Author: Suisei
Translator: Rinkage

Character page: Here

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Chapter 223 – I checked the message

“…Are you sure that’s okay?” [Raven]

“Yeah. If I cooperate, getting you out of there without anyone noticing will be easy.” [Youki]

After all, Happiness could be invited over just as easily. And if I made sure to be out of the house that day, there wouldn’t be any problems. It would give the two of them perfect privacy. They’d be free to use the kitchen too. Spending an entire day living together under the same roof wouldn’t be a bad experience, I thought.

Raven hesitated for a moment, but he gave in soon enough.

“…Can I really ask you to do this?” [Raven]

“Leave it to me.” [Youki]

And just like that, my house was chosen as their secret meeting place. The schedule would be arranged between Happiness and Raven, with Duke and me acting as messengers.

I told him to look forward to it, then headed home myself.

♦♦♦

A few days later, while I was cleaning the second floor, I heard a knock at the door. I set the broom and dustpan aside and went downstairs. When I opened the door, Happiness was standing there.

“…I’m here.” [Happiness]

“Oh. You came at just the right time. Come on in.” [Youki]

I had wanted to tell her what had been decided, so we sat down across from each other.

Alright, let’s start by talking about how Raven’s doing.

“I went to see Raven, and… he’s having a pretty hard time too.” [Youki]

“…Fatigue?” [Happiness]

“No. It’s because he can’t see you.” [Youki]

What kind of misunderstanding was that? If Raven was having a hard time, of course, it was because he couldn’t see Happiness. There was no way someone like him, who never neglected his daily training, would complain just because he was tired.

…Well, hearing that someone was suffering because they couldn’t see you would affect anyone. As expected, Happiness turned her face aside, embarrassed by what she’d heard. They were both hurting for the same reason, after all. Seeing her innocent reaction only made me want to help them even more.

“So, with that in mind, I’ve got a proposal. Why not have a secret rendezvous at my place? Happiness, you can come over normally like this, and I’ll secretly bring Raven along.” [Youki]

“…A bother.” [Happiness]

“It really isn’t. Raven asked me whether it was alright too, you know. This is hard on both of you. You can use the second floor however you like. I’m actually in the middle of cleaning it right now.” [Youki]

Seriously, what was she being so reserved for at this point? From the way she had acted before, it was obvious she really wanted to see him.

Let’s push a little more.

“I won’t be home that day, so you two will have the place to yourselves all day. I told Raven the same thing. You’re free to use the kitchen too. He’s seriously thinking about a future with you. You know that, right? Think of it as practice for living together while you can.” [Youki]

“…The future… living together.” [Happiness]

Happiness flushed and sank into deep thought. That made me wonder whether I had pushed things too far. It wasn’t the sort of face she ought to be making in front of me, so for Raven’s sake, I decided to look away.

Turning my eyes from Happiness, who had clearly drifted off into another world, I headed upstairs and resumed cleaning. The fact that she hadn’t even noticed me going up was proof of just how carried away she was.

Everyone’s awareness is changing, little by little.

As I swept the floor, I found myself thinking about it. Yuuga and Mikana had gotten married, while Raven and Happiness had begun to think seriously about their future together. Tiel-chan and Gai… would probably be fine too. Duke, on the other hand, wasn’t the sort to come asking for advice. Before long, he’d probably end up in a relationship as well, quietly living somewhere far from town with his partner. Sheik was surrounded by people now, too, so he’d be fine.

Which left…

“So… what am I supposed to do?” [Youki]

At this point, there was no point in asking anyone else for advice. Getting help was one thing, but deciding what came next was something the two of us had to do together. Worrying alone wouldn’t get me anywhere… and there was no way I could go to Cecilia and ask her what we should do next.

I need to come up with a few options. No, first, I need to tell her how I feel right now.

“If we just say we’ll go at our own pace…” [Youki]

That might have been fine for Cecilia and me, but it wouldn’t work for the others. There were positions to consider, after all. Just liking each other wasn’t always enough to make things work smoothly…

Even as my mood sank, my hands never stopped moving. It was almost as if I was using the cleaning as a way to run from reality. I worked nonstop until the cleaning was finally done… or rather, until I realised it had gotten too late. Before I knew it, while absentmindedly tidying and sorting things, I had messed up the room’s layout. It no longer had the right atmosphere for a couple who wanted time alone together. In the end, I had no choice but to rearrange the whole room all over again.

