He Tilted My Chin Up

♪ Adagio (present) ♪

The tavern was packed with people. Ugh… it reeked of alcohol. But I couldn’t afford to be picky. Surely there had to be at least one person here with a sharp nose. Thinking that, I called out for help.

Then a dog-eared young man with a deep, rugged voice swaggered over to me.

“Now, now, don’t be in such a panic. I’ll look for him after I finish eating, so just wait.”

“I’m in a hurry. He’s about to…”

I swallowed the word die. There was no time to explain something as unreal as a Grim Reaper showing up.

“Oh? I don’t know the details, but he must be someone very important to you. A man, I take it?”

Did he think I was chasing after someone because of romance? I had no idea what kind of expression I’d made, but the dog-eared boy seemed to read something from it and nodded knowingly.

“What’s his name?”

“I’m Adagio.”

“No, not your name. The man’s name. The name of the man who made a fine woman like you cry.”

He pressed in and forced me back against the wall with sheer presence.

I hesitated over whether I should say it. I hadn’t heard all the details of Poet’s circumstances, but he seemed to be a wanted fugitive of a very different kind from Allegro. Was it really okay to say his name here?

“Well…”

“Poet?”

He guessed the name. Why? I wondered, and followed his gaze to the bow tie I was holding.

Sure enough, it had Poet embroidered on it. In an ancient script.

“Don’t tell me this is Poet, the wanted man from the Rabbit Kingdom.”

The man started trembling. Was he someone trying to capture Poet? Was it really safe to tell him who Poet was?

I hesitated badly. My eyes must have been darting all over the place.

“Th-that’s…”

Without waiting for my answer, the dog-eared boy hooked a finger under my chin and tilted it up.

Ugh… I’d only just gotten a girl’s body, and somehow I’d already racked up way too much “girl experience” in no time at all. How was I supposed to get out of this? I didn’t know anything about romance! Somebody help!

“Well, that settles it. It really is Poet. There’s rabbit kingdom embroidery on it.”

“Help me…”

I squeezed the words out. They carried both meanings at once—help me, and help Poet.

“Fine.”

He let me go. Then, after turning away for a moment, he spun back and pointed a finger right in front of my nose again.

“But my fee is your kiss.”

Oh. Just a kiss? That’s all? I mean, that’s not so bad, it’s just—
Whaaaaaat!?

If I kissed him, I’d end up head over heels for him! That would be a disaster!

“You want to save that guy called Poet, don’t you?”

It felt like he was holding my determination hostage. Was this man actually a bad person? B-but I had no choice except to rely on him. If Poet was about to die, then I…

I straightened my eyes with resolve and faced him.

“Understood. I will offer you my kiss.”

I shut my eyes and steeled myself.

“I didn’t say right now. Later’s fine. You’re in a hurry, aren’t you? Here, let me see that bow tie.”

The dog-eared boy lifted the bow tie and sniffed it.

“West. I smell that rabbit’s fluffy scent coming from the west… mixed with the smell of blood.”

The smell of blood? W-what!? Then I had to hurry!