Track EP

Hohoh, well this is something…!

(There are countless LED strip wires stretching across the entire planetarium, with sparks of light occasionally flickering along each one…)

My god, it’s like witnessing eyelash neurons in action! The way the lights flicker from one wire to another, it’s as if I’m being swept up in an organic eyelash symphony…!

Beautiful… It looks almost like a bird’s nest, or perhaps even a cocoon. However, this is a planetarium.

If we’ve filled the entire dome with wires like this, won’t it prevent Asu High’s prized planetarium from performing to its fullest?

Excuse me, would you mind making your way to the beds already? At this rate, the program will end up getting delayed.

…Hmph.

Your spot is over here. Gannosuke-san and Prez, you’re in the back.

Ahh, so we lie down on these beds and view the ceiling? Interesting.

Kurama-kun, would it kill you to be a little more respectful? Do you realize how your behavior could affect the experience of the other tour guests—

Oh, please be careful of the wires above your head.

NUAAAH!? *falls*

Oww…! M-My rear! The nerve of you to allow me to fall on my divine rear…!

…Told you so.

This is preposterous! Isn’t this a serious safety hazard!? If you were already aware of the risk, then as our guide, you ought to be responsible—

Alright alright, let’s shut that annoying mouth up with some Anno-Imo Cream Malasadas.

Mmph…!

Laaa~♪

To the edge of the sweet galaxy we go…

(The dough is so fluffy, it melts like an angel’s wings in my mouth! The powdered sugar crackles like the first crunch of snow, with each bite making my heart race for more…)

(This cream filling… Could it be Tanegashima anno-imo? That would explain the velvety smoothness that borders on divinity…! The sweetness is as compassionate as the heavens themselves…!)

(And when the dough's aroma and the sweet cream come together, that is when heaven and Earth truly become one. Right now, I am alive… on this Earth within the Milky Way Galaxy!)

…Good grief, it’s about time this ruckus ended.

Speaking of which… You did prepare enough malasadas for everyone, correct?

*sigh* Yes, I did. Is there a problem with that?

N-No. I was just checking. …I must absolutely get one later, no matter what.

Hmm…!?

(Hoh, the planetarium now is even more magical than when the room was dark. I can’t help but follow the trails of light running through those strip wires with my eyes.)

…What is it that you see before you?

(That voice, it’s the Ward 8 Mayor…!)

(Kaguya-kun…!)

I believe everyone here is witnessing the light running along the wires arranged in this room.

Witnessing the moment it appears… until it fades away. The light sparkles on one wire before flickering over to the next like a comet shining and disappearing…

I am sure there is a lot to process, so let us narrow down the area where the light shines.

(So the light installations were just the opening. This must be where the actual show begins.)

We shall start with a single speck of light.

Then, we will connect this speck together with another one.

…What do you observe?

A straight line…? It looks rather plain. While it could be considered as art, it is still somewhat lacking.

Maybe it’s because we just saw a whole network of lights earlier before, but this feels rather underwhelming.

As most of us surmise, it is not very interesting.

Then let us try adding a few more specks. One, two, three…

Hoh… That straight line earlier was indeed dull. But now that the light is actually moving, it really adds some life to the room.

As more specks of light are added, what was once but a singular speckle begins to change form.

A picture begins to appear, and with time, a story begins to emerge…

I am sure many of us wish to fly straight as an arrow towards our ideals.

However, for as long as we live in this universe, we will always be under the influence of spacetime distortions caused by the stars’ gravitational pull.

In other words, we are unable to truly “fly straight as an arrow”…

The only thing we can do is to accept the trajectory of our life thus far for what it is…

…Quoting Einstein now, are we?

This goes right over us humanities folks’ heads. However…

There’s one thing I do understand. It’s that he is speaking the truth…

Life never goes the way you plan. The dreams and ambitions you hold can be crushed in an instant by the unexpected and the unfair.

I’ve been there. Back when no one took eyelash art seriously, I had to endure more setbacks than I could count…

But the way these lines of light twists and turns is what makes it beautiful. They’ll come to draw upon a picture… and eventually become a story of its own.

(What a wonderful allegory. Until now, I was only admiring how beautiful the view was. But now there lies a deeper meaning behind it.)

…As we all reflect on our lives, I’m sure there are some of us who wish to share their stories with everyone else.

