Chapter 5

“But what kind of appointment did we… have, exactly?”

“……”

I raised one eyebrow.

I could understand someone being so distracted by debt that they had trouble thinking straight, but this was a bit much.

“Even so, this is a blind date. You’re being rather rude.”

“Hmm, a blind date?”

Kai rolled the word blind date around in his mouth, stroking his chin as he chuckled.

“How amusing. A blind date, you say?”

He looked me up and down.

“You’re Regina von Eisenbach, aren’t you? I can tell from your appearance and the way you speak.”

“…?”

I tilted my head.

Surely the other party would have been given information about me before the blind date. Why was he acting as though he had only just figured out who I was?

This man really does seem to be missing a screw or two.

I picked up my teacup and came to that conclusion.

Still, I wasn’t particularly displeased.

Most men were frightened as soon as they heard my name or met my eyes.

They were too busy stumbling backward at the sight of the shadow of the Black Reaper looming behind me to do anything else.

But this man was different.

He wasn’t afraid of me at all.

If anything, he seemed to enjoy my stiff manner of speaking and my stern attitude.

Someone with this much nerve isn’t a bad choice.

Perhaps this blind date might actually succeed after all.

I was just about to begin a proper conversation with him when—

Creeeak.

I heard something scraping outside the window.

The sound was extremely faint, but mixed in with it were the footsteps of dozens of people.

Kai’s expression changed.

His relaxed smile vanished, replaced by a trace of concern.

“Oh dear.”

He rose from his seat.

“They’re getting close. Their noses really are something else.”

“Who is?”

“My creditors. They’ve shown up sooner than I expected.”

He shrugged and looked at me regretfully.

“What should I do? I’m afraid our blind date will have to end here because of my creditors.”

He raised a hand as though bidding me farewell.

“I had fun, Regina. Perhaps if we get another chance…”

“Wait.”

I stood up and cut him off.

He turned to look at me, puzzled.

“You’re going to give up on our blind date just because of a few creditors?”

“…What?”

“If they drag you away, my blind date will have failed yet again. I won’t stand for that.”

Having made up my mind, I approached him.

If I let him leave now, another failure would be added to my blind-date record.

Men who weren’t afraid of me were rare.

I couldn’t afford to let this scrawny runt slip away.

“I’ll help you lose them.”

“You will?”

“That’s right. Reconnaissance and concealment are basic skills on the battlefield. Come here.”

I grabbed the tablecloth and yanked it violently.

The teacups on top crashed to the floor, but I paid them no attention.

I threw the white tablecloth over Kai’s head and tied it tightly around his neck.

“W-Wait a moment! What in the world are you doing…?!”

“Be quiet. It’s a disguise.”

He looked like a ghost or a traveling peddler carrying a bundle of goods, but it was better than letting his gleaming golden hair give him away.

Without hesitation, I flung the window open.

Looking outside, I saw red uniforms converging on the café entrance.

As expected, creditors always started by blocking the exits.

“Hold on tight.”

“Where?”

“My neck.”

I didn’t give him time to ask anything else. I hooked one arm around his waist.

Then I planted a foot on the window frame and leaped upward.

“Gah?!”

A startled gasp escaped Kai’s mouth.

I pulled him firmly toward me, making him leap along with me.

Tap!

We landed lightly.

But I didn’t stop.

To get out of our pursuers’ sight, we needed to go higher.

“Be careful not to bite your tongue!”

I pushed off the ground again.

Our next destination was the rooftop of the building across the street.

It was a distance that an ordinary person wouldn’t even dream of attempting, but to me, it was nothing unusual.

Whoosh—

Our bodies rose into the air.

I could feel Kai’s body stiffening in my arms.

Crash!

We landed by rolling across the rooftop.

“Haa… haa…”

Covered in dust, I raised my head.

Fortunately, our pursuers were still milling about in confusion down on the street.

“Are you all right?”

I examined Kai’s face as I held him in my arms.

The tablecloth had come loose, revealing his disheveled golden hair.

I had worried that he might have fainted from the shock, but—

“…Haha.”

He was laughing.

It wasn’t the laughter of someone overcome with fear.

His golden eyes sparkled with excitement, and pure, childlike delight spread across his face.

“Ha ha ha! Amazing! Did you see that just now? We lost those guys down there in an instant!”

He grabbed my shoulders and shook me, shouting excitedly.

“One more time! Can we jump one more time? What about that clock tower over there?”

“……”

I stared at him blankly.

Rather than being frightened in this situation, he was enjoying himself like a child at an amusement park.

There’s definitely something wrong with this man.

And yet, I didn’t dislike his smile.

No, if anything, I felt my heart beating a little faster.

“If that’s what you want.”

I gave a small, amused smile and adjusted my hold on him.

“Hold on tight. We’re going even higher this time.”

I wrapped my arm around Kai’s waist again, bent my knees, and sprang upward with all my strength.

“Waaaaah!”

Kai let out a cry that could have been either a scream or a cheer.

The wind slapped against our ears, and the capital’s scenery danced beneath our feet.

I leaped from rooftop to rooftop, soaring toward the highest point in the city: the enormous clock tower, from which the entire capital could be seen at a glance.

Tap. Tap-tap.

After several leaps, I caught hold of the clock tower’s railing and landed smoothly on the rooftop terrace.

This was a restricted area that no one could enter except the clock tower’s caretaker.

Besides, the caretaker was probably dozing off on the first floor, which meant this place was practically a perfectly sealed room.

“Phew.”

I breathed heavily and lowered Kai to the ground.

Sweat had gathered on my forehead, but I felt refreshed.

Kai staggered as he stood, gripping the railing for support.

For a while, he couldn’t say a word. He simply stared blankly at the magnificent view of the capital spread out beneath him.

The wind tousled his golden hair.

An expression different from his earlier, playful excitement briefly crossed his face.

It was an overwhelming sense of liberation.

“…Haha.”

A breathy laugh escaped Kai’s lips.

Then his legs seemed to give way, and he plopped down onto the ground.

The cold stone beneath him seemed to feel pleasantly refreshing, judging by his satisfied expression.

“That’s incredible, Regina.”

He murmured as he gazed up at the sky.

“I’ve… never felt anything like this before.”

His eyes shimmered strangely in the light of the setting sun.

I watched him quietly.

Was escaping from creditors really something to be this happy about?

Kai and I stayed there for quite a long time.

The lights of the capital were scattered below us like stars, and the night breeze was cool and gentle, unlike the harsh winds of the battlefield.

Despite being fugitives on the run, we leisurely asked each other all sorts of trivial questions.

What was our favorite food? (He said he liked sweet desserts.)

What did we dislike? (He answered that it was mountains of paperwork.)

Who would have thought that a conversation meant for a formal tea room would instead take place at the top of a clock tower, where we’d fled to escape creditors, sitting on a dusty railing?

The whole situation was bizarre.

And yet, strangely enough, the cold stone beneath us felt far more comfortable than the velvet sofa in that luxurious café.

Perhaps it was because the man sitting beside me saw me not as a war demon or a killing machine, but simply as someone to talk to.

Clunk, clunk.

The sound of enormous gears meshing and turning grew louder from the floor below.

Then I faintly heard the caretaker’s heavy footsteps.

It was the sound of our magical moment coming to an end.