The morning sunlight filtered through the thin curtains.
Reze slowly opened her eyes.
The afterimage of the dream she had last night still lingered faintly in her heart.
But the sparrow sounds coming from outside the window and the soft air were gradually pushing that ominous feeling away.
A familiar sound came from the kitchen.
"Sizzle—"
The sound of oil dancing on a pan.
It was clear Denji was hurriedly preparing breakfast.
Reze sat up in bed and lazily stretched. A very ordinary and simple thought suddenly crossed her mind.
'Today… maybe we could just have a normal date?'
She dragged her slippers with her toes and headed to the kitchen.
"Denji~"
When she called in a slightly lazy voice, Denji, wearing an apron, sharply turned his head.
"Oh, you're up! Breakfast is almost ready!"
His hair was sticking out here and there, and the rolled omelette was a little misshapen.
He was clumsily preparing the food.
"Heeeh~ You're pretty good at cooking?"
When Reze laughed teasingly on purpose, Denji scratched his nose as if embarrassed.
"Well… you taught me. It'll probably taste good? Maybe."
Finding him cute, Reze let out a small, stifled laugh.
After watching him for a moment, she playfully sparkled her eyes and spoke.
"Denji, let's skip work and our part-time jobs today… and go on a date."
"…Huh? A d-date?!"
Denji almost dropped his chopsticks at the sudden proposal.
"Why all of a sudden…?"
"Just~ Consider it a small gift for my hardworking Denji~?"
Reze walked to the window and opened the curtains wide.
Warm sunlight enveloped the two, brightly illuminating the room.
"The weather is nice, perfect for a date. Don't you think we need a break like this sometimes?"
Denji hesitated for a moment, then the corners of his mouth slowly turned up.
"…Alright. Yeah, alright! Where are we going?"
His voice was tinged with excitement.
Reze leisurely laughed, putting her arms behind her head.
"Hmm~ The market first? Let's go eat some street food! And I want to go to the riverside~ Well, if we just walk around, I'm sure we'll find lots of fun things!"
"Ooh… A real date!"
Denji's eyes suddenly sparkled with excitement.
Unlike usual, today his face was that of an ordinary young boy, not a 'Devil Hunter' or a 'fugitive'.
Seeing Denji like that made Reze's heart flutter slightly.
'Yeah, today… let's just have a normal day like this.'
The market was already full of energy from the morning.
The smell of freshly baked bread, the sizzling sound of pancakes cooking, and the laughter of people mixed together to fill the alley.
Reze, with her hands thrust in her pockets, excitedly led Denji.
"Come on, follow me~ I'll be your guide today!"
"Ooh… There are really a lot of people here."
Denji looked around curiously at the market scene.
A peaceful, warm world, completely different from the bloody times spent fighting devils in the city.
A smile gradually began to spread across his face.
"Look over there! Taiyaki!"
Reze pointed with her finger to a taiyaki stall.
Steam was rising in wisps from the stall, and people were already lining up.
"Taiyaki? Is that good?"
"It's good~ Sweet and warm. It's the best winter snack, but quite a few people look for it even in hot summers~?"
Reze lightly waved her hand and walked to the end of the line.
Denji awkwardly lined up, but his heart felt oddly buoyant at the sound of the taiyaki being made.
"Which kind should I get~? Red bean, custard, or half and half!"
"Then… half and half!"
"Hehe, such a beginner. Taiyaki is best with custard~"
Reze skillfully paid and received two taiyaki.
As the hot steam touched his face, Denji tensed up for no reason and carefully took the taiyaki with both hands.
"Careful~ It's hot, you might burn the roof of your mouth."
"I-I don't usually burn myself on that stuff!"
He said that, but on the first bite, he immediately went "Ow, hot!" and burned his tongue.
Reze saw that and laughed, holding her stomach.
"Pfft-haha!! You really did burn yourself!"
"No, just now… I was caught off guard!!"
Denji felt wronged, and Reze laughed so hard she wiped the corners of her eyes watching him.
Going deeper into the market, the fragrant smell of oden and roasted chestnuts alternately teased their noses.
The two walked slowly, buying and eating a little street food here and there.
Sharing a cup of oden broth, Reze held the paper cup with one hand and lightly tapped Denji's arm with the other.
"Denji, this kind of thing… is your first time, right?"
"Yeah… I've hardly ever been to a market. This is my first time with taiyaki and oden too."
His words carried a slight hint of loneliness.
But soon, Reze's playful laughter softly changed the mood.
