alwaysunqualified

  Chapter 44 - Moonlight date.

  After sending Cire off, I paused for a moment, contempting my next move. The alchemy workshop hardly seemed like an appropriate setting for a rendezvous with a princess, so I decided against it. None of the surroundings met the standards befitting royalty, so I chose a location that would offer a serene atmosphere conducive to conversation. I headed towards a quaint cottage like house by the ke.

  Once in position, standing between the house and the shimmering ke, I took a moment before navigating through the menus to summon the princess.

  As she materialized before me, her expression sharpened immediately. A short sword, its bde a shimmering light blue with a glowing green-blue gem set in the hilt, appeared in her left hand. In her right, a silver gauntlet formed, its fingers tipped with ominously red, razor-sharp nails. Her dress, a kaleidoscope of rainbow hues, pulsed with light, forming a protective barrier around her. The force of it whipped her short blue hair back and nearly blinded me.

  [Name: Grace Highnce Level: 40 Affection: 1015]

  Our eyes locked, and for a fleeting moment, I thought she might attack. Instead, her eyes widened in surprise, and she let her sword drop. It vanished before it even hit the ground, along with her gauntlet. She quickly turned away, fussing over her already immacute hair and straightening her fwlessly neat dress, all the while muttering to herself. Once satisfied, she faced me, only to turn around once more for a second adjustment of her hair and attire.

  Finally, she addressed me, her voice filled with formality, "It is my greatest honor that you would invite me to..." She paused, scanning the surroundings briefly before concluding, "your dominion," with a radiant smile.

  I couldn't help but find amusement in the varied reactions of the girls I summoned here. Dismissing the thought, I responded to her extra lengthy greeting with a casual remark, “Yeah, long time no see.”

  She spun around again, pcing her hands on her cheeks and inhaling deeply, her body swaying and knees bending slightly.

  “Look, we need to talk,” I said, cutting to the heart of the matter, trying to remember if she had always been this weird.

  “Yes, of course, I shall listen,” she replied, ceasing her fidgeting and standing upright as she fixed her gaze on me.

  “First off, what’s with the ninja girl?” I asked, my irritation seeping through despite my efforts to conceal it.

  "Ninja? Do you perhaps mean your shadow? She is tasked with protecting you," the princess expined, seemingly surprised by the question.

  "I don’t appreciate being spied on," I replied, clearly annoyed.

  "There seems to be a misunderstanding, for which I sincerely apologize. Her sole duty is your protection. By contract, she is forbidden from divulging any information about her charge. Even if someone used a mind-reading Blessing, your secrets would remain safe," she crified.

  “Oh, why didn’t she just expin that?” I wondered aloud. It made sense, nobles must have many secrets to safeguard.

  "I assumed someone of your stature would be aware of such arrangements. I apologize once more for my oversight," the princess said, performing a delicate bow accompanied by a hand gesture to express her sincerity. I considered that I might need a primer on noble etiquette, these gestures were just strange to me.

  “Why did you send her in the first pce?” I asked, my irritation subsiding. Really, I ought to be grateful; she has saved my life on several occasions, yet I couldn’t shake off my annoyance.

  “To protect you. While I'm confident you would have been fine, there’s always a minuscule chance that something could happen. I found it prudent to have a shadow watch for the unseen. 404 is the most skilled shadow our city has seen in millennia,” the princess expined, her gaze shifting uneasily.

  “Yes, but why?” I pressed, noticing her discomfort, she was as poor at lying as when I st encountered her.

  “I was worried,” she admitted, her eyes darting away as she fidgeted.

  “We've only met twice,” I pointed out, more to myself than to her. I still doubted the affection scores meant anything or at least were misleading. My family and a bunch of near-strangers were all marked at five hundred. A princess I'd met only twice scored over a thousand, while Yuno’s score surpassed everyone else combined. None of it made any sense.

  “Yes, I apologize. Due to various circumstances, I haven't had the opportunity to contact you. I know my st impression wasn't the best, so I strive to make amends whenever possible,” she said, her tone filled with regret, her eyes sad as they met mine.

  ‘Alright, Cire was right, she's just trying to help me. I'm never going to hear the end of this,’ I thought, observing her.

  “Let’s find a more comfortable spot to talk,” I suggested, leading her into the cottage. As she followed me inside, I gnced back to see her eyes intently fixed on me. Aside from a brief scan of her surroundings when she first arrived and her occasional checks to ensure her appearance was immacute, her gaze hadn't left me.

  We entered and made our way to the small, cozy living room, warmed by a crackling firepce. At the center of the room, a wooden table was fnked by thick, comfortable chairs. I took a seat at the table, which was set with a simple snack of bread and honey. She sat opposite me, folding her hands in her p, her eyes locked on mine.

  "How about you just tell me what you can?" I suggested, allowing her to disclose only what she was able to without pressing her with questions that might go unanswered.

