She drifts toward the cake I've opened and grabs a slice.
No, not with a fork or spoon, but rather a pair of chopsticks he pulls from her dress.
"---Uh."
Well, I'd rather not say a word. I prefer to survive this night.
She brings the chopsticks to her parted lips and eats it modestly.
Her figure reminds me of a royal daughter trying to impress me.
"Hm."
In other words, she is much too proper when eating something as simple as cake.
"I am obliged to admit. It's quite good."
She raises her chopsticks as if approving the pastry.
I look away.
I'm not hungry, so I don't eat anything.
Meanwhile, Takamura the ex-robot munches down the cake piece by piece, albeit her chewing is practically silent.
She continues to eat the cake for five full minutes without saying another word.
"..."
It's particularly strange seeing her do this.
Even though consuming food is one of the human-race's most native functions, seeing her of all people doing it—and with cake of all things—...
This scene feels as if I have unlocked some special segment in a game.
"------!!"
I slip a look her way to check her progress on the cake.
But, as if she had predicted my movement, her chewing subsides almost immediately as I turn my head and we lock eyes.
How do I put this.
…Takamura-sensei is stunningly beautiful.
I have no romantic feelings towards Takamura-sensei, but I have to admit an embarrassing thought, and that is that I've always imagined her in a maternal way.
Even now, as she tilts her head calmly, droning my face like usual, I can't help but associate it with motherly behavior.
…It ultimately can't be helped, though.
I'm definitely not an orphan, but a child missing one parent is as good as none.
…No, that's too harsh.
I consider Kouta-sensei more of my father than anybody else, anyways.
"Is something wrong, Aron-kun?"
The moonlight shines mystically onto the scene.
The face of a cold woman turns even colder, and yet…
It's strange.
It's strangely warm(?).
This isn't the first time I've noticed this, or felt this way.
It's just now, at a time like this…
When such a person is talking to me so casually…
"Takamura-sensei…I've always wondered…Well, I guess what I mean is—"
I spit out my question without thinking twice.
"Do…you have any children…?"
—Ah.
That must've slipped out of my throat.
And it's a shame. Such a stupid question being my final words.
Of course, I'll be killed.
I'll be killed by this woman for asking such a thing.
It's unheard of to die from a slap, but I suppose I will be the lab rat of this theory.
"Children—?"
Her eyes inflate.
It's a strange look, but I'm able to see her eyes more clearly.
An empty iris, matching her kimono.
She doesn't immediately answer the question, but continues to chew the mushy cake in her cheek. As if her properness were slowly dissolving, she was really just eating the cake normally now.
"Of course not. How old did you think I was?"
Finally, she answers a second after swallowing the cake.
"---O-old? You?"
…It was a stupid question, after all.
Judging by her appearance—well, what else would I use to judge her?
Anyways, I would say she's around 25 years old.
Her voice is obviously feminine, but it's a dominant tone that taints my guess of 25 to about 27 or more.
"Well, since you find it difficult to answer, I'll just go ahead and say it."
"---You didn't even give me three seconds to respond, Sensei."
She pouts like a little girl, and places her chopsticks down onto the cake.
Pushing the pastry away from her, it's clear my unspoken guess was very wrong. My expression must have given it away as well.
"I am 17 years old. I turn 18 in a month."