Fingertips traced down the spine. Slowly, as if counting each vertebra. And stopped right above the waist.
Click. The machinery engaged.
"How's this?"
"A bit tight. I an, it feels blocked."
"Then how about this?"
After so more adjustnts, the magic power operation that had felt blocked beca easier. She nodded, rolling her stiff shoulders.
"This should be fine."
As a test, she moved her wings, and they folded with a smooth whirring sound. The steel wings moved without any unnecessary motion. This was definitely sothing Cider Claiborne was good at.
"Ah, the right side doesn't seem to reach all the way. Could you drill through the end a bit?"
"It was fine earlier, wasn't it? Wait a mont."
As the research reached its final stages, Esperanza, who had been called to Cider's laboratory more frequently, skillfully received the parts he handed her. For so reason, she could roughly guess what part would be needed next by intuition alone.
"Not that one, give
number 3."
Though the accuracy was still fifty-fifty.
After refitting the creaking chanical device, Cider moved to the opposite wing. Esperanza stood tilted, wings spread with all the joints exposed, while the magical engineer's hands finished assembling the circuits.
Cider, who had adjusted even the small parts with tweezers, straightened up. Removing the monocle he had worn over his right eye, he quickly scribbled sothing in his journal before setting it down.
"Check it."
"It's fine now."
"What about other parts? No, let
check everything from the beginning again."
Only after repeating that tedious inspection from the first step to the last did Cider remove the wings from Esperanza's back.
"Ah, finally finished."
"I'm still far from done."
Esperanza, who had sat down massaging her stiff shoulders, looked up at Cider with a dejected expression. Again? Cider tapped his thick journal with the head of his fountain pen.
"I need to review it once more. It would be dangerous if the sa error occurred in the sky."
That was true. Though she inwardly thought, 'Would I really die?'
"Then I'll be going."
"You're going to leave
here?"
"What would I do here?"
Cider frowned, but even he would have to agree that Esperanza had nothing to do here. When Esperanza grabbed his shoulder and kissed his cheek, Cider slowly exhaled the breath he had montarily held. Soon the laboratory door opened.
Returning to the study, Esperanza retied her loosened hair and rummaged through the pile of books. The novels she had ordered from the bookstore owner who claid to be Coleman's grandson had just arrived this morning.
She sat on the sofa with her knees together, opened a moderately stimulating novel, and turned a few pages. The first sentence was gloomy from the start.
Bright sunlight stread deep into the study. The paper beca brilliant and the ink sparkled. It wasn't good weather for reading gothic novels. Trying to catch her scattered attention and indulging in pointless thoughts, her head eventually began to nod, unable to resist the afternoon sun.
After her head swayed back and forth, Esperanza suddenly woke up and looked around.
"Still not back yet..."
She covered her mouth and yawned while putting down the book. What could he be examining so carefully that he still hadn't appeared? She jumped up from her seat, but hearing footsteps from the end of the corridor, she quickly sat back down and opened the book. Not a single word entered her eyes.
As she aninglessly turned pages, Cider opened the door and entered. Running his hand down his tired-looking face, he placed his journal on one side of the desk and approached the sofa where Esperanza sat.
"Does it suit your taste?"
"This? It's not bad."
"For sothing like that, you're making slow progress."
His words trailed off as if he understood. Why does he act like he knows everything again? Esperanza, who had been pouting in dissatisfaction, confessed.
"...I dozed off."
"I see. It is a drowsy ti."
One-thirty in the afternoon. Esperanza, who had been staring intently at the clock, snorted. What drowsy ti? She'd be sleeping at this hour.
"You don't usually get out of bed at this ti anyway."
"Aren't you knowing too much about my bed situation?"
"...Even when I talk to you."
Esperanza rolled her eyes and closed the book with a snap. Cider sat next to Esperanza. The hand that ca around her waist grasped her opposite elbow and stroked it soothingly. Esperanza, who had been blankly blinking while resting her head on Cider's shoulder, only lifted her gaze to ask.
"Did you finish what you were doing?"
"If I said I ca because I missed you even though I haven't finished, would you believe ?"
"No."
Cider smiled as if he had expected that. Then, resting his cheek on Esperanza's head, he said.
"The inspection is finished. I have sothing to ask you about that, my lady."
The hand that had only been holding her elbow was now embracing her entire body. Esperanza, who had tensed up, relaxed at the hand that slowly stroked her arm.
"What is it?"
"Are you free tomorrow?"
Of course she had plenty of ti. Esperanza didn't have much to do in Avondale. She had so little to do that when Cider was absorbed in his research, she would secretly escape the laboratory to chat with Annie or help with work.
"Why?"
"I was thinking of doing a test flight."
Ah. Right. Until now they had only folded and unfolded the wings indoors, but soday they would need to take them outside to confirm whether she could actually fly. She knew this, but it felt sudden.
"Tomorrow already?"
"If we wait longer it'll get cold, and to avoid people's eyes, it would be better to try on the Beginning of Winter Festival day."