  However, that turned out to be virtually nothing. ‘Contracts really are a hassle,’ I couldn’t help but sigh at the scarcity of information, torn between being impressed by the contract's thoroughness and annoyed at its restrictiveness.

  "Um, my knight, have I done something to displease you?" she asked, her voice den with concern after she finished speaking.

  ‘My knight?’ I pondered the peculiar form of address but decided to dismiss it. "No, I just have a lot to think about," I reassured her.

  She nodded and continued to look at me, saying nothing further. As I returned her gaze, I wondered, ‘Should I confide in her too? I’m already taking risks; what’s one more?’

  “I have something I'd like to share with you,” I began, weighing how much to tell her. Perhaps I could share as much as I had with Cire. But that would lead to a much longer conversation, she cked the years of context provided by my sisters' remarks, which offered a good overview but left out the details.

  She seemed to sense my thoughts and spoke before I could decide. “I must advise against disclosing too much information to me, my knight. If I deem it of too great a value, I am contractually bound to report it to my queen.”

  Her tone suggested she thought revealing too much was unwise. Perhaps I should have waited afterall, but what's done is done. “What about this pce?”

  “This is your dominion, my knight. To divulge it would be an affront to our Goddesses.” Her expnation sounded like a convenient excuse to avoid disclosing it. Contracts here seemed to be as complex and messy as earth, with wiggle room even in the best-written ones. Or perhaps they needed to be that way, or the costs to the other party would be too prohibitive, effectively locking out their options too.

  “And you can’t just sign another contract not to tell?” I asked, seeking crification.

  “One contract cannot overrule another; I would not be able to sign it,” she replied.

  “Just out of curiosity, how long is this contract?” I inquired, wondering about the thoroughness of these noble agreements.

  “If put onto paper, it would span just over 17,000 pages,” she answered, as if it were a minor detail. The thought of having to read that made me shudder; the hundred-page contracts I had encountered in w studies were daunting enough.

  “You read all that?” I asked, sympathizing with her.

  “Every noble is required to know every word of the contract before they sign, for each contract has to be tweaked slightly and every noble and noble house is trying to prioritize different costs and benefits,” she expined, meaning that there were hundreds of nobles each wielding subtly modified contracts to enhance their family’s power. I was relieved I don’t have to deal with something like that.

  Gncing at her information agian, I noted her affection level. A thought crossed my mind, ‘would her affection continue to increase if a date were to start, or was 1015 her maximum? It seemed an odd number to stop at. This seems like a good chance to test some things about dates and love nd.'

  “Mind if I try something?” I figured since she was here, I might as well experiment.

  “It would be my pleasure to assist my knight in any way I can,” she replied, her smile the broadest I'd seen since I'd known her.

  I paused, waiting to see if the system was up, but it seemed she wasn’t going to get her chance roll just yet.

  ‘Spend 1 date point,’ I thought, and the wheel appeared in front of me. Although the wheel dispyed several other names, they were too small to identify who they were. I could have used the targeted date option unlocked by my achievement, but I suspected that might be somewhat inferior to this method. Also until the wheel appeared, I had been certain there was no way to nd anyone else, given she was the only one here with me.

  “Date Starto!”

  [A date in love nd.]

  [Target - Princess Cire Highnce]

  Fight.Sing her a song.Tell her a dirty joke.‘All of these are really bad,’ I thought, scanning through my skills for a way to alter my options. I decided to use my 'Goddess Choice' skill.

  ‘If it's going to be a waste, I might as well use it now,’ I thought, skeptical of its usefulness.

  4. Moonlight chat

  I was surprised to see the new option, especially since there was no moon here. Yet, it was far better than the previous three.

  Selecting the option, time resumed and the scene outside darkened as bright moonlight streamed through the cottage windows.

  "Would my princess do me the honor of watching the moon with me this night?" I asked, rising and extending my hand to her.

  [+7 Grace Affection points.]

  The notification confirmed one of my suspicions: her affection could still increase. Now, the question remained whether this was exclusive to dates, or if she could continue to gain affection like Yuno, who increased even in my absence. Perhaps the difference y in our none existent interactions, or maybe there were other factors at py.

  "I would follow my knight anywhere," she said gracefully, taking my hand and allowing me to help her to her feet. I led her out the door. As we stepped outside the cottage, the full, bright moon hung high in the sky, its reflection shimmering on the ke and illuminating the surrounding area, casting light through the forest.

  Her gown sparkled like the tranquil surface of the ke, and her smile, gentle yet radiant, brightened as she beheld the scene. "I've never seen a moon so enchanting," she murmured, her eyes wide with wonder as she clung to my hand.

  [+32 Grace Affection points.]

