“Maids? Tina, you really do like that kind of style, don’t you? Ever since you first saw me.”
Princess Lia said firmly.
“No, no, Your Majesty, you’ve got it wrong. I’m really not the type to spend all day thinking about maid cafés, nor have I ever wanted to see what Your Majesty looks like in one.”
“Eh~ So Tina doesn’t like that kind of thing? I was actually thinking of having one custom-made for you if you did.” Lia showed a slightly disappointed expression.
“Hm? But then again, if Lia wore it, I’m sure it would look uniquely charming. Maybe you should try it on.” Tina’s expression changed faster than flipping a book.
“All right~ then as we agreed earlier, you have to accompany me at the Carnival all day today.”
“Don’t worry, today I’m completely yours, Lia.”
“Ahem—” Lia got a little too excited and accidentally choked. “Th-then, let’s go to the flower shop first.”
“Lead the way.”
It seemed Lia had already planned out the itinerary for the day.
Though Tina didn’t know why they had to go to the flower shop first, she figured she just needed to follow the logic of the date.
Wait, a date?
This ambiguous word felt a bit unfamiliar to Tina.
Was she actually on a date with Lia?
No, no, this was just two ordinary friends hanging out. Yeah, that’s it.
After successfully convincing herself, Tina followed Lia to the first stop of the date—a flower shop near the palace, filled with the kind of romance unique to the Keliweier Kingdom.
Besides some local plants she couldn’t name, Tina recognized many flowers from the modern world: roses, carnations, lilies, and so on.
Lia carefully selected flowers in front of the racks for quite a while, finally picking up some red tulips with dewdrops on the petals and went to pay the shopkeeper.
“It’s the Princess… oh no, Your Majesty the King. You don’t need to pay.” The shopkeeper immediately became very polite upon seeing them.
“That won’t do. We’re here just as ordinary people enjoying the festival today. Please accept it.”
At this point, the shopkeeper knew he couldn’t refuse and hurried to get a bag of seeds from the back room, saying, “As a gift, these are the newly stocked Hibron Tree Seeds.”
“Eh? The ones that almost no one can grow but once grown become tall and magnificent trees?”
In Lia’s impression, there were no more than a hundred of these trees across the entire continent. Their seeds were one of the rarest trade goods.
“Exactly, Your Majesty. Be sure to plant a few in the garden to try.”
“All right! Then we’ll gladly accept.”
Lia hopped out of the shop like a child with an immature mind.
Of course, Tina knew this was simply because Lia was very happy and had completely lost the regal dignity expected of a monarch.
Well, that was fine too.
“So, the next stop is the clothing store!”
Once again.
Lia seemed to cherish their time together, moving quickly to follow the schedule.
But Tina wanted to say: there’s no rush, the Carnival lasts two more days, even if today passes there’s tomorrow, and even if this time ends, there’ll be the next.
Yet the words stuck in her throat, because could she really make the promise, “I will be with you for ten years, then the next ten, and the one after that”?
Clearly, she couldn’t.
That would be deceit, a lie. She felt guilty.
Perhaps, if given a little more time to adjust, she might be able to tell such hollow promises without feeling bad.
She just hoped that by then, she wouldn’t become a character lost too deeply in a play.
“What’s wrong? You seem troubled. Are you unhappy spending the festival with me?”
Lia noticed Tina’s silence on the way out of the flower shop and thought she might not be enjoying herself.
“No, spending time with Lia is happier than ever before. I wish this could last forever…”
“Hehe, saying it so nicely, I actually prepared a surprise for you today.”
“What surprise?”
“Can’t say yet! Gotta keep it mysterious, hmph~ Hey, hey—stop pulling my face, it hurts!”
“Ah? Sorry, you’re just so cute I couldn’t help myself.”
“Tsk…,” the girl complained, but the joyful smile on her face perfectly expressed her current mood.
She hoped this kind of playful teasing would go on forever.
“We’re here, the best tailor shop in the kingdom. Every piece of clothing sold here is worth a fortune, and you can’t just buy whatever you want because you have money.”
Lia had already informed the owner beforehand that she’d be coming with someone important.
