These past few days, the color of Sanieve’s skin had started getting better as well, and by now, he had regained all his former beauty. He was also now wearing proper clothing instead of the tattered rags from before. His clothes, which in Earth terms closely resembled a chokha, a set of traditional Georgian clothing, were black with gold threading. Wearing it gave Sanieve a mysterious, noble dignity.
Virgo stopped being too formal when talking to him, and at this point, she totally trusted Sanieve. Their friendly chats had always been calm and amicable from beginning to end, but there had been one time when a disquieting atmosphere was brought about. It happened when Virgo mentioned a particular name.
“You know, Sei is amazing. Level-wise he’s very low, but even so, he fights through his terror and always moves straight forward...”
Sanieve paused. “Sei?” he asked. “Sorry, but what is this man to you?”
“Huh? Ummm... He’s someone I really admire, and... Ummm...”
It was rare for Virgo to be tongue-tied like she was when Sanieve asked this question. She also averted her eyes, blushing.
Sanieve was not a dense man. That reaction told him exactly what kind of feelings Virgo held for Sei, a man he had never met. Sanieve’s face was frighteningly expressionless then, though Virgo didn’t see this as she had averted her eyes. However, Sanieve had returned to his usual pleasant smile by the time Virgo had looked back at him.
“I see. By the way, I would like to hear about that moving golem you talked about before.”
“Yeah, okay!”
It was an obvious attempt to change the subject. Sanieve’s attempt to lead the conversation made it seem like he didn’t want to hear Virgo talk about Sei, but Virgo didn’t notice this. Eventually, the atmosphere returned to its usual peacefulness as the two continued to chat.
However, at that moment, a dark sentiment started to grow behind Sanieve’s kind eyes.
＊ ＊
Several days later, Virgo was once again visiting Sei on Earth. They were walking together through the city, having gone to see a movie, eaten together, and even visited an amusement park. They were ticking all the boxes of a relationship, as the two of them got ever closer. However, neither of them could take the final step.
So, Virgo had decided to work up the courage today. The time they could spend together was not long, so she felt she needed to resolve this as soon as possible. What drove her was both courage and a sense of panic. Virgo was afraid of letting too much time pass.
The particular lighting of the sunset shone on couples, parents with their children, and groups of men who had come to insist that they didn’t need love equally, as they had their fun at the amusement park. The park’s mascot was wandering around, balloons in hand. None of them felt the same fear as Sei and Virgo. The chance of being separated by death accompanied all couples, but most of them still had basically the same amount of time to live and share with their partner. Virgo felt jealous of those people, and she wanted to become like them. That was why she girded herself today; she needed to be brave.
“Um...”
“Virgo.”
As soon as Virgo prepared herself and was about to step forward, Sei spoke. Though he had no intention of doing so, Sei had blunted Virgo’s determination. However, it seemed he hadn’t noticed.
“I like you,” he said, a serious look on his face.
“Huh?!”
The sudden confession with its unexpected timing turned Virgo’s face red. The sheer surprise had her heart thumping in her chest as her eyes swam.
He’s expecting an answer. Aren’t these the words you’ve been waiting for the whole time?! she thought.
After looking up at Sei expectantly, Virgo finally noticed. Sei looked more serious than usual, and his face was filled with the sorrowful look of someone who was about to say something they didn’t want to.
No... He’s not going to say the words I’ve been waiting to hear. It’s the opposite... He’s going to say the one thing I don’t want him to, isn’t he?
“But, the time frames that we live in are too different. From your perspective, my life span is even shorter than a dog’s, and I’ll quickly be gone.”
Stop! Virgo wanted to shout. I don’t want to hear that! I know even without you telling me! I’m still here despite all that. Why would you say this?! Virgo wanted to cry out.
“I...I like you, so I don’t want to make you unhappy. I think you’ll still look the same as you do now even when I die. Whether or not it’s all right for me to take up your time like this has been on my mind all the time recently... So...”
So what? No, I don’t want to hear it! If I let him say it, it all ends here!
Before she’d noticed, tears were flowing out of Virgo’s eyes. Seeing this surprised Sei.
“N-No... It’s not like I started to dislike you or anything, Virgo! I just...”
“Sei, you... Sei, you IDIIIOOOOOOOOTTTT!”
The emotions Virgo was trying to hold back burst forth all at once, taking the form of an insult to Sei. After that outburst, Virgo couldn’t stand to be there anymore, so she ran away.
In a panic, Sei tried to chase after her, but because he was such an honest and serious person, he couldn’t help but think about unnecessary things.
Wouldn’t it be better to not chase after her?
If he gave chase right away, he might have been able to catch her. However, Sei’s hesitation was fatal. When she saw him stop, Virgo gave Sei a sad look before disappearing.
All Sei could do was stand there, staring dazedly at the place where she was. He’d never wanted to make her cry. He just wanted her to be happy. That was why Sei had said those things. It was the conclusion of all his worries about the end that would someday come for him and the thought that she would cry at their parting. After seeing her cry like that though, Sei started to feel like he’d made a huge mistake.
“You shouldn’t have done that, B O Y.”
A voice called out to him, and Sei reflexively turned around to see the costumed mascot.
This amusement park’s mascot was named Fire Rabbit and was a delightful bipedal rabbit whose head was constantly on fire. The mascot slowly took off its head, revealing a face that Sei knew well. It was one of the Imperial Thirteen Heavenly Stars, Karkinos the Crab. He was a resident of the same world as Virgo.
“Huh? K-Karkinos? What are you doing here?”
“It’s a part-time job. I thought it would be best to actually E X P E R I E N C E this world’s culture through a part-time job, so I came here with Miss Lufas’s permission,” Karkinos said, smiling proudly.
Then his look became serious as he looked Sei in the eye.
“Sei, my B O Y, that confession just now... Let me tell you this as a fellow man: it was B A D. That wasn’t what you should have said.”
For a while, Sei could say nothing, but he eventually managed to squeeze out an, “I know, but...”
“But? However? Still? Even so? Non, non, non. Those are all just excuses. I know what you want to say: ‘But I made that choice for Virgo’s happiness. I won’t live for very long, so it would be best for her if I let her go. Even through all this, my decision should be correct in the end.’” Karkinos paused. “That’s about it, isn’t it?”