Chapter 6
“Oh dear. I really have to go now, Regina.”
Kai rose to his feet, brushing the dust off his knees.
There was a hint of regret in his voice.
I stood up after him, hesitating for a moment.
This was the first blind date in my entire life that hadn’t ended with the other person running away or fainting.
How was I supposed to wrap things up in a situation like this?
Should I employ the strategy of cutting off the enemy’s retreat, or perhaps the tactic of anticipating the next engagement?
I was racking my brain over what people called asking for a second date when—
“If you don’t mind…”
Kai spoke first.
With the moonlight of the now-darkened sky behind him, his golden eyes curved gently.
“I’d like to arrange another meeting with you, Regina. Even though I’m hardly a suitable partner for you.”
There was a hint of self-deprecating humor at the end of his words.
He was probably referring to his own circumstances.
I tilted my head.
“Just because you have debts doesn’t mean I consider you unsuitable. There are many things in this world that can’t be helped. I’m sure you have your own unavoidable circumstances.”
At my earnest attempt to comfort him, Kai stared at me blankly for a moment before bursting into bright laughter.
“Haha! About those debts…”
“Next time, I’d like us to go see a play together.”
Kai opened his mouth as though he wanted to explain something, but our words overlapped.
“A play? Do you mean an opera?”
Kai, who had been about to talk about his debts, stopped and widened his eyes.
At his reaction, I awkwardly scratched my cheek with my index finger.
“I heard that the nobles in the capital purchase private boxes at the opera house. But the Eisenbachs haven’t been in the capital for very long, and…”
My voice trailed off.
In fact, my father had belatedly gathered up a fortune and gone to the opera house to purchase a box.
However, he had returned with a waiting-list number of 150 after being told that there were no seats available.
It was only later, through Count Vener, that I learned this was a form of discrimination.
“…I don’t know much about that sort of thing, so we don’t have a private box.”
I added that as though it didn’t bother me in the slightest.
“But that doesn’t mean I don’t know a place where they put on good plays.”
At my words, Kai leaned forward with interest.
“Oh? And where might that be?”
“I’ll tell you later. I need to make some preparations first. It’s a secret.”
Kai’s eyes sparkled like a child’s.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“Then, about our next meeting…”
We settled on a date and time for our next rendezvous.
Just before we parted, Kai looked at me with a strangely solemn expression.
“Next time, I’ll make sure to arrive properly, Regina. Through the front door, not the window.”
“I’ll look forward to it. Now, let me escort you home.”
I held out my hand to see him off, but Kai waved it away.
“Home?”
“Of course. I heard it’s good manners.”
“Hahahaha! Escorting someone all the way home on the very first meeting? Isn’t that moving a little too fast?”
Kai burst into hearty laughter and spoke with a mischievous grin. I paused.
“Ah, I see. That might make you uncomfortable.”
After all, Kai probably knew more about these things than I did, having spent my life rolling around on battlefields.
With that thought, I readily backed down.
“Then go carefully. I’ve confirmed that all signs of our pursuers have disappeared.”
“Right. I had a wonderful time today.”
Still smiling, Kai waved at me before descending the clock tower.
I remained by the railing for a long time, standing there until his presence had completely vanished.
The moment I returned to the mansion, my father and older brother sprang out from behind the entrance pillars, where they had been lying in ambush.
“Regina! You’re back!”
“How did it go? Did that fellow faint as soon as he met you? Or did he run away?”
The two of them bombarded me with questions, studying my expression.
In their eyes, resignation that this one must have failed too coexisted with anger that how dare some man treat our daughter this way?
“As expected, rather than a frail fellow drowning in debt, we should find you someone else…”
“Father, bring me that list again. I’ll immediately—”
“No.”
I answered calmly as I took off my shoes.
“It went well.”
“…Huh?”
“W-What did you say?”
My father and older brother’s mouths fell open at the same time.
They looked as though their jaws were about to drop to the floor, like people who had just heard that a monster had performed a ballet.
Leaving them frozen behind me, I hurried up the stairs.
“I’m tired, so I’ll retire for the night.”
However, even after entering my room, washing up, and lying down in bed, I couldn’t fall asleep easily.
As I stared at the dark ceiling, a pair of golden eyes that had sparkled in the sunlight kept appearing in my mind.
I’ve spent my entire life fighting on battlefields, so I’ve never had a relationship with a man before…
Kai. That man.
The man who wasn’t afraid of me, who didn’t mock my rough mannerisms, and who had laughed alongside me as we raced across the rooftops.
Somehow… I have a good feeling about him.
I buried my face in my pillow.
Normally, this would have been the time when I fell into nightmares reeking of blood.
But tonight, I had a feeling I would have a pleasant dream instead.
The next morning.
I woke up earlier than usual and finished getting ready.
Today, instead of my training clothes, I wore comfortable clothes suitable for going out.
My destination wasn’t the capital’s glamorous city center, but Tonyachi, an artists’ district connected to the back alleys.
Tonyachi was where the capital’s misfits gathered.
It was a street lined with impoverished painters who couldn’t secure noble patronage, street musicians, and bizarre sculptures.
Unlike the well-maintained main roads, the ground here was uneven, and mysterious murals covered the walls.
I pushed through the crowds and headed deeper into the district.
The sounds of musical instruments coming from all directions assaulted my ears, while the smells of paint and cheap wine stung my nose.
I spotted a man repairing puppets in front of an old, worn-out cart and approached him.
“Hey, puppet master.”
At my call, the puppet master, who wore a shabby coat over his disheveled hair, turned around in surprise.
The moment he saw me, he flinched and took a step backward.
Even though I was wearing ordinary clothes, he seemed to have sensed the smell of blood and the killing intent ingrained in my body.
Artists tended to have sharp instincts, after all.
“…W-Who are you?”
He asked in a trembling voice.
“I’d like to commission something.”
I got straight to the point.
“I want to commission a private performance for myself and my… hm, my companion.”
The puppet master widened his eyes and looked me up and down.
Apparently, the idea of someone suddenly appearing out of nowhere to commission a puppet show seemed completely incompatible with my appearance.
“I-I’m just a street puppet master, you see? The quality might be a little… lacking for a noble lady like yourself…”
“You have that one in your repertoire, don’t you?”
I pointed to a dusty puppet shoved into the corner of his cart.
It was a knight wearing armor, but one of its arms had been broken off.
The Last Knight’s Dance.
At those words, the puppet master’s face turned pale with shock.
“H-Huh?! That one… I only performed it once, as a rehearsal, early one morning… How did you know about it?”
“On my first day in the capital, I couldn’t sleep, so I went for a walk. By chance, I saw you rehearsing in a secluded corner.”
That early morning, I had witnessed him moving his puppets alone in this very district, crying as he performed.
It wasn’t flashy or romantic.
But it was special.
It would be a wonderful play to watch with Kai.
Smiling, I took a thick pouch from inside my clothes.
The heavy jingle of gold coins rang out.
“I’ll rent an entire small theater somewhere in a corner of Tonyachi. Perform that show there. There will be exactly two audience members. I’ll pay you whatever you ask.”
The puppet master alternated his gaze between the pouch of gold coins and my face.
His expression was complicated, a mixture of delight, fear, and bewilderment.
“Um… excuse me, but is this a date?”
