Please to Kitsune-sama!

Chapter 123 : Kitsune-sama, Goes Shopping at the Supermarket

What was essential for a pajama party?

A quick game? A fun movie? No—something more fundamental. That’s right… food and drinks.

Since Eri had known Inari for a while, she understood her well enough. Inari was a rice-lover at heart. Apart from rice and tea, she had little else. Seasonings, sure—but anything that wasn’t a side dish for rice was questionable at best. And Eri was exactly right.

And so, Inari and Eri had come to the nearest supermarket: Satou Mart.

—Anytime, anywhere, again and again♪ When you want it, it’s Satou Mart♪ Your town’s Satou Mart, always eager to hear “This is what I wanted♪”—

That was the store’s theme song. The founder’s name wasn’t Satou, but rather, the first president who had run a sugar factory before striking out with this chain. The name carried a mix of two ideas: “never forgetting the days when we lived on sugar alone” and “delivering happiness as sweet as sugar.” In any case, Satou Mart was a well-known nationwide chain. Inari had even visited another branch back when she lived at her old house.

“The supermarket is so vast.”

“Well, yeah, they are. When I was little, it felt like a castle in size.”

Eri wasn’t sure if it was just the unique sense of scale children had, but back then supermarkets had seemed infinitely wide. Realizing they weren’t actually that big had left her with a small sense of loss. But looking at Inari now, she seemed to still hold that childlike sense of wonder. To Eri, it was both a little enviable and endearing.

“Alright then. Let’s decide on dinner first.”

“As long as there’s rice, I’m content.”

“Hmm… Japanese food would be nice, but maybe curry would be fun for tonight.”

“Ohh, curry, you say. Can you cook curry, Eri?”

“Well, it’s easy enough if you have curry roux. And as a maid, I can even make it from spices if I want to, but this isn’t supposed to be a curry party.”

As she spoke, Eri tossed ingredients into the basket—carrots, potatoes, onions, a bag of mixed beans, and some pork already cut for curry. She also grabbed pickled shallots for garnish. For the main curry roux, she chose a box of the long-selling sweet type, a household favorite. Nowadays, they even came in smaller packs, which was handy.

Meanwhile, Inari wandered toward the nearby furikake aisle. But right at the most prominent spot, there was nothing but a blank space with a paper sign: “Inari-chan Furikake sold out. Restock date unknown.”

“It’s sold out everywhere, isn’t it?”

“Mmm… why does it sell so well, I wonder…”

“Well, it’s cute, for one.”

Collaboration products featuring popular awakener always sold incredibly well. Plus, Inari-chan Furikake came with a collectible card made from the package photos. For Inari’s fans, it was a must-have item.

“Come on, Inari. Time is limited!”

“True enough.”

The sight of Inari gazing at furikake with the expression of a child staring at sweets was adorable, but curry would take time to cook. They moved on to juice and snacks. In the snack aisle, Inari didn’t shine with quite the same excitement, but they still bought a few. Inari had insisted on paying, but Eri refused firmly, saying she was the guest, so the bill was hers.

“Alright, that’s everything. Let’s go!”

“Indeed.”

As they left the supermarket and began walking, the stares that had been on them inside grew even stronger.

“Wow, it’s Inari-chan…”

“Is that the real one?”

“She’s so cute…”

Since Inari wasn’t yet familiar to people in this area, passersby tended to stop and turn to look at her.

“Well, of course… If I saw a beautiful girl with fox ears, a tail, and a shrine maiden outfit walking around, I’d triple-take too.”

The problem, of course, was that standing out this much often caused trouble… but at this point, it couldn’t be helped. Acting unconcerned, Eri led Inari along. As they approached the upscale residential district where Inari lived, the foot traffic thinned out. After all, people rarely passed through areas that had nothing to do with them.

When they arrived at the apartment complex, Eri let out a small “Wow.”

“So this is where you live…”

“This place must cost a fortune… For the Association to recommend somewhere like this, Inari’s earnings must be enormous…”

Once again, Eri was struck by just how remarkable Inari was, as she followed her inside.

Arriving at Inari’s unit, she was greeted by a wide, spacious room. It was clearly too big for a person living alone—but for an awakener, whose equipment and tools would pile up, it wasn’t unthinkable. Still, Inari wasn’t the type to hoard. In fact, Eri could tell that if left to her own devices, Inari would’ve been perfectly content in her tiny old house. The Association must have wanted her in a home fitting of her achievements and income. Eri understood.

Not that it mattered right now.

“Alright, let’s make curry!”

Because to Eri, the pajama party was far more important.