Date (1)
Date (1)
After retrieving his sword and assessing his abilities, the first thing Dojin did was head straight into the Dungeon.
The people he usually took into the Dungeon were Seoyun and Eunha. Just those two.
Seoyun wasn't the type of Ability user whose skills would rust from taking a few days off. On the contrary, she was a turret that always fired at maximum output, completely unaffected by the passage of time.
In contrast, his own skills and Eunha's were rusting away. That was the nature of power obtained by those without talent.
A product of blood, sweat, and effort offered as sacrifice. Just like with himself, there was a high chance Eunha's skills had rusted too.
So today, he decided to do a Dungeon date—just the two of them—to melt away the rust and check their skills.
"Eunha."
"Why?"
"Let's go on a date, just you and me today."
"......A date?"
At those words, Eunha floundered around not knowing what to do, then suddenly nodded as if she'd gotten it.
Then she told him to wait just a moment and shooed Dojin out of the room.
Thinking she'd be out soon, Dojin waited in the backyard doing some light exercise, but even after nearly an hour, Eunha still hadn't come out, so he headed back to her room.
"How about this? This one?"
"Ah, ahh... This one's too flashy, though......."
"It's fine! You're cute, Eunha, so it'll work!"
Hearing Aram's and Ga-hee's voices, along with Eunha's, from in front of her room, Dojin realized something was wrong.
Pretty? Flashy? Cute?
Why were words like that coming up for a trip to the Dungeon?
'Ah.'
And only then did he remember that he hadn't told Eunha they were going to the Dungeon. He'd just said let's go on a date.
'This is bad.'
Realizing that, Dojin quickly headed to the Bathhouse to wash off all the sweat, then threw on some random clothes from his room. Fashion sense wasn't his strong suit anyway, so whether he spent a long time picking or a short one, it was all the same.
After getting dressed, he headed straight to Pion's room. In front of her door, Dojin pounded on it fiercely.
Kkwang kkwang kkwang kkwang-!
"...Who is it, come in?"
"Pion."
"Ah, Dojin-nim? You scared me. Why are you knocking so hard..."
"I have a favor to ask."
"......A favor?"
Seeing Dojin's serious demeanor, Pion licked her lips and faced him. Whether it was that she'd just bathed or the neat clothes she was wearing, she looked like something was up.
Ah, this is it. Lovey-dovey vibes.
Sensing that intuitively, Pion straightened her posture and asked him.
"What favor?"
"Tell me some good date courses."
"I'd love...... You want date course recommendations?"
"Yeah."
Hearing the word "date," Pion had thought he was asking her out, so she mulled it over and asked again.
What? He wants "date courses" recommended? Not to go on a date with him?
So basically, he wanted spots to fool around with some other girl.
"Ah, ahaha. Yes. Got it."
She almost snapped in a fit of anger for a second, but her position was just that of a guild employee assisting Dojin. Getting on his bad side wouldn't do her any good.
Pion immediately went back into her room and pulled out a notebook she'd been saving. One she'd kept for when she got a boyfriend......
Coming out with the notebook, she handed it to Dojin and said,
"Here."
"This is......?"
"Date courses for places women would like."
To be precise, it was packed with her own tastes, but Dojin wasn't the type to notice that, so he nodded and thanked her.
"Thanks."
"No problem. Need anything else?"
"Pion, how do I look today?"
"Huh? What do you......."
"I mean my clothes—do they look okay?"
"Ah... Yeah, not bad."
"Phew, good. Anyway, thanks!"
Pion waved lightly at Dojin as he walked off into the distance. Then she went back into her room and let out heavy sighs.
'Sigh... What am I even doing?'
Helping coordinate another girl's man when she didn't even have a boyfriend herself—Pion trembled with the intense wave of depression washing over her.
In the end, she flopped onto her bed and tore into the potato chips she'd been eating earlier.
Unaware that her own belly fat was slowly piling on......
In the mansion lobby, Dojin was flipping through the notebook and scanning the date courses when he heard the clack clack of heels approaching and looked up.
And there, from the central entrance of the mansion, descending the grand staircase, an angel came down.
"Y-You waited?"
In a dress so flashy it was hard to believe it was her usual self—like a medieval noble, the outfit covered her from head to toe without a gap, and it looked so awkward on her that she kept tripping on the hem with every step.
"Uh, uh?"
Then, finally, with her awkward steps, she stepped on the dress and tripped over her own hem.
Dojin, who had been watching, rushed over and caught her.
Falling into Dojin's arms, Eunha pulled down the brim of the hat on her head to hide her flushed face.
"You okay?"
"......Yeah. Thanks."
Clack. Carefully setting her down, Dojin took her hand.
"Still seems awkward...... Wanna hold hands?"
"Yeah......."
Eunha accepted Dojin's touch without resistance. Her hands had become rough from all the training since coming to the Otherworld, which embarrassed her, but Dojin gripped them firmly without a care.
