Please Don’t Come To The Villainess’ Stationery Store! - Chapter 26

“Hahaha…”

Dominique’s sneaky laughter was stuck in my ear.

It’s suspicious.

“…what’s with that look, did you cause some trouble?”

I squinted at him.

“They won’t be able to read this newspaper.”

“Why?”

“I brainwashed the three men, didn’t I? After that, I’ve been injecting them to think that you’re doing very stupid and cowardly things.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah! They’ll think that the newspaper is a completely false and exaggerated advertisement.”

It’d be fortunate if Dominique’s words are true. They won’t keep me in check for a while then.

I can’t believe Dominique is so helpful!

I was going to compliment Dominique.

But Dominique spoke with a proud voice first.

“And as usual, they think that you’re just making sh*t and losing money.”

“…huh?”

“You’ve been so stupid that no one will believe the newspaper’s content, I even brainwashed the Academy kids to say that you’re heartless.”

“If they believe it like that then it’s good for me, but…”

“Those two families will probably only believe the reports of those three men for the time being. Hahaha.”

I stared at Dominique with suspicious eyes.

No, but you didn’t have to say that! This brat, don’t you have any regrets about me?

However, thanks to him, I could maintain my business for the time being without much interruption.

“They won’t bother you for a while.”

“I hope so. I hope they’ll ignore me at least until I’m excommunicated!”

“Hm. Yeah, don’t worry. I’m wondering how I’m going to brainwash those three little bastards today.”

I think Dominique acquired some fun toys.

He’d been working on the outside world for a thousand years, but it’d been a long time since he actually came out and used magic, so he must be excited.

“Play with them and put them back where they came from.”

I decided to cheer up Dominique.

I was not that generous to people watching me. Besides, those three men were the same old sick people that used to bother Meldenique.

“Miss Meldenique, we’re not finishing it here either.”

“You need to know your position.”

“It’s not long before your cursed blood won’t have the Vaveloa name.”

They used to mock me like this.

Feeling more satisfied, I folded the newspaper in half.

“This newspaper, it’s going to be in the Academy, right?”

What’s more important was that this newspaper can advertise to children.

Actually, children these days don’t read the newspaper very much.

But at least one person could read the newspaper and pay attention to my stationary store!

“Then I’m sure there will be those who read it and become customers.”

I really hope at least one person will come.

I nodded with that thought.

***

At that time, the Imperial Maltend Academy.

The Maltend Academy was divided into elementary, middle, and high school academies by age group.

In detail, the classes are divided into higher, intermediate, and lower classes depending on their talents.

The middle and high school Academy students were not very interested in the newspapers distributed to the Academy. However, the upper classes of the elementary school students were different.

Children in the higher classes read the newspapers during each study session under the strict guidance of their professors.

It was the same today.

『The Times』, a not-so-good quality newspaper for commoners, is a low-quality magazine for aristocratic children.

But 『The Times』 is special.

This is because the Empress herself praised Astild’s sense of justice.

Astild’s 『The Times』 newspaper, written with a sense of justice, also reached the upper class, where the smartest children gather: the elementary Academy.

The children huddled together and put their heads together with a newspaper on the desk.

“P-pirates appeared!”

“It’s true! Red Pirates!”

The young children’s literacy was lower than that of the adults.

Thus, the rumor began to sell little by little and misrepresent.

Of course, the naming sense of the Red Diocese Pirates, a merchant group that has nothing to do with pirates, played the part.

“Woah…”

“She defeated pirates! What kind of person is she!”

“There’s something else written down here!”

“Someone beat the Red Pirates! She’s a commoner?”

In fact, Meldenique was not a commoner, but the people of 『The Times』 and the Astilde Merchant’s Association thought Meldenique was a middle-class commoner who took over the abandoned building.

In the first place, it was natural since the Duke’s young lady, Meldenique, had left the family.

Thus, Meldenique was listed in the newspaper as the the commoner Mel.

The children, who didn’t know the truth, looked at each other and rolled their eyes.

“Huk, a commoner?”

“Yeah. There’s also a strange word about her!”

[On the other hand, the stationary store that Mel runs, a commoner, sells various school supplies as well as various foods.

For example, beer candy. As a result of my research, this candy remains a mystery.]

The children’s eyes opened wide looking at the ad at the bottom of the newspaper.

“Beer candy, should we go?”

“What’s beer?”

“…it’s what adults eat.”

“Then… we shouldn’t be drinking beer, should we?”

One child had playful eyes.

“That makes me more curious!”

Another brave child continued, “Should we go?”

However, the child, who was reading the newspaper, murmured quietly.

“But…it said so before, she’s a commoner.”

“Yeah?”

“Isn’t she lying? How can a commoner make such a great thing? Even the nobles can’t make it.”

The cold words subsided the atmosphere slightly.

“Ah…”

The Academy doesn’t discriminate much based on status.

However, the noble children had deep-seated pride. That they were much better than the common people.

“It’s certainly impossible for commoners to make cool things.”

The granddaughter of an orthodox aristocratic elder talked a bit and the heat filled classroom became slightly colder.

“I heard that if you get close to commoners, you’ll get sick.”

Among them, a relatively open child took the courage to speak out.

“Hey, that’s just a rumor.”

“Still. Commoners are scary.”

Among them, there was only one person who maintained a dull tone, Prince Axion.

He was reading a textbook and thinking about Mel.

He decided to go to the stationary store but was recently punished for heading to the antique street to buy his brother’s birthday present.

‘I said I wouldn’t get hurt again.’

In short, he was in a stranded position.

‘I was supposed to go to Mel’s stationary store… What if the bad guys hit me and pick on Mel.’

When he stared blankly down at his fingernails, wondering if there was a solution, a chanteuse voice rang in his ear.

It was the voice of the children around him.

“But what’s a stationary store?”

“I don’t know. Isn’t it like a grocery store?”

A boy who was one of the orthodox aristocrats opened his mouth.

“Won’t it go out of business soon?”

“I’m curious about the commoner who took down the pirates, so let’s go before they close down.”

“Hm, have you seen the new perfume? I heard Duke Hesman distributed it!”

“I saw it! It looks like an adult’s, so cool!”

“It’s going to be made for us soon. I’m so curious about the perfume that Lady Sheria, the flower of society, uses!”

The fickle children’s interests began to cool off as quickly as soup.

But…

It was at that moment that Prince Axion, who was looking down without thinking much, jumped up.

“Wait, the stationary store?”

“…Your Highness?”

Mel said so.

Axion, who was looking around in a hurry, headed near the desk where the children gathered. And he took the newspaper from the boy’s hand.

[<Breaking News> The Commoner In Front of the Academy ‘Mel,’ Got Rid of the Red Diocese Pirates!]

The Red Diocese Pirates…

‘I think the guys who hit me that day were the Red Diocese Pirates!’

At that moment, Axion shuddered, recalling Mel’s sparkling eyes.

‘For me, did you identify and deal with the men who bullied me?’

Axion clenched his fists.

‘You’re like a knight, so cool…!’

Of course, Axion had completely forgotten that he had not said anything about the Red Diocese Pirates to Mel.

Young children’s memories were often organized at such convenience. That was the case for Axion right now.