Chapter 42

“I remember, isn’t it tomorrow night?”

“!”

…She still remembered.

She had not forgotten the date.

A warmth bloomed in Xiarette’s heart, and her resolve became even stronger.

Since that was the case…

Xiarette slowly relaxed the fist she had been holding tightly against her chest.

Then, she raised her hand to point toward the white grand hall over there.

“Tomorrow night, the Wright Family will be hosting my eighteenth birthday banquet there. Honestly, it’s quite troublesome… I’ll have to wear a formal dress and follow those routine procedures with the elders. But since you’re a Demon Clan Princess, Sheffy, you should know that for nobles, they consider such formalities a necessity.”

“Exactly! Super troublesome. That Demon King father of mine loves appearances. Whenever it’s my birthday, he insists on entertaining every noble in the entire Demon Domain. As long as they’re somewhat notable and still breathing, they all have to come! Hee, but I’m clever—you see, whenever things get troublesome, I just go fishing by the lake. If anyone comes looking for me, I dive underwater! Totally safe!”

“…”

Sheffy, you really are carefree, huh…?

Xiarette gave a wry smile, shrugging and shaking her head.

“Yes… the Wright Family is about the same. No need for invitations—almost all the major nobles of the Kingdom of Aurus will attend. After all, the King will be there too. And not just that, the Holy Theocracy of Coreia will probably send representatives as well. It’s really a hassle…”

“Tsk tsk tsk, nothing you can do about it. Your family’s just that eye-catching.”

“Mm, but…”

“But…?”

“But this is the only birthday so far that I don’t find troublesome.”

After a brief pause, Xiarette softly spoke these words.

“Because you promised to come too, Sheffy…”

The furrow in Xiarette’s brow smoothed out.

With the slanting rays of the setting sun behind her, a smile as beautiful as a painting blossomed in Sheffy Harl’s gaze.

“Because you’ll be there, I would rather the banquet be even grander, even more magnificent… That way, I can tell you that your sister is doing well, so you don’t need to worry. Ha… aside from my parents, everyone else’s well-wishes are fake. But yours, Sheffy—you truly want to celebrate with me, and that’s real. When the time comes, don’t mind the size of the venue. I’ll secretly cut two slices of cake, and we’ll go hide somewhere to eat them. Thinking about it… doesn’t that sound like a wonderful birthday?”

“Xiarette…”

“Mm, my only worry! Is that you might think it’s too troublesome and not come… or get distracted and go fishing by the lake instead? That’s why… I was worried just now…”

Reincarnating into this world wasn’t easy.

Meeting her was even harder.

Since all these miracles had already happened, was it really too much to want to celebrate with her?

The setting sun didn’t fall on Xiarette alone.

Sheffy Harl’s shadow stretched far across the ground.

But the place she stood was right in front of Xiarette.

When Xiarette looked up without thinking, she saw—Sheffy’s faint smile.

But that smile lasted only a moment. With a soft hum, Sheffy turned away.

With both hands clasped behind her back, she resumed walking with that haughty, no-one-can-stop-me stride.

She hadn’t given a direct answer to Xiarette’s question.

But the words she said just before she took her first step…

Made Xiarette feel completely at ease.

“Just… just that, Shaya asked me to pass on a message for you.”

“Shaya said she suddenly felt like wearing a formal dress. That’s what Shaya said, okay!”

“Hurry… hurry up and go home! Tomorrow’s stuff—we’ll talk about it tomorrow!”

Xiarette stood there dazed for a moment, lowering her head, golden bangs veiling her eyes.

When she raised her head again—

Her eyes gleamed with brilliant light.

The shimmering glow of the sunset was the light and shadow disturbed by Xiarette’s vigorous nod.

“Mm!”

—

43. The Stirring Night

That dress—Miss Shaya wanted to wear it, but Miss Sheffy Harl did not!!

Tonight was the night of Xiarette’s birthday banquet.

And right now, Sheffy was unleashing endless complaints about this humanity-confining attire!

“Ahh, this dress is so uncomfortable! Mmph…! My waist, my waist… my waist’s about to snap!”

“Pfft… Sheffy, just compromise a little, okay? I already reserved the loosest style possible for you. The shoes too—I had the heels made much shorter on purpose. Try them on in a bit. Look at mine, it’s even more uncomfortable. So count your blessings, would you?”

In the countryside villa, night had already fallen.

In front of a giant floor-length mirror, Xiarette was helping Sheffy tighten the laces on her dark blue formal dress. The moment she gave the laces a good pull, Sheffy instantly lost all sense of her waist!

Sheffy herself clearly didn’t care for formal dresses, but if she had taken a good look at the reflection in that floor mirror—at the little girl mirrored there in soft, elegant shades of blue—she might have realized just how dreamily adorable she looked in that dress.

And look— even the little Holy Sword leaning against the wall couldn’t stop flickering with golden light in a show of praise.

“Lady Sheffy, you look so beautiful! I want to wear a formal dress too… but alas, my magic isn’t fully restored today, so I can’t manifest!”

“And whose fault is that? Who told you to squander your magic in the palace before? If you ask me, serves you right.”

