In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

"Qianye, what about you?"

"Watch TV, read a novel, or... want to go to the arcade?"

"A place to play video games?"

"It's not all game consoles. Technology is developing rapidly, and nowadays arcades have many other entertainment options, such as various VR games, basketball machines, and light gun shooting games..."

"Let's go here then!"

Realizing she had interrupted him, her tone once filled with excitement and anticipation, Kazusa turned her back to him.

"I happen to be at home today and have some free time, so I can go with you to the arcade to see what it's like. I think my mom took me to a place like this when I was little, but it's been so long that I can't remember it clearly."

"A journey to rediscover childhood innocence, indeed." Yuan Qianye sighed. "In that case, why don't we invite Aunt Youzi along, and the three of us can go together?"

"She doesn't need to. Her solo piano tour just ended the day before yesterday. Let her stay home and rest well."

She was a bit arrogant, but not completely arrogant.

In the end, Chiya Minamoto still took Kazusa out alone.

As a result, the arrangements that Yuan Qianye had planned in advance could not be implemented smoothly.

But he didn't regret it. Seeing Kazusa's genuine happiness, which she rarely showed, was a worthwhile experience for him.

There is still a long time ahead, and not everything needs to be rushed.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Time flies, and the year is drawing to a close.

The new year is just around the corner.

Saeko Busujima doesn't actually like these kinds of family-friendly holidays.

Because my father's work expanding the kendo dojo has been overseas in recent years, he is in the prime of his career and is extremely busy most of the time.

Therefore, even during the New Year period, he is not sure if he will be able to come back and spend this festive holiday with his daughter.

As compensation, all he could do, besides video calling her on New Year's Eve, was send her some gifts to ease her loneliness, but this was merely a paltry gesture of comfort.

Compared to most other families, Saeko Busujima lacked the companionship of her family.

This was the situation she had hoped to change.

But now, it has become an aid to her in certain matters.

[Hirotaka Busujima: I'm sorry, Saeko, Daddy can't come back this year either.]

[Saeko: It's alright, Father. It's okay if you don't come back.]

Busujima Dairyu: "..."

The elderly father felt something was off about his daughter's reply, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

But for Saeko, it really doesn't matter.

"Saeko-nee, could you please hang up the shimena rope for me? I'm too short to hang it up."

The Yuan family home was bustling with activity on the last afternoon of the year.

Saeko is invited by Chiya Minamoto to spend New Year's Eve at his house.

At this moment, Rikka has asked her to help decorate the front yard for the festival.

Runzi's mother and Toka were busy in the kitchen preparing special dishes for the New Year.

We had guests at home, and it was also the first New Year we had spent living in this house.

The dishes prepared were more luxurious and comprehensive than in previous years.

The New Year's Eve dinner features traditional festive dishes, specially presented in a four-layer lacquered box, including black beans symbolizing diligence, red and white radish shreds representing good fortune, and buckwheat noodles symbolizing longevity.

In addition, there's hot okozuna (a type of stew) and mochi soup, which you can enjoy while watching the Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Battle) in the evening.

As for Yuan Qianye at this moment, he was in his room opening the greeting cards that had been mailed to him by various parties.

Most of them are friends I see regularly.

The greeting card designs they chose also had their own unique style.

For example, Yukino's greeting card has a pattern of green bamboo on the surface, and there are several cute pandas in it.

The greeting card from Kasumigaoka is edged with gold and features a stunning image of fireworks exploding in the night sky in the center.

As for Eriri, the pure white greeting card looks ordinary, but when you open it, you'll find a cute origami cartoon character carrying a lantern, which is quite ingenious.

There were also some organizations that had collaborated with Gen Chiya, or that sent him greeting cards from the official organizers of the events he participated in, such as Nishiyama-do, which signed an endorsement contract with him, the Youth Kendo Association, and so on.

In addition, Gen Chiya also discovered a rather unusual letter.

It is special because it has neither the official post office red stamp nor a postmark.

The post office would normally not accept such a letter, let alone send it.

Upon opening the envelope, inside was a folded letter and a thin amulet, simply designed with the words "bring good fortune" written on one side and "health" on the other.

The letter unfolded, revealing handwriting that was remarkably light and graceful.

