Chapter 75: Expensive Friendship

Reysir, who had been the most talkative today, briefly left his seat, but that didn’t cause any awkward silence.

That was thanks to Hailga, who skillfully kept the conversation flowing.

She didn’t bring up any particularly special topics like ‘photos.’

Rather, it was quite the opposite.

It was the kind of small, everyday chatter that didn’t really need narration—or rather, it felt natural to omit any further detail.

It was no different from the usual conversations they had while eating in the Dining Hall.

Only the location had changed.

Even so, the atmosphere felt different from usual, and the participants’ attitudes toward the conversation were noticeably altered.

Vigdis, who normally seemed timid and hesitant when speaking, now smiled brightly and spoke up actively.

Liolikin also joined the conversation more frequently than usual.

Despite this change in him, Hailga showed no discomfort; instead, she listened attentively and responded appropriately.

Yor was excited and purring happily, and Reysir, having quickly returned to his seat, naturally rejoined with a cheerful expression and added to the conversation.

As for me, I only spoke when someone directly addressed me, as usual…

‘Something about this feels… enjoyable…? Ah, no. What on earth am I thinking right now?’

I almost let my guard down, swept up by the relaxed atmosphere.

From now on, I must remember I’m trapped in a tiger’s den and stay alert.

Otherwise, I might be swallowed up by the flow of the original story.

I steadied my resolve and casually wiped the corner of my mouth with a napkin, subtly suppressing the upward curl of my lips that wanted to escape.

“Looks like everyone’s finished eating. Should we settle the bill and head out soon?”

“Oh, about the bill—I already took care of it earlier, so we can just leave.”

Reysir said this unexpectedly, stopping Hailga from pressing the button to call a staff member.

‘Was his earlier excuse about going to the bathroom just a pretext? Had he actually paid for the food beforehand?’

I wasn’t the only one surprised by his words.

Everyone stared blankly at Reysir.

“Ah… th-thank you…”

“Why are you the one paying?”

My voice, laced with dissatisfaction, overlapped with Vigdis’s grateful words.

Caught by my glare, Vigdis shut her mouth, but this wasn’t the time to worry about that.

‘I recall the menu prices were quite steep…’

Room-Style Restaurants naturally have fewer customers relative to their space compared to regular restaurants.

So it’s only natural that the cost includes a fee for the exclusive space, making it pricier.

Yet Reysir had deliberately chosen a Room-Style Restaurant to accommodate me.

He had noticed that I was always self-conscious about the eyes around me.

Not to mention…

Considering the tastes of this rare noble’s vessel, he must have carefully checked the quality and flavor of the food as well.

In other words, we ended up at such an expensive restaurant all because of me.

I even ordered two portions, including Yor’s share.

“This gathering was my idea. And I wanted to buy you a meal as a way of saying thanks for your future help.”

Still, it felt strange.

‘Why would the person strapped for cash be the one to pay, leaving someone who seemingly had plenty of money off the hook?’

But I couldn’t say this out loud.

Doing so would hurt his pride deeply.

So I decided to pick a fight about something else instead.

“What exactly are you asking for in the future? Who decided that?”

“If you’re worried about my financial situation, don’t be. I used to eat out every day, but now that I can have school meals, I’m doing better financially.”

Reysir seemed to know exactly what I was thinking and brought up money himself first.

His grin almost seemed to say, ‘I know you’re holding back for my sake.’

It made me uneasy for some reason.

“Wasn’t it because of me that you wasted money eating outside all this time?”

“Still, I can’t just make you pay when you only came reluctantly.”

“Why not? I was the one who booked such an expensive restaurant, so I could use that as an excuse. I could even demand reimbursement for all the money you wasted eating outside.”

“Fine, I’ll correct that. It’s not that I couldn’t make you pay; I just didn’t want to. Happy now?”

“What exactly do you mean by ‘happy’?”

“……”

Suddenly, Reysir fell silent and stared intently at me.

Then he let out a deep sigh.

“What’s that reaction supposed to mean…?”

“Actually, I asked Liolikin a few days ago. About you, Liolikin, and Tridric—when the three of you hang out, eat, or attend exhibitions, how do you handle the payments?”

I didn’t even need to hear Liolikin’s answer.

There was no way a duke’s son would be freeloading off the counts.

Especially Karvald Austri, who was arrogant and proud, having grown up under a father who paid for everything without giving him attention.

‘Of course, he would naturally take on the role of the payer!’

