After we wrapped up the story, we all gathered in Itsuka-kun’s living room.
“Seriously? You’re saying I can go on a date with Shido? Right now?!”
Tohka grew ecstatic at the prospect of dating Itsuka-kun, practically bouncing in place with excitement.
“Tohka, calm down.”
“Let’s decide the order by lottery. As for the activities, that's up to you. Just plan the kind of date you want most.”
At Murasame-san’s words, the look in Miku’s eyes shifted.
“A date with darling~? Now that sounds exciting.”
“Why are you looking at me like I'm prey...?”
Her gaze was unmistakably that of a predator eyeing its target.
Just imagining the kind of humiliation I’d have to endure on a date with Miku made my head throb.
“Question. Will Yuzuru and Kaguya go together?”
“That’s an option, but why not try going separately for once? I prepared five lots, after all.”
Yuzuru accepted Murasame-san’s suggestion.
“Then the Shido side draws here, and the Hiki side draws here.”
“All right, then!”
The lottery was split between Itsuka-kun’s group and mine.
The results for Itsuka-kun’s side were Rinne, the commander, and Tohka, in that order. For my side, it was Kaguya, Miku, Yoshino, Yuzuru, and the Fire Keeper.
“I’m last...?”
The Fire Keeper looked a little crestfallen to have ended up in the final slot, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.
That’s just the luck of the draw.
“Now, everyone, make your plans and wait for your turn.”
Once Murasame-san finished speaking, the spirits began chatting animatedly among themselves.
Kaguya and Yuzuru immediately devolved into their usual bickering, while Yoshinon did her best to cheer Yoshino up.
“First, attention. I’ll make one last thing clear.”
The commander brought the noisy room under control before continuing.
“Do not interfere with each other’s dates. Behave yourselves. Understood?”
Everyone nodded in unison.
Satisfied, the commander smiled and shifted her gaze to me and Itsuka-kun.
“So, Shido and Hiki. What is your resolve for these dates?”
“Uh... I just hope everyone has fun,” Shido replied.
“I’ll do my best to ensure they have a day they can be satisfied with,” I added.
And just like that, our dates began.
*
“Wow, it really is huge...”
On the day of my date with Kaguya, I waited for her while staring up at the sphere floating in the sky.
Its scale was so overwhelming that it could easily blanket an entire town; I couldn’t help but feel a slight sense of intimidation.
“Hieta!”
“Ah, you’re here.”
At the sound of Kaguya’s voice, I looked away from the sky and faced her.
“Sorry! I kept you waiting!”
“No, you didn't. I haven't been here long.”
Kaguya spoke as if she were late, but she wasn't actually late at all.
If anything, I had arrived too early.
I had hurried out, thinking it would be rude to keep a girl waiting.
“I actually tried to get here even earlier, but since this is a rare date, I got a little too focused on picking out my clothes...”
She wasn't lying; she was wearing something quite different from her usual attire.
I had dressed up a bit as well, though not nearly to the extent Kaguya had.
“How is it? Does it look weird?”
“Not at all. If anything, it’s cute. Definitely not weird.”
“Really? That’s a relief...”
Kaguya muttered in relief at my praise, looking quite adorable as she did so.
Perhaps because this was her first date, she seemed genuinely nervous.
“Ah, I mean... Normally Yuzuru would be here to complain about something by now, but... she’s not here today. It feels kind of empty.”
Well, Kaguya had likely been glued to Yuzuru's side until now, so it made sense that she would feel the void.
In that case, I would just have to fill that gap myself.
“What does that matter? This is our date, after all.”
I held out my hand and bowed my head slightly.
“Lady Knight Hieta, may I dare ask for the honor of escorting the Princess of the Wind?”
“O-of course! Then look forward to the escort of this Princess of the Wind, Kaguya!”
With that, Kaguya took my hand, and we set off.
*
“Hey, Hieta. You kept your promise and didn’t eat anything, right?”
“Yes. I’ve only had water since this morning, just like you asked.”
The day before, Kaguya had insisted I skip breakfast, so I had stuck to water.
Consequently, I was absolutely starving.
“Hehe. I knew it. Ah, here we are.”
We stopped in a narrow alley.
Kaguya pointed deeper inside, claiming there was a hidden gem of a restaurant located there.
“I heard it’s a super stylish French restaurant. The name was... um... the shop name was...”
“We can check the name when we get there, so let’s just go in first.”
“Y-yeah.”
Kaguya answered awkwardly and led the way into the alley.
What appeared before us, however, was a ramen shop.
The French restaurant Kaguya had mentioned was nowhere to be seen.
“Is this... the place?”
“Huh? It should be here...”
She muttered this while rummaging through her bag, pulling out a tourist guidebook.
I realized she must have planned the date using that book, but the publication date was quite old.
It seemed that over time, the French restaurant had closed down and been replaced by a ramen shop.
“Um, Kaguya. Let’s just eat here.”
“H-huh? Is that okay?”
“Yes. The restaurant isn't what matters. What matters is the date with you, Kaguya.”
At those words, Kaguya blushed deeply and lowered her head.
Accustomed to this sight by now, I took her hand and led her into the shop.
“Welcome!”
