The cold weather was so brisk that one could see their white breath clearly as they exhaled.
And against such weather, an overwhelming number of people—students and outsiders alike—intertwined, creating a warm atmosphere. In this place, a girl with long ears and pink hair shouted with a clear voice from the stage.
“Thank you for coming to the performance! Enjoy the rest of the festival!”
At the same time as she shouted, a wave of cheers and applause poured in, signaling the performers’ successful show.
Helena felt really good from the support and applause.
The nervousness she had before stepping onto the stage seemed trivial now.
She had never felt this good in her life.
Growing up in the indifference of her busy father, whose work in the corporate world consumed him, this place felt more like heaven than a stage to Helena.
The realization that by having courage, she could enjoy something like this was incredibly surprising and moving for her.
However, the reason the timid and introverted Helena could find such courage was because one person among the many spectators existed solely for her.
—Clap, clap, clap, clap.
A boy with white hair was clapping for her with his signature relaxed rhythm, sending her a glance with his red eyes.
Though it was a small sound, barely audible amid the loud cheers and applause from countless spectators, to Helena, it seemed clearer than any other applause.
“……”
The boy was smiling.
His smile seemed to say, “You did well,” and the girl returned the gesture with a happy smile.
At that moment, she felt like she had everything.
—–
After the performance, the boy met the girl behind the stage.
“Shirud, you really came.”
“I told you I would come, Helena.”
Shirud shrugged his shoulders, insisting that he never lies.
Perhaps it was because he was genuinely such a person?
Helena found that very reliable.
“By the way, the performance was amazing. I didn’t know your voice was that good.”
She was surprised by how well she performed despite saying she had little time to prepare.
It was clear that this was pure talent.
Helena’s singing had no faults in its sensuous pitch, perfect timing, and emotional delivery woven into her voice.
“T-thank you, Shirud.”
Receiving Shirud’s praise made Helena feel proud yet shy, causing her to lower her gaze and respond in a mumble.
It was strange; when she searched for Shirud among the audience, her heart calmed down, but now that they were talking right next to each other, her heart was pounding wildly.
She didn’t know what her heart was doing.
Just then, Shirud asked.
“By the way, do you have anything planned next?”
“Ah, no. Not particularly.”
What could he want to know about her schedule?
Helena was anxious, guessing what Shirud might say next.
“Is that so? Then how about we hang out together? Since I came out anyway, I thought I’d take a look around.”
Oh my gosh!
That was exactly the answer she never dreamed of!
Wasn’t this practically a date invitation?
“Yeah! That sounds g-…!”
Just as Helena was about to enthusiastically nod her head, a voice called out to her.
“Helena, could you come see the teacher for a moment?”
“Ah.”
The one calling her was Emma, the music teacher at Tigr Academy.
Helena cursed the timing of her arrival in her mind and responded sulkily.
“What is it?”
“How about a little consultation? It’s about your future.”
“Does it really have to be now?”
“Now, now, it’ll be a quick chat, so don’t be like that.”
“Y-yeah….”
If it would be quick, then she had no choice.
Helena glanced at Shirud.
In response, Shirud nodded as if he understood.
A consultation, therefore, must mean they would discuss things she shouldn’t overhear, right?
‘Then I guess I should go to Luke’s cafe and get a cup of tea while I wait.’
“I’ll be at Luke’s cafe, so come there when you’re done with the consultation. You know where it is, right?”
“Yep, I know. Got it.”
Just as Helena was about to turn her head away.
“Ah, wait a moment.”
“Yeah?”
Helena immediately stopped and turned her head at Shirud’s voice calling her.
“If you’re going to be a singer, you need to take care of your throat. It’s cold out here.”
She had been feeling uneasy about it since earlier, and her face had turned red since the performance ended.
Now that she thought about it, her clothes seemed thin, and her neck felt exposed—perfect conditions to catch a cold.
What if Helena was actually freezing right now?
Thinking that it would be a problem if she caught a throat cold, Shirud decided to take off the scarf wrapped around his neck and wrap it around Helena.
Since Shirud had learned to manipulate magic from Luke at the fishing spot, this scarf was nothing more than something his mother had forced him to wear because it made his neck look bare.
“Here, done. How is it? Warm now? Please return it later after you’re done with it.”
“Th-that, uh…!”
Suddenly being lent Shirud’s scarf, Helena’s face turned bright red to the point it felt like it could burst.
With Helena unable to form proper words, Shirud questioned with a slightly awkward voice.
“Um, do you dislike the scarf?”
“Ah, no! I like it!”
Helena felt like the heat was rising not just from her mouth but from her head as well.
The scarf that Shirud wrapped around her was truly warm and cozy…
And it smelled a bit like Shirud.
——-
Until now, Shirud had never visited Luke’s cafe because he found it bothersome.
No, it wasn’t just simply bothersome; it was annoying.
Mainly because of Luke.
While Luke was undoubtedly an excellent teacher in the subject of the Circle, his knowledge of other areas, in which he had no interest in Shirud, was so extensive that if he accidentally touched on one of those subjects, he would be forced to endure a lecture on topics he didn’t want to know about.
