"Let's start our date."
When Loki said this in a flat tone, Reaper pinched the bridge of her nose and looked down.
"Date... Right, yes, we're on a date..."
Reaper's face turned bright red as she avoided his gaze. She tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat. Loki found her embarrassment charming and struggled to suppress a laugh.
"Are you going to laugh at me...?"
"…No."
"Why are you hesitating?!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Loki burst into laughter at her adorable reaction.
"Hahaha...!"
His laughter made Reaper pout. She clenched the hem of her clothes, feeling embarrassed, before reaching for her Pocket Pouch hidden inside her dress.
Loki noticed this and went silent.
"No violence, please...?" he said helplessly.
Moments later, they began walking together through the bustling city.
As they strolled, Reaper stole a glance at the man beside her and leaned in slightly, curiosity getting the better of her. "Where have you been these past few days after everything that happened?"
They paused to admire the dresses displayed in a nearby shop.
With a sigh, Loki replied, "After I told you to leave me, I kept running until I found a safe place to teleport. Just a day ago, I ended up in the eastern part of the city after sneaking through a portal, just like I mentioned in the letter."
Reaper's mind drifted back to last night when a crow had flown into her window, carrying a letter. She remembered how startled she had been by the suddenness of it all. She thought about the communication artifact they used had been specifically created for them, but realized that it was a unique tool that didn't exist in their world before.
"…Did you miss me?"
His unexpected question jolted her back to reality. A blush crept onto her cheeks as she pushed him away a few inches, irritation flooding her.
"Shut up! There's no way I'd miss a guy like you!" she retorted, crossing her arms defiantly.
Loki chuckled at her flustered reaction, falling into step beside her as they continued walking. Despite his attempts to engage her in conversation, her pout remained steadfast, and she ignored all his advances.
Frustrated by her childish behavior, he finally said, "Why don't you stop acting like a sulky child? Aren't you a little too old for that?"
"How rude! Just so you know, I'm the youngest in the group."
"...Wait, seriously? I figured you were in your early twenties with that attitude."
"No way! I'm barely sixteen. Our leader turns seventeen this year, the mage who helped us is already eighteen, and our petite sniper? She's twenty-two!"
"You're serious...?"
"Yup."
Loki took a few steps back, disbelief etched on his face. "I'm dating a minor!?"
Panic flared in his eyes as he turned to leave, but Reaper grabbed his shoulder, holding him in place despite his attempts to break free.
"Let me go! Even professionals have their standards!" he protested, flustered.
"Standards? Is that what you call it?" she shot back, a smirk creeping onto her lips. "Looks like you've got some reconsidering to do."
His brow furrowed hidden inside his mask, torn between embarrassment and intrigue. With a reluctant sigh, he replied, "Maybe I need to rethink my life choices."
Reaper laughed, a soft sound that melted away the tension. "Too late for that."
They finally reached their destination.
In front of them was a huge casino building.
"I'll make sure to reap you off this time!"
Reaper showed an "okay" gesture to him.
***
An hour later.
Reaper was sitting alone with with her cards, looking visibly pale.
"C-call..." She said, slowly lowering her cards to the table.
Loki grinned inside his mask as he hummed. He placed his card down and said, "How many times have you lost to me by now?"
" ..shut it."
Reaper lowered her head as her fist started clenching. Soon enough, thanks to his teasing, the fuse on her head finally overloaded.
"What are you even bad of!?" She asked, slamming both of her hands to the table as she looked Loki with determination.iainting?"
Her expression instantly brightened upon hearing it.
"Then let's do that! I'll make sure I beat you and draw the—"
...
..
.
"Nooooooo....!!!"
As soon as she saw his painting, Reaper's knees fell as she dropped on the floor, looking lifeless.
"How are you so perfect at everything...?"
"Not really. The lines in this part are off... I had to repeat some off the parts by repainting them again each time I make mistakes. I'm a perfectionist."
