落とし穴番外：ある女性の自由時間 (Part1)
**Pitfall Side Story: A Woman’s Free Time**
**Side: Lari**
"Alright, I'm leaving the rest to you."
"Yeah, leave it to me."
"Yep. Leave it to me."
With those words, I stepped out of the house with a light gait.
The sun was already setting outside.
Man, I worked hard today.
"Usually, my day would end with taking care of the kids, but... *hehehe*."
That’s right, today is my free time!
My husband, Ovik, and my other sister-wife are handling the housework and childcare, so I’m off to have fun with my friends!
It’s a day off they prepared for me, saying I’m always working so hard.
And so, I danced my way into the evening streets without a single care.
I still had a little time before my appointment, so I figured I’d take a peek at a shop I’d been wanting to visit.
"Wait, that’s a specialty toy store... I wonder if they’re even open at this hour?"
The doubt hit me as I headed that way.
It’s true that in Weed, it’s common for shops to stay open until 9:00 PM, but there’s really no reason for a children’s toy store to be open that late. If it’s closed, it’ll be a wasted trip.
"Hmm. Oh well, I’m already here, might as well check."
I’d already come this far, so if it’s closed, it’s closed. As an adventurer, I’ve had plenty of experience opening a treasure chest I worked hard to unlock, only to find it empty.
With that mindset, I headed toward the shop, and...
"Oh, it looks like it’s still open."
Lucky. Glad it wasn't a wasted trip.
Thanking my good fortune, I stepped inside.
*Clang, clang...*
The peaceful sound of the bell echoed through the shop.
"Oh, welcome. Wait, isn't that Lari? Shouldn't you be working?"
Kishua, the shop clerk, greeted me. She speaks a bit roughly for a girl, but that’s not exactly rare among female adventurers. More importantly, she’s actually one of the important figures Yuki-san and the others brought back from the If Continent.
"I got off early today. Ovik and the others are watching the kids for me."
"I see. So, since you're here, is it a present for the kids?"
"Yes, exactly. And after this, I'm going out to eat with some friends. Want to come, Kishua? You know everyone who's going."
"What do you mean 'I know everyone'? Who's going?"
"Let's see... Milly, Tori, Riel, Kina, Alfin, Difes, Peace, and Comet."
"The first half are fellow adventurers, so I get that, but why are our own people mixed in there?"
"I don't know. Comet was the one who gathered everyone."
"Seriously? That person is the organizer!?"
That’s right, the organizer of this dinner party is Comet. If I recall correctly, she’s Kishua’s former superior? Well, she’s a high-ranking undead—a Lich—so I’m sure they have some mysterious connection.
"So, what do you think?"
"Ah, what time is it supposed to start?"
"Let's see, 7:30 at the Western-style buffet."
"That makes it tough. Look, this shop is open until 8:30."
Kishua pointed to the sign that read: OPEN 10:00, CLOSE 8:30.
"Comet-san probably knew our business hours, which is why she didn't invite us."
"Maybe so. Sorry for asking."
"Nah, it's fine. Let's try to align our schedules next time."
Just as we were talking, suddenly...
"I can handle the closing duties by myself just fine. Why don't you go, Kishua?"
"Whoa!?"
"Eek!?"
I jumped and turned around, surprised by the sudden voice, only to find Nina standing there.
"...Hey, you don't have to be that surprised."
Nina puffed out her cheeks and frowned at our reaction. She works at this toy store alongside Kishua. She’s quite a beauty, but for some reason, she has very little presence.
"Ah, sorry."
"S-sorry about that."
"It's fine. It's always like this. Anyway, back to the topic—I'll take care of the shop, so Kishua, you should go with Lari."
She offered to stay behind and watch the place.
"No, it wouldn't be right to push it all onto Nina."
"Agreed. In that case, Nina should come with us."
"You idiots. If we do that, neither of us can go. One of us just needs to stay. Kishua said it herself, right? We can just align our schedules next time."
*Muu.* I couldn't argue with that. But Nina is my friend, too. I was wondering what to do when...
"Oh my? What are you three huddled together for?"
"Lari is here too? That’s an unusual combination."
With a *clang-clang*, Ratz and Yuki-san entered the shop.
"Oh, welcome. It's not that unusual. Lari and I are friends."
"Yeah, we're friends. We met at the Adventurer's Guild."
"Same here. When Kishua took me to the guild to show my face."
"Ah, come to think of it, you guys were registered as adventurers, weren't you?"
"I heard from Milly that you haven't shown your faces there in a while?"
"Well, yeah. Lately, it's been all about running this toy store and scouting the If Continent. Adventuring isn't bad, but this is fun too."
"Indeed. Seeing the smiles on the children's faces when they buy a stuffed animal makes me happy, too."
*Nod, nod.*
The stuffed animals in this shop are made with real heart. They’re a favorite of my children, too.
"So, what brings the store manager and Yuki here? Souvenirs for the kids like Lari? Or repairs?"
This shop even handles repairs for the toys they sell. And surprisingly, even Kishua does the hand-stitching herself. I was shocked by the gap between her personality and that skill at first, but it made sense once I heard she grew up as an orphan taking care of other children. Nina looked like she’d be good at that kind of thing, so I wasn't surprised about her.
But anyway, that wasn't why Ratz and Yuki-san were here.
"Nah, we're good on both counts. Milly and Comet asked us to take over the shop so you guys could go to dinner."
"That's right. Lari is going to dinner too, right? So, leave this place to us and go have fun. I'll enjoy running the shop while playing house as a lovey-dovey newlywed with my man here!"
Ratz clung to Yuki-san’s arm with a bright smile as she said that. Yeah, she’s probably doing it on purpose, but she’s always said that running a shop was her dream, so it’s better to just let her have her way.
"If that's the case, I'll take you up on your offer."
"Can't be helped, then. Well, if it's the manager and Yuki, it should be fine."
"Thank you. But please, don't take on any stuffed animal repairs. I need to talk to the child and the toy properly to decide how to fix them."
"Yeah, I understand."