And so, whether it was heaven or hell, those bewildering days continued for several more.
In the morning light, I woke up in bed and reached out to the side.
All that met my hand was the cold touch of the sheets.
(Huh…? Milfi-san…?)
Still half-asleep, I looked around the room, but she was nowhere to be seen.
Then, from outside came the sharp sound of something slicing through the air.
I got up and stepped out into the garden—
"Ah…"
There she was: Milfi-san, standing with a serious gaze, sword at the ready.
The blade gripped in both hands flickered with faint red flames.
The moment the magic-infused sword gave a slight sway—
"Fuu!"
With a sharp exhale, Milfi-san stepped forward.
(Whoa!?)
A barrage too fast for the eye to follow.
Her movements flowed like a dance; the sword flashed again and again, carving red arcs through the air.
It was so swift that to my eyes, all I could see were the lingering trails of flame forming intricate curves.
(Amazing… She's on a completely different level.)
When she finished her final strike, Milfi-san let out a soft breath and lowered her sword.
Then she suddenly turned toward me and smiled brightly.
"Good morning, Theo-kun."
"Ah, um—g-good morning!"
I hurriedly bowed my head.
The sharp intensity in her eyes just moments ago, now replaced by that gentle smile—the contrast left me staring in awe.
(And she noticed me watching even while she was that focused… She really is incredible.)
"You're up early. You could have slept longer."
"What about you, Milfi-san? Morning training?"
"Yeah, it's been a while. Thanks to you, the curse has faded quite a bit, and I'm feeling much better overall."
It was true. In the first few days she'd been in heat almost constantly, day or night. Lately, though, it had calmed down. Now the symptoms only appeared at night.
…Not that that made things any easier for me, mind you.
"So, I have a suggestion."
"Yes?"
Milfi-san flashed a carefree smile and dropped an absolute bombshell.
"Want to go on a date today?"
"…Huh?"
※※※
"This is bad. This is really bad, Milfi-san."
"What is~?"
Ignoring my panic, Milfi-san happily browsed the street stalls.
Today she wore a soft lavender dress with a white cardigan over it.
Her golden hair was tied back in a single ponytail, the ribbon fluttering in the breeze.
The overall atmosphere was much softer than usual—almost like a proper young lady.
(…She's so cute. No—no, this isn't the time to be staring!)
I frantically shook my head.
"If someone sees us together in a place like this, what are we going to do?"
"Eh? What do you mean… say hello?"
"That's not what I mean!"
Milfi-san seemed oddly unaware of just how famous she was.
If someone like her was seen walking side-by-side with a guy like me, people would definitely give us weird looks. In the worst case, rumors would start flying.
Whether she knew how worried I was or not, Milfi-san laughed brightly and said,
"It's fine. The symptoms have calmed down, and I wanted a change of pace for once."
"B-but…!"
When I faltered, Milfi-san pouted, lips pursed in dissatisfaction.
"What's with that… Do you hate walking with me that much?"
She stared at me with a sulky expression, even turning her fluffy tail away with a huff.
"N-no! That's not what I meant at all!"
This is dangerous.
Seeing her make that face… now I'm the one who feels like crying…
At that moment, a voice came from behind.
"Hey, isn't that Milfi?"
Turning around, we saw a woman with short black hair and an eyepatch standing there.
"Silvia! Long time no see!"
Milfi-san's face lit up instantly.
Ehh—Silvia-san!?
The famous…!
The top-tier hunter known as "Black Flash."
Second only to Milfi-san in strength.
"It hasn't been that long. You've been completely out of contact for days… Were you on some expedition?"
"No, I was just feeling under the weather."
"Eh, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm mostly better now."
"Hmm."
Silvia-san replied curtly.
Meanwhile, I was trembling with emotion.
(Incredible… Two people from the absolute top tier are casually talking right in front of me…!)
The fact that Milfi-san could speak so casually with Silvia-san was mind-blowing.
No—Milfi-san is the most amazing one here, right?
My brain was short-circuiting from the tension.
Then Silvia-san's ice-cold black gaze turned toward me.
(Hii… She's looking!)
"And who's that?"
"Ah, sorry for the late introduction. This is Theo-kun. He's been helping me a lot with my condition lately."
"N-nice to meet you!"
I bowed so hard my heart felt like it was going to explode.
Silvia-san muttered "Hmm" and stared at me intently.
It felt exactly like she was inspecting a piece of poorly made equipment.
(I can't… I can't handle this atmosphere!)
"U-um! I just remembered I have something urgent to do! Excuse me!"
I shouted, bowed deeply, and bolted away as fast as I could.
"Eh? Wait, Theo-kun!"
"Huh…?"
I heard both their voices behind me, but I didn't have the courage to look back.
※※※
I dashed out of the main street, turned through several back alleys, and finally stopped.
A quiet, deserted side street. My breath came in ragged gasps, chest aching.
(…I'm sorry, Milfi-san. But I just can't do this.)
It's not that I hate being with her.
If anything, I want to stay by her side forever.
But—the stares from other people terrified me.
No matter how you look at it, Milfi-san and I don't match.
Most people would probably think she's being deceived by some shady guy.
I don't care how I'm seen.
But I absolutely didn't want anything to tarnish her reputation.
"Theo-kun!"
My arm was suddenly grabbed and I was spun around.
There stood Milfi-san—looking a little angry, yet also troubled.
"Why did you run away? Did I do something wrong?"
"N-no!"
I shook my head frantically.
"It's not your fault, Milfi-san… I just got scared on my own."
"Scared?"
"Because… if someone sees you walking with someone like me, they might think badly of you."
I forced the words out, stumbling over them.
"If people think you're being tricked by some weird guy… it'll cause trouble for you."
"…"
"And even Silvia-san was looking at me suspiciously just now…"
After I finished, embarrassment and shame made me drop my gaze.
Milfi-san let out a small sigh.
"Hey."
Pok.
She lightly flicked my forehead.
"Ow?"
"Listen, Theo-kun. Silvia wasn't suspicious of you."
"Eh?"
"She's actually really bad at remembering faces. She has a habit of staring hard at people she's meeting for the first time. She knows it makes her look scary, so she asked me to tell you 'sorry if I looked intimidating.'"
"…Really?"
Milfi-san nodded. "Yes," she said, then placed a hand on my shoulder.
"And I don't think it's any trouble at all. I don't care what anyone else thinks. Today, I just wanted to go on a date with you."
Her straightforward gaze made me catch my breath.
"Don't decide how I feel on your own. Don't put me on a pedestal and then push me away on your own. Look at me properly. —Please."
Her eyes were completely serious.
Those words finally made something click inside me.
Milfi-san isn't unaware of her own fame.
She's simply choosing to look straight at the things—and the people—she truly cares about.
(…I see.)
By putting myself down so much, I'd been disregarding her feelings.
"…I'm sorry, Milfi-san."
I apologized from the bottom of my heart.
Then Milfi-san gave a sly grin.
"Nope. I'm not forgiving you that easily."
"Eh?"
"I'm going to give a certain gloomy curse-breaker-kun… a thorough punishment."
She slowly licked her lips.
Um… why do I suddenly have a very bad feeling about this?
Craving more forbidden stories?Step deeper into the wild.
Read this novel and many more on [email protected]/Soiha