bookbashuk Chapter 32 Play...?
Chapter 32 Play...?
"Well……"
Hoshino instinctively took a half step back.
My left hand feels like muscle memory.
She quickly and tightly covered her lower abdomen.
It aches faintly there.
It wasn't a real injury.
It is a kind of...phantom pain.
A physiological response left over from overstimulation, which is automatically triggered whenever those eyes are seen.
Help……
Why did she come out?
Didn't you have enough fun yesterday?
In my current weakened state, if she catches me again...
Hoshi swallowed hard.
His eyes were filled with terror.
And this scene.
Naturally, it did not escape the eyes of Changyeyue.
She turned her head slightly to the side.
His gaze passed over the messenger.
It landed on the trembling girl who was clutching her stomach.
A hint of a smile, understood only by the two of them, flashed in those red eyes.
With a certain...lingering aftertaste.
And expectations.
"oops."
Chang Yeyue chuckled softly.
The voice was very low, yet it was like a feather, precisely tickling the tip of Hoshino's heart.
"Looks like someone... still remembers last night's 'lesson'."
She didn't do anything excessive.
His gaze lingered on Hoshino's hand, which was covering her lower abdomen, for only two seconds.
then.
Then he casually moved it away.
"Don't worry, you cute little thing."
Changyeyue turned back to face the messenger.
"The current situation... is not suitable for doing that kind of thing."
"We have important business to attend to."
Mohoshi felt like he had just escaped death.
My legs feel a little weak.
She could only lean even closer to Xing.
"This... envoy."
Chang Yeyue slung the parasol over her shoulder, her black lace gloves making a grasping motion in the air.
"Since you don't believe we have the ability to deal with those bugs..."
"They don't believe we can come back alive either."
"So..."
She snapped her fingers.
A jellyfish floated down in front of the messenger.
The tentacles gently touched its hard carapace.
"What if I let you see it with your own eyes?"
"Look at the path we've walked."
"Look how we trample those so-called 'despair' and 'invincible' gods under our feet."
"look?"
The envoy was somewhat confused.
"What do you think? Do you have a recording device?"
"That kind of thing is too low-class."
Chang Yeyue shook her head.
"True 'seeing' is feeling with your heart."
"It's about using memories... to recreate."
She looked at the star beside her.
I glanced again at Hoshino, who was still trembling.
"Come, my half-bodies."
Changyeyue stretched out her hand.
"If we're going to showcase it, let's do it thoroughly."
"Let us together...weave a grand dream for this stubborn guest."
Xing did not hesitate at all.
She pulled the familiar notebook out of the pocket of her black trench coat.
As I wrote.
There's also a pink pen.
That was not an ordinary pen.
There was no ink on the nib; instead, it flowed with a kind of golden light.
That is the will to "explore" and the vessel of "memory".
Xing opened the notebook.
His gaze became focused and deep.
The stellar core within her body began to pulsate.
This was in conjunction with the vast memory field released by Changyeyue.
"no problem."
Xing nodded.
"Let's see what the true value of 'Galaxy Baseball Man' is."
just now.
Only one piece of the puzzle is missing.
The gaze of the moon and stars in the long night.
It landed on the star at the same time.
Hoshi took a deep breath.
Although I'm still afraid of the long night moon.
Although my stomach is still aching slightly.
But at such a crucial moment, she certainly couldn't afford to falter.
and……
She could sense it.
Guided by the powerful memory force of the Long Night Moon.
The dormant destiny of her "memories," part of the "family bucket," within her body.
Awakening.
There's no need to rely on "As I Write" like Xing did.
It doesn't require a transformation like the Long Night Moon.
Hoshi closed his eyes.
She just... thought about it in her mind for a moment.
hum.
A transparent wave emanated from her body.
It was a torrent of memories, purer than the stars and deeper than the long night moon.
after all.
As an "author" who knows all the plot, all the settings, and all the past and future.
Those "memories" in her mind.
It is the truth of this world.
"Let's begin."
Nihoshi opened her eyes.
Those eyes, which were originally gray, now reflected the brilliance of countless stars.
The three exchanged a glance.
A long, red moonlit night.
Golden stars.
Gray stars.
Three different colors of memory power converged in the air.
It looks like a three-colored spiral.
It instantly enveloped the still-dazed messenger.
The surrounding scenery began to collapse.
Crystal City has vanished.
The deep sea has disappeared.
The red dwarf star also disappeared.
Instead.
It was snowing heavily.
It is a massive engine of creation.
It is that frozen Arillow-VI.
"Welcome to..."
The voice of Changyeyue rang out amidst the wind and snow.
"Our memories."
small theater:
Messenger 7582: I just wanted to persuade you to go home, and you immediately started showing me a VR panoramic movie?!
Long Night Moon: Hehe, this is just an appetizer.
Xing: That's right, the next part, "Cocolia's Beating Up," is the main event.
Mihoshi: I just hope... they don't show any weird scenes, like me being...
Changyeyue (smiling): What are you expecting?
