# Side Story (14)
Luna, Saten, and Estia.
The three of them stuck close together at the mart, diligently purchasing items.
They were completing their mission more smoothly than expected.
"Surprising. I didn't think they'd do that well."
"Ah, you wouldn't know, mister, but... that idiot Luna is a hero who once saved the world... She may be stupid normally, but when she concentrates, she becomes a different person..."
When concentrating versus when not concentrating.
Was the gap between those states too large?
"They're heading to the food section. Let's follow them."
"Yes, mister. At this distance, Luna won't be able to detect us..."
Hare, specialized in stealth and tailing.
I maintained distance and followed according to her words.
Luna and Saten walked around searching for items, while Estia looked around from inside the shopping cart.
But...
"Saten's expression doesn't look good."
"Isn't, isn't she always like that? She always has that expressionless, angry face..."
"But today feels a bit different..."
It seemed like she changed after looking at the pad's screen.
Was it just my imagination?
Anyway, I carefully maintained distance as I walked.
I was close enough to faintly hear their conversation.
"Saten, want to try this? It's a sampling corner, so you can eat it for free!"
"I'll pass. I'm not in the mood to eat anything."
"Really? What about you, Estia?"
"Give me one!"
Luna skewered a Vienna sausage with a toothpick and put it in Estia's mouth.
Estia nodded, seemingly finding it not bad.
"Buy some of those! It's good!"
"Really? Is it that good? But we'll get in trouble if we buy too much... I'll try it and decide!"
Luna, a glutton who calls herself a gourmet.
She picked up two sausages and put them in her mouth at once.
Chomp—
The moment she chewed the sausage in her mouth, Luna shouted to the lady cooking.
"Ma'am, give me two of these!"
The lady smiled at Luna's bold behavior and said.
"These are on sale, so if you buy three, you get one free."
"Then give me three! They said free stuff is good!"
At Luna's words, the lady handed over four packs of sausages.
Luna put the sausages in the shopping cart with a satisfied smile.
*But I told her to buy tofu. I didn't tell her to buy sausages.*
Well, I could let that much slide.
It's just sausages after all.
However, as time passed, the shopping cart's contents became more than "just."
"Stop putting stuff in, Luna! There's no room for me to sit!"
"B-but...! I tried it and it's delicious! Let's put in just a little more! If mister had tried this, he would've put in more too, right?"
No.
Even if I had tried the samples, I would have only bought tofu.
I might feel a bit awkward around the lady, but if I didn't think it was necessary, I wouldn't have bought it.
But Luna was different from me.
"A-and...! With the lady right there, I couldn't just eat without buying anything...! It felt like I had to buy something...!"
She felt the gaze of the lady cooking at the sampling corner.
Luna insisted so.
Hare beside me also agreed with that opinion.
"D-definitely. With those ladies there, you can't just eat. It feels like some kind of enlightenment."
"What enlightenment?"
Hare changed her gaze sharply and explained.
"That sampling corner is a trap. The moment you eat the food, Luna fell into the trap."
If you take one bite and leave a favorable review saying it's delicious,
The lady says you can have one more.
And if you eat two after hearing that?
You feel like you've eaten too much, so your conscience pricks you if you don't buy something.
Hare whispered as she said this.
"This place is a very terrifying world with many traps, different from how it looks..."
"Isn't that over-interpreting?"
"Thieves always have to over-interpret. That's how you can see the bigger picture..."
Hmm, I see.
I wasn't a thief, so I couldn't relate to Hare's words.
Still, since Hare, who was an actual thief, said so, I should agree.
As I was chatting with Hare about the sampling corner, the Hero Party moved toward their next destination.
Only after filling half the shopping cart did they find the tofu I had mentioned.
"Tofu! I should buy the square tofu, right?"
"Yes, mister probably meant to buy square tofu."
"Then that's it! Put it down in the shopping cart and let's go pay!"
"...Don't use the word 'put down,' Luna."
"Ah, okay..."
Luna answered timidly at Saten's cold words.
At that moment, seeing Saten's behavior, I was firmly convinced.
"She definitely lost money."
"Probably so..."
"Let's not bother Saten for a while. And I need to block that site too. She's completely addicted to gambling."
"..."
