Date? (3)

The current situation arose when Ethan took me outside the academy over the weekend to fulfill his reward for winning the spar against Harold.

Ethan had brought me out not as his exclusive maid, but as ‘Baronet Noble Lady Lilith’.

Since I wasn’t his maid for the day, I couldn’t use honorifics like “Young Master,” and of course, the usual extreme honorific expressions were also off-limits.

Thinking that way, the atmosphere somehow felt oddly similar to a date.

Once that thought crossed my mind, I began to feel slightly suspicious about Ethan’s true intentions for bringing me out.

‘…Could it be that he’s trying to create this vaguely date-like atmosphere to confess his feelings again like last time?’

Truthfully, I’d been sensing signs of Ethan’s peculiar feelings toward me for quite some time now.

After all, just a few months ago, he had already given off the vibe of trying to confess something similar.

Given his age, it was entirely possible for him to develop romantic feelings for a woman like Lilith, who was always by his side.

‘He knows full well that he’s the heir to the Blackwood Ducal Family, so he probably wouldn’t make the stupid choice of actually making me his fiancée.’

But that didn’t necessarily mean he’d given up on the idea of a fling.

The academy’s atmosphere was relatively liberal compared to the outside world, so there were plenty of examples of nobles and commoner students developing positive relationships in various ways.

So it wouldn’t be strange at all if he wanted to enjoy some carefree romance while still a student, even if he eventually chose someone else as his fiancée.

‘I think I might have agreed to this too hastily.’

Now that I was conscious of this being a date, I’d almost rather have him grope my chest-this was on a whole other level.

The awkwardness of this vaguely romantic atmosphere between a man and a woman was something I absolutely couldn’t stand.

Having my chest groped was something I could accept as a reward for Ethan’s efforts, but I still had reservations about becoming lovers.

It wasn’t that I thought Ethan was flawed as a man, but men simply weren’t romantic prospects for me.

‘It’d be great if Ethan felt the same way I do.’

But given that he’d given up even the chest he loved so much to ask for a day out, it seemed unlikely that things wouldn’t take a strange turn.

In that case, there was only one solution.

If the atmosphere started getting too pleasant, I’d have to find a way to break it and ensure he didn’t develop any romantic feelings for me.

With that thought in mind, I asked Ethan as naturally as possible about today’s plans.

I needed to know where we were going so I could prepare accordingly.

“Um, Ethan…?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, Lilith.”

“Why did you bring me out today as a noble lady instead of your maid?”

“…Even if you ask where we’re going, I didn’t really have a specific destination in mind.”

“Huh?”

“I just wanted to go outside the academy with Lilith as a normal noble lady. Until now, I’ve only ever seen you in a maid uniform or academy uniform.”

“……”

Ethan blushed shyly and hesitantly nodded.

For some reason, I almost got swept up in his mood for a moment.

Seriously, why did he have to look so normal while being like this…

With that thought, I awkwardly matched his pace as we walked through the shopping district of Knowledge Island, until Ethan slowly stopped in front of a store.

I quietly followed suit and paused beside him.

“First, let’s get you some new clothes.”

“Clothes? Didn’t you already pack plenty of spare outfits in the dorm?”

“Of course I’m not talking about my clothes-I mean yours, Lilith.”

“…My clothes?”

“Yeah. Looking at what you’re wearing now, I think you should change first.”

Puzzled by Ethan’s words, I took a moment to glance at what I was wearing.

It was just my usual, perfectly normal maid outfit, so I couldn’t help but question him again.

“It’s just a regular maid uniform, though?”

“Yeah, it’s normal for a maid, but it’s not exactly something a noble lady would wear.”

“…That’s true. But since today isn’t a school day, wearing the academy uniform would’ve been a bit odd too.”

“Right. So let’s buy some clothes first. You must be getting tired of only wearing the academy uniform and maid outfits, right?”

…I don’t really mind. Even if I had to keep wearing just the uniform and maid clothes.

But since I couldn’t refute his point about my outfit being unbefitting of a noble lady, I had no choice but to nod.

I did have basic common sense, after all.

Besides, it wouldn’t hurt to have at least one set of casual clothes for outings.

Since I was here today to fulfill Ethan’s “request,” refusing wasn’t an option from the start.

“Alright, Ethan. I was actually thinking I could use a casual outfit too.”

“Glad we’re on the same page, Lilith.”

“But this place looks a bit expensive, so maybe we should walk further toward the island entrance. It’s a little out of my budget…”

-Thump.

“…I’m buying, so stop worrying and just come in.”

“…Okay.”

Before I knew it, Ethan had grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the upscale-looking clothing store.

As soon as we entered, several well-dressed female employees approached to greet us.

“Welcome. How may we assist you today?”

