"Let's go on a date!" Esper declared, arm still looped through Soren's as if it had always belonged there.
Soren let himself be pulled forward more out of resignation than surprise, his feet moving because stopping would only make her happier.
The shopping district plaza was already awake, the kind of morning bustle that didn't feel frantic, just steady, vendors setting out goods and sweeping storefronts, carriages rolling past at a polite pace, students drifting in clusters with that weekend looseness that made everything look easier than it was.
He glanced down at her hand on his sleeve, then back up at her face, and found her watching him with a smile that was too pleased with itself to be innocent.
"This is a date?" he asked, because if he didn't anchor that word now it was going to float off into whatever nonsense she wanted.
Esper's eyes sparkled.
"Mhm."
"That's all you've got?"
"What do you want me to say?"
She tilted her head, boots clicking lightly as she tugged him around a slow-walking couple.
"That I'm kidnapping you? That I'm seducing you in broad daylight? That I'm forcing my poor fiancé to spend time with me, how tragic."
Soren's expression stayed flat, but his cheeks were still annoyingly warm from five minutes ago and she knew it.
That was the worst part, not the teasing itself, but how accurately she could aim it, how she could poke the exact bruise and then smile sweetly when he flinched.
"You're doing it again," he said.
Esper blinked, the picture of polite curiosity.
"What?"
"The thing where you pretend you don't know what you're doing."
"Cutie, I never pretend. I simply exist." she sighed, as if he was the unreasonable one.
Soren looked ahead, scanning the street for an escape route that wouldn't look like an escape route.
There wasn't one.
There was only Esper, and her cheerful grip, and the occasional student who noticed them and immediately started whispering like their mouths were magnets for rumours.
He could feel the stares in a dull, background way, the same way he felt cold air on his hands, present but not worth reacting to.
Today, with Esper dressed like she had stepped out of a fashionable magazine and him in his academy uniform, it was harder to pretend he wasn't part of a scene.
"Are you enjoying this?" he asked.
Esper's grin widened.
"Duh~"
"At least you're honest."
"Oh, I can be honest," she said, voice bright, still pulling him along at a pace that forced him to keep up. "I'm also enjoying the fact you didn't ask where we're going yet, you're learning."
"I'm waiting for you to tell me," he replied. "Because if I ask, you'll say it's a secret again."
Esper hummed, pleased, as if she'd been complimented.
"Good boy."
Soren's eyes narrowed.
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
She batted her lashes with exaggerated innocence, the effect undercut entirely by the smug little curl of her mouth.
"I'm praising you. Isn't that what fiancées do? Offer encouragement? Support? Emotional reinforcement?"
He couldn't decide if it was more irritating that she was acting, or that she didn't need to act much at all for it to look real.
The smile was effortless, the tone was light, and if someone had walked past without knowing her, they would have assumed she was simply having fun.
Soren knew better.
He knew the difference between Esper when she was truly relaxed and Esper when she was performing relaxation, and the fact she could swap between them with barely a blink was part of what made her exhausting to be around, and part of what made it hard to ignore her when something slipped.
Right now, she looked like sunshine with sharp edges.
It was a safer mask than tiredness, and it was one she wore well.
They moved past stalls selling ribbons, hairpins, novelty mana trinkets that flickered in pretty patterns, and cheap sweets displayed under glass.
The air smelled faintly of baked dough and fruit, and somewhere nearby a vendor was shouting about limited stock with the enthusiasm of someone who had never feared embarrassment.
Esper slowed just enough to glance at a display of earrings, then kept walking without stopping.
The fact she didn't pause to browse, despite looking like someone who belonged in every shop window, made it clear she had a plan.
Soren's suspicion returned automatically.
"You planned today, right?"
Esper's smile turned smug.
"Of course I did. Did you think I would invite you on a date without any preparations?"
"...How much planning are we talking."
She gave him a sidelong look, delighted by his tone.
"Enough."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer you're getting," she sing-songed, then leaned closer, voice dropping just a fraction, sweet and conspiratorial. "Stop frowning. You'll get wrinkles."
"I'm not frowning."
Esper lifted her free hand and poked his brow, right where she had pressed him yesterday, as if she had claimed the spot.
"You are."
Soren's hand twitched, half-tempted to swat her away, but he stopped himself, because that would escalate into a whole performance and he didn't have the energy.
"Are you doing this to make a point," he asked, because it was easier to frame it as strategy than to admit he wasn't sure what she wanted.
Esper's gaze flicked forward, her smile staying in place.
"Maybe."
Soren sighed.
"Of course."
She laughed softly, and for a moment it sounded less curated, less sharp.
Then the edge returned, because Esper never left openings unattended.
"You're thinking too hard. It's a date. You're supposed to walk around, compliment my outfit, buy me a ring, confess undying love, and then we get married."
Soren stared at her.
Esper stared back, eyes gleaming.
"…You're ridiculous."
"I know," she said, tone blissfully satisfied. "That's why you like me."
"I don't."
Esper's smile didn't falter.
