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As the two walked together, a somewhat familiar sight caught their eyes.

It resembled the street performances they had seen back when Ariel visited Ardenum, only there seemed to be more performers this time.

“Looks just like the show we saw before, right?”

“Yeah, it does seem bigger, though.”

Back then, they definitely didn’t have those giant balloons or the dangerously fiery acts. Just a few people jumping around or fluttering about to grab attention.

Ariel’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she hesitated for a moment but then suddenly tugged at Edgar’s sleeve.

“Hey, Edgar, want to go watch?”

“Not like I can’t see it. Let’s go.”

Edgar wrapped an arm around Ariel’s shoulders as they made their way through the crowd, casually glancing down at her.

If his memory served him right, this was around four years ago. At that time, Ariel was so small that she could barely see anything in the crowd without help.

In fact, it was Edgar who had given up on watching just so he could boost her up for a better view.

But thankfully, that wouldn’t be necessary this time.

“Ha!”

Just as Edgar was trying to stifle a laugh in the middle of enjoying the performance, it escaped him, sounding suspiciously like a deflating balloon.

Ariel tilted her head, confused. There wasn’t anything particularly funny happening. Was his lung full of air or something?

“Why are you laughing?”

“When we first saw this, you were so tiny I can’t help but laugh thinking about it!”

“I wasn’t that small! I’m not a hobbit or something!”

As Edgar dramatically indicated a height with his palm considerably low, Ariel shot back, her voice rising.

It was a good thing the performance was loud, or they’d have drawn some attention.

“Come on, that’s totally accurate!”

“No way! Plus, you’re just a giant among men!”

Edgar smirked, trying to get her to agree, but Ariel wasn’t having it.

She had her own gripes, too; there were plenty of people shorter than her around, yet she always felt like a dwarf next to him.

Heck, she had already outgrown their mother, Helene, when she turned seventeen.

And Shuri, who was a year older, had been smaller than Ariel since their first meeting.

On the other hand, Edgar stood out as considerably taller among guys.

In the Robeheim family, the only one comparable in height to him was Creed.

Yulken used to be taller, but Edgar had now surpassed him as he grew older.

So really, in his eyes, Ariel was on the shorter side, but among the ladies, she was definitely above average.

She felt a desire to give this oblivious guy a piece of her mind.

And then a thought crossed her mind.

‘Does he prefer someone taller?’

Ariel placed her hand above her head, gauging her height.

It barely reached Edgar’s chest.

She thought it wasn’t that much of a difference, but strangely felt a tinge of anxiety.

“Hey, Edgar.”

“What?”

“Do you like taller girls?”

“…What?”

Edgar nearly glanced down, then quickly understood she meant height and shook his head to shake off the odd thoughts.

The problem was, for just a second, his gaze landed right on Ariel.

“Wh-where’s your gaze wandering off to, you fool!”

“Well, you suddenly asked something weird!”

Edgar knew backing down at this point wouldn’t help, so he snapped back.

He argued it was also Ariel’s fault for suddenly throwing out such a bizarre question.

She, with a flushed face, shouted back, annoyed.

It was preposterous that she had been feeling like a hobbit until just a moment ago, and now he was acting all innocent.

“Ugh…! I meant height!”

“I know. I realized that late, too.”

Calmly smirking, Edgar beckoned her to come closer.

Ariel, pouting slightly, approached him.

She looked all sassy like a feisty cat, making Edgar snicker unconsciously.

“Whoa!?”

Suddenly, Edgar came up from behind and hugged her, causing a high-pitched squeal to escape Ariel’s lips.

“What’s the surprise? We were doing this in the carriage, too.”

“B-but there are people here…”

“They’re not paying us any mind.”

And true to his words, the surrounding crowd was wholly engrossed in the performance, casting not a glance their way.

After all, whether people showed affection in public or not wouldn’t matter as long as it wasn’t scandalous.

“Yeah, this feels just right.”

“What’s…?”

Ariel squirmed, pretending to want him to let her go, but her struggle had no real strength behind it.

Edgar wanted to tease her about that, but he decided to let it slide just this once.

“I mean, being embraced like this is nice. This height difference feels just right.”

“Am I your pillow?”

“You have no right to say that. Who was the one cuddling up to me on the way here?”

“That’s completely unrelated!”

Ariel retorted, her cheeks red as she argued back.

But Edgar maintained his calm demeanor, telling her to enjoy the show instead.

In other words, he was kind of implying he was going to keep holding her.

Ultimately, Ariel kept her head down and remained silent throughout the rest of the performance.