The owner greeted us warmly as we entered.
We returned the greeting and ordered our ramen.
“Come again!”
After finishing our meal and stepping back outside, Kaguya looked a bit crestfallen.
“Sorry. I went on and on about French cuisine, and then...”
“Don’t worry about it. It was delicious.”
“Then that’s good...”
Even after my reassurance, she still looked gloomy, so I reached out and patted her head.
“Huh?”
“Don’t make such a long face. It’ll ruin that cute expression of yours.”
“Ah, th-then! Next! The next place will definitely be fine!”
Perhaps caught off guard by the gesture, Kaguya panicked and hurriedly dragged me toward our next destination.
Even that side of her was endearing, so a smile never left my face.
“Next is a pool bar that’s really popular with young people these days!”
That smile vanished instantly.
A pool bar... no matter how I looked at it, that was still a bar.
I may have been an adult, but officially I was a student, and Kaguya was a student too. Going to a bar would be inappropriate.
I spoke to Kaguya in a slightly serious tone.
“Kaguya. We’re minors on paper, so we can’t go there.”
“Ah, right...”
Apparently, she hadn’t considered their legal status, as Kaguya quickly deflated and stopped in her tracks.
“Then let’s go to that game center over there.”
“Eh, what?”
There was an arcade right next to where she had been heading.
I took Kaguya’s hand while she was still flustered and led her inside.
She remained gloomy until we actually entered, but once we started playing together, her smile returned.
“Hieta! Let’s do that next!”
“Huh? The crane game?”
While we were wandering around and enjoying the various games, Kaguya pointed toward a crane machine.
Inside were all sorts of cute plushies.
I wondered if I could actually win one, but since Kaguya wanted it, I walked over to the machine without a word.
I inserted the money and carefully maneuvered the claw.
“Hmm... now!”
“Oh! It came out!”
Luckily, I managed to snag a plushie without spending too much.
The prize was a cat plushie wearing clothes that bore a striking resemblance to Kaguya’s own outfit.
Kaguya hugged the plushie tightly to her chest as if it were a priceless treasure.
“Do you like it that much?”
“Yes! It’s a present from Hieta!”
Well, if Kaguya was happy, that was all that mattered.
“Ah, let’s rest here for a bit.”
After playing for a while longer, we took a short break.
I sipped a drink I’d bought from a nearby vending machine and scanned the area, only to spot the blonde girl from before.
“...Huh?”
The girl was definitely looking at me.
Then, someone passed between us, and she vanished from sight.
“What is it, Hieta?”
“Ah, nothing.”
I was still trying to make sense of the strange encounter when Kaguya’s voice snapped me back to reality.
I had a lingering, uneasy feeling about it, but my date with Kaguya continued.
*
While Kaguya was in the restroom, I sat down on a nearby bench to recover, as I’d grown a bit tired from all the walking.
Suddenly, I felt a weight on my shoulder.
Assuming Kaguya had returned, I turned my head.
“Ah, you’re ba...”
The person leaning against my shoulder wasn’t Kaguya, but the blonde girl I’d seen earlier.
“...Um?”
“............”
Setting aside the strangeness of her leaning on me, I tried to ask who she was, but she didn't answer.
“...Hm?”
Then I noticed where the girl’s gaze was fixed: the drink in my hand.
When I moved the can, her eyes followed it back and forth with intense focus.
I held the drink out to her.
“Want this?”
It was mine, but since I hadn’t opened it yet, I didn't mind.
The girl took the drink and stared at it curiously, appearing not to know how to open the can.
“Do you not know how to open it, by any chance?”
At my question, the girl nodded.
“I’ll open it for you.”
I took the can back, popped the tab, and handed it back to her.
The girl took a sip, then looked back and forth between me and the can with a startled, wide-eyed expression.
“It’s good, right?”
This time, she nodded more vigorously than before.
I let out a small laugh.
“Want to try something else—wait, she’s gone?”
I had been about to offer her another drink, but she had vanished before I could blink.
She really was elusive.
*
Our date only ended as the evening glow began to settle over the sky.
The girl never reappeared after I gave her the drink.
I wondered for a moment if I had imagined her, but then I remembered that the can I’d given her had disappeared as well, so that seemed unlikely.
Regardless, I pushed those thoughts aside and walked side by side with Kaguya.
“Thank you for today.”
“No, I should be the one thanking you.”
Suddenly, Kaguya stopped walking.
She looked at me and pulled out a book.
“Hieta, actually...”
It was the tourist guidebook I’d seen that morning.
“I’m sorry! For today’s date, I relied on this book the whole time. It wasn’t really my own plan. I wanted to think of something myself, but I just didn’t feel confident...”
As Kaguya began to look down again, I patted her head.
“Just the fact that you tried to make me happy is enough for me. More than anything, the most important part was spending time with you, Kaguya.”
She might have felt it wasn't her own plan, but I was happy that she had put in the effort to entertain me, even if she had to borrow ideas to do it.
That effort counted for everything.
I answered her with the brightest smile I could manage.
“Today’s date was a lot of fun.”
“...Yeah!”
Bathed in the evening light, Kaguya’s smile was the brightest I had ever seen.
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