“Hmm….”
As the curtain of eyelids opened, a fantastic landscape filled my vision.
Every morning, waking up to see this face feels like a blessing to me.
The face shining in the morning sunlight, it’s just like a Goddess… Yes, it is a Goddess.
“Lily.”
I whispered the name of the Goddess before me and laughed softly as if it were something amusing, then kissed her plump lips.
Chomp
Suck
Chomp, Chomp
Lily still not waking up despite the consecutive kisses.
Perhaps she’s pretending to sleep, just like I did yesterday?
Just like Lily did yesterday, I gently tilted her chin down to open her mouth.
“Chuurrp… Chuup… Chuup… Chuurp…”
I pushed in my tongue, exploring Lily’s lips, gums, even her saliva.
Especially when I occasionally teased her tongue, her entire body would slightly twitch, unbearably cute.
Recalling our first date, I felt the urge to tease her arise.
Even though I realized how much Lily had been holding back after what happened yesterday, there was no stopping me from getting my revenge.
I whispered softly into her earlobe.
“Lily… My… Mine.”
A noticeable twitch, even though she didn’t quite open her eyes.
“Mine.”
“Mine~”
More twitching.
“Cute, mine.”
Twitch.
“I love you, mine.”
“Hmm…”
Lily tried to roll over and get out of my embrace, pretending to be restless.
I followed her, whispering.
“Lily, you’re so cute today compared to yesterday, isn’t that right?”
“Our Lily is too cute, what should I do?”
“I’m scared someone might take you away.”
I noticed her ears turning red.
She had clearly reached her limit.
I decided to end with a decisive move.
“Please wake up if you love me, okay~?”
“…That’s cheating!”
Lily opened her eyes, her face completely flushed.
“But look at the time. There’s barely enough time to have breakfast and get ready. We have to go on a date, a date.”
“Hmm… That’s true but…”
I gave her a light peck on her adorably mumbling mouth and hugged her tightly.
“Thank you for waking up at once.”
“…There’s no fixing you.”
Lily grumbled and hugged me back.
“What do you want for breakfast?”
“Any recommendations?”
“Since it’s morning, if we want something light… Should I make sandwiches?”
Sandwiches made by Lily.
The mere thought made my mouth water.
“Alright, let’s go with sandwiches.”
“Then…”
Lily tried to get up to go and cook, but…
“Cooc”
“…Arthur?”
“Yes?”
“…Let go, I need to make breakfast.”
I know that.
But even though I know it in my head…
“…Can we stay like this a little longer?”
The morning drowsiness combined with Lily’s warm embrace had a sedative effect.
“…It’s not impossible.”
We silently hugged each other tightly until my stomach growled.
—
The sandwich Lily placed on the table… Hmm? There are some unfamiliar ingredients.
For one, the fried egg on top is definitely too big to be covered by the top and bottom slices of bread.
There’s no way an ordinary bird’s egg could make it that size.
“Could it be…”
“Yep, it’s a giant penguin’s egg.”
Of course.
“Is there anything else I should know about the ingredients?”
“Nope. Everything’s safe. Even the dangerous ones have been properly processed to be harmless.”
…Are they really safe?
Lily’s bright eyes seemed to urge me to hurry up and eat, so I reluctantly brought the sandwich to my mouth.
Taking a big bite, I made a firm resolution in my heart.
‘I will never doubt Lily’s cooking again.’
I honestly have no idea what the ingredients are.
While chewing hard, I occasionally felt something whose identity was a mystery, but who cares?
The sandwich was fantastically delicious.
It was transcending the limits of what sandwiches could be.
I could live on these sandwiches every day and be perfectly fine with it.
“How is it?”
Lily asked from beside me, but what could I say?
“It’s the best.”
“Hehe, there’s plenty, so eat as much as you want.”
“Yes ma’am!”
Ah, I’m so happy.
The story about finding a good cook was spot on.
Not to mention, Lily is much more than just a good cook.
I started listing the countless advantages of Lily.
A beauty that makes your heart race just by looking at her,
An overwhelming figure that feels almost unreal,
Cooking skills that make all chefs seem amateurish,
Chores skills that can clean and do laundry with a flick of her fingers,
And the identity of an Outsider with overwhelming strength.
‘What could possibly be lacking?’
Even her personality is warm and mature, yet sometimes endearingly cute.
“Lily.”
“Yes?”
“I’m so happy that I get to go out with Lily.”
Seriously.
Meeting Lily was the greatest fortune of my life.
Compared to this happiness, the previous pain feels trivial.
“What’s with the suddenness?”
“Just… I love all of Lily’s countless charming traits.”
“Fallen in love again?”
“Yes, I’ve fallen in love again.”
Every week is better than the last, every day better than the one before.
