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“Now that I look at it, are there more exhibitions here than there used to?” Lilo wondered.

The two of them had left the area of the park decorated with statues of past rulers, and were now in a section where several artworks were displayed.

“Hm, I can’t say for sure. You need permission from the country to display works of art here, so we might ask at the bureau later.”
“Right.”

Ruin and Lilo walked around, looking at the artworks and appraising them, making use of their sensibilities as nobles and royalty.

“This Myrmecoleon statue is well-made.”
“But it’s crude in some places… Alim could’ve done a lot better…”
“Well, that’s because she’s Alim.”

They looked at another artwork.

“I wonder what this is supposed to express.”
“…Hm~, happiness… maybe?”
“Alim could’ve done a lot better…”
“Well, that’s because she’s Alim.”

They kept looking at works of art, but their impressions repeatedly boiled down to “Alim could’ve done better.” They inadvertently broke into laughter.

“We’ve been influenced too much by her, haven’t we?” Lilo mused.
“Ha-ha, we have. It probably can’t be helped…” Ruin agreed. “After all, we met her before she got this ridiculously strong.”
“Such a precious memory…”

They both thought back to that day.

“…If she hadn’t been there back then… no, if she didn’t exist at all, what would have happened to us?” Lilo wondered.
“No clue. All we can do is be grateful.”
“You’re right.”

He looked at her face. She looked back at him. They each smiled.

“Want me to guess what you just thought, Ruin?”
“Heh-heh, I’m sure you know me well enough.”
“You were thinking, at some point, they’ll erect a bronze statue of Alim in this park… did I get it right?”
“Full marks.”

If fact, this had been under discussion for quite some time at this point, but the two of them didn’t know that. After chuckling for a while, they decided to move to another spot.

“…That sounds interesting.”
“I wonder what’s going on.”
“It might be a street performer making a living with music.”
“Oh, that makes sense.”

The two of them got closer to the supposed musician. It was quite the good performance and a crowd had formed. Only, the song ended right as they made it there.

“Thank you, thank you very much!”

“My, it’s already over,” Lilo commented in dejection.
“Nothing we can do about that…”

When the people were about to leave, the musician spoke up once more.

“With everyone so excited, I shall play another song. This one will be a love song.”

Ruin, Lilo, and most of the other people who’d been about to leave stopped in their tracks and turned their attention back on the musician. The song that then played truly seemed a perfect match for the couple’s mental state and feelings.

“Woah… somehow, I can’t put it into words, but it’s wonderful…!”
“Yes. I think it was a good call to go here for our date.”

Ruin unconsciously brought his hand close to Lilo’s again, which he had let go of earlier. She noticed and timidly took it. Then, the two of them temporarily got lost in their own world.

“-Thank you so much for listening.”

The musician bowed to the crowd.
There was clapping. The loud sound brought the couple back to reality.

“What just happened…?”
“…Is this what people mean by ‘getting lost in romantic feelings’?”
“I-I’m not sure. For now, we should give a proper tip.”

Ruin put several silver coins he had on hand into the musician’s wooden box and then stepped back. The performer would later become famous, though at this point, no one could guess that.

“I’m sure there are other interesting things around here,” Ruin mused.
“You’re right… Ah, it’s noon already, should we have lunch?”

A gaze at the clock showed that she was right. Ruin nodded.

“Let’s find a place… is there something you’d like to eat?”
“No, I’m fine with anything.”
“In that case… how about that one?”

Ruin was pointing at a chic café not far away, where you could see guests order sandwiches on the terrace.

“Sandwiches, huh…? Another of Alim’s boons.”
“The only ones getting close to her cooking are master chefs. But it’s also nice to eat sandwiches in a normal place every now and then, right?”
“Yeah.”

The two of them agreed on that, so they entered the restaurant and ordered plain sandwiches. Simple ones with just vegetables and ham.

“That reminds me, Ruin,” Lilo spoke up with slightly flushed cheeks while they were waiting for their order.
“Hm? What is it?”
“C-Can we go on another date in the future?”
“Sure, if that’s what you want, Lilo… We can pick any day we’re not busy.”
“I-In that case, how about I make lunch boxes the next time we go…? Though I never made those except for work.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I’m serious.”
“I see… I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Shortly later, their sandwiches arrived. Lilo did her best to commit the taste to memory, as a benchmark for what she had to overcome with her cooking.

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