At the Ducal House of Albert, the mistress of the estate—a woman whose influence was now said to rival even the King's—wore a grim expression in her office. Lilia Albert stared down at the single invitation resting on the desk before her.
"What should I do? This is so distressing..."
"Milady, that is the thirtieth time you have said that. Please, it is time to finally steel your resolve."
Lilia's personal maid, Lunamaria, spoke with an air of profound exasperation. Lilia, however, refused to look away from the invitation, her brow remaining furrowed in indecision.
Seeing this, Lunamaria let out a heavy sigh. "All you have to do is invite Miyama-sama to an evening party, right? You really should just make up your mind and get it over with."
"N-no, but... Kaito-san does not particularly enjoy these noble functions. Besides, he is quite a celebrity now, so his presence would cause an enormous scene... and also, it is simply embarrassing..."
"The last one is clearly your true motive."
The source of Lilia’s anguish was actually quite simple. At the party that had served as the catalyst for their relationship, she had danced with Kaito and enjoyed it so much that she simply yearned to do so again.
She did not believe for a second that Kaito would refuse an invitation from his own lover; he would surely make time for her. As a high-ranking noble, it was trivial for Lilia to find an event to attend or even arrange a private venue.
Every necessary condition was easily met—save for one. Lilia’s extreme shyness was a hurdle that tripped her up at every turn.
Unlike their previous dance, she was now Kaito's fiancée. The thought of dancing as lovers in a place where a multitude of people would be watching was so mortifying that she could never quite bring herself to ask him.
"Milady, I am honestly impressed you managed to get engaged to Miyama-sama with this attitude."
"T-that was... because Kaito-san took the lead... and well..."
"Good grief. Milady, if you are going to agonize like this every single time an invitation for a ball or an evening party arrives, please just brace yourself for once."
"Uguu... I-I know that. But before I ask, I must consider Kaito-san’s schedule. I need to grasp his plans perfectly and ensure that every possible preparation is in place..."
Lunamaria sighed again as she watched Lilia blush furiously and fidget with her fingers.
"Ah, she is definitely not going to ask him this time either," the maid thought to herself.
Inside the carriage on the way home from the evening party, my shoulders slumped in defeat.
I had failed to invite Kaito-san yet again. Oh, why was I so spineless? I was beginning to loathe myself.
In the end, I had spent the entire duration of tonight's party without dancing with a single person.
Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—having received Chronoa-sama's True Blessing, I now held such an elevated status among the nobility that I could turn down any invitation by simply stating I was not in the mood.
Lately, perhaps because rumors had spread that I disliked dancing, the number of nobles who approached me for conversation alone without asking for a dance had increased.
I had no desire to dance with anyone other than Kaito-san anyway, so that was not a problem. The real issue was that I had not managed to dance with Kaito-san himself even once.
I had tried to ask so many times, only to lose my nerve at the last second. It was truly pathetic. Even Luna had looked at me with pure pity.
Besides, I could not let things remain as they were forever. Our engagement was official, and Kaito-san and I would be married in the near future.
If I continued to be this embarrassed over such trivial things even after we became husband and wife, I feared Kaito-san might eventually grow disappointed in me.
Next time... Next time for certain, I would invite him properly.
Just as I solidified a resolve I had made countless times before, the carriage arrived at the mansion.
I stepped out just inside the gates and began to walk through the moonlit garden toward the house.
Normally, the carriage would take me right to the front door, but I found the garden so beautiful when illuminated by the moon that I made it a point to walk the path from the gate whenever I returned home late.
It was silent and ethereal. As the night breeze brushed past me and the stars twinkled in the dark sky, I felt my heart grow strangely calm.
I continued to stroll, soaking in the scenery, when I noticed a silhouette near the fountain in the center of the garden.
"Eh? K-Kaito-san?"
"Good evening, Lilia-san."
"A-ah, y-yes. Good evening..."
Why was Kaito-san here? No, more importantly... why was he wearing a formal suit?
Kaito-san smiled softly at my stunned expression and spoke.
"The moon was just so beautiful... and it reminded me of the evening party where we danced before. I found myself wanting to see you, Lilia-san."