"Sure~"
Soren looked away before his face betrayed him again, the sun glinting off the shop windows and making it impossible to hide behind shadows.
The district was getting busier, the foot traffic thickening as more people wandered out for late breakfasts and weekend errands, and the closer they got to the main shopping avenue, the more the storefronts shifted from practical to decorative, painted signs, polished displays, fabrics draped like art.
Esper tugged him around a corner and the atmosphere changed subtly, the street widening and the architecture getting cleaner, newer, more intentional.
Less noise.
Fewer vendors shouting.
More shops with quiet guards at the doors, standing still with the bored confidence of people paid to be intimidating.
Soren's eyes traced the street ahead.
"We're heading toward the restaurant district."
Esper's grin turned triumphant.
"Look at you. Observant."
"Hard not to be," he muttered, gaze catching on a pair of carriages parked outside a building with gold trim and a marble step.
The people walking in and out wore clothes that looked like they cost more than his entire life savings.
"You didn't pick somewhere normal."
Esper laughed again.
"Normal is relative."
"It's expensive," he said plainly.
Esper gave him a look that was almost indulgent, the kind nobles gave when someone said something obvious.
"Well… obviously?"
Soren's mouth tightened.
"Why?"
Her smile softened, just a fraction, not enough to look serious to anyone else, but enough that he felt it.
"Because I made a reservation."
That was it.
No explanation.
No dramatic build-up.
Just the casual certainty of someone used to deciding things and having them happen.
Soren exhaled slowly.
"Of course you did."
Esper's arm tightened around his for a brief second, more a reminder than a squeeze.
"Come on. Try not to look like you're walking to your own execution."
"I'm not."
She hummed.
"Liar."
They approached a building that looked less like a restaurant and more like a noble estate someone had decided to monetise.
Tall arched windows.
Dark wood doors.
Soren slowed without meaning to, his eyes catching on the staff at the entrance, the way they stood straight and attentive, not stiff like common servers trying to mimic nobles, but practised, trained, used to high standards and high consequences.
Esper didn't hesitate.
She walked up like she belonged, because she did, and when the door opened for her it was done with a smoothness that made the gesture feel less like service and more like ceremony.
Soren stepped inside after her, and the air shifted immediately.
Warm.
Scented.
Quiet.
The sound of the street cut off like someone had closed a book.
Soft carpets swallowed footsteps.
Mana lights glowed in tasteful gold along the walls, not bright enough to be flashy, just enough to make everything look expensive by default.
Esper glanced over her shoulder at him, smile bright.
"Try to keep your mouth from falling off, Hubby."
Soren's eyes narrowed.
A staff member approached, face calm, posture perfect.
Their gaze slid over Esper first, recognition sparking, then moved to Soren with a brief, polite assessment before the respect returned.
It wasn't warmth, it was professionalism, and it made Soren's skin itch anyway.
"Lady Rupindolf," the staff member greeted, voice smooth as polished stone. "Welcome. Your table is prepared."
Esper tilted her head slightly, the noble greeting landing on her like a familiar cloak, something she could wear without thinking.
"Lovely."
The staff member's gaze shifted to Soren again, and the words that followed were chosen carefully, respectful without overreaching.
"And… your guest."
Esper's smile sharpened.
"My fiancé."
The staff member didn't blink.
"Of course. Please, this way."
Soren followed, and even though he kept his expression neutral, his thoughts weren't calm.
The environment was too controlled, too quiet, every detail polished until it felt unreal, like a place designed to discourage mess, both physical and emotional.
Even the air felt trained to behave.
Esper glanced at him as they walked, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"Why do you look like you're about to throw up?"
Soren kept his voice low.
"I don't like places like this."
Esper's smile widened, satisfied, as if she had been waiting for him to say it out loud.
"I know right~"
He looked at her sharply, but she was still smiling, still bright, and the sound of it wasn't mocking so much as pleased, like his reaction had confirmed something she already understood.
The staff member led them through a corridor lined with tasteful art and into a dining area that felt less like a room and more like an exhibition of wealth, draped curtains, high ceilings, tables spaced far enough apart that nobody had to hear anybody else's conversation unless they wanted to.
Soren caught a glimpse of the other guests as they passed, nobles, merchants, people with the kind of posture that came from never needing to apologise for existing.
Esper didn't look at them.
They looked at her.
And Soren felt that too, the weight of it, the subtle shift in attention, the way people clocked her outfit, her face, her confidence, then noticed him linked to her and started doing mental arithmetic.
The staff member stopped at a table tucked in a quieter corner, half-screened by decorative panels and potted greenery, private without being isolated.
Linen so white it looked impossible.
Silverware arranged with precision.
Glasses that caught the light with every tiny movement.
"Please enjoy your meal," the staff member said, then stepped away with a smooth bow.
Esper slid into her seat without hesitation, posture elegant even while her smile remained playful.
Soren sat across from her, shoulders relaxing out of habit, then tensing again when his uniform felt even more obvious under the warm glow of mana lights.
Esper watched him like he was a show.
"You look so out of place~"
————「❤︎」————