Wouldn't it be nice to place your story, the trajectory of your life, into the sky?

You mean… To place them here in the planetarium?

By using the new feature in our app, you too can project the twists and turns of your life, the hardships you’ve experienced, and all the bitter and sweet moments in 3D.

Your creation will appear in the sky once you save it.

Let’s all project our individual paths together onto this limitless sky.

(So that’s the concept, to display everyone’s life journey in this starry dome.)

The trajectory of my life, huh… Alright, I’ll give it a try. With the years I’ve got behind me, mine should form quite the complex pattern.

Whoa, it lit up!

I always thought my life was kinda boring, but thinking back, I guess I’ve kinda been through a lot…

I was dead set on going pro with baseball, but I got injured at a crucial moment, so my dream never came true… But now I can just play baseball casually with my friends, so I feel pretty happy with how things turned out.

Seeing this light only makes me feel more certain of those feelings.

…Heh, there it is, uncle! That light over there, that’s the story of Yumenosuke Kuraku’s life!

…Hmm? That straight line?

Correct! I have never tasted failure in my entire life, so a single line between two points is all I need!

Hahaha! Oh, you’re still so green.

(…Muneuji Kaguya-kun… If you can already grasp the truth like this, and have the strength to accept it at your young age…)

(Then there’s no doubt about it… You’re destined for greatness.)

The hospitality live turned out to be a great success, Chief.

Yeah…! Thank you as well for your support, Sakujiro-san…!

Here, I have some pocket hana jidome. They work just as well for stopping tears. Please, take one.

*sob sob*…!

…

…We killed it, huh?

Indeed.

(I am glad to be standing here today.)

(Because I believe that this is surely what it is meant to be.)

…

Oh, Muneuji-kun. Still awake?

Chief. Would you like some tea?

I’d love some, thanks.

It will take some time to brew, so please wait.

Once again, you guys did seriously amazing today!

Thank you. What are your thoughts towards the feature tour?

It really hit me when you said that the only thing we can do is to accept the trajectory of our life thus far for what it is. Those words gave me hope to keep on going.

It made me take a good, hard look at where I am right now… and somehow, I felt confident enough to move forward again.

Even if I wasn’t flying straight like an arrow, I realized that every twist and turn I’ve taken along the way mattered…

And that made me feel like I can keep walking on in this life without looking back.

…Those were Uu-chan’s words actually.

Really? Those are very powerful words.

Indeed, he is brilliant.

Are you alright with using a mug?

Yep, thanks! …Oh, you’re using a thermos?

We are planning to celebrate on the balcony, so I need this to keep the tea warm.

I see, have fun! …And thanks for the tea!

Thank you for waiting, Uu-chan.

Mm.

I have brought a teacup for you as well, here.

Thanks.

Then without further ado, here is to the success of our feature tour—

Cheers.

…Hey, what’s that star called again? The brightest one in the sky.

That is the North Star.¹ It is also known as the star that the famous ukiyo-e artist, Katsushika Hokusai,² took his pen name from.

It often serves as a guidepost, as it appears to never deviate from true north due to its alignment with the Earth's axis of rotation.³

Oh, I see.

…

Oh, yeah.

Hm?

I also got this really weird message too, but mine was on PeChat.

Weird message?

Like, you know how you mentioned that mysterious message and then suddenly left the dorms?

I went looking for you ‘cause I was scared you’d do something reckless, and then I got that message…

On that night?

Uhh, the chat should be here somewhere… Huh? It’s gone…?

Why…? I don’t remember deleting it…?

Do you remember what the message was?

Uhhh…

…It looks like you do not.

Shut up. I was busy panicking at the time, thanks to a certain someone!

(All I remember was that hill popping up in my mind after reading the message.)

(Then again, I would’ve checked there anyways even if I’d never gotten it.)

…Yeah, I can’t find it. Maybe I misremembered.

I see.

(I never ended up burning my diary that night Uu-chan came to find me.)

(Now that I think about it, I suppose that moment was also a turning point.)

(And I am sure that this moment right now will someday become a turning point for myself in the future as well.)

…

(…Uu-chan has become an indispensable part of my life.)

(He is my guidepost for when I lose sight of my resolve…)

I will aim for the stars.

‘Kay. Just don’t forget to bring back a souvenir.

(Which is why I shall call you… My Polaris.)