Volume 3 Chapter 182: A Date That Wasn’t Pretend

The familiar glow of Evermount gradually faded from Rio's vision as the logout sequence completed. The virtual forest, the system interface, and the sounds of the game disappeared one after another, replaced by the quiet familiarity of her bedroom. For a brief moment, she remained still, allowing her senses to adjust to the transition back to reality.

[Logout Successful]

Rio slowly opened her eyes. The soft glow of the bedside lamp illuminated the room, while the faint hum of the air conditioner filled the silence. Her gaming headset still covered her head, its padding warm against her skin after several hours of use. Beside her, Ryota was beginning to move, apparently taking a little longer to adjust to the real world.

They had agreed to meet Suo and Sayanaki again tomorrow. Sayanaki had promised to share the information she had gathered about Sarrow, the leader of Epsilon Dawn, while Suo had officially joined Crowned Era under her real name, Suoka. There were still plenty of things to discuss, but Rio had decided that they had done enough for one day. Between the battle against Necroshama and the unexpected recruitment of their newest member, she was ready to spend the rest of the evening away from the game.

She reached up and carefully removed her headset, letting her silver hair fall loosely around her shoulders.

"Finally," she murmured, stretching her neck. "I thought we'd never get out of there."

Ryota removed his own headset and released an exaggerated sigh. "Speak for yourself. I was enjoying myself."

Rio gave him a sidelong glance. "You were enjoying yourself while I was trying to keep you from destroying another dungeon?"

"That was a productive use of my time."

"You punched a hole through the floor."

"And defeated the boss."

"You nearly buried us beneath the dungeon."

"But we survived."

Rio stared at him for several seconds before shaking her head. "You're impossible."

Ryota grinned. "You've mentioned that before."

"Because you keep proving it."

Their familiar banter eased the transition back into reality. For a little while, everything felt normal again. They were simply Rio and Ryota, two people sharing a room after another exhausting day in Evermount, arguing over the latest ridiculous thing he had done.

Eventually, Rio stood and placed her headset on the desk beside her computer. Ryota gathered both headsets and their cables, carefully winding the loose cords so they wouldn't become tangled. After checking that everything had been stored properly, he carried the equipment to the closet and placed it on the designated shelf.

Rio watched him for a moment before turning toward her bed. She lowered herself onto the mattress, stretched her legs, and reached for her phone.

"I'm going to lie down for a bit," she said. "My eyes are tired."

"Go ahead."

Ryota finished putting the equipment away and closed the closet door. However, instead of immediately returning to the bed, he remained where he was, staring at the wooden surface with an unusually serious expression.

There was something he wanted to ask Rio.

Actually, he had been thinking about it for most of the evening.

The problem was that every time he imagined bringing it up, he could already picture her reaction. She would probably stare at him, ask whether he had hit his head, and then spend the next several minutes questioning his sanity. Depending on how poorly he phrased the question, she might even threaten to throw him out of the house.

Considering their history, that last possibility wasn't entirely unreasonable.

Ryota took a quiet breath and turned around.

Rio was lying on her back, scrolling through her phone with one hand while using the other to adjust her pillow. Her silver hair spread loosely across the fabric, and the relaxed expression on her face made her look considerably younger than the terrifying guild leader who had spent the day fighting Necroshama.

Ryota looked at her, then quickly looked away. A moment later, he glanced back again.

Rio eventually noticed his repeated glances. She lowered her phone slightly and studied him with suspicion.

"...Is something the matter?"

Ryota stiffened. "Huh?"

"You've been standing there staring at me for a while." Her eyes narrowed. "Did you break something?"

"No!"

"Did you accidentally sell one of my items?"

"No!"

"Did you somehow spend our money on something ridiculous?"

"Why are those the first things you think of?!"

"Because you're Ryota."

He opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. Unfortunately, he couldn't deny that she had a point.

"Nothing's wrong," he said quickly, looking toward the doorway. "I just need to talk to Akari for a second."

Rio blinked. "...Akari?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Just something."

