Ophelia turned to look at Nero, who was pleading silently with her wide brown eyes. Unfortunately, he had stopped listening to their conversation, and thus had no idea what Ophelia wanted for dinner.
"Umm… we can compromise," said Nero, glancing from a map in Ophelia's hands and back to Mrs Katori. "There's a famous restaurant on the Moon Bridge, about five minutes away from our hotel. They're well known for their seafood, and there's plenty of other options for Mrs Katori as well."
Ophelia cheered, and the map that she had been poring over fell to the floor of the car. As Nero picked it up, he noticed how the city was filled with thick black circles, branching out towards the edges of Meridian Primus.
"Those are the train tracks," said Ophelia, noticing Nero trace the lines with his finger. "There are four pairs of tracks that travel around the city, and eight more that link them all together."
She pointed to the thinner black lines that acted as the spokes of the wheels. "I have no idea how efficient those trains are, but if Meridian Primus uses it, it should be pretty efficient."
"If you don't mind switching trains every other stop," said Nero, looking at the map. "But the waiting time between each train is about thirty seconds - how is that even possible?"
"They've got a whole fleet of trains that move out at the same time," said Mr Katori. "You'll see them as we approach the city: it's one of the many things that sets Meridian Primus apart from everywhere else."
"What's this?" asked Nero, pointing to a sun symbol in the middle of a park. "The Park of Eternal Day?"
"You haven't heard of The Park of Eternal Day before?" said Ophelia, incredulous. "That symbol represents the miniature sun in the park. Meridian Primus produces way more energy than it needs, and all that extra energy is used to power that sun. It's one of the four key attractions in Meridian Primus."
"I don't know much about Meridian Primus apart from the espers," admitted Nero. "I know the Moon Bridge and Alcaster Academy are two of the attractions - but what's the last one?"
"Siren's Bay," said Ophelia. She pointed at a large crescent-shaped beach towards the north of the city. "There's a ton of little crystals hovering above the ocean. At night, they light up in different colours. We have to go there one night."
"Let's hope it doesn't rain," said Mr Katori.
As the minutes slipped by, Nero drifted in and out of sleep, waking up only to grab some snacks at the rest stops. After the fifth time he was jolted awake, the sky was awash with purple and orange - and the golden peak of a titanic tower could be seen piercing the clouds.
"Ophelia! Ophelia, look at that!"
Ophelia lifted her head up from Nero's shoulders, her eyes still unfocused and groggy. "Wha..? Are we reaching? I- Oh god, it's even taller than I imagined."
Even before Meridian Primus was visible, the body of the Moon Bridge could clearly be seen; a golden pillar of steel and glass climbing towards the heavens. It was difficult to believe that people could actually build something that high.
"They say that during a full moon, people who stand on the watch tower of the Moon Bridge actually weigh a fraction of a percentage less," said Ophelia excitedly. "Isn't that amazing?"
"How does it not tip over?" wondered Nero. "Do they have a full team of espers holding it up over the day?"
"No idea. But eno- Nero, look!"
Nero turned to face where Ophelia was pointing. To his astonishment, a whole school of brilliantly coloured tetra fishes were swimming around in midair. A little further ahead, a sign read: HATE BEING ALONE? GET AN AQUARIUM AT HOME!
"Holographic advertisements," said Mr Katori, shaking his head. "I hate them; they always make it so hard to concentrate on the road."
"I can see why," said Nero, watching a holographic man keeping pace beside their car, a sports drink bottle in his hand.
As he watched the hologram running, there came a low growl, brewing like a soft thunderstorm in Ophelia's belly. She blushed.
"I'm starving," she complained. "All I had today were sandwiches. I want real food."
"We'll reach the city in about ten minutes," said Mr Katori. "Let me know where to park the car."
Sure enough, the group found themselves cruising through the pristine streets of Meridian Primus before the clock struck six. It had been a lengthy drive, and Nero was aching to take a bath and stretch his feet.
Meridian Primus was incredible. The buildings were coated with a material that closely resembled glass, except that the glass seemed to 'hold on' to light. Everything had a pale, whitish glow - not enough to be glaring, but just enough that there was no need for streetlamps.
At night, it also had the effect of making the city look like it was made out of moonlight. Colourful shops lined the streets, creating a dazzling display of multicoloured lights all across Meridian Primus.
"What is that glass thing?" asked Nero, intrigued. "Is it some sort of solar panel?"
"It's not the glass that's glowing," said Ophelia, her voice quivering with awe as she read off an article on her phone. "There's something underneath the glass called 'lumira' - a man-made plankton that feeds off carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and light. The acid-treated glass is porous, allowing oxygen to be redistributed into the atmosphere."
"What happens if you eat it?"
"You'd piss off the shop owner. We're almost at our hotel, you don't have to eat plankton."
In any other country, Galaxace Hotel would be a stunning work of architecture, with a flock of holographic stars suspended at the entrance of the building, a wall-to-wall aquarium in the lobby, and two spiral staircases on either side of the reception stand. Unfortunately, anything located within visible distance of the Moon Bridge was overwhelmingly unimpressive in comparison.
"I can't even see the top," complained Ophelia, squinting up at the sky. "Does it go on forever? Do you think we can see the moon from up there?"
"We can find out later - hurry up and let's get checked in," said Mrs Katori. "I'm starving, Dad's starving, and I want to go to bed after dinner."
Mr Katori had already hurried off to the receptionist without waiting for them. As the only driver on the trip, he was undoubtedly exhausted - Nero didn't even want to think about the drive back home.
"Your room numbers are 26-21, and 26-22," said the receptionist pleasantly. "Just key in floor 26 on the panel to your right, and step through. I hope you enjoy your stay!"
"Thanks," said Mr Katori gruffly. He turned towards the right, where a second staff member was standing by a rectangular steel frame. Then he paused in his step.