Chapter 44
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: 11. Child-Friendly Date (2)
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These days, it's pretty hard to spot long, fluffy cumulus clouds stretching across downtown Seoul.
You know the kind—those pure white ones that go from one end of the horizon to the other, straight out of some animation?
Bad weather, yellow dust. Or maybe just because it's the real world.
Of course, those factors probably play a small role.
But.
The tall buildings visible out the taxi window right now.
Don't they bear the biggest blame for blocking our view?
I wonder if we'd still see them clearly from a higher spot.
Lost in such trivial thoughts, Neria, who was sitting next to me, spoke up.
"What're you staring at like that? Something outside?"
"Ah, just watching the clouds for a bit."
"Clouds? I don't see any that look particularly fun."
"I was just blankly staring too."
"Want me to make one? Like a middle finger shape?"
"Neria... um..."
The taxi driver up front can hear you.
More importantly, are you really about to use mana right after getting out?
I barely swallowed the flood of questions rising in my throat. Just then, the taxi pulled smoothly to the curb.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Unlike my usual polite farewell, Neria silently conveyed her stance—no need to thank some lowly human just for taking our money and providing the service.
As we stepped out together, a chilly late-autumn breeze swept over us.
I buttoned my jacket tighter and looked around.
Yeah. What was there to say?
This place was crawling with couples, as expected.
"...Hie......"
In front of Neria, who let out a weird squeak like she'd been overwhelmed by the sheer volume, a beautifully landscaped rail park stretched out long.
This spot's nickname? None other than Yeontral Park.
In a place so packed with couples you could almost suffocate.
"Hey, Nam Dowon."
"Yes, Neria."
The game-addicted hikikomori witch muttered.
"...Should we just go somewhere else...?"
Setting aside Neria's disgust, this seemed like the perfect spot for a date experience.
Beyond just eating and drinking tasty stuff, Yeonnam-dong had all sorts of couple-friendly activities.
And above all, I didn't want to shell out for another taxi fare, so we decided to stroll around here and chat with Neria for now.
"From what I know, this area's the most 'couple-like' spot around. Perfect for a date."
"Yeah, I can see that with my own eyes. There are disgustingly many couples here...!"
"If that's too much, we could slip over to Yeonhui-dong or Mangwon-dong nearby... But I still think this is the best fit."
"...Hmmm."
As my explanation wrapped up, Neria's gaze, which had been full of revulsion up to that point, swept over the surroundings.
On one side, people were huddled in front of a restaurant, lining up to wait.
I'd been dragged there a few times in high school by a close girl friend—it wasn't so amazing that it'd warrant lines like that, as I recalled.
But crowd psychology is a scary thing. While I spoke, two more groups joined the end of the line.
Neria clicked her tongue at the sight and turned her eyes the other way.
A place that looked like a perfume workshop already had a few couples getting all lovey-dovey inside.
If this were just some ordinary street, they'd probably hold back a bit.
But with almost everyone around being couples, no one was minding their manners.
Neria clicked her tongue again at that and shifted her gaze to me.
"...It's annoying, but I have to admit it's suitable. Means everyone's doing it around here, right?"
"Exactly."
Just a bunch of horny bitches and bastards everywhere.
When I put it that way to Neria, with her eye-catching light purple hair swaying, she finally let out a deep sigh.
"Fine. Let's just do it here."
She stopped in place and added a few more words.
"So, where do we go now?"
"......Pardon?"
"Where to next. Don't dates usually have a course like that?"
"......?"
Her odd words made my head tilt naturally.
"I was planning to go wherever you wanted, Neria."
"What? I'm a total newbie at this—why dump it on me?"
"That's not it. Didn't you say you wanted to try doing things like in the novel?"
"......"
"That's why we even came out here."
Thinking back, that was definitely the case.
Back when we arrived home earlier, Neria had clearly said she wanted to recreate events or scenes from the novel.
She'd even teased me about my human-like memory, but now she couldn't even remember what she'd just said herself...
"I-I know! I was just kidding!"
