Date (2)
Medeia studied her reflection in the mirror and murmured under her breath.
"…Does it even suit me?"
Clothes already lay scattered across the bed in every direction.
Would this one look better, or that one?
The pile was the result of agonizing over what to wear for tomorrow's date with Kael.
Her date was blind. She kept wondering what the point of any of this was—and still she could not stop choosing outfits.
Then, abruptly, the fact that she was fretting over something like this made her burn with embarrassment.
"…"
Kael was a slave.
He had sworn to grant her any wish she asked for, yet between them stood a gulf of status nothing could bridge.
And still he had asked her out on a date.
She had not hated it.
If anything, it was exactly what she had wanted.
That did not make the shyness any less real.
"It's my first time…"
In her whole life, no one of the opposite sex had ever approached her so boldly. Kael was the first.
To Medeia, who had next to no experience with men, his invitation felt impossibly strange.
Worries of every kind flooded in, and her imagination ran wild.
By the time she came back to herself, she had already started inventing names for their children.
I've lost my mind.
Medeia covered her burning face with both hands.
"It's just… a date."
They would go out, hold hands, and stroll the streets. That was all.
If they got hungry, they would eat.
If they got bored, they would watch a performance.
And if they got tired, they would take a room…
"…"
Medeia scrubbed the last thought from her mind as fast as she could and went back to choosing a dress.
And so her night stretched on, growing deeper.
Meanwhile, at that very hour, Kael—knowing none of this—was snoring away in his sleep.
Morning arrived.
Today was the day I was taking Medeia out on a date.
I washed up in a hurry and changed clothes.
It was an ordinary outfit—the kind you could find anywhere.
I had wondered whether I ought to dress up a little for a date, but the only clothes I owned were my butler's uniform, my school uniform, and the everyday clothes I had on now.
This was the best I could do.
"All right. Let's go."
Preparations finished, I left Medeia's Villa and headed outside.
Neeiiigh!
Word must have reached the stables that we were going out today; the carriage was already waiting.
Medeia was not there yet.
I stood in front of the carriage and waited for a while.
How long I stood there, I could not say.
From far off, a faint floral scent drifted in on the breeze.
Click, click.
With the sound of heels, Medeia appeared.
I waved toward her.
"My lady, you're out early!"
She looked at me for a moment after my little wave, then spoke.
"You're early too."
"I'm the one who asked you out. I couldn't very well be late. Shall we go, then?"
I held out my hand to her.
Medeia hesitated a second before taking it.
I felt her fingertips tremble, just slightly.
Nerves, maybe.
I could not be sure, so I pretended not to notice.
Truth was, I was wound tight myself.
What do we do first?
I had used a wish to invite Medeia on a date, but I had never actually been on one in my life.
If anyone asked why I had asked her anyway, the answer was simple.
For Medeia.
Because of her curse, she almost never left the villa.
A life spent staring at the same scenery day after day.
It had to be stifling and dull.
I wanted to ease that boredom, even a little.
She had already suffered enough on my account over this whole business.
Still, I was meddling in something far above my station, so of course I was nervous too.
"We'll be off, then."
While I had been lost in thought, the carriage started moving.
Rattle. Rattle!
Inside the running carriage, silence held.
I disliked awkward quiet, so I spoke first.
"I was thinking we might head into the streets first and do a little looking around. How does that sound?"
It was my first date, but I had at least made a plan.
I had drawn up a list of places worth visiting from the information I had picked up back when I worked as a human target for a circus troupe.
The first stop was a bustling district not far from the Academy.
The street food there was excellent.
"I don't mind."
"Haha. Then I'll do my best to show you around today."
Medeia said nothing and only nodded.
Before long the carriage stopped in the shopping district.
The driver told us he would return before sunset and left.
Now it really was just the two of us—Medeia and me.
"The skewers from that stall over there are really good. Would you like to try one?"
"Skewers?"
"Yes. I'll buy one and we can share it."
I had no intention of filling our stomachs with a single skewer.
Today I meant to feed Medeia all sorts of things.
