Chapter 68
"Welcome back. Three sugar cubes in your cocoa again today?"
"Alice does like that, but since filming is over, I'll have whatever Ms. Emerald recommends."
"Well, look who's being picky. Fine. I'll make it appropriately sweet, so give it a taste. Even if I don't look it, I make one hell of a cup of coffee. Do you like it bitter, or moderately sweet?"
"Still, I'd like it moderately sweet to suit Alice."
"Got it. Neither of us has much time, so I called you here for a quick chat. I can't keep you long."
Thank goodness. If she'd wanted to keep me there for hours, it would have been quite troublesome.
-Tap
"Here. Try it."
"I'll drink it gratefully."
-Sip
'...Oh.'
It was genuinely quite good. I didn't particularly enjoy coffee, but if even I found it tasty, Emerald wasn't just talking—she really had a knack for making coffee.
"It's quite good. Alice is impressed, too."
"I'm getting a compliment from that expensive mouth of yours. Anyway, how does it feel to be done filming? Hasn't it been years since you did a long shoot like this? Seven? Eight years? Something like that?"
"That was around when Alice started giving her juniors opportunities to shine, I think."
"You don't plan to return after this shoot? You haven't changed much, so I bet your albums would still sell like hotcakes, just like they did back then."
"I'll pass. Alice's charm isn't limited to that."
"Then show some of it, you little brat..."
I let Emerald's scolding wash over me and swallowed some coffee as well.
"Well, I expected this. Anyway, congratulations on wrapping filming safely. I heard you're doing one additional episode shoot? Since it wasn't in the original schedule, I'll double the appearance fee for one episode. Is that okay?"
"Alice will be satisfied if you do that."
"Someone who could make several times that much if she put her mind to it—why aren't you greedy about money?"
"Because Alice's light can't be bought with money?"
"It's because you won't sell it."
Emerald seemed to be getting worked up, so she gulped down the coffee she'd made and stood up.
"Anyway. You said you'd accept gifts, right? I'm not good with words, and I've been busy, so I couldn't write you a letter. Pick one of these."
As she spoke, Emerald pointed to a table displaying five or six bottles of liquor that looked like wine.
"Is it wine?"
"Have you ever had any?"
"What do you take Alice for?"
...No. Thinking about it, I might have tasted it before, but I couldn't properly remember anything.
It wasn't as if I went to family restaurants alone. I didn't like alcohol to begin with; if I was truly depressed, I might down some soju or beer by myself, but wine? No matter how hard I thought about it, I didn't think I'd ever had any.
'...Why drink that bitter, tasteless stuff?'
I still couldn't understand people who drank it occasionally because they actually liked the taste.
"You can't tell what it is just by looking, can you? Pick something that looks nice. They're all pretty much the same anyway."
"It obviously looks expensive."
"If I'm giving you a gift, do you think I'd give you something cheap? It is expensive. But it's not some astronomically expensive liquor straight out of a movie... Still, it must cost tens or hundreds of thousands, right?"
...How many chickens would one bottle of liquor like this cost? I really didn't understand it.
Even if I took it, I didn't enjoy alcohol, and I enjoyed fancy hard liquor even less... But Alice never refused gifts. I could break character a little with Emerald, but given this woman's personality, she'd just sulk and demand something strange. I might as well accept it politely, stick it in the back corner of my refrigerator, and open it by myself on a special occasion.
"I'll take this one."
"You're really going with that? I'll give you a chance to change your mind."
"Alice trusts Alice's choices. So I'll take this one."
"How boring. Can't you at least pretend to agonize over it?"
"But how do I drink this? Do I just pour it into a glass?"
"There is a proper way to drink it, but I don't know if you'd listen even if I explained. Just look it up online when the time comes. It'll explain everything in detail."
"So it's okay to pour it into a beer glass and drink it?"
"Just drink it however you want. It's not like you'll crack this open on a date with your boyfriend. It's for drinking; once it goes into your mouth, it's all the same."
...This was coming from the person who had given me liquor worth tens or hundreds of thousands.
Wasn't there usually a whole process of pouring something like this into a wineglass, savoring its aroma, and so on?
...Now that I thought about it, even if she explained all that, I didn't think I'd follow the instructions. This woman had seen right through me. She knew Alice was a persona, but she shouldn't have known my actual personality.
Maybe she'd known me long enough to predict that much... or maybe she was genuinely too lazy to explain it...
'...Both?'
"Ah. Still, if you want to drink it properly, use a wineglass. I have a few unopened new ones, so I'll pack them with you later."
