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

At that moment, his phone suddenly rang.

It was a message from Saeko.

[Saeko: We just finished taking a bath, and we discussed it and decided to go to the restaurant for dinner, but we all wanted to wait for you to come along.]

[Yuan Qianye: You guys go ahead first, we'll meet at the restaurant later.]

After replying to the message, Yuan Qianye put her phone back in her pocket, and her originally leisurely pace unconsciously quickened.

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.

"...That's what he said."

Saeko in the room will display the phone screen with Chiya's reply to everyone.

"In that case, let's go." Yukino stood up.

No one else objected, except for Shiyu, who remained lazily reclining in her chair, showing no reaction whatsoever.

She was like this when everyone first came back, and she's still like this now that everyone has come back from the bath.

"Shiyu-nee, aren't you going to have dinner?" Rikka asked with concern.

"I ate something to fill my stomach after I woke up this afternoon, so I don't need to have dinner. You guys go ahead and don't worry about me."

Since Shiyu had already said so voluntarily, the others didn't insist that she come along.

Apart from her, everyone went to the hotel's restaurant area together.

Soon after, Gen Chiya also arrived and joined them.

He took out the spoils he had just bought while searching from his pocket and handed them to Eriri.

Eriri accepted it shyly yet happily, thanking her repeatedly.

Everything was the same as Qianye's opportunities in the past.

"ah?!!!"

"Don't worry, there won't be any problems tonight. As for Shiyu, you saw how much trouble she caused last night. She still hasn't recovered, so I can predict that she'll be resting early tonight. She doesn't have the energy to bother or cause trouble."

Saeko is helping Eriri calmly analyze the situation.

But Eriri could not possibly accept it so easily!

"That's not the question!"

"Are you worried about Qianye? Actually, there's no need to worry. You know very well how much Qianye cares about you, and you also know that if you made the request, he wouldn't refuse at all."

Eriri covered her face with her hands and squatted down: "I already said, no, that's not the problem!"

Seeing this, Saeko also squatted down to be at eye level with her, and suddenly changed the subject: "Eriri, have you heard of the happy time theory?"

Eriri slowly raised her head: "The theory of happy time?"

"Ah."

Saeko nodded firmly and began to narrate slowly in a calm yet captivating voice.

"A person's life is actually very short. If you take away the childhood when you don't know anything and the time when you are old and may have difficulty moving around, the time that a person can truly control and experience the world is at most seventy or eighty years."

And within those seventy or eighty years, nearly a third of the time is spent unconsciously sleeping. The truly conscious, effective time a person has to experience and create memories in their lifetime is actually far less than we imagine.

Eriri was moved by Saeko's narration; her voice possessed a strange power that allowed people to listen quietly.

"This theory suggests that if we can find our own happiness earlier and identify the person and lifestyle we want to spend our lives with, then we can naturally immerse ourselves in happiness for a few more years, or even more than a decade."

Moreover, life is full of too many variables and unknowns. We cannot predict whether tomorrow or an accident will come first. Just look at Ms. Matsui Yuki and we should understand.

Natural disasters, man-made calamities, diseases, accidents... we never know when these uncontrollable events will suddenly strike and disrupt all our plans.

Even if you've planned everything meticulously, envisioned the future, and carefully nurtured the present, a sudden unforeseen event can still shatter all your expectations, turning every "later" into nothing at all.

Actually, Saeko could have continued speaking, but seeing Eriri deep in thought, she stopped in time to avoid going too far.

A person's...life...

Eriri suddenly recalled that Christmas Eve many, many years ago at Yukino's house, when she, as a child, took the initiative to propose a vow to Chiya and Yukino to stay together for the rest of their lives.

What thoughts and courage drove me to say those words back then?

She lowered her head silently again, her whole body trembling slightly, as if she were going through a very intense internal struggle.

Saeko didn't rush her, giving her a quiet environment and ample time to think.

Finally, Eriri, who had been pushed along by her all along, took a small step forward this time, relying on her own straightforwardness.

She raised her mouth, her eyes still trembling and wavering, but her expression was clearly different from before: "Saeko-nee, are you... serious?"

Saeko's smile grew even brighter: "Of course."

"Then you..." Eriri took a deep breath, as if gathering more courage: "...What are you planning to do tonight?"

Saeko's eyes gleamed with a look of relief, like that of a child she had always cared for finally growing up: "Yes, we really need to plan this carefully. I have an idea, why don't you listen to it..."

…………

Volume 2: Chapter 149: Don't be shy, enjoy yourself (8k) (2)

At the night market stalls, Chiyo easily found the same model as Eriri's damaged watch, paid for it without hesitation, and returned to the hotel.

