Ch.227227. A Wish in the Snowy Winter (1)

At the mention of wishes, the silver rabbit’s eyes began to sparkle.

The guide looked at me and Renias with a pleased expression, then carefully whispered something into Renias’s ear alone.

‘Haha… there’s really no need to whisper like that.’

I already heard about this from Charlotte.

The content was about participating in the Real Winter Parade to release your inner heat, and then toward the end of the festival, there would be a time to make wishes that would come true if it snowed this winter.

Well, that’s kind of superstitious too, isn’t it? Not that I minded.

But… what’s this?

Renias seems to have stiffened after receiving the information.

And why is the person who whispered it now looking at me with crescent-shaped eyes…?

Oh. Now they’re drawing various maps on the pamphlet.

In the meantime, I glanced at Renias, and her demeanor really did seem different.

Did they tell her something else…? Nah, it must be my imagination…?

***

I’d heard about snowy winters in the Empire before, but this was the first time I’d heard about the wish-making tradition.

It was interesting to hear such an unfamiliar story.

A winter full of pure white snow and a parade. Now we were reaching the end of that story.

“When you enjoy the Real Winter Parade, the heat inside your body escapes, right? Then there must be something to fill that empty space, don’t you think?”

What fills the escaped heat is, apparently, a person’s wish.

“And whether that wish comes true or not is determined by whether it snows or not!”

“Woooow.”

It was such a delightful story that it made my eyes sparkle.

I couldn’t help but be tempted by the promise of granted wishes.

But then the guide called me over privately, saying there was more to the story, and carefully began to whisper.

“This is a secret. What do you think is the most commonly granted wish at this parade?”

“Umm… better grades or reconciliation with someone you’ve fought with? Hehe.”

“My, Renias, you prefer rather modest wishes, I see.”

“Hehe… that’s right. I didn’t even expect to enjoy the parade. So I don’t know what I’ll wish for later. I’ve never really wanted anything grand.”

Surprised by this unexpected innocence, the guide nodded approvingly, seeming pleased as if understanding why I was called a jewel of the academy.

“Most people would wish for great wealth, honor, or big rewards for their achievements. But actually, those rarely come true. The wishes that most often come true are completely different.”

“Different… hmm. What could they be?”

What kind of wishes were most often granted?

I was extremely curious, perking up my ears attentively.

“The most commonly granted wishes here are in the field of male-female relationships. In other words, romance!”

“Eh?”

Upon hearing that romance was the most commonly granted wish, Renias’s mind went blank.

As her mind blanked, a familiar heat began to rise in her body, and she felt herself growing stiff.

The staff member continued with a pleased expression, adding fuel to the fire.

“Most frequently, couples who attend the parade together end up becoming lovers or getting engaged. Marriage naturally follows.”

Lovers? Engagement? And… marriage?

Hearing such things… was pushing her to her limit.

While her body was already heating up, another comment added a different kind of fire—one that burned in the opposite direction of the current heat.

“Hold on tight, Renias. As someone who received a medal of honor from the Grand Duke in the principality, you must be targeted by many women!”

It was a counterfire.

The silver rabbit had been diligently following Senia’s instructions, enduring her embarrassment, but this time her self-preservation took precedence.

Many women?

Targeting?

Her senior?

‘Absolutely not…!’

As Maria’s advice to eliminate competition due to his obvious popularity resurfaced in her mind, a fiery light kindled in the silver rabbit’s eyes.

The senior watching from behind tilted his head momentarily in confusion, but he wouldn’t have noticed.

The crescent-eyed staff member was smiling contentedly at Renias, whose cheeks were now puffed out.

“Here, take this pamphlet! Enjoy yourselves until all the heat in your body escapes~.”

Someone had drawn a date course like a map on the pamphlet, and now it was time for the two of them to properly enjoy the festival.

But the silver rabbit had changed—so dramatically that one could divide her into before and after hearing this story.

“Ho- ho-.”

Blowing warm breath into her hands as if cold in the chilly weather, she had made some kind of resolution.

The embarrassed heat that had risen in her body was replaced by a completely different spark, transforming the silver rabbit into a person.

No. It would be more accurate to say she had transformed into a woman.

