Primrose had a very important job! It was a super duper mega important job that Papa had given her. She had to look extra cute during her outing with Papa! Primrose lived up to her name right now, as she looked like a rose with all the red she was wearing: a red dress, red ribbons, rose-patterned tights, and a red bonnet. Shimmer had even given her doll-like bangs that were popular with the upper class, making her look every bit like the young lady she actually was. Not that Norman had any idea that his last name made them nobles.

  Norman normally wouldn’t dress her in such extravagant clothing for a simple father-daughter outing, but this trip had a secondary purpose. Advertising! He had already seen the effect that Primrose’s usual dress had on other little girls, so this one would surely net them twice the jealousy and nagging to their parents. Primrose also seemed to get praise from adults wherever she went, so if she got a compliment on her dress, he could conveniently slip in what brand was used to dye it such a rare and vibrant red.

  The others had been left at home to keep up the manufacturing, so this was the first time the two of them had been on an outing by themselves. Primrose usually had her girl time with Rowboat, and Pail tagged along whenever they had family time. It wasn’t like Norman didn’t like spending time with his daughter; he did. He just had no idea what little girls liked doing. He knew what she liked, but most of that was food or game related and not something you could do in the city.

  “What do you want to do today?” Norman decided that it was best to just ask her. As long as she didn’t want to do something outrageously expensive or impossible, he would do his best to accommodate her request. They were still short on money, so he hoped she would choose something cheap.

  “Pie!” Primrose responded almost instantly. Ever since they went out to do errands together, Primrose had always asked for a pie whenever she and Rowboat went out. She’d always get the same response of “Ask your father,” so she did just that.

  “That seems easy enough. Cheap, too. Sure.” He had seen a little tea house in the main plaza that seemed to be popular with little girls and their mothers. He would feel horribly out of place in such an establishment, but it would also be the perfect place to advertise the vibrancy of his dye. Oh, and make cherished memories with his daughter. That, too.

  Norman gulped as they entered the little cafe, which was much more targeted towards the upper class than he had anticipated. They had elaborated carpets, embroidered curtains, stainless tablecloths, and they even lit the place with light stones. He felt like he was going to spend a lot more money than he had anticipated. It wasn’t like he could leave and save his wallet, not when Primrose’s eyes sparkled like that.

  “Reservation or drop in?” The hostess at the door asked him. Norman noted that she wore a dress that dragged on the floor. It was a social signal that she was of the higher class and didn’t have to worry about dirtying her dress in the mud. Norman was miserable at making out things like facial expressions and tone of voice, so he had to focus on small details like that to survive in polite society.

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  “Drop in. Table for two, please.” Norman was surprised that he wasn’t asked if he was literate. That was usually the first thing store clerks and restaurant waiters asked. If you were literate, you got a menu or a catalog. If you weren’t, they would read everything out to you. This was apparently the sort of place where you were expected to know how to read.

  Norman wasn’t sure if he imagined it, but he could swear that they were seated at a better table than everyone else. He couldn’t think of a reason why, though. He was completely unaware that the little girl on the opposite side of him was a walking beacon of high nobility status.

  Turning extremely expensive and rare red cloth into a dress for a girl who would soon grow out of it, plus knowing what roses were well enough to embroider them, was like dressing a baby in diamonds. No, it would be like dressing a baby in diamonds and not caring if they all shatter. Dressing a toddler in such expensive clothes while EATING was basically an invitation to ruin the clothes. Red dye was not only rare and extremely expensive, but it also faded after just one wash.

  Savant decided not to tell Norman about any of this because Savant found it very funny.

  “So what did you want to get? They have all kinds of sweets and drinks. Look, they have pictures.” Norman turned the menu over to Primrose, letting her pick what she wanted based on the illustrations next to each item. “There aren’t any pies, but there are tarts. They’re like pies but smaller.”

  Driven by the allure of pie, Primrose got a lavender-lemon tart and a strawberry juice while Norman got a special order of “Cheese biscuits without the cheese” and black tea. Primrose hummed happily as she sipped on her juice. She was having a fantastic time. Not only did she have a little baby pie and yummy juice, but she also had her Papa all to herself! Spending time with Rowboat was nice, but having all of her Papa’s attention was even better.

  The cafe had a side room where upper-class girls could practice socializing with each other while their caretakers relaxed. After some encouragement from Norman, Primrose found herself amongst all the other girls. She stood out as a splotch of red in a sea of blue dresses, and Norman could practically feel his business plan working out. The girls who had been taught about high society were quick to introduce themselves to Primrose, showing her the utmost respect.

  “I give you my humble greetings, my lady. You look absolutely radiant today.” One of the girls who looked to be around nine curtseyed as deeply as possible, making all the other girls follow her example. It seemed like she was the leader around here. “My name is Violetta of Blueport.”

  The upper class of Silvae were people of status, but they were still commoners. Only nobility and royalty could have last names, as last names were written into mana as a fundamental truth of the world. To mark their status, they used the hometown of their oldest known ancestor instead. The rule was simple. If someone had ‘of’ in their name, they were an influential commoner. If they didn’t, they were the real deal.

  “Hello! My name is Primrose Persson!” The little fox girl answered confidently. She had gotten lessons on social etiquette from Shimmer, who rightfully assumed that Norman knew he was a noble and expected his children to have a noble's education. “Nice to meet you!” She had gotten a lot better at talking during the last few weeks. She messed up words sometimes, but she had finally gotten used to a human’s way of speaking

  Violetta and her horde of followers bowed even deeper, if that was possible. Violetta had been told by her mother that even the lowest-ranked noble could ruin or raise their entire family line. Nobles were the chosen ones. Their last names were a fundamental truth. Respect the name of a noble as much as you’d respect a dragon, her mother would say.

  This would give Norman a massive headache in the future.