True to Kyle's words, the night was long. The following night, as if it were the last time the market had been bustling, felt like the unyielding cold of the north. The candles in the children's hands flickered in the wind, and small sniffles escaped the mouths of those who wiped away tears in the darkness.
It was a silent night. At night, the longing that had been buried during the day borrowed the curtain of darkness and secretly poked its head out. I left the burning firewood behind me and looked at Kyle, my eyes closed. Why did that face, which didn't cry, look sadder than if he had wept? It was a long night where two hours felt like an entire day.
I sat in the hamster house, staring at the system window with a serious expression. Under the sign that read [Love Love Corner~❤], familiar items were squirming. No, even unfamiliar items were hanging down. The background, usually a translucent blue, had somehow changed to pink.
'Did it update? There weren't any signs of that, were there?'
As I flipped through the pages with my hand, the system seemed to wake up, as if it had just dozed off.
[(ˉ﹃ˉ)]
"Hey, hey, don't doze off."
I'd been thinking about it for a long time, but this corner strangely imitated humans. One moment it was tired, another angry, another ashamed.
'It's good that I don't have time to be bored.'
I smiled, and the system flashed another emoji.
[(づ￣//￣)づ]
The hand emoji repeatedly pointed to one spot. I looked at the emoticon carefully. There was a small banner and an item lying underneath it.
'Are you just going to put this one in and make a banner?' It's so gorgeous.
My eyes narrowed, and I looked at the banners the system must have made all night. If I didn't look at it, it would feel sad. Let me see. Balance...
— (Seriously...?)
[Today is Valentine's Day!]
"Hey..."
I glared at the system window with a puzzled face. If it had time to make something like this, it should make something more useful! Did it think I gave it 'miracle shame'? Huh?
I crossed my legs and pointed at the system window. "I'd rather you make cookies cheaper! How much I bled this time buying them!"
[(>人<;)]
The system displayed a lot of shrunken emoticons.
...Was I too harsh? It's sad to see them sweating profusely.
Okay. The effort it put in is amazing. It might be a surprisingly good option. It looks like an item in my inventory, and I can carry it around and use it when I need it.
'Let's check it out first.'
I checked the details of the item labeled "Almond Chocolate." "The finest almonds, freshly squeezed milk, and cacao grown in a sunny place..." It put it all away, and it was just terrifyingly delicious. So what was the stat that followed? [The eater feels good!]
— (Come out.)
[ ε=ε=ε=┏(゜ロ゜;)┛]
I threw an angry kick at the system window as it ran away. "You want me to buy this for 43 hearts? This is what consumers know!"
As I ranted around the hamster house, the door to the study opened. Of course, it was Kyle. He looked less tired than yesterday, but he still didn't look very well. Maybe it was because I was nervous. He didn't look hurt.
I stopped walking and called out to the system. 'Hey, system.'
The system, which had been flickering in the distance, appeared close up with [(⊙_⊙)? ]. I sighed heavily and checked the hearts I had left. There were 60.
'I'll give you ten more, so please add one option to the chocolate.'
The system displayed an emoji that seemed to rub its chin. Where did it learn that? It's only been a while since the store opened, and it's become a new businessman.
"It's not a big deal, it's just a fatigue recovery option, so put something in it."
I glared at the system. As the emoji nodded as if it couldn't win, the [Loading...] window appeared.
Kyle had come to me all this time. I quietly climbed onto Kyle's outstretched hand and looked up at him. He's a human being too; it must be hard for him. However, as the leader of a knight order and the Grand Duke of the North, he wouldn't have been able to say a word about how hard it was.
I mean, even at times like this, I...
—...
"Uh-huh. Okay. Kiss me. Stop eating fur."
"You're cute today, Cashew."
After ten minutes of kissing, Kyle cleaned up my dented fur. I felt like I had been somehow absorbed. Maybe it was because I hadn't received this kiss for a while. Not only did it feel longer than usual, but it was also very breathtaking. I lay face down on his palm, my soul drained from the white.
Then, as if to comfort me, I received unexpected good news.
"I injected something strange into your body before. I apologize for what happened at that time. I don't think that will happen in the future. He said that excessive magic injection would be bad for you."
— (That's it!)
I jumped up and sat upright. I patted his thumb with my small front paw as if to compliment him. Strange, strange. He listens well.
"Is it that good? Yes, the gem is slow, but there is nothing wrong with the body, so the answer is to wait and see. Don't worry, you can take him to the Demon Mathematician in Huang City. I'll save you at all costs."
I am worried about your life, and you are worried about my life. I don't think anyone is a community of destiny, so what if they agree on this side as well? I turned my head to check the system window next to Kyle. Kyle's remaining lifespan: about a month and a half. He didn't know what the crisis was, but he knew there would be a big event before the season was over.
"Grand Duke."
I stood at Kyle's door and cleared my throat. Strangely, standing in front of this door made me nervous. The difference was that I had been nervous because of my mistakes before, but today I was nervous for a different reason.
The system was faster than I thought. Kyle added an option in the 10 minutes that made me kiss and even raised the price. To be honest, I wanted to forget about raising the price, but it even drew a red line and the number 53 was written on it. As a result, I now have only 7 hearts left, like my lifeblood. At one time, there were more than 100...
Die rather than suffer, die rather than suffer.
I shook my head and knocked lightly. Then I heard Kyle's voice telling me to come in from inside.
"It was you."
Kyle took off his glasses and looked at me. I approached him, sitting at his desk, clutching the box of chocolates I had hidden behind my back more tightly. He waited for me with a gentle smile.
Don't laugh like that. It feels weird.
I held out the box of chocolates I had hidden, ignoring the burning sensation in my ears. He looked puzzled but accepted it obediently.
"What is this?"
"You can see it when you open it."
Kyle unwrapped the pink ribbon and opened the box. I didn't actually see the inside, but there were round pink, white, and black chocolates filling the box around it...
"..."
"..."
"Hey."
"Hey, aren't you coming out?"
"Did you make it yourself?"
"...Oh, uh, yes, that's how it happened..."
A chocolate pen was written on top of a large chocolate heart.
Dear Your Highness Kyle,
I felt the urge to hit my throbbing head a few times. Why didn't I check this? Why did I just give it to him? But I should have checked what was inside and how!
My clenched fists trembled. When I go back, I will definitely not leave the system alone. I have to either give up or grab its neck.
I don't know if he knew how I felt. Kyle stared at the chocolate for a long time, and then picked up a round one and put it in his mouth.
"I didn't know you had a knack for dessert."
"I happen to be good at this and that."
"But all of a sudden, what kind of chocolate?"
"...In my old place, we give chocolate to people we appreciate or admire today. It's not a big deal, but when I look at the calendar, I suddenly remembered. It's just a traditional event that has been passed down from generation to generation, so please take it."
It's embarrassing, so it felt like a long time for me to explain. When I finished speaking gibberish, he picked up another round one and put it in his mouth.
"Then I should have given it to you. Is it February 14th? I will remember it."
"..."
He laughed. It was the most relaxed smile I'd seen in recent years. How could he smile like that, when he usually looked colder and more reserved than anyone else?
I loosened my fists and squatted down. I heard the rattling of the chair being pushed away, but I couldn't lift my head. Were there any benefits of chocolate items that made my heart beat? Or maybe I was just embarrassed and had an arrhythmia.
I closed my eyes tightly as I listened to my heart pounding. The chocolate he handed me melted in my mouth. It was so incredibly sweet, that's why I felt so strange.
Certainly, it was.