Sleep is a temporary death.
Thus,
Luke was the only survivor left from the pajama party where the host fell asleep.
It was quiet, but the sound of rain tapping against the window was heard throughout the room.
‘As expected, I can’t sleep.’
He tried to lie down to sleep, but after having slept too long during the day, he felt no tiredness at all.
Even if he managed to fall asleep, it would only be a cycle of waking up again, so Luke lifted himself from the bedding.
“Py, let’s go somewhere for a bit. It’s better to do something with this time.”
-……!
Py nodded eagerly.
Luke stroked Mary’s hair a few times and then left.
“Good night, Mary.”
Fearing she might wake up and look for him, Luke left a note.
Of course, he also made sure to take his phone.
———
Draped in a school blazer over his pajamas, he wrapped the modified Fire around himself using a targeting-type buff.
As he walked through the dormitory’s corridor, it felt quiet and dark, giving him an unfamiliar sensation.
“The academy at night has such a fascinating magic aura.”
Upon hearing Luke’s mutter, Py nodded in agreement.
While the day was bustling and filled with the lively energy of students, the night exuded a tranquil and stable atmosphere, bringing forth a mood akin to that of the night itself.
Luke liked the night just as much as the day.
He loved the beautiful night sky, just as much as he enjoyed the noisy atmosphere of the day.
The enduring rules of this era involve the stars shining in the sky, the night being calm, and magic being mysterious.
Softly, softly. Concerned that his footsteps might disturb children’s sleep, he moved quietly.
Then suddenly, Luke remembered there was a music club room inside the dormitory.
And right now, it was a rainy night.
Some might find it fearsome and dreary, but the nightscape that Luke saw looked entirely different to him.
It was serene and stable, yet not overly quiet, filling the auditory space.
The beautiful magic that generated this atmosphere could not be fully understood by anyone who did not possess magic sight.
Thus, Luke suddenly thought of the cello placed in the room.
Perhaps Py was on the same wavelength, as he looked at Luke while resonating the sounds of the cello.
“I see, you want to hear my cello playing?”
Upon this, Py delightedly exclaimed, “Luke, I’m looking forward to it!”
Yes, if he played refreshingly and returned, sleep would surely come easily.
It seemed Py desired that as well.
Luke began to move toward the dormitory. No, he intended to move.
Then,
-…….
Amidst the sound of rain filling the corridor, a faint melody mixed in.
It was certainly the sound of a ‘violin.’
Luke turned to Py and asked, “Py, can you hear it?”
Py answered with a nod.
It seemed he hadn’t misheard, Luke thought deeply.
What choice should he make between approaching and ignoring?
In truth, he already knew the answer without needing to think deeply.
“Shall we go?”
How could he suppress his curiosity about the owner of this melody?
——-
Upon arriving at the door where the music was playing, Luke cautiously opened the door quietly so as not to disturb the performance.
Thud.
Nevertheless, it seemed that the presence of Luke was sensed, and the music abruptly stopped.
With black bobbed hair and black eyes, the person with an ambiguous impression, garbed in the Tigr Academy uniform, looked at Luke through their long bangs.
“Who are you?”
Muttering as if to himself, Luke approached with an awkward smile.
“Oh, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I came to play too, but I didn’t expect someone else to be here first.”
“Ah, you are….”
“I’ll introduce myself. I am Luke Irushira. And you?”
After blinking a few times, the person seemed a little flustered as they spoke in a trembling voice.
“I am Irsia, Irsia Mithea.”
“So, you are Irsia Mithea. Nice to meet you.”
Upon receiving the introduction with a smile, Irsia let out a long sigh. It was a sigh filled with either relief or joy, a positive emotion.
“You surprised me; it’s rare for someone to come at this time.”
“If I startled you, I apologize. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine….”
Irsia lowered the violin from their shoulder and clutched the bow. Then, scratching the back of their head, they laughed awkwardly.
“Luke, Irushira you said? What kind of speech is that? Is it a trend among kids these days?”
“Not really… Haha. Don’t worry too much about it.”
“Is that so…?”
Irsia chuckled softly and carefully set the violin down on a nearby chair as they approached Luke.
“By the way, you said you came to play? At this time?”
“What, weren’t you playing too?”
“True, but….”
Haha, he scratched the back of his head as if embarrassed.
“By the way, Irsia, you play the violin quite well. With skills like that, you could perform on the street without any problem.”
“Thank you for the compliment, but I don’t do street performances. My goal is to win an award at this competition.”
“Oh, it seems a competition is being held?”
“Right, but weren’t you here to practice because of that?”
“Me? I just came to play for fun.”
Luke shrugged his shoulders.