"Kaito-san..."
Looking at his gentle smile, I finally realized that Luna had been pulling the strings behind the scenes. She must have grown tired of watching me fail to find my courage.
Truly, for all her sharp tongue and constant teasing, she was always on my side in the end. My dearest friend certainly had a difficult personality.
Kaito-san said nothing more. He simply watched me with that same smile, waiting. He was waiting for me to find my own courage.
When my best friend had pushed me this far and the man I loved was waiting for my answer, I could no longer hide behind my embarrassment.
"Kaito-san, it is truly a joy to meet you like this on such a wonderful night. I... I find myself wanting to turn this joy into a precious memory."
"..."
"So, um... would you... dance with me?"
"I would be delighted."
Kaito-san gave a respectful bow and stepped toward me, gently taking my hand.
Then, with a slight shift of his gaze, several split bodies of the Phantasm King appeared a short distance away. They were holding various instruments and began to play a beautiful melody.
Honestly, to think he would treat the Phantasm King as his personal orchestra... This man truly defied common sense. I began to feel quite silly for agonizing over such trivial things.
"Shall we?"
"Yes. I look forward to it, Kaito-san."
Under the gentle light of the moon, our dance began. It was not flashy, and perhaps it was not even particularly skillful.
However, the happiness swelling in my chest was immense.
It felt as though our hearts were in perfect sync. For this single moment, it felt as if no one else existed in the world but Kaito-san and me.
If we danced to our hearts' content, I was sure a great deal of time would pass. Yet, I suspected that for both of us, it would feel like the briefest of moments.
What should we do afterward? Perhaps we could have dinner together and talk until we fell asleep... No, before that, I thought I might try the same thing we did at the end of our very first dance.
I knew I would likely writhe in embarrassment later, but right now, I was buoyed by an overwhelming sense of bliss.
Then, I would look at Kaito-san—whose expression would surely turn to one of total surprise—and ask him if he would attend an evening party with me. I was certain he would nod with a gentle smile.
And when we attended that party together, I would introduce him to all the nobles I knew... as my proud fiancé.
The future felt limitless, and I felt a profound conviction that these dreams would become reality. Ah, I see... this was surely what it meant to be happy from the bottom of one's heart.
Thank you, Kaito-san. For choosing someone like me... I will make sure you never regret it. I will work harder than ever before to ensure that you feel exactly as happy as I do right now.
So, from this day forward... please let me stay by your side. I love you.
Serious-senpai ranted into the void: "Yesterday, I went to the afterword as usual. The afterword! And it was absolutely packed! I couldn't even leave a decent comment. Then I saw this banner hanging there that said something about a fifty-character afterword increase. Are you people stupid? Seriously! You idiots shouldn't be swarming the afterword just for an extra fifty characters when you don't even usually hang out here! It's fifty characters! Fifty! There were even people from other worlds there. Crossing worlds for an afterword? How festive of you! One of them was going on about, 'Oh, as a mother, I shall leave ten times the usual comments for the sake of my beloved child.' I couldn't even look at it! Listen, if you want to comment that much, do it in the main story and go home already! An afterword is supposed to be cutthroat! It should be an atmosphere where a fight with that damn kigurumi woman could break out at any second! To stab or be stabbed—that's the vibe we want! Main story characters should just stay out of it! And then, when I finally thought I could leave a comment, the person next to me was asking for 'Lovey-dovey Style.' I nearly lost it right then and there! Listen, lovey-dovey style is so yesterday! You punk! What's with that smug look? 'Lovey-dovey style,' my foot! I wanted to grill that person for an hour. I wanted to ask if they just liked the sound of the word. If you ask an afterword regular like me, the latest trend is definitely Serious-style! That's the one! Serious in the main story, serious in the afterword—put them together for a Double Serious! That is the true connoisseur's choice! Serious plus serious equals the strongest combo! Of course, if you do that, there's always the danger that the author will forcefully pivot back to comedy, so it's a double-edged sword. It's not recommended for amateurs. Well, you rank amateurs can just keep acting tough in the main story. It—it's not like I'm jealous or anything!"