"What something?"

"Something I need to ask her."

Rio stared at him, clearly unconvinced. Ryota managed to maintain eye contact for approximately two seconds before his courage collapsed.

"Anyway, I'll be right back!"

He hurried out of the room before she could ask another question.

Rio remained on the bed with her phone resting loosely in her hand. She watched the doorway for a moment, waiting for him to return and explain himself, but when no explanation came, she slowly shrugged.

"...What was that about?"

She returned to her phone, deciding that if Ryota wanted to ask Akari something, it was his business. Perhaps he needed help with a household matter, or perhaps he had managed to get himself into another ridiculous situation. Knowing him, either explanation was entirely possible.

Still, the way he had looked at her before leaving was strange.

Rio frowned slightly.

"...He'd better not be planning anything stupid."

Then she resumed scrolling, unaware that Ryota was about to ask her younger sister for advice about something that could change their relationship far more than either of them had anticipated.

Advice From the Little Sister

The hallway was quiet as Ryota made his way toward Akari's bedroom. Despite having faced armed players, dangerous monsters, and hidden dungeon bosses without much hesitation, he found himself walking considerably more slowly than usual.

He stopped outside her door and stared at it.

This was ridiculous.

He had faced enemies who would happily attack him without warning, yet asking a teenage girl a simple question somehow felt more intimidating than any of those encounters. In Evermount, if he made a mistake, he could usually blame the game's mechanics or claim that his opponent had been unusually troublesome. If he embarrassed himself in front of Akari, however, there would be no convenient system notification explaining what had gone wrong.

Ryota raised his hand and knocked.

Knock, knock.

A few seconds passed before the door opened. Akari stood on the other side, dressed in comfortable home clothes. Her white hair was slightly messy, and she appeared to have only just finished settling down for the night.

She blinked when she saw him.

"Ryota?"

He offered an awkward smile. "Hey."

Akari tilted her head. "What's up?"

"Nothing much. I just wanted to ask you something."

Her expression immediately became suspicious. "About what?"

Ryota hesitated before answering.

"...Rio."

Akari's eyes widened slightly. Then, very slowly, her expression changed into something far more interested.

"Oh?"

Ryota immediately regretted his choice of words.

"Don't make that face."

"What face?"

"That face."

Akari leaned against the doorframe, smiling. "I haven't said anything."

"You don't need to. I can already tell you're thinking something."

"Really? What am I thinking?"

"Something annoying."

Akari laughed. "You're the one who came to my room to ask about my sister. Why wouldn't I be curious?"

Ryota rubbed the back of his neck. "...Fair enough."

Akari stepped aside slightly, although she remained near the doorway. "Alright, then. What do you want to know?"

Ryota took a breath, rehearsing the question one final time before forcing himself to say it.

"Do you know what Rio's favorite restaurant is?"

Silence followed.

Akari stared at him. Ryota stared back. Several seconds passed before her expression became completely blank.

"...What?"

"Her favorite restaurant."

"I heard you!"

"Then why did you ask?"

"Because I thought I misunderstood you!"

Ryota looked increasingly uncomfortable as Akari slowly straightened. Her eyes narrowed, and the corners of her mouth began to rise with the unmistakable expression of someone who had just discovered a much more entertaining situation than she had expected.

"Wait a minute." She crossed her arms. "You two have been dating for a while, haven't you?"

Ryota nearly choked.

"W-Well—"

"And you don't know her favorite restaurant?"

"It's not like that!"

Akari stared at him incredulously. "How do you not know? You two have been living together, and you've been pretending to be a couple for ages!"

"That's exactly why I'm asking!"

"That doesn't make it any better!"

Ryota wanted to defend himself, but every argument he considered seemed to make the situation worse. The truth was that he and Rio weren't actually dating. Their relationship had begun as a convenient lie to explain why he was staying in the house, and although they had grown considerably closer since then, neither of them had ever formally agreed that their pretend relationship was real.

Yet his feelings for Rio had become increasingly difficult to dismiss.

