New World, New Life: I Became A Bigshot In The Ancient World
Chapter 124: ART STORE DISDAIN

Chapter 124: ART STORE DISDAIN

"Aren’t you going to join us?" Zender inquired, addressing the other great grandchildren who had made no attempt to voice their interest.

"No. We would like to look around the square." Aristia said.

"Didn’t you all go out yesterday?" Zender asked, then he smiled. "Take some guards with you then." He advised.

They had indeed gone out the previous day to purchase some things for their plan and would go today to purchase the remaining.

"Make sure to return before the sun sets." Alistair added.

"Yes, Mama."

"We will, Aunt."

Zender laughed, "Children are very energetic, let them enjoy themselves."

After a hearty breakfast, the family dispersed. Aristia, Lauren and Liam left the Hemsworth Estate in a carriage.

"Our first destination is the art store." Aristia said once they were inside the carriage. They had passed by it the previous day but hadn’t had the chance to enter it.

After a few minutes, the carriage stopped in front of a sophisticated looking art store. Aristia moved her now brown hair away from her eyes and came down from the carriage with her cousins.

They were out on a mission and hence, they had disguised themselves to look like commoners, just like Aristia always did.

The carriage they were riding was a plain carriage with no emblem. However, no one in the family was aware of this.

Adeline came down from the carriage and stood in front of Aristia to help her get out from the carriage. Since she hadn’t been present when they formed the plan, Aristia had briefed her on the plan in the morning and also told her what she would do.

Lauren and Lilith’s personal maid and nanny were also aware of the plan and were in the Hemsworth Estate carrying out other parts of the plan.

They entered the store together. There were some wealthy commoners and aristocrats in the store looking at some art supplies.

Aristia made her way to one part of the store where there were some paint and paintbrushes displayed. She dipped her hand a little in the bucket of paint and scrutinized it. She shook her head and picked up a paintbrush. Just as she was about to place it back, a hand abruptly came to swat her hand away.

Thanks to her fast reflexes, Aristia was able to retract her hand quickly before the other hand made contact with it.

"Miss, are you alright?" Adeline asked worriedly, checking Aristia’s hand for any injuries.

Aristia nodded to placate Adeline, then she looked up to see the culprit with a sharp look in her eyes.

It was a young woman who currently had a look of disdain on her face at the moment.

"What do you think you’re doing?!" She shrieked.

Because of the noise she made, some of the customers in the shop started to gather around them.

[Did you have to draw so much attention?] Aristia rolled her eyes.

Liam and Lauren looked at the woman and the surrounding people in annoyance.

This annoyed the saleswoman and she shrieked even more. "You will dirty these brushes. Do not touch these. All the items in this store are very expensive. Can you afford to pay for it if you break it?" She placed her hand on her hips and eyed the children and young lady with them from head to toe.

[What a waste of money then.] Aristia thought.

Aristia ignored her statement. "I would like to speak to the manager." She stated simply.

"This is a store that sells only the most expensive brushes. The people who come here are wealthy people and aristocrats. Why would you think our manager would want to see a little girl—"

"What is the commotion about?" A voice interrupted.

They all turned to the person who had spoken. It was a middle-aged man. He was dressed formally and had a neatly trimmed beard. He approached them and then smiled politely at the customers in the store.

"Please, continue to look around for something that interests you. I will take care of this."

With that, the surrounding people dispersed. It was only children. It would not be difficult to solve whatever problem it was.

"Mister Robert!"

"Are you the manager?"

The saleswoman and Aristia spoke out at the same time.

"I am the manager. What is the problem?" The man called Mister Robert replied, coming to stand in front of them.

"I came to the store to purchase art supplies, but this woman started yelling at me instead." Aristia stated calmly.

The manager looked at her. Even though he was surprised at her calmness while speaking, it was obvious that he didn’t believe that she could afford it.

"She wanted to ruin the paintbrushes." The woman defended.

