A Belated Birthday Gift (4)
One hour until my meeting with Harnie.
The attire for the Coming-of-Age Ceremony was a tailcoat—something worn at parties and banquets. Which meant it was hardly appropriate for a meeting with Harnie.
She did say I needed to create the atmosphere of a pair of lovers, after all.
For that, nothing in my wardrobe would do. My everyday clothes and sleepwear were out of the question, and everything else had so many flaws I couldn't even bring myself to touch them.
That left only one option: the clothes that had arrived as a birthday present. Truthfully, I hadn't wanted to wear them at all, but thanks to Camilla's desperate pleading, I'd had no choice but to put them on.
Haah. I said it in the heat of the moment, but... how exactly am I supposed to explain that one?
There were worries aplenty, in more ways than one.
In any case, with that, my preparations were complete.
Time passed, and I had been waiting at the meeting spot for roughly ten minutes when—
"Young Master Karsein."
Harnie came hurrying toward me with quick, busy steps.
"I'm sorry. I'm a bit late, aren't I?"
"You arrived precisely at the appointed hour, so I don't see the problem."
"Ah, you may not know this, but when nobles set a meeting time, it's considered polite to arrive early with a little buffer to spare. That's why I'm apologizing."
What kind of absurd etiquette was that?
By her logic, Harnie, who had arrived exactly on time, was ten minutes late herself.
Utterly useless information, really... but I'd file it away for now.
"Hmm."
"Why do you look at me like that?"
"You seem rather well put-together today."
No wonder her gaze had been darting around earlier.
She'd been looking at my outfit all along.
"It's not as if I could wear what I did back then, could I? Not when you're the one who set the terms."
"Oh my. So you'll actually play along properly for me? How thoughtful of you."
"Yes, well..."
Her eyes curved into a faint smile, looking quite satisfied with herself.
Meanwhile, cold sweat was trickling steadily down my back.
When she finds out what kind of mess I made, I doubt she'll be laughing...
Certainly by the time that moment came—no, I'd be regretting it within thirty minutes of the conversation even starting.
Ugh. I'd take my lumps eventually. Better not to think about it now.
"So. Here I am, out and about as promised. What would you have me do first?"
"Hm? Why, obviously we begin by firmly completing this step."
Harnie pointed to her handbag as she said it.
Inside that bag, no doubt, was something related to our contract.
For someone who seemed so meticulous, she could be remarkably scatterbrained.
First, we should find somewhere private... yes. That spot looks good.
After a quick scan of our surroundings, I found a suitable place, took Harnie's hand, and moved us along.
"K-Karsein? Why all of a sudden—?"
"Just follow along quietly."
Flustered, Harnie tried to pull her hand back, but I had no intention of letting go.
Yes, this should be far enough.
The place I'd spotted after glancing around was a coffee house in the heart of town.
The moment we stepped through the door, private partitioned rooms came into view. It wasn't as if no one sat at tables in the main hall, of course—but the existence of such rooms was what mattered.
I approached a member of staff and asked directly.
"I'd like to enjoy a drink somewhere intimate, just the two of us—a young lady and myself. Reserve a private room for two. How much?"
"That would be the standard beverage price plus 350 Pecels. You may pay the 350 Pecels now."
"Here."
"If you'll follow me, sir."
As I drew the currency from my pocket and handed it over, the employee gave our outfits a once-over.
Apparently having concluded that we were fairly well-off nobility, he led us toward the deeper rooms rather than the ones near the entrance. And in that brief moment as we walked—
I felt a hard shoe heel dig into my shin.
'You're exactly the same as all the others, aren't you? Let go of my hand! If you don't, I'll scream and call the guards!'
When I glanced back, Harnie was speaking in a voice pitched just below the employee's hearing, her eyes gone sharp—she looked thoroughly, completely furious.
"Haah. Just walk along quietly for a moment, please. I have absolutely no intention of doing what you're imagining."
"Don't make me laugh. Do you think you're the first man to say that? I've lost count."
A derisive snort escaped her, and out of Harnie's mouth spilled a litany of names.
Names I naturally had never heard before.
The man who asked to meet her alone in a reserved room, scheming to have his way with her.
The man who slyly touched her body just like this, wearing a revolting smile and a flushed face.
She was listing out every last one of the men who had pulled such stunts on her.
"All talk and glittering promises, weren't they... So in the end, you're just the same beast as the rest of them. Which is why this is your final warning. Let. Go."
Whether it was truly her final warning or not, Harnie looked ready to scream at any second.
Judging by the way her eyes swept the interior atmosphere and the attire of the other patrons, noble clientele could hardly be rare in a place like this. Which meant, if she shrieked here—
'I'd be branded, without appeal, as a lunatic who caused a scene.'
The future was as clear as day.
Not that I intended to just stand there and take it, of course.
But first—let's calm this reckless woman down, and quickly.
Tap.
I released her hand and reached out lightly, pressing my arm against the wall behind her. She found herself cornered against it, unable to slip away freely.
At this range, even if someone were watching, the view would be well and truly blocked.
