Gryphon! Anyway, even after the sky turned black, we were still not sleepy.
Maybe it was because we had come outside.
So, we decided to watch one more movie.
Including Alice, who picked the movie, nobody wanted to feel too hot this time, so we chose a light action movie.
And I recommended it.
If it’s a family movie that’s good for passing time, it should definitely be something from the 80s or 90s.
Since we could watch any movie as long as we had access to OTT.
It was a movie with a ridiculous premise about modifying a supercar into a time machine—absurd by today’s standards—but I actually liked it. It was well made and had a lot of fans.
Since it was a series of three movies, we gathered around the projector to watch.
We opened the snacks we had brought beforehand and started popping them into our mouths—
“…Are you really planning to eat that?”
“Huh? It’s what was left from earlier. It hasn’t been long, so it shouldn’t have gone bad.”
Claire said confidently.
I mean, come on! It’s a bit strange to be hugging a bulgogi pot while watching a movie instead of popcorn or snacks.
“Look over there, they’re eating galbi-jjim!”
Sure enough, Mia was hugging a plate of galbi-jjim.
Is she really fitting more food in there? Didn’t she just eat a ton?
It’s like she has a fourth-dimensional pocket in her stomach!
Alice and Charlotte chuckled at the sight.
Well, Claire had a point.
These days, theaters sell all sorts of things, not just popcorn.
In a few years, they might even start selling bulgogi or something.
…But, I doubt they’d sell galbi-jjim.
*
In the end, we chattered away until the three movies ended, barely watching any of them at all.
I’d wager that unless it’s someone as clueless as me, no one in our group can properly explain the plot. Honestly, it wasn’t like we had put the movie on to watch; it was more like we just played it so the ones who wanted to could see it.
It wasn’t until all three movies had finished that we realized we had been talking well past midnight.
We often ended up chatting that late, so it wasn’t a big deal since I usually streamed until the evening and rested in the morning.
Even if I thought sleeping late might stunt my growth at this age, I believed the rest of us were tall enough already. Whether it’s because people here grew faster or if they just appeared that way due to being mixed, I don’t know, but with bodies like these, we wouldn’t have to be embarrassed anywhere.
And Mia was just cute as she was right now!
…But if a guy tries to approach Mia in the future, I’ll have to seriously question his taste!
No one seemed ready to go to bed just because it passed midnight.
Maybe they think this romantic moment is too precious to waste?
Everyone rearranged their folding chairs and lay down side by side.
Five girls lying together toward the sea.
They looked like they could be models. We probably looked like something out of a magazine. Or maybe a movie in this genre? Well, closer to a drama than a movie, might be right. A slice-of-life drama.
“The stars are really visible here.”
Alice said.
With clear autumn skies and no moon in sight, being far from the city, of course, they could see better.
And in front of us stretched out was the sea, going on and on.
It’s been ages since I’ve seen stars like this. When I used to return to the university dorm every weekend, I could see stars like this… Well, I don’t want to go back to those times, really.
“I should have learned about constellations,” Charlotte said with a chuckle.
“Yeah. Maybe I studied too many worldly sciences. Astronomy is probably a unique science of this world. In a sense, it’s completely different from the other world, right? Like the star maps.”
If those two studied astronomy in this world, I could picture them discussing the risks of intercontinental ballistic missiles at some point, but I didn’t feel the need to interrupt.
Hehe.
And hearing their conversation, Claire chuckled.
“I know; that’s the Big Dipper over there, right? Isn’t it, sis?”
Not that I know for sure.
The sky I watched while returning to the dorm was so tiring that I didn’t really think much about it. I was just walking while thinking I should look at the sky.
Plus—
“Claire, I see it all.”
Claire was holding her smartphone.
I couldn’t tell what app was running, but every time she moved her phone toward the sky, the um… graphic moved along with it, so it must be some kind of star map app or something.
“…At times like this, just admire it, sis.”
Claire said, a bit sheepishly.