……
As Chang Yeyue finished speaking, the dazzling three-colored spiral of memories did not dissipate. Instead, it was like a supernova that had been detonated, instantly engulfing everything in sight.
call--
It wasn't the roar of an explosion.
It was the sound of the wind.
A sharp, piercing sound, accompanied by the whistling of tiny ice crystals.
Messenger 7582 felt a blur before its eyes, and the suffocating water pressure and the claustrophobic feeling of the deep sea instantly disappeared.
Instead, there was an unprecedented openness and...coldness.
It instinctively moved its tentacles, only to find that the air, which had always been still within that protective force field, had now become incredibly violent.
Countless white, cold particles, like countless tiny daggers, struck its smooth, white jade shell with a crackling sound.
"This is……"
The messenger took a step back in panic, his six legs sinking into the soft ground.
It looked down.
The flat, hard white stone slabs beneath my feet were no longer there.
Instead, it is a thick, soft, white substance that emits an extremely low temperature.
That white was everywhere.
It covered the earth and filled the sky.
Even the distant mountains were dyed in the same hue.
"Teleportation?"
The messenger's voice was filled with disbelief.
It turned its compound eyes, trying to find the people who had just been standing beside it.
"How did you manage to teleport across galaxies, even across dimensions, in an instant? Even at the height of our civilization, we didn't have this kind of technology!"
"No, no, no."
An elegant voice came from the wind and snow.
Chang Yeyue, holding up that black parasol, stood out conspicuously amidst the swirling snow.
The raging snowflakes would automatically slide away within half a meter of her, as if even the storms of nature dared not offend the queen's majesty.
She turned around, her red eyes looking at the somewhat disheveled messenger.
"This is not some crude physical teleportation."
"This is a re-enactment of 'memory'."
"We are still standing on that observation deck, in your Crystal City."
"only……"
She extended a finger and gently tapped her temple.
"Your senses have been temporarily borrowed by us."
"Perception...borrowed?"
The envoy was still somewhat bewildered.
It stretched out one of its forelimbs and carefully caught a falling snowflake.
The hexagonal crystal remained on its shell for less than a second before turning into a drop of cold water.
This tactile sensation.
This temperature.
so true.
It was so real that it was hard to believe it was just a so-called "memory".
"What is this white thing?"
The envoy looked at the drop of water with curiosity in his eyes.
As a race living in the deep sea of a red dwarf star, where they never see the sun, it had never seen such a sight before.
"Some kind of solidified atmospheric sediment? Or... some kind of corrosive crystalline dust?"
"It's snow."
Nihoshi walked over.
Unlike Chang Yeyue, she didn't use her power to block the wind and snow, but instead let the snowflakes fall on her hair and shoulders.
The familiar cold did not make her feel uncomfortable; instead, it gave her a long-lost sense of warmth.
after all.
This is Arilo-VI.
It was the first stop on her real adventure after she woke up in this world.
It is a place that, though sealed off by the cold wave, still burns with the flame of protection.
"Snow?"
The messenger repeated the pronunciation.
"Yes, snow."
Hoshi squatted down and rummaged through the thick layer of snow with his left hand.
The soft, fluffy texture put her in a great mood.
Even the fear he felt when facing Chang Yeyue was temporarily forgotten.
"It's actually just water."
"Itohoshi explained, his tone becoming lighter," he added.
"Just like the seawater outside your city."
"However, when the temperature drops low enough, water turns into ice, and when water vapor condenses at high altitudes and falls back down, it becomes this soft snow."
She scooped up a handful of snow and presented it to the messenger.
"Look."
"It is not dangerous, nor is it corrosive."
"It can even... be used to play with."
"Play?"
The messenger looked at the pile of white things, clearly unable to understand.
For the crickets, any substance is simply distinguished as either "useful" or "useless".
Used for "playing"?
This is such a luxurious and wasteful concept.
"Yeah, let's play!"
Hoshi smiled.
That smile was so pure, like the days when I was playing around with March 7th and the others outside Beloborg.
Although she only has one hand, her movements are still fluid and graceful.
pinch.
Pressure.
change.
Almost in the blink of an eye.
A round, firm, and smooth snowball took shape in her hands.
That move was so practiced.
So skilled that they don't even need to think about it.
This is a skill etched into the DNA of the nameless passengers on the Starry Sky Train—a master of snowball fights.
"Like this."
Hoshi weighed the snowball in his hand.
Feel the perfect balance of weight and firmness.
"Shape it into a ball."
"Then……"
Her gaze swept around her.
Xing stood on a large rock, arms crossed, gazing at the distant ruins of the Creation Engine with a deep expression.
Danheng was on guard around.
Nguyen Mai is collecting snow samples.
The figure with pink hair, always so loud and boisterous, was standing not far from her, with his back to her, seemingly admiring the snow scene.
"Then……"
A wicked smile curled at the corner of Hoshino's mouth.
The mischievous gene belonging to "Star" took over at this moment.
"Like this!"
whoosh-
She raised her hand.
work hard.
Throw.
The movements were executed in one smooth, fluid motion.
The snowball traced a perfect parabola in the air.
