| Author: Ash | Original Source: Syosetu | Word Count: 2580 characters |
| Translator: Mii | English Source: Re:Library | Word Count: 1138 words |
Anyway, I’m going to have a date. Nah, it’s a lie.
Uh, I wasn’t lying, but… I asked her to go on a date. It’s actually more like rehabilitation.
It’s important to monitor my condition in case the poison was something extremely harmful, but compared to my current situation where I couldn’t get out of the room, that kind of thing had a low priority for me.
That’s why I had to deal with this. Not being able to get out of the room because of severe depression would mess my life1… And so I went on a date; or more like forcefully trying to go outside when I was still motivated.
… On the first day, I went to the corridor and walked a little, but that was it. When I saw the butler walking from another end of the corridor, I couldn’t move my legs. I had the mentality of a bean curd…
I could go to the stairs on the second day, but I returned to the room after seeing a person down there. And I finally reached the entrance hall on the third day…! Can I go home already? Please?
Anyhow, it took me four days to get out of the mansion. Once I was outside, I should be able to manage somehow… or not. Seeing a person walking outside the gate made me completely lose my courage. I know I should do better since this concerns me. Wait, am I the one who’s putting effort into this? I’m not sure…
On the fifth day, I could finally get out of the gate.
After that, I dragged my feet toward the area with stalls lined up. Lily was holding my hands.
I tried my best to get close to the street, but my feet gave way at that moment… Arisa, who was watching the situation from a distance, came when I couldn’t move and held my other hand. She told me she would come with me. How could I say this? Hearing that made me loosen up… I could finally move my legs.
“I feel bad for Lily, but I’ll have to disturb your date. Sorry.”
“I don’t really mind? What about you, Ren?”
“I still feel uneasy… I can finally move my legs after having you two hold my hands. It’ll be encouraging if you come with me, and I’m grateful for it.”
“Then I’ll bother you. You won’t be able to be lovey-dovey now, though~”
“What’s with that?”
“… I told you I don’t mind!”
Lily puffed her cheeks and turned away… Lily definitely minds, right?… Ah, but Lily’s sulking expression was nostalgic. How cute…
Anyway, since I could come out to a place full of people now, let’s try walking around and have some fun! That’s how I went window shopping. You could also say we were browsing around the stalls.
But I had nothing I wanted to buy, and my original purpose was rehabilitation… What happened afterwards wasn’t so sweet.
You see… Everyone knew that girls took a long time when shopping. You know where this is going, right…?
I thought I should be fine since I was presently a girl, but I was too naïve. Yes, this was impossible for me. But since I was an adult man2, I wouldn’t lash out to them.
One hour passed in a blink of an eye. Right now, I had passed through my frustration and reached enlightenment. This made me feel like a bodhisattva!
However, I also had fun looking around and chatting together with them.
At first, I was afraid of other people’s gazes, but I was surprised at how quickly I started not to mind. Mental tolerance skills are too effective!… I thought so. But you know… I feel like I was just getting numb towards the pain in my heart rather than recovering from my PTSD…?
If I continue to rely on this skill, I had an unpleasant premonition that I would lose my humanity3… Huh? Maybe this was a backfiring skill?
… Let’s stop thinking too much about it. If I go further than this, I could sense myself falling in deep trouble. I had a premonition that I realized something I shouldn’t, but let’s not touch on this anymore. For the time being, it helped me right now.
That’s the story of me noticing a somewhat strange thing, then turning my eyes away from it as I continue browsing around the stalls.
But hmm… I think the accessories around here would suit Lily, but I didn’t like the design. Rather, I felt like it would be better if I made it on my own after I got home. In that case, it was also possible to bestow various things as self-defense.
Alright, let’s do that. I’ll make something to thank her for today.
After that, we kept walking around without buying anything. As we were snacking until lunchtime. We bought light meals and ate a little, but we weren’t full at all. That’s why we bought various meals from random food stalls in the square and sat side by side for lunch.
That’s what happened, but how could I say this… why were they selling hot dogs here?
“I heard a merchant who saw it trending in Harula imitated it. You can also find it being sold in other towns.”
Seriously?
But it was easy to make, so it made sense that anyone could imitate it right away. I guess it couldn’t be helped. I mean, I wouldn’t get into any trouble even if it got spread around like this. It’s not like I was doing hotdog business.
I noticed when looking around that the sauces differ, depending on the store that sells them. I could see why they did that, though. Other than changing the sandwiched sausage, not much could be improvised.
By the way, the hotdog sauce I was eating right now was… like a barbecue sauce, but it also tasted a bit different… It’s not like it didn’t fit, but it didn’t suit my tongue at all. Though it’s not like I couldn’t eat it.
After getting our stomach full, we moved a little and watched the theater. It was quite expensive, but Lily and Arisa paid for it as well.
Hey, I could pay for my share, okay? But when I tried to do that, they forcefully decided that the bill would be on them. Damn it, I’ll definitely thank them for this! Just remember it!
After such an exchange, the performance began. I forgot the title of it, but the content was related to the founding of this country.
It talked about how this country was originally built by a hero of a dragon slayer, but the details regarding it were a bit… I could see they dramatized it in various ways.
