Chapter 46: Repairing the Dining Table (The Blank Timeline and the First Supper)
VROOOOOOOOOOM—!!
My stomach let out the world's most energetic black hole alarm. It echoed off the freshly applied resin walls and reverberated throughout the entire multicolored dome. After the life-or-death boat-building and body repair from forty-five minutes ago‚ every cell in my now completely sparkling "cotton candy" state began a protest march‚ demanding fuel (seconds).
Ugh! I’m telling you‚ I’m totally empty! The universe inside me is throwing a massive tantrum‚ demanding a super-sized deluxe delivery of food right now!
It was right when I patted my belly and laughed as if to say "I surrender."
The adult-sized‚ baggy white T-shirt that Haru-kun had risked his life to bring back from the observatory. We had all borrowed matching ones‚ and when I wore it‚ the hem was so long it looked like a dress‚ swaying unsteadily along with my fluffy blue hair every time I moved.
――Huh?
Still cradling my numb left arm (marshmallow) with my right hand‚ I tilted my head sharply while keeping my smile frozen in place.
「……Hey」
No one gave a comeback to my silly remark. Even Rin-chan‚ who would normally fire off the sharpest retort first‚ had stopped moving‚ her slender arm still peeking out from the sleeve of the slightly ill-fitting clean white T-shirt.
Rin-chan too. Haru-kun too. And Momiji-chan on the transport sled.
The three of them slowly‚ as if drawn in‚ turned their gazes toward the gaps in the dome――toward the outside world‚ like a single entity's neural circuits had simultaneously received an unknown pulse.
I followed suit and looked up.
Beyond the resin of the dome‚ through the pale blue gradient‚ there was an endless sea of brownish mud. There was an inorganic lead-colored sky that seemed to have given up on everything.
And then――.
「…………」
There was no sound.
The sound of the 'Tongue of Deletion (strong acid rain)' that had been licking at our sanctuary just moments ago. The unpleasant sound of rain that this cruel system called the world had relentlessly unleashed‚ trying to delete us as unnecessary data.
It had completely vanished from the world‚ as if it had never existed in the first place.
It was quiet. So quiet it made the inside of my ears sting‚ a terrifyingly beautiful silence. The world‚ having sunk every last piece of land into its muddy stomach‚ was now as still as a giant mirror. The only noise proving that we were still "alive" on this lonely sea was the low‚ heavy heartbeat of the magnetic engine rumbling "Vwooooo..." from the bottom of the raft.
No one spoke. It felt like speaking would shatter the glass of this miraculous stillness into a million pieces. The four of us simply huddled together‚ wrapped in matching white fabric‚ gazing up at the gray sky that had suddenly become higher and more distant now that the raindrops were gone.
（Has the battle... ended...?）
Keeping that question tucked away in the back of my throat‚ I pressed the soles of my bare‚ defenseless feet firmly against the cold iron frame of the raft.
Eventually.
Haru-kun‚ lightly shaking his ash-silver wavy hair‚ let out a small‚ long breath while still clutching the waterproof notebook to his chest.
「……It matches the prophecy (data).」
His gray eyes gazed at the silence following the world's death throes.
"The 'initialization (format)' process of the land in this sector has now been fully completed at this very moment. The system has consumed a massive amount of processing resources and has likely entered temporary sleep mode."
Haru-kun paused for a moment‚ then slowly continued.
"At least for the time being‚ no additional deletion processes from above are confirmed. It is the system's complete silence."
Those words acted like an ice wedge‚ cleanly melting away the terror of the countdown that had been lodged in my chest. I felt the code named "survival‚" which had been stretched so tight‚ suddenly loosen.
「……Nfuー」
I took a deep breath‚ filling my lungs with the air of this 'home'—a mixture of the slightly sharp smell of mud and baking soda and the warm steam of freshly boiled water.
「Even the world worked so hard on cleaning up that it fell asleep for a nap‚ huh.」
At my murmured words.
「……Heh.」
Right beside me‚ Rin-chan—her face faintly flushed while wearing the white T-shirt—shook her slender shoulders slightly and laughed through her nose.
