When one says “date,” there are various forms of dates.
There are dates like going to events such as the summer festival I went to with Suella.
There were dates like traveling, even though it was in another world, that I went on with Memoria.
There are dates like spending relaxed time at home, like I did with Himik.
Just from this, you can see that dates come in many forms.
Each person’s tastes and preferences.
Whether they are good at sports or not.
Whether they like bustling places or not.
Depending on these conditions, the destination can change endlessly.
If you have a common hobby, there are even cases where you do that hobby together.
For some reason, I found myself going on a date with Evia-san, someone I never would have imagined when I first joined the company.
I pondered what would be good to do with her.
If I had to describe her in one word, would it be noble?
With her noble demeanor, I could sense gestures throughout that indicated she was a noble being.
Her good posture, the way she walked, her bearing – these were all reasons I felt that way, but personally, I felt it was more about the mental aspect.
When I saw Evia-san dressed in a special magic tool, a pendant that disguised demonic elements like horns to look human, and a ring-shaped magic tool to prevent magic power depletion, I genuinely thought she was some noble lady.
And so, with Evia-san in the car, the date began.
The first place I brought her was.
A slightly pricey but diverse apparel shop that handles women’s clothing.
Evia-san, despite owning hundreds of dresses, only had suits for when she needed to go out in Japan.
She had thought she would buy some if needed, but she had been too busy with work and hadn’t bought any casual clothes until now.
“I didn’t need them,” she said.
“Then let’s go,” I said, but as Evia-san, dressed in a suit, was about to start our date, I suddenly wondered if she liked suits. Sitting in the passenger seat, I asked her, and she replied that she had nothing else. When I asked why, that was her answer.
I gave a wry smile, thinking it was typical of her, and changed my schedule to take her to a famous store that even I knew.
It was also my desire to see Evia-san dressed up for our private outing.
Standing in front of the fitting rooms of a store with a fair number of customers, I waited for Evia-san to change, but the problem was my surroundings.
It wasn’t that I was receiving strange stares because I, a man, was standing alone in a women’s shop and felt awkward.
“How do I look, Jiro?”
“I thought it would suit you, but I never imagined it would be to this extent. You look beautiful, Evia-san.”
“Is that so? This is nice once in a while.”
The curtain of the fitting room quickly opened, and Evia-san emerged, looking casual after changing from her suit.
It wasn’t her usual suit, nor was it a dress that a noble would wear.
It was casual wear that a Japanese woman would wear.
I could only give my honest impression of her fresh appearance, which I rarely saw.
However, it’s not a problem, but when a beautiful woman wears something, the impression of the clothing changes significantly.
I’ve heard beautiful women look good in anything, but while there might be exceptions, they seem to have an aura that allows them to pull off almost anything.
In such a space, I was starting to enjoy myself, but we weren’t alone.
“Customer, please, we’d love for you to try this outfit next.”
“Hmm, it’s not bad.”
For some reason, around us, or rather, considering Evia-san’s appearance, it’s better to say around her, shop staff kept coming one after another, recommending clothes of various genres.
Eventually, the staff even started to assist with dressing. The service from the staff was so excessive that I wanted to say, “This is what you call VIP treatment.”
Perhaps they mistook Evia-san, with her red hair which is rarely seen among Japanese people, a face that doesn’t feel out of place with that color, her tall stature for a woman, and her well-proportioned figure, along with her elegant bearing, for a model from some agency.
The staff member who initially assisted us was replaced by the store manager, who actively recommended clothes in the store to Evia-san, even bringing out the latest clothes that hadn’t been released yet. It all started when I, who am clueless about women’s fashion, asked Evia-san what she liked, which led the staff to recommend clothes and soon a runway show began in the store, attracting the attention of ordinary women from a distance.
“Hey, is that person a model?”
“She’s so beautiful. Is the person next to her her boyfriend? His face is a little scary, but he’s quite good-looking.”
“I don’t know, she doesn’t look like an assistant. Their distance is close, so maybe.”
“What if that person is a singer from some country?”
“That would be amazing.”
The conversation seemed to be heading in a wild direction, but after all, it was just small talk. If I’m mindful of photos, it should be fine.
Several people tried to take photos, but I blocked every single one with my body.
Evia-san didn’t seem to mind the process of changing clothes and tried on anything she liked, and the staff were also getting into it. She didn’t seem to notice any of this.
I never thought my subtle sensing abilities, honed in dungeons, would be useful like this.
Conversely to my meager struggles, the fashion show continued.
Initially, they started with elegant styles, but for Evia-san, who could pull off any outfit, the mobilized staff now brought out all sorts of genres, from casual and military styles to “forest girl” and ethnic styles, which could be called folk costumes.
I bowed my head in admiration as she managed to wear them all, and since Evia-san was enjoying herself, I honestly expressed my thoughts to her, my beautiful companion.
Occasionally, when I said I preferred a previous outfit, she would smile slightly, letting me know she was pleased.
My feedback also seemed to be useful to the staff, as they gradually brought out clothes that matched Evia-san’s tastes and mine, which I felt was a sign of their professionalism.
In the end, the fashion show concluded with this.
“How is it, Jiro?”
“I feel inadequate saying this only with common words, but I think it suits you the best among everything I’ve seen so far.”
“Then, I’ll take this one.”
It was an elegant style. A white coat, a slightly light red inner shirt, and black pants. All of them were items I, in my past life, would never have reached for due to their price.
Since I had earned money in dungeons, I didn’t hesitate at the price and paid in full with my card.
“Shop staff, please bag the suit from earlier. I’ll pay for these together by card.”
Of course, I knew Evia-san earned more, but since it was our first date, I, as the man, made the purchase.
