Fireworks
Fireworks
Every night of the five-day Birth Festival except the third day featured fireworks.
Day one was spring, day two summer, day four autumn, and day five winter themed.
From what I'd heard, the reason there were no fireworks on the third day was because of the cadets' Tower entry schedule. Honestly, though, the biggest reason was probably just that there are four seasons, not five.
Thanks to that, even now as the sky darkened to black, people's faces were filled with anticipation.
Some spread mats on the grass, others claimed benches and sat with their group. A few even waited for the fireworks from the balconies or terraces attached to the lodging facilities.
...The interior details of the lodging facilities were automatically shunted into my mental trash bin. For some reason, the information from inside was filtered out.
"What's wrong? Did something get stuck in your hair?"
While I was shaking my head vigorously, Baek A-rin beside me tilted her head.
[No, I'm fine.]
"Then why are you doing that? You're messing up your hair."
With a soft laugh, Baek A-rin reached out. Her slender fingers tidied my slightly disheveled hair into place, gentle and neat.
Under Baek A-rin's touch, I collected the packaged food handed to me by the cadet running a stall.
This was after everyone had taken care of their personal errands and we'd regrouped.
We were roaming around looking for a good spot to watch the fireworks while gathering food to eat once we settled down.
It wasn't a hassle, since we had to wander around to see the various events anyway.
With so many street performances and events aimed at passersby everywhere, not only Seo-yul but also the fairies perched all over my body seemed satisfied.
"Here, ten orders of takoyaki."
[...? Yes, thank you.]
For some reason, the cadet handing over the food wore an expression like they'd chewed on something unpleasant, but since both Baek A-rin and I had perception obstruction active, I didn't worry too much.
"Ha-yul, ah~"
"Mmf, nyam..."
Just as I was inspecting the food, Yeon-hwa, who had already gotten food wrapped up at another stall, approached.
Her eyes narrowed for a moment at the sight of Baek A-rin who had been fiddling with my hair, then she bustled over and placed a piece of white rice cake into my mouth.
When I bit into the rice cake that filled my mouth in one piece, a pleasantly chewy texture came through.
"How is it? Edible?"
Yeon-hwa looked at my bulging cheek and asked, poorly hiding her anticipation.
I didn't know this in the past, but now I knew that in this kind of situation, a specific answer was expected.
I nodded while chewing.
"Mm... ng... pff... yes, it's good."
"Mm, good. So you like this kind of rice cake too."
When I gulped down the rice cake and nodded, a delighted Yeon-hwa popped another piece into my mouth.
Ever since she'd found out last time that I preferred rice cakes for the texture, she'd often buy them and feed them to me like this.
Apparently that habit persisted even during the festival. The fairies and I were already on our fourth type of rice cake.
"I'll go buy some other stuff real quick, wait here... You know what'll happen if you pull any funny business, right?"
"Do you not even care about your filter anymore?"
Yeon-hwa planted a quick peck on my cheek, glared at Baek A-rin, and turned away.
"Goodness... what did I supposedly do?"
Baek A-rin shrugged at the back of Yeon-hwa's head, then with an odd little smile, tapped gently at my lips while I was still chewing the rice cake.
"Ha-yul, aren't you thirsty?"
- Nod nod
"Oh dear, Yeon-hwa just stuffs you with rice cakes and doesn't give you anything to drink."
I really was thirsty.
"Come on, come here."
[?]
Just as I swallowed the rice cake and tried to pull out a water bottle, she took my wrist and moved us somewhere. I tilted my head and followed.
An alley right nearby. Since this was Siyoram, it wasn't dark or unsanitary.
Once inside the alley, Baek A-rin glanced around briefly, then slipped a finger gently into my mouth.
By now used to that gesture, I brightened and put my mouth around her finger.
Trickle... Soon cool water streamed from the tip of her finger. The fresh water soaked through my dry mouth and down my throat.
.
.
.
'No problems.'
After quenching my thirst and stepping out of the alley, I nodded to myself while surveying the packaged food with my perception.
I'd never been to a festival, but I had come across some accounts and reviews of festival experiences.
Among those, I'd seen that assessments of food stalls and vendors often varied, so I'd been a little worried, but fortunately there were no issues at all.
That made sense, since Siyoram strictly regulated and screened who could enter.
If someone managed to get in here and then caused problems? All the trust they'd built just to secure a spot at Siyoram would go straight down the drain.
Even the stalls run by cadets were under the authorization and supervision of their assigned professor, so if anything was off, they'd immediately get whacked—crack—by the regulatory hammer.
'Professor Liana is running around ragged because of that too.'
Even now, within my observation range, I could sense spirits moving everywhere. Most of them were Professor Liana's lower spirits, apparently patrolling for issues that way.
'Hmm...'