"It was quite a violent and restless god. It treated my rules like bugs the whole time‚ and now it falls asleep on its own due to lack of memory? How amusing."
"But but! If the world is sleeping‚ we shouldn't wake it up!"
I stood up and spread both arms wide.
"So‚ with thaaat said!"
ぐぅぅぅぅぅぅ……
A second wave of the black hole alarm—slightly more reserved than before but with the strongest self-assertion—rang out loudly.
「…………」
A few seconds of well-behaved silence.
And then.
「……Pfft‚ ……fufu.」
Momiji-chan‚ sitting on the transport sled and peeking out sunset-red hair from her clean white gown‚ was the first to burst out laughing. She held her stomach while the chest exoskeleton (splint) creaked gently with a "...kyuu‚" laughing heartily.
"Fufu... ahaha. Nagisa-chan‚ you really... have no intention of giving up..."
Haru-kun followed‚ smiling in a troubled yet affectionate way.
"Statistically speaking‚ only Nagisa-san's variable of appetite seems to have no correlation with the world system's shutdown. It's a complete out-of-spec bug."
"Of course! My stomach is a deluxe all-you-can-eat universe!"
"Don't brag‚ idiot."
Rin-chan shrugged her slender shoulders in exasperation. But there was no longer any sharpness from the battlefield left in her voice.
「……Well‚ fine.」
She glanced toward the magnetic engine and smiled quietly.
"While the enemy is sleeping‚ shall I dominate this thing called 'living' with my own logic?"
"Approved~!"
I thrust my right hand up energetically.
"Then today~! It's time for the deluxe all-you-can-eat dinner event!!!"
Inside the dome filled with multicolored light‚ the laughter of four people burst out softly. The world was silent. That was precisely why their laughter continued to echo gently‚ like proof that they were truly alive in the middle of the sea of mud.
「Alright‚ time to eat!」
It wasn't even prompted by Nagisa's energetic declaration. Yet the four people wrapped in oversized white fabric began to move naturally and smoothly in sync‚ as if they had been promised to gather around this battered dining table many years ago.
「……Pot.」
Rin-chan murmured shortly while keeping her hand on the exhaust valve of the main engine.
"Yes."
In Haru-kun's hand‚ which responded briefly‚ was already the dented aluminum pot quietly lifted from beside the magnetic engine. His ash-silver wavy hair‚ softened by changing into clean clothes‚ swayed gently every time he ran the pencil across the waxed waterproof notebook on his lap.
"Remaining pure water (diamond soda): 4.8 liters. The maximum amount usable for this cooking is 600 milliliters. It can sufficiently reach boiling point using only the residual heat from the magnetic engine's joule heating."
"Alright. Output reduced by 25%. Further boiling would cause heat loss due to evaporation. I will dominate thermal efficiency at 100% with my logic (rules)."
Rin-chan took the pot and placed it on the makeshift heat-conducting plate extended from the engine. With a click‚ a dry contact sound was heard‚ and small sparks of pale blue static electricity popped. Through the dome's floorboards‚ a faintly warm 'residual heat of life' pleasantly soaked into the soles of the four people's bare feet.
"Then I'll be in charge of the plates~!"
Using only her right hand‚ Nagisa began carefully arranging empty cans—one by one—on the steel rack shelf as makeshift dishes. The baggy white T-shirt hung like a dress‚ its hem swaying unsteadily with her fluffy blue hair every time she moved. She gently rested her numb marshmallow left arm against the raft's support and polished the cans with her only free right hand‚ as if decorating a parfait.
The empty cans‚ which had been covered in mud just moments ago‚ had been washed with baking soda water and regained their awkward silvery surface. Bathed in the flickering light of the static electricity coil‚ they sparkled like jeweled eggs.
"Nfuー. They're not brand new‚ but they give off a deluxe brand-new feeling~."
Every time she polished them with the cloth in her right hand‚ the rounded surfaces of the cans beautifully reflected the multicolored dome walls painted with the four people's body heat in a marble pattern. Nagisa peeked at it happily and continued arranging the dishes while humming.
