Noon, in front of the City Fountain.
In front of the fountain shaped like a unicorn statue, Elise was fixing her bangs while waiting for Siegfried, glancing at Ken sitting at a distant café outdoor table.
With a thumbs-up signal from Ken, confirming everything was good, Elise let out a sigh of relief.
She remembered that day a few days ago when Siegfried had asked her out on a date.
“A, flower viewing…?”
“Yeah, there are pretty flowers that only bloom at this time.”
“It’s, it’s good but… haha, you should ask someone you like, silly.”
“…That’s why I’m suggesting it to you.”
“…Huh?”
Thinking of his serious gaze made Elise feel her face heat up. She tried to calm herself by cupping her cheeks with her hands, but her expression was all over the place.
“What if I look weird…?!”
She flapped her hands to cool down and bounced her feet nervously when suddenly—
“Sorry! I’m late.”
“Eeeek!”
Elise startled at Siegfried’s greeting and let out a bizarre scream.
‘This is off to a rocky start…’
Watching the scene, Ken lowered his sunglasses slightly and sighed.
He knew they would end up together, but seeing how nervous Elise was made him understand why she was clinging to him like that.
“Elise. Is something wrong? Are you okay?”
“I-I’m fine! I just got here too!”
“Your face is red. Are you sick? Excuse me for a moment.”
As Siegfried gently placed his hand on her forehead, he was unexpectedly taken aback.
“E-Elise! Your forehead is like a fireball!”
“It’s your fault, you big dummy!”
Elise, flustered, accidentally snapped at him before kicking his leg in embarrassment.
But it was like kicking a rock; there was no damage whatsoever.
Ignoring her usual kicks, Siegfried, looking relieved, said, “So you’re not sick… Thank goodness.”
“Ugh.”
Elise felt her cheeks heat up once more at his smiling face.
Turning away, she declared, “I’m going to the bathroom!”
And she rushed off towards Ken.
“W-What do I do?! Was I weird just now?!”
“You were super weird.”
“Aaaah! What should I do?! I can’t act normal now that I’m conscious of it!”
Spotting Elise running, Ken decided to meet her in a hidden alley behind the café, starting a strategy meeting.
“I had some preparations in mind.”
“W-What is it?”
As if he expected this, Ken rummaged through his pockets, making Elise’s eyes shine with curiosity.
Elise knew Ken had made a sword for Siegfried, so whatever he was preparing would surely be something that could help her.
Ken pulled out a small vial that looked like a potion.
“…What is this?”
“It’s a calming potion. If you drink it, you’ll relax.”
“Really? If I drink this, I can act normally?!”
“Of course! I guarantee it.”
With his confidence, Elise carefully accepted the bottle and downed it in one go.
The flavor was a sweet strawberry and cream drink.
“Wow…! I feel so at ease!”
“That’s because I used special ingredients. You’re all set now, right?”
“Yup! Totally! Thanks, Ken! I’m so glad I asked you!”
“As long as you’re not nervous, the date will go smoothly, so just enjoy it.”
“Really, thank you! I’ll definitely repay this favor!”
With a bright smile, Elise turned back towards the fountain.
‘She drank it without a second thought.’
Of course, that potion was a scam.
A special strawberry cream drink from Raphne.
Ken, who hadn’t leveled his alchemy skills much, definitely couldn’t make a potion that relaxes someone.
But in the game, Elise was the kind of person who easily believed in others and was easily fooled.
So, he was aiming for a placebo effect.
After all, sweet flavors tend to ease tension and uplift moods.
With the comforting strawberry drink in her, Elise walked confidently towards Siegfried.
“Alright, let’s go, Zieg! I’m super excited for the flower viewing today!”
“Yeah, I’m sure you’ll love it too.”
Elise took Siegfried’s hand.
They held hands more than occasionally, but today, she wouldn’t let go. They walked together, just like lovers.
‘That stuff Ken gave me is amazing! I can do things like this without a second thought…!’
With deep gratitude towards the underclassman who helped her, Elise actively approached Siegfried.
She was the type who got easily tricked.
“Wait, what? Elise-senpai is… walking with Siegfried?!”
“Ken is just watching from the outside.”
“…No way!”
Inside the café, three women hiding saw what was happening.
With an enlightened look, Raphne lowered her sunglasses and spoke in shock.
“Could it be… Ken gets excited watching his girl with another guy…?!”
Some men enjoy seeing their girl roll around with another guy.
Not knowing such preferences, Emily blushed and vocally disagreed.
“T-There’s no way someone like that exists!”
“Sure! I read it in a novel! Some men get excited by that sort of thing!”
“No way! Ken can’t possibly have that kind of preference…”
“Oh yeah! He said yesterday he likes dependable girls…”
Mary and Emily looked skeptical at Raphne’s opinion, but Raphne stood firm.
“Right, I felt something was off!”
It felt like the puzzle pieces were slowly coming together.
After all, Ken never easily gave in to her seductions when they were on the Tower.