The love in my heart, which I thought had reached its limit, continues to grow.
I think I understand now the feeling Lily mentioned before.
My ever-growing heart feels like it’s about to explode.
“I love you.”
With another confession, I pressed my forehead against Lily’s.
“Okay, I love you too.”
That day, Lily’s breakfast continued for a while longer.
—
We ended up out shopping again.
Walking down the street with our arms linked naturally, this time I definitely felt the gazes of others.
Longing and passionate stares directed at Lily, and jealous, puzzled looks directed at me.
A couple passed by us.
While the man was staring at Lily, his partner didn’t stop him. In fact, the woman also couldn’t take her eyes off Lily.
“This…is more stressful than expected.”
“Does it bother you?”
“A little?”
“Let’s stop for a moment.”
Following Lily’s suggestion, a wavy motion, like heat haze, could be seen around us.
“What is this?”
“Perception hindrance magic. Now other people won’t pay much attention to us.”
Looking around, it was clear that people weren’t looking our way.
Wow… so there’s such a revolutionary magic… Wait.
“…Why didn’t you use it last time?”
Twitch.
Through the linked arms, I could feel Lily’s subtle trembling.
“Lily… Could it be…”
Turning my head, Lily’s ears were conspicuously red and she avoided eye contact.
Judging from her reaction, my guess was confirmed.
There was no way Lily could have forgotten…
It was more realistic that she intentionally didn’t use it.
To show everyone our relationship.
Why?
There was only one reason.
To show that I belong to her.
This must have been Lily’s intention behind the newspaper article as well.
The cause of this behavior is only one.
Possessiveness.
I’m glad… that Lily feels possessive towards me…
“I’m happy.”
“Huh?”
Lily turned her head abruptly and looked at me.
She seemed completely surprised by my answer.
“I understand your desire to exclusively possess me. It makes sense, and I feel the same way.”
Just before the perception hindrance magic was cast…
I was extremely uncomfortable about one corner of my heart.
The looks men were giving Lily were not just irritating but genuinely unpleasant.
Lily’s beautiful face, figure…
I wanted them all to be mine alone.
The attention from others was unpleasant.
Not only her outward appearance but also her inner character.
I wanted them all to be my exclusive knowledge.
Though some might call it selfish, I didn’t see it that way.
Feeling possessiveness towards someone means…
“It’s because you value the other person so much, that’s why I’m so glad about Lily’s feelings.”
“Arthur…”
Lily looked at me with a moved expression.
“Speaking of which… Could you keep the perception hindrance spell active while we’re dating?”
“Why?”
“Because I only want to look at Lily, and I only want to experience Lily’s charm.”
“Hehe…”
After laughing heartily, Lily gently stroked my head.
“Jealous?”
“Yes. Lily is mine, it feels like you’re being peeked at.”
At that moment, Lily’s hand slightly paused.
“…Mine?”
“Yes, mine. You even left a mark on my collarbone during our last date.”
At that, Lily’s face instantly turned scarlet.
“That…”
Lily hesitated for a moment, then suddenly started unbuttoning her school uniform.
“Wait a second, Lily?!”
Lily unfastened about half the buttons from the top and pushed her top aside, revealing her beautiful collarbone.
“Mark… it’s gone…”
Saying that, Lily looked at me straight in the eyes.
Her expression clearly conveying a strong desire.
“…Here? Doesn’t the perception hindrance magic have limits–”
“I just switched it to invisibility magic.”
Wow… You’re thorough.
“Hmm…”
Still, it worried me.
The last time I left a mark on that collarbone was at the final stage of our date.
It was a kind of preventive inoculation to eliminate any regrets about the date.
But now, we’re only at the beginning of the date.
I could feel how dangerous it would be moving forward if we escalated things too soon.
Especially since we just went through something yesterday…
“I’m sorry, Lily. It’s a bit…”
Seeing my refusal, Lily looked undeniably disappointed.
“…Then.”
Raising Lily’s slightly bowed head, I covered her lips with mine.
Chomp!
I kissed her loudly on purpose, then told Lily who was staring at me with wide eyes.
“I’ll stamp your lips instead.”
Lily’s face turned an even darker shade of red.
“…Not enough.”
I understand the feeling of insufficiency, but…
“We still have a long day ahead. I’ll give you everything you want today, so let’s go for now?”
Our official date hasn’t even started yet.
“…Promise?”
“Of course.”
Lily carefully extended her pinky finger.
Her intentions were far too obvious, making me smile.
I hooked my pinky with hers and kissed her.
A little while later, we walked slowly along the street, our faces still flushed.
What a dazzling start to the date.
‘…Should I really buy some lip balm?’
It’s something I’m genuinely considering right now.