Momiji-chan‚ who had been watching her small‚ bouncing back from the transport sled‚ softened her porcelain cheeks and smiled faintly.
「……Thank you‚ Nagisa-chan.」
"Ehehe~. You're welcome~!"
While the exoskeleton (splint) creaked gently with a "...kyuu‚" Momiji-chan slowly raised her upper body. With her beautiful fingertips peeking from the slightly oversized clean sleeve‚ she neatly lined up the polished spoons one by one on a clean cloth.
Clink. Chink――.
The small‚ clear sound of metal touching metal. It wasn't the heavy bass of the ground rumble that erased the world. It was like a sacred fanfare for turning this dome—not into a sickroom or shelter—but into the four people's precious 'home.'
"Haru."
Rin-chan said while staring at the steam from the engine.
"Yes."
"Inventory (resources)?"
"Dry noodles: one and a half servings. A small amount of dried vegetables recovered from the observatory. If we prioritize the operational efficiency of the single entity (team)‚ the optimal solution is to distribute 0.37 servings equally to everyone."
Haru-kun paused his pencil slightly on the blank page.
「……However.」
His gray eyes quietly pierced the blue-haired girl whose white T-shirt hem swayed.
"Only Nagisa-san's demand value for that 'stomach-rumbling alert' completely deviates from the assumed range of the statistical model."
"Muuー!"
Nagisa puffed out her cheeks.
"Haru-kun‚ you called my stomach a black hole again! Even though I repaired my body beautifully and it's now sparkling like premium whipped cream!"
"It's a fact. I cannot record false logs in my notebook."
"Then make a cute exception correction just for that!"
At the sight of the two arguing like children.
"Fufu... ahaha. You two really get along so well..."
Momiji-chan shook her sunset-like red hair and laughed out loud.
「……Good grief. What noisy parts.」
Rin-chan also peeked her slender arm from the slightly ill-fitting sleeve and shrugged in exasperation. Perhaps still affected by Nagisa teasing her with "Rin-chan‚ you look so cute like a white parfait bowl!"‚ her cheeks were faintly red—not just from the steam.
However――none of the four stopped working.
The pot naturally warmed‚ the dishes naturally lined up‚ and the spoons naturally arranged themselves.
There was no leader (king) giving orders. No system (god) enforcing obligations. Yet the four of them‚ wrapping their body heat in matching white fabric‚ interlocked the gears of life in perfect rhythm‚ just like one giant entity (structure) coordinating its limbs' nerves.
Soon‚ gentle white steam began to rise from the edge of the aluminum pot. Inside the pure water‚ the dry noodles quietly danced‚ and the shriveled dried vegetables slowly regained their original colors. The fresh steam mixed with the lingering spring-like scent of baking soda that filled the room‚ gradually and warmly filling the inside of the multicolored resin walls.
Rising water levels‚ land disappearance‚ death rain――. In the middle of this sea of mud‚ once filled only with the smell of the world's malice and despair‚ everything was now different.
Beyond the steam‚ the four figures melting each other's boundaries and laughing. The texture of a beloved family wrapped in awkward white T-shirts. The scent of the world's gentlest soup rising from the dented aluminum pot. The small‚ clear sounds of life as empty cans and metal touched.
All those beloved irrational variables mixed together‚ certainly forming the air of 'our home'—the smallest and most unbreakable in the world.
The aluminum pot‚ wrapped in gentle steam‚ was softly placed in the center of the makeshift table created by combining surplus parts from the steel rack. The legs‚ lacking enough bolts‚ tilted slightly on the muddy water‚ with a broken iron plate whittled from raft scraps wedged on one side.
It was by no means a magnificent dining table. However――right now‚ this place was filled with more genuine body heat and human warmth (resources) than any luxurious restaurant anywhere in this sunken world.
Four empty cans serving as dishes. Four carefully polished metal spoons. And――in the center of the table was an old mug with a faint brownish ring. It was the last remnant of heat from someone's life there‚ which Haru-kun had risked his life to bring back from humanity's final observatory.