How could they be so soft? fiddling with Dojin's even softer hands, Eunha stepped out onto the street.
Riding the carriage they'd prepared in advance out into the city streets, the two stood there blankly, looking around the city.
Neither of them were the type to go out much, so they were fumbling around not knowing what to do or where to go.
Dojin thought it was a good thing he'd gotten the notebook from Pion as he headed toward one of the shops listed in it.
"Wanna go to a place I know?"
"Yeah...."
"Alright."
With her hand gripped tightly in his, his palm was starting to fill with sweat. It was already July, midsummer approaching.
Fortunately, the Otherworld's summer wasn't that hot, but Eunha's fully wrapped dress looked stifling.
So they needed a cool spot. In the air-conditioner-less Otherworld, cool spots weren't that plentiful.
"......This place?"
"Looks like an Aquarium."
Curious about what might be inside the Otherworld's Aquarium, Dojin went in with Eunha.
As the two entered, the manager greeted them right away.
"Welcome. Our Aquarium lets you see rare sea creatures, and we promise experiences you'll never have in a lifetime."
"How much?"
"You might think it's a bit pricey, but it's 2 Silver Coins per person."
"Cheap."
After buying tickets, Dojin followed the staff's guidance inside. Unknown sea life from the Otherworld that he'd never seen before.
His curiosity about what the Otherworld's fish looked like was about to explode when... the shop door opened. The two stared at the massive Aquarium in front of them.
And they froze.
Inside the Aquarium lived Mermaids.
You know, demi-humans with human upper bodies and fish lower halves.
"Mermaids?"
"......Mermaids."
They were creatures that didn't exist on Earth. On Earth, Mermaids only appeared in fairy tales.
At the same time, seeing those Mermaids made him feel kinda bittersweet. Rather than feeling like human-like creatures were being treated like animals...... it was more like, what, just humans wearing full-body flippers for cosplay.
"Mermaids......."
"......Like them?"
"Yeah."
Unlike Dojin, though, Eunha's eyes sparkled as she plastered herself to the Aquarium. If the staff hadn't asked her not to stick to the glass, she probably would've shoved her face right through it.
Seeing her show so much interest, the Mermaid swam over, returning the attention.
The Mermaid waved lightly in front of Eunha. Eunha waved back.
With jewels embedded here and there, and fins polished to a sparkle without any moss, it was easy to see just how much the Aquarium cherished their Mermaids.
"Ar-Are there other Mermaids too......?"
"Yes, of course."
Eunha seemed to really like the Mermaids and asked the staff to see more. The staff said if they paid extra, they could even see a singing performance by the Mermaids.
Sirens. Eunha fidgeted her hands excitedly and turned to Dojin at the thought of seeing the legendary singing Mermaids from myths.
The two were on a date. They couldn't just do whatever one of them wanted...... but Dojin smiled it was fine and paid the staff.
"Dojin......."
"It's okay, Princess."
"Princess...... I'm not......."
"You're a princess to me."
"Th-This way, please."
The staff, overhearing, wondered if Eunha was actually some princess and guided them even more politely.
Unlike modern people from a classless society, Otherworlders lived under nobles and royals and couldn't casually mention royal or imperial status.
Thanks to that, getting VIP treatment, the two got the closest view of the Mermaids and heard their song right up close.
─♪♬
"Wow......."
Eunha gaped at the sight. Dojin wasn't sure if Mermaids were that amazing and just enjoyed the song.
Unlike the legends of Sirens whose songs alone could mesmerize you into drowning in the sea, the Mermaids' singing was just so-so.
Well, yeah—when he heard Ga-hee, the Otherworld's top singer, whenever he was bored, there was no way he'd be satisfied with the subpar Otherworld Mermaid tunes.
After the performance ended, Eunha clapped and called for an encore.
Sadly, the Mermaids only performed a set number of times a day, so no matter how much money Dojin threw at it, he couldn't get extra shows.
In the end, Eunha gave up on the encore and slowly stood. As Dojin pondered how to comfort her disappointment, she slipped on the water splashed by the Mermaids while getting up and fell.
"─!?"
He reached out to grab the slipping Eunha, but she spun once in the air and regained her balance.
For someone in a long dress and uncomfortable heels, it was unbelievably agile, so the startled staff rushing over and the watching Mermaids all stared at her in stunned silence.
"S-Sorry-!"
The staff ran up, bowing deeply in apology. If not for her, they might've gotten hurt or twisted something.
Eunha nonchalantly accepted the apology, then looked at Dojin with an awkward smile.
"......Sh-Should we go?"
"...Yeah."
Dojin recalled her movement from moments ago, wondering why someone who moved that well had tripped back at the mansion.
'......Nah, no way.'
Just a lingering suspicion as he followed behind her.