"True, once evening cos everyone will be too busy pouring down drinks to pay attention."
At those words, Cider buried his head in Esperanza's hair and laughed quietly. Even as she shrank from the tickling sensation on her nape, Esperanza thought quite seriously.
"I have plenty of ti. But is there a place around here suitable for flying? This forest is narrow, and we might get caught."
The forest was quite dense with trees, making it unsuitable for spreading those large wings wide, and most importantly, there was a mansion nearby.
Cider Claiborne could do anything and it wouldn't be strange for an eccentric, but in this case, it would be Esperanza who would be caught with wings attached. Esperanza didn't want to be treated as an eccentric on the sa level as Cider.
"Not here. We'll have to go sowhere else. We missed the chance to use the sumr hat, but the new autumn white outing hat I bought recently is still wearable, isn't it?"
Ah, that's right. Even when the season cos around again, there probably won't be a chance to wear that sumr hat... Esperanza deliberately erased the thought that ca to mind and brought up a lighter question.
"Are we going on a picnic?"
I an, on the day of the 'Beginning of Winter Festival'? Is there a chance of freezing to death?
Despite her protesting gaze, Cider only smiled.
"Similar."
"Not similar—tell
sothing definite. What is it?"
"While doing the test flight, hanging around in a scenic and secluded place?"
"Is there such a place?"
"There is."
In that case.
Finally Esperanza nodded. When their eyes t, Cider smiled and cupped Esperanza's cheek with his bare hand. After a soundless conversation that only they could understand, he kissed her as if catching her gaze that was helplessly trying to escape.
When Esperanza's wandering fingertips grabbed Cider's shirt, the hand that had been pulling her elbow slid down. Like their touching lips, fingers of different sizes intertwined. Slowly from the tips, then sweeping down to wrap around the fingers to their roots. A thrill like lightning struck from her fingertips.
As the sun set, shadows gradually lengthened. A reddish light filled the study. When their eyes t, Cider silently pulled away. Despite her reproachful gaze, he didn't care and raised the corners of his mouth. While Esperanza regulated her disturbed breathing, Cider's hand swept the hair covering her forehead behind her ear.
"Will you continue reading?"
"I'm curious about the ending."
In fact, she couldn't rember what the content was about, but Esperanza turned the incomprehensible pages. Cider leaned against her and closed his eyes. Before long, Cider's breathing beca regular.
Is he asleep?
She quietly closed the book and stole a glance at his sleeping face while sitting upright. The shadow of his long eyelashes cast on his cheek felt surreal. She felt slightly dazed, and a corner of her heart was drowsy.
"Your hair was long."
The sleeping man's hair slipped softly between her fingers. Even though she played with his hair for a while, Cider showed no signs of waking up.
That was understandable. There were parts where talking would help and parts where it wouldn't, and Cider Claiborne's obsession with research was generally the latter. To complete this research, he had stayed up for several nights straight. No amount of persuasion worked on that point, so Esperanza eventually gave up and chose to doze off beside him.
Being a little tired wasn't really a big problem. However, what still made her feel uncomfortable was...
'He clearly said it didn't matter.'
So it should be fine. She had no choice but to think that way. She didn't want to break this perfect atmosphere.
??????°??☆????°??????
"...You're saying we're taking a steam carriage?"
"Yes."
"Without a coachman?"
"Yes."
The steam carriage standing majestically in front of the entrance to Glailly House puffed white steam from its chimney.
"Why go to such trouble?"
"What makes you think I'd trust soone else to co along?"
"Then we could just ride horses."
Of course she would say that.
"Wouldn't the horses be startled if you fly in the sky?"
"Since when have you been so considerate of animals?"
Since there was nothing to say to that rebuttal, Cider simply shrugged. Well, horses would certainly be startled if a person suddenly flew up. Regardless of both of them being good at riding, neither was particularly good at caring for horses, so even giving her the benefit of the doubt, it was understandable.
"Fine. That's all fine, but who's going to drive the carriage?"
"That would probably be..."
"Probably?"
Cider frowned as he looked at the empty driver's seat. After a mont's consideration, he replied in a very reluctant voice.
"I'll have to do it."
So it beca quite a ridiculous sight.
Steam carriages, except for freight transport and large passenger vehicles, were generally the exclusive property of the wealthy. What that ant was that the driver's seat and the interior of the carriage were separated. Just as traditional horse-drawn carriages had been. In the case of steam carriages, there was no real need for this, but it was done anyway. This was probably because the custors purchasing steam carriages didn't feel the need to develop that particular aspect.
The black carriage climbed the slope along the winding road. Esperanza leaned her body diagonally out of the carriage window. As most of her upper body erged, her curly hair fluttered long in the wind. Holding her white hat with one hand to prevent it from flying away, Esperanza raised her voice toward the driver's seat.
"Isn't it uncomfortable up there?"
Cider also raised his voice to answer.
"Not as uncomfortable as you acting dangerously."
Wow, I can't hear him. Esperanza decided to ignore those words.
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