He liked spending time with her, teasing her, and making her laugh even when she responded by hitting him. He liked the rare moments when she lowered her guard and spoke honestly about herself. Most of all, he liked the way she trusted him enough to let him remain beside her, even though he had entered her life under the strangest circumstances imaginable.

He wanted to know more about her—not simply the Silver War Goddess or the guild leader of Crowned Era, but the girl who existed beneath those titles.

And perhaps that was why he had come to Akari.

He wanted to do something that wasn't part of their usual routine. Something that would allow them to spend time together without a dungeon, a guild dispute, or an emergency getting in the way.

He wanted to take Rio on a date.

An actual date.

Ryota swallowed. "We haven't really had the chance to go out together. We've been busy with Evermount and everything else, and there hasn't been much time for that sort of thing."

Akari's expression became a little less teasing, although she still looked unimpressed.

"So you want to take my sister somewhere?"

"Yeah."

"On a date?"

Ryota hesitated. "...Yeah."

Akari looked at him for several seconds before releasing a sigh so deep that he felt personally attacked.

"You two are idiots."

"...Excuse me?"

"Both of you." She shook her head. "Unbelievable."

Ryota scratched his cheek. "Are you going to help me or not?"

Akari appeared to consider closing the door and leaving him to his own devices. After all, there was a limit to how much assistance she could reasonably provide to someone who had somehow managed to live under the same roof as her sister without knowing how to ask her out.

Eventually, however, her expression softened.

"Fine. I'll help you, but listen carefully, because I'm only explaining this once."

Ryota immediately straightened. "I'm listening."

"First, don't turn the entire thing into a big production. Rio doesn't like being treated as though she's some kind of untouchable princess. If you spend the whole day making a fuss over her, she'll probably get annoyed and start wondering what you're planning."

"That sounds about right," Ryota admitted.

"Second, don't assume that because she looks confident, she always knows what she wants. Rio is good at making decisions when something dangerous is happening. Give her a problem to solve, and she'll figure out a plan before most people have finished panicking." Akari paused, choosing her words carefully. "But when it comes to herself, she's not always that straightforward."

Ryota's smile faded into a thoughtful expression.

Akari continued, "She's used to taking care of things. She thinks about what everyone else needs, what could go wrong, and what she has to do next. Sometimes, she gets so caught up in that that she forgets she can simply enjoy herself."

Ryota listened quietly. He had seen that side of Rio often enough to recognize the truth in Akari's words. Even when they were at home, she could turn a simple conversation into a discussion about schedules, money, equipment, or what they needed to accomplish in Evermount. She rarely allowed herself to relax without first convincing herself that everything else was taken care of.

"So," Akari said, "don't make your date about impressing her. Make it about giving her a chance to enjoy a day without having to plan everything herself."

Ryota nodded slowly. "Okay. That makes sense."

"Good. Now, as for the restaurant..."

She paused, and a small smile returned to her face.

"Rio likes quiet places where she can talk without having to shout over everyone else. She doesn't need an expensive restaurant, and she definitely doesn't need you to spend a ridiculous amount of money trying to prove something. A small place with good food and a comfortable atmosphere would probably make her happier."

Ryota took mental notes, listening with the concentration he usually reserved for important battle strategies.

Akari then gave him a more specific suggestion.

"There's a little family-run café not too far from the shopping district. Rio used to like going there when she had free time. It's not especially fancy, but the food is good, and the place is usually quiet outside the busiest hours. They make a dessert she likes, too."

Ryota's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

Akari nodded. "Seriously. She doesn't go there much anymore because she's always busy, but I know she still likes it."

"Why didn't she ever tell me about it?"

"Have you ever actually asked her what she likes doing when she's not playing Evermount?"

Ryota opened his mouth, then slowly closed it.

"...No."

"Exactly."

Akari shook her head, though there was no real anger in her expression. "You spend so much time joking around with her that sometimes I wonder whether either of you remembers how to have a normal conversation."

"Hey, we have normal conversations!"

