Case 61: On a lovely date with the royal princess.

[Hey, are you free this weekend?]

''Hah... hah... huh?''

''Hm? The princess texted you again?''

Ah... well.

It was the princess, but not the one she thought of, probably.

''Cecilia, this one...''

''...''

A certain night.

Penelope and I were enjoying our time together on the bed for hours on end, and when we finally decided to take a break, an unexpected message came.

It was Kiara who asked me out on a date.

Normally, this wouldn't be much of a problem. I actually felt relieved since it meant that Kiara had surely opened up to me, but... yeah. Penelope was with me, and still breathing heavily from the action, I had unconsciously read the texts.

''...''

''...''

I-In my defense, I wasn't officially, seriously, and devotedly dating anyone at the moment, so wouldn't it be fine...?

Okay, maybe not. I was still hugging another woman in bed, buck naked, after all. Either way, I probably needed to introduce Kiara to these two at some point anyway, so it wasn't the end of the world.

''Penelope, this is...''

''Kiara d'Anjou. Did she fall in love with you instead of trying to engage with your sister, too?''

''...I'm actually not sure. She proposed to me first, though.''

Hearing that, Penelope's long, graceful brows narrowed, her arms tying my shoulders and waist only tightened. With her head resting against mine, she stared at the screen for a good while.

''What do you like about her?'' She whispered, her voice unbearably gentle and enchanting. ''I see you already want to accept it. Just tell me.''

Without even the slightest wiggle room, I had no choice but to speak out my heart.

''Well, she's pretty...''

''Aren't I prettier?''

''You're so shameless... but aside from that, Kiara is actually quite a maiden. When you get to know her, you'd want to protect her at all costs. She's more adorable than anything, really.''

The more I thought of Kiara, the more my heart softened. She was just like my past self—shy, awkward, and, somewhere, lost. But unlike me, she would eventually find her way out of it even without any external help. This had been proven countless times throughout the runs I did of the original game, and the fact that she just asked me out on her own meant that she had shed her shells.

Wholeheartedly, I admired her for that.

And, somewhere... I felt bittersweet. Even without me, Kiara probably would be able to bloom in the future, becoming the dazzling flower she always could be. At these moments, the best I could do was to make some good memories with her.

''...I'm jealous now. Make up for me, hm?''

''A-Again...? But it's already midnight...''

''Only midnight.''

''Ugh...''

Hmm... which one should I choose...

''How about this dress, my lady?''

''Oh, that looks good, actually.''

Man, Rachael and Penelope gave me so many outfits that I lost track of what I had. Usually, I wouldn't bother with dressing since it takes up precious time, but this was a special date. I wanted to look cute to Kiara.

Though, I had a feeling she would praise me regardless.

Once nice and pretty, I called up Kiara, who promised to take me to the city 'whenever I felt like going.' She was so earnest that it seemed adorable.

[I'm coming.]

''Fufu, take your time.''

Not long after, a white sedan bearing Anjou's crest was already pulling up to our mansion's entrance. When I went out to greet my date, a stunning lady was there.

''Hello.''

Today, Kiara chose a casual yet classy set of clothes, with a white off-shoulder shirt and black skirt contrasting each other. That, and her bleach-white hair, made her seem like she had stepped right out of a fantasy.

Well, I guess it was a fantasy world I lived in, after all.

''Good day to you.'' I posed a smile. ''Shall we go?''

''Of course. You look lovely today.'' Kiara smiled, gently taking my hand.

''My, I'm flattered.''

The atmosphere was extremely good right from the start. Although my partner appeared a bit nervous at first, she quickly regained her composure.

As sensitive as she was, Kiara also paid close attention to keeping me engaged and comfortable. She spoke more than usual and often asked for my opinions about what we should do on this date.

It was one of those times when I felt privileged to be able to date such thoughtful women, including this silly girl.

So, I did my best to reciprocate. The princess was the one orchestrating the whole thing, so the only thing I could do was to make her feel good.

...That sounded a bit lewd without context, but it just meant that I wanted to pay just as much attention to her as she did to me, be it physically or verbally. Though, if she wanted to take it a step further, I wouldn't mind at all. We had known each other for a while, after all.

''So, about the movies...''

''Heheh... what about the movies?''

Seeing her blush as I pressed my assets against her arm like this was also rewarding. Ah... I almost thought I would be the top, not the bottom, for once.

Nonetheless, the date with Kiara had only begun.

After we arrived at Syrus, she took me around the new district to do some sightseeing before introducing me to a 'mythical' local restaurant that few people knew. Admittedly, the old gentleman's food was phenomenal. I should take Lyra here someday...

Once lunchtime was over, we drove to the nearby carnival and enjoyed ourselves among the busy crowds of tourists from all over the world. When I saw people of different races and even species walking around so normally, it hit me again that I lived in a fantasy world.

''Are you good at shooting?''

''Trust me. I've used a gun before.''

Puffing out her chest, Kiara seemed confident she could take home the grand prize—a giant plushie of a frog—for me at the shooting gallery. I only stared at it a bit because I thought it should be a teddy bear instead, but perhaps my partner thought I liked it.

...To be fair, it did seem cute.

''Ah.''

''...''

''Wait, let me...''

''...''

''Again.''

Unfortunately, Kiara's aim was a bit... off, to say the least. In the first place, she held the gun wrong. After several tries, her face visibly darkened, and when I was about to call out to her—

''Mr.Chief. Help me aim.''

''Eh?''

This girl... did she really summon her Soul Guardian to win a game...?

''D-Dear customer, you can't...''

''I can't?''

''Uh...''

The booth owner seemed troubled, but there was no rule preventing players from using Soul Guardians to play. Not many people were mana-users like us, and most of those who were were nobles who shouldn't be messed with. The commotion attracted people anyway, so the owner eventually caved in and let Kiara do her things.

With Mr.Chief's help, each shot was precise and powerful, quickly bringing the targets down as well as bringing me a giant plushie the size of my torso.

Holding up the frog in front of me, Kiara posed a smug grin.

''...''

She seemed like a big dog waiting for head pats. So... unbearably adorable...!

''...!''

Unable to contain the urges, I lunged at Kiara, squishing the plushie between us in a tight, warm hug. Before she could recover, I tip-toed up and sneakily planted a kiss on her lips, which turned her face beet-red.

''Thank you, Kiara. I'll treasure it.''

Thank you, really. Because of your sincerity, the frog just became a thousand times more lovely.

''Shall we keep going?''

''...Sure.''

From that point onward, we kept the ember between us prime and proper, holding one another's hand for the rest of our date.

Our lovely, lovely date.