Can I brag about my very devoted wife to you?

To please my wife

It was Friday, the day before my date with Riko on the weekend. [TL: Author… Sunday is not the day after Friday.] As soon as lunch was over, I put a stack of documents in front of Sawa.

“… What’s this?”

Sawa grabbed a document spread out in front of the cafeteria table, looking suspiciously.

“’Kanagawa Date Map’, ‘Ten Date Plans That Will Make Her Happy’, ‘A Thorough Explanation of Behavior You Won’t Like on a First Date!’, and ‘How to please her with an ideal date’… no, really, what is this?”

“Actually, I wanted to talk to Sawa about this.”

While hiding the fact that I was living with Riko, I told Sawa about the date at the electronics store and how I wanted to get revenge for that on Sunday. Sawa’s expression clouded over when he heard that we had gone to the electronics store, and he lost his head at the mention of hamburgers.

“Niiyama, you really don’t know anything about women’s minds…!” [TN: Did I mention that Shinyama is actually translated to Niiyama? From now on, Shinyama -> Niiyama.]

“Ugh… I think you’re right about that…”

“That’s why I told you to study romance on a regular basis, just in case! A normal date destination is an amusement park, an aquarium, a movie theater, and a night view!”

“Yeah. A lot of those destinations were listed in the materials I gathered, too.”

“Right?”

“It’s just that there’s no way I can visit them all in one day, and I’d like to narrow it down to a few places, but which one of them is the winner? I want to entertain Riko on my own, so I’ve asked her to leave the destination and plans for the trip to me. So, I’ve been researching dates for the past few days, but I can’t figure out where I should take Riko to make her happy. In the first place, amusement parks and movie theaters have completely different atmospheres and there are distinct things to do. Then again, it’s not like you can go either way… So I want to hear Sawa’s opinion. What do you think, Sawa?”

“Well, uh, yeah, it’s…”

Sawa’s momentum suddenly slowed down. I asked him more questions, feeling a little uneasy.

” The destination is one thing, but the action to be taken on the spot can be completely different depending on the magazine. Some say that you should lead aggressively, while others say that if you go all out, you’ll lose affection points. Some said that girls would be disappointed if you didn’t at least hold hands, but they also warned not to misunderstand the distance. I don’t know how I’m supposed to find out the right decisions… I feel like I’m lost in a maze…”

“If you ask me, you’ve got really dark circles under your eyes. Maybe you haven’t been sleeping at all…?”

All I could do was smile back helplessly.

“Hey, Niiyama. I don’t think we’ll be able to come up with the right answer even if we discuss it together, right? We don’t even know what a woman’s heart is, and we don’t even know what Riko likes.”

“You’re right…”

“It’s best to ask the same gender that Princess Riko is friends with about these things.”

Sawa was right.

“Alright. I’ll talk to Asakura about it for a bit.”

Asakura, Riko’s closest friend in class, would be the perfect person to talk to.

“Huh! Seriously…? No, it’s true that Asakura would be much more dependable than me, but… isn’t it scary to talk to a overly cheerful girl?”

Of course I’m scared. I hadn’t spoken to Asakura since the field trip. To begin with, I had a deep-seated dislike for girls in general.

“I’ve decided that I’m still going to try. I can’t just let myself be as weak as I’ve been.”

“Niiyama… You’ve changed…”

“Huh. Really?”

I was just working hard, hoping to change, so I asked him upfront.

“Oh, geez. You used to be more reluctant to do anything, right? It’s the first time you’ve even asked me for advice. You’re really taking care of Riko. I’m rooting for you, so keep up the good work.”

“Ahh, I see. Thanks, Sawa. I feel like you just gave me a push with your words. I’m going to go looking for Asakura!”

“I’ll soothe your sadness if you fail.”

“Yeah, thanks!”

◇◇◇

Unfortunately, during the lunch break, Asakura was sticking too much to Riko, and there was no chance for me to sneak up on her. But luckily, a chance came at the end of fifth period. Riko, who was on duty that day, was leaving the classroom to carry the materials for the sixth period.

I couldn’t miss this chance, so I hurried to Asakura’s seat. When Asakura saw me appearing in front of her, she raised one eyebrow in surprise.

Not good. The Asakura in front of me was much more powerful than I imagined. I was getting so nervous that I was beginning to wonder if the fact that we were on a field trip together was an illusion.

“What? You need something?”

