And in the end, the fireworks. The final act of this grand escapade. At least, that's what a standard festival entailed, but we were at a future festival, which means...
"No fireworks?!" Issei cried out at Ouroboras, "B-But...! Fireworks are a staple of all festivals! Come on, Ouri, hanabi!"
"Yes, yes, I understand how you feel all too well, but this IS an FRI festival." Ouroboras sighed, "Fireworks are apparently considered "too archaic" of a craft for such a festivity, so they subbed them out for a drone light show."
"Drone? That sounds scary." I looked at the empty sky above us, "What are those? I don't see anything up there."
"Look closer, they are there." Ouroboras pointed up at the cluster of flying objects, "Those are robots with strong lights on them, programmed to autonomously fly in specific positions to chain together and create an image, video or even mimic actual fireworks."
Eh!? I thought those were bats! Technology sure is incredible... I wonder, after seeing so much of what technology can make possible, would it be plausible to call it more powerful than even Iro Abilities?
"So in other words..." Issei grunted, "It's like putting on a 10 hour long video of a fire burning instead of just using a fireplace."
"Humans are very fond of making everything into a robot version of itself, after all..." Ouroboras shook his head, "But still, there is no denying the beauty that can come from these as well. Drones may not be as traditional as fireworks, but they can do things a firework could never even dream of accomplishing."
Just as he said that, as if perfectly timing his sentence to end as the drones lit up one after the other, the light show had officially begun. Beginning with the symbol for FRI as if to pay tribute to it, the small flying objects moved flawlessly next to one another to reassemble into the next image.
"Incredible! But what if they hit each other?" I fretted.
"Nah, they probably run a ton of quality checks and controls to make sure nothing happens during the show." Issei said through his smile, "Those things are pre-programmed to always stay in their lanes. I imagine it's practically impossible for anything to go awry."
"Ah, one fell down." I pointed out.
"Hm." He nodded slowly, "Well, it's one of the outer ones, so no one probably cares. The little guy was probably running low on battery or something."
"What a heartless comment."
"Shhhh, shut the hell up!" He suddenly went hyper.
"What, what! What is it?!" I panicked in return.
"It's Hatsune Miku!" He pointed at the giant light Blue haired girl with twintails smiling down and waving at the crowd admiring her from below, "Wooo! Hell yeah!"
This man is 29 years old. Hell, at our age, you'd round it up to 30 realistically, even though I really don't like doing that myself. Point is, he's basically 30, has two girlfriends, and yet here he is cheering for an anime girl.
"What anime is she even from?" I raised an Eyebrow, "I saw her before back in Tokyo, she was plastered on practically every wall there."
"She's a virtual idol." Ouroboras explained the concept to me as Miku kept waving a spring onion at us, "Created by Crypton Future Media, she is essentially a voice synthesizer whose voice is used to sing..."
"Shush!" Issei actually slapped him because of how hyped he was, "No one talks in the presence of my Goddess!"
"Mmf! Issei!" Ouroboras' rage grew partially.
"I'll skin you alive, Sun God or not, if you interrupt this for me even once more."
"...You dare threaten a God?" Ouroboras smirked.
"Oi, oi. That's enough." I held him back from turning Issei into human jerky, "Just let him be. It ain't worth it."
"Hmph." Ouroboras turned his head away from me and continued to look at the lightshow with a frown, "Issei, be sure to thank your friend Lune for saving you from my wrat-"
"You're still talking? Do you ever shut up?" Issei interrupted him, "Are you deaf or just stupid, Ouri? Zip it and watch the damned show in peace, you're being childish."
"Childish!? Why I never-!"
They kept bickering and bickering until Miku made herself scarce up in the sky. She is now one with the stars, bye bye Miku. Ah, she returned to give one final wave back, how sweet. I can see why she's popular now, I'd like to listen to one of her songs in the future. Wait a second, isn't this how unhealthy habits and standards are formed in modern youths? Ah, who cares, just look at the cute anime girl.
Sadly though, it seems they started off with the best one and gradually kept toning it down after each consecutive one. It wasn't even the fault of the event planners, I suspect Miku's presence was just that incredible that everything else simply paled in comparison. They threw in some cute animals, some text and the current year of this world, 2033, but really, it had no pizzazz, no soul in it. Maybe they spent all their budget on making her move? In the end, the drones flew back down and everyone just kind of awkwardly started leaving the scene.
"That was so bad." Issei groaned, "I mean, I guess I'm happy they prioritized Miku's cuteness first and foremost, basically proving she solos everything else in existence, but looking at it from a planners perspective, it really made no sense to make her go first."
"Maybe they wanted her to be last, but accidentally switched the order around." I shrugged, "By the way, didn't you say you'll cap it off at two girlfriends?"
"Dude, I'm not that far gone to consider Miku my girlfriend." Issei looked at me like I was the weird one, "She's just my personal Goddess, come on."
