Chapter 29: Pincotat Grand Festival (6)
Morning of the 27th.
Bang~~~
"Subaru, are you okay?"
Although Subaru didn't cry out in pain, Reinhild, who had sat up and saw him fallen on the floor, immediately became fully alert. She hurriedly carried Subaru back to the bed and, upon confirming that he had only tripped, sighed in relief.
"Sorry, I woke you."
"It's about time to get up anyway. And it's not your fault, Subaru."
Reinhild looked around. After seven days, the floor was covered with all sorts of items, making it hard even to find a place to step. The girl scratched her head a little embarrassedly.
"I might have gone a bit overboard recently."
"Same here, I guess. Well then, since our points are almost full anyway, let's just spend this morning leisurely tidying up the room. Otherwise, going out at night could be dangerous."
"That's true."
A few minutes later, Reinhild finished washing up and changing clothes. She then brought several boxes from the dragon carriage.
"What, you say leaving them on the dragon carriage isn't safe? You don't realize that Patrasche not only has human-level intelligence but is extremely strong. Even Felt would find it difficult to steal from the carriage. Even a one-on-one fight with an Iron Fang warrior would be tough. Anyway, let's put the trophies away first."
Subaru picked up a trophy—it was proof of their victory on the third day running the temporary married couple's food stall.
"By the way, did someone break our record yesterday?"
"Yes."
"What a shame. I was planning to brag about it to… friends. By the way, what do you think, Rein-chan?"
"Although I held back, that master has the [Divine Protection of Frying]. In terms of fried food alone, he probably surpassed me. So even if I had gone all-out that day, it would have been difficult to win. Subaru, you don't need to feel guilty."
"Hahaha, but looking at it now, I feel like I was dragging us down crazily."
Subaru looked at the pile of trophies in front of him. Though a few were from other regions, most were earned in the entertainment-focused South District over the past few days: Couple
Music Contest runner-up, Couple Show Affection Contest third place, Couple Sports Contest champion, Couple Quiz Contest third place, Kiss Duration Participation Award…
"No one is perfect, and I never really had the idea that we must win."
Reinhild casually picked up a nearby mask and placed it over Subaru's face, causing him to exclaim in surprise.
"I feel like I've really enjoyed myself these past few days."
Reinhild said lightly with a smile. Subaru took off the mask earned from the third-night masquerade ball, which required finding a partner, and sighed a little sentimentally.
"You must have been having fun back then, but I was afraid of accidentally stepping on your foot."
"Even if you had, it's fine. And we didn't step on each other anyway. After all, we were the protagonists back then."
Reinhild kneeled before Subaru on one knee.
"Ah, beautiful lady, might I… have the honor of dancing with you?"
Subaru instantly recalled that moment—when he wasn't sure if the person in front of him was Reinhild, he couldn't ask directly, so he ended up speaking a chuunibyou-style secret code that only they understood.
"Honestly, the magic circle in the hall wouldn't have been difficult for you anyway. Why not come find me directly?"
"That would have been cheating, right?"
"True. By the way, once this festival is over, teach me to dance sometime."
Subaru put the mask back in the box without noticing Reinhild behind him smiling brightly. Out of embarrassment, he didn't realize that Reinhild's tone and gestures were exactly the same as his at that time.
That night, Reinhild had been watching Subaru constantly, worried he might approach other girls. So when Subaru slowly walked up and asked her to dance, the overwhelming joy she felt was something she could never forget. Every detail of that moment remained deeply imprinted in her memory.
"By the way, do you still want to keep this flower wreath?"
Reinhild looked at the wreath in Subaru's hands.
"Of course!!!"
The girl shouted instinctively, startling Subaru. He looked at the wreath in his hands, made on the fifth day in the West District's accessory shop activity similar to the blacksmith shop
event. Subaru didn't really want to discard the wreath, which contained so much of his effort, but…
"These flowers are withered! You can't wear them anymore. If you like it, I can make a new one."
"No way it can't be worn! Look."
Reinhild snatched the wreath from Subaru's hands, placed it on her head, and the once-withered flowers became vibrant again, releasing a faint fragrance.
"Are you a constant-temperature grim reaper?"
Though she didn't understand what that meant, Reinhild understood Subaru's intention.
"I have an excess-mana constitution, and mana has the power to revive all things. For example, the mana storm triggered by my Dragon Sword slash, and the restoration is permanent. See? Even if it leaves my head, it's fine."
Reinhild handed the wreath back to Subaru.
"Truly, it suits you."
"Even I would be saddened otherwise."
Reinhild carefully placed the wreath into her treasure chest.
"By the way, Rein, why did you buy this?"
Reinhild glanced instinctively. Though she had played with many cosplay outfits in the clothing shop, Subaru's months-long, relentless pursuit meant she could handle most situations easily—until he touched the item in front of her.
"Nothing. I just felt this suits Subaru, so I bought it instinctively."
"Suit me?"
Subaru put on the black cat ears after a brief hesitation, then checked himself in the mirror, not noticing that Reinhild had frozen behind him.
First, Reinhild loves cats, as cats were the first animals Subaru helped her interact with. Her fondness for cats was extreme. And her fondness for Subaru was also extreme. These two things combined—1 + 1 = 11.
"Rein?"
Subaru's fierce triangular eyes, combined with a concerned expression and the cat ears…
—This combination is sacred in the world…
In that instant, Reinhild felt as if she couldn't breathe, actually losing control of her body, forced to maintain a professional smile.
"Well, there's no way to return it anyway."
Subaru removed the cat ears and placed them in the clothes box.
"I also kept the wings, right? Let's just treat it as a memento."
Reinhild put on the angel wings Subaru had specially prepared for her.
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