The Childhood Promise

Yuna hummed under her breath, practically floating as she changed her clothes.

"Hmm~~ Cheon Seong~~ Cheon Seong~~♡"

Today was the day. She had secretly prepared a whole spread of food and was getting ready to head over to his place.

"He'll like it, right? I made all his favorites~~."

Well—she said she made his favorites, but the truth was Cheon Seong ate just about anything without complaint, so deciding what to cook had been its own little ordeal. Still, there was one dish she absolutely could not leave out.

"I hope he still remembers~~♡"

She even put on makeup, something she almost never bothered with, gathered up the side dishes she had prepared, and opened the door.

"Mmm~~! What gorgeous weather~~."

She usually hated the heat, but today the sky felt unusually kind, and her mood climbed even higher. Light on her feet, Yuna set off toward Cheon Seong's house.

"Holy shit…. Hey, look at that girl. She's ridiculously pretty…"

"…Damn. She's insane. Should I ask for her number?"

"Dude, if she's dressed up like that she's obviously got a boyfriend. And with a face like yours? Not a chance. Still, whoever he is, I am genuinely jealous as hell…"

"Fuuuuck, tell me about it. Let's just hit the PC bang."

The usual street comments drifted past her ears. Instead of annoyance, all Yuna felt was a quiet thrill that her makeup had turned out well—and that she was going to see Cheon Seong looking like this. The closer she got to his place, the more heads turned, and every reaction only made her steps lighter.

"Heehee. He's going to be so surprised."

Knock knock!

"Cheon Seong~~! I'm here! Open up."

A tremendous crash and clatter erupted from inside.

"Y-Yuna!? J-just wait a second! Yuna!"

His frantic voice carried through the door the moment she knocked.

"Hm? Okay."

Something felt off, but Yuna figured even Cheon Seong was entitled to a little privacy. She waited patiently outside until he opened the door.

Click.

"W-what brings you here all of a sudden, Yuna?"

"I just~~ wanted to see you…. Huh?"

A sweet fragrance clung to him. Puzzled, Yuna leaned in close and started sniffing at his face.

"Cheon Seong, did you put on perfume?"

"Uh…. Huh? Ah…. N-no? I didn't…"

"Weird. It smells like the kind of scent a girl would wear?"

"Th-that…! Y-yesterday! When I went out I walked past a cosmetics shop still wearing these clothes, s-so maybe that's it?"

"Hmm-hmm. Is that so? But the scent is awfully strong for that…."

"Y-Yuna! L-let's not do this outside—come in first!"

Cold sweat beading on his forehead, Cheon Seong ushered her inside. The fragrance only grew stronger once she stepped through the door, and Yuna's suspicions deepened by the second. But this was rare time alone with him, and she refused to waste a single moment of it. She held out the side dishes she had packed and walked farther in.

"Here~~ I made you some side dishes."

"Th-thanks, Yuna. I'll eat well. Want something to drink?"

"Mmm~~ You don't have to, but if it's from you I'll take anything~~"

"A-alright."

He poured her a glass of orange juice and sat down across from her. Yuna immediately started asking what he had been up to lately.

"Ah…. I…. I've just been training like usual."

"Ehh~~ Really? You really do love training, don't you."

"Well…. It's not like I have anything else to do."

"I told you to pick up a hobby~~ How do you even live doing nothing but train all the time? Don't you get bored?"

"I mean, you're not wr——" Grrrrrrumble.

Mid-sentence, while Yuna was still scolding him about finding hobbies, a loud growl rolled out of Cheon Seong's stomach. She laughed and stood up at once.

"Don't tell me you skipped another meal to train again? I keep telling you not to do that. You're impossible~~."

Moving with the ease of long familiarity, she opened the cupboards, pulled out plates and bowls, and portioned out the food she had brought before setting it in front of him.

"Hold on, Cheon Seong. I'll whip up some soup real quick too."

"You really don't have to…."

"I'm doing it because I want to, so just start on the side dishes~."

She set a pot on the stove, filled it with water, cracked in an egg, added ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠salt, and let it come to a boil. A light dusting of pepper finished the simple egg soup, which she carried over to him.

"How are the side dishes, Cheon Seong? I really put my back into them this time."

"They're incredible, like always, Yuna. Thank you. I'll eat every bite."

"Good~♡ I'm so glad they suit your taste~~."

Yuna rested her chin in her hands and watched him eat, occasionally plucking up a piece of side dish and setting it on his spoon.

"Cheon Seong, how are the meat patties? Are they good?"

"Yeah. They're really good."

"Uuum……"

"Hm? What's wrong, Yuna?"

"Is that all you have to say?"

"Uh… th-thank you…?"

"Hmph!"

At his answer Yuna puffed her cheeks out like little balloons and whipped her head away. The sudden sulk was so cute that Cheon Seong had to fight down the urge to poke one of those round cheeks.

"D-did I do something wrong…?"