Like stories of constellations, historical narratives, or tales of monsters; visiting the cafe under those pretenses would surely lead to another lecture about tea leaves.
So, to summarize, one could say that Luke was not a good friend but a good teacher.
To be honest, listening to Luke gave a beneficial impression, but when being instructed on subjects of no interest, it felt like enduring a tedious, boring class.
However, what made it problematic was that even when discussing those irrelevant topics, Luke always tried to draw Shirud into the conversation as well.
That was quite bothersome and annoying.
For this reason, Shirud was utterly astonished upon his first visit to Luke’s cafe.
“L-Luke? Wait, what is with that outfit…?”
In response to Shirud’s reaction, Luke simply looked back with a puzzled expression.
“Is there a problem with the staff uniform for our cafe?”
“Of course there is!! That’s a maid outfit, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, well. That’s the concept.”
Luke’s reaction was quite indifferent.
To be honest, there was not much distinction for Luke between a modern maid outfit and a cafe staff uniform.
Five thousand years ago, maids didn’t necessarily wear a set uniform of black and white aprons.
However, it was of great importance for Shirud.
“By the way, you showed up just as I was desperately short-handed. I hope you can keep your word from when you offered to help. Here, I have a uniform ready for you.”
Luke was holding out a maid’s outfit for Shirud!
“B-but, I definitely said I would help, but…!”
This was confusing; no, it was confusing beyond measure.
Since he had verbally offered to help Luke, if he didn’t follow through, it would turn into a lie.
It felt as if he was being choked by a leash Luke had on him.
“But I never said anything about wearing a maid’s outfit!”
“Didn’t you even think about that before you offered help?”
That had to be true; he hadn’t even thought to ask!
Who could have imagined that just going to a cafe owned by Luke would lead to such trouble?
“Then at least prepare a male uniform!”
“Unfortunately, there are no male members in the baking club. It seems the boys aren’t really interested in baking.”
“…!”
When the gender ratio in a club is excessively unbalanced from the start, it creates a barrier for the other gender to join.
This could explain why clubs with many male members tend to be entirely male and those with many female members end up being entirely female.
The baking club was one such case.
Luke laughed heartily at the frozen Shirud.
“Ha ha ha… Actually, I wasn’t even planning to call you… Look, the cafe is doing better than I thought.”
He was genuinely not planning to call Shirud.
If he had intended to do so, would he have brought up Liv, whom he had wanted to keep a secret until he graduated?
However, he never imagined Liv—the golem—would run away and abandon him.
‘If only I could just go home…’
“Then can’t I just wear what I came in and serve?”
“Not having the proper attire when working is like going to the academy without your school uniform. That cannot happen. Even for the sake of avoiding confusion to guests, the staff should maintain uniformity.”
“…”
That was pretty reasonable.
If it weren’t for the fact that the outfit was a maid’s outfit.
As Shirud continued to express resistance, Luke felt the need to persuade him.
“Shirud, think about it.”
“What?”
“Why don’t you want to wear this outfit?”
Shirud pointed at the maid outfit Luke was holding and shouted.
“Don’t you know? That’s clothing for women! I’m a guy!”
“Well, I don’t think so.”
“What do you mean? Are you saying I’m not a guy?”
“No, that’s not what I mean.”
Luke calmed Shirud down and continued.
“Come on, Shirud. Skirts originally weren’t clothing for one gender or the other. The idea that skirts are for women is a fairly recent development in history. It makes sense. Skirts are simpler than trousers, which makes them one of the most primitive forms of clothing. In fact, skirts were used for quite a long time as uniforms for regular soldiers. Thus, they are a masculine outfit.”
“…What?”
“And the apron too. It’s merely a protective garment worn to keep clothes clean while cooking or working. People like chefs or carpenters use it regardless of gender. So it’s not exclusively for women either.”
“…Huh?”
“Stockings? Yes, those were originally made for men, not women. They were worn to prevent skin damage when wearing armor, so it makes sense. I find it strange that these became completely associated with women. Don’t you agree?”
“…Hmm.”
“So, what about shoes? Is it because of the heels? That’s the case as well. Heels were originally fashion items for men from the nobility. Moreover, having heels on shoes helped secure the rider’s foot in the stirrup while riding. Thus, this cannot be said to be clothing made for women either. Whatever is before you now is nothing designed solely for women.”
“…”
As the persuasion continued, the expression on Shirud’s face began to shift subtly.
Thinking he had been somewhat convincing, Luke offered his own smile while extending the outfit towards Shirud.
“Now, do you still see this outfit as something just for women?”
Shirud firmly replied.
“Of course!! Are you treating me like a fool? That’s a maid’s outfit that servants wear!”
If one viewed the whole visual rather than analyzing the elements one by one, it still looked like a maid’s outfit.
Besides, just because it might have different connotations historically doesn’t mean that suddenly its perception magically transforms from women’s wear to men’s wear.
No matter how much Luke explained, it was meaningless.
“Come on, just accept it! It’s fine while you’re still young, but in the future, you won’t be able to dress like this!”
“You just said ‘dress’ yourself!! Are you out of your mind? I’m not wearing it! Not happening!”
What would Helena say, who was also coming later?
