Absolutely Do Not Stare There
Before heading over to meet Elena, I stood in front of the mirror and straightened my outfit.
Black hair, black eyes, the picture of a handsome man.
Still carried a trace of boyish charm, but by the time I reached adulthood I would have a face capable of making several women weep.
“Good. Very good.”
This was an important decision.
“Well then…”
For now, my approach to Elena followed two clear principles.
First: do nothing unnecessary.
Most of the things I had done to her so far fell under this category—complimenting her appearance, leaning in too closely, or giving her lewd glances.
Thinking back, it was not just most of them, but all of them.
So I would not do any of that.
Second: treat her appropriately and do not propose marriage.
Even if the engagement was destined to break, there was no need to turn her into an enemy.
Considering the events that lay ahead, it was far better to maintain a good relationship.
The tone would stay casual, but I would keep the boundaries I needed to maintain.
And above all, I must not propose to Elena.
There was also the fact that the future would change, but I had no desire to insert myself into the lives of those who were supposed to be happy.
“Okay, let’s go.”
The impression I received upon meeting Elena directly was shockingly intense.
Heaven above, earth below, only one in a thousand.
Hmm.
That phrase was not exactly fitting for this situation.
Anyway, she was stunning.
When I first saw the maids in the mansion, I thought this was another world.
It was not.
Sorry, but comparing it would be an insult in itself.
Of course I had seen her in the game and remembered her, so I had expected no special reaction.
But seeing her in person was entirely different.
Sky-blue hair flowing in perfect strands and sharp, clear eyes.
Her features were so well-proportioned they could belong to a national team.
They even carried a sense of teamwork.
Even her face alone was enough to stop the conversation.
If I lowered my gaze just a little, the curves beneath her dress would naturally appear.
She was magnificent.
I had not stared directly, but her presence was unmistakable even in my peripheral vision.
Whoa…
In less than a minute since we met, I had almost broken my first principle.
Just don’t look at Elena.
Why was there that?
It was exactly the feeling of having an A-track installed and being told not to look at strange places.
After a moment, Elena spoke.
“I tried a slightly different outfit today. What do you think?”
…What?
Was I allowed to look at that natural majesty?
“……”
No, no, she was talking about clothes.
Focus.
I swept my gaze over her attire with the most wholesome possible expression.
The blue dress was overall neat, but the neckline was deeply cut.
Because of that contrast, even if I tried not to notice, my eyes kept drifting.
“It suits you.”
It was sincere.
I said only that much and immediately looked away.
If I continued with a more detailed description, I would break my first principle.
Instead, I picked up a teacup from the table.
Nice.
Appropriate praise.
Appropriate gaze management.
This was enough to show I was doing well.
“……”
Yet the reaction from across the table was strange.
“Is that… all?”
“Huh?”
Was my impression too short?
I could imagine her thinking I lacked sincerity.
But nothing came to mind. More precisely, nothing I could say out loud.
“Wow, she probably won’t go hungry.”
“Are you perhaps feeling heavy? Shall I carry it for you?”
Clearly, I had to stop here.
“Should I say more?”
“Ah, no. It’s not that….”
Thank goodness.
I might have said something I could never take back.
I swallowed my sigh of relief and took a sip of tea.
Silence returned, but it was fine.
Today’s goal was not to become close, but simply to avoid causing trouble.
“How have you been lately?”
“Just living normally.”
I did not mention magic or anything boring and academic.
It would be boring for others to hear, and it was not important to me either.
It would be far more beneficial to hear about Elena.
After all, in the game I had occasionally bought items cheaply through her.
Building goodwill with the Erbein Trading Company meant I would not lose anything.
I asked Elena about her recent activities.
“Impressive.”
From what I heard, she was already helping with various things.
I remembered only worrying about whether to spend money on the game at that age.
“It’s not… like that…”
Elena avoided my gaze with a visibly flustered expression.
Ugh.
Ever since earlier, the atmosphere had not felt right.
Was I committing some mistake she did not know about?
Of course, it was also possible that I simply could not talk to women.
Damn it.
This side felt quite believable.
That said…
How should I handle the second principle?