Not that the woman in question could appreciate that—she was too busy panicking.
"Y-you—if you're really planning to do something to me...!"
"Shh."
Quiet, please. Honestly.
Who could possibly hear anything over that?
"You don't think things through, do you. Like a fool."
"Wh-what did you just say? Have you said everything you wanted?"
"Yes. Lady Harnie is a fool. If you genuinely take me for some man who's simply after your body, then a fool is exactly what you are."
Harnie let out a long, exasperated breath, as if the sheer absurdity of it all was too much.
"Then what, exactly, is the grand alternative meaning behind this behavior?"
She crossed her arms in a gesture that said go on, then, explain yourself.
I smirked and poured the whole ladle of truth over this endearingly clueless woman.
"Are you planning to stroll about in public declaring to everyone, 'We're engaged by contract!'?"
"They'd think I'd gone mad, obviously—!"
"Then I don't understand why the very person who knows that's impossible is currently treating me like one of those degenerates you just described."
"Huh?"
When I said it with a playful lilt, Harnie made a genuinely dim-witted sound and faltered.
"Think about it. When you need the ideal location for conducting an important contract—what's the first thing that comes to mind?"
"..."
Well, naturally.
A place where two people could speak in complete privacy.
As the reason for coming here dawned on her, Harnie, looking thoroughly embarrassed, wound a lock of hair around one hand with her free one.
"U-um, Young Master Karsein? That's..."
She seemed to want to say something more, but the employee walking ahead of us turned around with a pointed ahem!
"Hem hem. My dear guests—I'm afraid displays of affection are not permitted here."
"I'm sorry, what?"
At the words "displays of affection," I asked as if he'd spouted complete nonsense—
and then it struck me: our current posture was practically tailor-made for misunderstanding.
A man pressing a woman against a wall, the two of them standing close, eyes locked.
To an onlooker, this wall-pin—so dramatic it belonged on a stage—must have looked like a very passionate display indeed. Quite unlike the innocent explanation Harnie had been entertaining.
Unable to bear the shame, Harnie buried her flushed face in both hands.
"Come on. Let's hurry along. Before the staff starts getting suspicious."
"..."
From the moment Harnie took my hand again, she followed meekly along without a word.
Following the employee, we arrived at a splendid room.
A large glass window offered an unbroken view of the natural scenery, and the whole space was just intimate enough for a long conversation.
Most importantly, the soundproofing—which I'd cared about above all—appeared to be thorough.
"U-um... Young Master Karsein?"
"Yes?"
"Th-that is... I was wondering whether you might let go of my hand now."
Ah. Right. Fair point.
The employee had gone off to fetch our drinks, so we could simply sit at the table and talk.
"Let's sit down, then."
Harnie settled into her seat, a bead of cold sweat sliding down her temple.
Seated across from each other, our eyes met of their own accord. She flinched and made a show of avoiding my gaze.
The rate of her blinking increased dramatically.
Hmm. I could use this as a shield, couldn't I.
Harnie squirmed with an uncomfortable expression on her face. By now, she was probably kicking herself for that heel to my shin and every word she'd let fly at the door.
Which meant I could leverage this. Some clemency should be on the table.
First, let's wait and see. People like her are surprisingly prone to walking straight into their own traps.
"Um, about... about earlier."
"About what, exactly?"
"You know... earlier. In the corridor."
When I deliberately looked away and pretended to savor the aroma and taste of my coffee, Harnie began sneaking glances at me, quick and furtive.
Shall I tease her a little?
"The corridor, hm. That really was an awkward moment, wasn't it."
"Y-yes?"
—Flinch!
"That was your fault, Lady Harnie."
The moment I shifted my gaze to her, she jolted as if struck, desperately averting her eyes and blinking furiously all over again.
"There was an employee waiting on us, and you wouldn't move. Who knows whether our relationship might not have been called into question, hmm?"
"..."
Where her eyes had merely flinched before, this time they trembled slightly. Her expression plainly read: I walked right into that.
"...I'm sorry, all right!"
"Oh?"
"I-I said I'm sorry! For kicking you, and for mistaking you for... for one of those lechers who only covets my face and my body like everyone else—"
"Well, I'm glad the misunderstanding's been cleared up."
"Stop teasing me. I apologized, didn't I?"
"Don't tell me the other men teased you this way too?"
"Ugh, you're impossible!"
Face crimson, she kept stealing glances at me from the corners of her eyes. A little more teasing would've been fun, but... this was probably enough.
"Shouldn't we be getting to the heart of the matter soon? The day will be over before we know it."
"That's exactly what I was about to say!"
I doubted it, somehow.
Anyway. Moving on.
Harnie began rummaging something out of her handbag, piece by piece.
Apparently she hadn't brought some contract carefully folded up and carried along after all. That was what I'd assumed, at least.
But there was one thing I had overlooked.
"This is the Oath Jewel. You do know what it is?"
"I do."
Ordinarily I wouldn't have—but a look at the item's information window made it all clear.
