Translator: LynneSuzuran——

  Now then.

  Actually, there was a reason behind why my purposively inviting Taiga-san for a walk. And I didn’t want to do it in front of other people or I didn’t want to show it to people, or well, it’d be exposed soon no matter what, but I was still embarrassed, that was my reason.

  Even if I didn’t want to do it in front of other people, there were Oriza-san and Alica-san following us from a slight distance, and I understood it. However, as for those two, well, it couldn’t be helped. It was quite natural for them to be here.

  As I was pondering over it, Taiga-san called me.

  “Seiren-sama.”


  Yes, this, this was the issue. That was why, I faced Taiga-san with a determination.

  “Uh-m. Speaking of which, there’s one thing that I’ve been meaning to tell you…”


  “? Yes?”


  Taiga-san slightly tilted his head in response to my determined speaking manner, even so, he was still in a posture to listen to my talk. I was thankful just by this alone.

  “I will become your wife. Just how long are you going to address me with “-sama”? It feels distant.”


  “Eh?”


  Taiga-san who stared in wonder like this, this was the kind of face that couldn’t be seen in public, and in a sense, I could say that it was my special privilege. Well, leaving that aside.

  Taiga-san has been calling me [Seiren-sama] ever since the first time he met me.

  I was totally accustomed to being addressed with “-sama” by the maids and the servants, since it is such a world. However. Taiga-san is, well, the person who will be my husband. Using “-sama” will be very unsightly.

  “It feels distant, huh?”


  “Yes. My father called my mother, “Maya”. Isn’t it usually like that?”


  No, well, I didn’t know about such a calling before. After all, I met my parents for the first time when I returned here.

  There were a few chances where I saw the others’ parents like during parents’ day when I was still at school, but during time like that, mostly only the mothers went, and sometimes the fathers, there weren’t any case where both parents appeared. That was why, I didn’t have any chance to hear how they called their spouses.

  Even so, my father called my mother with just her name, without attaching “-sama” or “-san” behind her name. Kaa-san called Tou-san with something like “my husband”, but I might just call Taiga-san with “Taiga-san” as always. I might consider it if Taiga-san changes his way of calling me, though.

  Ah, there was one other sample that I saw after coming here, but to be honest, that can’t be used as a reference.

  “Well, I can’t put Koyata-san and Mikoto-san as a reference, though.”


  “Because they address each other with ‘honey’ and ‘darling’, right?”


  Taiga-san seemed to agree with me on that point, so I nodded while bitterly smiling. Nah, as expected it was indeed impossible to go that far. To go to the same level as my ancestors, that is. But I think that it’s good to be on such good terms, yup.

  We both smiled, and as the smiles lessened, Taiga-san looked at me unblinkingly. I slightly cleared my throat, and my face was red. I had a feeling that my face might be bright red, but I couldn’t see my own face without the help of a mirror, so I couldn’t really tell.

  “Ah, eh, t-then…”


  “…”


  “S-Se… Seiren.”


  “…Y-yess!”


  Ou, our voices turned high-pitched that I was about to be toppled over. These people were hopeless, huh? But I was talking about ourselves…


  Also, unlike when my name was called by my parents, my heart was beating faster. Thump, thump. I felt like it was so childish of me, but this was my honest opinion.

  It seemed that Taiga-san was just like me.

  “…For some reason, my heart was beating faster.”


  “Even though it was my own request, I also felt the same way.”


  Ahahahaha, we both laughed. I wonder if it would be fine for us to become a married couple as we were right now?

  I think that we might be able to get used to it after going through the period of time where our faces would occasionally turn bright red. Aah no, it would surely be all right if we were to try to get used to it from now on. Somehow.

  However, we became like this just after changing the way of addressing me without using an honorific, and if I were to ask for another thing, then wouldn’t it be impossible? Nah nah, this was really bad for the heart.

  “I actually thought of asking you to stop talking with me using a polite language, but if we’re like this with addressing me without an honorific, then for the moment, asking that as well might be pushing it too far, right?”


  “I-I will try, then.”


  “Please do.”


  “Yes, please bear with me, too.”


  ‘What the heck is this?’ As I thought like that, we ended up bowing our heads to each other. Ah-, for the moment, this really seemed quite impossible to change. Yup.

  After that, we just loitered around with almost no conversation. Taiga-san sometimes called me, “Seiren, Seiren” as a practice, and each time he did that, I returned his calling with, “Yes”. If it was for the sake of getting used to it, then just call me like that many times over, I would also get used to it.

  As we returned to the mansion just like that, Kaa-san was already waiting with her face full of smiles. …I remembered that I watched something like quarrels between daughter-in-law and mother-in-law in televisions, but it seemed that there were also quarrels between son-in-law and mother-in-law, huh? I wonder if this is because we’re going to live separately after I get married?1

  “Welcome home, Seiren, Taiga-dono. Did you have fun with your date?”


  “Eh, yeah, well. It was fun, wasn’t it? …Seiren?”


  “Yes.”


  Ah, he managed to say it even when we were in front of Kaa-san. Taiga-san really tried his best. …Nah, it should be nothing for him to work hard for things like this at such an age already, though.

  “Oh my.”


  Kaa-san’s smile grew even deeper. Nah well, I thought that this would be noticed very soon.

  “Taiga-dono, since when have you addressed Seiren like that?”


  “Eh, ah… J-just from a while ago.”


  “I requested that from him. I told him that it would feel distant if he kept using “-sama”, despite the fact that I’m going to be his wife soon.”


  “Oh dear me.”


  Since it couldn’t be helped, I decided to just put everything frankly. Taiga-san’s face returned to its bright red state, and perhaps my face was also bright red until the nape of my neck, and my gaze was loitering around strangely, though.

  Kaa-san took a long hard look at the two of us alternatively, before she greatly nodded.

  “I think I will say again and again from now on, but Taiga-dono, please make Seiren happy, okay?”


  “Of course. After all, I make Seiren my wife with hopes that I will be able to make her happy.”


  “That’s right. I’ll be looking forward to it, as this child has suffered hardships in the past.”


  “I am fully aware of it.”


  Eh-, what was that?

  On the surface, they were talking with smiles, but for some reason, they were flaring up with fighting spirit or things like that. Nah, it isn’t like they are hostile to each other though, hmm…


  Or rather, I’m begging you, please cease this quarrel. Kaa-san is my precious mother, and Taiga-san is also my precious Taiga-san, after all.

  In the first place, what motivated the two of them so suddenly like this? I really can’t tell.