Inside that scarred mug‚ the pure water (diamond soda) with an impurity concentration of 0.02% or less‚ which we had created with our makeshift porous filter‚ quietly held a clear light.
Transparent. Quiet. The water of life that no one had deleted.
The shadows of the four‚ now matching white silhouettes‚ were reflected on its surface as if nestled together. Just looking at that small sparkle made the depths of my inconvenient chest grow warmly.
「……Distribution complete.」
Haru-kun nodded slightly in satisfaction‚ his ash-silver wavy hair peeking from the collar of the white T-shirt.
Soup for four. Water for four. A place for tomorrow for four.
No one had more‚ and no one had less. Like puzzle pieces‚ the four people's resources fit together perfectly. That alone was more than enough for us.
「……Nfuー.」
Still cradling my numb left arm (marshmallow) with my right hand‚ I slowly looked around at everyone's faces‚ my baggy white hem swaying.
Rin-chan shrinking herself like a white bowl beside me. Haru-kun closing his notebook and softening his gray eyes. Momiji-chan peeking her slender fingertips from the white gown sleeve.
All four of them were sitting at this battered table as if it were the most natural thing.
No one was in a hurry. No one stole another's resources. No one was afraid of the world's malice.
For us‚ who had once been observed by the "system" and lived in constant fear of the deletion countdown‚ such ordinary quietness was the greatest hack (miracle) we had won upon this sea of mud.
I gently brought my only free right hand together in front of my chest.
"Well then..."
Smiling a little shyly‚ I said the words that were the most stubbornly persistent in the world‚ yet the most precious‚ with far more affection than usual.
"Let's eat."
After a beat of gentle silence.
「……Let's eat.」
Rin-chan released her hand from the engine's exhaust valve‚ awkwardly brought her hands together‚ and quietly followed. Her black eyes were calmly still beyond the steam.
"Let's eat."
Haru-kun placed his pen on the waterproof notebook.
「……Let's eat.」
Momiji-chan on the transport sled also shook her sunset-like red hair‚ let the chest exoskeleton (splint) creak comfortably with a "...kyuu‚" and smiled shyly.
The four voices were small. Yet they were warm enough to fill the entire multicolored dome where the strong acid rain had stopped.
Clink――.
A small spoon sank into the silvery soup. Softly swaying white steam. The quiet sound of empty cans and metal touching. The faint yet beloved sound of someone chewing warm food.
Every single one of them resonated far more gently and loudly into our depths than the sound of that strong acid rain that had been slapping overhead just moments ago.
I gripped the spoon with my right hand and slowly brought the soup to my mouth.
「……Ah.」
A small voice unintentionally leaked from the back of my throat.
It was warm. That was all‚ yet a heat that made me want to live spread gently to every corner of my body‚ freshly washed with hot water.
I remembered. A long time ago‚ before the world sank‚ the time we ate together in an ordinary home. The soup we shared while laughing must have been this temperature that warmed the chest.
Chapter Thirteen. The salt-only pasta that Haru-kun and I ate alone in the first building as the world was sinking. That meal‚ carried to the mouth only as fuel replenishment to survive‚ was as frozen as the world‚ tasteless‚ and a little lonely.
But now it was different. Beyond the steam‚ where we entrusted our body heat to the matching clean scent‚ there were everyone's smiling faces. Right beside me were beloved people who could shoulder each other's debuffs. All three people I could say "It's delicious" to while smiling were right here.
Just that turned the soup in the dented aluminum pot from mere nutritional data (cost) into the perfect repair of "the joy of living today as humans together."
Outside the dome‚ the sea of mud that had declared complete silence swayed quietly like a mirror. The system called the world no longer spoke. That was why the clear sound of spoons touching dishes and the faint whispers of "It's delicious" coming from the world's smallest dining table were the indelible remaining heat (log) of history proving that humans were indeed living in the middle of this vanishing world.
「…………」
For a while‚ no one spoke the next words. The four‚ now in completely matching outfits‚ simply moved their spoons quietly and affectionately.
Clink――. Clatter――.
