More than half an hour had passed since Shirou left, and Swire was already starting to suspect that he might have run off.
Fortunately, not long after that thought crossed her mind, she spotted him in the distance.
After all, his red hair was especially eye-catching and he did not have any obvious racial traits on his head either.
"Sorry, sorry. I was thinking about what I needed to prepare, so it took a bit longer."
After returning home earlier, Shirou had started thinking about what to buy. Only after snapping back to his senses did he remember that he was not going alone this time and Swire was waiting for him at the café.
Realizing that, he stuffed a new shopping bag into his sling bag and rushed out the door.
"It's fine. I was the one who suddenly asked you for help, I can at least wait this long."
Seeing that the first thing Shirou did upon arriving was apologize, Swire could not really complain. Besides, she was the one asking for help, so it would not be right to grumble.
"That's good."
Seeing her reaction, Shirou let out a sigh of relief. He had been worried she might complain about him being late.
Though, to be fair, it was because he got distracted, so it would have been understandable if she had.
"Alright then, let's go! I will leave the navigation to you."
Before Shirou could respond, Swire grabbed him and pulled him along.
Relying on his memory from last time, Shirou quickly led Swire to the market.
The market looked pretty much the same as before, though the prices at various stalls seemed a bit different. As he glanced at them, Shirou had already started thinking about what to buy.
"Shirou, where exactly did you hear that information last time?"
After arriving, Swire turned to ask him, wanting to know the source of the information.
"Hm? I think it was some housewives chatting over there and I just overheard it."
Still thinking about what vegetables to buy, Shirou snapped back to attention and pointed at a nearby produce stall.
"…Housewives?"
Swire started doubting her ears.
She definitely heard that right, didn't she?
"Yeah. They were talking pretty loudly, and I just happened to hear them while picking out vegetables."
After thinking about it, Shirou felt the need to clarify that he had not been eavesdropping, it was just that they were loud.
"Hold on, let me process this…"
Rubbing her temples, Swire went from shocked, to confused, and finally to… accepting it.
Information from casual civilian conversations could actually be quite authentic. It was just that coming from housewives… there would probably be quite a bit of noise mixed in.
"Then I will head over there first. Call me if you need anything."
Seeing Swire lost in thought, Shirou said that and went off to pick vegetables.
Since only Sora in Penguin Logistics really ate a lot of vegetables, Shirou simply chose the ones she liked. As for the other three who preferred bread, desserts, and Pocky as long as there was meat, they would be perfectly happy.
Though… it made sense for a Lupo to eat meat, and probably for a Forte too but was it really okay for a Sankta to eat meat?
"…No, no. Sora's also a Lupo and she loves vegetables, so I should not judge based on race."
Shaking his head, Shirou threw those slightly impolite thoughts out of his mind. He quickly paid and left, taking only a few minutes from start to finish.
Watching him smoothly move through the process, selecting produce, bargaining, and paying, Swire was full of question marks.
Not only was Shirou different from what she imagined someone from Penguin Logistics would be like, but he was also… incredibly grounded in daily life.
"Why are you so skilled at this?"
Seeing Shirou walk over carrying a big bag of vegetables, Swire asked.
"Skilled? Skilled at what?"
Shirou looked confused, not understanding what she meant.
"Nothing. Do you usually come here to shop?"
Realizing she had reacted a bit oddly, Swire rephrased her question.
"Normally I go to the nearby supermarket. Exusiai and the others said this place is not very safe, so I should not come alone."
"You usually go to the supermarket… should not come alone…"
Considering how Penguin Logistics seemed to rate Shirou's combat ability as relatively low, combined with his smooth grocery-shopping routine just now, Swire began to sense something off.
Had she… overestimated him?
From what she knew so far, Shirou did not seem highly regarded in terms of combat within Penguin Logistics. He was even considered at risk just coming near the slums alone. And the incident at the Mall had only been resolved without major consequences because the Guard Department intervened.
So… was Shirou actually just a somewhat reckless ordinary person?
Which meant she might have brought him into a dangerous area based on a wrong assumption?
While Swire was deep in thought, Shirou did not disturb her. Instead, he glanced around and headed straight for the seafood stall.
"You're here? Today's fish are all good, take a look."
The stall owner yawned and greeted Shirou.
"Yeah. The fish last time were great. I happened to come with someone today, so I thought I would buy some more."
As he picked out fish, Shirou casually chatted with the owner.
"Hmm… your girlfriend?"
Glancing at the person Shirou mentioned, the owner asked.
He did not recognize Swire, she was dressed more plainly today and was wearing a large hat.
"No, she's… just a friend."
Shirou had originally intended to say she was from the Guard Department, but recalling the few gazes he had sensed earlier, he changed his wording.
"I get it, I get it. I will give you a bit of a discount today."
Seeing Shirou hesitate, the owner took the fish from him and skillfully began prepare them.
Shirou could only smile wryly at that, offering no further explanation.
"Shirou, why did you come over here?"
Snapping out of her thoughts, Swire had wanted to ask him something, only to realize he had already disappeared. Looking around, she finally found him at the seafood stall.
"Buying fish. This vendor is pretty good, and the fish are really fresh."
Holding up a large bag of fish, Shirou introduced the place.
Though if he knew that a single piece of clothing Swire was wearing could cover two months' worth of food expenses for everyone at Penguin Logistics, he might not have introduced it so casually.
"And what brings you here?"
Seeing Swire up close, the vendor finally recognized who she was.
After all, he was someone who had received help from Officer Hoshiguma before, so he naturally knew who Swire was too. He just did not understand why she was here.
"…Nothing. Just accompanying him to buy groceries. Shirou, we should get going."
When Swire saw the vendor clearly, she froze for a moment. He looked like a dangerous character and with that bloodied knife in his hand, she had almost pulled out her handcuffs on instinct.
After calming down, she used Shirou as an excuse and grabbed his hand, pulling him away from the stall.