"...I figured as much."
She's super nervous, huh.
My brief observation was cut short as Neria cleared her throat and gave an order.
"Food first. Let's find lunch. That's how it went in the novel."
"Ah, perfect timing for that."
"You haven't eaten either, right?"
"Yes."
"Let's check over there. I hate lining up."
Lunch was incredibly ordinary.
Nothing particularly standout, nor anything obnoxiously off-putting. Just a very, very average meal.
Then again, that's to be expected right now.
With so many places around requiring lines, we picked this one to match Neria's tastes—no wait, plenty of space.
Plus, the tables were still pretty empty, so it was way more likely a standard spot than some hidden gem.
"Here. You read this too."
In the quiet restaurant, Neria handed me her smartphone.
"The novel you mentioned earlier?"
"Yeah. In chapter 44's date, there's something they do right after lunch."
"Something after lunch..."
I'd spot it scrolling down.
Reading it like a Korean passage, skimming words, I found the part Neria meant in under five seconds.
"......"
But it was weird.
Or more accurately, absurd.
"Found it?"
"Yeah... I found it, but..."
Setting aside the cringey dialogue that was hard to even read.
The protagonist gently wiping the leftover food from the heroine's lips with a napkin after the meal.
I had no idea how to interpret or pull off this insane act, so I asked Neria again.
"...We really do exactly what's written here?"
"Yeah."
"So..., ...After finishing our meal across from each other, he grabbed a napkin and came close. 'What're you getting all over your face for, dummy.' His touch was rough but so tender. The guy who was devilish to his servants usually...... That's really what you mean?"
"Yep. What's wrong with that?"
"...Isn't it straight-up cringey?"
"Of course it is. But you like that stuff, right?"
"......"
How the hell did I end up with that image?
Before mild annoyance could rise, I had a hunch.
It stemmed from that manga incident early on, when she kept tripping me up.
So, if anything...
Neria was actually a really considerate owner, prioritizing a mere human's tastes over her own...
"Come on. Give it a try."
Defying such an owner's command was out of the question.
...Plus, listening well now might give me leverage later.
Really, there was only one choice.
"...Mm, mmp."
If there were more eyes around, I'd have hesitated longer, but luckily, the other customers were mostly clustered far beyond the partitions.
We hadn't chosen this out-of-the-way spot ourselves—the guys who'd come as couples kept sneaking glances at Neria, ignoring their girlfriends, so the girls had moved seats first to 'educate' them.
...Thanks to that, I could wipe her lips with the napkin much more comfortably. Neria made a sound like a kid getting their face washed by their parents.
I adjusted the volume so only she could hear, not the other diners.
"...What're you getting all over your face for, Neria."
It was so cringey I felt like I'd die.
But I held it in, for the pure love sex DLC with Neria I'd get later.
"Satisfied now...?"
"...Hmm. Didn't really thrill me. Same as when I hugged you earlier."
"Thrill...?"
"That 'dumb bitch in heat' thing you called me yesterday wasn't great either. Or the sweet act. Maybe I should give up on this approach?"
"Ah, so that's why you've been like this since yesterday—trying to feel that thrill..."
"Yeah. Since I'm doing it with you anyway, it'd feel even better if it thrilled me during sex too. Like tasty, healthy food...?"
She seemed aware it was embarrassing, whispering with her voice low.
Unlike our virgin bitch team leader who sometimes yelled it loud for everyone to hear. Saved.
But one nagging thing kept me from letting it slide.
I asked lightly.
"By the way, Neria."
"What."
"Back at the house when you hugged me, that was..."
"What about it."
"...Your heartbeat. It felt pretty loud."
"......"
"......"
"......"
Excited, pounding.
Isn't that the definition of thrilled?
"......Th-that was your imagination...! I didn't! It wasn't loud at all, or fast!"
"...Got it."
"I'm serious!"
"I said I understand."
"You don't look convinced...!"
But since she was blushing and denying even the unasked parts...
I didn't push it further.
Just thought to myself.
Figure it out yourself.