The sound of small metal gently touching the empty can dishes. The sound of slowly sipping warm soup. Someone softly exhaling a breath of relief‚ as if loosening the HP of a tense life.
Inside the multicolored gradient penetrating the dome's resin walls‚ each of those ordinary small sounds of life melted gently together with the steam. Precisely because the system called the world had declared complete silence‚ the sound of "just eating" resonating in the middle of this sea of mud was so beloved it seeped into the heart.
I took another mouthful of the soup distributed from the aluminum pot. It was warm. As expected‚ melt-in-your-mouth warm. Not just my freshly washed body. A definite heat spread gently even to the coordinates of my soul‚ which had grown cold and lonely.
And then――.
「……Mmm.」
Another mouthful. And yet another. The stroke from my right hand to my mouth wouldn't stop‚ pulled along by the rising excitement index.
Before I knew it‚ Rin-chan had tilted her slender neck from her slightly ill-fitting collar and was looking at me sideways. Haru-kun too. And Momiji-chan on the sled. The moment I noticed the three's gentle gazes‚ as if looking at a lost alien――the voltage of life dammed up inside me burst past its limit with a pop.
"It's delicioooooooous――‼"
My shout thundered as if piercing through the dome ceiling where the strong acid rain had stopped.
"This this this right here!!! What I wanted to steal back from the world's stomach was this deluxe all-you-can-eat flavor!!!"
Swinging the spoon wildly with my right hand‚ I flapped the hem of the baggy white T-shirt like a dress and hopped up and down on the floorboards with my whole body.
"The soup is warm! The vegetables taste properly alive! And above all‚ eating shoulder-to-shoulder with everyone makes the deliciousness break through one trillion points!!!"
"Don't swing the dish around‚ idiot."
The ruler of physical laws fired off a knife-like retort‚ exasperated yet with a smile she couldn't fully hide at the corners of her mouth.
"It's soup whose calories I meticulously managed according to calculations. If you spill even a single drop onto the floorboard‚ I will immediately impose a distribution suspension under my logic (rules)."
"Ehehe~! Roger that‚ Leader! I'll hold it gently with both hands like whipped cream!"
Just as I was told‚ I supported my numb left arm (marshmallow) with my right hand and hugged the empty can dish tightly with both "bodies‚" when――.
「……Fufu‚ ……ahaha.」
Momiji-chan on the transport sled shook her slender shoulders affectionately. Beyond the steam‚ her sunset-like red hair swayed softly at her neck wrapped in matching white fabric. The smile lighting up her porcelain cheeks was no longer the fleeting expression from when we first met at the inorganic observatory in Sector 14‚ but that of a much gentler‚ ordinary girl.
「……It's really delicious‚ Nagisa-chan.」
She murmured as if confirming a treasure.
"Eating a meal together like this‚ feeling someone's body heat while laughing... No matter where I search in my clock (memory)‚ this is a time that was never there..."
Haru-kun was also quietly and carefully bringing the soup to his mouth. His gray eyes‚ which once could only evaluate the world through statistical numbers‚ had softened just a little upon touching the warm steam.
"Statistically‚ bias toward a single entity's (team's) taste information should be limited‚ however..."
He fiddled with the sleeve of his white T-shirt as if thinking‚ gazing at the silver of the dish.
「……It seems the data called 'degree of life satisfaction' cannot be computed from nutritional logs input into the system alone. It's out-of-spec happiness."
At his ever-too-serious analysis‚ Rin-chan snorted.
She slowly slid a mouthful of soup down her throat. The red rope marks on her exposed shoulders were faintly overwritten with cherry blossom color by the steam.
「……It's just discomfort index management. The water-to-sodium ratio was simply perfect according to my logic (rules)."
After a short pause‚ she turned her face away.
「……Not bad.」
She muttered curtly.
"Ahー! Rin-chan‚ that's definitely you raising the white flag and kneeling saying 'Delicious! Happy!'"
"Wrong. The one kneeling is physical laws (the world). Not me."
"It totally is! Your face is as red as a strawberry on a parfait!"
"It's because of the steam‚ you idiot Nagisa!"
