Chapter Index

    Loki arrived at the meeting place 10 minutes earlier than the time he had promised Sepia.

    Sitting on a bench and leaning back, the stares and murmuring of the people felt even louder.

    Was it because of his handsome face?

    Or because it was revealed that he was the Emperor’s disciple?

    Honestly, there was a 99.8% chance it was due to his face.

    But what if…

    ‘What if it’s that 0.2% chance it isn’t?’

    Then it must be because of the mask he was wearing.

    No one at the academy would be surprised to see him wearing a mask now.

    What he was wearing now wasn’t the white mask he usually wore, but a black one he had made himself.

    ‘Ugh. There’s still so much to fix. Should I just ask Professor Idra?’

    The black mask he was currently wearing was also light and didn’t fall off easily, but it wasn’t as comfortable as the white mask, which he could completely forget he was wearing, nor was it so special that it wouldn’t come off if someone forcibly removed it.

    As he pondered how to fix the mask, 10 minutes flew by in an instant.

    ‘Is she a little late?’

    Less than a minute remained until the promised time, but Sepia was still nowhere in sight.

    He wasn’t particularly angry that Sepia was a little late.

    Only the worry that something might have happened crossed his mind.

    “H-hey! Wanna grab dinner with me tonight?”

    “…Sorry, I have to eat dinner with my family.”

    “Oh…? Well, can’t be helped then. Perhaps, when would you have time………”

    “Hey! You said your house was empty today, right? I’m coming over!”

    “…………..”

    “…………..”

    “Did you finish all your assignments?”

    “No, the professor definitely thinks I’m only taking his class.”

    “Alright, hang in there. I’m going to hang out.”

    “You’re in the same class as me. Don’t tell me you’ve already finished everything?”

    “Fear is a weak emotion felt by those who prepare for something! I cleanly gave up on my assignments.”

    As he listened to the chatter of various students passing by and closed his eyes, the students’ noisy chatter he’d been hearing suddenly stopped abruptly.

    It was an unnatural silence, as if someone had paused a playing video.

    He opened his eyes to understand the situation, and saw that the students were staring blankly at one spot.

    He turned his head to look at where the students’ eyes and gazes were fixed.

    “…………………”

    Click-clack.

    The unnatural silence was broken by the sound of shoes.

    Starting with that sound, the space, which had been quiet as if time had stopped, was soon filled with the murmuring of students.

    “That person Se——pia.”

    “Wo———-w.”

    “——- So be—–autiful.”

    It was clearly a similar volume to before, but for some reason, the students’ murmuring didn’t reach his ears.

    He could only stare in a daze until a spirit, who had flown over without him noticing, landed on his shoulder.

    Pink hair fluttering in the wind, a pure white dress with no special pattern but that kept drawing his gaze. And a hat that went perfectly with the dress.

    The thought that it suited her so well dominated his mind more than the question of why she appeared in a dress for training.

    He knew Sepia was beautiful to begin with.

    But seeing Sepia in a dress and makeup, not her academy uniform, made him realize it anew.

    “Hogu, have you been waiting long?”

    He smelled perfume from Sepia as she approached and spoke to him.

    Even as perfume, it wasn’t a strong or harsh scent, but a subtle floral fragrance.

    If the spirit hadn’t wiggled on his shoulder, he would have been so distracted that his reply to Sepia’s words would have been delayed.

    “…Sepia, are you perhaps worried that I’ve been waiting for a long time?”

    “W-what are you talking about? And we’re meeting, so of course you should come first and wait.”

    “I didn’t wait long, so you don’t need to worry, Sepia.”

    “I said no!”

    “Yes, yes. If Sepia says so, then it must be so.”

    He chuckled, pulled out a clown’s mask from his subspace, and handed it to Sepia.

    Then he asked her to wear it during their training.

    “….You want me to wear this?”

    “Yes!”

    It was a sudden remark, but he decided to be brazen about it.

    It would be hard to believe the mask’s abilities if he explained them verbally. It was certain it was better to wait for Sepia to discover it herself during training.

    Sepia’s dress, which he had forgotten about earlier due to distraction, caught his eye.

    “By the way, wouldn’t a dress be uncomfortable for training?”

    Of course, he wanted to keep seeing Sepia in the dress, but wearing it during training would not only be uncomfortable but also undoubtedly get dirty.

    “Training…?”

    Sepia was flustered by Loki’s words and temporarily lost for words.