"Name one."

Ryota thought for a moment.

"...We talked about groceries last week."

Akari stared at him.

"That was a household discussion, not a date."

"It was a very important discussion."

"Ryota."

"Alright, alright!"

Akari laughed before continuing. "There's one more thing you should remember. Don't expect Rio to give you an answer about her feelings just because you take her somewhere nice. She's not going to suddenly fall in love with you because you remembered her favorite dessert."

Ryota's expression grew more serious.

"I know."

"Do you?" Akari asked, studying him. "Because if you're serious about her, you need to understand that she might not know what she wants yet. And if she doesn't, you can't rush her into deciding."

Ryota looked down briefly before nodding.

"I don't want to rush her. I just want to spend time with her without having to pretend it's for some other reason."

That answer seemed to satisfy Akari. Her expression softened, and she leaned a little more comfortably against the doorframe.

"Then tell her that. Don't make promises you can't keep, and don't ask her to give you an answer she isn't ready to give. Just be honest about what you want and let her decide what she wants, too."

Ryota remained quiet for a moment, absorbing her advice. He had come to Akari hoping to learn something as simple as Rio's favorite restaurant, but she had given him something far more useful: a reminder that the point of the date wasn't to win Rio over through some elaborate gesture. It was to create an opportunity for the two of them to understand each other better.

He finally smiled.

"...That's actually helpful."

"Of course it is."

Akari folded her arms again. "Just don't mess it up."

Ryota raised a confident thumbs-up. "Don't worry. I've got this."

Akari stared at him.

"...That sentence has never made me feel reassured."

"You're supposed to encourage me!"

"I'm encouraging you to think before you act."

"That's not the same thing!"

Akari laughed and began closing the door. "Good luck, Ryota."

"Thanks."

The door shut, leaving Ryota alone in the hallway. He stared at it for a moment, then slowly nodded to himself.

A quiet restaurant. A relaxed afternoon. No extravagant gestures, no unnecessary pressure, and absolutely no pretending that the date would magically solve every uncertainty between them.

He could do that.

Probably.

Ryota turned toward Rio's room with renewed determination.

"Alright," he whispered to himself. "Let's do this."

When Ryota returned, Rio was still lying on the bed with her phone in hand. She had shifted onto her side, with a pillow tucked beneath her head, and the soft light from the screen illuminated her face as she read something with the concentration of someone who had temporarily forgotten the rest of the world existed.

The moment she heard the door open, she glanced up.

"You're back."

"Yeah..."

Ryota closed the door behind him. Rio studied him for a moment, clearly remembering how strangely he had behaved before leaving.

"Did you manage to ask Akari whatever you needed to ask?"

He nodded. "Yep."

"Good."

Rio returned her attention to her phone, apparently satisfied with that answer. Ryota, however, remained near the doorway for several seconds before walking toward the bed.

Rio noticed his approach and lowered her phone again.

"...What now?"

"Could I ask you something?"

Her expression immediately became cautious. "That depends. Is it going to cause trouble?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Is this another one of your ideas that sounds good until someone has to deal with the consequences?"

Ryota hesitated. "...Probably not."

Rio stared at him.

"Ryota."

"I'm serious!"

She sighed and placed her phone on the bedside table. "Alright. What is it?"

Ryota stopped beside the mattress. For once, he didn't have a joke ready. He wasn't smiling mischievously or trying to provoke a reaction from her. His expression was unusually earnest, and that alone made Rio pay closer attention.

"Everything's fine," he said. "I just wanted to ask you something."

Rio sat up a little straighter. "...Okay?"

Ryota took a breath.

"If you're not too busy tomorrow..."

He paused, suddenly aware of how nervous he was.

"...I was wondering if we could go out together."

Rio blinked.

"Go out?"

"Yeah."

"Where?"

"We could get something to eat, walk around, maybe visit a few places. Nothing too complicated."

Rio watched him carefully, waiting for the familiar punchline that usually followed one of his suspiciously serious statements. When none came, a small crease appeared between her eyebrows.