“Um, what about the other clothes?”
At that moment, the staff hesitantly showed me a pile of clothes that I had said looked good on her and that she had said she liked. The pile was quite large, and buying all of it would amount to a considerable sum, though not enough to buy a car.
“I’ll buy them. Please charge it to my card.”
Seeing the sheer volume, I could afford it, but my innate petty-bourgeois spirit made me hesitate a little. However, as soon as the tags were removed and Evia-san finished changing, she decisively made the purchase.
“Um, which ones?”
“All of them.”
It goes without saying that gasps of admiration were heard from those around us at that sight.
Amidst all this, I, the one who had been so reluctant, was thinking, maybe I should have bought them all instead of just one set, while the shop staff frantically bagged all the clothes. Looking at the total on the register, I realized that my decisive move was correct.
The store manager’s face was beaming with a smile, as the amount was likely a significant portion of the store’s sales for the day. As we left, staff members accompanied us to the car to carry the clothes, and the store manager and all the staff were lined up in front of the store to see us off.
Because I had never paid much attention to clothes before, I had never experienced anything like this, and as we left the store, people around us looked at us as if to ask what was going on.
“You carried yourself with such dignity, Evia-san.”
“Hm? Isn’t that the norm?”
“It’s not the norm, you know.”
I asked Evia-san, who remained unruffled even in such a situation, if she was okay, but it seemed to be the norm for her. As I drove, I smiled slightly and denied it, looking at me with her usual composed demeanor, seeking confirmation.
The date, which began with such a small commotion, revealed a side of her that I rarely saw during work. And I began to look forward to what would happen next. As expected, at the game center we went to next.
“Hey, Jiro, this machine is broken.”
“No, the arm is a little weak, but it’s normal. So please don’t use magic. Using magic to lift it is cheating.”
“Mu, then I’ll adjust the strength of this arm.”
“No, you can’t.”
I was able to see her struggle with a claw machine, which she had never seen before, and I stopped Evia-san from using magic, which she tried to sneak in, by saying, “Where did my concealment go?”
“Compared to the previous one, this is easy.”
“No, that’s the most difficult one.”
“You can do it too.”
“No, it’s not a full combo.”
Evia-san, believing my words that it was surprisingly difficult, challenged a taiko drumming game and cleared the highest difficulty level from the start without breaking a sweat. It showed her exceptional visual acuity, reflexes, and perfect sense of rhythm. She was already drawing attention due to her beauty, but this would surely create another crowd. While I thought to myself that she attracts attention wherever she goes, I took her to the next place before it became too much of a scene.
“This is nice.”
“The reviews were good. I wanted to bring you here after you ate, but…”
We moved again by car and arrived at a crepe shop that had good online reviews. It also served as a cafe and offered excellent scenery as it was located by the sea. In warm, sunny weather, you could eat on the seaside terrace. The atmosphere was pleasant and there were many couples, but today was a weekday by general standards, so it wasn’t too crowded, and we could enjoy a leisurely time. I had heard she liked sweets and thought she probably hadn’t eaten much of this kind of thing before, so I brought her here. Even with the simple chocolate banana I ordered, I found it delicious and thought this shop was a winner. I wondered how she would find it, and she nodded with satisfaction, and I saw her eat. Evia-san’s evaluation was also quite good.
“However, today you’re being quite attentive. Is this how dates are in this world?”
“It depends on the person, but for me…”
“For you?”
Sitting at a table inside by the sea, eating crepes, Evia-san asked me why I was going to such lengths. Without much thought, I replied.
“I just want you to enjoy yourself. After all, isn’t it better for both of us to enjoy it?”
“…”
I simply said that honestly. As soon as I uttered those words, I wondered if I was saying something cheesy and felt a little embarrassed.
“I see. That’s right. It’s best if we can both enjoy it.”
Perhaps she saw through my feelings, or perhaps she didn’t notice, but suddenly her usual sadistic smile softened into a gentle, very feminine smile. I was startled by it and felt even more embarrassed than after my previous words. I checked the time on my smartphone. It was past three o’clock. We still had plenty of time. I thought about where to go next, recalling places I had researched. However.
“It’s me.”
As if to shatter the mood of our date, Evia-san’s smartphone rang. Seeing the number, she frowned for a moment but immediately responded. After a brief conversation, Evia-san ended the call. Her expression after the call returned to her usual work-focused look. I knew then that today’s date was over.
“Is it an emergency?”
“Ah, regrettably, the date ends here.”
Sensing that something had happened from her demeanor, I accepted it and took the last bite of my crepe. Then, turning to Evia-san as she stood up.
“Then, the rest of our planned activities will be for our next date.”
I said those words. Perhaps my words surprised her, as her eyes widened. Seeing her face, I smiled and said,
“The date isn’t over yet.”
I said that to cheer her up. Evia-san gave a smile that seemed to be a mix of a wry smile and something like, “You stubborn fellow.”
“Ah, I’m looking forward to it.”
She said so with gentle words.
Today’s word: The desire to know can sometimes lead to action.
This concludes the current chapter. A new chapter will begin from the next installment. Thank you as always for pointing out any typos and for your feedback. If you enjoyed it, please leave a review, rating, or bookmark. The first volume of the novel is published by Hayakawa Bunko JA. It was released on October 18, 2018. The e-book version was released on October 31 of the same year. The second volume was released on December 19. The third volume was released on February 20, 2019. The content consists of revised and expanded versions of the material posted on “Shosetsuka ni Narou,” with the addition of unpublished interlude chapters. Please check out the new releases as well! The comic adaptation by Kodansha in “Young Magazine The Third” is scheduled to be serialized in issue 9. We hope you enjoy that as well. We ask for your continued support of this work.
