Kazuma glanced around and muttered, “Hm… Shopping yard.”

Inside Yui’s mind, Yuki’s voice immediately sparked up. – ‘Hey! This is a supermarket! Please, Yui, give me the control—I’ll handle this room. In my world, even when I go to shop, I end up bringing only a few products…’

– “Hey, first listen to the rules. If they work for you, I’ll let you have it.”

Yuki huffed. – ‘Hmph. You think I don’t know how to play or what?’

– “It’s not that,” Yui replied inwardly. “I want to give you too. Just wait.”

Maki clapped to gather attention. “Alright. This is how it works. You have 15 minutes, a 200 coin limit, a 20 kg weight limit, and a 400 point limit. These aren’t based on outside-room prices. Every product here has a—name, coin cost, weight, points, and label offer if applicable. In each cart, you’ll find a list of items.”

She looked around as a few participants glanced at the carts.

“If you manage to collect all the listed items within the time limit, you’ll get the orange key. But remember, after 15 minutes, you can’t drop or add even a single item. There are instructors all around. Whoever is closest to you will check and approve. If you fail, you’ll have to wait for the next batch.”

She clapped her hands once, gaining everyone’s attention. “And one more thing,” she added with a sly smile. “The items in this room aren’t arranged neatly. They’re placed at random—not in clean rows.”

A ripple of murmurs passed between the contestants.

She tilted her head. “Are you ready?”

Before anyone could answer, a little voice chirped up.

“Maki aunty, down me.”

She blinked—Hina was already squirming in her arms. She sighed but smiled and gently lowered her to the floor.

The moment her tiny feet touched the ground, Hina skipped toward Ren like she didn’t know him. “You open Dimensions, right?” she asked with innocent wide eyes, clutching his pants.

He leaned down, catching her into his arms with a soft smile. “Yeah. And what’s your name?”

“Hina,” she beamed, wrapping her legs around his waist and her small arms around his neck like a baby koala.

She leaned in and whispered secretly, “Did I act correctly?”

He chuckled under his breath, nodding. “Yeah. You nailed it.”

Then she turned toward Yui, still clinging to him. “Yui aunty! Please~ I want to play with you!”

Maki called out from behind, sounding half stern and half amused. “Hey! Hina, your mom handed you over to me. Don’t just go running around.”

She spun around slightly in his arms. “In this game, I don’t even know where the items are, Maki aunty! I’ll just stand in their cart. I won’t disturb them!” She pouted, then turned back to Ren with full drama. “Tell her, Ken-niisan.”

He adjusted her slightly and gave a tiny shrug. “We’re okay with her coming along. I don’t mind searching with her.”

Yui folded her arms, narrowing her eyes. “Hey, Hina. If you distract us in the middle, you know what will happen, right?”

Hina nodded seriously. “Haa… I don’t.”

Everyone around them snorted quietly.

Yuki’s voice echoed inside, huffing, – ‘Hey! You heard the rules, right? Give me the control, you dummy!’

– “Why are you so eager? Don’t worry, I’ll give it. If the next one suits you, then you can handle that too.”

Yuki poked Ren’s shoulder through Yui’s hand, grinning playfully. “Are you ready? I’m taking over this room!”

Hina, still perched in the cart beside Ren, looked up at her with a teasing expression. “Huh? Don’t you need Niisan’s help?”

She smirked. “He knows what I mean.”

His gaze sharpened a bit, and without saying a word aloud, he activated mind voice. – Yui, did you give control to Yuki?

Yuki instantly responded in his head, her voice half-sassy. – ‘Hey, what’s your problem? You don’t want me in control? This morning, you talked normally, right?’

He stared at her in silence for a second. – I was just confirming because you said that line to Hina earlier.’

She pouted inside. – ‘Hmph. Who knows?’

He blinked slowly. – Actually... I thought you’d ask Yui for this room…

Before Yuki could sass back—

Maki raised her hand. “Okay! Time starts now! Go!”

All 15 pairs sprang into motion.

Wheels screeched as carts were pulled from the line. Footsteps thudded across the tile. Some sprinted while others stayed calm, surveying.

Yuki took off with the cart—Ren walking beside casually, and Hina standing up in the front seat of the cart like a tiny commander, giggling.

Yuki leaned over their cart, her eyes scanning the clipped paper attached to the handle.

She narrowed her eyes at the paper clipped to the cart. “Huh? What’s this… there’s no item names. It’s all the conditions.”

He leaned slightly, brows knitting. “What are those conditions?”

She tilted the sheet toward him.

She raised it up fully and pointed.

[Collect one item over 3 kg weight.

Collect one item that has 100 points.

Collect one multi-pack.

Collect one limited stock label item.

Collect one item with decimal coin value.

Collect two items which cost 40 coins combined.

Collect a product with Buy 1 Get 1.

And collect any product.]

She huffed. “You see, right? We have to find 8 items total—but each based on a specific condition. All within our limits. Do you understand?”