Before long, I heard footsteps on the stairs. While I’d been cleaning up there, I had assumed Happiness had gone home without a word.

Then she entered the room.

“Took you long enough. You didn’t come up, so I thought you’d gone home. What? Did the thought of the two of you staying here alone overnight send your brain into a panic? That’s it, right? Definitely that.” [Youki]

“…Annoying.” [Happiness]

Despite her words, her face was bright red. That only made me want to tease her more. It would make a great story to tell Raven later, too.

“Well, you know… Raven’s a guy too. You haven’t seen each other in a while, and all… yeah. Anyway, do your best. If you keep blushing like that, Raven’s going to start feeling awkward around you, you know?” [Youki]

“…I’ll crush you.” [Happiness]

Happiness pulled out her fan.

Uh-oh.

Yeah, I’d definitely gone too far. But it was fine. I still had a trump card.

“Sorry, sorry. I went too far. Look, you can use this room however you like. There’s only one bed, so you’ll have to make do.” [Youki]

“…One bed!?” [Happiness]

For once, Happiness looked genuinely shocked. So shocked, in fact, that she dropped the fan from her hand onto the floor.

Was it really that surprising?

“Well, you know. I got rid of some of the furniture that was already here, so yeah… just one bed.” [Youki]

That was a lie, of course. There was no way a two-storey house had only one bed. The room I slept in had one, and there were spare beds in other rooms as well.

But still…

“One bed’s fine, right? If you stick close, even a single is enough. …Though Raven’s built pretty solid, so you’ll have to get really close. Well, you haven’t seen each other in a while, so think of it as a little service.” [Youki]

“…Message.” [Happiness]

“A message? For Raven? What should I tell him?” [Youki]

Tell him it’s a single bed?

“…Young mistress.” [Happiness]

“From Cecilia!? For me, right? What did she say?” [Youki]

I had a message of my own to pass along, too, but before that, I wanted to know Cecilia’s thoughts. This was something we really ought to discuss face to face, and I wanted to know when she might be free.

That said, after seeing my reaction, Happiness put on a daring little grin.

Uh-oh. I’d messed around too much.

“…You want, to know, right?” [Happiness]

“I sincerely apologize for getting carried away.” [Youki]

Knowing when to retreat was an important skill for a man. I bowed my head at the perfect angle.

“…A letter.” [Happiness]

“Ooh—thanks.” [Youki]

I took the letter from Happiness and read it.

Youki-san, how have you been? You haven’t been running wild, have you? I haven’t heard anything like that, so I’m relieved. Sophia-san told me it might be better if we didn’t meet for a while, but if it’s you, Youki-san, I’m sure you could see me without anyone noticing, right? I’m generally free at night, so I’d be happy if you could keep me company. To be honest, I’m a little worn out, so please give me some time to relax. I can be myself when I’m with you.
 I’ll be waiting…

“…Whew-whew.” [Happiness]

Happiness teased me with a perfectly straight face, but I didn’t even care.

I see how it is. Cecilia wanted to see me, too. And, well… I wanted to see Cecilia. Our feelings lined up perfectly, didn’t they? At this point, there was only one thing to do. I was going to see her.

“Happiness, it looks like we’re both on our way to solving our problems.” [Youki]

“…Not yet, fixed.” [Happiness]

“True, we’ve only made plans to meet so far. Still… don’t you think things feel a little clearer than before? Like our hearts are lighter.” [Youki]

“…Agreed.” [Happiness]

“See? Talking things out really matters. When you try to handle everything on your own, you just end up rushing, getting frustrated, and tying yourself in knots.” [Youki]

And before you knew it, you started acting in ways you didn’t even understand yourself. Even if a problem couldn’t be completely solved, it could still be eased.

“…Captain, did you hit… your head?” [Happiness]

“Relax, I’m perfectly normal. Anyway, we should sort out the schedule. Happiness, tell me which days you’re off work. Write them down if you can. I’ll pass it on to Raven.” [Youki]

“…Understood.” [Happiness]

I handed her a memo, and she smoothly ran the pen across it before giving it back.

“Message received. I’ll give this to Raven.” [Youki]

“…Thanks.” [Happiness]

“Alright, I’ve got a message for Cecilia too.” [Youki]

“…Content?” [Happiness]

“Tell her I’m coming to see her tonight.” [Youki]

If we both wanted to see each other this badly, then there was no reason to wait.

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