The End of the New Year and Childhood (4)

The Plangunkula Circus Troupe's performance was held in the evening. This was because their shows grew more spectacular the darker it became, and it also helped draw in more customers. For a troupe that favored outdoor venues, nights with fewer stars were when their skilled acrobatics truly shone. It was the perfect time for exhausted citizens, drained from a full day's work, to visit without regret.

Thus, a huge crowd of citizens had gathered at the venue for the Romania representative circus troupe's performance, which had returned to Lucregens after nearly a year.

"Whoa, there are seriously a ton of people here."

I clicked my tongue as I looked at the packed audience seats. I almost felt guilty for snagging the VIP seats through my connections. At this rate, there were probably wealthy patrons out there who'd even thrown around gold coins just to get the spot I was currently sitting in. But there was no way I could drag my wives into that sardine can and let them get squeezed from both sides, right? Even our Franc looked like her ears were hurting from the murmur of hundreds or thousands of voices, even from the VIP section.

"Franc, hold still. I'll heal you."

"Ugh... sorry... I got curious about the surrounding noise and enhanced my hearing for a second..."

Dana pulled the groaning Franc into her arms and cast a healing spell on her ears. Our wife looked so adorable even while pressing on her ears and frowning that I wanted to nibble on her, but I wasn't childish enough to tease a suffering Franc. I even considered making rune magic earplugs using Beast Regression, but it seemed that wouldn't be necessary.

Bang!!

Fireworks suddenly exploded, instantly heating up the atmosphere. The winter sun was beginning to set, and the performance curtain had risen.

"My dear, come quickly! It seems it's about to begin!"

Veronica, who was utterly fascinated by human culture, was leaning so far over the railing of the special seats that I worried she might tumble right over. She was stuffing her cheeks full of the complimentary snacks like a chipmunk. When I playfully squeezed her butt because she looked so cute, her horn poked my shoulder. What are you, a rhinoceros?

"Stop fooling around and pay attention."

"Yes, ma'am."

She glared at me with a straight face, so I quickly pulled my hand away. With Franc's ears now fully healed and Dana finished with her treatment, we all settled in to watch the show together.

The performance was largely the same as what I'd seen before. There were minor changes in the order or some mixing of acts, but the core structure remained similar. That made sense. Acrobatics of that caliber weren't something you could perfect overnight. Trying to cram in new tricks haphazardly and failing spectacularly was something only third-rate troupes did.

Instead of that, they had confidence in their skills, stayed true to the basics, and never stagnated in one place. They always left the audience with a touch of lingering regret at the farewell and anticipation for the next reunion. That was probably the secret behind the Plangunkula Circus Troupe's enduring popularity despite repeating the same show.

'No freak show participants this time.'

This was my third time watching, and as I visually enjoyed it, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I thought to myself. The letter they'd hurriedly given me to pass on to Arthur Wayne said that they still hadn't received official performance permits. People with as many flaws as them would only invite ridicule if they didn't prove themselves through skill, so they were currently training under Miss Alexandra. They probably hadn't reached a level where they could join that lineup in just a few months.

"Whoa!"

When Mokona appeared in a dancer's outfit, dancing while creating a fiery show with elephants, Dana let out a startled gasp of admiration. Then, embarrassed, she glanced around with a reddened face, spotted her husband grinning, and stomped on his foot. It didn't hurt at all, so I just counted it as some kind of pseudo-footjob. Franc smiled brightly as if she was enjoying it no matter how many times she saw it. Veronica wiggled her toes on tiptoe, her eyes sparkling.

And so, as the performance—which could be called short or long depending on how you looked at it—reached its climax, it was naturally time for the circus troupe's ace to take the stage.

The coquettish voice that she usually restrained around us. Larilura, who had nimbly climbed atop a long pole, spun once on the precarious platform before winking in our direction.

"Yikes."

Predicting the audience's shrill cheers, I quickly covered Franc's ears to protect them. Franc and Larilura waved at each other in greeting.

Larilura spread her fingers, which were fitted with thimbles. I unconsciously activated Odin's Eye and had to hold back a laugh. It had originally been a rather ordinary magic item for a dark mage's drop, but after the circus troupe's mages adjusted its performance and the church even bestowed blessings upon it, the object had become quite elegant.

