Chapter 8 – Lily (5)

Lily, who fainted on using [barrier], feeling the warmth, opened her eyes.

'Where am I… It’s not the warmth of my bed.'

'…!'

Then, startled, she tried to get up. But as she was trying to get up. Her head hit something and she had no choice but to sit back down again.

-Thumb 

Something she bumped into made a sound.

Lily turned around and saw Starchis waking up rubbing his chin.

“Oh, are you awake, Lily?”

“Where we are?”

Lily looked around and asked.

From what she saw, it was like being in a cave.

Looking toward the entrance of the cave, the world outside was much brighter than when she had lost consciousness.

Dawn… Or maybe it was morning.

“It’s a cave under a cliff.”

And only then did she realize where this place was.

The place where Starchis jumped off looked like a cliff at first glance, but in fact, there was a ledge directly below to prevent the fall.

And right behind that protruding jaw was a cave they could hide in.

“Heaven must be helping us. To think there is a place like this...”

"Right"

“What about the Tigerwolves?”

“I think they gave up. They must have thought that we fell, right? It was in the dark.”

“Ha…“ Lily sighed as she was relieved to hear that they were safe.

But as she tried to stand up again, the world spun around her.

“Oh, be careful.”

Starchis caught her as she fell. Her chest warmed up once again.

-Uh?

Lily was now used to this warmth. 

She shook her head.

That warmth when she first woke up… And looking at the way how Starchis rubber his chin when he woke up…

“By any chance, Starchis, have you been holding me until now..?”

Starchis scratched his head and said.

“Yeah… Lily ssi's body was too cold, I had to do something… And I was cold too… Uhm. Sorry.”

“Ah! No! It’s not that I didn’t like it or anything like this, I just asked because I was curious about how I was so good now!”

Lily thought she had found some time to talk while riding the horse before, but she suddenly became impatient again. What does she do if she was hated for talking? It was such a trivial worry.

At that time, she still showed a bit of composure like a senior and focused on making a mature laugh, but what she asked ruined her expectation.

Despite Lily’s excuses, Starchis was still apologetic.

Actually, She was grateful.

'Why did things go like this?' Lily thought.

Then suddenly a cold wind blew and Lily’s body trembled.

'Ah. This is it.'

“S.. Starchis.”

“Yes…?”

“Uh… It’s cold, but if I come back like before… Like if we go to the previous state... It can…”

The voice gradually diminished. Lily couldn’t even look at Starchis's face. She was fidgeting and all her nerves shifted to what he was going to say.

'What he is going to say.....!!'

"Hahahahaha."

And he laughed.

“Why, why are you laughing!”

“Ahahaha, ha… No. I’m cold too, so come here. Let's just stay that way until it gets a little brighter.”

Starchis spread his arms toward Lily.

Lily calmed her pounding heart, and this time she pretended not to mind and sat back in his arms.

- Ba bump, ba bump, ba bump...

But she could not calm down, her heart was running like a horse.

She saw the arms of Starchis, who had been protecting her. She saw his two strong legs. 

The scent of him was so strong that her heart beat much louder than she thought, and it became much more awkward than she expected. 

Lily couldn’t think of what to say at a time like this.

'…?'

She didn’t know what to say to break the quietness, so she chose silence.

-Thump thump thump thump

'This trembling?'

It was definitely Starchis’ heartbeat.

Lily lifted her head cautiously and looked at Starchis.

His face was also pale red.

'Ha!!'

Starchis didn’t care and thought he was the only one who was nervous, but Lily was no different from him.

It became clear that he was the same person as her, and she felt much more at ease.

It was amazing to see the difference between his reliable appearance during the party crisis and his current appearance.

He looked cute when he was nervous because of her.

Maybe it was just because he was younger.

Lily seemed to be able to act as she caught her breath again and pretended she was relaxed.

“Ugh…! I-ah- I...!”

Lily tried to speak her words, but her voice trembled like a goat.

She loosened her neck once or twice and spoke to him again.

“Starches? Because we have some free time… Would you like to ask each other questions like we did before?”

