But unfortunately, Beatrice had already returned that knowledge to her teachers. So now she could only look toward the kitchen, hoping the arriving chefs could save her from her predicament. Fortunately, the pair of twin maids did not disappoint her. Soon, dish after dish of food was brought out, and Beatrice quickly picked up Flandre.
"Let's eat first, let's eat first!"
Flandre was carried to the side of the dining table by Beatrice. After taking a bite of the specially made small cake, Flandre's eyes lit up. "Delicious!"
Hearing her words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "Excellent, you two shall stay here," Beatrice said to the two maids after seeing that Flandre liked it.
"Yes, Miss!" The two maids nodded and stood in a spot not far away where they could hear clearly but wouldn't be noticed by the two.
"By the way, did Lady Fumizuki say anything else today besides this?"
"Oh, and my salary!"
"Salary?" Beatrice asked in confusion.
"Yeah, yeah! I've done so much, I should get at least some!" Flandre spoke in a tone that suggested she absolutely wouldn't help for free.
Beatrice then remembered that she had seemingly never seen Flandre take out money to buy anything. It was mostly her spending money; she had previously thought that as long as she was there, she couldn't let a child spend money. Now it seemed it wasn't that Flandre didn't want to spend money, but that she truly didn't have any.
At this moment, she suddenly thought of another matter: it had been quite a while since Flandre joined the Guard Department as a Special Consultant. The Guard Department hadn't even paid her a salary. Thinking of this, Beatrice suddenly wanted to laugh. So this was how Governor Wei handled the illegal employment of child labor. As long as I don't pay, it's not considered employment. Beatrice couldn't help but laugh out loud at the thought.
Flandre expressed that she was already used to Beatrice's occasional erratic behavior. In the past at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, she would sometimes see Sakuya hiding in a corner giggling while looking at her older sister; although she didn't understand what was going on, a good child would definitely never tattle!
Soon after finishing their meal, the two picked up controllers to play games, when Beatrice suddenly asked: "Speaking of which, what clothes do you plan to wear to the press conference the day after tomorrow? The Guard Department doesn't seem to have uniforms for someone of your size and age!"
Flandre shook her head. "Lady Fumizuki didn't say, I'll just wear whatever then."
Hearing Flandre's words, Little Tiger suddenly jumped up. "How can that be? This press conference is a very critical matter, you absolutely cannot be casual about it! After all, this is about whether you can smoothly integrate into Lungmen and be able to walk the streets and alleys of Lungmen alone in the future; how can you take it so lightly? No, let's go to your room. I'll help you see if there are any suitable clothes in there."
Having said that, she stopped playing the game and pulled Flandre toward the room. She opened the wardrobe full of clothes she had previously bought for Flandre and began to pick through them one by one.
"This color isn't right, this style isn't suitable for that kind of occasion, this season is wrong..."
Flandre watched as Beatrice, as if possessed, repeatedly rummaged through the pile, occasionally measuring one against Flandre or having her try it on, only to frown and shake her head in rejection. After a long time had passed, Beatrice suddenly said:
"Forget it, none of the clothes here are suitable. I'm skipping work tomorrow to take you shopping for new clothes. It must, must be an outfit that allows you to appear perfectly in the streets and alleys of Lungmen the day after tomorrow."
Flandre scratched her head; everyone in Gensokyo basically wore the same few outfits repeatedly, mainly because it made it easier to tell who was who. A situation like Beatrice's, where a wardrobe full of different clothes couldn't yield a single satisfactory piece, was something that would almost never happen. Although Flandre wanted to refuse, she could feel Beatrice's sincerity, so she finally nodded.
The next morning, Flandre was pulled out of the house early by Beatrice.
"My plan for today is to visit several shopping malls in the morning. In the afternoon, I've invited a few private designers I know; they will each custom-make several outfits for you..."
Flandre didn't think there was much point to it. After all, despite having so many clothes herself, Beatrice still struggled with choices. The only thing that would affect the choice was the person wearing them. Like how she felt the few outfits Beatrice had picked earlier were already very pretty. But Beatrice still thought they weren't good enough, which left Flandre feeling helpless.
After all, she didn't have Beatrice's obsessive-compulsive tendencies, but she found Beatrice's state quite amusing, so she was willing to cooperate and play the role of a doll. The two spent the whole morning visiting several large shopping malls in Lungmen. Anything Beatrice found pleasing to the eye, she bought a set immediately. Before she even started trying them on, Flandre had gained over a hundred more outfits.
By the afternoon, several unfamiliar designers surrounded her. "Aren't you afraid that I'm a Blood Demon?" Flandre looked curiously at the people circling her.
"What's the use of being afraid? Besides, if the eldest miss of the Swire Family isn't afraid, there's no reason for little people like us to be." One of them spoke in a low voice.
"Don't worry, Flandre won't just suck people's blood, and you all are good people... Oh, big sister, I suggest you go to the hospital for a check-up after we're finished!" Flandre looked around and pointed at a woman who looked somewhat pale with dark lips.
"Me... me?"
"Mm-hmm, your heartbeat is very strange, different from everyone else's. I think you might be sick." Flandre pointed to her own ear, then pointed to the woman's heart area.
"Yeah, yeah, Xiao Lan, I also think you might be sick," a colleague added. "Now that the Blood Demon Miss has said so too, you're coming to the hospital with me in a bit."
"But there's still so much work..."
"Work, work! What do you need that job for if your life is gone?" Another person got anxious.
"Exactly. Go to my family's hospital; I'll arrange for a full physical exam for you. Don't worry, the Swire Family will foot the bill for these check-ups." Beatrice walked over and immediately took charge. Hearing Beatrice's words, everyone thanked her repeatedly.
"Alright, alright, since we're almost done, I have things to do and need to take Flandre back first."
"Where else are we going?" After being out all day, Flandre wanted to go back, lie down, and read for a while.
"News from the Guard Department: there will be some speeches at tomorrow's press conference, and you'll be giving one as well. We're going to the Guard Department now to pick up the script."
Beatrice explained that the media invited were all official partners; those gossip outlets couldn't get in at all. The questions and answers had basically been coordinated.
"So much trouble. Maybe I won't go!" Flandre found it a bit bothersome.
"Oh, come on~ just do it as a favor for me, Beatrice, okay?~~~" Beatrice grabbed Flandre's hand and started acting spoiled... Wasn't she the younger sister? Why was Beatrice more skilled at acting spoiled than she was? Flandre could hardly believe it. But in the end, she agreed.
When the vehicle arrived at the Lungmen Guard Department (L.G.D.), it was almost time to clock out. Many people hadn't seen Flandre before, so they were startled to see a Blood Demon walk in, but the veteran guards were very calm.
The two went over to Chen Huijie, who looked up. "I was just saying I'd send this speech over to you; I didn't expect you to come here."
"Hmph, I certainly don't want to see you while I'm resting at home!" Beatrice continued to bicker.
"Then let's go over the questions and answers here to avoid any mistakes tomorrow. Little Flandre, yours isn't much, but you still need to memorize it."
Flandre looked; compared to the stack in Beatrice's hand, hers was just a single simple page. The questions on it were very simple: her name, why she came to Lungmen, and her impressions of Lungmen. As for the answers, they were the standard official responses... Flandre raised her hand.
"Do you have a question?" Chen Huijie asked.