I was waiting in front of a fountain. It was the weekend so I had the day off. My work hours as an administrative officer was from morning to afternoon on weekdays. I could have the day off whenever it was the weekend. It was an ideal schedule and I was completely satisfied with it.

“Good day, Mikage”, a woman greeted me.

She had blue hair and was wearing a cute white dress. A pair of glasses was on her face and her smile was gentle. For one day, she was going to be on a date with me. Although I never had a date before, I had no choice but to accept it. Yep. I was a complete amateur in these kinds of things.

I know that I told Amelia that I had no problem with girls but... talking to popular idols was a hurdle. That’s right. The girl in front of me was a popular idol named Suisei Hoshimachi.

###

It all started when Amelia asked me to go to her office. I wondered what was wrong since Amelia never asked for help unless it was offered first. It was great to think that she views me as someone capable of helping her but at the same time, I was nervous. When I was finished with work, I went there and saw Suisei sitting on a couch.

“Mikage, glad you could come”, Amelia greeted me.

“You said you needed help... And I admit I’m a bit confused why you need me to go on a date”, I said.

“About that... Let me introduce you to my client, Suisei Hoshimachi.”

“Suisei?? Sounds familiar...”

“Of course it sounds familiar. She’s a popular idol!”

Ah. I remembered seeing some of her posters on the streets. Also, some of the knights in my unit would talk about her. I think I heard some of her songs before when some of the knights would play music in the barrack’s cafeteria. She had a nice voice and her singing was great.

“So? Why would a popular idol hire you?” I asked.

“It’s better if I show this to you”, Amelia showed me several photos.

There were pictures of Suisei walking on the streets and visiting shops. They were shot from a distance and I could tell they were stolen shots. It was quite good actually. Kind of like what paparazzis do.

“I kept on receiving pictures and letters about my whereabouts. For example, in this letter, it showed my location at a given time. And at the end of every letter, the words “I’m always watching you” are there”, Suisei said.

“So you got a creepy stalker. And you hired Amelia to find out the stalker’s identity?” I asked and she nodded.

“And this is where you come in, Mikage... I need you to go on a date with Suisei”, Amelia said.

“So that the stalker would get jealous and we would lure him out... I see. But why me?”

“First of all, you’re a knight so you could easily protect her if the situation becomes rough... Also, you’re the only guy I knew who I could trust with the safety of my client.”

“And you’re okay with this?” I asked the idol.

“I trust Amelia’s decisions so if she says that you’re a good person, then I will believe it”, Suisei answered.

###

And so we decided to meet up today in front of the plaza. Although this was just pretend, I still felt nervous. I was once a delinquent and a video game nerd. Back in my world, people would look at me and say, “That guy’s not gonna get a girlfriend” since I would geek out with my friends on video games. I never thought I would get a date in another world.

“So... What should we do?” I asked her.

“To tell you the truth, I’ve never been on dates before so I don’t know”, she said.

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Ah crap.... It’s her first date too? Wait a minute... This was just pretend so it doesn’t count. That’s right.... So there was absolutely no pressure on me. I was just a guy who was on a pretend date with a popular idol who just happened to be on her first date...

Now that I think about it, a woman would complain online that “all men are trash/ cheapskate” and throw whatever insults when their date would mess up their outing back in my old world.... Ah great... I was practically representing every man out there. If I mess up, Suisei would think bad of men. And if she would talk bad about men, her female fans would also think bad of them. So the fate of every man’s reputation was on my hands?! This was too much pressure!!

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Y-Yeah. Just fine... For starters, why don’t we walk around?” I said.

Since this was just a pretend date, I didn’t make any plans. However, the reputation of every man was on my hands and I couldn’t afford to mess up.

Suisei and I walked down the streets. What do guys do on dates? I remembered a dating simulation game that I once played. Although I got the bad endings and couldn’t get a girl’s ending without a walkthrough, they might be helpful.

Now then! My limited knowledge on gal games! Come to me!

Three choices appeared in my mind.

1: Talk about the weather.

2: Compliment her outfit.

3: “Shall we hold hands?”

“So... Nice weather we’re having”, I said.

Wait a minute... Why did I choose that option?! Talking about the weather was lame! Choice 3 was too risky and choice 1 was too lame. It was obvious that choice 2 was the safe one! Aaaggh! Why am I having a post-choice clarity?!

“Yeah. It’s a great day”, she replied.

More choices appeared in my mind.

1: “Spending your day off with me must suck.”

2: Ask about her work.

3: Lie that you’re a huge fan.

“Is being an idol difficult?” I chose the second option.

Choice 1 made me sound like a sad boy and that would ruin the mood of the date. And if I choose choice 3, the mood would become awkward if I slip up and she would find out that I was lying.

“It’s tiring. I have to keep my body fit so that I can dance and I have to train my voice so I can sing. But seeing the smiles of my fans make it worth it”, she answered.

“I see. I’m just a plain old administrative officer so I wasn’t that active in protecting Westa’s peace. But I get how you are feeling since our vice-captain could relax since his workload decreased.”

“What about your captain?”

“Captain Noel is really reliable on the battlefield. Heck, she can even go toe-to-toe against a dragon. But when it comes to paperwork, she would just let them pile up. That’s why our vice-captain was really happy that I was assigned to their unit.”

“I heard about Noel Shirogane’s exploits. Many young girls look up to her because of her strength and how she breezed through the knight academy’s practical examination. It’s also quite amazing how she became a captain at a young age.”

Another set of choices appeared in my mind.

1: Praise Captain Noel.

2: Complain about Captain Noel.

3: “You’re as amazing as her.”

“She’s amazing but you’re just as amazing as her. You actively pursue your dreams while making people happy”, I said.

Wait a minute... Was I flirting? Wait... Did that even count as flirting? Did that creep her out? If it was creepy, I would dig a hole and never come out of it.

“Thanks. I’m happy with where I am right now. Being able to sing my heart out feels great”, she smiled.

Silence ruled between the two of us... How come no choices were appearing in my mind?! Hey!!

“I have a question for you, Mikage.”

“Ask away.”

“What’s your type?”

That was a hard question.

“Why are you asking?”

“It’s my first time interacting this much with a guy. So I wondered what kind of girls you like.”

“Hmmm... I never really thought about it. I’m not really that picky with girls. If I like her, then I like her.”

“So that means I have a chance with you?”

Wait a minute... Was she flirting with me?

“Theoretically, yes. But this is just a pretend date”, I said.

“Why don’t we ignore that part? I’ll treat this as a real date”, Suisei winked at me.

“Uhhhh... O-Okay... Yeah... We might be overcomplicating things if we think it’s just pretending. And that stalker wouldn’t get jealous if we don’t do it properly.”

I saw a poster with the words, “Polka Circus in Town!”

“Polka Circus?” I asked.

“I heard it’s a pretty popular traveling circus. What great timing. Should we go watch it?” Suisei suggested.

“Okay then.”

“Then let’s go”, she grabbed my hand and led the way.

I never thought my first hand-holding experience would come in this world.