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Yesterday, I was supposed to meet the Four Heavenly Kings and engage in battle, but since one of them was Lilith, I ended up returning without even a single fight. I had my body and mind all fired up for combat, but such enthusiasm couldn’t just vanish without a trace. So, after dozing off, I woke up early and thought about swinging my sword.

At this point, sharing a bed seemed almost pointless, considering Frecia and Luna had already crawled into my bed the night before, utterly dismissing my worries from the previous day. It was such a common occurrence that it barely surprised me anymore, allowing me to skillfully slip out of bed without waking either of them.

“Ugh!”

I did make a slight mistake of stepping on Lilith, who must have rolled off the bed onto the floor, producing a strange sound but showing no signs of waking up. I figured I could just ignore it and sneak away.

“What are you doing?”

However, in the dark room where the sun hadn’t fully risen yet, there was someone bustling around, moving about before me. Lindy was already busy, taking care not to wake the others as she fussed over her appearance in front of the mirror, trying on different outfits.

“Oh, you’re already awake? I knew Elysia would be hoping for a date with me. I’m glad it’s not one-sided, at least!”

“…You really are the same as always.”

Whether it be in good or bad ways, Lindy was undeniably Lindy.

“Really? I thought I had changed a lot since meeting Elysia!”

Hearing Lindy’s words, I realized I didn’t know much about her at all. The only version of Lindy I was familiar with was from our first meeting three years ago; I had never heard much about her before that. We had exchanged a few stories related to the Black Moon, but that was about it.

Still, that didn’t mean Lindy felt distant. Those past three years of working together felt too clear and vivid for any distance to be perceived. If anything, I felt a sense of trust built on the current situation, meaning I didn’t really need to dig into the past.

“Hmmm… I hope you’ve changed for the better.”

One thing was for sure; Lindy had definitely changed one way: she stopped flirting with other girls left and right. While, admittedly, her attention was now entirely focused on me, I thought it was a price I could bear since I believed I was protecting other girls from her grasp.

“Of course it’s for the better. Elysia knows, too, that elves have a much longer lifespan than humans and other races. But I can guarantee this: among all the years I’ve lived, the life I have now with Elysia is the most valuable.”

“…Is that so? Well, I’m glad. I’ll just go swing my sword, so if anyone looks for me, please tell them I stepped out.”

Just as I had just woken up and hadn’t prepared for anything yet, Lindy’s sudden confession made me feel awkward. Trying to hide my embarrassment, I lightly scratched my cheek with my finger and gathered my sword, heading out of the room.

Before leaving, I stealthily glanced back and noticed Lindy still happily picking out clothes and makeup. I quietly observed for a moment before closing the door silently behind me.

*

“Impressive. Just how many girls have you charmed with this tactic?”

My date with Lindy, contrary to my initial worries that she might do something outrageous, turned out to be quite fulfilling. Everywhere we went was filled with sights to see, fun things to do, and delicious food, leaving no room for boredom. Plus, we walked side by side together comfortably, as if we had a meticulously planned date.

Lindy, the only one who knew my true identity, even considered my taste as a guy to ensure I wouldn’t get bored.

“…If that was meant to be funny, you definitely succeeded.”

Lindy made a dumbfounded expression upon hearing my words. Realizing I had just put my foot in my mouth, I knew it was incredibly bad manners to bring up my ex-girlfriends during a date. No matter how inexperienced I was with romance, I understood that much.

“Oh! That place looks nice. Let’s have dinner there!”

Debating whether I should apologize, I noticed Lindy didn’t seem angry but rather amused, so I quickly pointed to a nearby restaurant and shouted. It didn’t seem like she had any intention of nitpicking, and dragging out an apology would probably be a greater breach of courtesy.

“Seriously, you always get away with this.”

Thankfully, when I pulled on her hand, Lindy only sighed before obediently following me into the restaurant.

“Table for two, please!”

As soon as I sat down, eager to brush off my earlier mistake, I quickly called for a waiter. Since it was early for dinner, there weren’t many customers yet, and soon the waiter made his way over to our table.

“Just one salad, please, and for the rest, I’ll take this, this… Oh! You have a couple’s set? Just give us that!”

“Sir, the couple’s set is…”

Even though the couple’s set generally isn’t designed specifically for actual couples, it’s more like a menu tailored to make things easier for two people dining together. However, perhaps it was specific to that place, as the waiter genuinely confirmed it was indeed a menu meant for couples.

Regardless, even if I was getting funding from the Emperor, I wasn’t one to waste what I could save.

I quickly stood from my seat and moved next to Lindy. Then I affectionately hugged her and said to the waiter cheerfully, “We’re a couple, you know? Oh, wait, is this restaurant… discriminating against same-sex couples?”

Well, technically, since we were on a date, I guess we could claim to be a couple for the time being, so I wasn’t technically lying.

However, the waiter continued to stare at us, and I pressed closer to Lindy and asked, “Right? We’re a couple. We’ve spent our day on a date since morning.”

As I said this, I subtly cast a glance at the bags we had gotten from shopping together.

“Uh, yeah… right. Elysia and I are a couple! Yep! A couple!”

Fortunately, Lindy wasn’t totally oblivious. She quickly matched my words, wrapping her arms around me while smiling at the waiter cheerfully.

“Ah… Yes! Then I’ll bring the couple’s set out for you.”

