Chapter 48: Am I Not Even as Good as a Dog?
After finishing the paintings, Nair, as usual, gave them to the two of them.
Peiya was a bit surprised when she received them. She looked at them carefully for a long time, but couldn’t come to any clear conclusion.
Elise, however, seemed to understand something. She carefully put the paintings away and politely thanked Nair.
“Thank you for your hard work today.”
Nair waved her hand calmly. “Not at all. Being able to see such a wonderful ‘performance’ from you two makes everything worth it. Miss Elise, are you heading back now? Come visit again when you have time.”
With a bit of reluctance, Nair saw them off as they left, carrying many bags.
Before they left, Nair suddenly ran over again and gave Peiya a set of casual clothes.
It was a new white outfit with small floral patterns.
“Take it. It’s made from Dream Silk. Think of it as an early gift from me.”
“Huh?”
Peiya looked shocked. The way Nair spoke always made things sound strange.
Dream Silk was a very high-end material. She really didn’t feel comfortable accepting something so expensive.
“It’s too valuable. I appreciate the thought, but I can’t take it.”
“Don’t think too little of yourself. You taught me a lot today. You deserve it.”
“But…”
“It’s fine, just accept it. Think of it as Nair’s goodwill.” Elise stepped forward to help.
“Exactly! Compared to clothes, what’s more valuable is the bond between you two. I’m just a tailor, I don’t understand big theories, but I do know one thing. Once clothes are torn, no matter how good your stitching is, they can’t return to how they were before. It’s the same for you two. If you have something to say, say it in time. Keeping it inside for too long will only break things. May the gods bless both of you.”
“…Alright, I’ll accept it. Thank you, Nair.”
Peiya nodded and thanked her. Looking at all the things in her hands, she thought this trip had really brought her a lot.
She even got three paintings.
But what was the cost?
Elise had seen her drooling clearly, and during their playful moments, she had even accidentally hugged Elise’s waist.
In her panic, all the small changes in her expression were noticed by Elise.
Not to mention, those embarrassing moments had been fully recorded by Nair in her paintings.
Looking at the lifelike drawings, Peiya felt like a cold wind was blowing through her heart.
Rather than memories, they felt more like embarrassing moments she would never be able to forget!
But at this point, what could she even say?
Seeing how much Elise liked the paintings, she couldn’t bring herself to ruin the mood. So she changed the topic.
“Are we heading back now?”
Peiya turned to look at Elise. After spending so much time in the shop, she didn’t have the energy to go anywhere else.
“Let’s go back. I’ll fill out the team registration form later and give it to Maya. There’s nothing urgent left to do. What about you? It’s not easy for you to come out, anything you still want to buy?”
Peiya shook her head. “No. I originally wanted to buy some alchemy materials, but I realized I don’t have enough reference materials yet. How about you take me to the library? I should start preparing materials for the Ice Bear King strategy.”
“No problem.” Elise nodded and led Peiya away.
Meanwhile…
Not long after they left, a familiar figure walked into the clothing shop.
Nair, who was still busy, put down her needlework and greeted the new customer:
“Miss Anna, are you here to buy some clothes?”
Anna was looking through the clothes when she suddenly came back to her senses and noticed Nair recommending outfits to her.
Her mind felt foggy. She stood there for a while before she finally understood what Nair said, then answered a bit awkwardly.
“Yes… do you have any new arrivals?”
“Yes. The clothes on this rack are all new this season. You can try on anything you like.”
“Mm, okay.”
Anna looked a little tired and unmotivated. The past few days had really drained her.
First, at the manor, without Peiya, the overall service from the servants had dropped, which made her very unhappy.
Then there was her dog, Sean. For some reason, he also became listless.
The servants reported that even when they gave him his favorite big chicken legs, he didn’t come forward to eat. Before, he would even sneak into the kitchen to steal them.
And this had been going on for a while.
If it weren’t for the fact that Sean hadn’t eaten for so long that they were worried he might starve, they wouldn’t have dared report it to Anna.
After all, their young lady usually only cared for things for a short time. Reporting it would just give them more work, and maybe even get them scolded.
Who would want to do something that brings trouble without reward?
But this time, when Anna heard the report, she didn’t get angry.
It wasn’t worth getting angry over a dog. If she remembered correctly, Sean used to be closest to Peiya.
So what was the answer? Wasn’t it obvious?
Still, she couldn’t understand it.
Peiya was just a servant, how could she have such a strong influence?
Not only had she turned the household upside down, now even the dog seemed to go against her.
Could it be that even a dog was more loyal than her?
But no matter what, she was still the master, while Peiya was just a servant.
So why had so many things changed after she left?
Since Peiya left, the house was still the same house, but it could never return to its old orderly state.
Because the house had become so messy, Anna couldn’t stand it anymore and went out to relax.
It just so happened that the Adventurers’ Guild would soon hold a ball, so she decided to prepare some clothes for it.
Anna casually pulled different clothes off the racks. In no time, she had picked out what she wanted.
More than a dozen outfits were placed on the counter, covering almost every style.
Anna never struggled to choose. If she liked something, she bought all of it.
“That’s all for now. Let’s check out.”
Nair looked a bit surprised. “That many, Miss Anna? Are you taking them all today?”
“Yes. Pack them all.”
Nair understood and quickly packed the clothes into bags, then handed them over.
“All set. Here are your clothes. We look forward to your next visit.”
Anna took the bags and walked out.
The moment she stepped outside, she habitually reached her hand behind her.
“Peiya, come carry this. It’s so heavy.”
She stood there.
Only silence answered her.
Her lips moved slightly. A bit annoyed, she turned her head.
“I’m talking to you, didn’t you hear me—”
But before she could finish, she stopped herself.
Behind her, there were only a few people chatting and laughing as they walked down the street.
There was no Peiya.
The “clothes hanger” who used to follow her around while shopping… was no longer there.
The wind today sounded especially loud.
Anna clenched her fists and stood there alone.
For the first time, she realized the wind on this street felt so cold.
So cold that it was almost frightening.