[This is something I obtained by accompanying Miss to the temple to pray for blessings. Thank you for your New Year's greeting, and I wish you all the best in the new year, may everything go smoothly for you and may all your wishes come true. (?o?o)??]

It even included emoticons at the end, and they were quite cute.

Even without a signature, Yuan Qianye knew who it was just by looking at the contents of the letter.

Previously, he had asked Rikka to help him buy greeting cards.

He wrote a lot and sent it to his friends, including one for Hayasaka Ai.

Along with the greeting card, he also sent a cute little keychain that he had chosen.

So this should be considered a reply.

As for why there was no postmark on the envelope, Yuan Qianye guessed that after receiving his New Year's greeting, she realized that it would be too late for him to send it again, so she simply went to her door and put it in the mailbox at the door.

Yuan Qianye logged into the computer's backend and viewed the video files recorded by the security camera at his front door, scrolling back through them.

Sure enough, a taxi pulled up in front of his house. Hayasaka, wearing a mask and hat, got out of the car, handed over the New Year's letter, and then quickly got back in and drove away.

Chiya took a picture of Ai Hayasaka's New Year's letter and sent it to her, along with a message.

Since you're already here, why didn't you just knock?

I thought she would be very busy during the New Year period, but to my surprise, she replied almost instantly.

They didn't inform us beforehand; that's extremely rude.

Then he quickly followed up with the next sentence.

[Hayasaka Ai: I'm sorry, because I didn't know you would send me a card and a gift, so I didn't prepare anything in advance. That amulet was something I got for myself, but it should be okay. The good intentions are the same, so you can use it too. I'll get another one for you next year.]

[Yuan Qianye: There's no need to be so sincere or formal. After all, it's just a simple blessing. The sentiment is enough. Even if you can't make it next year, you don't need to come in person. Sending a message is fine too.]

[Hayasaka Ai: Okay, I understand.]

[Yuan Qianye: Besides that, I have another question.]

[Hayasaka Ai: What?]

[Yuan Qianye: How did you know my exact address?]

This time, Hayasaka Ai paused for about ten seconds before sending the message.

[Hayasaka Ai: You're a celebrity, you know your home address is so easy to find, it's all over the internet.]

[Yuan Qianye: Oh, that's alright then. Happy New Year!]

[Hayasaka Ai: Yeah, Happy New Year! ^o^]

After putting down his phone, Yuan Qianye put his hands on the computer keyboard and typed out his name in a flurry of typing.

Regarding information about my home address, I've only seen a couple of posts mentioning the address of my old house.

But now, he couldn't find any address for his new home.

What celebrity? It's just a personal name.

It seems that Hayasaka-san wasn't telling the truth.

However, given the immense power of the Shinomiya family, obtaining someone's specific home address shouldn't be too difficult.

Once Yuan Qianye thought about it, he didn't pay much attention to it anymore.

In the evening, the family gathered around the TV to wait for the New Year's Eve countdown.

As the countdown reached zero, Saeko and Chiya Gen raised their glasses to each other.

Please continue to support us next year.

"Me too, please take good care of me."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Around 2 a.m., just as Yuan Qianye got into bed, there was a gentle knock on the door.

He responded, and Saeko walked in.

Yuan Qianye looked at her dressed in her pajamas and breathed a sigh of relief, but for some reason, he was also a little disappointed.

I have mixed feelings.

"Sorry, I couldn't sleep and wanted to talk to you, Qianye."

"It's okay, I can't sleep either."

Gen Chiya lifted the covers and sat on the edge of the bed, patting the spot next to him to indicate that Saeko should sit down beside him.

The two were very close, and he could easily smell the faint scent of shampoo. The girl's fragrance was slowly entering his nostrils, stirring his senses.

"Is something bothering you?" Yuan Qianye asked proactively.

"It's a problem... Maybe that's true. In less than four months, I'll be a high school student." Saeko's hands were placed on either side of her body, and whether intentionally or unintentionally, her fingertips pressed against the back of Minamoto Chiyo's hand.

In Japan, schools run their third semester from January to March, after which they have a break and reopen in early April.

That was also the beginning of Saeko's high school years.

"I see, so you're worried about not being able to fit into high school." Chiya felt like she had figured out Saeko's symptoms.