"Then from today on, let's go eat tons of this stuff together~ I know loads of good food spots!"
"Really?"
"Of course~ I'm a market expert!"
Reze took the lead down the alley, introducing this shop and that shop.
The old signs lining the street, the friendly voices of the merchants, the snacks that changed with the seasons…
Everything was familiar to Reze and fresh to Denji.
She suddenly stopped and looked back at Denji with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Look look~ Cotton candy! I want that!"
"Cotton candy? Isn't that for kids?"
"Then get it for your kid~"
As Reze stuck out her tongue and laughed, Denji's face turned red.
"Ch-cheap shot, coming at me like that…"
And so, they even got a cotton candy to share and sat side by side on a bench at the end of the alley.
The sun shone down warmly, and the lively sounds of the market flowed like background music.
Reze took a bite of the cotton candy and lightly flicked off the white sugar powder from her finger.
"Going out for fun normally like this… it's really been a long time."
Her voice carried a bit more sincerity than playfulness.
Denji looked at her profile and gave a small nod.
"Me too… yeah."
For a moment, the two sat without saying anything.
The sound of children laughing from a corner of the market and the energetic shouts of the merchants filled the awkwardness.
But the silence wasn't uncomfortable at all.
Rather, it was a strangely comfortable time that warmly heated the depths of their hearts.
After making a round of the market, Denji's hands were full of various snacks he had bought.
Half a taiyaki, a bag of roasted chestnuts, and even the cotton candy Reze forced him to get.
"Whew… I really ate a lot."
Denji patted his stomach lightly with a satisfied expression.
"Aw~ We haven't even enjoyed half of it yet. Denji, let's go over to the riverside!"
Reze pointed with her finger to the small riverside path next to the market.
The river in this small city on the outskirts wasn't big, but it was famous as a walking path with well-arranged trees and benches.
Warm sunlight glittered on the water's surface, and a gentle breeze swayed the blades of grass.
The two headed toward the riverside bench with the snacks they bought from the market.
The calm sound of water and birdsong mixed to create a peaceful atmosphere.
As soon as she sat on the bench, Reze opened the bag of roasted chestnuts, took one out, and offered it to Denji.
"Here~ Open your mouth."
"What, am I a kid?"
"Hehe~ Don't want it? Then I'll eat it all by myself~"
The moment Reze pretended to put the chestnut in her own mouth, Denji reflexively thrust his head forward.
"No, give it!"
"Heh~ Good boy~"
Reze laughed mischievously and placed the chestnut in his mouth.
There were hardly any people by the riverside, so a quiet time for just the two of them passed.
While the market was full of lively noise, now it was so quiet it felt like time was flowing slowly.
Reze leaned back on the bench and looked at the sky.
"This kind of thing, it's really been a long time…"
"What has?"
"Just… sitting around normally like this, looking at the sunshine, eating snacks. That kind of thing."
A light shadow momentarily passed through Reze's tone of voice.
But she soon returned to her playful smile.
"And~ because Denji is next to me, it's even better?"
"W-what are you saying…!"
Denji turned his head away, his face red, but he couldn't hide that his ears were red too.
A moment later, Reze sprang up from her seat.
"Denji, want to lie down on the grass over there for a bit?"
"Huh? Why?"
"The sky is really pretty~ The clouds are floating softly too."
She ran to the grass like a child and then just plopped down flat on the lawn.
The blue sky and clouds spread out fully in her view, and the spring breeze lightly brushed her hair.
Denji hesitated, then slowly lay down beside her.
The cotton candy they bought at the market was placed between them.
"Look, that cloud. Doesn't it look like a whale?"
"Yeah… I… think it looks like a dog?"
"Pfft-haha!! What's that~ Total lack of imagination~"
As Reze held her stomach and laughed, Denji also burst out laughing.
That laughter, carried on the calm wind of the riverside, spread far away.
A momentary silence.
But the silence was strangely comfortable.
Even without saying anything to each other, just being next to each other was enough.
Reze glanced sideways at Denji.
His face, squinting in the sunlight yet making a happy expression.
It was a moment that warmed a corner of her heart.
"Denji."
"Yeah?"
"From now on too… let's come out to play like this sometimes. Promise."
"Of course. I really like this kind of stuff."
"Heehee, me too~"
Reze reached out her finger and lightly hooked Denji's pinky.
A warm breeze blew, lightly tousling their hair.
Their calm, peaceful date, just for the two of them, deepened just like that.