Ryota took another breath and finally made his intention clear.

"For a date."

The word hung between them.

Rio went completely silent. Her eyes widened slightly, and for a moment, she looked as though she had forgotten how to respond. Ryota waited, suddenly wishing he had rehearsed this conversation a few more times.

He had expected her to laugh at him, call him an idiot, or ask whether he had finally lost his mind. Instead, Rio simply stared at him as if he had presented her with a problem for which none of her usual solutions would work.

After several seconds, she finally spoke.

"...Like a date-date?"

Ryota nodded. "Yeah. A real date."

Rio's lips parted, but no words came out.

She knew Ryota liked teasing her. She knew he occasionally flirted with her simply to see how she would react, and there had been countless moments when he had said something ridiculous, leaving her to decide whether he was being serious or merely trying to get under her skin.

But this was different.

He wasn't laughing, and he wasn't trying to provoke her. He was looking at her with a nervous sincerity she rarely saw from him.

He was serious.

Actually serious.

Rio slowly lowered her gaze, and the first thing that came to mind was the truth.

They were only pretending to be a couple.

She had told her mother and Akari that Ryota was her boyfriend because it had been the simplest way to explain why he needed a place to stay. The lie had protected him from awkward questions and given him time to get back on his feet. It had never been intended to become something more.

Yet somewhere along the way, their relationship had changed.

They had fought together, trusted each other with their lives, shared a home, divided responsibilities, and accumulated countless ridiculous memories. Ryota had become someone she could rely on, someone whose presence had grown so familiar that she sometimes forgot how strange their arrangement had been at the beginning.

He was the person who could make her lose her temper with a single sentence and then somehow make her laugh before she could remain angry. He was also the person who stayed beside her when the jokes ended, who didn't demand that she explain every burden she carried, and who had never treated her strength as a reason she should have to handle everything alone.

She cared about him.

That much was undeniable.

What she didn't understand was what that care meant.

Was it friendship? Gratitude? The comfort of having someone she could trust after spending so long believing she could rely on no one? Or was there something else beneath those feelings, something she had been avoiding because acknowledging it would mean risking the relationship they already had?

Rio looked up again.

"Ryota..."

Her voice was quieter than before.

"We're only pretending to be a couple. You know that, right?"

Ryota nodded immediately. "I know."

There was no hesitation in his answer, no attempt to deny their arrangement or pretend she had misunderstood him. He knew exactly what their relationship was supposed to be.

And he was asking anyway.

Rio watched him, her expression serious. Ryota lowered his eyes briefly before continuing.

"I'm grateful for what we have now. I really am." He gave a small, slightly embarrassed smile. "I never thought we'd get this close when we first met. Honestly, I wasn't even sure you'd let me stay in the same house without throwing me out after the first day."

Rio's mouth twitched. "That was a possibility."

"I know."

"And it remains a possibility."

"See? That's exactly what I mean."

Despite the joke, Ryota's smile faded into something more thoughtful.

"But I still want to get to know you better."

Rio remained silent.

Ryota met her eyes. "I know the whole boyfriend thing started as a lie. I know we're not actually dating, and I'm not asking you to pretend that everything between us has suddenly changed. But that doesn't mean I don't want to know you more than I do now."

He paused, searching for the right words.

"I want to spend time with you without having to pretend we're doing it for some other reason. I want to take you somewhere because I want to be there with you. And..." He scratched the back of his neck, visibly embarrassed. "I want to find out whether there's a chance for us to become something more."

Rio's heart gave a small, unexpected thump.

She looked away, suddenly unable to maintain eye contact.

For a brief moment, another memory surfaced in her mind: a bar, an evening spent drinking after the betrayal that had destroyed her old life, and a young man who had followed her outside to return a forgotten wallet.

Ryota.

In their previous lives, their first encounter had been an absurd disaster. He had somehow turned an ordinary meeting into an awkward marriage proposal on a bridge despite barely knowing her. She had thought he was ridiculous, a nuisance, and perhaps the most confusing person she had ever met.

