Valença had her hair tied in a ponytail, wearing fairly casual clothes, the only difference being the skirt that reached her ankles with discreet floral embroidery along the edges. Her face was serene, but inside she was dissatisfied because an unwanted person was at her table—a table that was supposed to be just her and Enrico.
'Why did she have to come, and how did she find out we were going out?'
"You must be wondering how I found out, right? That doesn't matter. The real issue here is that I should have been the first to go out with our subordinate."
On the other side of the table, Serenya sat glaring threateningly at Valença. She wore a noble lilac and white dress with short sleeves and elegant frills, a thin golden belt at her waist, and a short cape attached by her family crest. Both of them, of course, were wearing the gifts Enrico had given them at the festival months ago.
[She really looks like a noble, even wearing gloves and holding a fan.]
'She literally looks like those fantasy nobles from stories who torment the protagonist… and apparently, the protagonist here is Valença.'
Enrico was wearing a black nobleman's outfit with a white stripe down the middle, bearing a red symbol of the Solcren Ferreira family, given to him by Platina after she somehow found out he was going out with someone today.
Enrico sat calmly, watching the two of them. It hadn't been as difficult to convince Yumeha as he thought it would be. When he told her, he expected she'd want to join the outing, but instead, she just looked at him with a smile as if she had already won first place.
"Why should I care who will be the second master's wife? For someone who already won, that doesn't matter."
She was quite happy—especially since he told her everything honestly without hiding anything, which only strengthened her confidence as his number one wife.
'Well, she's not wrong—she really is the first.'
They were in a luxury café that Serenya herself had invited them to. Before that, the two were about to go somewhere else but were interrupted. As if to cut off the staring contest, Enrico began making their orders while sitting between them.
"What would you two like?"
"I'll have a sweet-scented tea and a slice of chocolate cake."
"I'll have…"
Valença glanced around, trying to see something to order since she didn't know the place well, while Serenya seemed familiar enough not to even look at the menu.
"If you don't know what to get, you can look at the menu with me. Don't worry, this is my first time here too."
"Alright."
Valença blushed slightly as she leaned closer to see the menu with him, their shoulders touching, making her heart race. He guided her through the choices, making it easy for her to decide. On the other side, Serenya pouted, which made Enrico smile and lightly tap her nose with his finger.
"Don't be jealous, my leader. Don't forget, you still have to fight to be the first, even though you're already in my heart."
[Ugh, I feel like throwing up.]
'…Yeah, that was way too cheesy and bold.'
Even with that thought, it seemed Serenya liked it—she began blushing with a silly smile as she leaned closer. Both girls were happy to be with him but unhappy to have to share him on their date. Serenya stuck out her tongue at Valença while holding his arm, and not wanting to fall behind, Valença gave a cold look and held his other arm too.
[Why do these two act as if they're already together and only competing for first place? Shouldn't they be fighting to see who gets him at all, not accepting being part of a harem already?]
'Like I said, in this world it's normal among strong people—or for alliances.'
Of course, both sides had to agree. For example, among the ninth-circle mages, only the emperor of Tsuyokuni had three wives, while others usually married only those who could bring them real benefits.
'Be careful, Valença. Can you handle Enrico looking at you like that?'
It was her first time in a café like that, and to be honest, she had never drunk tea in her life like the nobles did. While both girls were sipping their tea, Valença spilled a bit on her clothes—it would've been worse if Enrico hadn't caught the cup in time.
'What a handful. I'll have to teach you how to drink tea properly next time.'
Wiping her clothes with a cloth, Enrico looked calm, not at all bothered by the incident. Serenya, who was about to mock Valença, stayed quiet and intentionally spilled a bit on her own glove.
"Subordinate, I spilled some too. Could you help me clean it?"
"Of course."
Holding her hand, Enrico carefully cleaned it. To Serenya, Enrico already felt like her husband, and every time she saw him being so gentle, she couldn't help but think that someday they would be a family—even with those other annoying girls around him.
With the cake arriving, the three finally started having a real date. Some disputes arose between the two girls, but Enrico immediately stopped them. The three began to develop a beautiful harmony at that table—a harmony kept together by Enrico's calm presence.
Later, Enrico asked Valença to choose their next destination since Serenya had chosen the first. After thinking, Valença led them to a library where she showed them her favorite childhood stories. She wanted to show Enrico the things she loved and was happy to see him take one to read later that night. Serenya also joined in, asking Enrico for book recommendations.
"You'll like this one—it's called The Tale of the Arrogant Princess."
"Arrogant Princess? Don't tell me you're comparing her to your leader?"
"Yes, I am—exactly because of that, it's my favorite story."
Pausing for a moment, Serenya gripped the book tightly, holding it close to her chest as she smiled, blushing with her hair covering her eyes.
"Thank you."
"Thank me after you read it."
Watching their exchange, Valença firmly took Enrico's hand and began showing him her next favorite book.
They spent as much time there as they could, and the three left each with a different book. Enrico had even recommended one to Valença during that time.
"I think it's my turn to take you two somewhere now."
Enrico took both of their hands and began running toward a different place. Arriving at the academy, he looked around to make sure no one was there and placed a paper on the ground. Once activated, the three disappeared from sight.
"What place is this?"
"Let's just say I come here sometimes, princess, when the sky has no stars. Sometimes I visit when it does—to take a moment to think about nature."
They were in a field full of flowers and fireflies glowing all around. Asking them to lie down, he pointed to the sky, their eyes lighting up as they saw the countless stars blanketing it beautifully. Enrico had discovered this place about a week before vacation. Lying on the ground with one girl on each side, he pointed upward.
"Something fun to do is that, if you look closely and connect the stars by drawing with your magic in the air, you can form pictures."
Enrico moved his finger, leaving behind trails of fire. As the distance grew, the two could see a cute little lion. Excited, they began doing the same.
"You're right! Mine turned out as a dragon."
"Let me see."
"Subordinate, look at mine too! I made a princess—it's much better than a dragon."
"Please, Lady Serenya, even you don't believe that."
The day was ending, but the three had a lot of fun. Even though the two girls didn't get along, they managed to enjoy their time together. While the two kept drawing more figures, Enrico focused on a part of the sky with no stars.
'I really prefer when this sky is empty… Well, today was a good day—for them and for me too. I'm satisfied…'