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“Alright, alright! This is the last rehearsal, so let’s focus for one final time, okay?”

The opening and closing ceremony rehearsal for the Celestial Festival was now right at our doorstep.

A few students who had skipped class and staff who had already been working on this for weeks seemed to gain energy from the words “last rehearsal,” as their previously droopy movements returned to sharpness.

“Lighting team, let us know when you’re ready.”

“We’re all set. Just give us the signal, and we’ll start immediately.”

The two members of the lighting team replied promptly to the person in charge of the rehearsal.

Clearly, they had endured a lot preparing for this, as their shoulders sagged, and their dark circles were prominently visible.

Despite their quick responses, the voices they uttered contained an inexplicable magic that made those listening feel like slumping in exhaustion.

By the way, those two look familiar.

It was obvious they were wizards by their attire, but I didn’t know many wizards at all.

Apart from a few professors responsible for the magic curriculum, there were hardly any.

Thus, I pondered where I might have seen the two familiar faces.

As I sought to jog my memory, I dug deep into the past, trying hard to resolve this curiosity.

The recent second semester… no, that’s not it. Was it during the vacation? … No, not that either. How about the first semester…?

Ah!

I finally recalled their identities.

They were the teaching assistant wizards who had summoned virtual monsters for the mock battle during the midterm exam in the first semester.

It was quite a task to recognize them due to their longer hair, smaller build, and more somber aura compared to back then.

I gently nodded my head towards the lighting team, half out of sympathy and half out of gratitude.

The two who were silently… or rather, exhaustedly doing their work failed to notice my greeting, but I wasn’t expecting a response anyway.

“Then, get ready… and let’s start the last rehearsal for the opening ceremony!”

The person in charge clapped loudly to announce the start.

Simultaneously, all the lights illuminating the surroundings went out, and only the light shone down on me, the hero, and Mariel, the saint.

Mariel and I walked slowly down the path laid out in the center, side by side.

The lighting matched our steps perfectly, without missing a beat.

During the first practice, there had been slight fluctuations in the lighting, sometimes ahead of me and Mariel, or lagging behind, but indeed, nothing is impossible with endless efforts being madly repeated.

Of course, there were moments when the magical energy of the two assistant wizards had depleted, leading to them fainting… But with the saint by our side, I needn’t worry about their health.

…Maybe.

“Okay! That was perfect! Great job, everyone! Don’t forget this rehearsal today and be sure to review it on your own! Don’t slack off on personal practice just because group practice is over until the festival!”

The rehearsal progressed smoothly, without any hitches, and the person in charge nodded vigorously, loudly declaring satisfaction in our results.

“Thanks for your hard work today, Hero!”

“Well, I’ve got nothing but stamina to spare. If anything, it’s you, Saint, who seems to be doing just fine… you don’t look tired at all.”

In fact, after hours of repeating the same actions, Mariel appeared even more energetic than I did.

“Hehe… I may look this way, but I’ve been training in various ways, you know?”

Mariel nonchalantly rolled up one sleeve in a proud display, but her arms were way too thin to be called trained.

“Ouch! You don’t believe me, do you? That’s an insult to the saint, you know?”

It seemed my thoughts were written all over my face, as Mariel shot me a pouty look after glancing at my expression.

Then, she waved her empty hand as if swinging a sword, without the Holy Flame in the other.

“Look! Look! You still don’t believe me? Even my friends who aspire to be paladins praise my skills!”

Hmm… To be honest, I wouldn’t know unless she handed me something, but seeing Mariel merely flailing her empty hands certainly didn’t inspire confidence.

“Ugh… How could a hero not believe a saint’s words? I’ll tell Goddess Serena on you!”

“Go ahead and tell her, but Goddess Serena’s statue is right in front of us. Plus, there’s no way she would care about this trivial matter.”

We were openly bickering right in front of Goddess Serena, so there was no way she hadn’t heard us.

“Hmph! I’ve known the goddess longer than you! She’ll definitely take my side!”

If I think of Mariel sticking her tongue out at me, it reminds me of Anne… but I wonder if it’s more of a nuisance to Anne or Mariel?

“You’re wasting your breath; apologizing now won’t help! My anger doesn’t easily wane!”

Mariel turned her head abruptly in the opposite direction, as if she were truly angry.

However, the sneaky glances she threw my way proved that she was merely being dramatic.