Thankfully, the waiter took our order without further suspicion and rushed off to the kitchen. Concealing her flushed face, I saw her let out a small squeal as she ran away, and I felt a bit embarrassed, but I was grateful that there weren’t many other customers around.

“…Aren’t you going to let go of me?”

“Tch! I should have ordered more!”

Just when I thought today might be a calm day, Lindy didn’t change at all and once again placed her hand on my rear. It was probably her public display of flirtation that made the waiter blush earlier.

Returning to my seat, I faced Lindy again. If you only looked at her face, she almost seemed like the ideal elf.

“Don’t you think you should fix your habit of flirting with every pretty girl you see?”

“Oh come on! It’s been three years since I stopped that! Has Elysia seen me hitting on anyone else recently?”

I retraced my memories based on Lindy’s words.

“Recently, didn’t you hug sleeping Luna and touch her butt?”

“…That was just a mistake while I was asleep! Anything else!”

“Hmm… How about the time you snuck in while Luna was showering?”

“That’s because Elysia was just too fast…! No, let’s ignore that one.”

Lindy gulped her drink and slammed her cup down, exclaiming once more.

“Anyway! I’ve really stopped those behaviors, so please don’t misunderstand. My interest is only in Elysia!”

“It’s just a thought, but why me? You clearly like girls, yet you’re pursuing me even after knowing I’m a guy.”

The fact that my true identity as Zeno Franz was a mystery even to Selian, who remembered our previous lives, meant Lindy was the only one aware of my true self in this world.

But Lindy was attracted to girls, making it hard to understand why she would have any interest in me, the guy inside.

“Or maybe you think that I, being a guy, would like girls too, so it would be convenient for both of us?”

Well, I guess that’s true. Being a rarity, I could see why I would be welcome in Lindy’s eyes.

Looking like a girl while sharing a common interest in liking girls, just for different reasons.

Still, I had no intention of criticizing Lindy for that. After all, there are people who marry without love. No matter how inexperienced I was in romance, I understood the absurdity of pure love.

Yet, there was an undeniable feeling of being used.

That’s why, despite liking girls, I maintained distance in that regard with Lindy. She was trustworthy as a friend, but in romantic… or rather, same-sex contexts, I had consciously or unconsciously pushed her away.

“…So you’ve thought about me that way all along?”

But at my question, Lindy responded coldly, devoid of any inflection. In the three years I’ve known her, I’d never witnessed her getting angry, yet I could see she was upset now.

Caught off guard by her frustrated expression and tone, she continued speaking, perhaps waiting for my response, “It’s true I’ve been shamelessly flirting with many girls out there, and I’ve faced countless insults for not being interested in the right kind of girls. Yet, that doesn’t give anyone the right to judge my present sincerity, even if it were Elysia.”

Our eyes met, and although we’d looked at each other countless times before, this felt like the first time I truly connected with her gaze.

“I don’t like Elysia because I think she’s a guy or merely looks like a girl. I like Elysia because I genuinely feel comfortable with her.”

Her previously icy tone had transformed into sincerity. Amidst that sincerity, there was a faint tremor underneath.

*

After that remark, throughout our meal, Lindy returned to her typical self. She flirted and joked as usual.

But that didn’t mean I could just follow along, smiling and chatting without reflecting my thoughts. She showed me her heart, despite her fears. I couldn’t disregard her courage.

“…I’m sorry.”

While walking back to the inn together on a quiet night, I quietly offered my apology to Lindy.

“I thought I knew a lot about you, but it seems I didn’t know anything at all.”

As she said, I had probably changed a lot in the years leading up to this point.

“I probably won’t be able to give you an answer, at least until we defeat the Demon King.”

Consequently, I ended up having to hurt Lindy again.

But there was no response from her. Worried that my words might have hurt her, I turned my head to check, only to find her deep in thought rather than wounded.

“Lindy?”

When I called her name, she was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t respond. As I lightly waved my hand to get her attention, she finally turned back to me.

“Hmm? Did you call me?”

“What were you so absorbed in thinking about?”

“Nothing! It’s nothing! Don’t worry about it!”

I closely examined her face to see if she was intentionally ignoring my words, but her demeanor was far from deliberate ignorance.

“Come on! Let’s hurry!”

Just as I was contemplating whether to speak to her again, Lindy began walking ahead without giving me a moment to think. I was curious about her thoughts but restrained my urge to ask and followed her.

“Lindy? Are we going the right way?”

However, the path back to the inn appeared different from the one in the daytime, perhaps due to the dark night.

“Of course! Trust me; we’re going the right way.”

Well, as Lindy had guided me all day on our date, I figured I should just follow her. And before I knew it, we reached the inn.

“…Lindy?”

“Hmm? What’s wrong? This is definitely the inn! I said we were going to the inn, not that I was taking you to the same one we were at before!”

However, what lay ahead of us was not the inn where Frecia and Luna were waiting but another, entirely unexpected one.

“You… Seriously…”

“Why? Is something weird about this? If we’re on a date, such things happen! This isn’t strange at all!”

“Enough! Today’s date ends here! Now, let’s return to the inn.”

In front of Lindy, I found I had to remain vigilant at all times. I turned away from the other inn, intent on walking back toward the one where we’d originally been staying.

“Tch.”

Finally, it seemed Lindy had given up, letting out a short click of her tongue behind me.

A lot has changed, and so much more will change in the future. But she will always be Lindy, and she always will be.

Amidst that unwavering aspect, I smiled secretly, out of her sight.

 

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