The store's Reversi experience corner and competition corner were going well.
There was no point in checking the situation anymore, so I was leaving the rest to Karin-san.
I told her to contact me if any problems arose.
I was spending my first break in a while relaxing at home with Kumayuru and Kumakyu.
If I had games, manga, and anime it would be the best holiday ever, but I didn't have any of those, so I decided to find comfort in Kumayuru and Kumakyu.
I had never been to one, but I could understand how people feel when they go to cat cafes on their days off.
I leisurely brushed the little Kumayuru that sat on my lap.
"Yes, let's switch to Kumakyu." (Yuna)
"Kyuu~n" (Kumayuru)
Kumayuru got off my lap and Kumakyu sat on my lap.
It had been a while since I had been a shut-in.
It's peaceful.
"Yuna-sa~n"
While I was brushing Kumakyu, I heard someone calling my name from outside.
If I was not mistaken, it was Noa's voice.
"Yuna-sa~n, are you there~?" (Noa)
I took Kumakyu off my lap, opened a nearby window, and replied.
"Yes, I am." (Yuna)
As expected, Noa was outside, but she wasn't dressed as usual.
Plus, there was an unexpected person next to her.
"Yuna-oneesama, it's been a while." (Misa)
"Misa?" (Yuna)
Misa was also not dressed as usual.
I welcomed them both into my house.
"It's been a while since we last saw each other, Kumayuru-chan and Kumakyu-chan." (Misa)
"Kyuu~n" (Both Kuma)
Misa stroked Kumayuru and Kumakyu.
"Misa, are you going to participate in the Reversi tournament, too?" (Yuna)
"Yes. I received a letter from Noa-Oneesama, so I decided to participate." (Misa)
"Who did you come with? You're not alone, are you?" (Yuna)
"It's my grandfather. He said he was bored so he was coming along." (Misa)
He was really a retired old man.
Come to think of it, I had never seen Noa's grandparents.
I had never seen them in Crimonia, so maybe they were in the royal capital?
If he had passed away, it would be weird to ask.
"Is Marina your escort?" (Yuna)
"Yes, she accompanied us." (Misa)
It also seemed that Rufa-san, who took care of Gran-san, was there as well.
It felt the same as usual.
"So, are you two going to meet Kumayuru and Kumakyu?" (Yuna)
"Yes." (Misa)
Misa replied with a bright smile.
Noa and Misa hugged Kumayuru and Kumakyu.
"So, why are you two dressed like that?" (Yuna)
They were not wearing the clothes they usually wore.
How should I put it, is their clothing supposed to represent that they come from a good family? They were wearing clothes that one would expect a somewhat wealthy family to wear.
"Is this it?" (Noa)
Noa spun around and showed me her clothes.
"This is to blend in with the general public." (Noa)
"To blend in with the general public?" (Yuna)
"I told my father I wanted to participate in a Reversi tournament, but he said I couldn't." (Noa)
"Really? Maybe it's because you were slacking off on your studies." (Yuna)
"No. I study hard. My father said to me, 'Reversi tournaments are entertainment for the common people. What would happen if you, a noble, participated in one?'" (Noa)
Certainly, if a noblewoman were to participate, ordinary people would be confused.
There was a chance they would go easy on them, so it wouldn't be fun.
"I understand what my father means. But I want to take part in the Reversi tournament too." (Noa)
There was no denying that Reversi tournaments were aimed at the masses.
However, there was no rule that prohibits nobles from participating.
However, that didn't mean that ordinary people didn't have to be careful when dealing with nobles.
"I don't want people to know I'm a noble and go easy on me, or for my opponent to be too nervous and unable to perform to their full potential. So I agreed to hide the fact that I'm the lord's daughter. By the way, I'll be participating as a commoner, Noa." (Noa)
"After hearing about it from Noa-Oneesama, I decided to join as Misa." (Misa)
By the way, it's Noa because it's from Noir
and Misa because it's from Misana.