Then the bridge had collapsed, and their lives had ended before either of them had a chance to understand what that encounter might have meant.

Now, in this second life, he was standing beside her bed and asking her on a date. Not as a joke or a ridiculous proposal from a stranger, but as someone who had gradually become important to her.

The memory should have made her laugh. Instead, it left her feeling strangely vulnerable.

Rio closed her eyes and released a quiet sigh.

Ryota waited without interrupting. He didn't try to fill the silence with another joke, nor did he demand an answer or attempt to persuade her. For once, he simply gave her the space to think.

That made the situation more difficult, not less.

If he had been joking, she could have dismissed him. If he had been careless, she could have scolded him. If he had been trying to take advantage of their arrangement, she could have told him to stop.

But he wasn't doing any of those things.

He was being honest.

And she owed him the same honesty in return.

Rio finally looked at him.

"I need to think about it."

Ryota nodded. "Okay."

"I don't want to give you an answer just because I feel bad about turning you down."

His expression softened. "I wouldn't want that."

"And I don't want you to misunderstand what this means."

Rio looked down at her hands. She had faced countless difficult decisions in Evermount, from choosing which enemies to fight to deciding when to retreat. Those decisions had usually come with clear objectives and consequences she could weigh against one another. This was different. There was no reliable strategy for determining what she felt, and no way to guarantee that the decision she made would leave both of them unharmed.

"I'm grateful that we've become friends," she said at last. "You've helped me more than you probably realize, and I..."

She hesitated, struggling with the unfamiliar difficulty of expressing something without first organizing it into a clear explanation.

"...I care about you."

Ryota's eyes widened slightly.

Rio immediately looked away, her cheeks warming. "Don't make a big deal out of that."

"I wasn't going to."

"You were thinking about it."

"I was thinking about how rare it is to hear you say something nice without immediately insulting me afterward."

"Ryota."

"Sorry."

Despite herself, Rio almost smiled. The familiar exchange eased some of the tension, but it didn't make the question any easier to answer.

She drew a slow breath before continuing.

"But moving forward into something potentially more than friendship is different. I need to understand what I want before I make that decision."

She met his eyes again, forcing herself not to retreat behind another joke.

"So I'll give you my answer tomorrow."

Her voice was steady, but her thoughts were anything but.

Part of her wanted to say yes. The idea of spending a day with Ryota outside their usual routine was appealing in a way she didn't quite know how to explain. She wanted to see what he was like when he wasn't trying to make her angry, and she wanted to find out what it would feel like to spend time with him simply because they had chosen to do so.

Another part of her wanted to say no—not because she disliked him, but because the uncertainty frightened her. Their current relationship worked. They trusted each other, understood one another's habits, and had found a rhythm that made the chaos of their lives easier to endure. If she agreed to explore something more, what would happen if she discovered that her feelings weren't romantic? What if she mistook gratitude and familiarity for love? What if she gave him hope only to hurt him later?

Worse, what if she said no because she was afraid, only to realize that she had turned away from something she genuinely wanted?

Rio had spent years learning how to survive betrayal. She had learned to rely on herself, conceal her weaknesses, and make decisions without allowing emotion to cloud her judgment. Trusting someone had once cost her nearly everything, and even though she knew Ryota wasn't the people who had betrayed her, a small part of her still hesitated whenever a relationship threatened to become important enough to hurt.

She didn't want that fear to make the decision for her.

But she couldn't ignore it, either.

Ryota studied her for a moment before smiling—a small, genuine smile that held no disappointment or resentment.

"Thank you."

Rio blinked. "...For what?"

"For being honest with me."

He rubbed the back of his neck, looking embarrassed again. "I know I put you on the spot. I probably should've thought about how to ask you before suddenly showing up with a date proposal."

"Probably?"

"Definitely."

"Good."

"But I'm glad I asked."

Rio looked at him quietly.

