Late January, weekend.

Having gotten through a storm of New Year events like the sleepover and the kindergarten teacher’s sudden invasion, I was now at a large shopping mall in the city with my mom.

"Hmm, I guess red-toned coats are trending this winter... Hey Shizuku, which do you think suits me more, this bordeaux one or that camel one?"

"Your skin’s fair, so the bordeaux one will brighten up your face more, right? Pair it with a black turtleneck underneath and it’ll look perfect."

"Oh my, as expected of my daughter. That’s a precise answer."

Standing in front of the mirror in the women’s clothing section, I gave safe yet accurate advice, drawing on my past life experience of accompanying female coworkers on shopping trips.

In this world with a male-to-female ratio of 1:15, a shopping mall is a ‘battlefield.’

Ninety percent of the women passing by were fully made up and armed, even for casual shopping, all to catch the eye of the rare man who might appear.

Naturally, most of the mall floor was occupied by stores for women, with men’s shops tucked away in corners almost as an afterthought.

"Alright, I’m going to try on this coat, so wait on that bench over there, Shizuku. Don’t go wandering off, got it?"

"Yeah yeah, got it."

Seeing my mom happily disappear into the fitting room, I plopped down on a nearby sofa and let out a quiet breath, absentmindedly watching the well-dressed women passing by.

Peaceful.

Aoi’s overly heavy affection, Anju’s troublesome tsundere nature, and Misaki-sensei’s completely broken emotions weren’t here.

Just an ordinary calm day.

—That’s what I thought, letting my guard down.

"...Hic... uu... uuu..."

Suddenly, a faint crying voice reached my ears through the noise of the crowd.

Looking toward the source, I saw a small girl standing alone behind a pillar a short distance away.

She looked about my age, maybe a little younger.

The first thing that caught my eye was her hair.

In a world full of colorful hair, hers was a pure silver, like it had been spun directly from moonlight.

And the eyes shedding large tears were a deep sapphire blue that seemed to pull you in.

Her clothes, too, were a high-quality doll-like dress adorned with frills and ribbons, making her look like a fairy straight out of a Northern European fairy tale.

'...Lost child.'

The surrounding adults were too busy shopping and competing with each other to notice the small fairy crying behind the pillar.

With a small sigh, I stood up from the sofa.

Since my past life, I’ve never been able to ignore kids or women in trouble.

"Hey, what’s wrong? Did you get separated from your mom?"

So as not to scare her, I lowered myself to match her eye level and spoke gently.

The silver-haired girl flinched and looked at me with tear-filled blue eyes.

"M-Maman... où est ma maman?"

The words that came from her lips weren’t Japanese.

Her trembling voice desperately tried to convey something.

'...Not English. That nasal tone and the way the R sounds... French.'

I opened the drawer of my past life memories.

Back when I traveled to Canada to improve my snowboarding skills, I didn’t just stay in English-speaking Whistler, I also spent a long time in Quebec, a French-speaking region, chasing good powder snow.

Drinking with local snowboarders every night and communicating through sheer momentum, I had picked up everyday-level French and English.

"Salut. Tu t'es perdue? Ne t'inquiète pas, je vais t'aider. 'Hey. Are you lost? Don’t worry, I’ll help you.'"

When I replied with a perfectly natural pronunciation, the silver-haired girl blinked in surprise.

"Tu parles français? 'You can speak French?'"

"Un peu. Je m'appelle Shizuku. Et toi? 'A little. I’m Shizuku. And you?'"

"Je... Je suis... Lise. 'I... I’m... Lise.'"

Though hesitant, the girl gave her name, reassured by finally meeting someone she could understand.

Seeing the anxiety in her eyes, I gave a gentle smile, just like when I calmed a panicking junior coworker who had lost her passport at an airport in my past life.

"It’s okay. I’ll definitely find your mom. No need to cry, princess."

Mixing Japanese and French, I said that and extended my right hand.

After a moment’s hesitation, Lise timidly placed her small hand in mine.

Her hand was cold and pale, and I held it firmly yet gently.

"Alright, let’s go. There should be a lost child center over there."

Holding her hand, I walked toward the information counter in the center of the mall.

Making sure she wouldn’t bump into anyone, I walked slightly ahead like a shield, occasionally glancing back.

"You okay? Am I going too fast?"

* * *

'...Warm.'

The silver-haired girl—Lise—thought that as she looked at the broad back of the black-haired girl leading her.

She had just arrived in this unfamiliar country due to her mother’s work.

Unable to understand Japanese and lost in a strange crowd, her heart had been on the verge of breaking from fear.

And then appeared this girl with violet eyes and a mysterious aura.

Though about the same age, she had reached out without hesitation and comforted her in her familiar native language.

The warmth and reliability transmitted through their joined hands.

The smooth way she navigated the crowd, like a ‘knight’ from storybooks who protects a princess.

'Shizuku... Shizuku.'

Lise engraved that name into her small heart.

It wasn’t yet the muddy, obsessive love filled with madness.

Just a pure, sparkling seed called ‘admiration.’

* * *

After explaining the situation at the information counter ‘in Japanese’ and making an announcement, a tall foreign woman rushed in shortly after, her face pale with worry.

She had the same silver hair as the girl, a model-like beauty.

"Ma chérie!! 'My precious angel!'"

"Maman!! 'Mama!'"

Watching the tearful reunion, I let out a relieved breath.

The mother turned to me and bowed deeply, saying in broken Japanese, "You... helped my daughter... thank you very much."

"De rien. Elle a été très courageuse. 'You’re welcome. She was very brave.'"

When I replied in French, her eyes widened in surprise before she smiled beautifully.

"Merci beaucoup, petit chevalier. 'Thank you very much, little knight.'"

Being called a knight by an adult woman with a wink, I scratched the tip of my nose in embarrassment, a habit from my past life.

"See you. Next time, make sure to hold your mom’s hand tightly."

When I waved, Lise waved back energetically from her mother’s arms.

Her bright smile, so different from her earlier tears, made me think idly, ‘Girls really do look better when they’re smiling.’

* * *

"Hey, Shizuku! Where have you been!?"

When I returned to the women’s clothing section, my mom stood there with a shopping bag holding the new bordeaux coat, glaring at me.

"Ah, there was a lost girl, so I took her to the service counter. We couldn’t understand each other at first."

"...Huh? A lost girl? Don’t tell me you..."

My mom narrowed her eyes suspiciously, scanning me from head to toe.

"H-Hey, this time I really just helped her. I just guided her in French, that’s all."

"...Since when do you speak French? And what kind of girl was she?"

"Hm? Super cute. Silver hair, blue eyes. Probably European."

"............"

My mom looked up at the sky and started massaging her temples.

"Mom? You got a headache?"

"Of course I do. Just imagining your future gives me a headache. Please stop raising any more dangerous flags, okay? I seriously don’t have the confidence to handle any more intense feelings from your childhood friends or noble girls..."

"I told you, I just helped her. I don’t even know what you mean by flags."

When I shrugged, feeling wronged, my mom let out a deep sigh.

"That’s exactly what makes it the worst kind of obliviousness. Even if World War III breaks out over you, I’m pretending I don’t know anything."

In the peaceful shopping mall, the small ‘favor’ I casually scattered would one day return to me as an overwhelming emotion crossing the seas—but that is a story for another time.