I thought it was too easy, but I was also using a fake name Yuuna, so I couldn't say anything about other people.
Well, is it okay if they don't use their full name?
"What do you think? We don't look like a noblewoman, do we?" (Noa)
Noa lightly held the hem of her skirt with a look of amusement.
Beautiful face, beautiful hair, and above all, the way she held the edge of her skirt.
"Maybe you look like a young lady from a good family?" (Yuna)
"Ehhh~, no matter how you look at it, I'm just an ordinary citizen." (Noa)
Is this because I know that Noa is a noble?
"Yuna, what about me? Noa asked me to try it on too." (Misa)
In the case of Misa, the aura of a young lady emanates from within.
She has elegance, presence, dignity, and grace that was greater than those of Noa.
Above all, her mannerisms and tone of voice were elegant.
"First of all, you're even more of a lady than Noa." (Yuna)
"Yuna-san, that's terrible. Are you saying I don't look like a young lady?" (Noa)
"Which way do you want to be seen, Noa?" (Yuna)
"That is a matter of a girl's heart." (Noa)
It was difficult for me to understand the mind of a girl.
"Both of you are far from being ordinary people. At best, you're the daughters of merchant families. Well, I guess normal people wouldn't call you Onee-sama anyway." (Yuna)
"That's true. Misa, please call me Noa-oneechan." (Noa)
"No-Noa-oneechan..." (Misa)
Misa said, sounding a little embarrassed.
"It's something fresh." (Noa)
I think I can understand how you feel.
Only Misa called me Onee-sama.
When Misa called me Yuna-oneesama for the first time, I felt a little awkward. It was a refreshing experience.
It was embarrassing, but I was also a little happy.
"Ugh, I'm so embarrassed." (Noa)
It seemed calling Misa as onee-chan was a big hurdle.
"Well, as long as you don't call each other in public or out loud, I think it's okay." (Yuna)
"It's hard to be a normal person." (Noa)
If you grew up in different environments, it's inevitable that you don't know about other environments.
Even tone of voice changes depending on the environment in which one was born and raised.
Noa should have been taught from a young age to speak politely.
They referred to their mother as "Mother" (okaa-sama) and their father as "Father" (otou-sama). Terms that were not used in ordinary households.
That was what they were taught to call.
"Also, you both have beautiful movements." (Yuna)
"Our movements are beautiful?" (Noa)
"It was the first time someone outside of my family said that to me." (Misa)
Noa and Misa looked a little surprised.
"I don't think you mind, Noa and Misa, but I think you both have great posture." (Yuna)
Their back was straightened.
I thought the same thing while they were eating, but the way they ate was really neat.
It might be normal to nobles like Noa, but to ordinary people it would appear beautiful and elegant.
"I was certainly told from a young age to be careful about how I sat, ate, walked and maintained my posture."
"Now it has become the norm."
"Ordinary children may be told to be a little more careful, but they're not told too strongly."
Unless their posture was extremely strange, they wouldn't be told off.
I didn't think you'll be told off unless you dress in a lewd manner as a girl.
In the first place, nobles might have been taught proper etiquette, but ordinary people had no such education.
"So, will it be difficult for me to participate in the tournament?" (Noa)
"Well, as long as they don't notice that you're a noble, I think it'll be fine. If you're the daughter of a good family, I don't think they'll mind too much." (Yuna)
There was an unbridgeable gap between the daughter of a noble and the daughter of a wealthy person.
"So, how are you both doing at Reversi?" (Yuna)
"I've been keeping Lala and the others company when they have free time. It's been a winning streak." (Noa)
I wondered they were going easy on her.
It was possible that they were losing on purpose because they didn't want to incur the displeasure of their employer's daughter. Well, that was one possibility. It was also possible that Noa was actually strong.
As Noa said last time, she was the pioneer of Reversi in this world.
"What about Misa?" (Yuna)
"I only started practicing seriously after I received a letter from Noa-Oneesama, but I'm practicing properly. In the end, I sometimes win and sometimes lose." (Misa)
Misa had been playing Reversi with Fina and the others at her birthday party and seemed to have a lot of fun, so I gave it to her as a present.