I chewed my lip for a moment. Thinking of Professor Liana still didn't sit easy in my heart.
I located where Professor Liana was and observed. The image of her alone in her lab, working, filled my mind.
Still, unlike earlier, she didn't seem as busy. Well, it was the tail end of day one by now.
The festival would continue into the early hours, but by then she'd probably hand things off to someone else.
'Hmmmm...'
.
.
.
[So, we came to watch with you.]
"It's kind of you to think of me even during the festival."
After hearing the explanation conveyed to her, Professor Liana smiled brightly. With the look of someone regarding an admirable child, she gently stroked my head.
"It's true that things are winding down... but I do still have a bit left to do. And it wouldn't be quite right for the person in charge to leave her post."
[That's why we came to where you are, Professor Liana.]
"Mm, my heart is truly glad. But this place has a closed ceiling, and the windows aren't all that big. Won't it be a little uncomfortable for having fun?"
Professor Liana spoke in a soft, soothing voice as if calming a child. It seemed she was a bit worried about us having fun here.
The ceiling was indeed closed, and though there were windows, they weren't large enough to see the whole sky at a glance.
On top of that, Professor Liana's lab was in a dense building area, so other structures would block much of the view.
[I can solve that.]
"Pardon?"
But I confidently puffed out my chest. Professor Liana and the others around tilted their heads, wondering what I meant.
Wearing a somewhat smug smile, I placed the packaged food onto a nearby table and pulled Jeonghwa out of my subspace.
- Bwooom...!
[Uweeeehhh...]
[Vibration]
[Ticklish]
The moment I grasped the staff and brought it out, Jeonghwa's shaft trembled, sending a strange vibration through my hands.
A sensation like being prodded by a vibrating massager.
Jeonghwa's quivering felt like it was fussing. Half-guessing, I gently stroked the shaft. The vibration gradually subsided.
- Bwooom...
A moment later, Jeonghwa stopped vibrating as if satisfied. I couldn't help but make a dumbfounded face.
"......"
Covering the odd looks coming from around me with a fake cough, I casually moved to a wall and pressed the tip of Jeonghwa firmly against it.
'Manifest.'
Fwoosh! The book fixed in a corner of my mind flipped open and the spell manifested. A fairly complex magic formula unfolded all at once, as if being printed by a copier.
The wall vanished.
"Oh."
Professor Liana, who had been watching what I was doing, opened her mouth blankly.
She blinked at the wall that had disappeared from view, then her eyes swept around in all directions.
She was probably noticing that not only the surrounding walls, but even the ceiling and the building above had vanished from sight.
"This is..."
Of course, I hadn't blown away the walls or the upper building. Professor Liana's eyes went round. She walked to one side and reached out, and her hand met something.
The wall that had just hidden itself.
"Did you make them transparent?"
[Yes, and I also secured enough space to relax with spatial expansion.]
I smiled brightly and tapped the floor with Jeonghwa. This was a section where space had been artificially expanded. Right in the center of the lab, I'd constructed a disposable space.
Basically, we could mess around here as much as we wanted, then I'd just whisk it away. Cleanup problem solved.
"...How? There must be so many spells applied to this building... and then there are the people, how did you..."
Professor Liana touched the wall, revealing her amazement. It was true: this building was densely layered with living-convenience magic, all kinds of protection spells, and security magic.
Plus there were people residing in the building. Even if you made the building transparent, the people would still be visible.
[I didn't disturb any of it. I just slipped it in between.]
I could simply modify everything without touching any of it. People wouldn't be affected either. I just had to include them in the scope and apply it.
I rested Jeonghwa on my shoulder and made a thoroughly self-satisfied face.
"Truly amazing... After your time away, you've really grown by leaps and bounds...?"
"Right, Ha-yul has so many talents it's hard to count them all."
"I know. He's seriously an all-rounder. An all-rounder~"
[...Anyway, I think we can enjoy ourselves right here. If a guest comes from outside, I'll let you know first.]
But under the stronger-than-expected shower of praise, embarrassment rushed in more than pride. I'd put on airs because I wanted compliments, sure, but this much was a little...
I glanced around, then quietly lowered Jeonghwa from my shoulder.
[I'd heard that when you were a cadet, Professor, you didn't really enjoy the festivals... Ah, of course you probably had fun with your spirits, but still... I thought it might be even more fun to enjoy it with other people...]
- Ahem
I cleared my throat for a moment and tapped the floor with the tip of my foot.
[And, um... I wanted to enjoy it with you too, Professor.]
"...Ahaha, that makes my heart feel very warm."
Professor Liana, who had been stroking the wall, smiled a smile tangled with complex emotions.
It was hard to interpret, but seeing her happy about my actions made me feel proud too.
"It's true, during my cadet days I was a bit introverted, so I spent the Birth Festival just playing with spirits or training."