On the way, he held the unopened watch in his palm and examined it closely.

The cartoon-style dial features subtly designed squid-shaped hands with slender tips and rounded protrusions.

Based on his aesthetic sense, he really couldn't understand why Eriri would like this cartoonish watch with such a subtle design for the hands.

I guess it's because I've spent too much time with Rikka that I've picked up some of her hobbies of liking these strange and unusual things.

But it's not a big deal. Everyone has different preferences. We should understand and respect that.

Gen Chiya put the watch back in his pocket, imagining Eriri's happy expression when she received it, and his mood improved somewhat.

Actually, it's still very early, not even seven o'clock yet.

Even on a regular school day, this time wouldn't be considered late, let alone now that it's a holiday and there's no need to worry about getting up early the next day.

There's still plenty of time; it feels like there's so much to do tonight...

As he breathed in the salty sea breeze, Gen Chiya's thoughts drifted silently.

At that moment, his phone suddenly rang.

It was a message from Saeko.

[Saeko: We just finished taking a bath, and we discussed it and decided to go to the restaurant for dinner, but we all wanted to wait for you to come along.]

[Yuan Qianye: You guys go ahead first, we'll meet at the restaurant later.]

After replying to the message, Yuan Qianye put her phone back in her pocket, and her originally leisurely pace unconsciously quickened.

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.

"...That's what he said."

Saeko in the room will display the phone screen with Chiya's reply to everyone.

"In that case, let's go." Yukino stood up.

No one else objected, except for Shiyu, who remained lazily reclining in her chair, showing no reaction whatsoever.

She was like this when everyone first came back, and she's still like this now that everyone has come back from the bath.

"Shiyu-nee, aren't you going to have dinner?" Rikka asked with concern.

"I ate something to fill my stomach after I woke up this afternoon, so I don't need to have dinner. You guys go ahead and don't worry about me."

Since Shiyu had already said so voluntarily, the others didn't insist that she come along.

Apart from her, everyone went to the hotel's restaurant area together.

Soon after, Gen Chiya also arrived and joined them.

He took out the spoils he had just bought while searching from his pocket and handed them to Eriri.

Eriri accepted it shyly yet happily, thanking her repeatedly.

Everything was no different from any other day.

but……

Yukino, who was sitting next to Eriri, suddenly felt a jolt in her mind and vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

Eriri's personality is all too clear to her, and she is fully aware of Eriri's hidden feelings for Chiya. So it's no wonder she feels shy in this situation where her beloved is worried about her and has made a special trip for her.

But... wasn't she being a little too shy this time? It was almost exaggerated.

Her face was so red it looked like it was about to bleed, her neck and the back of her ears were also flushed, and her eyes didn't dare to look at anyone, they were looking around aimlessly.

It's like being caught red-handed doing something wrong, or a fugitive who just brushed past the police—full of anxiety and a sense of being at a loss.

His head was so low it was almost buried under the table, as if he wanted to shrink into a ball and disappear.

Moreover, this state seems to last for quite a long time.

As the dishes everyone ordered were brought to the table one by one, filling the air with their aroma, and the conversation turned to tomorrow's itinerary, Eriri's blush finally subsided a little.

But his restless, evasive gaze, occasionally stealing a glance at Qianye before quickly looking away, like a frightened little rabbit, did not completely disappear.

Yukino keenly noticed these unnatural details.

But simply noticing it wasn't enough. She tried to connect these anomalies to possible causes, but the information was too limited and the clues too vague, so she couldn't deduce any plausible conclusions.

As for asking directly...

Not to mention that everyone is here now, we have to consider Eriri's feelings.

Even if they were to find an opportunity to be alone together, Yukino felt that, given her friend's usual personality, if it was something she didn't want to reveal, she would most likely choose to vaguely change the subject or simply avoid the topic altogether, rather than tell the truth.

Yukino recalled how they used to talk about everything, and then carefully examined their current relationship.

Some things are no longer so easy to say, and pure, honest sharing is no longer possible. I'm not exactly sad, but I am definitely feeling a bit melancholy.

At the dinner party, Yukino kept her feelings to herself, and no one noticed anything amiss.

Gen Chiya inquired about Shiyu's condition, whom he hadn't seen yet. After Saeko gave a brief answer, he was no longer worried and chatted with her about the general arrangements for tomorrow.

I suggested they wear sandals for tomorrow's outing. I'll take them to the pebble beach first to experience seawater bathing, kayaking, and various water sports facilities. If there's time later, we can consider visiting the nearby Fisheries Science Museum.