Chapter 313 - After Dinner
"—So yeah, things are off to a good start."
"I see."
"As planned, I'm forming a party tomorrow for a full-day expedition."
"Mm-hm."
"Thanks for setting things up. I'm sorry for all the trouble."
"Helena did most of it."
"........."
"......"
"Are you perhaps angry about something?"
"I'm not angry."
That's a lie. She's definitely a little upset.
The way she stabbed her fork into the sea bream was just a little more aggressive than usual.
I glanced sideways at my dining companion, who, as always, insisted on sitting next to me rather than across from me. Iris paused in eating the acqua pazza that Chitose-san had prepared and shook her head.
"It's not that."
"Well, if you say so—"
"I'm just jealous."
"Sorry, my bad, let's just drop this topic."
Why did I have to step on that landmine? I'm an idiot. I should have seen this coming a mile away.
"I want to go on an adventure with you, too."
"Yeah... for a lot of reasons, that's probably not going to happen for a while."
Iris is busy on multiple fronts, and I need to hurry up and strengthen myself to stand beside a "colleague" like her...
Besides, even if we did go on an adventure together, what would that even be like? I can't picture that 'what if' scenario at all.
"........."
"Even if you look at me like that..."
Having spent a certain amount of time with her over the past few days, there's something I've come to understand, at least a little.
And that is... this princess is, in some ways, even more emotionally expressive than Nia. Even if her face is usually a mask of neutrality.
She bares her heart directly through her words, her tone, her gestures—just like now, as she voices her discontent with a faint growl in her throat.
"—Then, what about today?"
"Pulling out a 'then' like that is dirty pool."
"...No?"
"Hey, aren't girls just unfair?"
A guy's already lost before this fight even begins, you know?
"I-I'm not saying no, but... what are you going to do if you come over? And I'm telling you now, no more three-hour endurance rounds of poker, please."
"That was fun."
"Of course it's fun for the person who wins every single time...!"
There's no way I can beat an opponent who's smart, has Poker Face Lv. 100, and is incredibly lucky. Getting a royal flush three games in a row is just ridiculous.
"In that case, a game."
"Yeah, but like I said, for a while—"
"Not in the virtual world."
She finished her meal while we were talking.
"I like analog games, too."
The princess from a clan that lives for their hobbies said this in a flat, yet slightly excited tone.
◇◆◇◆◇
"Uh... Iris-san?"
"What is it?"
"I think calling this an 'analog game' is going to get you yelled at from all sides."
I get that she used the word to mean old, but... this is completely 'digital.' In fact, it's not even an old model.
When I made that comment upon seeing the latest game console she'd brought into the room, Iris tilted her head in confusion.
"Compared to [Arcadia]—"
"Your basis for comparison is weird. It's like comparing a regular player to the [Sword Queen]."
Although some extremists call them 'prehistoric,' it's not like non-VR game consoles have died out. Their market share may have shrunk due to losing users to [Arcadia], but there's still a massive number of active gamers on this side of things.
"I like them too. I'm completely focused on the virtual world right now, but I'll probably get the itch to play again and pick one up eventually."
This side has its own merits—or rather, the world of Arcadia is something else entirely... It's less a game and more like 'living in another world.'
Anyway, what should we do? It looks like most of these are party games...
"Hmm...?"
As I examined the 'mountain' of game cases she handed me, I noticed that not a single one had been opened. Looking closer, I realized the console itself was also a brand-new, scratch-free unit.
"What's this, did you just buy a bunch of stuff and let it sit?"
No matter how old I get, it's always fun to look at the packaging of a new game. I asked her while browsing through the collection—some I recognized, sequels to games I'd played before, and some titles I'd never even seen.
"I collected things that I could play with you here, in the real world."
"—...Ah."
If I had thought for one more second before speaking, I would have arrived at the answer she gave me. My hands stopped as I grasped the various feelings packed into those words.
"Besides games, I've gathered a lot of other things. The ones I can't move are in my room, so I'd like to invite you over there someday."
"I'll think about it—close, no, you're close, I get it, you're too close...!"
Get away, you lethally honest and cute bombshell! We made a treaty before I let you in the room, didn't we? 'A one-meter radius is an inviolable personal space'!
—After that, we spent the rest of the time playing peacefully.
In a move of sheer emergency avoidance, I had quickly selected a party fighting game... I'll omit the details, but let it be known that one party was beaten to a complete and utter pulp.
In the dictionary of that 'strongest' individual, the words 'holding back' no longer exist.
Please enjoy this interlude with the gaming princess as a change of pace.