It was finally Wednesday.
　The downtown area in the southern district of the royal capital.
　Aria and I met up at the central fountain.
　I've only read about it in books, but I've heard that it's common for couples to argue about whether they arrived five minutes earlier or early enough to meet each other.
　Are you stupid?　Since you've met them, you should be there on time. It's not unreasonable to arrive early and wait.
　--But when it comes to the actual date, my mind was changed.
　I'm sorry, did you wait?" against a beautiful girl like Aria. It certainly seems like a boring exchange of "No, I just got here..." and the like.

　I arrived ten minutes before the meeting time to experience the joyous event.
　No, I'll confess.
　I was also too excited about my first date with Aria to be on my feet naturally enough before.
　And in front of the fountain, Aria was standing in front of the fountain, coming first.

'Sorry, did you wait?'
Yes!　I've been looking forward to it so much, I've been waiting for you all morning.

　I love this girl.
　She's not only pretty on the outside, but she's too interesting on the inside too.

Oh, yeah? Well, let's get going.
Yes, let's go!
Let's have lunch first. I'm new to this whole dating thing, but I've been doing my research.
'Wow, really!　Is it for me!
'Oh, yeah. It's for Aria.
I'm so glad!

　I was somewhat embarrassed, but it didn't matter when I saw Aria's big smile on her face.
　Maybe we're good for each other after all.
　Things that I would normally be too embarrassed to say, Aria is more straightforward to say and ask, so I can respond and react in a straightforward manner too.
　If I wasn't, I'd be the one with a stone-bridge-hitting personality. I would have been pointlessly put off, probing, and dressed up.

'Well, over here then,'
Yes!

　I dressed to lead and casually took Aria's hand in mine.
　I had a near-conviction that she wouldn't mind.
　However, Aria quickly untied her hand!

　You're not going to hate me!

　I almost got teary-eyed at the thought - but I was premature.
　Aria had simply changed her grip and reconnected her hands.
　It wasn't the way I did it, the way a parent pulls their child's hands together. It was the way we held hands, like we were netting each other's fingers and toes tightly together.
　This was definitely more, well, what ...............erotic.

'Let's go, Mr. Magnus...'
Oh, yeah.

　Her seemingly innocent smile is dazzling, but--
　Women are amazing!

　　　　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.

　I chose a pancake shop for my lunch, which was also at the end of a back alley.

'I love pancakes!
Yeah. Well, you'll be glad you chose this place.

　I nodded to Aria to emphasize that it was just a coincidence.

'But that's why I'm a bit picky about pancakes, you know?
So you know the store, then?
'No, I've never been here before!　I'm looking forward to it!

　We waited, forehead to forehead, in the narrow, two-seater seats, chatting about such things.
　Aria ordered the pancakes with apple and berry double sauce.
　I ordered the not-so-sweet pancakes with bacon and a fried egg on the side.
　I have a sweet tooth among men, but as expected, having only sweets for lunch is a bit uncomfortable for my stomach.
According to the information in the attack book, this restaurant is a hidden gem that is known to those in the know.
　The taste is a bit inferior to that of a super-famous restaurant, but that's why you don't have to wait in line or be rushed through the crowd to eat.
　I've actually tried them, and I'm convinced.
　It's not a sweet pancake, but it has a wonderfully fluffy texture, and when eaten with a half-boiled egg, the yolk and the white meat of the pancake blend together to double the flavor.
　The flavor is rich, perhaps due to the generous use of butter, and it's not overwhelming when eaten with bacon. In fact, it goes very well with the slightly salty bacon.

How about that one?
''It's delicious~~~''
Want to trade a little bit?
By all means~~~

　Aria looked pleased with herself.
　Seeing her smile made me happy.
　I'm so glad I looked for it, chose it, and brought it to her.

I've never been to this restaurant before, but it's the best place I've ever eaten in my life.
I wish I had.

　We even enjoyed a cup of tea after dinner, and then we left the restaurant.
　Next time we are going to go shopping and get dressed up.
　When it comes to shopping, I've never gone to a decent store other than a new and used bookstore, but I've set my sights on the accessory stores that I think Aria would like.
　On the other hand, Aria is a daughter of a major retailer, so shopping is an everyday occurrence.
　If you take her to the store, she'll take the lead in the rest.
　Yes, as long as you show her the store.

''Where will you take me next, Magnus-san?

　Aria said, and casually crossed her arms around me.
　Her arms tease my left arm, and her surprisingly lush breasts come against my mumuumu.

　Yay, yay!

　I lost my ability to think for a moment, but I quickly came to myself and walked to the next store.
　All the while, Aria and I remained arm-in-arm the entire time.

　　　　◇◆◆◆◆.

　I bought her a pendant that she liked, had dinner at a restaurant that mainly served shrimp and crab, which she liked, and then took her to a bar that she had never been to before to get her drunk, and the date ended with the stroke of midnight.
　The date didn't just end well, it was a huge success.
　I think I did pretty well for a first time, too, didn't I?
　Of course, I know that this is only possible if Aria has been favoring me from the start. I'm not taking advantage of a figure. It's a good thing that you're able to get the most out of this.

　I gave Aria a lift to the Malm Chamber of Commerce at night.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most of your time in the city. I want to reassure her.

''I had a great time today, Mr. Magnus.
Okay. That's good to hear.
Let me thank you for this.
Wasn't today's date itself a thank you?
Well, thank you for your help.
Yeah, I see.

　What will they give us this time?
　We got to the front of the Malm Chamber of Commerce and I waited for Aria to say something.

'Date me again.'

　Aria said, and then suddenly stood taller and gently placed her lips on mine.
　For the first time, I kissed a woman.
　I can't help but blush all the way to my neck.

　Oh, a woman's lips are so soft!

　I lost my ability to think, which I'm proud of, for a moment, but I quickly came to myself and looked intently at Aria's face.

''Wow, I'm new to this too.......''

　When I parted my lips, Aria had also turned bright red, as evident to my night eyes.
　As expected, she was embarrassed, or maybe she was running away, and ran off into the store in a hurry.
　I was frozen in place for a while, but eventually I started on my way back to the inn.
　On the way, I pull out a "strategy book" from my pocket.

　Thanks to this guy, our date was a huge success.

　I was able to rely on this guy to help me choose the right restaurant, and more importantly, he provided excellent information.
In the "Important People List", there was a section on "Aria, daughter of Malm Trading Company". Her detailed profile was on there.
　Thanks to this, I was able to get a clear picture of her 'surprisingly positive personality', her 'love of pancakes', the direction of her other favorite accessories, and her penchant for shrimp and crabs.
　I'm a dating newbie, but I don't intend to be an idiot. Once I had that much strategy information on the site, all I had to do was figure out the perfect date course on my own.
　Making Aria happy was really fun, even for me when it came to doing it.

'This guy........maybe he's more applicable than I first thought.

　I confessed to myself as I stared at the "strategy book" in my hand.