He nodded slowly, scanning the list again. “Mm... the list’s fine, but I think we’ll run into contradictions if we’re not careful. I mean, look—3 kg weight, 100 points, 40 coins… if we just rush, we might go over the limits, right?”

She nodded. “Haa... that’s why we go rack by rack. Even though it’s randomly arranged, we’ll figure it out. Just keep tracking each one as we go. We need to pick each item... balancing all three limits.”

Hina, standing proudly in the cart, stretched her arms over both their heads like a little captain blessing her crew. “Then let’s go, team~!”

He swung his cart toward a lower shelf and held up a bulky white sack. “Rice, 4 kg, 30 coins, 40 points,” he read, showing it to Yuki.

She glanced at it. “Hm... It’s okay. Wait—take that and search for… um, I got confused. Can we combine the first and sixth conditions? Or are they separate?”

He tilted his head, looking around. “Miya-san,” he called toward the rack, “can we combine both conditions or should we treat them separately?”

She joined them, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “No, you have to collect each one individually,” she said, tapping the list. “You’ll end up with ten products. A multipack still counts as one.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, tone narrowing in mock offense. “Where’s that other guy? You doubted my healing?”

His hand twitched slightly, a nervous smile forming. “N-no, no—it’s different. That’s why we said it like that... nothing to do with healing, really.”

Hina puffed her cheeks from the cart seat. “Miya aunty, move aside! We have to collect the products—you’re wasting our time!”

She reached out and pinched her cheek playfully. “I’m wasting your time? You’re not even in their pair! And they’re the ones who asked me.”

She turned to him again. “Okay, don’t mind. And that guy... he’s also here. Hm… somewhere. I think other side racks.”

He blinked. “Really?”

“You don’t believe my words now?” She shot him a look and walked off with a teasing scoff.

Yuki snatched the rice packet from his hand and turned toward the next rack.

He adjusted his grip on the cart. “Okay. I’ll search for two or three conditions—going to the other side.”

She didn’t even look at him. “Hey! Don’t waste time, okay? You can talk to him after time’s over too! Already 3 minutes gone, idiot. We’ve collected only one product. And don’t forget—160 coins, 16 ki—ugh. Never mind. Your brain can’t handle too many variables at once.”

“Haa… okay,” he muttered with a small shrug.

Hina raised her hands. “Niisan, take me too!”

Yuki glanced at her. “Hey, calm down. Just stay in the cart and help me from there.”

she pouted internally. ‘Huh? Why’s Yui aunty behaving like this?’

Yuki pushed the cart along a new aisle, her eyes scanning rapidly. She stopped as something caught her eye—a salt packet with a big red sticker:

Buy 1 Get 1

Coins: 10 | Points: 30 | Weight: 500g

She grabbed it with a grin. ‘So that’s two conditions cleared. We’ve spent 40 coins, 5 kg, and 100 points. That means… 160 coins, 15 kg, 300 points left.’

Yui’s voice echoed inside. – “Hey, don’t rush. We still have time. You only need six more items.”

Yuki narrowed her eyes. – ‘Do you have a problem with that? Decimal coin value, limited stock label—they’ll take time.’

She sighed. – “Hmph. Your mind’s working sharp.”

– ‘My brain is sharp the whole time, idiot.’

Meanwhile, Ren was gliding past the shelves, eyes darting through labels. Suddenly—

“Master!”

Hisagi darted out from behind the rack and hugged him tightly.

He exhaled with a half-smile and patted his head. “Okay, okay, I get it. But we’ll talk later—you’re an instructor now, don’t forget.”

Hisagi grinned, still holding on. “My job starts after fifteen minutes. Until then, I don’t need to check anyone. I always saw your screen, Master… You know? Thanks. I didn’t get time to say that to you yet.”

His voice softened, a faint smile forming. “I understand… but if you talk like this now, I can’t search. Or help in searching.”

He quickly stepped back, eyes darting. “Master! I think... no, it’s not possible. I’ll talk after the timer. I know you’ll finish in time anyway.”

Ren exhaled through his nose, muttering under his breath. “Tch. My speed’s useless here, idiot. Even my eyes and brain need to work.”

Kazuma appeared from the next aisle and—thwack!—lightly whacked the back of Hisagi’s head. “Hey, idiot. How are you?”

He flinched and turned, rubbing the back of his head.

Sakura stepped in beside Kazuma, her elbow nudging Hisagi playfully. “Aha? Instructor, huh?”

He looked even more awkward. “It’s not what you think—Inori-sama told me I could be here as an instructor. I just… thought maybe I’d get to see, Master, so I said yes…”

His gaze turned sincere, and he bowed a little toward Kazuma. “Still… truly, thank you, Master.”

He narrowed his eyes and scowled. “Don’t say stuff like that, idiot. I just helped, that’s all. And Yui-san’s enjoying herself too—don’t act so dramatic.”

Ren walked up beside them. “Hey. What’s your list?”