All I could do was to shake my head.

But I can’t be so pathetic. You have to be brave…!

“Oh, um! I need to talk about something in private, so could you give me a few minutes…!”

“Just the two of us? Hmm, okay. Then follow me.”

Asakura called me, and we went out into the hallway. We went straight up the stairs to the landing between the fourth floor and the roof.

“So? What’s the matter with you calling me in secret? You’ve got something to tell me that others don’t want to hear, right?”

Just the fact that I was alone with a girl made my body tense up, but Asakura looked into my eyes with a curious look on her face.

“If you don’t tell me, I won’t know. Come on, come on, come on, explain it to me.”

As if to tease me, Asakura closed the distance between us. Oh no, I’m too scared of girls other than Riko…! I almost screamed and hurriedly stepped aside. And anyway, I have to tell her what I want!

“I-I-I wanted to somehow make my date with Riko a success! I was wondering if I could lend your help for that!”

“A date with Riko?”

“Yes…!”

Then, I gave the same explanation to Asakura that I had given to Sawa. Unlike Sawa, Asakura’s expression became more and more amused as the story progressed.

“Haha, I see, I see that’s what happened! I don’t understand why you think that date was a failure, but well, I understand why you wanted to please Riko on the date anyway.”

Asakura laughed brightly, said, “You’re so adorable-,” and patted me on the shoulder. I could sense that she acted like an old man, but I felt much more at ease with her than I had earlier.

“Actually, you know, since you approached me when Riko wasn’t around, I thought you were a two-timing bastard and tried to find out. But I’m glad you’re a sincere person. This way, I can leave Riko in good hands.”

“Two-timing! That’s impossible…!”

I’m so focused on Riko that there’s no room for anyone else to enter my mind.

I’m not good enough to do two-timing, and girls other than Riko are still just objects of fear.

When I denied all of this in a curt voice, Asakura looked more and more in a good mood.

“But you know what, you don’t have to plan for that. You want to entertain Riko, don’t you, Niiyama-kun? If that’s the case, then you should just act like it.”

“I really don’t know how to make this fun. Won’t acting without any plans just make the date spiral out of control?”

“Eh? That’s fine then. You’re doing your best for her, so she’ll be happy even if you’re out of line.”

I can only see myself making a lot of mistakes and ruining the date again. As I grew pale and silent, Asakura let out a sigh of relief.

“I can’t help it. I’ll give you a few patterns of template-like model answers, just in case.”

“…! Thank you, Asakura! I owe you…!”

Then Asakura gave me some advice.

“–I see. This will allow me to plan my objectives and actions on the fly without any problems. You’ve been a real help.”

This was the first time I had talked to anyone other than Riko since my trauma, so it took a lot of courage, but I’m glad I talked to Asakura.

“By the way, you’re so healthy, Niiyama-kun. It’s rare to find a boyfriend who will work this hard for his girlfriend. If Riko knew, she’d definitely be moved to tears.”

“Oh, please don’t tell Riko…!”

Riko is kind and I’m sure she’ll be happy to see me, but for her to cry, that would be an exaggeration.

“But you really don’t have to make any plans, though. The best thing you can do is just be yourself and tell her straight out what you really feel. Whenever you’re in trouble because you can’t do anything, remember my words.”

I guessed Asakura didn’t know how incompetent I was in a date, which was why she said this. Nevertheless, it was reliable advice from Asakura, so I decided to keep it in a corner of my mind.

◇◇◇

A few days have passed since then. Finally, the promised Sunday arrived.

“Minato-kun, I’ve tried to get ready, how do you like this outfit?”

Riko, who appeared in front of me like that was, without intending to mean this as a metaphor or anything, a perfect fairy.

“…”

The above-the-knee white dress had a fluttering hem that swayed softly as Riko moved. The dress, which gave a neat impression, looked so good on Riko that I thought it might have been specially prepared for her. Her hair was braided on the side, and a small flower ornament was attached to it. The unusual hairstyle was refreshing and made today’s date seem even more special.

“Oh wow… It’s so cute…”

I noticed that the words were spilling out by themselves. I panicked and put my hand to my mouth, but it was too late.

What should I do? Did I just make her feel uncomfortable…!?

I looked at Riko impatiently.

Riko was smiling shyly with a face so cute that her little flower hair ornament and white lace dress became one with the background.

Translator & Editor: Riciel