, silently taking the paintings from me and disappearing again. She would carry them for us. What a lifesaver.

“Shall we get lunch soon? There’s a commoner restaurant nearby, run by a former Gustique mansion servant. Does that sound good to you?” I asked.

“Yes, I’m looking forward to it,” Risty replied enthusiastically.

With her approval, we made our way to the restaurant. It was located just behind the Southern Market. As we approached, we saw a line of customers waiting outside. Among commoner restaurants, it was on the more expensive side, but the fact that it was busy reassured me.

I had already arranged for a table, so we skipped the line and entered the restaurant.

“Welcome! Ah—” The male owner, in his thirties, straightened his back abruptly and offered a deep bow when he recognized me. He used to work as a servant at the Gustique mansion.

“We’ve been expecting you. Please, follow me,” he said, leading us to a table in the back. Risty and I sat across from each other at a simple wooden table with matching chairs. The furniture was plain, with no attention to wood grain or blemishes, but everything was spotlessly clean.

“This kind of atmosphere is nice. It feels refreshing,” Risty said with a smile. If she truly meant it, I was glad.

Honestly, I had debated quite a bit about where to take her for lunch. It needed to be a place I trusted, but if we went to a high-end restaurant, Risty, as the first princess, would just be served a slightly worse version of what she normally ate. Since this was supposed to be an undercover date, I thought a commoner restaurant would be better.

In the end, I chose this place, which was somewhat connected to the Gustique family. They had some unique dishes that would make for good conversation.

“Their specialty is a somewhat rich pork dish. Would you like to try that?” I asked, confirming her preferences even though I had already researched what she liked and disliked.

“Yes, that sounds good. I enjoy both meat and fish, so I’m fine with anything,” Risty replied.

I nodded and gave the owner the order for two servings.

The food arrived quickly. On the white plates in front of us were “teriyaki burgers.” I had craved them once and experimented until I managed to create a close approximation of the taste I remembered from Japan. It was almost identical to what you’d get there.

Wooden cups filled with lemon and mint-infused water were also placed on the table.

“Well then, let’s eat,” Risty said.

Although it was perfectly fine to eat the burgers with our hands, we opted to use knives and forks for a more refined meal.

Risty took a bite, chewing thoughtfully, and then her face lit up with a bright smile.

“This is delicious! I’ve never tasted anything like it before,” she exclaimed.

I was relieved that she liked it. Seeing a cute girl happily enjoying her food was truly wonderful.

This situation kind of reminded me of those scenes where you take a posh girl to a burger chain for the first time.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it,” I said.

“Thank you for bringing me here. It’s sweet, savory, and such an interesting flavor… Although, with everyone working so hard right now, I almost feel guilty for indulging,” Risty said, her smile turning a little sheepish.

She was right—because of our wedding, the royal castle was currently engulfed in grueling work, with overworked staff everywhere.

“Well, we’d just be in the way if we tried to help. We’ll send them a little something after the wedding,” I replied.

Even just showing up to thank the staff would likely disrupt their work. If the princess appeared, they’d have to stop everything to accommodate her.

I took a bite of the teriyaki burger myself. Yes, it was delicious. The flavored water was refreshing too. I’d have to compliment the owner later.

After finishing our meal, we left the restaurant.

“So, shall we head back?” I asked.

Once again, we held hands, and together we began walking back toward the castle.