Feeling a headache coming on, I silently massaged my forehead.

I understood why Reysir tried to pay first, even using the bathroom as an excuse.

If he didn’t, I would have paid without giving him a chance to stop me.

More importantly, if everyone silently accepted that as a given, I’d think they were just keeping me around to use me.

Reysir clearly wanted to avoid such a situation from ever happening.

“I dragged you into this with a half-hearted excuse because I genuinely thought it would be fun to hang out together. I have no intention of making you pay for the fun. Not just me—everyone else feels the same way.”

‘Was he now trying to open a friendship route by pulling in others since no amount of solo charm events could do the trick?’

His effort was admirable, but the claim that everyone else felt that way was a huge mistake.

Last semester, I made Tridric my financial sponsor for this vessel, and Liolikin had reported that to Reysir.

I shot a glance at Liolikin.

“Uh, well… last semester, Tridric…”

“Liolikin.”

“Uh, um, sorry… I didn’t mean to, but still…”

Liolikin tried to shift responsibility to the absent Tridric but quickly corrected himself at Reysir’s scolding and apologized.

He must have been scolded by Reysir without me around.

“It’s pocket change to me, so I don’t really care. But if you truly feel guilty, then just consider it paying me back for all the meals you’ve had, and you can cover the cost of the photo shoot.”

“Y-yes! I will!”

“Wait a moment! Even if we all get two copies of the photos, it only costs about the price of a cake.”

Hailga interrupted Liolikin’s trailing statement.

I had no idea what cake she was referring to, but it was clear the photo shoot cost far less than what I’d guessed.

Since it was a newly commercialized technology, I had assumed it would be expensive—but apparently not.

‘Still, one cake’s price is too cheap… Could it be they’re not talking about a studio with a professional photographer and a fancy set, but just using a photo booth to take four quick shots themselves?’

It was a ridiculous thought, but given this novel’s world, it didn’t seem impossible.

“How about making Liolikin pay for the photo studio and the board game room too?”

Reysir’s words confirmed my suspicion.

Since we were planning to go to the board game room, the photo place Hailga mentioned was definitely an instant photo booth.

‘This is really absurd… I’m possessed in a fantasy novel, yet here we are eating, taking photos, and going to a board game room… What’s next, a karaoke session?’

I doubted Senna would have included karaoke machines in this world, but the presence of Aether Engineering devices reminded me of modern conveniences.

With an Aether Espresso Machine existing here, I couldn’t let my guard down.

“Liolikin, what do you think about Reysir’s suggestion?”

“I mean paying not only for the photo shoot but also all expenses at the board game room. Any objections?”

“Uh, none!”

Mentioning the board game room out loud made me feel a strange mix of reality shock and disconnect.

Anyway, I had at least achieved half my goal of easing Reysir’s financial burden.

Now it was time to complete the rest.

“I’ll pay for dinner.”

“Is that really necessary? We could just split the bill. Dutch pay is pretty common these days.”

“Do you think I’m unaware of that? That’s not why I offered to pay for dinner.”

“Then what is it? You’ve already booked another expensive restaurant, and you want to reduce my burden by considering my wallet?”

‘Was it because Reysir was the protagonist that he was so perceptive?’

‘Or was I just an easy person to read?’

Suppressing my displeasure, I lifted my chin and arrogantly rebutted.

“Don’t misunderstand. I’m doing this for my own pride. I can’t maintain my dignity by freeloading.”

“So you mean don’t feel burdened financially or emotionally? Thanks.”

“I said that’s not it…”

“Uh-huh, okay~. It’s not that~. I just misunderstood~.”

“……”

“Right, pride is important. Well then~ well then~.”

“……”

“I believe you. I really do~.”

“Shut your mouth…”

“Cough, cough…”

When I told Reysir to stop teasing me, he shut his mouth but ended up laughing anyway.

His irritating attitude made my face flush.

Then…

“Sis, about your fiancé—Is he mad right now? Or just embarrassed?”

“Hmm…? To me, he looks embarrassed…”

“Then it must be embarrassment. The fiancée’s eyes are definitely more accurate than a total stranger’s.”

“I-I’m right. My eyes are accurate. Kar and I are engaged, after all…!”

I heard Hailga and Vigdis whispering nearby.

I wanted to snap at Vigdis, asking what was right about that, but unfortunately, I couldn’t.

Because of Clause 4 of the Disengagement Contract, I wasn’t allowed to speak to her first.