“You’ve been studying so hard, Natalia,” Charlotte said, smiling softly at her little sister. Then she tilted her head quizzically. “But I wonder where Eluka is... And I don’t see Dorothea anywhere either.”
“Don’t know about Dorothea,” Allen replied with a shrug. “Eluka said she’ll come late, though.”
Before they had set off from home, Eluka had whispered into Allen’s ear, “Hey bro. I have a little favor to ask.” She’d pulled him away from the group for a moment and glanced at Charlotte before continuing with a serious expression. “I’m gonna catch up later. Could you go ahead and wait for me there? I’ll try to be quick.”
“Sure, I don’t mind...but what are you scheming?”
“Heh heh heh, it’s a secret. But get ready, it’s gonna blow your pants off.” Eluka winked, her lips curling up. “We’re all gonna be there, in the right place at the right time. It’ll be the perfect chance for me to fill y’all in on everything... Anyway, I’ll tell you the rest once we’re there.”
“All right...” Allen didn’t probe, and they parted from Eluka in front of his mansion. I don’t know what it is, but something big is going to happen. He had a hunch, but it didn’t worry him at all.
He casually balled his fists, strengthening his resolve. “Well, whatever comes our way, I’ll just tackle it head-on and—bfft?!”
A huge wave of snow crashed right into his face.
“Are you okay, Allen?!” Charlotte cried out.
Roo had dived into the snow and was frolicking all around them. “Snowww! Woop woop! It’s snowww!”
“Mrr... Snow, huh.” Looking at Roo, Lydie kicked up a little bit of snow with the tips of her shoes. Powdery, glistening snow whirled up in front of her, but her eyes didn’t reflect the light. She was staring blankly into the distance.
“Oho, it warms the cockles to see young’uns at play... Hm?” Gosetsu, who was smiling fondly at the girls, noticed something peculiar with a twitch of her nose.
Before she could act, someone called out to Allen and Co.
“Welcome! You must be the party with the reservation under ‘Mr. Crawford’?”
Allen brushed the snow off his face and looked up. “Yes, thanks—hm?” He blinked in surprise.
Charlotte’s eyes went round too. “Oh? U-Um, aren’t you the mermaid we met in Yunoha?”
The greeter smiled affectionately—she was the very same concierge who had looked after them when Charlotte and Allen had visited the hot springs resort. “Hee hee, it’s a pleasure to see you again, Miss Charlotte.”
“But, um...aren’t you a...mermaid?” Charlotte slowly looked down at the concierge’s feet.
“Ah, we can grow feet when needed,” the mermaid explained, taking springy steps to display her slender legs. With a mischievous smile, she turned to Allen, who was still dumbstruck. “I work here, you see—in fact, this is my main workplace. The hotel in Yunoha is part of our resort group, so I was only there to help out with the launch.”
“That’s a large-scale enterprise...” Allen said.
“I’m glad I can surprise you,” she said with a chuckle. “I saw your name in our list of reservations, so I came out to greet you here.” She effortlessly picked up their luggage and gestured to the hotel. “A warm welcome to our Ryugukyo. I will be more than happy to escort you.”
And so, the party checked in at the front desk and followed the mermaid to their cottage. Just like when they arrived, all they had to do was to step into the magic portal in the main building, and they were transported to the cottage in no time.
Their “cottage” was as luxurious as expected from Ryugukyo’s reputation. It was several times more spacious than Allen’s mansion, with multiple guest rooms and even a big hot spring bath. Their meals would be served here too. The amenities and services left nothing to be desired.
Allen looked down at the magic portal right in front of the cottage with a nod. “I see. So you can go anywhere you like in Ryugukyo using that portal.”
“Yes. Anywhere except the other cottages—only the guests staying there and the staff of the hotel can go to each cottage.” The concierge gestured to the snowcapped mountains stretching out into the distance. “The cottages dot these mountain ranges, with plenty of space around each one, so our guests can enjoy a quiet, relaxing time. If you’d like, you can also register to have this portal connect directly to the gate near your own home.”
“The more I hear, the more I’m impressed by how sophisticated the system is... Everything from maintaining a registry of individuals to keeping track of their locations... Hmm...” The high level of magic that must have been involved piqued his curiosity, and Allen couldn’t help but stare closely at the concierge.
Meanwhile, the mermaid smiled at Charlotte and the others. “There’s still time before dinner. How about you all go out to play in the snow? It’s still a beautiful time of day for that.”
“Ooh! Yes please. Let’s go, dear sister!” Natalia cheered.
“Yes, let’s all go together.” Charlotte nodded, smiling broadly.
“Woo-hoo! I’m gonna go all out!” Roo chimed in. Her tail thumped wildly as her excitement rose to the max.
