Ch.166Epilogue: Forever (2)

“I’ve already proposed marriage, but I should prepare the actual proposal without them knowing, right?”

“Yes, yes, that’s right!”

Before I knew it, I was discussing proposal methods with Cherry.

Actually, I was more advanced in that area than Cherry, and that’s probably why Cherry came to me for advice, but unfortunately, I was also in the middle of worrying about the same thing.

In this world, I had no one to ask about these things. There were seniors from the same orphanage, but we didn’t really keep in touch. It felt a bit awkward to ask for proposal ideas from people I only occasionally checked were still alive.

Besides, the proposal I was planning was much more… how should I put it, unusual than a typical proposal.

“By the way, how do Squeakeans usually propose? You know, like how Earth people have that image of giving rings.”

“We make necklaces.”

Makes sense. Their hands are too small for rings. Given the limited range of finger movement, wearing rings would probably feel quite uncomfortable.

“Hmm… other than that, it’s probably similar. Just like Earth people have romance dramas and movies, we have similar things. Going to a romantic restaurant and proposing in a romantic atmosphere.”

“But doing it so openly might be a bit… cringeworthy, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, yeah, I think so too. Some people say they’d be too embarrassed to receive a proposal like that.”

And similarly, my proposal was a bit different from others’. After all, I was proposing to three people at once. Proposing to three people simultaneously at an expensive restaurant was, well…

Perfect material for a news article.

“…Alright. First, I need to buy rings. Cherry, you need a necklace too, right?”

“Huh? Yeah, I do.”

“Then would you like to go shopping together?”

“Really?”

Cherry’s face brightened at my question.

Honestly, if I were marrying just one person, I wouldn’t have needed to recruit a companion and would have just gone to choose a ring by myself. After living with them for quite a while, I knew their tastes well enough.

But, well…

Asking, ‘I’m thinking of getting matching couple rings, can you make four with the same design?’ is, um.

Even for someone as thick-skinned as me, that’s a bit much.

“Great, great!”

Cherry exclaimed, flying up and down in the room on the UFO.

I guess Squeakeans would feel a bit anxious doing things on Earth. They weren’t a very common species on Earth, and many Earth people, unlike me, didn’t treat Squeakeans as equals.

As we were both happy to have found someone to ease our anxieties—

Knock knock.

There was a knock at the door.

“Hey, Jieun?”

Hayun’s voice came from beyond the door.

“Yes?”

I answered reflexively.

I glanced at Cherry. Cherry quickly nodded, waved at me, and flew out the window.

Right after that, our door opened.

Oh, right. I haven’t finished tidying up yet.

But Hayun didn’t get angry at the sight. She just looked around the room with wide eyes and asked,

“Was someone in the room?”

“Oh, I just got a phone call.”

After briefly considering whether I should tell Hayun about Cherry, I just answered like that.

The fact that Cherry came to see me secretly meant that Cherry also wanted to keep the proposal as secret as possible. If I had to choose, Cherry was actually closer to Hayun than to me.

“Hmm, I see… Need help?”

“I’m… sorry.”

“No, it happens when you’re on the phone.”

Hayun smiled at my response and helped me organize my things.

She seems to be in a really good mood.

I thought, I hope it’s because of our trip.

*

Some time later.

After consulting with Cherry, we went to a place that seemed as impressive as possible for getting rings made.

More precisely, a place that would thoroughly keep customers’ secrets.

In other words, we went to an expensive place.

And once we got there, I suddenly got scared.

I had some money saved up, and if the magical girl work continued, the income would be steady for a while. The kids who would live with me weren’t the type to not save money, so if we all worked hard together, we could live quite comfortably.

But still, was it okay to suddenly spend all the money I had saved? Even if I didn’t spend all of it, four rings would definitely be extremely expensive. Especially at a place that offered this kind of service.

Isn’t it a bit much to rack up a huge credit card debt before even getting married?

“Jieun, what’s wrong?”

Cherry, who was looking for a necklace, asked as I was lost in thought.

