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Chapter : 06
“Even if I’m Just an Extra, I’d Prefer to Avoid a Death Route” (6)
While naturally helping Serena clean up beside her, I spoke as casually as I could.
“I need to make desserts to serve at the young lady’s birthday banquet soon. I wanted to check the ingredients in advance.”
“For the young lady’s birthday banquet? Wouldn’t the head pastry chef already be planning that?”
Serena asked back, sounding puzzled.
“I mentioned that I wanted to make some tools, and he told me to show my skills.”
“Tools? What kind of tools?”
“Tools that can shape desserts in various forms.”
As I said that with a bright smile, Serena looked at me in surprise.
“You came up with that all by yourself?”
“Ah, well…”
In truth, it wasn’t something I had creatively developed myself—it was just something I already knew.
Still, Serena’s admiring reaction made me feel a little embarrassed.
Thanks to the two of us working together, the cleanup finished quickly, and I started asking her this and that.
“I think this should be enough. Ah! Just one last thing.”
“What is it?”
“Cream cheese.”
Serena naturally rummaged through the refrigerator.
And after a moment—
She shrugged her shoulders and continued.
“Cream cheese isn’t something we use often, so it looks like we’ve just run out.”
“I see. Do you know when it’ll come in?”
“Hmm, hold on.”
Serena dug around in the pocket of her apron and pulled out a small notebook.
After flipping through it for a while, she put it away and said,
“It’ll probably be about a week.”
“What? That late?”
“Yeah. Since we hardly ever use it, we don’t stock it often.”
Other ingredients were important too, of course, but you couldn’t have carrot cake without cream cheese.
“Would it be okay if I went out to buy some myself?”
“Well, I guess that’d be fine, but…”
“If you tell me where they sell it, I was thinking of going myself. Would that be okay?”
“Hmm, sure. Why not.”
Soon, Serena drew a simple map and handed it to me.
“It’ll be getting dark soon, so be careful.”
“Yes, thank you.”
I bowed slightly and left the kitchen.
Thanks to the map Serena drew, I was able to reach the shop without much trouble.
After buying the cream cheese, I was walking along excited at the thought of making carrot cake for the first time in a while—
When suddenly, a small sign inside an alley caught my eye.
“…What is that?”
I doubted my own eyes.
Because, for some reason, the shop’s name was—
“‘Evening Primrose.’”
A small shop hidden in an alley, bearing the same name as the novel.
It gave off an air of suspicion in many ways, but my feet naturally carried me toward it anyway.
Jingle.
The bell attached to the creaking wooden door rang cheerfully.
When I opened the door and stepped inside, a cozy interior bathed in orange light came into view at once.
It didn’t seem like a shop that sold anything. A café?
But there was no counter or kitchen—no, it looked more like a parlor.
“…Is anyone here?”
In the quiet stillness, only my voice echoed in the air.
“Is there really no one—”
“No, I’m right here.”
“Eek!”
Just as I was muttering to myself, a playful voice came from behind.
Startled, I screamed and stumbled backward.
“W-who are you?!”
“Huh? Shouldn’t I be asking that?”
…Now that he mentioned it, that was true.
Feeling awkward, I fiddled with my hair, which had gotten messy when I spun around.
“You’re right. I’m sorry—I was just really surprised.”
“No, no. I meant to startle you.”
The man replied in a teasing tone.
“…Are you the owner of this place?”
“Yep.”
I looked him over as he nodded.
A handsome man whose blond hair—long enough to almost be a bob—suited him well.
His dark, pitch-black eyes were full of mischief.
“So what kind of place is this?”
“Well… anything?”
Contrary to his looks, he didn’t seem like a normal person.
“How did you end up in here?”
He suddenly leaned closer, peering at me with curious eyes.
Why do people around here have such a poor sense of personal space?
I deliberately turned my head away from his gaze and answered.
“I was just passing by, and it caught my eye.”
“Hm. You look familiar.”
As he spoke, he naturally closed the distance between us again.
At this point, he should’ve taken the hint, but—
Without a care, he stepped even closer.
“Could you please step back a bit?”
“Why?”
“You’re too close.”
“Are you uncomfortable because I’m too handsome?”
What an unbelievable man.
How could he say something like that so naturally, without batting an eye?
“Well, faces like this aren’t exactly common.”
I had to admit, he was handsome.
But when someone says it like that, it makes you not want to admit it out of spite.
With a strange sense of competitiveness, I turned my head back and met his eyes.
Despite my sudden movement, he kept smiling at me—though gradually, confusion crept into his expression.
“You…”
“What? Am I not allowed to look?”
He didn’t answer, just stared into my eyes as if deep in thought.
Then, as if snapping back to his senses, he let out a hollow laugh and ran a hand through his hair.
“Ha! This actually works?”
He muttered something incomprehensible.
“Pardon?”
Before I could even finish asking, his hands grabbed both my shoulders.
“No way… did I see it wrong? Let’s check.”