Ryota's smile remained, although there was a trace of nervousness beneath it. "Whatever your answer is tomorrow, I don't want you to think this changes how grateful I am to you. You've already done more for me than I know how to repay."

He paused before adding, "And I'm not going to stop being your friend just because you don't feel the same way."

Rio's expression softened.

For a moment, she found herself looking at him differently. Not as the boy who had barged into her life, nor as the troublesome roommate who constantly tested her patience, but as someone who had decided to tell her the truth despite knowing that she might not give him the answer he wanted.

He was leaving the choice to her.

No demands. No pressure. No expectation that she owed him affection because he had helped her.

"...Thank you," Rio said quietly.

Ryota nodded. "You're welcome."

The room fell silent again, but the silence no longer felt quite as uncomfortable. Something had changed between them, though neither could yet say what that change would become.

Eventually, Rio glanced toward the clock on her bedside table. It was getting late, and tomorrow would bring another day of guild responsibilities, investigations, and whatever trouble Evermount had waiting for them.

She reached for her blanket and pulled it over herself, shifting toward the right side of the bed to leave Ryota room on the other side.

"I'm going to bed," she announced, returning to her usual practical tone. "Turn off the lights when you're ready."

Ryota blinked. "That's it?"

Rio looked at him. "What do you mean, 'that's it'?"

"I just told you I want to take you on a date, and now you're going to sleep?"

"You asked me a question. I told you I'd answer tomorrow."

"Right."

"So why are you acting surprised?"

Ryota opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"...Fair enough."

Rio turned onto her side, facing away from him. "Good night, Ryota."

He smiled faintly. "Good night, Rio."

Ryota stood and switched off the bedside lamp. The room fell into darkness, save for the faint light filtering through the curtains from the street outside. He walked around the bed, carefully avoiding the scattered cables near the desk, before settling beneath the blanket on the left side.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

Rio lay facing the wall, her eyes open despite her declaration that she was going to sleep. Ryota lay on his back, staring at the ceiling. They were separated by only a small space, yet tonight that space felt different.

Nothing had changed in any practical sense. They were still sharing a room, still pretending to be a couple for the sake of Rio's family, and still planning to log back into Evermount the following day.

But Ryota had finally said what he wanted, and Rio had promised to think about it.

Tomorrow, she would have to give him an answer.

The thought should have been simple. She could agree to a date and see how she felt, or she could decline and preserve the friendship they already had. Yet neither option seemed as easy as it should have been, because she couldn't be certain which choice reflected her true feelings and which was simply the safest one.

Rio had always been good at planning for the future. She could calculate risks, identify weaknesses, and prepare for circumstances that would catch other people by surprise. But she couldn't predict what would happen if she allowed herself to want something that had nothing to do with winning, surviving, or protecting someone else.

For once, she didn't have a strategy.

She only had a question she wasn't ready to answer.

After a while, Ryota turned onto his side, careful not to disturb her. Rio heard the movement but didn't look back.

"...Ryota?"

"Hm?"

She hesitated, unsure why she had called his name in the first place. Perhaps she wanted to reassure him that she hadn't rejected him. Perhaps she wanted to make sure he understood that her uncertainty wasn't the same as indifference. Or perhaps she simply wanted to hear his voice once more before the conversation ended for the night.

In the end, she settled for something easier.

"Don't overthink it tonight."

Ryota smiled into the darkness. "I'll try."

"That's not reassuring."

"I know."

A small pause followed. Rio pulled the blanket a little higher, then released a quiet sigh.

"...Good night. For real this time."

Ryota chuckled softly. "Good night."

The conversation ended there, but neither of them fell asleep immediately. Rio continued staring into the darkness, turning over the possibilities she had been too afraid to examine before tonight. Ryota, meanwhile, wondered whether he had made a mistake by asking, even though he knew he would have regretted remaining silent far more.

Neither knew what tomorrow would bring, and neither could predict how a single date might change the relationship they had spent so long pretending was something it wasn't.

But for the first time, the possibility had been spoken aloud.

And neither of them could pretend they hadn't heard it.