While verbally denying it grumpily‚ the strength of the hard armor that had been tense on the cliffs and rapids had completely left the fingertips of the girl holding the empty can dish. The heavy tension as the main engine and the stern brow that had glared at the world's malice had softly melted away upon touching the gentleness of the matching white T-shirts.
Seeing her awkward partner like that‚ I laughed again until the dome shook. Momiji-chan laughed like ringing bells‚ her red hair swaying along with my laughter. Haru-kun closed his observation notebook and gently softened his mouth. The four people's laughter spread endlessly inside the cocoon colored with multicolored marble patterns‚ along with the scent of warm soup.
Clink――. Clatter――. Slurp‚ slurp――.
The sound of affectionately sipping soup. The small clear sound of a spoon touching an empty can. Laughter gently enveloping the dome walls. Someone shyly muttering the human selfishness of "seconds."
Every single one of them was a sound that no longer existed in the world that‚ until yesterday‚ had only the heavy bass of despair that shaved away life.
It wasn't battle sounds for fighting the world's malice. Nor was it inorganic fuel replenishment data just to survive one more day.
Inside the newly created multicolored 'home‚' living shoulder-to-shoulder with someone while wearing matching clothes――. It was nothing more than that: our own 'pulse of life (system clock)‚' the most uncertain and the most precious of all.
By the time we finished cleaning up after the meal‚ the inside of the multicolored dome painted with the four people's body heat was completely wrapped in a calm and gentle twilight atmosphere.
The awkward aluminum pot was dried cleanly and turned upside down‚ while the empty cans serving as dishes were neatly lined up‚ showing their silvery surfaces under the faint light of the static electricity coil. Only the white steam of the soup that had warmly filled the dome lingered regretfully‚ slowly drifting across the ceiling before disappearing.
No one rushed because of a time limit. No one panicked over the sector's disappearance. Simply being able to spend this quietness brought by the system's complete silence in a human‚ harmonious way was a miracle unimaginable for us just a few hours earlier.
In the corner of the dome‚ Haru-kun straightened the hem of his matching shirt and quietly sat down on the floorboards in his usual crouched posture. Lightly shaking his softened ash-silver wavy hair‚ he gently opened the waxed waterproof notebook he had been carefully holding to his chest on his lap.
The small clear sound of wax rubbing against the paper's edge.
Flip――. Flip――.
Then. On the 'Day 4' page‚ which recorded the violent ground liquefaction‚ the desperate expedition‚ and the history of building the marshmallow arm boat‚ Haru-kun's fingertips stopped sharply.
The bottomless sea of mud. A water purification device with 0.02% or less impurities. The warmth of the washing room partitioned by a curtain. The spring-like scent of baking soda rising from hot water. And everyone's smiling faces beyond the steam‚ laughing with boundaries dissolved.
Not survival data (cost) that shaved away life‚ but the brilliance of today‚ when we lived humanly‚ was certainly recorded there as 'official history (asset).' Haru-kun said nothing. He simply gazed at that log quietly and affectionately.
Eventually‚ as if carefully storing that certain history deep in his chest‚ he gently turned to the next page with his dirty fingertips.
Flip――.
There was nothing.
Just a page that was endlessly clean‚ inorganic‚ and so pure white it seemed to suck you in. A future where the world system's 'initialization (format)' had not yet reached‚ where no logs had been carved by anyone's hand‚ where nothing had yet been defined.
The tip of Haru-kun's trembling pencil stopped for a moment at the top of that blank page‚ as if hesitating. His intelligent gray eyes shook with a hint of earnestness upon receiving the warm steam filling the room.
For the statistician that he was‚ writing the variable "tomorrow" in his notebook was the most uncertain and most difficult irrationality (bug) in the world. Because there was no guarantee that tomorrow would come anywhere in this hopeless world. Because his computational resources had always reached their limit just repairing each day from the causes of death and surviving. That was why the blank page quietly waiting before him reflected in his eyes with an overwhelming texture‚ like a band of dazzling light.
