I Start with a Bad Hand!

“Do you want to go see a play with me?”

“A play?”

As I stood up, Klaus smiled and offered several theater tickets.

“I came here to talk about this, but there’s no one in the rehearsal room?”

We’re doing a play, so I thought it would be nice if we all went to see one together. Saying this, Klaus flopped down onto the chair in front of me.

“I know you’re busy, but… can you spare just two hours this weekend?”

The theater is really close to the academy, just a ten-minute walk. Klaus asked cautiously, glancing at me. I couldn’t understand why he would suggest watching a play during exam period, with my schedule already packed with studying. What puzzled me most was something else.

“Are you saying we’re all going together?”

That seemed unlikely… Although we had become somewhat closer, we still hadn’t even shared a meal together after several weeks of practicing.

However, I suppressed my skeptical thoughts and soullessly repeated “Sure, that sounds good,” nodding in agreement. Klaus smiled in response and then asked me to inquire on his behalf with the others.

“Alright, I’ll ask the senior and Agnes if I see them.”

“Okay, I’ll speak to the prince. We have class in the training hall this afternoon.”

“Wow, I really want to go see it soon,” Klaus said with a bright smile. Though I had agreed…

‘Will his smile last?’

I waited for the members of the drama club. But as I expected, my drama team was more fragmented than I anticipated. It started with Irene.

“I don’t have the time.”

“…Oh? Are you very busy?”

“There’s a lot to do for the student council. I have personal studying to do too. I can try to make time for the play rehearsal, but this weekend is going to be tough. Sorry.”

While saying this, Irene’s face showed no sign of actual regret. However, seeing my disappointed look, she glanced at me and continued.

“That play, Klaus wants to go see it, right?”

“Gosh, yes. How did you know?”

“He’s been talking about it for days. I told him I didn’t have time, but he even went ahead and bought my ticket and kept asking.”

As I looked flabbergasted, Irene spoke in a firm tone.

“If you also don’t have time, don’t just follow him around. Say no.”

Irene glanced at me again before adding,

“Have you been sleeping well lately? You seem… off.”

“Ahaha… Yes, I haven’t been skipping sleep. But I still want to ask Agnes.”

Though I genuinely didn’t have time, I had never watched a play in my original life, so I was eager to seize the opportunity if possible. Sleep can wait… for death. With a feeling of regret, I went to ask Agnes. When I mentioned going to the play, Agnes’s eyes sparkled as she started to ask all sorts of questions.

“What’s the title?”

“What was it? ‘Opening Love’?”

As I tried to recall the title, Agnes quickly lost interest. The friendly inquiry was gone. Her expression turned serious, so I had to ask why.

“…Why?”

“The lead actor in that play looks like my brother.”

“And?”

“So, it’s kind of… disgusting to watch.”

Disgusting, really? As I looked at her incredulously, Agnes decided she wouldn’t go this time and suggested we go see a different play later. That was fine, but… now that Agnes wasn’t going, I suddenly felt less inclined to go.

If Agnes didn’t go, it would just be me, Klaus, and the Second Prince going to the play. I wasn’t too thrilled about that.

“I won’t go either then. If you and the senior aren’t going, what’s the fun in that? I might as well just study.”

“Why? Just go and have fun watching the play. The three of you can go.”

Agnes’s words made me recall a stifling time under the clock tower with them… Just the thought of reliving that suffocating atmosphere made me prefer doing assignments. The notion that I could sleep when I’m dead also crossed my mind.

“Never mind. Just the two of you go.”

“It might be fun for the two of you to get to know each other, right?”

“Exactly.”

Agnes and I laughed it off as if it were someone else’s concern. I reluctantly told Klaus that it looked like none of us would be able to go, and though Klaus looked a bit dejected, he said he hadn’t asked the prince yet but would.

As I was heading back to the dorm after class, I saw Klaus leaning against a window looking even more forlorn. Seeing him, I could almost guess what the prince’s response had been. Feeling somewhat responsible for his gloom, I was about to pass by without saying anything.

“Dietrich!”

Klaus had spotted me. Waving and approaching, I awkwardly greeted him as if I’d just noticed him. Up close, Klaus’s expression was even more downtrodden.

“Klaus, did you talk to the prince? What did he say?”

“Yeah… he said he doesn’t want to go.”

“Really? Why?”

Klaus’s face grew even darker.

“He said he doesn’t have a hobby of watching plays alone with another man.”

Upon hearing a completely unsurprising conclusion, I calmly comforted Klaus.

