“Young man, you’re not from the Empire?”
“With that clean, handsome face, I thought you were a young man who’d come down from the capital. Turns out you’re a foreigner.”
“Your features look just like one of ours, though. I suppose you must be a foreign student.”
“Haha, is it that obvious…”
And just like that, I’d become a foreign student. I supposed not knowing about The Holy See was about that level of a giveaway.
“Nine times out of ten, if you’re from our Empire, you’re a follower of the state religion. Its influence rivals even that of the Imperial House. Even His Majesty the Emperor wouldn’t dare make an enemy of His Holiness the Pope.”
“Shh, you shouldn’t say things like that.”
“What’s the harm? Stop anyone on the street and they’ll tell you the same thing.”
Thinking back on it, I recalled how in Bloody Invitation, Vicente Quentin had used the Pope’s name to put people off their guard. That kind of authority would certainly make it possible.
After they praised me for working so hard even in a foreign country and pressed some snacks into my hands, I thanked the couple and parted ways.
It’s already almost ten.
Time had slipped by quickly listening to people talk. I’d better get a quick look through the shops before the appointment.
I browsed the shops that had opened for the morning and tried to gauge the prices. Most things were in the range of a few dozen silvers, with the more expensive items a little over 1 to 2 gold.
My entire fortune: 621 gold. In modern terms… roughly 80,000 dollars. More than I’d expected — I could spend freely.
But the moment I let my guard down, those damned notification windows crushed my spirits.
[This item cannot be obtained.]
This one too?
Large weapons, pliers, wire cutters, crowbars, rope — any useful tools were completely off-limits for purchase. The moment I approached a merchant, I was blocked.
Damn it. I’d been planning to use those to break through the locks. The game system was clearly not going to tolerate shortcuts.
With no choice, I bought a few knives and some titanium and silver needles.
I’d wanted to get my hands on firearms for long-range attacks too, but whether civilians were simply prohibited from owning guns in this country or not — when I asked passersby where a gun shop was, everyone reacted like they’d heard something nonsensical: ‘Why are you looking for a gun here?’, ‘Are you military or something?’ — so I gave up on that.
Whatever the intended use, it had been a while since I’d wandered around shopping like this, and I felt myself relax a little. After browsing through shops to my heart’s content, a blue glow spread across the bottom of my field of vision.
“Oh, quest clear.”
It seemed the weapon-farming quest had been completed.
I ducked into a quiet alley and tapped the [Quest] tab in the menu bar.
[‘Find a Weapon’ quest complete!]
[Completion reward: Inventory unlocked]
The moment the notification appeared, my left hand lit up brightly.
[How to use Inventory: Picture the shape of the item you want to retrieve, then open and close your left hand three times toward the target.]
I did exactly that.
The air on the back of my left hand — split open by about a handspan.
“Oh.”
I marveled at the strange sight and began slipping the things I’d purchased inside one by one.
The inventory worked the same as in other games. Up to 20 items, stored in their original state.
I finished organizing everything and closed the gap. Anything else I wanted to buy? I’d browse a little more and then head to the meeting spot.
“Jun.”
I was about to step out of the alley when a low voice came from behind me.
My name?
I turned around, and a slender silhouette came into view.
His swept-back black hair gleamed with a subtle luster. His neatly brushed-back bangs left his handsome forehead bare.
The man had drawn close before I realized it. He smiled brightly and tilted his head slightly, looking down at me.
A strand of hair slipped softly over his straight eyebrows. Even that looked perfectly intentional.
“…Oh.”
I hurriedly gathered my wits and returned the greeting.
“You’re early. It’s still an hour before we said.”
“Yes.”
The man smoothed his sleeve and extended his hand, dressed in pristine white silk gloves. From his refined accent alone I’d suspected it, but the gesture carried the kind of grace that made it instantly obvious he was of noble birth.
His long-knuckled hand, angular with distinctly masculine lines, crooked his ring finger as if beckoning.
Thinking he wanted a handshake, I extended my hand — on the crossing side.
But the man shook his head slowly, took my other hand instead, and interlaced our fingers together.
……?
Why?
“I was hoping I might see you a little sooner.”
Saying that, the man smiled deeply — and led me out of the alley by the hand, as if escorting me.
“Um — why do you keep holding my hand…?”
“Does it bother you?”
“It’s not that it bothers me—”
“I’m glad it’s fine, then.”
The man smoothly cut off what I was trying to say.
No, I meant it’s strange to suddenly take someone’s hand like this. I let my confusion show, and the man rolled his eyes slightly before speaking again.