"...If you're offering, I'll gratefully accept."
"Ah. It's already gotten this late. You know my number, right? If you ever urgently need money or there's a program you'd like to do, call me anytime. You're always welcome."
"I'll think about it."
...Come to think of it, my luggage had suddenly increased. And with things that broke easily, too.
"Oh. You're flying home, right? Wait here. I'll put a spell on it so it won't break."
"Thank you for your consideration."
'Oh. Nice.'
It was one of the rare moments when I thought this woman had some sense.
* * *
"Miss Mia, you've worked hard as well. It was a pleasure filming with you."
"Aw, I had fun thanks to you, too, Sister Sapphire. Please call me often if you need me in the future. I'm free anyway."
"Would that be all right even if Miss Alice doesn't appear to have any new shoots planned for a while? I thought you'd only participate in programs featuring Miss Alice."
"Umm... It is true that I follow Senior around, but if I just sat around because Senior wasn't appearing, I'd never accomplish anything. She told me I need to earn a lot while there is work."
"I don't know who told you that... but it's sound advice. And a B-rank support-type magical girl is welcome on any program. I'll review the list of programs being run by the company, ask what they need, and contact you afterward. Since you're still young, I'll look primarily for jobs that wrap up within a few weeks."
"Oh. Then are you my manager, Sister Sapphire?"
"If you decide to properly begin entertainment activities as a magical girl, I can do that for you, but you're not quite at that point yet."
"Tch. So rigid."
After Senior went upstairs to talk with Ms. Emerald, I discussed the end of filming with Sister Sapphire at the magical-girl café.
Looking back, I'd just barged in because I'd heard it was a program Senior was appearing on... So it was lucky they accepted me.
Thanks to that, I got closer to Senior... and was able to develop this kind of relationship with Senior.
'Ehehe...'
When I thought about it that way, this program really was my benefactor. Even if I hadn't learned Senior's secret, it had been a happy month simply getting to watch Senior teach earnestly for an hour during every shoot.
They even paid me for doing something fun. Was making money really this easy?
Now that Senior wouldn't be filming anything for a while, I'd be far from that kind of joy, though.
'...Maybe Senior would appear if I persuaded them properly?'
I'd never even considered threatening Senior with their secret, of course... But we'd gotten pretty close lately, so if I tried to persuade Senior, there might be a chance.
If Senior really didn't want to appear on broadcasts, I had no intention of forcing them.
-Sip
"You still drink beverages like that."
"It's fun. You can do it too, Sister Sapphire! Once you get the hang of it..."
"I'll pass. It would be troublesome if I got my white clothes wet, too."
"Oh, right."
I'd been doing it without thinking, but now that she mentioned it, if I drank a beverage this way while wearing white, the area around my chest would get wet.
The chest area of my magical-girl outfit was black, so I hadn't given it much thought, but it would be troublesome for Sister Sapphire.
Senior... couldn't do this, right? It would be weird if Senior could in the first place.
'...I used to think Senior just had a somewhat slender build.'
-Sip
I never imagined Senior might actually be a man. How could someone with that appearance be male? If people were shown a picture of Senior, all one hundred of them would answer that Senior was a woman.
"Speaking of which, how is your romance going, Miss Mia? That man, I mean. I was wondering if your date went well."
"...Uh, um... well, that..."
My mind stopped for a moment.
If she asked whether it was going well... I could feel that our relationship itself was much closer than before.
But... we hadn't grown closer purely as a romantic couple... We'd become close because we'd somehow become accomplices sharing a secret... If I answered incorrectly, she might get suspicious...
-Slide
"Here you are. Are you having an after-party without Alice?"
"S-Senior!"
"You're here."
Just then, Senior arrived at exactly the right moment. I didn't know how to answer, so it was perfect timing.
"An after-party... Come to think of it, filming is over. Shall we have a little party? Was there cake here?"
"Yes, there is. They said they have everything from small cakes for dessert to party-sized cakes."
"I see! Then... we'll need a cake big enough for three people. Could you get one, Miss Sapphire? I'll say goodbye to Miss Mia while you're gone."
"Of course. I'll be right back."
-Swoosh
After Sister Sapphire left... I looked around, then whispered into Senior's ear.
"S-Senior! Sister Sapphire asked me how my love life has been going lately. How should I answer that?"
Senior always gave clear answers, so they'd surely give me another simple, brilliant answer this time, too.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Senior?"
But... they're taking a little while...?