At a little distance from the lively group, Gosetsu glanced at Allen. “So...yet another peculiar friendship you’ve formed,” she said, shaking her head with a sigh.
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. I was only thinking out loud.” Gosetsu didn’t elaborate.
Cocking his head in puzzlement, Allen noticed that Lydie was strangely quiet in contrast to the others. “Hey Lydie, what’s up?” he asked. “Don’t you want to go out with them too?”
“Oh! I...um...” Lydie’s eyes wavered, then she laughed awkwardly. “I’m a little—tired... I think I’ll rest for now.”
“Oh no! Are you okay?” Charlotte gasped and rushed over to Lydie. Peering into her face, she said anxiously, “Then I’ll stay with you—”
“No, you go ahead with Natalia and the others, Maman. I can look after myself, easy as pie,” Lydie said decisively.
“Um, a-are you sure...?” Charlotte still looked worried, but she didn’t press Lydie further, nor did she insist on staying behind.
After putting together what they needed, the rest of them headed out, the mermaid leading the way. Lydie waved to them from the entrance to the cottage, then let out a sigh. “Hm... Now, what shall I do?”
“Do what?”
“Ahh!”
Allen had sneaked up on her from behind. Lydie jolted like a startled cat. She spun around with big, round eyes. “Wh-What are you doing here?! Why didn’t you go with them?!”
“Charlotte asked me to look after you. Besides, I was wondering what’s been on your mind,” Allen said casually. He crouched down to her eye level and pointed at the portal that the others had just stepped through. “You sure you don’t want to go play with them?”
“Hmph. I don’t mind.” Lydie turned away, jutting out her chin. Then she pulled out a picture book—the one she often asked him to read these days. “I’m going to practice reading. I’m happy to wait here for everyone to come back.”
“Hm, is that so?” Allen smirked. He poked Lydie’s cheek and whispered, “Want me to guess what’s really going on? The fact is...you don’t know how to have fun on a trip, do you?”
Lydie’s face stiffened in surprise. She tried to keep a confident veneer, but her face gave away her concern. After a moment of hesitation, she hung her head, hugging the picture book close. “Well, how can I help it...? Whenever I traveled, it was only to carry out my saintly duties.” In her experience, trips went like this: she would either use her powers to solve a problem at the request of other people, or she would meet with some influential figure in some faraway place and eat some fancy meal she didn’t know what to make of, while smiling politely all the time. “I just don’t know what to do on a holiday like this. And I’ve never played in the snow either...”
Allen ruffled Lydie’s hair. “If you don’t know how to do something, just ask us. What do you think we’re here for?”
“But...I’m scared.”
“Scared?”
Lydie gave a small nod. “Going on holiday, playing in the snow... ‘Normal’ children would no doubt have fun with it all, wouldn’t they? But what if I can’t enjoy it? Wouldn’t that mean I’ve failed to be a normal child?”
“I get where you’re coming from,” Allen murmured, putting a hand on his chin. Lydie had no experience of going on a carefree holiday or horsing around as kids do—so she shrank from that uncharted territory. Though he could understand how she felt, he gave her a cool look. “Are you an idiot?”
At first, Lydie stared at him in surprise, but she soon lunged at him. “Wh—what did you call me?!” she yelled angrily. “Is that what you have to say to your anxious daughter?! How can you be so heartless?!”
“Whoa, hold on!” He held her back by the scruff of her neck, then swept her up into his arms. “Listen up,” he said in a leisurely voice to the pouting girl, “only you can find out what’s fun for you. It could be that you try ninety-nine different things, and finally find one thing that you’re excited about. All you’ve got to do is keep at it—just be greedy, keep trying out anything new, and don’t give up until you find that one thing.”
“Anything...?” Lydie said thoughtfully.
“Uh-huh. Now, this is the perfect opportunity.” Allen pointed at the snowy mountains soaring all around them. “I’ll teach you some naughty pleasures. It’s a lesson from your great father—watch and learn!”
♢
Ten minutes later, Charlotte and Natalia were building snowmen at a flat, open field used as a playground near Ryugukyo’s ski slopes. Children were having snowball fights, sledding down the gentle hill, and frolicking about in the happy, peaceful atmosphere.
The two of them suddenly noticed something by their feet. “Oh?”
On the ground was a little snowman with a head too big for its body and a lopsided face made of pebbles and sticks. It slowly trekked past them, swaying from side to side. When it was gone, another one came hopping along through the snow. The other kids noticed the peculiar parade and let out whoops.
Natalia tilted her head, puzzled. “What do you think they are?”
“Oh, look! There’s Allen and Lydie,” Charlotte said, pointing to the other side of the field.
There, Lydie was absorbed in building a snowman as Allen watched next to her. Like the others, this snowman was also clumsily shaped, but Allen gave her an encouraging thumbs-up.