    The reason they were meeting today wasn’t for tea, but for training?

    Why?

    The words Loki had said that morning flashed through Sepia’s mind like the wind.

    ‘I told you before that I’d make you stronger, Sepia. That starts after school today.’

    Ah…..

    Hogu had never once said that today’s meeting was for tea.

    ‘I was the only one stupid enough to misunderstand.’

    Sepia gripped the hem of her dress so tightly that it wrinkled.

    If she didn’t do this, she felt like something would come out of her eyes.

    How foolish.

    ‘This is too revealing! What? He’ll like it if I wear something like this? I told you I wasn’t choosing clothes because of *him*!’

    Debating with the spirits for hours while choosing clothes.

    ‘It’s been a while, so it looks a bit off. Ugh, let’s try it again just once.’

    Spending time meticulously applying makeup,

    ‘Should I put on perfume…? Sniff sniff, I think I washed well so there’s no sweat smell, but just in case.’

    And after much deliberation, choosing a scent that Hogu might like.

    ‘Can’t you make it look more natural than this? You know, like it’s done but not done. What? You’re asking for a favor, why are you talking so much? Hey! I’ve been so good to you guys, and just for this little thing… Ah, alright, sorry!’

    She, who had even asked a spirit to style her hair.

    She felt so pathetic and foolish.

    ‘Anyway, no matter how much I dress up, he won’t even notice.’

    Even the dress she had chosen for hours.

    In Hogu’s eyes, it would just be an inconvenient outfit for training.

    Perhaps he might even have thought she was a strange woman for showing up in a dress for training.

    “…..I had something to do, so I wore a dress for a bit. Just wait here, I’ll go change.”

    She’d go back home, change into comfortable clothes, remove her makeup, and switch to comfortable shoes.

    Just as she was about to leave.

    “Ah……….”

    A sigh escaped Hogu’s lips.

    A sigh filled with regret, as if someone had just missed seeing a shooting star.

    “….Why?”

    “It’s just that…?”

    As if very embarrassed, Hogu spoke, his voice trailing off, which was unlike him.

    “That dress, I thought it suited Sepia so incredibly well, and I felt a pang of regret thinking I wouldn’t be able to see it anymore……”

    Sepia’s hand, which had been gripping the hem of her dress tightly, relaxed.

    So, he was acting like a wet dog because he thought he wouldn’t get to see her in that dress anymore?

    “…Hmm? Really? You thought it suited me?”

    Sepia spoke, trying to suppress the twitching of her lips.

    “Of course! It suits you so well that the thought of wanting to keep seeing it still dominates my mind. Ugh… Today, due to training, it can’t be helped, but next time we meet, could you please wear that dress again?”

    In the end, Sepia couldn’t hold back, and the corners of her mouth turned upward.

    What? He likes me that much?

    “As I just said, I only wore the dress out of necessity for an errand. I definitely didn’t wear it for you! So, you’d better give up the thought that I’ll wear it again next time, okay?”

    Sepia twirled the hair that four spirits had meticulously styled for her as she spoke.

    “What? Couldn’t you? I really want to see it again. Ah! How about we just postpone the training for later and just hang out like this today?”

    Seeing Loki floundering, the corners of Sepia’s mouth turned up so high it was physically impossible for them to go any higher.

    “Hmm. What should I do? Still, postponing the training is a bit…”

    Sepia intentionally let her words trail off.

    She was definitely not doing this because she wanted to hear him explicitly ask to have tea.

    “Then, how about we train today, and ‘this weekend’ we meet up and have tea together?………………………. By then, the dress should be clean too.”

    Sepia didn’t miss Loki’s quiet mumble to himself.

    Could it be that he was asking to meet on the weekend just to see this outfit?

    So cute….. No, it’s annoying!

    “If you put it that way, I’ll specially consider it. Just wait here for a moment. I’ll just change clothes and come out.”

    ‘Wait here, I’ll go change.’

    Sepia had clearly said the exact same words earlier, but the expression on her face as she spoke them now was completely different.

    Sepia decided inwardly to buy a few more identical dresses to the one she was currently wearing.

    “Ah! And could I also know what perfume you used? I have a sensitive sense of smell, and the perfume you wore felt just pleasantly nice.”

    And the perfume too.

    “I won’t tell you.”

    Sepia went to change her clothes, grinning broadly all the while,

    “…………………”

    Loki, watching Sepia’s retreating back, let out a small chuckle.

    “She’s really cute.”

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