“That’s too bad. It’s good to have many hobbies.”

“Yeah… I guess so.”

“It’s okay, I can go by myself…” Klaus said, greeting me before walking away dejectedly. In his hand, he held the now tattered theater tickets, looking much like Klaus himself.

“Ah, this is driving me crazy. Why does he have to look so dejected just as I see him?”

Among the individualists, who were like grains of sand easily scattered by any disturbance, Klaus seemed unable to adapt. Of course, I had contributed to that as well…

“Oh, what to do now.”

If only I had been less kind, less innocent. If only the color of his eyes hadn’t reminded me of Irene, I wouldn’t have cared whether he was crouched in a corner or looking downcast. Ultimately, I closed my eyes tight and called out to Klaus.

“Klaus!”

Hearing me call, Klaus stopped and turned around, a flicker of hope in his eyes. Seeing those puppy-dog eyes made it even harder for me to take back my call.

“If it’s okay with just me, let’s go watch the play together.”

Klaus’s eyes sparkled in the sunlight coming through the window.

***

‘The day has finally come.’

After pulling an all-nighter to finish an assignment, I showered, carelessly combed my disheveled hair, and put on the same dress I always wear. It was the only suitable outfit I had for going out to see a play.

‘I should at least not dress like a pauper for the theater…’

Perhaps it was the lack of sleep, but there was a shadow over my heart and mind. However, driven by the commitment to keep my word, I headed towards the main gate. Several carriages were parked in front of the gate, and as I walked among them looking for Klaus, I noticed someone wearing a hood.

‘Isn’t that too warm?’

It seemed tough to wear a hood in this weather, but as I was looking around, my eyes met Klaus’s. He smiled brightly, waved, and quickly approached me.

“Dietrich, hello!”

As I was about to greet him casually as usual, I hesitated for a moment. We were outside the academy… Should I use formal language? After a brief hesitation, I decided to follow the customs of this world.

“Yes, hello.”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen you in something other than a uniform.”

“Yes, it’s also the first time I’ve seen you, Horatius, in different attire.”

I suppressed the awkwardness and responded politely. The rule of speaking informally was only valid within the academy. It felt strange to use formal language with Klaus just because we had stepped beyond the academy’s main gate, but if I thought of it as meeting a friend while working a part-time job, it wasn’t too difficult. Klaus chuckled as if tickled by my response.

“You can call me by my name more casually.”

“No, how can I casually address the child of a duke?”

I tried to suppress the urge to slip away as I spoke. And I kept hypnotizing myself.

I’m just a part-time worker, and Klaus is a customer.

I’m a part-timer, and it just so happens that a friend I bumped into is visiting my workplace…

We’re just role-playing right now…

It’s the first time I’ve met classmates from the academy outside of it. I’ve never met Agnes outside of the academy either. So, it felt even more awkward to speak formally to a friend. Maybe that’s why…

‘Ah, I miss my friends.’

Suddenly, I remembered my friends. Just trivial memories of chatting while walking down the street. Perhaps due to lack of sleep, my thoughts drifted in a darker direction.

‘When will I see them again? Can I even see them again?’

After that last thought, I stayed silent for a long while, until Klaus moved a bit closer to me.

“Thank you for joining me today, Dietrich.”

“It’s nothing, really… What?”

I was surprised and looked at Klaus, who was pretending to be distracted and looking elsewhere. I glanced around quietly and then spoke softly to Klaus again.

“Please speak informally.”

“No, a knight must always speak respectfully to a lady.”

Klaus replied in an unusually solemn tone, still avoiding looking at me directly. I narrowed my eyes and stared intently at him.

“A knight…? Have you already received your knighthood?”

“No, not yet…”

My gaze sharpened. Sensing my scrutiny, Klaus explained.

“But I will receive it soon, next year! So, I’m preparing my mindset until then.”

Walking with Miss Dietrich, Klaus ruffled his short hair, embarrassed. Yet, he kept stealing glances at me.

“You don’t need to do that if it’s just out of consideration for me.”

“Consideration? It’s just that I want to behave properly as a gentleman should towards a lady. Miss Dietrich, you help me to act more knightly!”

So… may I escort you? As Klaus said this, he grinned cheekily. Inevitably, all I could do was nod reluctantly. His absurd excuses, blushing as he spoke, only endeared him more to me because of his good intentions.

Thus, we walked towards the theater. As we walked, I could relish the clear sunshine of today and the refreshing breeze, rather than just reminiscing.