Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Her Date
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“So! I got asked out on a date!”
That was the bombshell Elis dropped after suddenly dragging me off somewhere.
“Pardon?”
“A date! Zeke asked me out on a date, and I don’t know what to do!”
Elis wasn’t wearing her usual sly grin. Genuine distress welled up in her eyes as tears formed, and she stamped her feet in frustration.
No way... Siegfried asked her out...?
...Come to think of it, there were a few events like that in the game.
Sure enough, those kinds of events triggered once affection levels rose a certain amount.
Did that mean the two of them were steadily building up their bond?
Well, whatever.
“What do you mean? If you like him, go. If not, turn him down.”
“You fatty! That’s not what I mean!”
Then what is it?
“Wh-what should I do? What should I wear? What should we talk about? Wh-what kind of girls does Zeke like?”
Elis clung to my clothes, her eyes glistening with tears.
“W-wait a second, Senior...! Wh-why are you asking me?”
“Because you’re popular! And you get along great with Zeke! Help me out here!”
“Me...? No, what are you even...”
Did I really come across as some popular guy? She’d just called me a fatty a second ago.
No, more importantly, wasn’t relationship advice something you asked same-sex friends about?
And if we’re talking popular guys, shouldn’t she be asking someone like Adrian...?
“I know all about it! You hooked three girls at once, right? So you must have tons of experience! Please help me!”
“Who’s spreading that rumor?!”
“That little hypnotic evil-eye kid blabbed everything!”
Damn you, Alicia.
What the hell was she telling everyone?
And how did those two even know each other?
“Huh? You don’t know? She’s famous at the academy. They call her the Couple Maker.”
Apparently, plenty of girls went to Alicia for love advice.
Especially if they slipped her some cash—the success rate shot through the roof.
Who knew Alicia was running a side hustle with her evil eye...
“So you asked Alicia for help too, Senior?”
“N-no! A friend just told me to try consulting her once... B-but that’s not the point right now!”
Oh, right.
The reason Elis had kidnapped me.
It was a consultation session to make her date with Siegfried go perfectly.
It was weird that she thought a fatty like me could help with love advice, but...
Actually, she’d come to the right place.
Siegfried was a romanceable character in the game, and I’d cleared his route multiple times as a player.
“So, what do you want to know?”
“Uh, w-well...”
She panicked for a second when I accepted so readily, but soon pressed her index fingers together, cheeks flushing as she asked carefully.
“Um... his, uh, ideal type or something...?”
Siegfried’s ideal type, huh.
The strategy guide had that covered. His route mostly involved picking dialogue options that matched his preferences.
“Yeah... Probably a woman he can rely on.”
“R-really?”
It matched the trigger for him falling for Emily, and the nuance of the affection-boosting choices.
The protagonist helping a silently determined Siegfried when he hit a wall in pursuit of his goals.
Those choices always skyrocketed his affection.
“Oh, by the way, where’s the date supposed to be?”
“Noon tomorrow at the city fountain... hehe.”
Aha, the flower-viewing date.
There was a walkway garden where special flowers bloomed vibrantly only during this season.
It was one of Siegfried’s date routes—he loved flowers, after all.
“In that case...”
After that, I gave Elis a few pointers.
Nothing fancy: what clothes to wear, what food to bring for a picnic, which conversation topics to pick.
Just some basic info from the game’s choice options.
“Could you maybe come watch tomorrow? Just for a bit?”
“That far?”
“In case something happens, I wanna pretend to go to the bathroom and ask you!”
“...Fine, whatever.”
“Thank you! Really, thank you! I’ll pay you back later!”
Elis beamed with joy and gratitude.
I’d never seen their date in the game, so I was curious too.
Might as well treat it like a casual city stroll and watch as a fan. Not a bad idea.
Honestly, they’d probably work out fine without my help.
Siegfried always ended up happily with Elis if he didn’t pair with Emily.
Still, Elis herself must be nervous.
Guess I’ll help out as much as I can.
I was an expert who’d cleared this otome game multiple times, after all.
It put me in a pretty good mood.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ “W-wait, hold it, both of you! What the hell are you doing?!”
Emily shouted desperately, grabbing at their collars.
But Rafne and Mary ignored her completely, lost to reason as they charged ahead.
“K-Ken’s got another girl hitting on him...!”
“We have to stay by his side in case he’s in danger. Let go.”
“Both of you, calm down!!”
Of course, Emily wanted to chase after them and demand why they were dragging Ken off.
But seeing how far gone the two were, a sense of responsibility kicked in—she had to keep her head and stop them.
“Th-then how about we follow secretly? Sneakily?”
Judging it impossible to stop them outright, Emily blocked their path and suggested a compromise.
They’d only make things worse by barging in on Ken right now.
“...No.”
“That’s even weirder.”
But the two pressed on, ignoring her.
“Aaaah! Seriously! Ken’s gonna hate you for this! At least if we wanna know why they called him, we have to sneak, you idiots!!”
In the end, warnings about Ken hating them and the need to learn why he’d been summoned stopped their march.