“…Is that so?”

Lily praised herself inwardly.

The topic of conversation was very good, she thought.

It was fun on the horse. She wanted to have that kind of conversation again.

Since she had crossed the line with him once, she wanted to know him more.

And since she was older than him, she even had the desire to show a little relaxed side of her.

She thought it would be possible if they talked about everyday life.

“I’ll ask you first, Starchis. Why are you using that weapon?”

“Well…”

She could feel Starchis worrying about the question she had asked.

“Why was it? Hmmm... When I was young, I was often involved in fights. I was even involved in fight clubs? Even later, this kind of weapon was the most comfortable.”

Starchis took out the leftover tonfa from his waist and showed it.

“And in fact, I have a little bit of an imitation of my older brother.”

“Brother? Do you have a brother? By the way, why is there only one weapon left?”

There was only one weapon left in Starchis’ hand, originally there was pair.

“Ah. After Lily ssi fainted, I threw away everything I was holding and ran. And you know at that time, I was grateful that you saved me with a barrier.”

“That’s not a big deal, it was an obvious action. Starchis saved me too, right?”

That weapon seemed a little pampered.

She thought she would buy one later for him.

She was sorry but grateful to him, and at the same time, his thanks made her feel so good.

Lily tried her best not to be overtly happy.

She thought she would get caught soon if she ack like this, so she changed the subject of the conversation.

“By the way. Why are you trying to imitate your brother?”

“Because he is my idol. Oh, if I tell you, you might know him. Do you know the Stion, the leader of the A-class party ‘Aid’?”

Lily shook her head.

“No. I’m hearing this for the first time. I’m not very interested in other parties. By the way, is your brother an A-class party leader?”

“Uh? My brother is famous… You do not know him...? Anyway, about your question, yes. And I am proud of him.”

“He is amazing. I would like to become an idol too.”

When she praised his older brother, Starchis rejoiced as if he had the praise of himself.

“Well, it’s not like my brother is an idol because of that alone… Lily ssi, do you have any siblings?”

Lily blinked her eyes. She didn’t anticipate this question.

If she had known this would happen, she would not have turned the conversation to the family.

Because it was a bit of an awkward topic to talk about.

Lily herself didn’t care.

But Starchis would be uncomfortable if she brought this up.

She didn’t want the current decent atmosphere to become solemn.

Also, if she didn’t answer, that would be strange, so she decided to talk as if she didn’t mind.

“Um… I had a younger brother.”

“Ah.”

‘She said she had, not has.’ Starchis thought.

His body felt stiff.

“No. It’s okay. Time has already passed.”

“I’m sorry. I think I brought out bad memories for no reason.”

“It’s okay, Starchis. The sense of loss I felt when I lost my younger brother has also been blunted, so now only good memories remain.”

Starchis didn’t know how to relax even if she told him that she wasn’t uncomfortable with the truth.

“It wasn’t a miserable death like being hunted by monsters or beaten to death by someone on the road. It was such a farewell that he quietly left the side later because his body was naturally weak. We prepared well for parting with each other. It’s okay.”

Lily had a flash of an idea as she thought about how she should talk, what she should do so that he wouldn’t be uncomfortable.

Ideas to make Starchis conformable again.

“Whoops. Starchis, you know what?”

“…Yes?”

'Okay. He is two years younger than me. Now that I’m 24 years old…'

“If my brother was alive, he would be exactly the same age as Starchis.”

“Uh, yes?”

Starchis’s voice, which had subsided with apologetics, revived again.

Seeing that Lily smiled.

“…That means…”

“Yes. I’m older than Starchis. You asked my age while riding the horse yesterday. So now you know.”

“Is Lily ssi older than me?”

“You can call me Lily noona if you want later.”

With that answer, Lily gave him the most relaxed, sisterly smile she could think of.

She turned around slightly in his arms, covered her mouth with her hand, and smiled.

First of all, this was Lily’s best.

As she wondered if it was unnatural. The solemn atmosphere disappeared, and the tickling atmosphere came again.