“I’m… a bit of a coward.”
“Pardon?”
The man cast his lashes downward with a melancholy air.
“After being chased by those creatures in this town last time, I’m still a little frightened to walk around.”
“Ah…”
“If it isn’t too much trouble for you, Jun — would you mind keeping hold of my hand a while longer?”
I nodded without thinking, and the man smiled gently.
“Shall we go eat first? I know a good place.”
Eat first — as in, there was going to be more after? I’d planned to just have a meal and go our separate ways.
I couldn’t quite bring myself to say that out loud, so I nodded obediently. He was too beautiful to refuse…
When we sat down at the window table of the restaurant the man had brought me to, the entire town came into view outside.
“An aperitif?”
“Oh, no thank you.”
He gave a light nod at my answer and ordered just a single glass of white wine.
“It’s the lunch hour, but there’s not a single other customer.”
“Does it bother you? I was told it’s the most visited place in this area.”
“Not at all. It’s actually nicer without the noise.”
I laughed and waved my hand at him as he asked with what seemed like genuine concern.
After a short wait, a canapé topped with salmon and sauce and a clear clam soup were brought out as starters.
As if proving the man’s claim that it was normally a bustling place, every dish was exceptional. The kind of food you’d clear off the plate before you even realized it.
Still savoring the rich depth of the soup, a steak served with boiled potatoes and purée and a pâté pie stuffed with veal were set on the table.
The moment I bit into a mouthful of the pie, my eyes went wide. The veal melted on my tongue. The doneness, the seasoning, the flavors of each ingredient — all came together in perfect harmony. It really was a gem of a place.
“This is genuinely delicious.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
“Thanks to you I’ve found a wonderful restaurant. By the way — your name…”
Come to think of it, I still hadn’t asked the man’s name.
Apparently reading my awkwardness, the man curved his eyes into a smile.
“You want to know my name?”
“Very much.”
“How lovely.”
Still smiling, the man fixed his gaze on me as if studying me, and murmured softly.
“…Renatas.”
“Renatas? That’s a beautiful name. So would your nickname be ‘René,’ then? Haha.”
René. An androgynous name. It suited the man perfectly — his looks as vivid and striking as a flower in bloom.
Since we were sharing a meal, I’d wanted to be a little friendly and tossed that out casually. But the man stared back at me with an utterly baffled expression, as if he’d heard something completely outlandish.
“…A nickname?”
“Yes. Oh — I apologize if that was rude. If you prefer to be called by your full name—”
“No.”
I’d been about to apologize for being too forward when the man cut me off.
“That’s far better, actually. I was simply surprised — it’s the first time anyone has ever called me by a nickname.”
“Your first time?”
Having such an uncommon name as Renatas and having lived his whole life without a nickname. That was quite unusual. Perhaps it was the culture here.
“Yes. Call me René.”
René lifted the corners of his mouth softly and laid his hand over the back of mine.
“I thought so from the first moment I saw you — Jun has such beautiful bone structure.”
“My bones?”
“Your cervical vertebrae and shoulder blades especially. I think they’d look wonderful displayed as an ornament.”
“Hmm… is that… so.”
“I’ve never seen this shape before. It’s exquisite.”
He whispered it the way someone might whisper over a breathtaking work of art. Really, to that extent? Feeling a little overwhelmed, I let out an awkward cough.
I’d never been complimented like that before in my life. I turned it over in my head, but I couldn’t find anything appropriate to say in return. It wasn’t exactly an insult, so I laughed it off awkwardly and let it go.
Still — this kind of tingling atmosphere, alone with another man, of all things.
It was mortifyingly uncomfortable, but I remembered what he’d said earlier and quietly let him hold my hand. He’d said the memory of being chased by those mannequins still frightened him. Even so, we were inside a restaurant now — wasn’t it fine?
God… whatever. It’s just a hand, it’s not like it’s going anywhere.
But for all my resolve, René’s fingers slowly, smoothly slid inward toward the inside of my wrist.
The tips of his cool fingers touched the sensitive skin on the inside of my wrist — and my shoulder jolted. I was about to say something when René spoke first.
“Thank you for the other day. I found the dog safely, thanks to you.”
“The dog? Oh.”
Right — he had said he was looking for a puppy he’d lost in the forest.
“I’m glad. The puppy wasn’t hurt in the forest, was it?”
“It temporarily lost the use of one eye. But it grew back right away.”
“Oh dear… Still, I’m glad it recovered.”
The puppy must have been in quite a dangerous situation, wandering through a forest that was pitch dark even in the daytime.