It seemed like she practiced with that Reversi.
"But since I'm participating, I'll do my best." (Misa)
"I won't lose either." (Noa)
After enjoying Kumayuru and Kumakyu until late afternoon, I took Noa and Misa to the Bear's Relaxing Shop for lunch.
Apparently, both of them had intended to do this from the beginning, so they had made sure to tell Lala-san about it before leaving the house.
"I'm hungry." (Misa)
"I'm looking forward to Bear Bread." (Noa)
When she arrived at the Bear's Relaxing Shop, Misa touched the big bear at the entrance to the shop.
"It's been a while since I've seen this bear." (Misa)
We went into the store.
Then I buy some bread and sit down.
The bread they bought was still bear bread and fruit juice.
"It's delicious."
That was the best thing.
"If you come to Crimonia, you have to try this."
They talked as if bear bread was a specialty of Crimonia.
Well, bear bread was one of the best-selling breads, so it was especially popular among kids.
The reason I knew was because the store kept statistics on the number of loaves of bread sold.
Based on this statistics, we decided how much of each bread to bake.
There might be some margin of error, but statistics didn't lie.
Elena-san also apparently kept statistics on what types of cakes were selling and then made cakes accordingly.
That way, there wouldn't be too much left over, nor would there be too little.
After finishing the bread, the two eat pudding and cake.
"Don't you eat it at home too?" (Yuna)
"They don't make much because it makes me fat." (Misa)
Come to think of it, when I was teaching Misa's chef, Botz-san, how to make puddings and shortcakes, I told him not to make too much of them because eating too much would make you fat.
As the two of them are eating cake, Karin-san placed a Reversi card on the table.
And pop along with it.
"What is Karin doing?" (Noa)
Noa asked, looking at Karin-san.
"Is that what they call the Reversi Battle Corner? It's a place where anyone, from beginners to experienced players, can play freely." (Yuna)
"There was such a thing?" (Noa)
"Until the Reversi tournament begins, you see." (Yuna)
The plan was to continue until the Reversi tournament began.
Author's Note
Even when Noa and Misa are wearing normal clothes, they seem to exude the manners of young ladies.
*Pre-orders for the Yuna figure have begun from PRISMA WING.
The first baby bears, Kumayuru and Kumakyu, are also included.
For more details, please see the activity report.
*Celebrating PASH! Books' 10th anniversary
PASH! Books, the publisher of Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
It seems like there are a lot of different campaigns going on.
For more details, please contact the PASH! Books & Bunko Editorial Department (formerly Twitter).
*Posting will be done every 4 days. (Sorry if this is not possible)
*If I take a break, I will notify you in the postscript, and if I am suddenly unable to post, I will notify you via X (formerly Twitter). (I'm sorry if I can't)
*The 133rd chapter of the comic "Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear" is currently available on PASH UP! neo (also available on NicoNico Manga and Piccoma)
*Episode 23 of the "Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear" spin-off is currently available on PASH UP! neo (also available on NicoNico Manga and Piccoma)
If you have time, please check out the comic version.
[Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear to be released]
Book 21 released on February 7, 2025. (Next volume, volume 22, in the works)
The 12th volume of the comic was released on August 3, 2024. (The next volume, 13, is scheduled for release on June 6.)
Comicalized Gaiden Volume 3 was released on December 20, 2024. (The release date for the next volume, Volume 4, has not yet been decided.)
The 11th volume of the paperback edition was released on October 4, 2024. (The deadline for the campaign to win a big acrylic stand featuring Yuna and Shuri on the cover is January 20, 2025. 20 lucky winners will receive a prize.) (The next volume, 12th volume, is scheduled to be released on June 6.)
*Thank you to everyone who reports typos.
Some of the kanji have been corrected to match the book, so please understand that there are some parts that have not been corrected.
Translation Note
Thanks to TV.Station for the corrections.