Chapter 4. Love Once More (2)

The festival was as enjoyable as expected.

Melissa wandered around and enjoyed various attractions.

There were so many that her eyes couldn’t find a place to rest.

Simple games conducted only through words, lottery games where you put your hand in a box to find a ball with a lucky number written on it, card games with designs that Melissa could commonly see.

Colorful and delicious foods were available every few steps.

In addition to all that, there was even a puppet show based on the most famous story in the Kingdom of Esmira these days.

“You witch! Quietly hand over the princess!”

The knight puppet who came to find the kidnapped princess shouted.

The puppet held a sword high up while mounted on a horse.

Following that, the witch’s evil laughter could be heard, and the children watching the puppet show sparkled with bright eyes.

Melissa smiled slightly at the sight.

‘Popular stories seem to be similar wherever you go.’

There had been a similar puppet show in the Artzen Empire too.

Melissa recalled the festival she had attended with Edgar when she was young. It was one of the very rare days when Lionel had permitted an outing.

With only escort knights following them, the two had enjoyed themselves together—a moment when Melissa Lucid had been utterly happy.

“It brings back old memories.”

Edgar, who had been quietly watching the puppet show beside her, spoke as if recalling the same time as Melissa.

Soon he was about to add something more, when suddenly loud cheers erupted. The knight had succeeded in defeating the witch. Cough. The witch puppet made a strange sound and collapsed.

Edgar, who had been glancing at the stage, bent his waist and whispered.

“Come to think of it, the princess puppet’s design seems similar to back then. The dress is a little different though.”

Edgar’s breath tickled Melissa’s cheek.

Melissa tried not to show it and likewise whispered in Edgar’s ear in a small voice.

“The story seems almost similar too, doesn’t it? Maybe it’s the same troupe from back then. Famous troupes don’t just perform within one country—they travel to other countries too.”

At those words, Edgar tilted his head slightly.

He seemed a bit puzzled.

“Isn’t the content of the play quite different?”

“It seems similar to me, which is strange. What part is different?”

“In the story we saw back then, there was a secret hidden that the knight actually loved the witch. That’s why he couldn’t kill the witch in the first place.”

……Huh?

At those words, this time Melissa became confused.

What was Edgar talking about right now?

“The princess also said that the witch hadn’t done anything particularly bad to her. In the end, it was something the lonely witch had done because she needed a friend……”

“Wait, wait Edgar.”

Melissa interrupted Edgar’s words.

Then she traced back through the puppet show in her memory.

“The puppet show we saw back then was like that?”

“Yes, that’s why you told me the witch was pitiful. I remember you cried a little back then.”

“I cried? What are you talking about, Edgar?”

Melissa waved her hand slightly.

That puppet show had no elements worth shedding tears over in the first place. No matter how tender-hearted her younger self had been, she wouldn’t have cried.

She had no such memory at all.

“The play we watched had a tightly closed happy ending. The evil witch who had kidnapped the princess received punishment fitting her wrongdoing. It was similar to that puppet show’s plot.”

“……”

“If there was one difference, it wasn’t the knight who saved the princess but the princess who escaped on her own. The princess herself drew a sword and defeated the witch. There were rumors among the children that she was an incredibly cool princess.”

Clap clap clap clap clap.

As Melissa’s words ended, applause could be heard.

It was a signal showing that the puppet show had ended.

Melissa looked at the stage while listening to the cheers people were shouting. The puppets that had appeared were bowing to the audience in greeting.

“Don’t you remember?”

She asked, turning her head.

Her eyes met Edgar’s, who had been looking her way.

Edgar had a rarely seen flustered expression. Even though the sky had grown quite dark, it was visible at a glance.

After moving his lips several times, he turned his gaze toward the front—that is, toward the stage—and spoke.

“Ah, right. Now that I think about it again, that was the content. Actually, I had heard a similar story at the Magic Tower too. So I guess I got a little confused.”

“I see.”

Melissa answered quietly and turned her head following him.

Before long, the puppets that had left the stage were being neatly organized by the troupe members. The people who had been standing in a row in front of the stage also left one by one to find other attractions.

Edgar’s words echoed in her ears.

[Yes, that’s why you told me the witch was pitiful. I remember you cried a little back then.]

……Even so, how could someone who went together confuse what the other person said or what actions they took?

