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AFTER the guards took a preliminary look at the festival, they reported that only a few attendees were in costumes, though the festival had only just begun. There was going to be a fireworks show at night, as originally planned, so perhaps more attendees would show up in costumes by then.
Prince Adelberd donned a small mask that covered only his eyes. That was the extent of his costume, though he also wore a hooded cloak just to be safe. Lady Estellise dressed as a rabbit, while Prince Rutherford would be attending with a pair of bear ears.
I hadn’t recognized his ears at first. When I asked him if he was a mouse, he yelled, “I’m a bear, obviously! Bears are strong and fearless, just like me!” Prince Rutherford was still at the age when he aspired to grow up big and strong, it seemed.
The guards attending the festival with us would be Prince Adelberd’s long-standing personal guard and two other royal guards, all of whom knew of his situation. Prince Rutherford would also be taking a royal guard, and one of Lady Estellise’s bodyguards was to join us as well.
It had turned into quite the crowd, but this was still much smaller than what our entourage would have looked like under normal circumstances. Our escorts changed into animal costumes as well so as not to stand out in town.
Siraiya asked me to pick a costume for him. After some serious thought, I decided to give him a pair of dog ears.
“Hehe! How cute,” I giggled.
When he leaned down to let me put the headband on, I patted his head, as he really looked like a big, friendly dog. Siraiya’s cheeks flushed pink, but then Prince Rutherford interrupted our special moment.
“‘Cute?’ He’s way too big to be called that.”
“Siraiya is incredibly cute. I’d love to own a puppy as big and adorable as him.”
“I wouldn’t mind being your pet, Cynthia. You could chain me up and lock me in a room, and I’d still be happy.”
I gulped when Siraiya said that with such a spellbound look in his eyes.
“I-I would never! I want you to experience the world with me!”
I quickly redirected him before he could expose even more of his yandere side. That was close! He’s usually so peaceful, it’s easy to forget that I can’t let my guard down.
Siraiya’s character was designed with the disposition to become a yandere under the right circumstances.
“I’ll go anywhere you like, Cynthia. I’ll be an obedient dog who does whatever you ask of me.”
That still sounded a bit questionable, but I felt like I’d gotten him back on track…sort of. I knew he was still saying things like that because of all the bullying he endured from his family. That just meant I needed to continue pouring all of my love into Siraiya so that we could live happily out in the big, vast world that was now available to him.
“…Hmph. You’re just saying whatever you think Lady Cynthia wants to hear. Would you jump off a bridge if she told you to?”
“I would gladly die for Cynthia’s sake.”
“I’m not going to ask that of you!” I cried.
Please don’t get him off track again right after I set things straight! Prince Rutherford was much more open and honest around me now, but he continued to snap at Siraiya whenever he had the opportunity. Their relationship hadn’t improved at all, even though they were on a first-name basis now.
“I need to decide on my own costume, too,” I said, hoping to redirect the conversation. “Let’s see. What should I pick…?”
Just as I peeked into the crate of costumes, Siraiya and Prince Rutherford grabbed the exact same item and held it up to me. “Wear this!” they cried in unison. They were oddly in sync on this despite their tense relationship. They were holding a headband with white wings and a red crest attached at the top.
“You think of me as a chicken?!”
“No, you’re an angel!”
Again, both of them responded in perfect unison.
They don’t get along, but their minds are completely in sync?
The item was clearly modeled after a chicken, but the red crest looked like it would match my already red hair, so I decided not to protest. With that, my head gained a brand new pair of wings.