  We took a leisurely stroll and settled by the ke, where a cool breeze wafted over us, and fish skimmed just below the surface, made visible by the moonlight. Without seeming to notice, she leaned her warm body against mine, captivated by the view.

  Have her tell you about herself.Tell her about your childhood.Try your hand at poetry.While time was frozen, I allowed my perspective to shift from my body and ascend high into the sky. The entirety of Love Land, usually engulfed in an endless white void, now mirrored a typical night sky, albeit with an exaggeratedly rge moon and exceptionally bright stars.

  This raised the question of whether I could achieve this sky without the skill, perhaps not having unlocked it yet, and whether my skills are more effective here.

  "My princess, might I be so honored as to hear a tale from your childhood? One that I am sure will further illuminate this night," I said, offering her a smile. Hearing such formal words leave my lips will never cease to be jarring.

  "Of course, my knight," she replied. And she began sharing stories of her childhood. From sneaking around the castle to enduring tedious lessons that sted weeks. A common thread in all her tales was her mother, who always awaited her return, ready to dote on her daughter as the princess confided everything she had experienced since their st meeting. Her voice carried a tinge of sadness as she recounted these memories.

  "It sounds hard," I commented, and it genuinely did. Being groomed from birth with little choice of one's own seemed harsh. Children should be out pying and learning from mistakes, not being prepared to manage a city full of lives.

  "I would never disparage my position, but it is stressful. We are cared for and given ample time to rest and de-stress, but you're never truly free to rex. I didn't realize it when I was small, but even the times my mother took to listen to me were at the cost of allowing disaster to brew," the princess shared.

  "At least you can rex now," I said, as we looked up at the bright moon beginning to dip behind the ke.

  "I wish that were true, but even now, chaos must be unfolding that I will need to quell once I return," she said, indicating that even in this moment, she was preoccupied with what awaited her.

  "Actually, time is virtually frozen here, and you will return exactly at the moment I summoned you. No one will be the wiser. Not even the ninja could detect when we entered this pce," I reassured her, hoping to alleviate her concerns.

  "Truly?" she asked, visibly surprised.

  I nodded in confirmation. We sat comfortably, her body finally truly rexing into mine as we watched the moon slowly descend.

  When the moon was halfway submerged behind the ke, she rose to her feet, extending her hand towards me. "Would my knight be so kind as to grant this princess the st dance?"

  "I can’t dance," I admitted. My experience was limited to homecoming, where dancing meant little more than swaying back and forth, a pretext for groping my then-girlfriend.

  "That cannot go unaddressed. I shall do my best to instruct you in the time we have, so you do not disappoint any fair maidens in the future," she decred with earnest seriousness. Motivated by her enthusiasm, I took her hand, allowing her to easily pull me to my feet.

  It was initially awkward, given that she was around five-five and I was almost seven feet tall, but it turned out there were multiple dances designed for massive disparities in height. She patiently guided me through each step and type of dance. I slotted her card to remember the instructions so I would not forget them, especially since she was making such an effort. Eventually, we found a rhythm in a dance that accommodated our size difference, moving gracefully under the dimming moonlight.

  [Date end]

  As the moon dipped below the horizon, the date concluded, and the environment reverted to the stark white void it had been before.

  The princess let go of my hand and stepped back, staring at me as if trying to etch my image into her memory, a blush coloring her cheeks.

  "I do not wish to impose on your valuable time any further. I understand that maintaining a dominion must be taxing. Call me anytime, my knight, and I will do my best to fulfill your wishes," she said, performing a graceful half curtsy half bow that was typical of her.

  Heeding her words, I sent her back to her castle. Then, checking the Affection, I noticed it had jumped to 1142. The rgest increase seemed to come when she expressed relief at being able to truly rex here, as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

  ‘So, affection can exceed a thousand, but unlike with Yuno, it doesn’t just keep rising indefinitely. What makes the difference? Is it just the yandere trait? And what does it take to exceed five hundred or even six hundred, where the Valkyrie is stalled yet Miki surged to 1k after we had sex? I hope that’s not the easy way to increase these levels. I don’t want to resort to bedding them just for affection gains,’ I pondered, before deciding to set these thoughts aside for ter reflection.

  Choosing not to let more time pass, after realizing over four hours had already epsed, I quickly exited Love Land. Alice, who had wandered off and fallen asleep somewhere during my conversation with Cire, reappeared—still fast asleep—on top of my head.

  I was immediately met with Cire's knowing smile. "Yeah, yeah, rub it in," I said, sitting down to chat with her a bit before saying goodbye, mindful not to keep others waiting outside.

  [Recollection Date end]

  [Cire’s affection has returned to normal.]

  [+37 Cire Affection points]

  [Grace’s Css Revealed: Stan]

  [Stan - an obsessive fan who will do anything for their obsession.]

  [Achievement unlocked: Romantic Reimagining - Change the environment for a date. - Date location bonus +1]