Crying, no less.

Except for her early childhood that she couldn’t remember, Melissa had never cried in front of Edgar. The reason was simple. She hadn’t wanted to show an unsightly appearance to the boy she liked.

Since her memory couldn’t be wrong, he must have confused it while he was with someone else.

‘At times like this, I really wonder if he truly likes me.’

While she was quietly thinking such thoughts, Edgar, who had been standing beside her, touched Melissa’s shoulder.

When she turned her gaze, she could see him pointing somewhere.

“Want to go over there?”

What Edgar pointed to was a wide open space.

More precisely, the people dancing in that open space.

The people were all paired up, entrusting their bodies to the flowing instrumental music.

“I can’t dance.”

“It’s okay. I’ll teach you.”

Edgar took Melissa’s hand and pulled her along.

The two naturally blended into the dancing crowd, just like when they first participated in the festival. Edgar taught her step by step how to dance, as he had promised.

The problem was that Melissa was more clumsy than expected.

She, who had already stepped on Edgar’s feet for the fifth time, swayed.

He, who was feeling it completely, laughed softly.

“Pfft.”

“……Sorry about that.”

Melissa grumbled quietly.

Didn’t she say she couldn’t dance?

Melissa had never been to high society, let alone a place where she could dance like this. Since Lionel had never intended to let her out of the ducal residence in the first place, he hadn’t taught her what was necessary for social life either. Melissa hadn’t even learned the most basic dance that was essential education for nobles.

And somehow, this life was the same.

“Sorry for laughing.”

Edgar gently stroked the hand he was holding.

It was to soothe Melissa.

Feeling that touch, she let out a small sigh.

“It’s fine. It is funny, after all.”

“No. It’s not because it’s funny……”

“Would it be okay if we stopped dancing now?”

She was also tired of being tense trying not to step on his feet.

Since they seemed to have danced enough now, Melissa wanted to go somewhere else. She felt like she had done a lifetime’s worth of dancing here today.

Melissa turned her body to return among the spectators. But Edgar didn’t let her do so.

“What, what?”

Melissa’s feet suddenly floated slightly in the air.

Because of that, Melissa, who lost her balance, naturally grabbed Edgar’s shoulders in front of her. Seeing her pressed against him, he grinned.

“This way, there’s no chance of stepping on feet.”

“But I can’t keep my balance! I’m going to fall at this rate!”

“You just need to keep holding onto me like you are now.”

At that, Melissa lowered her voice slightly.

“You’re using magic to keep my feet floating, aren’t you? What if you get caught being a mage?”

“I’m not foolish enough to get caught with something like this.”

Edgar spun around once to match the flowing song.

Melissa, whose body swayed again, let out a small scream and practically embraced his neck.

Seeing this, the surroundings poured out cheers mixed with jeers.

“Oh my! Are you showing off that you’re lovers?”

“Isn’t that too blatant a display of affection?”

Melissa’s cheeks flushed red.

Edgar wrapped his arms around her waist, hugged her more tightly, and spun his body around again to match the song. Then he calmly replied to the people around them.

“I’ll take that as meaning we look good together.”

Cheers poured out once more.

Melissa, whose face had heated up to the limit, couldn’t stand it anymore and buried her face in his shoulder.

* * *

Melissa’s feet touched the ground again some time later.

Sitting on a nearby bench, she rubbed her arms.

Edgar had briefly left his seat, saying he would buy something.

‘I was holding on tightly in case I might fall.’

No matter how much she had stepped on his feet, how could he lift her into the air and then dance with her while she was dangling from his body like that?

It was dizzying to think about again.

Melissa tried to empty her mind, when she noticed a group of girls not too far away.

‘They’re all wearing the same flower crowns.’

What kind of day was today?

Something caught Melissa’s eye as she muttered quietly.

It was the writing on a large cloth hung on a building.

Congratulations on your Coming of Age Day.

Coming of Age Day?

“Coming of Age Day is already……”

Melissa, who had been speaking casually, closed her mouth.

She had momentarily forgotten that this place wasn’t the Artzen Empire.

Then the coming-of-age ceremony date might also be different from what Melissa knew. Of all days, the day she came to have fun happened to be the Kingdom of Esmira’s coming-of-age ceremony.

What a curious coincidence, Melissa was laughing when she felt someone approaching from the side.