Hare also nodded slightly.
It seemed Hare was thinking the same thing as me.
I looked at Hare and said.
"They'll come home after paying. Let's go home first."
"A-aren't you worried they might cause trouble...?"
"I am worried, but well..."
Would they cause a big accident?
Even if they did, it would be a small one.
Thinking that, I returned home with Hare first.
However, the Hero Party that arrived home an hour later produced an unexpected result.
"Oh, at least they didn't cause trouble?"
"O-of course! What do you take me for, mister! Can I watch my drama now!?"
"Yeah, good job. You worked hard."
"Yep!"
Hurriedly—
Luna left to watch TV.
I checked the contents of the bag Luna left behind.
"Sausages, ham, chicken nuggets, bacon, mackerel, pork belly, snacks,"
And.
Crushed tofu.
"What were they doing that the tofu got crushed...?"
Did they throw the bag on the ground or something?
The most important tofu was crushed like this.
"No tofu in the kimchi stew."
Sigh—
I exhaled and headed to the kitchen.
Luna was watching TV in the living room, completely absorbed.
She probably had no idea the tofu was crushed.
"Still, they came back without incident, so it's okay."
I hope they slowly adapt to the outside like today.
Thinking that, I prepared tonight's dinner.
And Saten, who couldn't avoid the falling market...
"...I'm not eating today."
Refused all food and shut herself in her room.
It seemed she needed a change of mood.
A change of mood.
Temporarily turning your attention elsewhere to change a bad mood.
And to get the best effect, changing location is best.
"Oppa, is this an amusement park!?"
Estia asked me with an excited look.
It was a rare sight with her eyes sparkling.
"That's right, it's an amusement park. You said so last time. That you saw a mini viking on the street."
The day the Hero Party went shopping at the mart.
I saw Estia, who was always unmotivated, have her attention stolen by a ride.
Estia seemed like the type whose body would be flooded with dopamine when seeing thrilling things.
*That's why I brought them to the amusement park...*
One excited person: Estia.
Two people okay with anything: Hare, Saten.
And one scared person: Luna.
*I thought Luna would like these thrilling rides.*
Contrary to my expectations, she was completely terrified of the rides.
"H-how can people ride that...! If you fall, you'll definitely die...! Wh-what if there's an accident!?"
"There won't be an accident."
"But there could be!"
That's true, I suppose.
I can't say it's 0%.
But the probability of an accident is incredibly low.
Luna muttered, seemingly worried about the people on the rides.
"Th-they shouldn't have accidents..."
Fidgeting—
She's scared herself but worrying about others.
Leaving the chattering Luna behind, I stepped forward.
"Let's go, there are lots of people. We need to get in quickly to avoid waiting in line."
"Y-yes...! Let's go, mister...!"
"Ah, don't leave me behind!"
I headed to the ticket booth with Estia, whose attention was stolen by the rides.
Despite being a weekday, there were many people.
Starting with small elementary students, I could see students my age who came for field trips.
In the meantime, I spotted some students who looked familiar.
"That's definitely..."
They look like students from our school.
It's hard to tell since they're in casual clothes.
Among the crowd of students, I spotted Lee Min-chae, whom I'd seen before.
And Min-chae also seemed to have spotted us, her eyes widening.
Hare spoke in a menacing voice, lowering her tone.
"...That woman followed us all the way here, mister. She's threatening us... should I kill her...?"
"No, it's not like that. It's a coincidence, so just stay still."
"...Yes."
Fortunately, Hare answered obediently.
However, perhaps because Min-chae gave us too much attention.
"Min-chae, what are you looking at?"
"Uh, um...? It's nothingㅡ"
"Hey, isn't that Lee Jun-woo? He came to the amusement park with girls?!"
Murmur murmur—
The students from my class spotted me and started whispering among themselves.
Why did things turn out this way?
*Of all days, a field trip today...?*
The timing is damn terrible.
Complaining about that, I ignored the students and headed into the amusement park first with the Hero Party.
"Oppa, let's go! I want to ride that first!"
"I-I don't want to ride!"
"I'll ride if mister rides..."
"I'm curious about what principle makes it fun, so it would be good to try it at least once."
I had a feeling today at the amusement park was going to be quite dizzying.