“At that time, you said you didn’t want to tell me, what kind of change of heart did you have?”

“We crossed the line together. I need to tell you about this.”

Suddenly when they were talking, a loud but low voice came.

-…Starchis..!! …Lee!!!

- Flash.

Starchis raised his finger to his mouth, gave a shh signal, and stood up, causing her to slip out of his arms.

- Starchis!!! Lily!!!

It was Vienna's voice. Her voice was hoarse from how much she screamed.

-Starchis!! Lily!!!

-Here!! Everything is now good!!

-No…! No!! Chis!!! Where did you go!!!

In addition to the voices of  Luss and Vienna, they could also hear voices they had never heard before.

It was probably another person they brought along.

“Looks like they are here. Let’s get out quickly,” Starchis grinned. “Lily noona.”

With those words, he smiled at her and said.

Lily’s heart beat like it was out of order.

- Ba bump, ba bump, ba bump, ba bump...

A few weeks ago from then, she had realized that she was in love for the first time, even though she had admitted that she liked him after that incident, she was now sure of it that he was the one, but she was also not sure if he will accept her or not.

.

.

.

But a few days later, Vienna and Luss came to Lily and suggested a treaty.

****

I couldn’t hold back the yawn that leaked out.

- Yaaaaaam.

With my arms outstretched to the sides, I yawned unsightly, unable to cover my mouth.

Lily noona giggled as if she found it funny.

“Lily noona. Do I have to go this far?”

I thought it would just be top and bottom matching with pretty clothes, but Lily noona came out in earnest.

We ate our breakfast and wandered around until the shops opened.

She dragged me to an expensive store saying she would tailor my clothes.

It was an old-fashioned store lined with dresses and tuxedos that could only be worn at aristocratic events.

As if to prove that appearances weren’t everything, an employee appeared and began measuring my entire body.

Because of all of that, now I couldn’t even move a single step.

“You have to do it like this Starchis. If you get a girlfriend, You have to wear nice clothes like this so I won’t be ashamed of myself as noona.”

“Hey, weren’t you lovers? I thought you were lovers! You look so good together!”

The waitress who was taking our measurements chatted with us.

Lily noona covered her mouth and laughed at the waitress's words.

“It’s not like that.”

The waiter flashed her eyes at Lily noona's reaction.

“You both fit so well. The two of you~”

She must have thought that we weren’t even lovers and that we were still flirting.

She said things that clearly showed her intention to connect me and noona.

“I envy you. You have a noona who takes care of you like this.”

“Aha… Ahaha.”

I smiled shyly. I looked at Lily noona and she was staring at me.

“How long have you known each other?”

“Well… It’s been a long time.”

“It will be for a long time to come.”

Lily noona said that as if it was natural.

At that, the waitress gave a sly smile.

“Which one of you will confess, first? Shouldn’t a man do it?”

“Ah. No. It’s not like that.”

“Oh. Is that so?”

Lily’s noona drew the line again.

Still, her face looked happy.

The employee, on the contrary, was surprised and asked back.

 She caressed my arm muscles a little strongly before taking measurements.

“You’re really good too… Like a man..! And uh! Your body is so strong and cool. So of course I-“

Hearing her, I was sorry that I misunderstood her. 

She seemed to be praising me instead of apologizing for her words, but the words of her couldn’t last because of Lily noona.

“-Staff?”

“…Yes?”

The employee was nervous at the tone of voice that changed in an instant.

It was natural to be surprised when anyone saw that for the first time. Because I was startled too.

It was not normal for people to change so quickly depending on their mood.

“Can you stop sexually harassing him and measure his size?”

-Ah.

With a groan, the waitress removed her hand from my forearm.

But was this sexual harassment?

She said sniffing at my scent in the morning and even touching my insides isn’t sexual harassment, so why is this sexual harassment?

Do I really not know what the standard is?

The waitress was no longer smiling.

Having been beaten by surprise, and coming back to her senses, she took the remaining measurements in silence and tension.

I was sorry for nothing. I think it happened because of me.

Did Lily noona feel bad because she felt like I was sexually harassed? I didn't even care now.