Mana threads connected to the performance puppets that had been set up. Up to that point, Franc and I had simply thought, 'Looks like the performance order changed a bit.' But the next moment left us slightly surprised.

The circus mages covered the open ceiling with darkness. Fweeeee— Bang! The Magic Arrow spells engraved on the puppets' bodies painted the sky like fireworks, and this time I couldn't help but chuckle. It was because my Odin's Eye, which I hadn't turned off yet, had analyzed the magic structure.

'She's been interested in spell combination for a while. I wondered what she was up to.'

Swish.

The arrows shot high into the sky transformed into streams of light. Friar's Lantern. The magic that changed color and shape according to the caster's will painted the starless sky. It was the same blue light that some pure-hearted macho guy had once used for his first proposal.

The lights danced and changed shapes. They turned into playful stars, hearts, and other forms, then took on the appearances of animals, forests, seas, and ships—things Larilura had seen during her travels.

"Ah..."

Even the noisy audience held their breath, completely mesmerized by the beautiful sight. Of course, though I'd spoken as if it were someone else's business, I was no different. As a 21st-century Earthling, the performances of this other world hadn't really impressed me beyond the superhuman acrobatics like Larilura's. Honestly, I hadn't thought their shows were all that superior to modern CG or concerts.

But the performance Larilura was putting on now was different. Back when I lived on Earth, I'd seen an Olympic opening ceremony broadcast where hundreds of drones painted pictures in the sky. The light show our junior had recreated through spell combination was a bit clumsy, but in a way, it was even more spectacular than that drone show. After all, freely moving lights had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠no limits to their movement.

—Stop.

The Friar's Lantern lights, which had been forming pictures and letters, finally became a massive constellation and halted in the sky. It looked as if the constellations in the heavens had been enlarged dozens of times. Perhaps creating what might be the first planetarium in this world, Larilura—drenched in sweat from the excessive mana usage—spoke.

Her clear voice seeped into everyone's ears. Half the audience snapped back to their senses. The other half, however, remained unable to tear their eyes away from the beauty of the constellations, which they normally wouldn't have cared about.

Bang! A portion of the light swirled around Larilura's hand before exploding like fireworks.

Listening to her, I shook my head, unable to stop myself. She was showing off such a magnificent spectacle and saying, 'This is the result of my travels.' What circus troupe could possibly tell her not to travel anymore? From the moment Larilura had asked me to teach her spell combination, she had already been devising a way to convince her family.

To the citizens of Lucregens who had suffered through the mafia bastards' rampage, how must those words have sounded? Just seeing people tearing up over training camp campfire stories was enough to guess the effect. Dana seemed to have a similar thought ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and whispered in my ear.

"...Hey, husband. Mind if I ruin the touching moment a bit?"

"Go ahead."

"This is basically her roundabout way of saying, 'I'm not coming to work starting tomorrow, so please understand,' right?"

Golden answer. 'Seriously, I wonder who she learned those crafty tricks from.'

I let out a sigh at Larilura's sly brain, whose source I could never figure out. Thinking about the circus mages who had to carry on this incredible show's legacy, and Miss Alexandra who would have to soothe the audience screaming about why Larilura wasn't performing, I couldn't help but feel sympathy... Hmm... But isn't that the responsibility of all of you who raised this overly talented troublemaker? At least it's not my fault.

"Hmm. This is going to be trouble."

Veronica, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠who had been lamenting that she couldn't film this planetarium with the magical camera she'd obtained from the Ulster village, suddenly said that. I blinked in confusion.

"Trouble? What is?"

"It's not some huge concern, but... after pulling off something this big, Larilura's face will probably become quite well-known, won't it?"

Veronica shook her head as she spoke.

"At this rate, our master who promised to go out and play with that child tomorrow is going to have quite the hard time."

"...Huh?"

As I mulled over her words, my eyes met Larilura's. The girl who had caused a massive sensation in this world's entertainment culture had just declared a temporary retirement by saying she wouldn't perform for a while—and now she was going to wander around with some guy?