That’s something you’d say.
“What app is that?”
As I was about to jump in, Mia, who was next to Claire, asked.
“Oh, would you like me to install it for you?”
“Thanks! Star maps are pretty important for a magician, you know.”
“I heard that constellations affect magic.”
“There are spells that solely utilize the flow of stars… though most are faint ancient magic. The star positions change over time, and modern magic has mostly evolved to not rely on them.”
“Hmm, there was a hypothesis that some stars were made of Marmaros.”
“There are also claims that some stars include Marmaros from outside Earth. It’s all just theories, though.”
It sounds like it’s similar to how the sea is affected by the moon’s movements. I didn’t learn magic in such detail as the academy focused on practical application.
“Then, can magic be reproduced in this world?”
Claire asked while handing her phone back to Mia after installing the app.
Mia shook her head.
“Since Marmaros itself doesn’t exist here, it might be a bit difficult? The principles seem quite different….”
Sounds tricky.
“Don’t think too seriously about it.”
I said to Mia.
“Just like how you all crossed over here, we can go back as well. Until then, we can just relax and enjoy, like now.”
Upon hearing my words, everyone nodded.
We continued to gaze at the stars for a long while after that.
It was only when Mia began dozing off that we entered the tent.
I wondered if we needed a stove, but since the sleeping bags were quite nice, it didn’t seem necessary. Plus, the mat on the floor was decent.
Just in case, I opened the hot packs I had brought and divided them among us, putting a couple in Mia’s sleeping bag with the blanket.
After crawling inside our sleeping bags, looking like caterpillars, we took a photo before finally falling asleep.
*
The next morning.
“Ugh….”
The mat was quite nice, but sleeping outside was still challenging.
I arose from the sleeping bag, and my spine screamed in protest.
I sat for a while, blinking to wake up, then slowly emerged from the sleeping bag.
It felt like shedding skin.
Thinking it was slightly amusing, I tidied up the sleeping bag.
Mia, Alice, and Charlotte were still fast asleep.
I couldn’t find Claire.
Well, she was always the earliest riser, so that made sense.
When I stepped outside the tent, a world painted in pale blue met my eyes. It was still dawn.
To keep the cold morning wind out, I made sure the tent was tightly closed and, with a blanket draped over my shoulders, I headed toward the beach.
Claire was sitting in the middle of the beach, hugging her knees.
“Is the sea really that nice?”
“Yeah.”
She seemed hardly surprised to see me approaching and answered without hesitation.
I sat down next to Claire.
“It feels like it goes on forever. I really like places that are this wide.”
“Maybe it’s because I’ve lived too long in the complicated Imperial Capital. I grew up among those narrow alleys.”
“Is that so?”
Personally, I thought Claire’s hair color matched the color of the sea quite well.
“We should board a boat sometime. Whether here or back home.”
“Oh, can we do that?”
“We’re still young. We have money too.”
“That sounds a bit bittersweet because of the undercurrent.”
Claire said with a bittersweet smile.
“I feel a little sad about going back.”
“I thought I’d have to return immediately when I woke up.”
My back still ached. The hard ground was definitely not my friend.
Even back home, I have a good bed, yet I still end up sleeping on the floor, but whatever.
“Not long ago, I thought returning meant going back to our old routine, but lately, that thought has changed a lot.”
“Really?”
“Sometimes, I think it wouldn’t be so bad to just throw away all my responsibilities and run away.”
“Really? Should we kidnap Charlotte after she becomes queen?”
“Wouldn’t that be fun?”
We laughed, discussing something that would scare them if they heard it.
Would they truly be scared, though?
Somehow, I feel like Charlotte would act differently now.
“Claire? Sylvia?”
We heard someone call from afar.
Turning my head, I saw Alice, wrapped in a blanket, coming out of the tent just like me.
From the sight of her, there was no royal dignity. Just a girl of our age.
“Shall we head back?”
“Let’s go back.”
We said that simultaneously and shared a brief laugh.
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