“Even so, I find that competition quite tempting. I could use some awards.”
“Awards? Why?”
“To graduate early, of course. The more awards, the easier it is to be recognized.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Irsia nodded in agreement, then suddenly seemed to recall something.
“By the way, can you play the violin?”
“Ah, not really.”
Luke rubbed his chin, looking a bit troubled.
“I can’t play the violin because of the horn.”
“What do you mean? The horn? It doesn’t seem to be a problem. Just give it a try.”
Luke took Irsia’s suggestion and held the violin up on his shoulder.
Then, bowing his head as street performers do, he said, “If I raise it like this, because of the horn….”
Irsia shook their head and corrected his posture.
“That position is wrong. Who taught you that?”
“……I saw it casually on the street.”
“What does that even mean!”
————
Thanks to Irsia’s guidance, Luke quickly managed to play the violin in the correct posture.
It felt somehow simpler than the cello.
After playing the strings a few times, he got the hang of it.
This was thanks to his talent for understanding and distinguishing the language of spirits.
It was proof that he could distinguish the delicate words of spirits, which ordinary people claim they cannot.
-…….
Luke moved the bow.
Though he lacked technique, it was a sound produced honestly.
Not fast, nor overly sharp, but a slow and calm melody fitting for the night’s atmosphere.
As his hands moved in accordance with the musical ideas popping up in his mind, Py resonated in a pleasing manner.
Is this the guidance of spirits?
In a trance, Luke played.
It felt as if he was pouring out his emotions directly.
A calm and serene emotion, akin to the night itself.
Soon, as the performance concluded, Irsia clapped.
“That’s amazing, what piece is that?”
“It’s improvised. If I had to name it….”
Luke pondered deeply for a moment.
What should he name the music he just played without thinking?
Having never named music he played purely on instinct before, it felt somewhat unfamiliar.
And finally, he decided.
“……A Night of Magic.”
Since he merely captured his emotions in the atmosphere of the night, no better name came to mind.
“A Night of Magic. That’s a nice name. It felt like a piece filled with the magic of the night. By the way, it doesn’t seem like this is your first time with string instruments, is it?”
Luke nodded.
“I think it’s because I’ve handled the cello before.”
Although it had only been three days, Luke’s talent was not of an ordinary level, so it held different weight than what a typical person would have after three days.
“Cello…That makes sense.”
Irsia appeared to be somewhat convinced.
Generally, the cello is more difficult to handle than the violin.
“By the way, it’s quite amazing. The pieces you played. I’ve never heard them before, and they don’t require any difficult techniques; they aren’t unpleasant to listen to, either.”
“That’s flattery. I merely caught the atmosphere.”
“Hey, if you call that flattery, I might get jealous.”
“Haha. Don’t say that, you’re my teacher now.”
As they conversed and played together, time swiftly passed.
The sound of rain had disappeared, and the soft dripping of raindrops hanging from the eaves mixed with morning birdsong.
As he looked out the window, refreshing sunlight shone through.
Morning.
“Oh dear, has the time come already? Irsia, I must be going now; you shouldn’t skip breakfast either.”
“Right, Luke. Take care.”
Irsia smiled gently as they saw Luke out of the room.
Taking out his phone from his pocket to check the time, he found that only about 30 minutes remained until breakfast.
———
Luke hurriedly returned to Mary’s room.
Before changing into his school uniform, he woke her up.
Tok, tok.
“Mary, it’s morning.”
“Ugh… No, I just want to sleep today…”
“You can’t skip meals, come on, get up.”
Luke snatched the blanket from Mary and shook her awake.
She looked quite weak in the morning.
Somehow, he managed to get her up and forced her to wash her face.
Luke had to use Enhance Body to lift her weight, which was more than he expected.
Once he got her to wash up and handed her clothes, she put on what he gave her.
It was fortunate that she could change her clothes on her own.
After getting her dressed and getting into his school uniform himself, as they left the room, Mary yawned widely.
“You’re so weak in the morning… How do you manage to go to school on weekdays?”
“Uh… It’s because I watched movies all night… And usually, the caretakers wake me up and help me…”
“Caretakers, like maids? But why are they absent today?”
“Um… I told them I’d be playing all night with a friend and to not wake me up in the morning… Hah…”
“I see.”
It seemed Mary was not an only child back home after all.
“By the way, why am I in school uniform? On weekends, it’s fine to wear casual clothes.”
“Is that so? I had no idea…”
“Really? Well, then it can’t be helped.”
Mary giggled nonchalantly, but Luke was slightly curious after hearing her words.
Why was Irsia in uniform then?
‘Did she perhaps practice without changing her clothes?’
She must be quite dedicated.
Luke shrugged and entered the restaurant.
