After eating a much later breakfast than usual, I began my day with yet another round against the mountain of documents. Rain was pouring from the black clouds that permeated the sky and I’d moved my work station inside. Even though this was how my days had been going ever since I’d returned to Keiyou, there was something different about today.
Hakurei was sitting next to me with her long silver hair hanging loose behind her. Ever since she’d woken up in my bed, she hadn’t once looked me in the eye. Sure, I was signing off on document after document and I could see the mountain of paper growing ever smaller before my eyes, but... The atmosphere is way too tense!
“Er, Miss Hakurei?” I was nervous, unable to handle the awkwardness between us any longer.
As soon as she heard me call to her, the hand holding her pen stopped. Then, as slowly as a piece of machinery that had rusted over, she turned to look at me. “What is it?”
“Ah, no, I...”
“Please refrain from talking to me if you have nothing to say.”
“All right...”
She was in no mood for conversation. I could guess the reason: it was probably because she was regretting getting drunk and sleeping in my room. Now that I thought about it, some girls Hakurei’s age had already gotten married; she was definitely at the age when she would be worrying about the opposite sex. Maybe I should’ve taken her back to her room, even if she hadn’t wanted to leave at the time. I gazed out at the rainy garden, wallowing in regret, when Asaka walked in with a wooden box full of additional documents.
“Lord Sekiei, please don’t worry about it! Lady Hakurei is simply panicking about how she embarrassed herself in front of you and is nervous that it’s ruined your image of her! ♪”
Her words added more fuel to the fire. Quivering, I peeked over at Hakurei next to me and instantly regretted my choice to do so. There was a beautiful smile on her face as she looked at her lady-in-waiting.
“Asaka?”
“I still have some work left, so I shall return to my duties! ♪”
“Wha— H-Hey!”
Without taking responsibility for her actions, Asaka left the room with a skip in her step. Th-That was on purpose! She totally said that on purpose! My mind raced to find a new topic of conversation but drew a blank.
I took a moment to steel my resolve before saying, “Hey, listen...”
“What is it?” Hakurei glared at me with such sharpness I could feel her gaze pierce me like arrows. But—there was no anger in her eyes. All I could see was embarrassment and shame.
I scratched my cheek and looked away as I gave my advice. “It’s no problem if you drink with me, but you should avoid alcohol with other people. All right?”
In an instant, Hakurei’s face had turned as pink as a peach. She must’ve known it too because she cupped her cheeks with her hands and replied in a churlish voice, “Y-Yesterday was my very first time having alcohol, so I let my guard down. Besides, if you had only taken me back to my room...”
“Lady Chou Hakurei, you were the one who rejected my offer to do so.”
“Y-You must be joking!”
She was serious about not remembering. I looked her dead in the eye and shook my head. “Unfortunately not.”
Hakurei groaned and, at her limit, placed a hand to her forehead before she slumped down on the table. She was normally so calm and collected that the people in the Chou manor compared her disposition to ice. Considering that, this was a rare sight indeed. I had a new story I could write to father about.
I could see Asaka hiding behind one of the pillars outside, watching us with a somewhat worried expression on her face. I signaled her with my hand and, after nodding a few times, she returned to her duties for real. Everyone in the manor loved and cared for Hakurei.
Happy about this fact, I looked down at the girl in question and saw that she was still holding her head in her hands. “Don’t worry,” I said, “an embarrassing moment every once in a while won’t kill anybody. Besides, people will find you a lot cuter if you let your guard down instead of being perfect all the time.”
“P-Please do not lump me in the same category as you! I have a reputation to uphold!” Then, in a much quieter voice, she added, “I already get teased enough as it is...”
“Huh?” She’d muttered that last sentence with her face still in her hands, so I wasn’t able to catch it.
Straightening up, she started working on her documents again as she said in a harried tone, “It’s nothing. Forget about it, please. Oh, speaking of which, I didn’t say anything strange last night, did I? I’m positive I didn’t, but just in case.”
I looked away. “You didn’t.” How much of our conversation does she remember?
Still in her chair, she scooted it so that she was right next to mine and then peered into my face. “Why are you averting your gaze? If you tell me the truth now, I won’t get mad. Did I really not say anything strange?”
I guess this is it. I held up both of my hands and obliged. “You didn’t say anything weird. You remember how you pressed your head against my chest, though, right?”
“Y-Your chest?!” Hakurei’s face flushed bright red once more and it was clear from the way she stammered, “Um...I...well...” that she had completely lost her composure.
N-No way! She barely remembers anything from last night! I stared at her, mouth agape. Seeing my reaction, Hakurei shot to her feet and turned away, taking such deep breaths that I could see her shoulders moving with each inhale. After she collected herself, she turned back to face me. She was doing a good job at seeming unbothered despite the fact that there was still a slight blush on her neck and ears.
“It seems that I need to hear the details about last night. Tell me everything! Right now!”
“Um, don’t you think you’re acting a bit too tyrannical?”
“I am simply exercising my rights.” She stalked closer and glared down at me with her hands on her hips. I could tell from the determination burning in her eyes that she wasn’t going to back down until she got what she wanted.
Y-You want me to tell you all about how you were cuddling up to me, Chou Hakurei?! I signed off on a document agreeing to fortify Keiyou’s defenses as I racked my brain to come up with a way out of my predicament but came up with nothing. My murky memories of my life as Kou Eihou were absolutely useless in times like these.
“Sekiei,” Hakurei said in a cold voice.
“Fine, just don’t take it out on me if you regret it. Wait, do you hear something?”
Hakurei blinked at me in confusion before her gaze sharpened. “I do.”
After we exchanged a look, we grabbed some umbrellas from a nearby clay pot and ran outside to the courtyard. Now that we were outside, it was clear that what we heard was no trick of our minds.
“The sound of hooves?” we murmured in unison.
It was illegal in Keiyou—as well as the Ei Empire as a whole—to ride a horse through the city streets. The only time when someone was allowed to do so was in emergencies and for Keiyou, emergencies usually meant an enemy invasion. Still underneath an umbrella, Hakurei grabbed my left sleeve and drew closer to me. After a moment we heard a horse’s whinny, which caused an uproar within the manor behind us.
Asaka raced out from the corridor and into the courtyard, moving so much faster than I’d ever seen her do. She normally acted so flighty, but now her face was pale and there was a document in her hand. “Lord Sekiei, Lady Hakurei, s-something terrible has happened!”
“Calm down, Asaka,” Hakurei ordered. She must have regained some of her composure after seeing the way her lady-in-waiting was panicking.
Asaka sucked in a breath before she took a knee and bowed to us. “I apologize. Lord Sekiei, please take a look at this. It is a letter from Lord Teiha, who had been sent to Hakugin Castle west of Keiyou.”
“A letter from the citadel?” I took the piece of paper from her and looked through it.