And surprisingly, I spent the entire next morning wondering, “What should I do for fun?”
After everyone fell asleep, I stayed awake for a long time before finally dozing off, only to wake up early in the morning and dive back into my thoughts.
The conclusion I reached was, “There’s not much more to hope for.”
As long as we all had fun together, that was good enough. To be honest, that was how I felt.
“First, let’s go out.”
But still, I couldn’t just let it slide without doing anything.
Did I not create some expectations? Then I had to take responsibility for that.
My idea was to go out and think about it while moving around.
“Shall we ride a bike at least?”
“Eh? Is that okay?”
At my words, Claire’s eyes sparkled.
“But today, we take it slow. It should feel more like a stroll than exercise.”
“Got it!”
We went to Yeouido Park and enjoyed riding bikes together.
At first, I thought we would just play around in the park, but since we got up early anyway and had a decent amount of energy left, we headed over to the Han River to rent different bikes.
Instead of just riding solo, we tried renting a tandem bike and bought all sorts of snacks we wanted to eat.
“Next time, shall we go to a museum?”
“That sounds great.”
After spending about two hours wandering around, Alice happily replied to what I said.
The place we visited was the largest museum in Seoul.
If you took your time looking at each exhibit, it could take hours, but honestly, none of us were that serious about checking out a museum.
Even Alice showed some interest in a few relics, but it seemed like she was having more fun just hanging out with us.
Before leaving the museum, we saw the two most famous Buddha statues displayed on the first floor of our country.
“……”
It seemed Alice liked those Maitreya statues the most.
Alice stood there for a long time examining the Maitreya, while we watched her.
“Next time, uh, shall we watch a movie?”
“Sounds good.”
But Charlotte’s eyes narrowed as she said that.
It didn’t seem like she was looking at me to place blame, but rather starting to doubt my true intentions.
The truth is, I was just following the ideas the kids threw out since I couldn’t come up with anything myself.
I was just going along with the ideas the kids came up with, one by one.
To be honest, the movie wasn’t that entertaining.
It seemed the other money-loaded movies avoided releasing around the same time as the one Charlotte picked last time.
To put it plainly, the 15,000 won movie ticket felt a bit overpriced, but—
“The popcorn was delicious.”
After watching the movie, Charlotte said this with a smile, showing me the empty popcorn bucket.
“So, what are we doing next? Honestly, I feel like I’m slowly getting a picture in my head.”
“……”
I avoided Charlotte’s gaze.
“Should we… take a picture?”
“Sounds good!”
Mia laughed at my question.
The other kids seemed to have finally figured out what I was up to and started grinning.
*
That didn’t mean we were going back to the photo studio.
You know those self-photo booths you find while walking through the bustling streets? We went in there.
Posing in front of the camera, we snapped all sorts of pictures.
“Hehe.”
When I handed the printed photo to Mia, she smiled happily.
The other kids also wore expressions of joy, and I let out a sigh of relief.
“Next, I’ll guess.”
Alice raised a finger and said a little smugly.
“We’re going grocery shopping, right?”
“……”
I averted my eyes slightly.
“Alright, let’s go to a big supermarket for the groceries.”
I said this with a bit of defiance, and all the kids laughed. Even Mia.
“Okay, then.”
Alice responded like that, and we headed towards a nearby supermarket.
*
“……”
“……”
Cooking was left to Charlotte and me.
Alice, Claire, and Mia hadn’t exactly been out of the kitchen in the last few months either.
The results were pretty decent, and edible at least, but… they just couldn’t match Charlotte’s skills.
Today’s menu was based on what I used to eat often when I lived alone: soybean paste soup, rice, and some side dishes.
It really felt like ‘home-cooked’ food.
“Come to think of it, we haven’t had meals like this as often as I thought.”
Charlotte suddenly said this while tasting the soybean paste soup.
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yes. If you think about it, you always chose meals suited to our tastes.”
“I chose the food to fit my taste.”
At the beginning, when it was just Claire and Alice, it seemed like I catered to my own preferences.
But thinking back, they couldn’t handle spicy food at all, so I refrained from eating too much of it and avoided foods that would be too polarizing from the get-go.
I’ve already lived in Azernar for several years.
Although I got used to the food at the Imperial Palace, I still managed to survive eating some of the absurd dishes from Azernar now and then.
So I figured it was much better for me to adapt to their tastes rather than force them to adapt to mine.
“…I wonder if I’ve been too pampered until now. Now that I think about it, this is your home too.”
“I did it because I wanted to.”
I said it plainly.
“If I had lived here alone, even if I won the lottery, it wouldn’t have been that enjoyable.”
As I scooped rice into my bowl, Charlotte kept her mouth shut.
“You could have made new friends here. You could have forged new bonds, but… that’s it. I’ve been happy to meet you all over the past year, and now you’re telling me to give up? That would be just too empty, wouldn’t it?”
Exactly.
How did I endure such a long time in the Azernar Empire?
Why did I keep building my character, going back in time several times?
It was simply to meet the kids I liked, build relationships, and reach a happy ending.
So, this is how it turned out.
“…I’m sorry for teasing you earlier.”
“Huh?”
“No, it’s just… I thought you were just following us because you couldn’t remember…”
…That’s true.
“You were just enjoying being with us.”
Well, that’s true, but it feels a bit off too.
Of course, I nodded with a serious expression. No need to refuse Charlotte’s kind thought.
Charlotte smiled.
I couldn’t tell if she read my mind or if she just thought my sentiment was charming.
*
Clank, clank.
The sound of spoons clinking against bowls is endearing.
When I eat alone in my studio apartment, the sound of utensils clashing feels annoyingly nagging, but when it’s someone else’s sound, that gloomy feeling disappears.
“Today was fun.”
Alice was the first to speak.
Lisa was the first to speak up.
“Yeah, it was really fun, sis.”
Claire smiled and chimed in.
“Thinking back on the movie, it feels like there might have been some meaning behind it.”
Charlotte gave a bittersweet smile.
“I took good care of the pictures!”
Mia beamed.
“Is that so?”
I chuckled and replied.
“As long as we enjoyed it, that’s what matters.”
Yeah, that’s all that counts.
A happy ending we all earned together.
That’s what I wanted the most.
No need for some profound meaning or significance.
I don’t care about hidden philosophical messages or metaphors in the story.
Maybe I’m still a child at heart, just taller now.
But really, what can you do?
If I’m happy, that’s enough.
“Someday.”
I slowly began to speak.
“If I can fully harness the power of the Goddess, I hope all of you and other friends can join us too.”
“That would be great!”
Claire gazed into the void as she said that.
It looked like she was already imagining being with her friends.
“Indeed, really.”
Alice laughed.
“…I want to gift Sophia with pizza from this country. Piled high with pineapple.”
She said it as if she wasn’t going to suffer alone.
But honestly, serving coffee watered down and calling it coffee seems like it would go over better.
Well, why not do both?
“So then, will we be able to come back here regularly to have fun?”
Mia asked.
We exchanged glances for a moment before looking at Mia.
“Looks like we’ll have to study really hard.”
“Right. Just leaving this expensive house empty doesn’t make sense.”
Charlotte and Alice said with solemn faces.
“And we also have the viewers waiting for us!”
Claire raised her chopsticks dramatically. I nearly burst out laughing at that.
Such a classic Claire comment.
“Exactly. If we just suddenly disappear, the viewers watching would probably get depressed. Let’s make sure they see our faces at least a few times a year.”
At my words, the kids all nodded in agreement.
Is it possible? Is it not?
Well, that wasn’t something to debate right now.
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