“Oh, um, well…”

The store clerks didn’t bat an eye at the odd pairing of a noble scion and a maid entering together, immediately beginning their service.

While I hesitated over how to respond, Ethan smoothly answered for us.

“Prepare a few outfits that would suit this young lady. Preferably something that gives off a noble lady’s vibe.”

“Outfits befitting a noble lady for this young lady, correct? We’ll prepare them right away.”

With that, several employees approached with measuring tapes and began taking my measurements.

I quietly overheard them murmuring about my bust size.

“100, no-105 cm…”

“…We should have some larger sizes in the back. Let’s look there first.”

“Yes, yes…”

“……”

I pretended not to hear as the employees efficiently went about their work.

Less than two minutes after taking my measurements, one of them returned with a gothic-style dress that exuded noble elegance.

“Would you like to try this on first?”

“Ah, sure.”

…At least they had clothes that fit Lilith’s figure.

Well, Lilith was one of Luminor Academy’s heroines after all. It’d be strange if a game where dressing up heroines was part of the content didn’t have outfits for her.

With that thought, I changed into a black high-waisted dress in the fitting room and stepped out.

Since Ethan was buying it for me, I formally asked for his opinion.

“How do I look, Ethan?”

“……”

“Ethan?”

“Oh, uh, yeah… I-It looks great on you, Lilith…”

“Really?”

To me, the outfit felt more like something a noblewoman would wear than a young noble lady.

Well, noble ladies do grow up to become noblewomen, so Ethan’s comment about it suiting me wasn’t exactly a lie.

“Then it’s settled. No need to look around-I’ll just wear this…”

“Ah, miss!”

“Eek?!”

“P-Please try this one on too! It’ll definitely suit you as well!”

“Y-You must try this one too!”

“Huh? Okay…”

The clerks suddenly became much more enthusiastic, pushing new outfits toward me with eager eyes.

Flustered, I glanced at Ethan for help, but unfortunately, he sided with them instead of rescuing me.

“W-Well, maybe you should try them all on once, Lilith?”

“Huh?”

“…Who knows? There might be something that suits you even better.”

“…Alright, Ethan.”

Well, it was Ethan’s store choice, and since he was paying, I had no choice but to obediently comply.

Thus began an impromptu fashion show that lasted nearly thirty more minutes.

“How about this one, Ethan?”

“I-It’s pretty, but doesn’t it show off your figure a bit too much…?”

“Hmm, you think so?”

A midnight dress with a simple flowing design that clung tightly to emphasize my curves.

“Even I feel a little embarrassed in this one. I don’t mind some exposure, but having my thighs completely bare is a bit…”

“…Yeah. I don’t think you should wear this outside either. …Though it is pretty.”

A fairy-style dress with sheer fabric layers and a short skirt that was quite revealing.

“…Personally, this one feels the most comfortable. Probably because it’s similar to what I usually wear.”

“You look every bit the noble lady in that, Lilith.”

“No need for empty flattery, Ethan.”

“It’s not empty…”

A classic noble lady’s dress with abundant decorations, frills, and a wide A-line skirt.

After trying on several outfits, the impromptu fashion show finally came to an end.

‘Trying on all these clothes is surprisingly exhausting.’

Even in real life, changing this many times would’ve been tiring.

Since this was a medieval fantasy setting, most clothes used buttons instead of zippers, making the process of dressing and undressing more time-consuming and exhausting.

On top of that, noble attire usually involved layered dresses with multiple accessories, adding to the hassle.

After trying on all those outfits, Ethan seemed to have finally made up his mind.

Wearing the last dress-the classic noble lady’s gown-I asked for his thoughts one final time.

Surely, after all this, at least one outfit must have caught his eye.

“So, have you decided?”

“Yeah.”

“Personally, I find this dress the most comfortable. Though your opinion matters most, of course…”

“…Let’s buy everything-from the first outfit you tried to the one you’re wearing now.”

“…Huh?”

“Yes, thank you very much!”

Ethan casually declared he’d buy all the dresses, each likely costing several gold coins.

Watching months’ worth of my salary vanish in an instant left me momentarily dazed.

“Let’s go, Lilith.”

“Ah, right. I’ll carry the bags…”

“They’ll deliver everything to the academy dorm later, so we can just leave. You must be tired from all the changing. How about we eat first?”

“Oh, sure…”

Seeing Ethan effortlessly buy all those dresses-some of which I might never wear again-left me momentarily stunned.

…Well, it’s not my money anyway, so it doesn’t matter.

Still, I couldn’t shake the odd feeling that I was being swept along today.

And so, our weekend “date”-now with me in a noble dress instead of a maid uniform-continued.

Though, strictly speaking, it wasn’t really a date.