Chapter 105: The Melancholy of a Certain Kanban Girl* (2)

When I entered the castle as guided by the Emperor Hero, I found that the great hall I had seen earlier had transformed into a ball.

Men and women dressed in various celebratory attires came and went, and extravagant food was prepared on tables across the whole venue.

Among them, I could see the dishes I had previously cooked at the major cooking competition.

「You two are the guests of honor. I hope you enjoy it to your heart’s content.」

Rostam’s escort urged me and Mina-chan to walk next to each other. We were guided to a particularly large table in the back and sat down there.

By the way, as for Mina-chan, she had been sitting with her back straight, with a nervous look on her face.

「By the way, Mina-chan. Why were you invited to Rostam’s party? 」

「Ah, well, right! Rostam-san invited me to apologize for the other day…! 」

The words “apologize for the other day” immediately struck a chord with me.

Since then, Mina-chan’s memory had returned and she seemed to have remembered what she did. She had apologized many times for it.

However, I said that I didn’t care about the matter anymore, and that Mina-chan was the victim, so she didn’t need to apologize that much. It seemed like she felt a sense of regret.

Perhaps because of that, we hadn’t been able to have a good conversation lately, so in a sense, this could be a good opportunity.

With that in mind, as I stood up from my seat, a pleasant melody started playing from the venue.

I extended my hand to Mina-chan thinking it was just right.

「Mina-chan, if you don’t mind, would you like to dance with me?」

「…Huh? Heh! Huh, what?!」

She was surprised by such a sudden invitation since her face turned bright red. She even began to panic.

However, even though steam was coming out of her head, she took my offered hand and muttered under her breath.

「…I…I’ll be under…your guidance…」

「Same. To be honest, I’ve never danced before, so I’m sure I’m not very good at it. But it will be nice, so let’s give it a try.」

「Do…Don’t worry! I’ve never danced either, so it’s okay! 」

For some reason, we told each other that we had never danced before, but both couldn’t help but smile at that.

Then, I took Mina-chan’s hand and headed towards the hall, moving in a dance-like atmosphere, but it was still awkward because I didn’t know how to dance.

Next to us, Rostam moved with light steps.

「There’s no need to rush, Kyou-kun. When it comes to dancing, just do it freely. At first, just hold the other person’s hand or waist and move freely from side to side, back and forth. Eventually, you can move along with the song. All you have to do is dance slowly. In fact, most of the people here dance like that, too.」

Following his advice…or “her” advice now, I grabbed Mina-chan’s hand, put my arm around her waist, and held her as we danced around the hall.

I see. I might be able to dance to this one.

Rather than dancing, it was more accurate to say that I moved freely according to the music.

Fortunately, perhaps thanks to Rostam’s instructions, the song currently playing was a very slow song, and the movements that went along with it were also slow and easy to dance to.

Up until now, I had only imagined dancing at parties like this in my dreams, but after trying it, I found it to be surprisingly fun.

It made me want to try it again.

By the way, as for Mina-chan, from the moment I wrapped my arm around her waist and hugged her, her face turned bright red, and her eyes twitched.

Um, hmm, I wondered if she was okay.

Well, she looked really happy, so I thought it was probably okay.

Then, before I knew it, the song had finished playing, and at the same time as we finished dancing, the people around us were applauding.

Apparently, we had become the center of the dance before I knew it, and when I realized it, I felt extremely embarrassed.

「It was a wonderful dance, both of you. Well then, I’d like you two to dance with the theme of a love song…Argh!」

Just as Rostam was about to say something, a woman appeared from behind his back and kicked him as hard as she could, then stepped on his fallen back as hard as she could.

「Oops, Cultivation Hero! You don’t know how to enjoy a party by dancing with just one person. In a situation like this, it’s common sense to dance with another woman next time. So, this time I’ll have you dance with me!」

Saying that, the person who appeared in front of me and Mina-chan with a smug look on her face was Amines, also known as the War Hero.

When I looked at her, I noticed that she was wearing a blue dress that could be described as an unparalleled beauty, instead of her usual boring battle costume. Her appearance was reminiscent of the warrior angel Valkyria dancing on the battlefield.

I had forgotten about it because of her usual behavior, but now I realized that this person was also quite beautiful.

In particular, the overall proportions of her body were outstanding. She reached the top three of beautiful proportional female bodies.

Oh, by the way, the other two were Katherine and the female version of Rostam.

As I was making an inconsequential assessment in my head, I saw a small shadow moving behind Amines.

