With the noise of people buzzing around me, I looked back and spoke.
[Come on, Kuro. How long are you going to stare at the ticket gate? Let's
go to the platform already.]
[Ahh, unnn! Hmmm, machines really are interesting. I'm really looking
forward to riding the bullet train.]
Even though it was a weekday afternoon, there were a lot of people
coming and going at the transfer gate of the bullet train's big station.
Hand in hand, Kuro and I walked through the crowd.
Dressed in a white camisole dress, a black jacket, and dark brown half
pants, Kuro looks like a beautiful girl, but the people around who
noticed Kuro don't seem to be looking back at her.
It seems like Recognition Inhibition Magic is also effective in this world.
[Look, look, Kaito-kun! There's a shop selling bentos over there!]
[train bento huh… It's going to be a long trip on the bullet train, so I
guess we should get something to eat.]
[Really!? Hmmm, all of them look delicious. I can't decide which one to
pick.]
[I know how you feel, but we don't have that much time before the train
leaves, so you should quickly decide what you want.]
The word "excited" seems to be the right word to describe Kuro's
current state, as she was looking around filled with childishness fitting
with her appearance, which looked a bit refreshing.
Well, I guess her reaction was natural since this world was new in
Kuro's eyes. It reminded me of the time when I first went to that world,
making me smile. I wonder if this is what Kuro felt when she was
teaching me about the stuff in that world…
Yes, Kuro and I are in Japan… in the world I used to live in.
It all started with Kuro's abrupt declaration of "Let's go on a trip to
Kaito-kun's world!". It was usual for Kuro to say something outrageous
out of the blue, but as expected, even I was surprised.
I mean, no matter how much Kuro wants to go… I think it would be a
problem for someone as powerful as Kuro to just go to my former
world.
However, it seems that Kuro won a bet with Eden-san for a "month-long
pair trip with me", and the trip was approved by Eden-san, the God of
this world herself.
Well, there are a lot of things I want to say, such as why the trip with me
is being bet on without my permission, and the really scary thought of
Kuro losing that bet, which would make me spend a whole month alone
with Eden-san.
However, seeing Kuro's happy smile… It's strange how I can't help but
think that a trip like this is okay too.
The benefits of having the full backing of Eden-san, the creator of this
world, was quite tremendous… Kuro's family register was prepared as a
matter of course, and we received an astonishing amount of money to
spend on the trip. Thanks to her, I'm able to enjoy my trip with Kuro
without worries, so I'm grateful to Eden-san as well, regardless of the
fact that they used me as a prize without my knowledge.
Kuro said she didn't mind where we go as long as she could go around
this world with me, but since I'm already here, I'd like to take her to
various places.
That's why, Kuro and I were currently about to ride the bullet train…
heading for "Okayama". The reason why I chose Okayama… Well, it's
because that's the only other prefecture that I can guide her.
I have a sense of pride too. I'm going on a trip with my lovely girlfriend,
and I want to lead her well.
My mom is from Okayama, and she has brought me there a few times
when I was a kid. It was a long time ago though, so my memories of my
outing towards that place were vague, but I remembered some of the
famous tourist spots, so I should be okay.
If the need arises, I'll use this phone that Eden-san secretly prepared for
me… and use the power of internet to secretly look up where to go
without Kuro noticing.
After we finished buying some train bentos, we moved to the bullet
train platform… and boarded on the Green car. I've ridden the bullet
train many times, but this was my first time in a Green seat.
(T/N: They're not the highest class seat in all Shinkansens in Japan
(they're called Grand Class), but I think Green seat can be considered as
the highest class in the Shinkansen that Kaito and Kuro is riding
towards Okayama.)
If it was just me, I would have been fine riding on the Ordinary Class
seats… but I wanted Kuro to travel as comfortably as possible. Besides,
with the bank book Eden-san gave me that had an unbelievably large
amount of money, so I decided to splurge.
Well, I guess it's wrong to expect God to have a sense of money…
We could even have afforded to ride a first-class flight, but I chose
riding on the bullet train instead because I thought it would be better to
see the scenery while traveling.
[Ohhhhh! Amazing! It's amazing, Kaito-kun! This big chunk of steel is
moving!]
[Ahaha, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. Our travels riding this train
might be slower than Kuro's speed though.]
[That's not the case, I'm really having fun! Ahh, look! Look! There's a big
tower over there!]
Seeing Kuro looking so cute as she gazed at the view from the window, I
couldn't help but smile as well. Fortunately, the Green car is empty, no, I
guess it's more apt to say that Kuro and I are the only people in this car,
so we don't have to worry about disturbing others.
I've never ridden in a Green car before, but the chairs are big and soft,
and there are magazines prepared and even a footrest. They've even
given us hand towels as in-car service, so I think we got really great
seats.
[Kuro, we haven't had lunch yet, so how about we eat some of the train
bento?]
[Unnn!]
It was around lunchtime, so I thought that we should eat the train bento
we had bought.
Incidentally, I bought a bento called "Beef Domannaka", a bento filled to
the brim with minced Yonezawa beef. Hmmm, the minced beef went
well with the rice and was very tasty.
Kuro chose the "First of its Kind – Tokyo Bento", a gorgeous bento with
a variety of ingredients, which also looked very delicious. Especially the
salmon pickled in sake lees… Those look absolutely delicious.
As I was thinking about this, Kuro noticed my gaze and grinned.
[You want a bite, Kaito-kun? It's delicious, you know?]
[Really? Then, I'll have a bite…]
[Unnn, here, ahhhhn.]
[…It's got lots of flavor. It's really good.]
[Told you so!]
Feeding the grinning Kuro a bite of my minced beef bento as well, we
continued chatting over lunch together.
[Speaking of which, Kuro… You're really good with chopsticks, aren't
you?]
[Ahh~~ We've always had traditional Japanese breakfast back home
after all. So I got used to it.]
[Ahh, I see… Neun-san's influence huh.]
[Unnn, but I've never had this salmon picked in shackles. I'm going to
learn how to make this and teach it to Neun after we go back home.]
Just as I was thinking she can be as playful as a child, she can also be a
mother who cares for her family. I think that is Kuro's greatest charm.
When I'm with Kuro, it feels really enjoyable… and at the same time, I
feel very relieved.
Perhaps, no… I don't have any doubt… that this trip will be boisterous
and fun.