As expected, the photo experience shop was an instant photo studio for taking four cut photos.
The only problem was that our group, including one dragon, consisted of six members.
Furthermore, one of the humans was Ríolíkin, who boasted an enormous build.
In order to fit everyone into the small four split frame, it was inevitable that we had to squeeze together.
Since it was everyone's first time taking photos, the process of posing and framing the shots was eventful.
Even so, far from getting annoyed, everyone found it incredibly fun.
Laughter burst out several times, and those moments were captured and printed as photos.
The people in the photos were smiling brightly as if they were having a great time.
Except for one person. Me.
It wasn't that no one urged me to smile while taking the photos.
Rather, everyone said at least a word asking me to lift the corners of my mouth.
But I couldn't do as they asked.
That would be character collapse.
'Besides, I've been arguing this whole time that I'm not friends with them, so taking a picture huddled together while smiling happily is way too contradictory, isn't it?'
Although I couldn't smile the way everyone wanted.
Still, I tried my best not to spoil the atmosphere.
Even if I only showed reluctant cooperation with a sullen expression, I didn't openly frown in displeasure or storm out of the photo booth.
"It would've been nice if Kar smiled too..."
Vigdís looked at the printed photo with regret.
No matter how much she said that, there was nothing I could say to her.
I couldn't exactly suggest we take the photo again because I'd smile this time.
So I stayed quiet when Reisir suddenly cut in and started spouting nonsense.
"But rather than Karvaldr standing out alone, doesn't it look more like he's pretending to be indifferent while actually enjoying himself? So isn't it kind of okay?"
"Now that you mention it...! It really does look like that!"
Those two must seriously be blind.
I gave Vigdís and Reisir disbelieving looks, then sharply turned my head away, refusing to respond to such nonsense.
Unlike me, who had completely shut my mouth, the others seemed to have plenty to say about the photos.
Everyone kept exchanging impressions about them all the way to the board game cafe.
Then someone said that if we came out to hang out again next time, we should take photos then too.
But I just let it go in one ear and out the other.
Because I thought today would be the first and last time I hung out with this group.
"Does anyone have a board game they want to play?"
Upon arriving at the board game cafe, Reisir looked around at everyone and asked the question above.
Naturally, I, along with Vigdís and Ríolíkin, who had never been to such a place before, had no choice but to remain silent.
Although each table was provided with a booklet containing board game names and simple explanations.
Since Yor was among us, we had to exclude games where speaking was essential, but there were no explanations regarding that.
For that reason, Helga, who had many friends, chose the board game.
She called over an employee, gave them the name of the selected game, and also ordered drinks and snacks.
Since the food took time to prepare, we listened to the employee explain the rules of the board game while we waited...
'Isn't the game package design way too modern?'
I guarantee that board game exists in reality.
Probably the games we didn't choose as well.
Although mentioning real product names positively in a novel usually isn't a problem.
Since it isn't an important element for story progression anyway, I'll just skip mentioning the game's name.
While I'm at it, I'll also omit the scene of us playing the board game, so readers, please imagine it yourselves.
"We really lost track of time playing, right?"
As we left the board game cafe, Reisir asked everyone for their impressions in a cheerful voice.
Then Helga, Vigdís, and Ríolíkin all agreed that it had been fun.
Yor also agreed by meowing and nodding her head.
"Karvaldr, what about you? Was it fun?"
"Not really."
...Although I answered like that.
To be honest, I did find it fun.
'Why on earth was it fun? No, wait. A board game is something made to be enjoyable, isn't it? So what was fun was the board game itself, not playing with them. Let's not get confused.'
As I struggled to rationalize it, Reisir spoke to me again.
"But for someone who says that, you were extremely immersed while playing. You even showed subtle competitiveness."
"If there hadn't been penalties on the line, I wouldn't have tried so hard."
"Even if you call them penalties, they weren't that serious. Eating # Nоvеlight # spicy food or drinking sour drinks, getting a forehead flick, singing, saying 'I love you' to everyone, adding 'ng' to the end of every sentence for ten minutes... What else was there again?"
Reisir refuted my words and recited the roulette penalties as they came to mind.
From his perspective, they might have been trivial punishments, but from mine, they were significant enough.
Especially the singing.
As you could tell from the way Reisir casually mentioned it just now, I safely avoided the singing penalty.
It's not that I didn't receive any penalties at all, but the extent of it was downing a calamansi drink in one shot and getting flicked on the forehead a few times.
Truly a relief.
"Stop talking about the past and guide us to the reserved restaurant."
"Changing the subject again? Is it really that hard to just admit it was fun?"
Reisir, who said those words, wouldn't know, but for me right now, uttering that simple and easy word was incredibly difficult.
But I couldn't reveal that fact, so I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut.
At my reaction, Reisir sighed, "Phew," and shook his head from side to side.
Then he threw out these words.
"Well, fine. Someday you'll be able to be honest too."
"......"
As long as I have to live as 'Karvaldr,' wouldn't that be impossible?
I didn't voice that thought either and subtly avoided his gaze.
