"..."
The journey passed in silence, and the two quickly arrived at the venue for the Charmony Festival.
With minimal disguises, Lumina and Herta managed to avoid causing any commotion.
Observing the sea of people before them, they found a quiet spot to sit down.
As they sat, watching the lively scene unfold, Lumina couldn't help but feel utterly bored by Herta's tight-lipped silence.
Meanwhile, she was puzzled.
What did I do to make Herta angry again?
Though their time together hadn't been long, it wasn't short either. Lumina had certainly come to understand a thing or two about Herta's temperament.
She knew that Herta's current withdrawn state meant she was simmering with anger over something.
But...
What could it be? Did I do anything just now?
No, right? Herta wanted to attend the Charmony Festival, so Lumina had given up her chance to play with Sparkle and come along.
She hadn't said a word or made a single move during the entire journey. How could she possibly have offended Herta?
Lumina pondered this for half a day, yet remained clueless about the problem.
"What did you give her?"
Just as Lumina's mind raced with a thousand thoughts, conjuring Conan-level deductions, Herta suddenly spoke, her voice utterly calm and flat, devoid of emotion.
"A ring," Lumina replied truthfully, momentarily halting her mental gymnastics.
"..."
Herta was immediately speechless. The second sentence she had been about to blurt out vanished back into her throat.
Seriously? What kind of imbecile crawled out of the Dunce Society?
Anyone with half a brain would know why I'm sulking right now!
"Huff..." Herta took a deep breath, her gaze complex as she studied Lumina. "Do you even know what giving a ring symbolizes?"
"Symbolism? What symbolism? Isn't it just a gift?" Lumina asked, feigning bewilderment.
Herta: ...
She really doesn't get it, does she...?
Hearing this, Herta finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She then explained to Lumina, "In my homeland, rings are typically given as tokens of affection."
"Oh, oh, I see! So that's it! That makes sense!" Lumina immediately adopted an air of enlightenment.
But inside, she was already bursting with laughter.
"That's why I found it so unbelievable when I saw you give a ring to a Masked Fool you'd only met a few times," Herta continued, oblivious to Lumina's true amusement.
Herta knew that Stelle, March 7th, and Asta all had rings from Lumina.
But at least they had spent time together and built some kind of relationship...
So why this Masked Fool? Why would Lumina give her a ring?
Hmm... what Herta really meant was: If there were a ranking order...
If Lumina were giving out rings, shouldn't she give one to Herta first?
Realizing that Lumina was unaware of the ring's significance, Herta quickly dismissed any romantic implications, treating it simply as a normal gift.
But why didn't I get one?!
Pfft... Lumina couldn't help but burst out laughing at the resentful look on Little Herta's face.
Little Herta, you're so adorable~
In Herta's homeland, a ring was a symbol of love and commitment. How could Lumina possibly not know that?
Precisely for that reason, Lumina would never proactively give Herta a ring. Doing so would put her in a vulnerable position.
But now, that situation seemed unlikely to ever arise...
After chuckling for a moment, Lumina explained, "Did you not hear the whole conversation? That was a farewell gift for Sparkle. I haven't said goodbye to you yet, so I haven't given you your gift yet."
"Hmm? Oh, is that so?" Herta blinked, carefully recalling the exchange. She realized she had indeed missed the latter part of the conversation. The moment she saw Lumina toss the ring to Sparkle, Herta's mind had been entirely consumed by a flurry of overthinking and speculation.
"Of course, darling! As your dear older sister and good mother, how could I possibly forget a gift for you, Little Herta?" Lumina wrapped her arm around Herta's, winking playfully.
"You want a ring, don't you?"
"Then I'll craft a special one just for you," Lumina said with a smile, her small hand naturally patting Herta's thigh as she hugged her arm.
"Mm... of course. If you want a ring like Sparkle's, I can make one for you too." Lumina withdrew her hands and smoothed her hair.
"Like Sparkle's? What's so special about Sparkle's?" Herta asked, intrigued.
The rings Lumina had given Stelle and the others all contained traces of her Emanator power. Herta had assumed Sparkle's ring was the same, so she hadn't paid much attention to it. But Lumina's words implied that Sparkle's ring was different from the others.
"Sparkle's ring has a few special little functions," Lumina said with a mysterious smile, her thumb and forefinger repeatedly pinching and tapping as if a tiny Sparkle figurine were trapped inside, being constantly squeezed and prodded...