"...Holy shit."

Watching Larilura stick her tongue out and laugh as if she'd caused an accident, my vision went dark.

Back when I was on Earth, I'd never become a fan of any idols. Of course, during my military days I'd memorized the parts where female idol groups appeared in music videos or reruns, but that was ancient history. As a married man now, I could say without the slightest hesitation what other henpecked husbands claimed: 'My wife is prettier than any idol.'

You think I'm lying? Just look at my wives' beauty. Even if I spent the rest of my life just staring at their faces, I'd never go hungry.

Maybe that's why I had, to be honest, underestimated the power of rumors in this other world.

"This is insane."

My head spun at the massively printed headlines. As I'd mentioned before, Romania was a country with many advanced policies—so much so that even Britannia copied them. That didn't mean it was a human rights paradise, but having newspapers at all put it a step above Britannia's rural backwaters. At least in major cities, the illiteracy rate was almost nonexistent.

And that was the problem for me. The Plangunkula Circus Troupe's lodgings had already been surrounded by people who had smelled money.

Bang bang bang bang!

Madmen pounding on the barred door. Newspaper sellers never changed no matter how the world did. People driven mad by sensational articles had occupied the entrance and started doing breakdancing on the bare floor. I had zero confidence in breaking through that crowd to drag out the pink-haired culprit behind this chaos.

"Therefore, even if I break our promise today, you have no grounds to argue against it."

"What kind of nonsense is that?"

As I was seriously plotting my escape, someone I didn't know spoke to me. It was an Easterner with striking yellow skin. But the face looked somehow familiar—like if a certain circus girl and I had a daughter, she might look something like this.

"...Who are you?"

"Aww, you noticed already♡!"

"No way. Your voice is exactly the same. Change that too, quick."

Right. With transformation magic, it was doable. I felt relieved seeing Larilura, who had transformed using the power of her necklace.

People only knew her as the pink-haired circus girl. If she disguised herself as a completely different person, there was no way they'd notice...

"Huh? No, during our date I'm going to completely cancel the transformation?"

"The fuck? Why?"

"Because I came in disguise☆!"

With those words, Larilura canceled the magic. She was wearing casual clothes. It wasn't that unusual lately, but she had pulled a hat down low, wore a mask and even glasses. She'd tied up her problematic hair to hide it somehow.

"...Well, since it's winter, bundling up like that doesn't look weird, and others probably won't recognize you. But can't you do something about your hair color at least?"

"Ehehe~♡ Doesn't it add more thrill if there's a little chance of getting caught?"

Yeah, whatever. I give up. Besides, maintaining the transformation magic while walking around would tire her out quickly anyway. I sighed, took off my coat, and put it on Larilura.

"It's cold out. Why did you come out dressed so lightly?"

"I forgot that my change of clothes was only at the inn! But won't you be cold now, senior?"

"One jacket is enough for me."

When I answered indifferently, Larilura buried her face in the coat and giggled.

"As expected, as expected. Such a reliable bodyguard♡ Thank you."

"More like a sturdy body shield. Looking at how things are going, I don't even dare say your name anywhere today."

"Then does that mean you'll call me Priscilla today?"

Larilura seemed delighted even by that complaint. She pulled down her mask and puffed up proudly as if she'd scored a point.

"...Yeah, sure. It's not that hard."

Irritated by Larilura's annoying attitude, veins popped on my forehead, but I wrapped my arm around her waist.

"Shall we go then, Priscilla?"

"...Eh? Eh?"

Her body stiffened at the hand around her waist. Her eyes swam about in confusion.

"U-um, senior? This is definitely sexual harassment, isn't it? What is this? Am I going to be your side-heater for the whole day? Was taking off your coat all part of setting up this harassment?"

"Is it? It's not harassment if both parties consent, right?"

When I played innocent, Larilura opened and closed her mouth before pulling her hat down firmly. Our junior hid her face from me like that, then hunched her shoulders and muttered in a tiny voice.

"...Then, well, I'll let it slide as not being harassment."

They say if you can't avoid it, you might as well enjoy it. And it was a day with no particular reason to avoid it anyway.