It was a clear, sunny day without a single cloud in the sky.
If you’ve ever experienced a day where just opening the window makes your drowsiness disappear and fills you with the desire to go out somewhere, then today was precisely that kind of day.
“The weather is really nice, isn’t it, Py?”
Py nodded enthusiastically.
Luke was leaning against the veranda, enjoying the fragrance of the breeze and admiring the height of the buildings in that fine weather. It was quite a leisurely situation.
In contrast, while Luke was enjoying his free time, the research lab, where Luke had inadvertently thrown numerous research subjects without realizing it, was experiencing an unprecedentedly busy time.
The researchers had gone on a business trip to a foreign country where demonic transformation had once taken place, trying to find evidence to support Luke’s hypothesis. Meanwhile, the remaining staff had also become busy claiming to revalidate Shaeh’s miracle.
Both tasks were uncertain in terms of completion time.
Thanks to that, Luke couldn’t even enter the lab and instead focused solely on the feeling of his hair being blown by the breeze while standing on the veranda.
Though he had the authority to create such a breeze any time by establishing a second circle, the natural scent of the wind delivered directly by nature provided a refreshing sensation.
Thinking back, there was a moment when even such sensations felt unfamiliar.
It had only been a little more than two months, but adaptability was said to be the best among Hyuns, and perhaps that was the reason.
“Lu, you’ll catch a cold if you go out in such thin clothes.”
Yerna said with a worried tone, inserting a pin in her hair.
“No need to worry. The weather is nice, and it’s not that cold,” replied Luke.
Yerna nodded as she gazed at the brilliantly blue sky beyond Luke’s small stature.
“Indeed, the weather is great. I wish I could go out somewhere on a day like this.”
However, Yerna noted with a sigh that she had to go to work on such a lovely day.
The researchers, confined in the lab, likely felt the exact same sentiment.
Oblivious to their circumstances, Luke innocently asked, “Can I go to the forest starting today?”
“It’s possible, but I think it would be better to wait until tomorrow. There’s still some cleanup left,” she replied.
Yerna sighed deeply as she looked up at the sky again and muttered, “I hope the weather stays like this until next week.”
Luke also looked up at the sky and answered, “Well, I think it will.”
His tone was almost comforting.
Although even Luke didn’t have the skill to predict the weather a week ahead, he felt a sense that it would indeed be so.
Seeing Yerna turning her head to check in the mirror if the pin was secured properly, Luke suddenly recalled that she always wore those two pins.
“Yerna, those pins are always attached. Do they have some meaning?”
The metallic pins seemed to exude even a hint of magic, as if they had some enchantment on them. Perhaps, the material was one of the mana alloys.
“Oh, this?”
Yerna chuckled slightly as if the question surprised her and opened her mouth.
“It’s a gift from my mother. Does it not suit me?”
“Not at all. It looks good on you. I was just curious since you wear it every day.”
“I’m glad to hear that. It’s something very precious to me, so I wear it daily.”
A very precious gift from her mother.
Feeling a somewhat ominous atmosphere, Luke cautiously asked, “Could it be that… something happened to your mother…?”
Yerna’s eyes widened slightly, then she replied urgently with an “Ah!” expression, “She’s still alive! This is something I received long ago, so I keep it precious; it’s not a memento of hers or anything like that!”
Well, officially, her past self was considered dead, so it was probably better not to see family too often. However, Yerna rambled that she occasionally met secretly once or twice a year, and Luke sighed with relief.
“I see… Then I’m really glad.”
Thinking that the good day almost took a turn for the worse.
“I’ll be back, Lu! You must contact me if you go out!”
“Got it, Yerna.”
When Yerna left the house for work, Luke went to get ready to go out himself by entering the shower.
There was no reason to be cooped up indoors, and it felt a bit wasteful to stay inside with such inviting weather.
‘Hmm. How about going out to play the cello?’
Recently, Py had been quite dissatisfied as there had been no opportunity to practice at home.
From time to time, Py would wander near where the cello was kept, emitting a forlorn string sound toward Luke.
“Py, let’s go out and play the cello today.”
– Luke?…?
“Yes, I mean it. Just wait; I’ll wash up and get ready.”
– …!
With a joyful sound as though horns were playing, and leaving Py behind, Luke turned on the shower.
———-
While walking with the cello, Luke eventually found a sufficiently wide square and sat down on a suitable chair.
He thought of not going to school for a while.
He was a bit wary of the strange attention resulting from the recent music club incident.
Besides, he preferred not to be overly scrutinized and not be able to do his tasks.