A magical stone used to bind contracts through spoken word, most often employed for agreements of great consequence. Upon activation, the Jewel's mana disperses—
To summarize: the Jewel's mana would disperse and create the conditions under which a contract could be sealed, and then each party simply had to state their obligations and their purpose aloud.
No paper contract necessary.
This was a world inside a game, after all—a world where magic existed.
Harnie slowly engraved the terms of the contract into the Jewel, and, just as she had told me, set her own purpose as independence from the Theresia Marquisate. With that, her side of the one-year contract engagement was ready to proceed.
"Now—all that's left is for you to state your purpose, Young Master Karsein."
My purpose. It was simple.
"───────────."
Harnie's eyes went perfectly round for an instant.
"What's the matter? Did I say something wrong?"
"No. No, not at all. Then... we'll proceed as is."
The Jewel blazed with light, its blue shifting to a deep, vivid crimson.
Even in the game, Karsein had never used one himself, but I'd seen this exact scene play out between other characters. The contract for our one-year engagement appeared to have concluded without a hitch.
Even so, Harnie still couldn't meet my eyes directly, twisting a lock of hair around and around her finger.
"Um... does it still hurt? Where I kicked you?"
"The kick? I told you it's fine. Why do you keep asking?"
"...Still."
She had kicked me awfully hard, come to think of it. Then again, dealing with pushy men probably called for exactly that kind of kick. Honestly, the spot still stung a little, if I was being truthful.
'This makes me feel like the villain of the piece, but...'
No help for it.
I'd just have to offset it somehow, starting now.
"Then let's call it even, shall we? I did something wrong too, after all."
"What? No, you didn't. You were just trying to find an appropriate place."
"Not today, I mean. The truth is, I did something rather outrageous. To you, Lady Harnie."
"To me? Not today...?"
Completely clueless, she tilted her head.
"When you came to the Vagrand Ducal Estate. Do you remember our meeting that day?"
"Of course I do. That's where we met, and that's why we're meeting now, isn't it?"
"Yes. Well, I made a rather large blunder back then. Because I didn't want to be scolded by my family."
"...?"
"We've let it be known that we had a secret rendezvous that night. So... ahem. We'll need to present ourselves a little more like a couple in love."
"WHAT?!"
Startled, she spluttered and stammered—then, apparently needing to confirm she'd heard right, she asked again.
"A s-secret rendezvous? But we're—it's just a contract, between us! If you go around saying that, then it really, really becomes—!"
"Like a couple. That's exactly how we'll need to look. If you'd rather not be suspected."
"Oh, dear heavens."
Face frozen in disbelief, Harnie murmured "dear heavens" over and over again.
Not that I could blame her.
It wasn't as if Karsein was any great prize of a man.
Whereas Harnie possessed beauty that stood out even among the nobility.
Factor in ability as well, and the gap between us was sky and earth.
Which was why I'd hoped to offset my mistake, as best I could, by admitting fault first...
Don't tell me it isn't working?
"If anything, this arrangement works in our favor, doesn't it? If our relationship was close enough for secret meetings, suspicion becomes difficult. And it makes staging the right atmosphere all the more natural, too."
Just as I was fumbling for some way to convince her—terrified she might tear up the contract on the spot—something kindled in Harnie's eyes.
"L-Lady Harnie? What are you—?"
She began sidling toward me across the floor, an odd, creeping menace in her advance. Cold sweat broke out on its own. By the time I came to my senses, I was backing away.
—Thud.
Oh. No wall behind me, is there?
"W-wait a moment—!"
"You are sorry... take that...!"
—CRACK!
It had been a while since my last back-spike.
"Ow, ow..."
"Hmph!"
As I rubbed the heat radiating off my back, Harnie strode out of the coffee house with her arms crossed, chin held high in prim offense.
"Come on, walk with me at least."
"Don't talk to me."
"You hit me, so the least you could do is be in a better mood."
"I said don't talk to me."
"Oh, come on, didn't we agree to call it even, you and—"
—Ssssss.
Harnie's murderous gaze swung back around toward me. One more wrong word and I'd be taking a second hit.
Treading carefully, I leaned in and whispered at her ear.
"Ahem. If you keep this up, we'll be the ones under suspicion."
"..."
"You did say you didn't want other men flocking to you... Lady Theresia."
A strange silence fell. The kind of dangerous quiet that felt like stepping on thin ice—something best left unbroken.
I waited quietly, and at last Harnie heaved a deep sigh and answered.
"Harnie."
"Yes?"
"Call me by my name. Drop the family title."
"Ah—understood."
"But!"
Whirl!
Harnie, who had been walking ahead of me, stopped dead in her tracks and spun around to face me.
"Try anything untoward—just try it. The Oath Jewel means the contract can never be broken, but don't think that puts you above consequences."
"Y-yes, of course."
I wasn't entirely sure what "above consequences" meant, but apparently the contract couldn't be broken carelessly. Good enough for me.
"By the way—shouldn't I get to call you by your name too, rather than 'Young Master Karsein'?"
"I said don't talk to me!"
And so I kept playing along to Harnie's tune for a while longer.
All the way until the sun went down.