「He…hey, Amines, that’s a different story…You promised that he’ll dance with me, not with you…」

「Ah, that’s right. Well, I’m sorry, Lily. But it’s been a while since I changed into a dress like this. I just got excited.」

Amines said that and grabbed the person who was hiding behind her back.

「So, Cultivation Hero. If you’re going to dance next time, please dance with our Lily.」

When I saw Lily, I couldn’t help but be stunned.

Because for a moment I didn’t recognize Lily.

Her beautiful golden hair was usually tied in a ponytail on one side of her head, but she wore it all down now, and her long golden hair fell down to her waist.

Her crimson dress, which was tailored to match her golden hair, didn’t make her look flashy, but instead seemed to hug the petite Lily, giving the impression of a beautiful rose.

Even though she was wrapped in such a dress, her cheeks were slightly colored, and even though she was looking away, she looked up at me from time to time, as if slightly conscious of my presence, giving her a lovely appearance. To put it simply…it was a very adorable sight.

「Wha…what do you think about this…? 」

There was a gap between Lily’s usual adventurer appearance and this look. But I was taken aback by her modest demeanor.

「Huh? Ah, yes…I think it suits you very much. 」

「Oh, yes…? Ah…thank you…. 」

Lily said, blushing as she looked away and thanked me in a whisper, which made my heart pound again for some reason.

Oh, that was strange.

Had I ever been so conscious of Lily?

As I was thinking about this, Mina-chan, who was beside me and holding my hand, instinctively wrapped her arm around mine and started to press her body against mine.

「I…I feel bad for you, Lily-chan, but Kyou-san is dancing with me right now, so he’ll dance with you Lily-chan later on…! 」

「…! That’s right…heh, heh…but Mina. You just danced with Kyou, right? You must be tired, so it’s better for you to stop dancing like that continuously, right? Look, did you hear Amines? She told me that it’s common sense to take turns at dance…」

「Ye…Yes! That’s right! But I’m sorry, I’m a beginner who doesn’t know much about that kind of thing…and I’m not tired at all, so I’m fine! So, I can dance five more times in a row…! 」

「No, no, no, that’s probably impossible. Above all, we need to let Kyou rest…」

Ah, Humm, what was this?

This awkward atmosphere.

For some reason, I felt like the two of them, who were normally good friends, were making sparks fly with me in between.

This wasn’t just my imagination…

「If you want to let Kyou-san rest, I’ll escort him, so it’s okay, Lily-chan. So, Kyou-san, please go to the balcony over there and take a break…」

「Wai…Wait a minute. I’ll show Kyou around, and Mina, go and relax here. There are some rare dishes and patterns, so it would be a loss if you don’t take a look. 」

「Why don’t you go yourself, Lily-chan. I…I’m fine. I’m not interested in that kind of thing. 」

…I didn’t know what it was, I was seriously starting to get sick of this atmosphere, so someone please do something about it.

As I was thinking about this, a third party actually intervened.

However, there was an even more troublesome spark.

「Ughhhhhh, what’s this! An ordinary flower that blooms in everyday life and an abominable beast in the skin of princess dress! Even if the goddess allows you to woo my brother who is my family member, I will not forgive you!」

Then, my younger sister Hell appeared, dressed in a jet-black dress.

She usually wore black Gothic Lolita dresses, but this one really suited her.

That said, I wondered why she still wore that eyepatch.

「Who are you? Kyou’s sister? How did that happen? 」

Ah, now that I thought about it, I remembered that I hadn’t explained it in detail to Lily yet, so I briefly introduced Hell as my sister.

「Therefore, as the sister of darkness, I have the right to dance with my brother. You should go to a sunny place and watch our dance while biting your lips. 」

「Huh, I don’t know if you and Kyou are truly siblings, but if you are, shouldn’t you give up on this? Since you’re always together, a third party other than family should lead Kyou. So you need to step aside for this one.」

「What are you talking about? My brother and I aren’t always together! In fact, we’ve been apart, so we couldn’t meet even if we wanted to! Anyway, I’m the one who dances with him! I’ll definitely do it!」

「I…I still want to escort Kyou-san and do various things together! 」

Before I knew it, three girls were standing in a circle and starting to argue.

For some reason, I had a feeling that things would get even more troublesome if I stayed here, so I gradually distanced myself from them and decided to escape towards the balcony.

I felt like I could see Rostam being trampled under the feet of the three girls fighting each other, but for now I mentally said “sorry and thank you” at the same time.

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* Kanban Musume – a pretty girl who attracts customers to come inside a shop.

Due to a sudden health problem, which requires surgery, we released today the chapter meant for friday. But don’t worry, we’ll the keep the usual schedule after that, so you can expect a new chapter of Cautious Hero on sunday.