***

Renias was blowing warm breath into her hands and rubbing them together.

Watching her, Junon felt a strange sense of guilt.

In such chilly weather, to have torn her stockings… he couldn’t help but feel responsible.

“Are you very cold?”

“Huh? Oh… I’m fine! It’s not unbearable.”

Renias answered with a smile, saying she was okay. This only deepened his guilt.

Unfortunately, to buy new stockings, they would have to go all the way back to the shopping district. That would mean getting trapped in the crowd again, making it practically impossible to return.

“I’m sorry. I made a fuss, and now you’re the only one who’s cold.”

“Hehe. Well… I was the one who insisted on seeing the parade.”

But despite her words, she kept blowing warm breath into her hands, clearly quite cold.

“Stay still for a moment.”

“Huh? Why stay still… oh?”

“This should make you less cold.”

“Senior… heehee, thank you.”

“No need to thank me. I’m not that cold anyway. Besides, you were once pushed around by nobles and couldn’t properly enjoy festivals. You should have a great time at this parade, but I can’t do much more than this.”

At the very least, she shouldn’t have to go home shivering from the cold.

Junon took off his coat and wrapped it around Renias’s waist, where her bare legs were exposed.

Somehow, it reminded him of what happened at the beach after the faction battle celebration.

Renias blushed shyly and said:

“Um… Senior. I am cold, actually. But… there’s a way I could be less cold…”

“What is it?”

Her fingers fidgeted as she swallowed hard before continuing.

“Earlier, when you held my waist… I wasn’t cold.”

“Uh…?”

That was because he had been worried about her falling in the crowd, but thinking about it differently, their sides had been pressed together, creating warmth.

Hold her waist with one arm like before.

If that was her suggested method, he had to ask:

“Would that be okay?”

“What… do you mean?”

“You were startled because of me earlier and even got hiccups. It might make you uncomfortable.”

“N-no. It wasn’t uncomfortable.”

Then, in a tiny voice:

“It was actually… nice and warm.”

She stated it plainly.

Since Renias had taken the courage to speak up, Junon wanted to respond in kind, carefully positioning himself beside her.

Carefully. Very carefully.

He extended one arm and wrapped it around Renias’s waist.

Why was he so nervous about simply pulling her close? He had done it easily before, but now he was awkward and hesitant.

Well… there was a precedent, after all.

“Is this… okay?”

“Yes… but…”

Wondering if something was wrong, he turned his gaze to Renias and noticed his own arm had stiffened without him realizing it.

Moreover, it seemed like the wind could easily slip through their sides.

It made sense that Renias looked like she had something to say.

‘This won’t do. She can’t be cold.’

His tense arm adjusted its position, and finally their sides pressed firmly together.

“Shall we go now, Renias?”

“Heehee. Yes.”

Walking down the street with their sides pressed together, even the somewhat chilly winter didn’t feel so cold.

However, there were things Junon failed to notice:

That Renias’s side was warmer than his own,

‘Hee, heehee. Senior is holding me! What do I do…!’

That this was part of the silver rabbit’s plan, guided by the one-hit expert Senia’s advice, and,

“Good work.”

“It was nothing. I just did what I was told, Chief. But my goodness, look at them! Don’t they match perfectly? The date course seems perfect too. Thumbs up to Aris!”

“That’s what they say, big sister Aris. Hehe.”

“Th-thank you for the praise. Thanks, Charlotte. But… it’s nothing special…”

“Nothing special? You planned it well for them to stick together. They were wandering around, having never been here before. If things had gone wrong, they would have been pushed around by the crowd.”

That this scene was intentionally created through the hands of Senia, Charlotte, Aris, and the guide.

The three of them couldn’t stop smiling as they watched Renias, who was always full of shyness and timidity, charging straight toward Junon.

But this wasn’t bad for Renias and Junon either.

Junon found a way to help Renias properly enjoy the festival, and Renias finally became honest with her budding feelings, sticking close to the person she liked and savoring the sweet time.

It was a win-win situation.

“I suppose if it doesn’t snow this winter, we’ll have to make it happen somehow?”

At this point, they might need to forcibly grant the snowy winter wish.

The three people praying for the birth of a couple were in complete agreement.