"Kouhai-kun! What do you think of this dress?"
In the central shopping district of Misaki Town, inside a branded clothing store, Aoko wore a blue dress with the price tag still attached. Standing in front of the mirror and looking around, she asked Naoki, who was standing behind her, for his opinion.
"To be honest, I don't think Miss Aoko suits wearing skirts. If I were to choose, these denim clothes might be quite good."
"I'm already tired of wearing jeans and the like. Even I want to wear a skirt once in a while."
Aoko went into the fitting room, changed back into her original clothes, and came out: "Then let's go, next store. This one doesn't have anything suitable for me."
"Yes, yes, yes..."
Naoki sighed helplessly and followed Aoko: "By the way, Miss Aoko, are we okay doing this?"
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"Going out shopping and buying clothes now? Aren't we supposed to face Nero tonight? Shouldn't this last bit of time be used to focus our minds or prepare?"
An hour and a half ago, after giving Avalon to Shiki, Naoki happened to meet Aoko, who was out shopping on the street when he returned, and he was instantly made her impromptu bag carrier.
Although almost an hour had passed, he still hadn't carried a single bag.
Aoko smiled: "That's true, but if we're too tense, we might feel tired even before the fight. Proper relaxation is also necessary. Besides, because we left in such a hurry last night, my luggage and change of clothes were left at the hotel. The clothes I'm wearing now still belong to Arcueid."
"Then why not just go back to the hotel to get them? Is there a need to buy new ones?"
"Ah... how to say..." Aoko scratched her head, "Frankly speaking, the clothes in that suitcase I've worn for four or five years. I want new ones, so I'll just throw away the old ones."
"..."
Naoki remembered Aoko once saying she didn't have much money? Casually throwing away old clothes, then spending a lot of money to buy new ones. If this was how she managed her finances, having money was impossible, and even spending money wasn't done this way!
'Not suited to associate with these rich people.'
"Kouhai-kun, over here." Aoko's voice sounded again. This time she was standing in front of a jewelry store, "Which necklace do you think suits me?"
"Miss Aoko, why are you asking me? Just buy the one you like." Naoki said, spreading out both his hands, "Don't tell me you're buying this necklace for me?"
"You're really stupid; the purpose of a woman dressing up is definitely to be noticed by others."
"But Miss Aoko definitely doesn't have such thoughts."
Aoko suddenly lost her words.
'Ugh... that's true...'
Even if she tried to dress up, the people who knew her would probably just be surprised and ask if she was seriously ill to have such thoughts. Moreover, she didn't have anyone she liked, and didn't want to flirt with men, so there was indeed no need to dress up.
But even so, she was still a girl (27 years old)!
"Kouhai-kun, there definitely aren't any women who like you, right?"
"Eh... why do you say that?"
"Your way of speaking and thinking is clearly disliked by women, I'm sure your female friends are few."
Few?
Naoki carefully considered his friendships.
"No, in reality, among the people I know, women dominate the majority. Men are only a few, not even enough to count on two hands."
"Really?"
"Really. For some reason, whenever I go somewhere, almost everyone I know is a woman. There are men, but the frequency of interaction is much less. Since graduating high school, I haven't made any male friends besides Waver."
Now that he thought about it, Naoki himself felt unbelievable, but also as if it wasn't too surprising. After all, in the Fate world, even if someone looked like a man now, who knew if they would suddenly turn into a woman one day? The ratio of men to women was very unbalanced.
'Does this kid have a special charm for women?'
Aoko was stunned, then her eyes instantly lit up with curiosity and she asked: "Among them, is there anyone you like?"
"No one."
"Really?"
"Hm... it can't be said there isn't anyone either. After all, I'm a man, seeing beautiful women, of course, I can't help but look more, just like I like Miss Aoko now."
"Ugh? Really? Flattering me won't get you any rewards."
"Miss Aoko is very beautiful. Unless someone has strange tastes, I don't think there's any man who wouldn't like you."
Naoki laughed.
"But my 'like' is only limited to that; there's no intention to develop it further. In short, I currently have no plans to find a girlfriend."
"Hm? Why?"
"Because I still have to take care of Gray. Well, although it looks like she's been the one taking care of me all this time. Gray's hometown is a small village in the mountains of Wales. Her family asked me to take her out and look after her. In that case, I want to at least take care of her until she can live independently."
Aoko understood this time: "Hmph, so you're a siscon—if Gray wasn't around? If Gray wasn't around, would you immediately look for a girlfriend now?"
"Not really. It might sound a bit funny to you, but I'm the type of person who, if I date, the goal has to be marriage. Once I truly like someone, I have to take full responsibility for her future, shoulder her future, that's what a man does."
"But such awareness is still too early for me right now. I'm only 22 years old this year, and I can't even guarantee basic necessities like food, clothing, and shelter well yet. Looking for a girlfriend in this condition is the same as dragging someone to suffer with me; that's too unfair to the person who likes me."
"So, I want to wait until Gray can truly be independent, and I myself am also well-established and can even spend money freely before starting to look for a girlfriend. It's just that I don't know if someone in their forties like me will still be wanted then."
How could no one want him?
Aoko stared at Naoki's profile, then suddenly laughed: "You'll definitely find someone. As long as this thought of yours doesn't change, there will definitely be a woman who truly likes you from the bottom of her heart. I guarantee it."
'Will definitely meet someone.'
'No, should be definitely will be attracted to you.'
'There will definitely be a woman attracted by the light of your determination who will come to your side.'
"In that case, although it's still a bit early, let's go have lunch now."
"Eh? Now? It's not even eleven o'clock."
"I'm hungry. I didn't eat much for breakfast, plus all that walking earlier, my energy is completely gone. Don't worry, you don't have to pay; lunch is on me."
"Really?"
A sharp gaze suddenly made Aoko unconsciously shrink back a little: "W-why, your gaze is so strange? Are you that happy that I'm treating you?"
"Pretty much. Rather than that, where do you want to eat?"
"Then let's go to a place I used to frequent."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
An hour later, Aoko finally understood why Naoki's eyes had lit up when she mentioned treating him.
Because it was a rare opportunity for him to truly be able to eat until he was full.
Aoko: "My wallet!!"