And Edgar didn’t even think about releasing her from his embrace.

That was just how they enjoyed their time together.

* * * * * * *

After thoroughly enjoying the performance, the two made their way to a nearby street.

They strolled around, looking at the window displays, enjoying a leisurely moment.

Among the shops, one particular doll store caught Edgar’s eye.

A bear plush on display looked so nice that it seemed expensive, pulling his attention.

“Dolls? You liked dolls?”

Ariel asked, following Edgar without thinking, curiosity evident on her face.

Edgar smirked, thinking there was no way that could be true, as he returned his gaze to the items displayed behind the glass.

He wasn’t interested in dolls in general; he just remembered the one he had given Ariel.

Every time he visited her room, it was still perched on the corner of her bed, only now showing its age.

“What do you say? Should I buy you one?”

“A doll? Seriously…?”

Ariel tilted her head in surprise at the sudden suggestion.

Of course, she had liked dolls in the past, but recently, that enthusiasm had long faded.

Before she cleared things up with Yulken, he had scolded her for wanting to play with dolls when she was set to inherit the title of the Robeheim family.

After that, she’d lost the urge to buy more.

The few other dolls she held onto were so worn that she had to toss them out, and the only remaining bear was one Edgar had given her, so she just kept it.

She figured there wasn’t really a need for more.

But to her surprise, even Edgar, who wasn’t one for unnecessary spending, was rather firm today.

It was as if he had decided not to take her opinions into account, dragging her inside the store with a determined grip, leaving her wide-eyed in disbelief.

“Welcome! Ah, a young couple, I see.”

A cheerful chime greeted them as an elderly man appeared.

He seemed to be a craftsman specializing in making dolls, as various tools for doll-making were scattered around.

“Excuse me. Would it be possible to buy that bear outside?”

“Of course!”

After a moment of waiting, the old man retrieved the plush from behind the glass case.

The bear Edgar had given before had a playful smile, closely resembling him. This one had a ribbon, giving it a more feminine charm.

“Oh, but carrying this might be a bit cumbersome…”

“Why don’t you just leave it here and pick it up later?”

“That could work.”

The bear was large enough for Edgar to hesitate momentarily, but thanks to Ariel’s suggestion, he smoothly settled the issue.

He then paid for the bear and asked if they could leave it there for a bit. The old man nodded eagerly.

“It’s cute, isn’t it? Don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I like it.”

It was indeed cute, but Ariel couldn’t help but wonder why he chose this particular doll.

With plenty of options to gift her something, why a plush?

Unable to suppress her curiosity, Ariel decided to just ask him.

She wasn’t the type to just mull over things in her head.

“Why a doll, of all things?”

“What, don’t you like it?”

“Not like that, I’m just curious.”

Of course, she couldn’t dislike something he gave her.

She just wanted to understand why he chose a doll when it wasn’t a special occasion.

With a soft smile, Edgar turned the bear around and squished its cheeks before presenting it to her.

“I thought of the doll in your room.”

“Oh, why’s that?”

“Well, that one was actually a gift for you to think of me when you felt lonely. But now, I realize, I’ve got a partner, but it doesn’t have one.”

At the mention of a partner, Ariel briefly envisioned the two bears alongside herself and Edgar.

She had thought about this before, too. Every time she saw that chubby bear, she wished it had a friend to keep it company.

But since there weren’t many attractive options, she hadn’t bothered to get another.

It seemed like Edgar shared the same sentiment.

“Isn’t this good enough?”

“…Well, maybe not as good as me, but it’s not bad.”

Ariel nodded in agreement, thinking it wouldn’t be that terrible to consider that bear as herself.

Even if she’d outgrown playing with dolls, something like this was fine too.

But when she thought of leaving it alone here, it felt strangely awkward.

“Want to carry it? It might be cumbersome.”

“Are you saying I’d dump you just because I’d find you annoying?”

“Seriously, how much are you interpreting?”

Edgar chuckled at her argument and shrugged.

After all, if Ariel’s magic was involved, carrying it without dusting it would be a piece of cake.

It might be cumbersome because of storage, but carrying it back and forth shouldn’t be an issue.

“Then should we name it something like Liel?”

“…Hmph, it’s just a doll. There’s no need to name it.”

Ariel scoffed dismissively, but Edgar recalled a scene he had witnessed earlier…

“Speaking of, didn’t you call the bear in your room Edgar…? Oof!?”

“When did you see that, you idiot!”

The ruckus between the childhood friends and lovers continued even as they traveled far away.

Mostly thanks to Edgar’s knack for saying the wrong thing all the time.