You might think it’s a case of excessive self-consciousness, but having experienced it multiple times in both past and present lives, it was only natural for someone with intelligence to think a little.
Having seen people play here before, he figured it was okay for him to do the same.
After all, it didn’t seem likely to obstruct foot traffic.
‘If I’m good enough, I might even create a means to earn money right now.’
He immediately felt the desire to repay Yerna.
Luke took out the cello and leaned it against his body, looking around.
Those who saw him looked a bit curious, but they merely continued on their way.
Taking a deep breath, Luke drew his bow across the cello strings.
A resonant sound echoed, as if a person had just sung.
The performance was a simple and light piece.
There was nothing that would disturb anyone’s ears; it gave a sense of playing the cello gently, albeit monotonously.
However, it lacked any distinctive character.
A few people passing by glanced at him, likely curious about a ten-year-old half-beast girl playing the cello, but they weren’t interested in the music itself.
Luke understood well that such a straightforward melody wouldn’t particularly draw interest without a spirit present. Even if he wasn’t particularly good at music, analysis was his strong suit.
While Py loved it just for Luke performing, well…
People weren’t spirits.
They loved melodies that were understandable, in harmonious and beautiful arrangements.
Though Luke’s performance had no harmonic issues, it was simply too static.
It wasn’t the kind of melody that made one want to listen.
Even so, to not capture the attention of a single person out of so many was a matter of pride.
‘Hmm, well, everyone seems busy, so maybe it can’t be helped.’
Looking back, people in this era all seemed to be busy with something.
Even in this peaceful world, they led quite competitive lives.
Perhaps they lived busy and fulfilling lives precisely because they were too peaceful?
Thinking that way, being busy didn’t seem entirely bad.
With that thought, Luke began to play little by little.
Gradually, the sound of his cello seemed to swell and spread forth.
Not passionate, but lively and smoothly.
It would sound low and then suddenly soar into the air like a bird, lightly gliding through the melody.
It seemed to embody the process of a small bird flying in the blue sky, pecking at food on the ground, and then rising back to the sky.
Fortunately, that performance managed to make a few people stop in their tracks.
Thinking that some were watching, Luke felt a surge of excitement.
He didn’t mind the feeling of being anticipated by someone.
He always held confidence that he could meet their expectations.
That was not much different, even in the completely new field of performance.
He thought he only need to show what he could do.
As the performance continued, a few coins gathered in the cello case.
Words of encouragement like “Good job, that was a nice performance” felt pretty good.
Above all, it was better than harsh criticism.
Taking a moment to rest while listening to the chirping of birds flying above, he suddenly had a thought.
‘Might it be the weather? Or is it because I’m feeling good? The sound of the birds sounds like a song.’
Wait, a song?
In that instant, it felt as though a realization flashed through Luke’s mind.
Sound is vibration; the vibrations of string instruments and vocal cords are essentially the same.
No instrument is particularly special, and no voice is either.
The vocal cords are also a sort of instrument, aren’t they?
Looking at Py, who was full of anticipation, Luke murmured, “Yes, that was it.”
– …?
Thinking back, bards didn’t just “perform.”
Why were they called poets?
Yes, they “sang.”
Luke suddenly recalled “The Great Plains of Serenegal and the Twelve Knights.”
Of course, he didn’t plan to perform it as it was.
Earning money off someone else’s song would be theft, wouldn’t it?
Then he decided to carefully note it down and try to create something new.
Although it would be his first time trying to sing… he felt an instinctive certainty that it would somehow work out.
————
In the late evening, Luke heard footsteps from outside.
From the weight and rhythm, he quickly recognized it was Yerna’s and rushed to the entrance to greet her.
“Yerna, you’re back?”
“I’m back, Luke! What happened today? You look really happy.”
“Oh, right. Take a look at this.”
Luke opened the cello case with a flourish, smiling.
“Oh my god, what is all this?”
“This is the money I earned today from playing in the square.”
“You…? How much is all this…?”
Luke answered with a slightly awkward smile, “A total of 2,340,200 gil. Maybe it’s because I look young… they all seem to have given me a bit more. Even though I clearly said I wasn’t a little kid…”
Being treated like a child despite being an impressive performer was quite a burden. He had heard the word “adorable” far too many times. He had thought he was making an effort to look a bit more mature.
“Anyway, I wanted to give this to you, Yerna.”
“This for me?”
“Can you add it to the mana expenses? I always felt sorry about that.”
Yerna was left speechless.
No, how in the world did he earn 2.34 million gil in a single day…?
Although he played music, it had been a weekday, so there must have been fewer people out and about.