He dug into his pocket and unfolded the condition paper. “Hmm... Let me read it out.”

He read,

“Collect any product

Collect a combo

Collect one item more than 25 coins

Collect a product of Buy 2 Get 1

Collect one item where coins equal the number of letters in product name

Collect one item with points that are a multiple of 7 after 50

Buy 2 items with a total of 5 kg weight

Collect an item with a pair-bound number in coins, and loner number in points.”

(*Pair-bound - even, loner - odd)

He exhaled. “These eight are ours.”

Ren tapped his chin, then raised his hands, counting with his fingers. “Hmm… not all the same. ‘Collect any product’ is similar—I got that too.”

Kazuma nodded. “Well, we already collected four. But the sixth and eighth conditions? Still not found.”

He looked up at the clock. “Tch… already six minutes gone.”

Ren followed his gaze. “Yeah, right… I haven’t found anything useful yet.” Then turned back to Hisagi, tone calm but warm. “We’ll talk later, Hisagi.”

Hisagi gave a big smile. “Okay, Master.”

****

Yuki scanned the nearby racks with narrowed eyes, muttering under her breath. “That idiot… is he even doing anything? Just wandering around like a lost ghost—didn’t bring a single product.”

Still swinging her feet on the cart’s edge, Hina blinked. “But Yui aunty, didn’t we already find four products?”

Yuki didn’t even glance at her. “Still… two of them are going to be tough. I haven’t seen anything with 100 points yet. And the multipacks? Their coin cost is way too high.”

Just then, Ren trotted over from the opposite rack, holding up a bundle of soap bars. “Hey. See this? Multipack soaps—75 coins.”

Her eyes widened—for one second. Then narrowed into a glare. “You took this long for this?! Idiot! We have a coin limit, remember?”

He tilted his head. “Um… We have 200 coins, right? Seventy-five doesn’t break it, does it?”

She facepalmed with a long sigh. “We need ten items—not one. Even if this is ‘buy 1 get 1 free’, the weight and points still count. And don’t forget the combo condition—two items. Every limit matters.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Hey, wait, wait, stop… just tell me how many we’ve left so far.”

She huffed. “Coins: 117. Weight: 11 kg, 990 grams. Points: 245.”

“So... we still have space for weight and points, but coins are tight.”

He counted on his fingers. “117 and 75 coins… um, that makes 42 left.”

And he looked down at the multipack label. “Weight: 1 kg. Points: 120.”

He did a mental count. “If we use this, we’ll have…”

She sighed. “Around 11 kg and 125 points. And that’s exactly the issue. We still have to find something with 100 points, and the last three products have to fit inside that 42-coin space. This multipack and the 100-pointer… they’re clashing.”

And she groaned, one hand on her hip. “Damn it… four products just won’t fit the limits. I already searched most of the racks.”

He glanced at the ticking clock. “Uff... still six minutes.” Then turned to her. “I’ll go search for a limited stock and something with a decimal coin value. You handle the other two and make them fit, okay?”

She waved him off. “Haa, okay.”

Just then, Hina tugged at Yuki’s sleeve. “I wanna go too, Yui aunty! I’ll go with Ken-niisan, please~” she added, pressing a kiss onto Yuki’s cheek with a giggle.

Yuki blinked at her, caught off guard. “Huh? Why do you want to go with that dumb fellow?”

She smirked and squished Hina’s cheeks, gently nudging her little nose. “If he carries you, he won’t be able to search properly, right? But if you’re in the cart, it’s easy for me to spot and pick stuff.”

Hina pouted. “Uggh! Yui aunty, pleaaase~”

Ren had already turned away.

Yuki pointed at his retreating figure. “See? He’s already gone. Don’t worry, I’m here, aren’t I?”

****

A few aisles away—

Yuta glared at Himari near the rack. “Hey, idiot! Can’t you even find something that ends with a 9-coin price? It’s just that simple!”

She scowled back. “Huh!? I am searching! I already found two!”

Yuta crossed his arms. “So what? I still found more than you!”

****

Just then, the side door opened. Tanvika stepped into Room 2, eyes scanning the buzzing, frantic shoppers.

She walked toward Maki and asked calmly, “All good here? How much time is left?”

She checked the timer and replied, “Five minutes, Tanvika-sama.”

Kiko joined her with a nostalgic smile. “Hmm... Tanvika-sama, if Mom had come too, this would’ve been so much more fun…”

Tanvika chuckled. “Hey, she’s judging the cooking room. Someone like her is needed there. I just happened to get interested.”

****

Meanwhile, in the far corner—

He moved quickly between racks, eyes scanning price tags and labels. Just as he turned the last tight corner, he bumped hard into someone.

A woman.

She looked around forty-six — elegant, but stern.

She took a half step back, narrowing her eyes. “Don’t you look where you’re going when searching? I understand you’re in a hurry—but search carefully.”

He blinked—frozen. Eyes wide.

His breath caught in his throat.

He knew her.