Tap-tap— Professor Liana tapped the wall with her fingers, then came over and hugged me tightly in her arms.
"Thank you for thinking of me."
A cozy sensation enveloped my whole body as I was buried in her embrace. The soft swell of flesh against my face was the softest and most yielding thing in the world.
- Sniff sniff...
"Ahaha, that tickles."
But somehow, I wasn't satisfied.
I wrapped my arms tightly around her waist and pressed my face in, but no scent came. Professor Liana giggled and twisted her waist. I pouted, sticking out my lower lip.
There was no way a chest this large didn't smell like milk, yet I couldn't smell a thing.
I went up on tiptoes and pushed my face up out of the bountiful softness. Her hair tickled my face.
Swoosh... The long strands cascaded down around my face like a curtain.
When I opened my eyes a crack, all I saw was a hazy fog.
It was unsatisfying.
I didn't like it. In a position like this, I should be seeing her face clearly. I should be able to see her perfectly lovely eyes. I should be smelling the fragrance of her hair.
- Hmph...
[Displeased]
"Hm? Displeased...? Dear, is something uncomfortable?"
Professor Liana blinked, then worriedly stroked my cheek.
I could feel the touch on my cheek. Not every sense was blocked, but that fact only made the dissatisfaction worse.
What's more, I had roughly deduced a way to lift this restriction, so the impulse was even stronger.
Was there any reason to hold back?
'It's mine anyway...'
A childish possessiveness. A selfishness like a child who didn't want their toy taken away.
To be honest, I didn't care. Even I thought it was a bad thought, but even so, I didn't want to let go.
If the choice was to be a good kid and let go, I'd rather stay a bad kid and have everything.
I believed that no amount of affection was ever too much.
- Powpowpowpow!
The sound of firecrackers reached my ears. The sound of shells soaring into the sky and bursting.
I'd heard this was the spring-themed fireworks display, so it would probably feature mostly lush green colors.
The sky was open above, yet I couldn't see it. Instead, I felt the fireworks through the flow of mana, and the observed information came into my mind.
That was regretful, but... I no longer passionately wished to see with my eyes.
More than that, I wanted to see a different kind of green.
The atmosphere was just right. The fireworks were just starting. It matched rather well with what I normally considered a romantic mood.
The hesitation was short, the desire deep.
Before Professor Liana could lift her head at the sound of the firecrackers, I pressed my body close and stretched up even higher on my tiptoes.
- Smooch...
A moist sensation, which I barely managed to reach, brushed against my lips.
A brief touch that connected, then fell away. In that instant, it felt as if something came undone. A shiver ran through my body as though from static electricity.
I slowly opened my eyes, which had been squeezed shut.
The hazy fog lifted. Right in front of my nose, I saw a pair of green eyes gone perfectly round.
I saw the black hair that hung around us like a curtain.
At the tip of my nose, a fragrant scent wafted, along with a rich milky smell that made my mouth water.
Deeply satisfying.
"Heehee."
[Satisfied]
[Happy]
Swept up in the atmosphere, I smiled a loose, silly smile.
* * *
[Player Correction System: Affection]
Lee Ha-yul→Liana Bellus
●●●●●●●●○○(80/100)
｢Affection｣ ｢Milk Cow?｣ ｢Gratitude｣ ｢Gentle Adult｣ ｢Soft｣ ｢Voluptuous｣
▼Dramatic Change▼
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♡♡(80▷87/100)
｢Love｣ ｢Milk Cow?｣ ｢Possessiveness｣ ｢Gratitude｣ ｢Gentle Adult｣ ｢Soft｣ ｢Voluptuous｣
...
[Conditions for lifting ｢Curse of Silence｣ partially satisfied]
[｢Curse of Silence｣ is conditionally (Liana Bellus) weakened]
[Conditions for lifting ｢Curse of Solitude｣ partially satisfied]
[｢Curse of Solitude｣ is conditionally (Liana Bellus) weakened]
...
[Player Correction System: Pioneering Progress]
[Sub-quest ｢Birth Festival: Day 1｣ accomplished]
[Sub-quest ｢Star of the Opening Ceremony｣ accomplished]
[Sub-quest ｢Lead of the Hot Topic｣ accomplished]
[Sub-quest ｢Follower Establishment｣ accomplished]
[Sub-quest ｢Stall Tour｣ accomplished]
[Accumulating Points]
...
[Sub-quest ｢Liana Bellus｣ accomplished]
[Sub-quest ｢Triple Weakening｣ accomplished]
[Accumulating a large amount of Points]
...
[Tower Master of Harmonization lets out a sigh]
[Whew, I can fin$lly breathe a bit]
[Tower Master of Growth manifests Authority ｢Growth｣]
[Utilizing a large amount of Points]
[Tower Master of Harmonization opens their mouth]
[Ah]