"Hmph! I don't know. I hate you, Cheon Seong."

He racked his brain, groaning under the sudden cold shoulder, completely unable to remember what he could have done. And then, unbidden, a scene from their childhood surfaced in his mind.

The memory of little Yuna promising that when she grew up and became his wife she would make him meat patties hit him all at once. He was stunned she still remembered after all ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠these years. He almost brought it up—then a single thought stopped the words cold in his throat.

Do I even have the right to like Yuna?

In this life he had sworn to protect everyone precious to him and to take revenge on anyone who stood in the way.

Even knowing the future did not mean that future was fixed. It would change. This very moment—Yuna showing up at his door with homemade food—had never happened before the regression.

So the knowledge he carried could not be trusted without question either.

In a situation like that, could he truly guarantee the safety of everyone who drew close to him?

He didn't know.

Even if he became as strong as he had been before regressing, he still could not kill every Celestial. He might burn ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠through his own life force and take down a few dozen, but wiping them all out was impossible.

He was someone who could die at any moment. Was it really alright to let Yuna get any closer?

No. He already knew the answer.

He must not get closer to Yuna.

If she stayed by his side, she would inevitably be put in danger. She would be hurt because of him.

He knew that, and he had still let her into his home for one reason only.

Even knowing she would get hurt if she stayed near him, he loved her.

Because he loved her, he could not bring himself to treat her coldly. That was why he had let her in.

But this—growing closer still—was not allowed.

Even the distance they had now already sat a little past the line he had drawn for himself.

If he brought up that childhood promise now, Yuna would blow straight past that line, and he already knew he would never be able to refuse her.

So he had to refuse.

He could not let himself grow any closer to Yuna. This time, he had to be the one to step away.

Firmly.

He had to tell her firmly.

He had to….

"…Yuna, I'm sorry. I honestly have no idea what I did wrong…. If there's anything you want, I'll do it, so please just forgive me."

But he could not be cruel to her. He could not firmly reject her and put distance between them.

The last thing she had said to him in the previous life—those three words, I love you—kept catching at his ankles, refusing to let him walk away.

His own heart stood in his way as well, insisting it did not want to be apart from the girl he loved. In the end he chose to keep this razor-thin, precarious distance just as it was.

"Hmph…! Y-you think I'll forgive you just because you say you'll do what I want!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"I'm really sorry…."

"H-hmph! Th-then… i-if you hang out with me all day today… I'll… forgive you!"

"Alright. I'll hang out with you the whole day."

Watching him smile as he said it, Yuna forgot she had even been angry that he didn't remember their promise. Her heart hammered so hard she worried he might hear it—and she loved every second of the feeling.

"Hmph! I-I'm only forgiving you as a special exception!"

"I know. Thank you, really. And the food was amazing. Seriously delicious."

Seeing him smile so gently right to the end, Yuna screamed with joy on the inside. Somewhere in the back of her mind she was already picking out names for their future grandchildren.

And she never noticed the gaze quietly watching her as she cleared away his empty dishes and started fretting over where the two of them should go on their date.

When I opened my eyes, I half-wondered whether I was still dreaming.

"…Why is Beatrice here…?"

Beatrice herself was not the problem. Beatrice being here, in this particular place, was.

Squish.

Squish!

The sight of Beatrice sharing the same bed, her enormous chest mashed flat against my body, led me to the only reasonable conclusion: this had to be a dream brought on by yesterday's events.

"…Even looking at them again, they're seriously huge…."

I could cup both hands around them and still not cover half. I marveled all over again, then carefully pressed down on the massive weight pinning me in place.

Squish~!

Soft, yet springy. The sensation was so fascinating I kept pressing, already half-addicted to the feel—until a frigid voice slid into my ear and froze me solid.

"Be—Beatrice!? Th-this is, I mean—!"

"I-I'm sorry!!"

I ended up on my knees on the floor, babbling something that barely qualified as an explanation while Beatrice looked down at me. She let out a long sigh.

"…Huh? What did you just say?"

I doubted my own ears and asked her to repeat herself. Beatrice used magic to haul me upright and placed my hands squarely on her ample chest.

Squish.

Squish.

The devilish softness pulled my hands into motion before I even realized it. I kneaded in a daze, lost in the sensation—until a voice I absolutely could not afford to hear right now rang out from outside. I jolted so hard I tumbled out of midair.

"Cheon Seong~~! I'm here! Open up."

Crash, clatter—

"Y-Yuna!? J-just wait a second! Yuna!"

I hit the floor, rolled, and shouted for her to wait while I hissed at Beatrice, who was wearing a distinctly sulky expression.

"Be—Beatrice! M-make yourself small and hide!"

Grumbling, Beatrice shrank her body and turned herself transparent until she vanished. Still reeling from Yuna's sudden arrival, I failed to notice the finer details of the change as I hurried to open the door.

Failed, that is, to notice Beatrice watching me the entire time with her presence completely erased.