Since it was difficult to find a necklace suitable for a hamster-sized alien, Cherry was looking at accessories that would be bracelets for Earth people. With the right size adjustment, they could be used even for someone of Cherry’s size.

“No, it’s just…”

I hesitated a bit and looked around.

There were no other customers around… It seemed that from the moment I made the reservation under my name, this was how the appointment was set up.

When they said reservation, I thought they were just booking a staff member to recommend rings, but I didn’t expect this kind of private service.

Well, how should I put it.

The service was nice, but as someone from a humble background who wasn’t used to such things, I felt a bit bewildered. It felt like if I left without buying anything, I would have wasted their service.

Cherry, who came with me, didn’t seem to notice my concern and just tilted her head, but the staff member quickly caught on to my dilemma.

“Ma’am.”

The staff member approached me and spoke politely.

“Yes?”

“I was wondering if you might be interested in a promotion.”

“Pro…motion?”

“Yes, we have a promotion for distinguished clients like yourself.”

“…What kind of promotion?”

“Well, if I may.”

The staff member politely said, then took out a phone, searched for something, and showed it to me.

It was a photo.

A photo of me walking arm in arm with Hayun.

Hayun was beautiful, and I wasn’t bad-looking either, so the image of us walking together looked like a naturally taken fashion photo.

…Since neither Hayun nor I had intentionally taken such a photo, this must have been secretly taken by paparazzi.

“As someone with worldwide fame, we would like to provide the rings directly to you. You said you were looking for wedding rings, right?”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

“Since wedding rings are something you’ll use continuously, it would be an opportunity for our products to be directly recognized. While it’s effective when we give them to celebrities or other public figures, the advertising effect from heroes is often tremendous as well.”

…I’m planning to marry three people, would that still create a good image?

No, thinking about it again, the advertising effect might be quadrupled. If anything, the fact that all four of us are getting married together would make headlines for various reasons.

And no matter how much I try to hide that fact, I won’t be able to. It seems no one took photos of us at the resort and passed them to reporters, but I can’t stop that rumor from spreading.

“Jieun.”

But as I was seriously considering the promotion offer, Cherry called out to me.

When I turned around, Cherry was looking at me with quite a serious expression.

Seeing Cherry’s serious face, I came to my senses a bit.

Right, no matter what, becoming a walking advertisement before even getting married feels a bit wrong.

I didn’t want to ruin the moment of secretly proposing and preparing for the wedding without others knowing.

“…I’ll think about it.”

“I hope you’ll consider it positively.”

Fortunately, the staff member didn’t seem to blame me even though I didn’t buy anything.

*

“…”

“It’s taking quite a while.”

Three magical girls were sitting by the window of a cafe on the fourth floor of a building with a clear view of the hotel that Jieun and Cherry had entered.

Of course, they weren’t in their magical girl outfits. There was no need to transform for something like this.

“Could it be rings after all?”

Jihye asked, sounding a bit excited.

“It must be rings.”

Ju-a answered neatly.

Ju-a knew well about that jewelry shop in the hotel. It was literally “famous” among celebrities.

If anything, entering that place could raise more suspicion.

Of course, that doesn’t mean articles would be written about it. The brand itself regularly advertised in newspapers.

“Is… is it okay for us to follow them like this?”

When Hayun spoke nervously, Jihye and Ju-a both fell silent.

“…”

In truth, none of them could quite convince themselves it was “okay.”

But after Hayun heard what she did outside the door that day, all three found it difficult to just quietly wait.

After all, it was a “proposal.”

Whether man or woman, when someone is preparing something like that—naturally, it catches your attention.

“…”

In the end, despite feeling a bit guilty, the three didn’t leave their seats.

Jieun and Cherry came out of the hotel building much later.

Jieun was covering her face with a cap, and Cherry was inside a bag that Jieun carried on her side—

They were really sorry for the two, but honestly, it was a very conspicuous appearance.

Seeing the two heading elsewhere, Hayun, Jihye, and Ju-a quickly got up from their seats.