Whether it was because she wanted to finish quickly or because she was able to work without a word, the work of measuring the size was completed sooner than I expected.

Lily noona secretly whispered to the gloomy-looking employee, who was looking around at the fabrics and designs of the clothes she made with examples.

“..There-“

“Starchis? Did she get all your measurements?”

“Huh! Yep!!”

She also knew how to stop talking at the time like a ghost. I was greatly surprised as if I had been caught doing something bad.

“Then would you like to come here? I chose the design to make the clothes out of.”

“Yep.”

In the end, I went to the place where Lily noona was without even comforting the waitress.

Come to think of it, I was prioritizing the feelings of the three members of my party. There were many times when I couldn’t help but notice that even when I comforted others to make them feel better.

Since when I have been like this? 

I also thought about that for a moment.

Have I been tamed without even knowing it?

Mmm. No. In the end, if I don’t notice them, I’m the one who’ll be bothered, so I’m making this choice.

My actions were determined by me.

When I went to Lily noona, she had already picked out some clothes.

“Have you picked out a few already?”

“Starchis asked me to match them, so I picked out the ones that looked pretty. Would you like to try them on?”

There were definitely clothes that matched the combination.

I was worried about getting a tuxedo or something, but it was fortunate.

I mean, even if I can’t wear clothes, that doesn’t mean I’m not going out on a date with someone.

What Lily noona chose were pretty clothes that looked a bit expensive but could be worn like everyday clothes.

I took all of the prettiest-looking combinations and went to the place where the screen was drawn and changed.

Undergarments, a blouse, and then a leather jacket with no arms.

They were pretty, but they were not my size, so they were a little baggy.

I removed the screen and stood in front of Lily noona to listen to her comments.

“Um… How is it noona? It’s pretty, but it’s not my size, so it’s a little baggy. Would it be okay if I come back to you later?”

But Lily noona didn’t answer.

“..?Noona ?”

When I lifted my head and looked at her, she was staring at me with her mouth slightly open.

“…Weird?”

Her eyes widened at my words and she shook her head.

“…No. Really… You are really pretty. Clothes! I mean the clothes. You wouldn’t be ashamed of this. Yes.”

It didn’t sound like a lie. I personally liked them too.

Should I get them?

“Starchis!! Don’t stop and take a look at the other clothes. I picked them out.”

In the meantime, the sample clothes increased as if she had picked them out again. The number wasn't too bad.

As much as I wanted to wear this all the time. There seemed to be an endless amount of work to be done, so it was just frustrating.

Even when I wore one, I had to wear it over and over again, but when would I wear it all, and when would I take it off and change?

“Noona. There are too many of these. I can’t wear them all. Even if I tried it on, I couldn’t buy it.”

“You can’t buy it. Just try it on. I want to see-ah, no, we have to buy something good when we buy it once.”

I was already satisfied. 

When I looked at the rest of the clothes with my own eyes, there was nothing that I liked more than this.

And what is this?

“Noona, but what is this?”

“These clothes were brought by someone from the East. Blue overalls… Did you like them?”

“What top clothes to wear together?”

“There is no such thing.”

Ugh.

What is this?

“Noona. That’s okay. I asked you to choose, but you said you wanted to see my boyfriend’s look, right? I will probably wear it like this.”

“Oh that… Yes? Still, I picked this one…”

“I’m sorry, noona, but it’s not my taste.”

She looked at me furiously

“…I can’t help but say that.”

She tried to force me by changing her expression again, but luckily she let it slide this time.

Hey, this is my taste, what can I say?

****

They said that the clothes will be completed around next week. 

At that time, they will deliver them to me according to the design I chose.

They were not cheap, but Lily noona made a fuss saying that she would definitely buy this, so I didn’t refuse.

I wondered if she would be like that if she was worried about how much I wanted to buy them.

I don’t always dress casually, and if I said I had a lover, I would dress up and go out.

Anyway.

If I lied about having a girlfriend later, wouldn’t it be better to tell her that I went out wearing this outfit?

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