It was the 14th day of the Month of Wood. Bathed in the soft morning sunlight, I had just finished grooming Bell and was debating my next move when a familiar tiny fairy fluttered over.
"Kaito-kun-san..."
"Raz-san? Hello there. Is something the matter?"
"...This is for you. It's chocolate."
"Eh?"
Raz-san reached into her Magic Box and produced a chocolate box that was physically larger than she was.
It looked like a fairly high-end, store-bought brand. I assumed it was a Valentine's gift, which made me happy, but I couldn't help but notice her downcast expression.
"Um, thank you very much. I'm really glad to have this."
"Uugh..."
"Wait, Raz-san? Why are you crying...?"
"Uwaaaaaah! I'm so sorrrrry!"
"Ra-Raz-san?! Please, calm down. What's wrong?"
Even though I had accepted the gift and thanked her, Raz-san burst into a fit of sobbing. I stood there, bewildered, frantically trying to soothe her, but my words only seemed to make it worse.
"Raz is... Raz is a bad girl! Waaaah! I'm so sorry!"
"You're not a bad girl at all. Just... here, try to breathe."
"Uwaaaaaan! Kaito-kun-saaaaaan!"
Still not understanding the cause of her distress, I pulled out a handkerchief and began dabbing away her tears. Because she was so small, I could only drape the cloth over my pinky finger and move with extreme care.
"Uu... hic... Please... please don't hate me..."
"I won't! I could never hate you. Now, Raz-san, please tell me what happened."
"Uu... I... I worked so hard to make handmade chocolates for the Kaito-kun-san I love so much... Ein-san even helped me, and we made such delicious-looking ones, but..."
"I see. And then what happened?"
She said she had made them by hand, yet the box in my hand was clearly commercial. While Ein-san was talented enough to wrap something to look professional, it didn't seem like her style. I gently prompted her to finish the story.
"They looked... so tasty... hic... They looked so good that... Raz... Raz..."
"..."
At that point, I had a pretty good idea of where this was going.
"I only meant to take one little bite to check the taste... but I ended up eating all of them! I'm so sorry!"
Apparently, she had put her heart and soul into making me chocolates, but she had found them so irresistible that she'd devoured the entire batch herself. With no time left to bake more, she had scrambled to buy a replacement gift.
I see. So that was the reason for the tears. I felt incredibly guilty for thinking this while she was so miserable, but... good heavens, she was an adorable creature.
"Raz-san, it's okay. I'm not the least bit angry."
"R-Really?"
"Of course. If anything, the fact that you worked that hard for my sake makes me truly happy."
"Kaito-kun-san..."
The image of her tiny body struggling to make chocolates just for me warmed my heart. I cupped her in both of my hands and gently stroked her head with my index finger.
"So please, don't cry anymore. It makes me sad to see you like this."
"Okay... I understand."
"Thank you again for the chocolate."
"Ehehe... Kaito-kun-san really is the kindest. I love you so much!"
Finally, her adorable smile returned. I gave her head one last pat before letting her go. Since she was right here, I decided to enjoy the gift immediately. With a quick word of thanks to her, I opened the packaging.
"...Cacao 99% chocolate."
"It says it's full of cacao! Raz doesn't really know what that means, but having more of something is usually better, right?"
"A-Ahaha... Well..."
"Go on, try it!"
Oh boy. This was the incredibly bitter kind. I'd had 50% cacao before, but 99% was a completely different beast. Urged on by her expectant gaze, I steeled my resolve and took a bite.
"..."
Bitter! It was so bitter!
"Kaito-kun-san?! W-What's wrong? Is it bad?"
"No, it's just... well, it's really bitter."
"But chocolate is supposed to be sweet, isn't it?"
"..."
She seemed genuinely confused. I broke off a tiny piece and handed it to her. She looked at me, looked at the chocolate, and then popped it into her mouth. Her face immediately contorted in a way that was almost painful to watch.
"Blegh! I-It's so bitter! Why is it like this when it's supposed to be chocolate?!"
"This specific kind of chocolate is meant to be bitter, actually."
"I didn't know... Raz messed up again..."
"No, no, it's fine! If I eat it with something sweet, it'll act as a nice accent. It might actually be better that way!"
Probably. Maybe.
"Really? Something sweet... something sweet... Ah! I have a great idea!"
"Wait, what?"
"Clean!"
After looking around for something sweet, she clapped her hands and cast a spell on herself. A shimmering light enveloped her—if I remembered correctly, that was the magic used to purify the body.
"There, now I'm all clean. Kaito-kun-san! Stick out your tongue!"
"Eh? O-Okay."
I had no idea what she was planning, but I followed her instructions and stuck out my tongue. Raz-san fluttered closer and...
Smooch.
"Wait—?!"
She pressed her lips to the tip of my tongue—or rather, she practically rubbed her whole face against it. Startled, I reflexively pulled my tongue back into my mouth, but in the process, I inadvertently tasted her. A profound sweetness spread across my palate.
Wait... sweet?
"Raz-san, what in the world was that for?"
"I'm a Flower Fairy, you know! My body is incredibly sweet. So, if you lick Raz while you eat the chocolate, it should taste delicious!"
"..."
I see. So that was her logic. Since she tasted like flower nectar, I should just use her as a condiment. No, that was definitely not okay! Even if she was fine with it, that was a massive violation of common sense!
"N-No, Raz-san... I really can't do that..."
"W-Was Raz... not tasty?"
Wait, Raz-san! That's a very dangerous thing to say!
"It's not that! But... surely you wouldn't like it if I just went around licking you, right?"
"I wouldn't mind at all!"
"...Eh?"
"Raz loves Kaito-kun-san so, so, soooo much! I'd be happy no matter what you did to me!"
She made no effort to hide her affection, declaring that I could do whatever I wanted. I felt like I was on the verge of awakening to a very dangerous new fetish. I had to stop this.
"I-I see! But look! I actually have some very sweet jam cookies! They'll go perfectly with this chocolate. Why don't we eat them together?"
"Jam cookies?! Can Raz have some too?"
"Of course! Eat as many as you want!"
"Yay! Thank you, Kaito-kun-san!"
It was a clumsy subject change, but Raz-san was pure and innocent. She didn't suspect a thing, happily cheering at the prospect of cookies instead. I breathed a sigh of relief, glad I had managed to steer clear of the "fairy obsession" route, and led her into the house.
"By the way, it must have been difficult to make chocolate with a body that small, right?"
"Not at all! I used Humanization Magic to do it!"
"Humanization Magic? The same one Acht uses?"
"That's the one! When Acht-kun uses it, he gets smaller, but when Raz uses it, I can get bigger. I'm still much smaller than you, though..."
"Is that so?"
"Yes! I've heard that members of the Fairy Race often use Humanization Magic on their wedding night when they marry a human. I wonder why that is?"
"I... I haven't the slightest idea."
"Oh. Well, Raz doesn't know either, so we're in the same boat!"
I stood corrected. It seemed the dangerous flags had been planted long ago.