And with a bit of back-and-forth and Roswaal's half-assed approval, it was already heading into full execution.
"Alright, it's begun! The first snow festival! Everyone, do you all want to go to New York──!?"
"Ye─yeahh…!?..."
Scattered voices rose in a confused cheer from the villagers gathered in the front garden of the mansion. Subaru stood atop a makeshift podium, one foot metaphorically planted in stage comedy and the other dangling in nonsense. The man looked painfully proud of himself.
Kaeya watched from a measured distance — not so far that it seemed like he was actively avoiding everything, but far enough to stay out of any danger of being pulled into whatever was happening.
Being present was enough. Hell, for him, it was already more than enough.
Back in his own world, he had dodged family gatherings like they were traps. Being around large groups, having to talk, fake smiles — it exhausted him. Here wasn't much different.
Anyone who actually knew him would get it.
The villagers were focused on Subaru, waiting for him to keep going. He seemed to pause mid-sentence, murmuring under his breath to the fur lining around his neck — Puck, no doubt.
But to them it would look like Subaru was currently talking to himself.
"Subaru-sama, go on!"
"Oops, right right. Sorry!"
Then a villager spoke up, calling Subaru back to reality.
"Anyhow, I'll explain the rules. To put it briefly, you all have this mansion's front garden! Use the snow and ice here. The idea of this snow festival is to compete against each other with your creative personalities and creative powers in an artistic festival! There's also a wonderful gift prepared, so by all means, aim for victory!"
"Yeah──!"
The villagers who acted as participants got extremely excited from hearing a single word about a wonderful gift. It was a festival organized by the feudal lord Roswaal. It was natural for them to have their expectations rise for a gift.
Greedy mfs.
"Alright, then you all have until this fire fades away! Ready, let's rock and roll!"
" ──?"
"Oh, by rock and roll I mean start! Start, start!"
They followed Subaru's command and the snow festival starts, although there was a questionable misstep.
Each of the villagers cooperated and went to work, but they required a good amount of concentration power and skillful fingers to create a snow sculpture.
And that was the reason Kaeya refused to participate.
Using his focus, on things he wasn't interested in wasn't his cup of tea. So he would rather enjoy watching others do the artistic work.
Though it would take a few hours for people to complete their builds so he couldn't do anything but wait.
Anyhow, the first snow festival went on──and Petra was decided to be the winner. The winning work was the "Aviation assault model great fire power war weapon Y U K I – U S A G I", which earned a total of 28 points. A ridiculous mouthful of a name for a snow bunny tank hybrid that looked like a war crime and a children's toy at the same time.
But just by the design he could tell Subaru had a hand in this, it looked like a fucking tank afterall.
.
.
"Eh... I hereby thank all of you for participating in the Roswaal Mansion's Snow Festival. And, thank you for your hard work! When all is said and done, I also enjoyed it. Next year, when Puck's Hatsumaki comes, let's also hold a snow festival. Let's make it even wilder next time!" Subaru beamed, raising a glass of apple juice.
"That being said, cheers!"
"Cheers!"
Kaeya raised his glass slightly with the rest, sat. He sat near the end of the table. His posture was relaxed — one arm resting on the back of his chair, the other loosely holding his drink — but his eyes kept moving, tracking everyone in the room.
The soft candlelight flickered across silverware and glass, casting a golden glow over the gathering. Ram was sipping wine, Rem chatted happily with Emilia, while Puck soaked lazily in a warm bowl of water at the far side of the table. The atmosphere was light. Genuinely pleasant.
Kaeya wasn't saying much — not out of boredom, but out of habit. Besides, the food was delicious. He'd already sampled half the table under the guise of "casual interest," and was now calmly sipping from a glass of apple juice.
That was when a familiar voice broke into his space.
"Myyy, myyy, myyy... Kaa~eya-kun," came a voice that cut smoothly through the background chatter, every syllable dragged just enough to feel deliberate. "You've been quieeet tonight, haven't yoouuuu?"
Kaeya blinked. His head turned slowly.
Roswaal stood beside him, a half-filled wine bottle cradled in one hand, his lips curved in that theatrical, ever-knowing smile.
"Ah, Roswaal-sama," Kaeya said with a quick smile, straightening a little in his seat. "Just... enjoying the food."
"Oh, I see, I seeee," Roswaal sang, sliding the bottle gently onto the table beside Kaeya. "And perhaps... enjoying it all aloooone, hmm?"
Kaeya gave a small laugh — the kind that didn't linger.
Roswaal leaned a little closer, eyes twinkling. "But what about... a little warmth to go with that peace? Something like... ohhh, this?" He gestured to the bottle with a flourish.
Kaeya glanced at it, then back at Roswaal. His smile held. "I've had some before. I don't usually, but..."
"But?" Roswaal coaxed, tipping the bottle toward Kaeya's glass. "Tonight's a festivaal. A little indulgence wouldn't hurrrt."
There was a short pause — before Kaeya slowly tilted his glass toward him.
"...Just a little, then," he said.
"Splendid," Roswaal cooed, pouring with dramatic precision. The rich liquid filled the glass halfway.
Kaeya lifted it to his lips. A light sip. The warmth spread quickly down his throat, leaving behind that familiar sting — one he hadn't missed, exactly.
"It's... good," he said, nodding once, more for rhythm than for meaning.
"Ohoho~? Just 'good'?" Roswaal teased. "You don't strike me as the shy type, Kaeya-kun... yet you're soooooo~ reserved tonight. Or is that your chaarm?"
