For a while, I only watched boring educational videos. Even when I tried to do something else, Bora was sitting on the bed staring at me, so I persevered and kept watching the videos.
And as I watched, I found some surprisingly interesting aspects. There were also some social norms I hadn’t known before.
After finishing the videos, Bora patted my head and said I did well. I couldn’t help but feel a little proud.
NewTube is for kids, so all the slightly edgy and primal videos I used to know were completely blocked. It was a bit disappointing.
But even in this situation, there were plenty of interesting videos on NewTube. Lately, I’ve been really into the Little Magician Lumi.
You shouldn’t underestimate it just because it’s a kids’ anime. No matter how much money they spent, the fight scenes were better than most action movies, and it had a touching narrative. Watching the magician (physical) fight the villains made me feel like I was the one doing it.
The TV next to me only had boring news or dramas from terrestrial channels, so I found a new world through my computer.
Today, I planned to binge-watch Little Magician Lumi starting from episode 2. I fell asleep after watching episode 1 yesterday, so I missed episode 2.
With a happy heart, I slowly typed on the keyboard to search for episode 2. When I searched NewTube, a bunch of videos popped up below.
I skipped the highlight compilations and clicked on the full episode 2 uploaded by the production company. Since it was still early in the morning, there weren’t many people outside, so it felt like my world.
I watched episode 2 with such intense focus that it felt like I was being sucked into the screen.
“Wow…”
Little Magician Lumi was indeed the best. At first, it seemed like the villains were overpowering, but the power of friendship turned the tables, and the final blow to the villain was incredibly satisfying.
Even though the ending song played, I couldn’t take my eyes off the monitor. My heart was pounding as I was about to click on episode 3.
But just before I could start episode 3, I heard someone outside the room. I quickly turned off NewTube and opened a typing practice program.
It wasn’t that I was embarrassed about watching a kids’ anime. It’s just that watching Little Magician Lumi with someone else felt a bit awkward. I diligently typed the sentences that appeared on the typing practice screen.
“Hi, Hana~”
Surprisingly, it wasn’t Bora who came in early, but Haru.
“Are you going to practice typing all day? You can do other things too.”
Haru patted my head and watched me practice typing. My mind was still stuck on episode 3 of Little Magician Lumi, so I couldn’t focus on what Haru was saying.
I really wanted to be alone. But Haru didn’t seem like she was planning to leave the room anytime soon.
“Why does the hallway feel so refreshing? Is Hana’s ability getting stronger?”
I didn’t feel anything, but Haru seemed to think the air was refreshing. I wish I could feel that too, but I couldn’t tell if the air was refreshing or unpleasant.
After chatting with Haru for a few minutes, she had to go back to the office because she’s a working adult. Being an adult isn’t all that great. You have to hold back what you want to do and go to work without showing it.
I didn’t want to become an adult trapped in those chains. But I also didn’t want to be treated like a kid, so my feelings were all mixed up. Honestly, I didn’t even understand my own feelings.
I quietly headed toward the door. Then, I slightly opened it and carefully checked both sides of the hallway. Confirming that no one was there, I quickly went back to the computer.
I turned off the boring typing practice and opened NewTube to watch episode 3 of Little Magician Lumi. The search bar was already filled with my previous searches, so I didn’t need to type again.
And so, I lost track of time watching Little Magician Lumi early in the morning. Later, Bora came into the room, but thanks to my quick reflexes, I didn’t get caught.
Not that it would’ve mattered if I got caught, but it felt better to keep it a secret.
———————————————-
“This is…”
Professor Kim Jae-cheol, a neurology professor at a Korean university, couldn’t help but gasp at the phenomenon unfolding before his eyes.
He was looking at a person lying on a bed with various electrode patches on their face and body. Normally, people would feel uncomfortable and unable to sleep because of the patches, but this person was sleeping with a very relaxed expression.
“The subject… I mean, the participant is completely asleep.”
Next to him, a researcher was talking to Kim Jae-cheol. To Kim Jae-cheol, it looked like the person was sleeping very comfortably, as if they were at home.
In the room, the singing voice of a little girl named Hana echoed. Of course, the noise was completely blocked between the rooms. Since listening to Hana’s singing made people drowsy, it was necessary to block the sound like this.
Of course, listening to her singing didn’t make you suddenly fall asleep like a narcolepsy patient. It was more like it helped facilitate smooth sleep.
Kim Jae-cheol saw a graduate student, who was always available as a cheap test subject, sleeping on the bed. Normally, when they attached electrode patches for experiments, the student couldn’t sleep and couldn’t be used for experiments, but this time was different.
Despite having cumbersome electrode patches all over his upper body, he was deeply asleep. Stable brainwaves were being output on the machine next to him.
“What sleep stage is he in now?”
“Currently, stage 3.”
“It hasn’t been long since he fell asleep, but he’s already in deep sleep…”
“Exactly.”
There were 5 stages of sleep. Stages 1-2 were light sleep, and stages 3-4 were deep sleep.
This graduate student usually repeated light sleep and woke up during experiments because his sleeping conditions were uncomfortable, but today he had reached deep sleep.
“This doesn’t make sense…”
Kim Jae-cheol saw the results in front of him, but he couldn’t understand them in his head. As a professor researching neurology, he didn’t deny the existence of white noise when sleeping.
However, white noise varied from person to person. Some people even couldn’t sleep because of white noise. It wasn’t an absolutely beneficial noise for comfortable sleep.
But Hana’s song was different. It had a dramatic effect on everyone who listened to it, helping them sleep. Normally, this would be considered nonsense, but after the Gate appeared, nothing was impossible.
Monster byproducts had absurd effects, and no one could explain why they had those effects. Similarly, most modern people use various devices without knowing how they work.
Do smartphone users know Maxwell’s equations? Those who do could probably be counted on one hand. Most people living in the modern era don’t know how their devices work. But there is some theory behind how they function.
They don’t just work out of thin air.
Therefore, even though the mechanism behind Hana’s song hasn’t been discovered yet, there must be some theory explaining how it works. It’s just that the researchers, being slow, don’t know the theory yet.
But now, there’s no time to worry about such theories. For people suffering from insomnia or having trouble sleeping, this song will provide the best treatment.
Numerous experimental statistics have already successfully verified its effectiveness, and no side effects have been found. Well, if there’s any side effect, it’s that people habitually look for Hana’s singing when they sleep.
“With this much data, it’s going to be a ray of hope for people suffering from sleep disorders, right?”
The researcher next to him, holding the documents with the data, spoke happily. It wasn’t treating sleep disorders with medicine, but still, it was something.
For people suffering from sleepless nights, this song would be an excellent remedy.
“By the way, who is the child singing this song? Judging by her hair and eye color, she doesn’t seem like an ordinary person…”
“Exactly. I’d like to visit her sometime, but even after sending letters to the research institute, I haven’t gotten any response.”
Of course, they didn’t know that Starlight Research Institute’s mailbox was flooded with emails from various organizations and individuals, making it impossible to check. They just assumed the institute was busy…