Unlike before, his expression was serious as he muttered to himself.
He stared straight into my eyes, as if trying to peer through them.
“W-what are you doing?!”
I tried to shake him off, twisting my body this way and that, but despite how slender his fingers looked, his grip was incredibly strong.
My shoulders even started to ache.
Had I seriously run into a complete lunatic?
“What the—so it really works?”
“Hey!”
His face twisted into a strange expression, half smile, half not.
At the same time, I felt the grip on my shoulders loosen slightly.
I didn’t miss the chance and immediately pulled myself free.
Then I stepped back, hunching my shoulders and clearly on guard.
“Ahaha, sorry. Guess I scared you.”
“How could I not be scared? I’ve never seen someone this unhinged.”
“I said I’m sorry. I was pretty shocked too, you know.”
My reaction didn’t seem to bother him much—he just waved his hands lightly.
Then he walked over to the sofa and table in the center of the shop and sat down facing the door.
“Sit.”
“No.”
“Haha, guess I really got on your bad side.”
I slowly edged toward the door, fully prepared to bolt at any moment.
If he lunged again, I’d kick him square between the legs.
“Aren’t you curious?”
Thankfully, he didn’t seem to have any intention of approaching me.
He crossed his legs gracefully, leaned back against the sofa, and folded his arms.
With a shameless expression, he kept teasing me.
“You seem like you’ve got a lot of questions.”
He shrugged, as if he could see straight through me.
Honestly, he wasn’t wrong.
A shop with the same name as the novel, and a man acting like he knew me.
Anyone in my position would be curious.
Noticing my hesitation, he smirked and beckoned me.
“Come sit. If you’re really worried, should I tie my hands or something?”
They say a joke only works if the other person finds it funny.
He might’ve meant it as a joke, but after already feeling uncomfortable once, I had no intention of taking it that way.
I shot him a glare and slowly walked to the sofa opposite him.
Perching on the edge of the cushioned seat, I glanced around.
That’ll work.
A neatly folded handkerchief on one side of the table caught my eye.
“Yeah. Tie them.”
“…What?”
“That’ll do. Hold out your hands.”
When I pointed at the handkerchief and said that, he blinked in surprise.
“You’re really going to tie me up?”
“Yeah. How am I supposed to trust someone who’s all talk?”
He watched in a daze as I reached out and picked up the handkerchief.
When I unfolded it and motioned for him to hold out his hands, he burst out laughing.
“Ahahaha! You’re really something else. Fine, tie me up.”
Laughing so hard he looked like he might cry, he held out both hands.
“Hey, easy. Don’t tie it too tight.”
“Then it’ll come loose.”
He still looked thoroughly amused.
Unlike him, I was completely serious.
I tugged on the knot one last time to make sure it wouldn’t come undone.
“There. Done.”
“You’re something else, really.”
“Well, who told you to act so suspicious?”
“This is my shop, you know. You’re the one who trespassed.”
“It’s not trespassing—I came in through the front door. Maybe you should watch your shop better.”
“There wasn’t an ‘Open’ sign out front.”
“Then you should’ve locked the door.”
It was a childish exchange, back and forth.
At some point, I’d even forgotten that we’d naturally slipped into casual speech.
Maybe because he had no sense of distance, I did too—without realizing it.
“So. How much do you know?”
“About what?”
“Anything.”
He seemed to think he had the upper hand.
Even with his hands tied, his arrogant posture and tone made that clear.
I hesitated, wondering whether I should tell him everything or keep it hidden.
What do I do…
Just because of the shop’s name and his suspicious behavior, I couldn’t be sure he really knew about me.
If I carelessly brought up possession or this being a novel, he might just think I was crazy.
“…You go first.”
“Huh?”
“Why you did that to me earlier. And what you meant by ‘it worked.’”
At my words, his eyes curved into a gentle smile.
Curling his thin lips upward, he replied,
“Being cautious isn’t a bad thing.”
Whether he was talking to me or to himself, I couldn’t tell.
After choosing his words for a long moment, he finally spoke.
“That body of yours—it’s not really yours, is it?”
Thud.
My heart dropped.
Seeing me freeze in shock, he grinned.
“Looks like I already got my answer. You’re cautious, but you’re not great at hiding it on your face.”
“…How do you know?”
“Well, I think it’s your turn now.”
Just as I’d felt from the start, he wasn’t an easy opponent.
After a brief hesitation, I pulled out a book.
“Here.”
“What’s that?”
“Something like the reason I’m stuck here.”
“Hm.”
He reached for the book, then frowned when he noticed his tied hands.
“This is pretty inconvenient. How about you untie me now?”
“……”
“Come on. I said I won’t do anything.”
I was still suspicious, but I untied his hands anyway.
If I irritated him further and got nothing in return, that’d be a problem.
If he lunged—I’d kick. Remember that.
As I ran a mental simulation of kicking him between the legs, I heard his voice.