"Line off...? What's that? What kind of lie are you blabbering about? You try looking at mine! It's hideous!"
Reaper pick up her painting before shoving it in his face. Fortunately, the paint had already been dried couple of hours ago, so only few part stick on his face.
Saber wiped his face with his right forearm and scrutinized the painting.
Seeing the stunning painting of a night sky with a moonlight casting shadow to the rock small rock formations, the corner of his lips twitched.
"You must really like rocks, huh..."
He took the painting from her and flipped it towards her direction.
"To be honest, I like your painting more than mine."
"Like it? Yeah, right... You're just saying that to flirt with me."
"Not really. Unlike mine, yours felt more deep. You draw with your emotions. Each strokes of your lines had your emotions poured into it. The colors of night sky, even though it is still afternoon, you managed to replicate it almost perfectly. Not to mention, the painting itself reflect in a way that can describe—"
"Okay, stop it! You're making me feel embarrassed."
Reaper tiptoed and shoved her hands towards him in attempt to move his face away from her. Loki just chuckled off before backing away. He put down her painting and sat down on the grassy ground.
"If I'm being honest, I hate this painting more than you hate yours... I say this painting since this is more of a carbon copy of one of the painting I saw back at the museum."
"Museum...?"
She tilted her head, confused. She had never seen that kind of painting before.
"This may have been a copy, but you've still copied it perfectly!" She insisted.
"Yeah, maybe so... The strokes, the lines and even shape, but I still failed to copy one thing that artist has."
"And that is?"
With a short pause, he answered.
"Creativity."
"...huh?"
"Each artist are creative in their own way. You, Miss Reaper, are talented. You are very creative in expressing your emotions in your painting. If I can describe my feelings for your painting, I'll say that it's love at first sight!"
"Eh? Ah.... Ah haha... Kuhehe.... Yeah... Mmmm....."
Reaper's face instantly became red after hearing compliments after compliments. It was to the point she had to cover her ears out of embarrassment.
"You're a very creative person, and I want to see you painting more from you..."
Combined with his bright smile, the sun rays behind him made him look as if he was shining. It looked perfect.
Ba-dump!
"Ah..."
She felt her heart beating fast as her eyes remained fixed on Loki.
"...Keep up the good work, Miss Reaper."
Saying so, the masked man fixed his mask turned around. However, before he could walk away, Reaper took his wrist.
"Umm... Miss Reap—"
"Eleanor!"
"...yes?"
He saw her reddened face. The smile she was showing was awkward, her eyes wandering around to avoid his gaze but ended up interlocking with his' the moment it landed on his direction.
"That's my real name... Please call me that."
"....."
She slowly let go of him and gripped on the hem of her clothes. Their eyes never left each other as both of them waited for the other to speak up.
Seeing that the masked man before her remained silent, Reaper... No, Eleanor gathered up her courage to ask him, "Can I see you without your mask?"
Again, silence shrouded the atmosphere. Because of the awkwardness, Loki hesitantly spoke up.
"Sorry, but... It'll be dangerous for me if I were to say my real identity to you," he declined, sounding apologetic. Eleanor opened and closed her mouth a couple of times in attempt to speak, but stopped herself.
"I see... So you still can't trust me that much."
"Sor—"
"Too bad for you, I'm still doing this."
Before Loki could even say something, Eleanor pulled his collar and—
...
..
.
As soon as he left, Eleanor... No, Reaper remained seated on the ground, contemplating about what she did. Her face remained red as she stared down on the dandelion before her.
Hand clutched on her chest, while the other on the grass.
She felt her face heating up, smokes coming from her head, causing her to drop flatly on ground. She laid on the grass, face looking up the sky as she observed the moving clouds.
Ba-dump!
Ba-dump!
Ba-dump!
Reaper raised her other hand and slammed it on the ground. It caused the earth around her to quake, revealing a small crater as the dust cleared up.
Annoying...
She thought to herself with gritted teeth.
"Why did I even do that!!"