If watching her with another man was his preference, everything lined up perfectly.
So, Raphne continued to argue.
“That’s something we might’ve misheard from afar! …Imagine how he’d feel seeing that girl from the Tower on a date with another man…!”
“…….”
“…….”
After Raphne’s comment, the three fell into silence. And the one to break it was Emily.
“No, even if so, that can’t be true!”
Thinking deeply, Raphne’s theory seemed too exaggerated.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, anyone can see that’s a date between Elise and Siegfried.”
“Then why is Ken sitting there?! Why is he watching this? Does he have feelings for her…?”
With Raphne’s confused queries, Emily, having regained her composure, responded.
“Maybe it’s because Elise-senpai was consulting Ken about love yesterday?”
“…Oh, I see.”
Raphne’s doubts loosened as she validated Emily’s calm perspective.
‘Thank goodness…’
If Ken had such a preference, she wouldn’t know what to do.
Relieved, Raphne took a sip of her smoothie through the straw.
Then suddenly, Mary spoke.
“By the way… what’s the deal between you and Ken?”
Now aware that Ken and Elise weren’t on a date, Mary nervously asked the question that had been bothering her.
Emily, too, felt tense, curiously eyeing Raphne’s reaction.
She was equally concerned since Raphne had suddenly appeared and searched for Ken while crying during the previous Survival Contest.
Then shortly after, she returned to the Academy, sticking closely to Ken.
“Um, well…”
Feeling both their intense stares, Raphne slightly flinched and began to recount her experiences from the past year.
“Wait, so you didn’t talk to anyone for a year?! You were all alone…?!”
“That must have been… tough.”
She told them the story of being trapped in the Tower for a year due to a curse, and how Ken found her afterward and took care of her.
Finally, she explained how Ken made her a pendant, freeing her from the curse.
Upon hearing about the pendant, Mary caressed her raincoat.
‘…So, Raphne also… got saved by Ken.’
Mary, recalling how she trembled alone during rainy days due to trauma, deeply empathized with Raphne’s feelings.
Emily, reflecting on her experience trapped in a death loop for a week, held Raphne’s hand.
“…That must have been so tough, right?”
“W-What?”
“I’m so sorry, I had no idea back during the Survival Contest, I thought you were threatening Ken… ugh.”
“I’m sorry too for attacking you so suddenly back then.”
“Huuh?!”
With tears brimming in Emily’s eyes and Mary gazing at her with a sad expression, Raphne felt flustered as both women clasped her hands.
‘It’s been a while since I felt like this…’
The warmth that she hadn’t felt from anyone but Ken washed over her.
Both women shared warmth since they had both received favors from Ken.
“I’ll help you with anything in the future too, okay? …Hey, wanna have some cake?”
“I’ll help too! Ken’s friends are my friends too!”
Mary offered her cake, while Emily gently patted Raphne’s head.
‘So sweet…!’
Raphne felt touched by their reactions.
“I feel like I really get along with you two.”
Taking a bite of the cake offered by Emily, Raphne smiled brightly and enjoyed their sweet gestures.
As the three connected and shared a warm atmosphere, it suddenly shifted.
“Oh, Ken is coming in.”
Seeing Ken rise from the external table with his drink, Raphne exclaimed.
“Wait, w-wait! Shouldn’t we hide?!”
“Huh? Why? We can just greet him.”
“No matter how you look at it, it seems suspicious! If we get caught, it’ll be bad!”
Pushed by Emily’s urgency, the three held up the café’s menu to cover their faces.
‘This might work.’
Elise and Siegfried strolled leisurely down the flower path.
As they walked hand in hand, seeming blissful, Ken watching them from the outdoor table felt that the date was going just fine.
‘…Should I have brought Raphne along?’
Remembering Raphne stuck in the Tower, he hesitated.
He thought honestly telling her about Elise’s consultation wouldn’t seem that odd.
Plus, today was the day when those lovely flowers bloomed magnificently.
He wanted to do something nice for Raphne, who usually only stayed in the Tower after finally coming outside.
‘Should I go get her now?’
Just then, I decided to stand up.
It was still noon.
Raphne must’ve just had lunch, so a simple flower stroll would surely make her happy.
Imagining her smiling while walking through the flower field, a smile crept onto my face.
As I entered the café to return my drink, suddenly—
“…Huh?”
I caught sight of a familiar silhouette.
Yellow, red, and blue.
Like traffic lights, the trio with their head colors buried in the menu looked like Emily, Raphne, and Mary.
Staring blankly at them, the red traffic light gradually lifted her head.
With the same sunglasses I was wearing to secretly watch Elise, Raphne met my gaze as she slightly smiled and waved her hand.
“W-What are you doing?! Stay still!”
Just then, the yellow traffic light hurriedly grabbed Raphne’s hand to bring it down.
Raphne buried her face back into the menu.
“What’s everyone doing?”
As I curiously called out to them, both jumped and flinched.
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