“Ken…! Wuh, Ken…! Are you really alive? This isn’t a dream, is it?”
“Look, you can touch . Besides, you’re in my arms.”
“Wuh, I’m so relieved…. Ken, you’re alive… I’m really so relieved…”
Even now, enveloped in his warm embrace, Emily couldn’t believe it.
How could a story like this be so convenient for her?
She had seen, touched, and felt his cold corpse; death had seed certain.
Yet he had returned to life.
Perhaps everything was just an illusion, and she had gone mad.
“Um… Emily, I’m glad you’re relieved, but… if you hold on too long…”
“I won’t let go! You idiot! If you’re going to die, you’d better take responsibility!”
“…Um.”
If she let him go now, he might vanish. That terrified her.
Feeling her tremors, Ken held her tightly for a while.
As Emily cald down in his embrace, Ken reached up to wipe her tears.
When he brushed away her tears, Emily looked up at him with an anxious expression.
eting her gaze, Ken smiled.
“Hey, Emily.”
“…What is it?”
With a smile that seed to signal a final farewell, Emily felt a sudden anxiety wash over her as Ken gently released her.
“About that shop we talked about going to together…”
“...Huh?”
“I think I’ll have so ti now. …It’s late, but could you go with ?”
Scratching his head shyly, Ken averted his eyes.
When a promise about their previous date surfaced instead of the farewell she had anticipated, a smile broke through Emily’s suppressed tears.
“What? You were worrying about that?”
“…That’s right?”
“Co on, you’re thinking, ‘I don’t have anything to teach,’ aren’t you?”
“…Um.”
Sotis, Ken seed to read Ziegfried’s thoughts eerily well.
Even his childhood friend, Alice, often said she couldn’t figure out what Ziegfried was thinking.
Yet this apprentice surprisingly understood his feelings.
That brought him both joy and a sense of oddity.
“You’re right. …I feel sorry for you learning such simple swordsmanship.”
“That’s nothing to worry about. You’re definitely amazing, senpai.”
“No, but I want to teach you sothing more proper…”
“Then can’t you create your own style, senpai?”
“…Create my own?”
Ken laughed as if it were absurd, then continued.
“While training with you, I notice your sharp strikes follow a particular technique.”
“…?”
“Oh, wouldn’t a Ziegfried-style swordsmanship be cool? I could help too!”
At Ken’s words, Ziegfried fell back into thought.
Creating his own swordsmanship.
He had always focused on physical training and battle drills; he had never considered making sothing himself.
He believed he lacked such talent.
“Well, senpai. If today’s training is done, I’ll be heading out. I have an appointnt.”
“Ah, right. Good job.”
“Yes! See you tomorrow!”
With that, the boy smiled brightly, waving as he ran off.
“……He’s truly an amazing kid.”
Ken always found ways to help him, whether by creating the Sword of Absorption or offering casual advice like today.
Feeling gratitude for his retreating figure, Ziegfried smiled.
“Maybe I’ll give it a try.”
And as Ziegfried resud swinging his wooden sword, he lost himself in thought until Alice arrived.
After noon had passed, Ziegfried finished his training with Ken, showered, changed clothes, and left the dormitory.
He had inford Raphne in advance that he would be eating lunch outside today.
Although it took so persuading…
He arrived at the clock tower square in the city.
This was a different location from where he had waited for Mary before.
The clock tower he had stood by back then was small, but the one here was grand enough to be called a tower.
Surrounding buildings were elegant mansions in an affluent neighborhood.
The atmosphere of the place felt strange.
Of course, since Ken Feinstein in the ga was the son of a wealthy family, this place might feel familiar to him.
After waiting for a mont, looking at the stunning buildings around him—
“Ken~!”
Emily appeared from a distance.
Wearing a white, airy dress paired with a beige cardigan.
Her smile, seemingly brighter than usual, sparkled under the sunlight.
‘…She looks really beautiful today.’
Emily, dressed in her school uniform, was certainly attractive, but for so reason, her beauty stood out even more today.
Was it her casual wear?
Or perhaps the rosy glow on her cheeks paired with her bright smile?
“I’m sorry to keep you waiting! I lost track of ti getting ready.”
“Take your ti. I just got here too.”
“R, really? I wasn’t late?”
“Yep, you arrived just on ti.”
Seeing her check the clock tower, the hands indicated exactly 1 PM.
“……Hehe. I was looking forward to today, so I must have miscalculated the ti. I ran for no reason.”
Seeing this, Emily blushed shyly and offered an apologetic smile to the vendor.
“Not at all~ It’s great to have such a pretty lady in front of my stall! Haha, I see your boyfriend is quite handy.”
At the vendor’s complint, Emily pulled my arm closer.
“Yes, he’s very handy.”
She bead, looking pleased.
“What a nice guy.”
“Right? I didn’t expect him to smile like that. I was worried he’d get mad.”
“And he just called Ken my boyfriend?”
“…Um.”
“We look like a couple, don’t we?”
With her arms linked, Emily looked up at with a playful smile.
‘…Well, I guess we do look close like this.’
Feeling the soft touch of her arm around mine, I averted my gaze to calm my racing heart.
Then I noticed passersby nearby.
Among them were students from the academy.
So of them glanced at us, surprised by our presence.
No matter how you looked at it, this was a date spot.
Being one of the best restaurants in the city, it naturally drew in many couples.
In fact, it seed like there were only couples here.
There were no families or tables occupied by just n or won.
And in such a space, Emily and I were together.
A few students murmured as they noticed us.
“Um, Emily.”
“Yeah? What is it?”
I cautiously whispered to Emily, aware of the surrounding students.
“There are other students around… I think we should be careful.”
“Careful? About what?”
“W-Well.”
It was embarrassing to say it directly.
Moreover, I worried that if I spoke out of turn, I might ruin the pleasant atmosphere Emily was enjoying.
“…Is it possible that you and Ken… are together?”
“Does it look that way…?”
I heard the whispers of couples nearby again.
…It was certainly embarrassing, but it was better than causing Emily any discomfort by being misunderstood.
“…It seems like there are only couples here. So the other students…”
I discreetly gestured to the couples who were glancing our way.
When Emily looked at that table, the couple who made eye contact with her quickly returned to their conversation, surprised.
Seeing that, Emily didn’t react in any particular way; instead, she cut her steak with a knife.
“Ah, they’re nice people.”
“Indeed. I didn’t expect them to smile like that; I was worried they’d get angry.”
“Besides, he called Ken my boyfriend, right?”
“…Um.”
“It’s clear that we look like a couple, don’t you think?”
As she leaned in, looking playfully up at , I felt a rush of warmth and tension.
‘…I didn’t mind, but this was unexpected.’
As I walked, trying to soothe my nerves and ponder the situation, a voice called out to us.
“…Excuse , can you help …?”
An elderly man in a neat suit, leaning on a cane, was looking our way.
The well-dressed old man, who appeared to be quite wealthy, pointed towards a large mansion with a gloomy atmosphere.
“If you help … I’ll give you this mansion.”
‘…What is this?’
"It was the beginning of a mini-event lodged in my mory."
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