Whether Reisir was waiting for the "someday" he spoke of to arrive, he didn't say much more for the moment and started walking.
The restaurant we arrived at was different from the one we visited for lunch, but it was similar in that it was a private room restaurant with separate spaces for each table.
The food prices were also quite expensive.
Even so, considering the allowance my possessed body received, the price was mere pocket change, so I deliberately chose the most expensive item on the menu.
'That way, my guests can comfortably choose whatever they want to eat without worrying about the price.'
After everyone finished ordering, conversation about the board games we had played earlier flowed back and forth.
Since we hadn't stuck to just one game but switched between various ones, there was plenty to talk about.
Add the topic of penalties on top of that, and the mealtime became much noisier than lunch.
'No one seems to be getting tired.'
Listening to their conversation wasn't boring, but I was getting tired nonetheless.
Not getting swept up in the atmosphere while also not ruining it.
It was because I stayed tense while trying to maintain that ambiguous balance.
Just as I was thinking it would be nice if nothing troublesome happened before we finished the meal and returned to the academy.
Of all things, Helga brought up a topic related to me.
"By the way, how did your titles for each other end up like that?"
"Huh? Why our titles?"
"Senior calls the Young Master by the nickname 'Kar,' but the Young Master only calls Senior by name."
"Ah...! Th, that's..."
Vigdís showed obvious bewilderment and looked at me with eyes pleading for help.
She reacted as if she had never expected to receive such a question.
Since it couldn't be helped, and I had anticipated this, I had no choice but to answer.
"It seemed Vigdís developed trauma from me calling her by a nickname, so I decided to refrain from doing it."
"Trauma...? Me...?"
"Are you perhaps unaware?"
"Huh? What does that..."
"Even though you used to cower whenever I called you by a nickname."
"I did...?"
One would think she'd realize I was making up a flimsy excuse.
Far from nodding and agreeing, Vigdís looked bewildered, her gaze asking what on earth I was talking about.
If she had time for that, it would've been better for her to look at the faces of Helga, Reisir, and Ríolíkin, all tinged with puzzlement, and put on a pitiful expression.
'To be this out of sync.'
I clicked my tongue inwardly and moved my leg beneath the table, lightly tapping hers.
Only then did Vigdís understand my intention and change her attitude.
"Ah...! Th, that... Th-that's right...! Kar calling me 'Disil' and being obsessed with me was still scary... Now he's not obsessed anymore, but...? Still, the memories from back then came up?"
"Yes. I thought so."
"B-but I feel like I'm getting okay now...? If you keep calling me by the nickname, wouldn't I get used to it...?"
Changing her attitude was good, but the direction was wrong.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"Th-that is... Kar is my fiancé... right? But going from calling me by a nickname back to calling me by name is... a bit... It's not common, so I feel like other people might find it strange..."
"What others think isn't important."
"You know it's important to me...?"
Whether it was Vigdís or Disil, to me, they were merely 'character names' that both referred to her.
I had no intention of assigning excessive meaning to it just because one was a nickname.
But since there was no guarantee the other person would feel the same way, it was right to refrain.
It was the way of the world that even if I stayed still, the distance would shrink if the other side approached.
"Later. When I become certain that no matter what happens, there is no possibility of me becoming obsessed with you again, then I'll use that title again."
"If that's the reason, then isn't it okay to call me by the nickname already...?"
"Not yet."
"Ah... okay..."
Vigdís nodded with a very reluctant expression.
It was a reaction that seemed to ask, 'How long are you planning to milk that excuse?', but since other people were listening, she decided to let it slide.
Back when we were writing the broken engagement contract, she would get frightened and tense whenever I mentioned the word "obsession."
It had only been a month and ten days since then, but it seemed the effect had already worn off.
That meant Vigdís had shaken off her fear of obsession, so it was good for her, but.
For me, it was simply regrettable since I had lost an almost universally useful excuse.
"Karvaldr, you...! You say such incredible things so casually?!"
While I was internally congratulating myself for writing the broken engagement contract, Reisir suddenly blurted out complete nonsense.
"What nonsense are you suddenly spouting?"
"What's with that reaction?"
"......?"
"If I explain what you just said in simpler terms, it means you like Vigdís so much that you can't control yourself. You're afraid that with one small trigger, those feelings will overflow and you'll become obsessed with Vigdís again and hurt her. So you're saying you hesitate to even call her by a nickname?"
I had merely conveyed my intention that I didn't want to call her by a nickname because I didn't want to grow any closer to Vigdís than necessary.
I had no idea how that had transformed into such an absurd statement.
That couldn't be called simplifying it.
Rather, it had been twisted. No, beyond twisted, it had been completely rewoven into something with an entirely different meaning.
"Oh my, oh my...!"
As if believing Reisir's faulty interpretation was the correct answer, Helga looked back and forth between Vigdís and me with a blush on her face.
Ríolíkin also let out an "Oh..."
It seemed Reisir's words sounded quite plausible.
But still...
"Th... that meant that...?!"
Surely Vigdís wouldn't just accept Reisir's faulty interpretation at face value?
We had even written a broken engagement contract, so how could it possibly mean that?