Now, a woman dressed magnificently was sitting by the door, waiting for them.
“Your Majesty, what would you like to buy?”
“Hmm… custom-make a maid outfit to fit my figure.” Lia said and glanced back at Tina, who looked away pretending not to care.
“Ah?” The woman was stunned for two seconds. “It’s for you, not her?”
“Exactly.”
“All right, if that’s Your Majesty’s request.”
***
The woman took a soft measuring tape and measured Lia carefully, then focused on recording the data and stitching fabric.
“It might take a few days, Your Majesty. Would you like to buy anything else?”
“Hehe~ then make us both matching pajamas?” Lia leaned over and whispered, “A couple’s set.”
“Uh—at your command, Your Majesty.”
The woman didn’t dare comment but thought the young couple had quite the lavish taste.
After Tina’s measurements were taken, they temporarily left the tailor shop and headed to the last and longest stop.
“There’s still plenty of time. It should be enough.”
“Lia, where are we going?”
“Did you know the Carnival has a must-try activity—riding unicorns to soar through the sky and overlook the entire kingdom?”
Only then did Tina understand Lia had left so much time so that their most enjoyable private moment could last longer.
“Let’s go.” Lia grabbed Tina’s hand and ran to the edge of a lawn, where a white winged unicorn was waiting.
“There’s only one?” Tina asked.
“That’s right, we’ll both ride the same one. Also, you probably haven’t ridden a unicorn before, right? Then let me take the responsibility of steering!”
Tina felt like she had fallen into a trap; from the moment she left the palace, everything had been under Lia’s control.
“All right, I’ll sit behind.”
The sensation of riding the unicorn was very unique. It reminded Tina of sitting on the back of an electric scooter.
Since this could fly, in three dimensions, it naturally felt much more thrilling.
“Hold on tight~” Lia deliberately grabbed Tina’s hand and placed it in front of her belly so she could wrap her arms around Lia’s waist.
“Here we go.”
Lia used Wind Magic to launch the unicorn and both of them into the air. The unicorn then spread its wings and soared under the guidance of magical power.
Wherever the unicorn flew, it left a rainbow trail, its colorful beauty making them the focus of the people below.
“Let’s find a place with no one around.”
Lia busily pulled them away from the crowd, unaware that Tina was holding on tighter and tighter.
“Wait, you’re not afraid of heights, are you?”
At this moment, Tina’s head rested against Lia’s back, and she looked a bit spent.
If at first she held Lia because of Lia’s preference, now she was holding on for her own life.
She was a modern person—when would she ever get to experience flying in a magical world again?
This was terrifying!
“If you can’t do it, shall we get down?”
“No, no, I’m fine—”
Men can’t admit they’re scared.
That was her thought, but in the end, she gave in to her body’s instinct.
Halfway through, they made an emergency landing on the edge of a cliff.
“Ah—”
Tina lay on the grass for an unknown amount of time.
Only when the sun had set did she recover.
The gentle sea breeze blew from the high cliff, the afterglow sprinkled on the shimmering water surface, and the endless waves accompanied by the calls of seagulls signaled the end of the day.
“I’m really sorry. It’s all because my body’s weak.” Tina blamed herself.
“Blame me, I didn’t know you were afraid of heights,” Lia comforted her. “At least, we flew quite far and saw a lot of wonders along the way, though I don’t know if you had the energy to watch much…”
“That was enough. I had a great time today.”
As they chatted, a shadow blocked the sunlight. Tina opened her eyes to see Lia holding a flower crown.
“Eh? Are those the tulips from the flower shop?”
“That’s right. While you were resting, I wove them into a flower crown.”
Tina sat up, and Lia leaned over.
“Don’t move, I’ll put it on you.”
“Mm.”
“All done.” Lia inspected closely, then stepped back a little, admiring from all angles.
“Tina looks very pretty today.”
She secretly took a picture with the Memory Stone.
“Now, according to Carnival tradition… after a man gives a woman flowers, he must offer his most sincere Love Confession.”
“Eh?” Tina realized Lia bought the flowers for this tradition, and even the unicorn ride was to find the perfect spot.
Was this… a confession now?
“Ahem, then… will you be my queen, Tina?”