Episodes 117. Date Under Sun

I walked out of my house to try the hover shoes prototype made by Haran that had been given to me.

But...

As I opened the front door,

Clak...

A short girl with her hair tied up into two buns stood at the door. She seemed like she was about to knock, but stopped because I had already opened it.

Her shocked expression was the first thing I saw on her face, and if I had to say, she looked quite cute with that expression.

Ah, why is someone who is supposed to be my girlfriend standing in front of my house looking like she wants to ask me out?

Wait, isn't that what it should be?

I should greet her immediately...

We've just been staring at each other like idiots.

"Goo-good morning... D-Dahlia--?! Why are you here?!" I asked, genuinely surprised.

And this wasn't an act, I truly had no idea why she was in front of my house.

Moreover, how did she know where I live?

Dahlia smiled at me and walked closer without any warning.

*pluck

She clung her arm to mine.

With a smile, she tightened her grip on my arm.

"Rasyid... Dahlia hasn't talked to you in a while... So I came to cure this longing..." she said teasingly.

Not only that, she started rubbing her soft, tender cheek against my chest.

If I had to describe the current situation, it might cause a lot of misunderstandings among the neighbors.

How could it not? I was standing at the door being clung to by a young girl still in high school.

Who knows what nickname I'd be given if this news spread throughout the village.

Never mind, if that's what this girl wants, I'll oblige. Besides, I have some free time, and I can test the hover shoes while dealing with this matter.

"Dahlia..." I stroked her soft hair. "... Do you want to spend some time together?"

"Spend time together?"

"Yes, I was actually going to try these hover shoes, but I thought it would be very boring to do it alone, so..." I lifted the shoes to show her, smiling as best I could. "... Would you like to try them together?"

Is my smile okay?

Sometimes when I talk to someone I'm really close with, I can get flustered.

Since when did I become like this?

The girl clinging to me looked up at my face, which was taller than hers, with a small smile and eyes that sparkled like the morning sun.

"Hmm (nodding)... That sounds like a lot of fun." She tilted her head. "As long as you're there, I'm happy..."

.......

With that, Dahlia and I went to the field in my village to test the prototype shoes.

"Wow... I didn't expect to be able to see the blue sky like this now..."

Dahlia's eyes sparkled brightly in awe at the view from above the clouds.

"Hmm (nodding)... This invention is really amazing, isn't it?"

Flying beside her, I could only agree and share in the awe of this view.

Although for me, such views were common when I was on duty, enjoying them while relaxing gave a different impression.

My mood, which had been chaotic yesterday and last night, suddenly disappeared as if blown away by the strong wind.

"Invention? Will this be a new surprise this year?"

"You could say that. Every decade there's always an amazing new invention. Starting from the creation of Anitya, Pageblug, and now this, Hover Shoes..."

I explained what I had learned from that sadistic woman.

"By the way, where did you get these?"

When she asked that, I felt like her eyes narrowed suspiciously as if suspecting me of doing something wrong.

"Eh, these shoes? I got the-"

Wait, if I say 'I got these from Haran.' Won't that make her jealous and complicate things?

From an article I once read,

If your girlfriend asks about something related to another woman, get ready for her to get mad at you.

Be careful, a woman's jealousy can sometimes give you a headache. Better to avoid that.

Remember that!

Eh--- Seems I need to dodge a little.

"A teacher had an experiment, and she gave these to me as a test item..."

I put on a wide smile.

But from the way Dahlia responded to my smile, she didn't seem to be fooled by it.

My trick completely failed...

"Ekh hehehe... You're good at hiding facts in words, but not in facial expressions..."

Dahlia chuckled seeing my dumb expression. Instead of getting angry out of jealousy as I feared, she smiled with tears in her eyes and seemed to enjoy the conversation.

"Eh, really? Is my expression that bad?!"

"Just ask the people down there. Maybe if they see your expression right now, their answers would be the same as mine, but in simpler words."

"Hah (sighing)... Is that so?"

My acting skills seem to be getting worse. With this, if I get a mission to infiltrate from that old woman, I'll surely fail.

"Oh yeah, I didn't come to you just to cure my longing..." As she said that, her face turned serious, but on the other hand, her hand that was near mine squeezed my fingers tightly as if she didn't want to let go. "... This is still related to the exam yesterday."

When she said that, I immediately switched from relaxed mode to serious mode.

She must have wanted to talk about last night.

"Have you heard about it?"

"Hmm..." She stared blankly at the sky in front of her. "How could it happen? And what about the class that suddenly fell to the bottom?"

Rumors spread very quickly, even too quickly.

Wait, as I recall, last night an unknown number sent that file to the group chat. Did the same thing happen in their (students') group chat?

If so, this will endanger the privacy of the teachers.

Especially that person...

I still don't dare mention his name for now.

"I don't know either..." I was honest about this, not a trace of fabrication in my movements. "... Suddenly last night, the class I taught fell to that position, replacing that class."

"Wasn't that your doing?"

She mistakenly thought that I had something to do with the incident last night.

I could only shake my head to indicate that it wasn't my doing.

"I had no idea what happened. The solution that I told you about last night is different from that mysterious chat incident..."

"If it wasn't you, then who?"

"I don't know either... But surely, something big involving that prince is coming."

For sure, the culprit of this incident must be related to that prince, be it a business rival, family, or romantic interest.

There must be one among all the possibilities I can think of now.

...****************...

Just as I was confirming that, a phone ring sounded in my pants pocket.

Damn, I forgot I brought my phone while flying.

At this extreme altitude, I had to answer and see the name of the owner of the number that appeared on my phone screen. It is hard to see the name under the sun. But, I can see it a little.

Stevent Xander, that kid's name was clearly displayed there.

What is wrong with this kid? What on earth possessed him to call me?