The tower door opened, and Reed stepped outside.
As always, the same wind blew and the same sunlight shone down.
But the wind was fresher and the sunlight warmer than ever.
The hot heat gradually subsided in August.
A woman standing under the high sky.
As soon as the door opened, she greeted him with a straw hat and a white dress.
A single blue flower was smiling brightly on the cosmos field that had not yet withered.
"How is it?"
Having stared at her in a trance, he belatedly answered her question.
"You're like a young lady. An immature young lady."
"You're like a swallow."
"A swallow trying to take advantage of an immature young lady's wealth."
"Too bad, I'm a penniless beggar."
"Then, shall we try to find out what we can gain from each other today?"
At Reed's words, Dolores giggled.
"I said I'd come to pick you up, so why are you already out here?"
"It's a bit embarrassing to show this side of me to the tower people. And I missed you."
"Shall we take a carriage? It's quite far to Cohen."
"Let's just walk. There's no rush now."
Dolores wrapped her hand around Reed's.
Not even 10 seconds after saying there was no need to hurry, she urged Reed with her excited steps.
Yes, there was no need to hurry.
Today, and tomorrow.
All that time would be spent with Dolores.
They left the plain and entered the forest.
Like an ordinary couple, they walked side by side, holding hands without even being conscious of their sweat.
When they got tired, they made a bench to rest on.
Neither of them said a word.
Their lips tickled and twitched, but no one opened their mouths.
That's why it was comfortable.
They were able to be faithful to the time and space they spent walking towards Cohen.
It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky that they finally arrived in Cohen.
Entering the city, Dolores marveled at the streets.
"So this is Cohen Castle. It's smaller than the empire, but it seems more developed."
"It's cleaner than the empire, right? Many things are being developed, so it'll get even better in the future."
"Is it a product of magic engineering? It's really nice."
The Hupper Kingdom was jointly researching and developing magic engineering, and Morgan II had applied the developed products to his castle.
Sewage treatment systems, fertilizer manufacturing machines for agriculture, etc.
Although they were still in the testing phase, Morgan II, as a king dedicated to people's livelihoods, continued to develop them.
As they walked along the royal road, Dolores playfully tapped Reed's shoulder.
Wondering why she suddenly did that, Reed looked down at her.
"I'm hungry."
Dolores looked up at him like a baby bird asking for food.
Reed unwittingly pinched her cheek.
Feeling the different texture of her taut cheek, Reed was surprised and asked her.
"Why is it like this? Did it shrink because of all the hard times? Are you eating properly?"
"I eat well these days."
"Even so, it's like this? I need to fatten you up today."
"You want to make me fat so I can't chase after you? I know everything."
"If you get fat, I'll roll you up and put you in our tower."
"How can every word you say be so funny?"
Dolores laughed and took Reed's hand again.
"I know a restaurant, let's go there."
When he came to Cohen, he always stayed in the inner city, and his meals were limited to eating with Morgan.
There was only one restaurant Reed knew in Cohen.
It was a pub they had chosen as a contact point when meeting undercover Isel and Rachel.
Dolores was the one who suggested having lunch at a commoners' restaurant, but she was surprised that Reed could actually find such a place.
"What do you want to eat?"
"I, I don't know..."
There were many things on the menu that Dolores had never seen before.
There were a lot of words, and she didn't know what would come out if she ordered something. She didn't want to seem hesitant, but...
"Should I just order for us?"
"Okay."
As if reading her mind, Reed asked her.
Reed closed the menu and called a waiter to order food.
He ordered neatly without any hesitation.
As he was about to hand her a cup of water, Reed suddenly shuddered.
Dolores was staring at Reed, lost in thought.
"Did something get on you?"
"Just... I realized how amazing you are."
"I just tried it once and got good at it. I'm not good at this kind of thing either."
"So you've been here once."
Somehow, it seemed like an interesting story, so she dug deeper.
"How did you know about this place?"
"Well, there's a bit of a story."
"What's the story? Did you come here to meet a girl without me knowing?"
"......"
Reed couldn't deny it, so he bit his lip.
Dolores' expression turned cold at the words thrown casually like throwing a pebble into a river.
"......Why don't you say anything?"
Dolores glared at him coldly.
Her face was the same as when she was invited to dinner by Kamin.
The glass of water she was holding was filled with ice.
Even though her power had weakened, her trait was still the "Incarnation of Cold."
Feeling jealous, she was more than capable of becoming a cruel Ice Queen.
"Well..."
"Tell me, who did you come here with?"
Dolores' tone became more polite, but her intonation was fiercer.
Worried that the misunderstanding would deepen, Reed cautiously told her.
He didn't tell her everything about the Saintesses, but just that they were people who helped Dolores' research.
Dolores' coldness gradually subsided.
"What, I thought... You could have just told me that."
"It's a bit awkward to reveal people who are trying to help you..."
"You're worried about those women, aren't you?"
"You’re so mean."
"If you don't tell me, I won't know, right? So can I just stay mad?"
"Yeah, just tell me."
He couldn't win this moment.
Dolores smiled with her eyes, seemingly amused.
Shortly after, the ordered food was served.
They seemed to be aware of Reed and Dolores' attire, so they put some effort into the presentation.
Dolores took a spoonful of soup with a wooden spoon.
After savoring the lingering taste on her tongue for a while, she exclaimed.
"So this is commoners' food. Should I say it's rough? It seems a bit salty too."
"Is it not good?"
Dolores shook her head.
"It's delicious in its own way. Eating it with bread seems to balance it out."
Tearing the bread with her hands, she dipped it generously into the stew and brought it to her mouth.
She adapted so well to the commoners' meal that it seemed her hesitation over the menu was an act.
"Yum, yum. This is good. This kind of food is nice too."
The elegant image of her cutting a steak was gone, and a common girl was eating her meal.
Was she quick to adapt?
Or maybe she had been hiding this side of her all along.
Maybe she had been suppressing this immature side of her to become the perfect Tower Master.
Dolores, known only to himself.
Not a strict Tower Master, but a cute girl.