With the sound of whistling wind.
They headed straight for the pink figure.
"Take this! March!"
Hoshi even called out in his habit.
That instant.
Time seemed to slow down.
The snowball flew in mid-air.
I'm getting closer and closer to that pink back of the head.
one meter.
Half a meter.
ten centimeters.
Just as it was about to hit its target, it blossomed into a perfect snowflake.
however.
Just a microsecond before the snowball was about to touch those few strands of pink hair.
The figure did not turn around.
He didn't even turn his body.
But the hand holding the parasol moved slightly.
The black parasol seemed to come alive, tilting backward with utmost naturalness and elegance.
Bang.
A muffled thud.
The snowball slammed solidly into the black umbrella.
It exploded instantly.
It turned into countless tiny snowflakes, scattering and splashing in all directions.
But not a single snowflake landed on that person.
The umbrella surface remained as black as ink, without even a trace of water.
The star remained in the throwing posture.
The smile on his face froze.
and many more.
parasol?
A black parasol?
That bad feeling was like cold water poured over me from head to toe.
She suddenly remembered.
This is a space of memories.
The person with pink hair...
It's not the March 7th who, though loud, is actually easy to bully.
But...
The black parasol slowly turned.
The umbrella was raised.
The face of the person below was revealed.
Pink hair.
Exquisite facial features.
And those...
His eyes were slightly narrowed, flashing a dangerous red light.
The moon shines through the long night.
"Oh?"
The moon turned around in the long night.
Her movements were slow and deliberate, as if she were taking a stroll in her own backyard.
She glanced at Hoshino, who was still in a stiff pose.
I glanced again at the snow powder that had fallen to the ground and hadn't completely melted.
"A very interesting...gift."
Her voice was very soft.
It possessed that unique, chilling elegance and playfulness.
"This is what you meant by..."
Changyeyue took a step forward.
The snow crunched underfoot.
To Hoshino's ears, it sounded like the footsteps of death.
""Play"?"
It’s over.
It's all over.
Hoshi felt as if his soul had left his body.
How could she forget?
Why can't I control this ungrateful hand?
She was just terrified by Chang Yeyue, and now she dares to throw snowballs at her?
Is it because they think they've lived too long?
"I...I'm not..."
Hoshi wanted to explain.
I want to say that this is a misunderstanding.
I wanted to say that I just mistook you for March 7th.
But if I were to say that out loud, I'd probably die even faster.
"Not what?"
Chang Yeyue had already walked up to her.
The black parasol tilted slightly forward, almost blocking out the light from above Hoshino's head.
She was shrouded in a red and black shadow.
"Not on purpose?"
Or perhaps...
Changyeyue extended a hand wearing a black lace glove.
She gently picked up a snowflake that had landed on Hoshino's shoulder with her fingertips.
then.
The cold fingertips slid down Hoshino's collarbone and into her collar.
"You want me to..."
"Want to play together?"
She emphasized the word "play".
It carries a certain unspeakable meaning.
"Waaah..."
Shihoshi trembled all over.
The icy snowmelt melted under Changyeyue's body temperature and slid down her skin.
It gave me goosebumps.
She tried to back away, but found that her legs felt like they were made of lead and she couldn't move them.
And the star next to it.
This "good sister" who was supposed to step in and save the day.
He's standing on a big rock with his arms crossed, looking like he's saying, "I sympathize with you, but this scene is really funny. I'll just watch the show for a bit."
They even pulled out a bag of sunflower seeds from somewhere.
Just when Hoshino thought he was going to die in this snowy field today.
"that……"
A weak voice broke in.
It was that messenger, 7582.
It completely failed to grasp the underlying dynamics.
I was simply drawn in by the sight of that snowball exploding.
"This is... a snowball?"
The messenger approached, staring curiously at the patch of snow on the ground.
"The kinetic energy dispersion effect produced by this impact... is indeed very interesting."
It raised its head, its compound eyes looking at the star, then at the long night moon.
"In your culture, does this behavior represent aggression, or... courtship?"
puff.
Xinggang spat out the sunflower seeds he had just cracked into his mouth.
Her originally pale face instantly turned a deep liver color.
Seeking a mate?
God's LOVE!
Even if you're an insect, you can't use words like that!
Even Chang Yeyue paused for a moment.
A hint of surprise flashed in those red eyes, which then turned into a deeper smile.
"Looking for a mate..."
She withdrew her hand, her fingertips gently stroking Hoshino's chin.
It's like savoring the word.
"This kind of statement..."
Changye Yue looked at the panicked eyes of the star.
The corners of his mouth rose slightly.
"Not entirely...it makes no sense at all."
small theater:
Messenger 7582: I see. Earthlings' way of courting is to throw frozen water balloons at each other. How uniquely romantic!
Xing: That's right, this kind of romance is usually accompanied by one person's screams and the other person's maniacal laughter.
Hoshino: I didn't! I'm not! Don't talk nonsense! That was attempted murder!
Changyeyue: Since it's courtship, I have to reciprocate... like burying you in a snowdrift?