Perhaps Elena already wanted to break off the engagement, but could not say so because of family or other circumstances.
Considering what I had done before, this was a perfectly plausible possibility.
If that was the case, there was no need to cling to the relationship.
I decided to subtly test the waters.
“By the way…”
“Yes?”
“Do you like this engagement?”
“…Huh?”
Elena’s movements froze.
Was it too direct?
“No, I was just curious.”
I continued as if it were nothing.
“I was wondering if you were being forced to do something you didn’t want.”
“……”
This time there was no answer at all.
So that was probably it.
“Of course not.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
The answer came quickly, but her expression was anything but convincing.
She clearly wanted to say something but could not.
I had seen plenty of that in the military.
“Is there something bothering you?”
“No!”
There was nothing wrong with it.
The mere fact that she was there was uncomfortable.
It was better if I spoke first.
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
“Huh?”
“This engagement. We haven’t even held the official ceremony yet.”
Right now, for any reason—including if your feelings don’t match—you could still break it off.
“If you don’t like it, you can say so honestly.”
“……”
“I have no intention of forcing you.”
Losing Elena’s friendship would be a shame, but holding onto someone who did not want it would only make things worse.
It would be better to end it nicely now and reconnect with the trading company later.
“Good.”
This was a fairly reasonable judgment.
I waited for her answer while watching Elena.
“Um…”
She opened her mouth after a long pause.
“Did I do something wrong?”
I blinked at the completely out-of-the-blue question.
“Why do you think that?”
Elena could not continue easily.
“You’ve been avoiding me all day.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
Upon hearing it, she was right.
Just the other day she had been lively and cheerful, but now that the engagement topic had come up, it made sense that she would feel strange.
“It’s not because of anything you did.”
“Then…”
Elena lowered her head.
“You no longer like me?”
…What?
Why that kind of comment?
If she truly disliked me, she would not have endured this much.
I looked up at the ceiling, then at the teacup, and checked the carpet pattern.
Thanks to that, I had perfectly memorized the interior of this reception room.
One chandelier on the ceiling.
Flower patterns on the teacup.
Two nameless birds on the carpet.
“That is absolutely not true.”
I immediately denied it.
“Absolutely…?”
“If you insist on asking, then yes.”
“I see.”
Elena answered softly.
Perhaps because of my mood, her voice sounded strangely bright.
Was she not planning to part ways today?
I did not know.
At least she did not seem desperate to break the engagement as soon as possible.
In that case, there was no need for me to hurry.
I would build trust slowly until the academy entrance and then milk it dry.
Good things were good things.
Thinking that, I took a sip of tea.
It was lukewarm.
I had probably talked for too long.
“The tea has cooled.”
Elena carefully took my teacup and placed her hand over it as if to wrap it.
“Wait a moment.”
Curious what she was doing, I watched.
A moment later, steam began rising from the teacup again.
“Done.”
Elena handed the teacup back to me with a satisfied smile.
It was not flashy.
Still, it was clearly magic—the first real magic I had witnessed up close since arriving here.
Amazing.
Even though it was a simple scene, my heart raced.
“Amazing.”
I picked up the teacup and examined it closely.
It had been lukewarm just a moment ago, yet it was now warm.
“Hehe.”
At that moment, Elena let out a small laugh.
“Ah, sorry. You look so different from usual today.”
She was right.
The inside-out was completely different.
Still, the atmosphere felt much better than before.
She had looked uncomfortable the whole time, but now her face showed a slight relaxation.
“By the way, that just now…”
I fiddled with the still-warm teacup.
“Magic, right?”
“Yes, it’s a simple basic spell.”
A simple basic spell.
A magic I had never seen in the game.
Of course.
There was no reason to implement even a spell to heat up cold tea.
But here it was different.
Things that did not exist in the game existed here, and magic worked in ways I could not understand from the game.
And I knew none of it.
“Hmm.”
So I had not been able to learn everything from books alone.
Feeling a little guilty for having struggled with incomprehensible spellbooks for the past week.
I should have asked someone sooner.
Good timing.
“Elena.”
“Yes?”
I met her eyes.
“Could you teach me some magic?”