"That’s not true." Lauren crossed her arms. She was clearly angry. "Do you know who you’re speaking about? This is the—"

"Laura." Aristia gave her a stern look, silently asking her to keep silent. Then she turned to the manager, waiting to see what he would say.

The manager sighed and bent down to her height. "Little girl, I think it would be best if you go to the store opposite this one. They also sell art supplies. I am sure you will be able to find one that you like and can afford." He said to her since she was the person involved.

"How dare you–" Lauren was about to lash out in anger, but was interrupted.

"Let’s leave." Aristia said, not bothering to spare one more glance at the manager, the saleswoman and the rest of the store. She turned around and left.

The saleswoman gloated and then snorted in disgust. Did these poor commoner children think they were worthy of entering the store. Look at how dirtily dressed they were.

The woman thought that way even though she was a commoner herself. That was the attitude Aristia had made sure that Dahlia and Dorothy warned her workers against. Their clothes weren’t dirty too. It was decent commoner clothes. The woman was just so arrogant that she disdained everything about them.

The manager, on the other hand, was thinking about why he felt the little girl’s gaze was a little oppressing and disdainful. He didn’t know if it was his imagination. He paused in disbelief. How could he think a little commoner girl’s gaze had any weight? He shrugged off the thought and addressed the saleswoman.

"Do not let the customers be dissatisfied." He warned her subtly and sternly.

"Yes, Mister Robert."

Outside the store.

"That lady was very rude." Lauren complained in annoyance.

"I know. Don’t let yourself be angered by unimportant people." Aristia replied. "It is their loss anyway."

Her words had a deeper meaning, but neither Liam nor Lauren noticed.

They walked to the art store beside the one they had just left. It was a quaint store and looked a little old.

On entering the store, Aristia noticed there weren’t many people in it unlike the first store. But there were also art supplies displayed.

Just as they entered, someone approached them. It was a man who looked to be in his early thirties and had light brown hair and eyes.

With a friendly smile and a welcoming demeanor, he greeted the group . "Welcome to the store. What can I help you with?" He asked. He was a little surprised that they hadn’t gone to the art store next door.

"We’re here to purchase a variety of art supplies," Liam explained. "We need paint, paintbrushes, paper, and cloth...." He glanced at Aristia, wanting to know if he had listed correctly.

On seeing her nod, he continued. "Could you assist us in finding these items?"

"I see. Then, please follow me."

The man led them to a side of the store and said before he left. "You can choose any of your choice. Let me know if there’s anything else I can assist you with."

Aristia walked forward and dipped her hand in the paint. Rubbing her fingers together and taking a sniff, she hummed. Even though the store wasn’t in great condition, they still made sure to be of proper service and quality materials.

Liam and Lauen just watched her silently.

Aristia picked out what she needed and then called the man who had welcomed them earlier.

"We are done, Mister..." She trailed off.

"Randall." The man replied.

"We’ve finished selecting our items, Mister Randall." She said, then asked. "Who is the manager of this store?"

"I am the manager and the owner." Randall replied, wondering why she wanted to know.

Aristia scanned the nearly empty store and turned to Randall.

Aristia was surprised. "Mister, why aren’t there a lot of people in your store? Your store seems to be lacking in patrons."

"It’s like a ghost town in here!" Lauren exclaimed, looking at Randall curiously.

Liam nodded in agreement.

Randall’s smile faltered for a moment, replaced by a hint of worry that he quickly tried to hide. "Ah, well, you see, little miss," he began, his voice low as though sharing a secret. "There’s been some strange things going on for quite a long time."

Aristia’s eyes widened with excitement, her imagination actually going wild. "Spooky!" She leaned closer unconsciously, eager to hear more. "But what kind of strange things? Are there ghosts or something?"

After the words were out, she realized it was a little silly. She straightened up with a little cough.

[Am I to be blamed? I’m inside a novel. There’s things like daemons, aura, mana and magic, what more can’t be expected? And when did I become so interested in stories and gossip? I’m being influenced by Vasily!]

Randall chuckled nervously, glancing around as if he was afraid that the very walls might be listening.

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