Kaeya's smile stayed, but he tapped a finger lightly against the stem of his glass.
"I wouldn't say that," he replied, "Just... taking it in. Everyone's having a good time."
Roswaal tilted his head, still smiling, but the glint in his eye suggested he noticed the small things — the way Kaeya's gaze didn't stay fixed for long, the slight tension in his shoulders despite his easy tone.
"Well, well," Roswaal mused, stepping back with a theatrical twirl of his sleeve. "Just enjoy yourself your way, Kaeya-kun. Just dooon't disappear too far into the background. The night's still young."
Kaeya offered another polite nod, watching the eccentric nobleman drift away toward the others.
Once Roswaal's attention turned elsewhere, Kaeya let his shoulders fall a little — the smallest sigh easing out of his chest. The wine burned slightly in his mouth, but he sipped it again anyway. He'd rather deal with the taste than another long exchange.
Roswaal was unsettling, that much was certain. To Kaeya, his voice carried a strange duality—sometimes almost hypnotically pleasant, and at other times there was a theatricality in his speech that made Kaeya's skin crawl more often than not.
Around Roswaal, Kaeya found himself slipping into a version of himself he reserved for authority figures—formal and composed. With Roswaal, he always felt the need to perform, to smile in the right way and nod at the right moments. It was exhausting, but vital if he wanted to preserve the quiet, fragile peace he'd found here.
And yet, Roswaal wasn't like the usual nobility. Especially in the way he tolerated Subaru's casual familiarity. Maybe Roswaal didn't care about propriety at all. But Kaeya did. That was the difference. That was why he still kept a wall up, still watched his words, still didn't feel entirely at ease within the walls of this mansion.
Unlike Subaru, Kaeya hadn't quite found comfort here. Not yet.
.
.
The party had lingered long into the night. In its final moments, Puck used the last of his mana to cast a snowfall spell over the capital. The magic burst forth like a comet across the sky, trailing silver light in its wake. Subaru, Rem, Ram, and Emilia stood together on the balcony, surrounded by a constellation of glowing spirits—hundreds of them, drifting like soft lanterns through the air.
Kaeya watched from the dining hall, seated alone at the long table, a half-full glass of wine cradled in one hand.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Beatrice leave the balcony. She moved toward the hallway with the familiar determination of someone returning to their sanctuary.
Roswall noticing her leave, spoke up.
"My, my… Have you finally had enough of placing your trust in Subaru-kun?" he asked, voice laced with amusement and something sharper.
Beatrice gave him a deadpan glance. "You shouldn't make jokes, I suppose… not unless they're about your outfit."
"Goodness!" Roswaal spread his arms theatrically, as if wounded. "You just cannot be honest with your feelings, can you?"
"It wouldn't be right to stay without a reason, and I have none, I suppose." She turned toward the door.
Roswaal raised a glass. "It wouldn't be right to not have a single drop at the party."
"I'll pass, I suppose."
"You'd rather remain faithful to Subaru-kun?"
Kaeya shifted slightly at the table, suppressing a sigh. Okay, this is getting awkward, he thought. They're completely ignoring me, which is bad enough… but if either of them brings me into this, it'll somehow be worse.
Beatrice paused, hand resting lightly on the doorframe. "Don't get the wrong idea," she said flatly. "The reason I don't drink isn't because of that boy. Long ago, my mother told me not to. That's all."
She glanced back toward the balcony, her gaze settling on Subaru. "What he says has nothing to do with me, I suppose."
Wait… she has a mother? Spirits have mothers? Kaeya blinked slowly, the thought distracting him as Beatrice vanished through the doorway.
A silence settled in the room, only broken by the soft clink of Roswaal setting his glass down.
"My, my… quite the scene." Roswaal's voice rang out again, smoother now, more deliberate as he turned his attention toward Kaeya. "And here you are, sitting so quietly in the dark. I'd almost forgotten you were here."
Kaeya's stomach gave a slight twist. He kept his expression carefully neutral and lifted his glass with practiced ease. Of course he noticed me now.
"That seems to be the theme of the evening," Kaeya replied, his voice calm. His heart, however, tapped an anxious rhythm beneath his ribs.
Roswaal chuckled, his gaze lingering. "I do wonder, Kaeya-kun… are you always this silent in the presence of drama, or only when it's not your own?"
Kaeya gave the ghost of a smile, eyes flicking briefly up to meet his. "I don't see the need to get involved."
"Mm. Sensible," Roswaal said, tilting his head, studying him now. "And yet you carry yourself like someone quite familiar with attention."
Kaeya's smile didn't reach his eyes this time. "That doesn't mean I enjoy it."
Roswaal laughed, soft and curious, but Kaeya could feel the weight behind it—the probing interest. He took another sip of wine, more to buy a pause than out of thirst.
"Ah, but surely you must indulge sometimes?" Roswaal pressed, leaning forward slightly.
Kaeya didn't answer immediately. When he did, it was with a dry, almost dismissive edge. "Only when I have to."
A beat passed. Roswaal's grin widened ever so slightly, as if pleased by the deflection rather than discouraged.
"Well," he said, swirling his own glass, "you do wear your silence very well."
Kaeya gave no reply, only another sip, gaze drifting toward the balcony where the lights were fading and the voices of the others had quieted.
He didn't want to be part of whatever conversation Roswaal was trying to pull him into. And he wouldn't give him more than what was asked for—never more than necessary.
Roswaal, sensing perhaps that Kaeya's guard was ironclad for the evening, leaned back in his seat and said nothing more.