Eternal Saṃsāra: The Wanderer of Worlds

[34] Little Songbirds

Chapter 34: Little Songbirds

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Nothing much worth mentioning happened after school ended and we returned home. At night though, the production director of LoveMy sent a voice message in our LINE group chat to let us know about the next shooting's details.

["We will be leaving for a trip tomorrow evening after y'all's school ends. We are visiting Mt. Fuji this time. Don't worry, we aren't gonna climb it, it's closed at this time of the year anyway, we'll only spend our time around its outskirts. In a resort, on a hill. We have reserved a resort for you kids to stay in since we'll be spending the next three days there."]

The next three days. I suppose the next episode will start with us getting into the bus, and then spending some time in the resort, while the episode after that will have us explore the area and return. Not bad.

However, this time I'll have to ask for a proper leave from Shizuka Sensei.

"Speaking of," I muttered as I lay on my bed, chewing gum. "I wonder when Shoko will return. I want to meet her tomorrow, otherwise we'll have to wait until after I return from the trip."

Soon, the night rolled to an end and the brilliant sun shone over the world. I awoke from my slumber and soon found myself in my classroom.

....

The buzzing of children filled my ears as I took my seat. I put my hand on my chin and looked outside the window. The seat to my left was empty; the view would have been much better if that was my seat.

Nobody came to interrupt me. Socializing in this place didn't interest me much, so while people tried to talk to me before, I hadn't entertained them enough that they'd come to talk to me again. Thanks to my size and the general appearance of a prince living in a different land, the kids in the class liked to watch me from afar.

To ignore the gaze I could feel even right now, mostly girls staring at my distant gaze, I closed my eyes. The right side of my face rested on my hand as I buzzed off all sounds from my surroundings and hummed a song in a low tone.

"Stay with me..."

Huh? But that's what I'm humming-?

"Mayonaka no door wo tataki...

Kaeranaide to naita ano kisetsu ga ima me no mae~"

I frowned and opened my eyes hearing a subtle singing in my ear, matching my hum. I blinked involuntarily when I found a face too close to mine, pink eyes staring into mine as her similarly pink lips moved to sing along my hum.

"Hey, isn't that..."

"She looks kinda different."

"What's up with that voice?!"

She smiled when I opened my mouth and couldn't say anything. Her voice had a level of fluidity and pitch that humans should be forbidden from having, enough to captivate my current human ears. My shock seemed to fuel her ego as she grinned, her volume increasing along with it. She took a step back, standing high and singing in a voice that made all the students turn to her.

"Stay With Me... Mayonaka No Door Wo Tataki~ Kaeranaide To Naita Ano Kietsu Ga Ima Me No Mae." Shoko trailed off in a long tone, spending a few seconds taking the gazes of everyone, before locking eyes with me again. Her gaze lasted a lifetime. "Do you think the 'operation' was a success, Aqua?"

How do I tell her that I'd have dragged her to my room right now if this was my 9th life? Her voice was sweet beyond words, a part of me wanted to make her do all kinds of sounds. Plus, she had her usually loose and messy hair in a clean ponytail, she looked so much more confident now.