「…………」
Haru-kun took a quiet breath‚ his clean chest rising and falling slightly. Then‚ as if making up his mind‚ the tip of his pencil gently touched the blank page that seemed to suck him in.
Scratch――.
A pleasant sound of writing that gently hacked the dome's silence. The first characters he carved into the future timeline with his own will (body heat).
『Day 5』
Just four characters. That was all. Yet that single line solemnly written at the top of the blank page was his absolute signature (sign) believing in a future with his companions‚ more than any grand prophecy book in the world.
"Nfuー!"
Right beside him. I showed off the treasures I had been desperately holding with just my right hand by placing them on the steel rack table.
Plop. Roll.
"Look look‚ everyone! It's a deluxe all-you-can-eat great discovery~!"
Bouncing my fluffy blue hair‚ I spread the hem of the oversized white T-shirt like a dress and pointed at them happily with my right hand. One was a small‚ beloved 'clump of soil' that I had frantically torn from the boundary line of the land sinking into the muddy water‚ scorching my bare feet. The other was a small 'bag of civilization seeds' that Haru-kun had protected with his life from the remaining heat of life in the observatory and brought back.
"The acid rain deletion staff is napping too! Our multicolored marble chocolate house is finished too! ...Hey‚ once tomorrow comes‚ let's plant these seeds in the soil~!"
I looked at my partner beyond the steam with sparkling eyes.
"Then I'm sure the inside of the dome will become a paradise full of green! The water people's puka-puka float special all-you-can-eat parfait farm will grandly open!"
「……Hmph.」
Rin-chan‚ receiving my grand brain conversion head-on‚ awkwardly readjusted her slender arms wrapped in matching white fabric. The red rope marks on her exposed shoulders softly reflected and calmed the multicolored light on the dome's inner walls. Her black eyes narrowed gently‚ exasperated yet acknowledging the kindest exception provision in the world.
"Tomorrow."
Just two words. A curt‚ short response typical of Rin-chan. Yet deep within those words was the absolute logic of life (rules) that could twist even physical laws: "Tomorrow‚ the day after‚ and even a year from now‚ I will definitely be by your side."
"Understood."
Haru-kun nodded quietly. While looking at the freshly written 'Day 5' characters‚ he shook his ash-silver hair a little shyly and gently ran the pencil across the blank timeline once more.
"I will add the first schedule (log) for tomorrow in my notebook."
Scratch scratch‚ scratch scratch――. New pulses of history lined up on the page of a future no one had ever seen.
『Plant the seeds』
"Fufu... ahaha. A parfait farm sounds wonderful..."
Momiji-chan‚ leaning her upper body on the transport sled‚ laughed with a truly happy voice while her sunset-like red hair swayed in the steam. The chest exoskeleton (splint) creaked gently with a "...kyuu" as if blessing the birth of a new entity.
"I'm looking forward to it‚ Nagisa-chan."
That single phrase was more than enough for us.
No one had planted the seeds yet. The clump of soil we had torn out was still as is‚ and the vacuum pack containing the civilization seeds had not yet been cut open. Yet――not one of us four doubted it even a millimeter. No matter how broken and sunken the world became‚ the light called tomorrow would definitely reach us. That once tomorrow came‚ we would again wear these matching white clothes and plant those tiny grains of the future into the soil while laughing together.
Our cocoon protected by multicolored resin walls beautifully reflected its vivid marble pattern onto the sea of mud that had fallen silent like a mirror. The giant system called the world no longer spoke. The acid rain from the sky‚ the tongue of deletion (delete tongue) that dissolved the ground‚ and all the malice that had plotted to erase us were now quietly sleeping deep in processing.
Gliding smoothly across that calm‚ still water surface.
The small multicolored floating boat carried the four people's warm laughter‚ the most beautiful freshly written 'Day 5' characters in the world‚ and――the beloved tiny future not yet planted in the still-cold soil‚ gently upon its chest.
Slowly. Really‚ slowly.
As if taking a new step‚ it began to drift gently toward the unseen tomorrow.
Chapter 46 "Repair of the Dining Table (Blank Timeline and the First Supper)" End
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