I bought one and held it out to her first.
She stared at it for a moment, then carefully took a bite.
Chew, chew.
As she chewed slowly, her eyes widened a fraction.
"How is it?"
"…It's good."
"I'm glad. Next let's get the fruit skewers over there. They coat them in sugar so they're incredibly crisp."
And so we wandered the streets, sampling snacks of every kind.
All the while I kept scanning our surroundings so that the veil covering Medeia's face would never slip free.
Today of all days, I wanted her to enjoy this date without a single worry.
"We're full now—shall we go see something?"
We had eaten a remarkable amount while walking around.
Our stomachs were satisfied.
I thought it might be time to look for something fun to watch.
I considered tracking down the circus I used to work for, but no matter how hard I searched, it was nowhere to be found.
Puzzled, I asked a passerby.
"The circus? Ah, you mean the Pennywise Circus? That place went under ages ago. Word is the owner gambled away every last coin. Lost the house, too. No one knows where he is now."
So the circus had failed.
From what I gathered, once their star performer left, the crowds thinned, ticket sales dried up, and that was the end of it.
Tch.
A pity, but I felt no real attachment.
It had been a circus that threw daggers at me from day one. Feeling nostalgic about it would have been stranger.
I turned to Medeia.
"I'm sorry. The place I meant to take you has closed down."
"I'm fine."
She truly seemed fine; she showed not a hint of complaint.
Even so, I was the one who felt awkward about it.
I was fretting over where else we might go when—
Ding, diring♪
Music drifted from somewhere nearby.
Following the sound with Medeia, we found a bard playing in the middle of the square.
He was skilled enough that simply listening made the heart feel lighter.
Medeia seemed to like it too; she closed her eyes and lost herself in the music.
I held my breath so as not to disturb her and waited for the performance to end.
When it finished, applause rolled through the square.
Medeia looked satisfied as well, clapping her hands—softly, but with care.
"That was a wonderful performance."
"…Yeah."
A small smile touched her lips as she continued.
"It was good."
A lovely smile.
I hoped it would last a long, long time.
As long as she smiled and was happy, this world would not fall to ruin.
Even without a reason like that, I simply wanted her to be happy.
There was nothing complicated about it.
When she smiled, I could smile too.
Time slipped by, and before we knew it the sun was beginning to set.
It was time to head back.
But going home just like this felt incomplete.
I wanted to leave her with a memory she would not forget.
"My lady, would you wait here a moment?"
"Hm? Why?"
"There's somewhere I need to stop by briefly. I'll be right back—will you wait for me?"
At my request Medeia seemed to consider for a second, then agreed.
"I'll be quick!"
I hurried into a shop I had been eyeing for a while and bought a gift for her.
It was nothing special—just a hairpin.
It looked pretty, and I thought it would suit Medeia, so I bought it.
When I returned with the present—
Tap. Tap!
The sound of a shoe tip lightly striking the ground reached me.
Medeia.
I must have kept her waiting too long.
I muffled my footsteps as much as I could and approached her.
Then, carefully, I brushed aside the hair at her temple and fastened the hairpin I had prepared.
"Kyaah! Wh-what—!"
Medeia shrieked in pure shock.
She spun around in a panic, realized the person who had touched her hair was me, and pressed a hand to her chest in relief.
"W-what was that all of a sudden! You scared me!"
"Haha… I'm sorry. I did mean to surprise you, but I didn't think you'd jump that hard."
Her reaction was so adorable I almost wanted to startle her again, but if I did I might end up sleeping outside tonight, so I held back.
Instead I pointed to her hair and said,
"I prepared a gift. Honestly, I don't know if you'll like it, but I really wanted to give it to you."
"A… gift?"
At my words Medeia swept her hair back from her temple.
Her hand stopped when her fingers found the hairpin.
For a long while she said nothing.
Then, with her fingertips, she carefully traced the pin.
For a long time.
Before long she quietly opened her mouth.
"…Thank you."
And with that, our date ended, and we returned to Medeia's Villa.
The next day, the Headmaster of the Academy summoned me.