“Ugh…! So heartless, Lady Sheffy—I still adore you!”

“Scram!”

She had already been struggling with the formal dress. Now, hearing Sylatrella shamelessly flattering her, Sheffy walked over in annoyance, barefoot, and gave the Holy Sword a hard kick.

The blade rang out with a crisp tremor, and this time, Sylatrella actually protested.

“Lady Sheffy, please don’t do that.”

“Oh? Has the pervert finally come to her senses? Realized that getting kicked doesn’t feel so good after all?”

“That’s not it! I can’t feel it while I’m inside the sword! Please wait until I’m out—then kick me! Kick me hard, right on the butt! Please!”

“……”

Sheffy withdrew her small bare foot.

Holding up the long hem of her formal dress, she sat down on the floor and quietly began putting on her shoes.

Damn it.

I’m the one kicking her, but somehow I still feel like I’m the one losing here—she’s totally winning.

After putting on the custom-designed heels that Xiarette had ordered for her, she stood up, took a couple of steps left and right, and stamped her feet.

Guess what? Ehehe, these shoes weren’t nearly as uncomfortable as she’d imagined!

Matching the color of her dress, the shoes were not only comfortable but also quite stylish. And stylish as they were, she could probably hop around without twisting her ankle.

In fact, Sheffy’s shoes barely qualified as true high heels. Xiarette had been worried she wouldn’t be used to them and had specially arranged for the maids of the Wright Family Main House to design a new style.

If what Sheffy wore could be called children’s high heels—

Then what Xiarette wore truly deserved to be called real high heels!

A deep wine-red color, nearly the same style as Sheffy’s, but paired with a much longer formal dress.

Unlike Sheffy, whose long hair was still left loose, Xiarette had pinned her golden hair up today. Already a mature-looking golden-haired beauty, she now appeared even more dignified and graceful, flawless in every way. Looking at her, Sheffy found herself completely refreshed—it felt like seeing a whole new Xiarette.

So much so that after circling around Xiarette to scrutinize her, Sheffy decisively gave a big thumbs-up!

“Beautiful! Honestly, Xiarette, while I don’t like wearing formal dresses myself, watching you wear one feels amazing!”

Sheffy had always liked a saying from her previous life: Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.

“Pretty… is it really? I was worried the color might be too bright. Your dress looks better, Sheffy. Haha… look at you squatting down like that—you look just like a blue rose.”

“Pretty? Then just take my dress, scale it up a few sizes, and make another one to keep!”

“Scale it up…?”

Xiarette’s gaze naturally drifted toward Sheffy’s nearly flat chest.

Hmm… she couldn’t help but ponder the true meaning of scaling up proportionally.

At the same time, Sheffy was staring at Xiarette’s graceful curves, which filled out the soul of the dress with divine elegance.

Her brow twitched more and more, and her whole expression became increasingly contorted.

“Uh… Xiarette, your gaze seems a bit impolite again.”

“Sorry… I think you’ll definitely grow up, Sheffy.”

“On my eighteenth birthday, Mother told me the same thing. And now… she doesn’t say it anymore.”

“……”

If this topic went any deeper, it would get a little too melancholy—better to drop it.

In fact, both Sheffy’s and Xiarette’s dresses were quite modest in style—no bare back, no bare shoulders, no exposed legs. Instead, they were adorned with intricate patterns.

Xiarette’s skirt was decorated with embroidered red roses, while Sheffy’s featured blue ones.

Unlike some girls who dressed overly flashy for such banquets, their outfits were geared more toward formal occasions.

Though this meant they lacked some of the dynamic flair, in terms of elegance and beauty, their attire was more than a match for any other.

Ultimately, Xiarette’s natural elegance already surpassed anything the dress could add. Sheffy believed that no matter where Xiarette went, she would undoubtedly be the center of attention.

Ready to go, Sheffy stood up, patted down the long hem of her dress, then reached out a hand toward Xiarette.

“Come on, Xiarette! Let’s go eat your family’s cake… ahem, I mean, celebrate your birthday!”

“Yes… it’s about time.”

Xiarette held the small hand that had reached out to her and glanced back at the wall clock.

It was getting late—time to go.

But since they were about to set out, there was something that simply had to be said~

“Sheffy.”

“Mm?”

“If you keep eating donuts on the way, you won’t have room for cake later, you know?”

“Ah?”

Sheffy first looked at the donut in her left hand, then lifted her head with a smile.

“It won’t be a problem! Haven’t you heard? Sweets go into a separate stomach—just like Storage Magic. It won’t interfere!”

“But cake is also a sweet…”

“…! Good point. I’ll stop now.”

Donut, sorry to disappoint you.

Once I’ve finished the cake, I’ll come back and devour you in one bite.

Hand in hand, the two girls stepped out through the villa’s front door, setting off under the moonlight.

As if touched by some magical moonbeam, Sheffy’s silver hair, which swayed like a galaxy behind her as she left the house, suddenly transformed from root to tip—flowing as smoothly as water, turning into the deep, wind-dancing black hair of the night.

Sheffy Harl was temporarily hidden.

Miss Shaya—departing!

………………………………….

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