I see, thank goodness in that case. I thought for sure he was a depraved 29 year old simping over a cartoon girl, but turns out he just worships her as a holy deity. Thank the Gods he cleared that up for me.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
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"So what now?" I asked as we walked back from the path we came from originally, "The festival isn't over yet, but after that light show, I kinda assumed we'd be going home immediately after."
"Yeah, that's the plan. Lemme just call my mom." Issei pulled out his phone.
As he walked a tad in front of us to ask his mother to come pick us up with the car, Ouroboras and I took on a more leisurely pace in return. Talking about our experiences tonight certainly made for a fun little end to the event, even more so than the anticlimactic light show, I'd say. But something had occurred that'd ruin the mood we had around us. Issei silently turned off his phone before returning back to us.
"Mom's not gonna be able to pick us up." He looked like he was about to throw up, "D-Dad's been taken to the hospital because of the burn Ouri gave him."
"What!?" I jolted, though Ouroboras seemed indifferent.
"Yes, that was my intention." He heartlessly replied, "Your father was being a nuisance. Besides, Lune just needs to cast Heal and everything will be fine."
"You fucker!" Issei grabbed him by the yukata's collar, "My dad's seriously injured, and instead of even informing me about it, you just had us enjoy the festival like you were none the wiser!"
"I merely allowed you to enjoy the festival with peace of mind. You would not have been able to do so if I told you, rather you would rush back to tend to him, thus missing this event."
"Duh, that's what any sane person would do!" I joined Issei in scolding Ouroboras, "Dude, not cool!"
"Your opinion of me is irrelevant. I made sure to inflict enough damage to him to surely cause some trauma that would teach him to disrespect his son without permanently injuring him." Ouroboras said as if it was the natural course of action, "Regardless of if Lune Healed him as soon as he got burned or only now, the result is the same - He will recover fully. I merely chose the more optimal option that allowed us to both save him and enjoy the festival."
"You're sick in the head! Get the fuck away from me!" Issei shoved him before storming off.
"Oi, Issei!" I glared back at Ouroboras before running after him, "Wait up, dude! We need to talk this out!"
"Talk it out!? Lune, he almost KILLED my father!" Issei made it clear, "As far as I'm concerned, we're through with the Sun God. All he's ever done since we met him is hurt my family and threaten to kill Eleanor and Othelia. Honestly, I'm the dumb one for not cutting him off earlier..."
We can't do that, though. I get what he's saying, honestly I'd go without him as well if he did something like this to me, but what other choice do we have? We're this close to going to Mount Everest, and after that he and the other Gods will hopefully help us get to all the World Wonders. Truth is, we're fully relying on him...
"But we might never get back home, then..." I let my personal opinion slip by on accident, "Ah, I didn't mean...!"
"Nah, I get it." He looked up at the stars in the sky, "He's our ticket to home, after all. But I still won't accept going with that sociopath. Sorry Lune, I'm sure this is going to be hard for you, but I don't want you to stay here any longer because of me."
"Issei?"
"I've still got some allowance money my parents gave me. It should cover the cost of the taxi fare to the hospital." He smiled back at me with a pained expression, "From there, you can Heal my dad, we'll go back home, and you and Ouri can grab your stuff and continue on to Mount Everest without me. I'll stay with my parents."
...What? Wait, no, what about Eleanor and Othelia? I mean, I can just wish for them to come here together with me, but without Issei there to protect them from Ouroboras, I'm afraid he might kill them the moment they arrive. Is Issei... choosing his family over them?
"I refuse." I looked him in the Eyes and said, "As luck would have it, I can't stand that damned Meil ripoff either, so I won't be going with him."
"What? No, Lune, you should really go." Issei quivered a bit, "He has infinite money, he has God powers we probably haven't even scratched the surface of! I hate him with all my heart, but the facts are that he'll shave months or even years of the time required to get you back to your family. Please don't worry about me."
"Issei." I whistled to get the attention of a nearby taxi, "I don't care if I have to be old and wrinkly by the time I get back home, I'm not leaving you behind. Because Cecily will always be waiting for me."
"...How can you be sure, though?"
"I just know." I got in the cab, "And I know two other girls who are waiting for you to get them sent to this place too. We can go at our own pace, without that damned Sun God there to hurt us or our loved ones."
"Lune..." He sniffled.
"Now come on, don't keep the poor taxi driver waiting!" I patted his designated seat, "Sit down and tell the guy the directions to the hospital! Let's go Heal your dad!"
Screw Mount Everest, screw the other Gods, and most of all - Screw Ouroboras. Issei's managed to travel the entire map of my world to get back to his without any money to his name, and he started off all alone. Not to mention he did all that in a world at least a thousand times less technologically advanced as this one is, so realistically we'll surely be able to scrounge up enough funds in a year tops. I'll be away from Cecily and the kids for a while longer, but if it means Issei gets to stay here with both his family and his girls, then I'm sure they'll understand.