“Still… there’s one way to cool my temper…”

After throwing a few glances my way, Mariel finally mumbled her main point.

“How about treating me to a cup of coffee from the café up ahead? That might help ease the saint’s anger?”

Our saint’s temper was surprisingly inexpensive.

Of course, it was all in my head; I wouldn’t dare speak it out loud.

“Well, of course, that’s the least I can do. You can get the most expensive one, as a token of my apology. Shall we go right away?”

Even if café drinks were pricey, it wouldn’t break the bank to buy Mariel a coffee.

The moment I finished speaking, Mariel clung to me with a bright face, as if she had never been angry.

“Hehe! So, shall we go? It’s a date between the hero and the saint!”

Though Mariel’s teasing was just lighthearted fun, my heart thumped at hearing such words, knowing I was a guy.

I walked towards the café, doing my best to hide my heart’s pounding behind Mariel’s arm.

*

…What am I staring at?

What’s in my hand is the receipt I got after paying for the drinks.

Usually, I’d just crumple it up and toss it in the trash next to me, but my eyes were glued to the small print on the receipt.

Mariel had ordered the most expensive drink at the café, something I’d never even heard the name of.

Well, that didn’t go beyond my expectations, since it was just a few silver coins.

However, Mariel didn’t stop there; she started chatter with the cafe staff, regarding something passionately.

Every time she mentioned a word I had never heard, the staff’s hands moved busily as well.

Mariel talked for quite some time, to the point I wondered if she could remember it all.

“Let me confirm your order!” the café employee said quickly.

That led to yet another lengthy exchange, and I, entranced, handed over my silver coins without realizing how much they cost.

Only after getting the receipt did I finally snap back to reality.

…How could the price of a drink possibly exceed that of a decent dessert?

The unexpected expenditure nearly made my head spin again, but what can I do?

I should blame the past me who thought I could boldly wave my arms and declare anything without considering these situations.

“So, while we wait for the drinks, shall we grab a seat?”

If it were me, I would’ve given up while ordering, but Mariel, still energized, took my hand and led me to a table.

“Hehe… it’s been a while since it was just the two of us, huh?”

“Well, we’ve been busy with rehearsals. Aside from that, I’ve been trying to catch up on the classes both of us missed.”

I wasn’t sure about Mariel, but thanks to Selian and Yuli, I had no trouble keeping up with the progress.

“Ugh… You’ll see when you’re a sophomore next year, but it’s dreadful! Not only is the material hard, but the amount of assignments is just unbearable…”

Mariel shook her head with a horrified expression, as if merely recalling it was enough to make her shudder.

Worry stirred a little in me at the thought of that being my future self, but it wasn’t something I should worry about right now.

Hang in there, future me!

“But hey, going on a date with my junior might ease the stress a bit, right? I’ll be counting on you to help me out when I’m worn out in the future!”

I wanted to point out the word “date,” but I figured there was no need to take her playful jest seriously and make things awkward.

“Well… feel free to ask if you need me for anything. I may not have much, but you can always rent my body.”

I jokingly spread my arms and shrugged at Mariel.

“Ah…”

However, despite my adherence to her playful banter, Mariel’s eyes widened in shock, and she made a small, startled sound.

Did I say something wrong? I reflected on what I’d just said, but nothing seemed off.

“Y-yeah! It’s only natural for the hero and saint to bond! Right, right.”

“Senior, shh! Shhh!”

Sure, everyone knows who we are, but being so open about our statuses as hero and saint felt burdensome in many ways.

Thus, I looked around to see if anyone had overheard Mariel’s words and signaled her to stop.

Luckily, the café was still relatively empty, and the few customers present didn’t seem to have caught what Mariel said while they conversed amongst themselves.

“Ah! I think our order is up! I’ll go get it, so just wait a moment, okay?”

But Mariel seemed unaware of my feelings, standing up and turning her back to trot over to the counter.

Not that we ever saw eye to eye, but given that I used to be an assassin, finding nothing odd about her manner seemed fair.

“Whoa…?”

I jolted!

A familiar voice suddenly called from behind me while I was seated.

Yet, for some reason, this seemingly ordinary voice made my body tense, and beads of cold sweat dripped down my nape.

W-What’s happening? I wasn’t even this tense when facing demonic fiends…?

 

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