And so, the three women secretly tailed them to where Ken and Elis were talking.
Emily, Mary, and Rafne peeked around the hallway corner, watching the pair.
“...Ugh, too far. Can’t hear a thing.”
The distance garbled their words, so Rafne grumbled first.
“I wonder why they called him...”
“She’s hitting on him...! Gotta be trying to seduce Ken!”
“We haven’t heard anything yet! Be quiet! I can’t hear!”
After Emily’s scolding, the trio fell silent and strained their ears.
“...something about a date right now.”
“I heard that too.”
“Maybe... a confession or...”
“Huh?”
“What?”
Emily’s offhand remark made the other two freeze and glare at her.
“N-no, I mean... a girl calls a guy out alone... talks about a date, and she’s blushing like that.”
“...No. Can’t let her steal Ken...!”
“Ow, quit jumping to extremes like that...!”
Emily yanked back Rafne’s charging arm, hissing under her breath.
“...He just said something.”
Mary’s murmur halted their squabble as they refocused on Ken and Elis.
Faint voices drifted from the pair.
“Um... his, uh, ideal type or something...?”
Elis’s voice rang out crystal clear for a moment, and the three women looked like they’d been hammered.
Ken’s ideal type?
Asking that meant she was definitely interested in him.
And they’d get to hear Ken’s type right now.
The trio, rowdy just moments ago, united in hushed silence.
...Ken’s ideal type. I’ve always wanted to ask.
Mary swallowed hard.
Wh-what if it doesn’t match me at all...!
Emily gripped the wall edge, tense.
Big boobs, big boobs, big boobs...
Rafne glared at Ken with dead eyes, like telepathy.
Their thoughts varied, but boiled down to the same wish.
—I hope it’s me...!
Ken pondered briefly before speaking.
“Yeah... Probably a woman he can rely on.”
His voice hit their hypersensitive ears perfectly.
Rafne reacted first.
“Wh-wh-what do I dooo?! I’ve only ever relied on people, never been the one relied on! What nooow?!”
“C-calm down, Rafne...! And don’t cling to my skirt!”
Tears welled in Rafne’s eyes as she latched onto Emily.
Emily understood the shock but shoved her off desperately to save her skirt.
Mary clenched her fists.
“Just what I hoped. I’ve decided to protect Ken, after all.”
The other two stared at her proud declaration.
“...Isn’t being protected different from being relied on?”
“...Yeah.”
“Eh? I-is it...?”
Mary’s confident facade darkened instantly.
She didn’t really know what it meant to be “relied on,” either.
“Oh, they’re saying more.”
The pair’s conversation continued, drawing their ears back.
“Noon tomorrow at the city fountain... hehe.”
Elis’s voice cut through again, sharp and clear.
“A date...”
“It’s a date.”
“...That seals it.”
Now certain why Ken had been summoned, the three shadowed their glares at Elis.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Ever since listening in on Elis’s consultation...
Rafne, Emily, and Mary had been acting strange somehow.
For instance, during class, Rafne beside me.
“Ken, I know this one! Let me teach you!”
“Huh? Oh, sure. But how do you know? You took a year off.”
“I studied in the tower that whole year! ...S-so? Doesn’t that make me reliable enough?”
“Y-yeah. Thanks.”
Her eyes were kinda scary for some reason.
After class, Emily.
“Anything tough going on lately?”
“Out of nowhere...?”
“W-well... You vanished for a week and we were worried!”
“Oh, right. Sorry.”
“...If anything happens, tell me anytime. I’ll help however I can.”
“Uh, y-yeah? Sure.”
She was being weirdly sweet.
And Mary in the hall.
“Ken, you’re dieting lately, right?”
“Oh, noticeable? I’ve lost a bit. Haha.”
“...I thought hard about it too.”
“Huh? You thought about... what?”
“How about we work out together next time? I think mutual reliance beats one-sided dependence!”
“Ah, sure... Thanks.”
She brimmed with enthusiasm.
It felt like they were constantly trying to soothe, support, and lead me.
...Am I really that unreliable?
Maybe disappearing silently for a week played a part.
Either way, having the three see me as some hopeless guy wasn’t great.
Hurt my pride as a man, you know?
Time to show a more capable side.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The next day.
At Elis’s request, Ken finished an early lunch in Rafne’s tower to watch the date, then left his room.
“I’ll be back soon. Before dinner, anyway.”
“O-okay! ...Where you headed, though?”
“Oh, uh... Just some errands in the city.”
Saying he was spying on someone else’s date would be weird, so Ken brushed it off vaguely.
Worried she’d pry, Rafne just saw him off with a kind smile.
“Okay! I’ll make your favorite for dinner. Have a good trip!”
“Ah, yeah. See you.”
Ken waved awkwardly, feeling off as he exited the tower.
Creak, clank.
After Ken left.
Rafne’s waving smile darkened as she headed to the window.
A bird-shaped familiar waited there, per her orders.
“Tell the others. Ken went out on a date.”
She watched it soar toward its targets, then changed clothes and prepared.
Rafne’s expression as she left the tower seethed with murderous intent.