Track 8

Phew…

Good work, Muneuji-kun! Looks like you’re here to train today too?

Chief, you are late. I believe you normally would arrive earlier than this.

Ahaha, I got stuck doing a bit of overtime.

It seems you have had it hard. How about doing a lighter workout for today then?

Yeah, I’m planning to do just one set of each. Are you gonna keep on going?

Yes, I want to enter the final stretch.

Then I’ll do my best to keep up!

Let us both do our best to achieve strong physiques.

*pant*, *pant*... Whew…

Are you alright, Chief?

Yeah. I think that’s enough for me today. You can go ahead, it’ll just take a while if you wait for me!

Very well then. I will go first, as there are still preparations to be done for our feature tour.

Things might get tough from now on, but make sure you don’t push yourself too hard, okay?

You do not need to worry in that regard. I have a rather strict subhost by the name of Uu-chan at my side that would launch a hailstorm of nagging if I do—

Oh right, I almost forgot.

I know you are in the middle of training. However, is it alright if I gave this to you here?

Hmm?

It is my weekly report tape.

Oh, thank you! I’ll listen to it later.

Then I will be leaving now.

Take care!

Now then…

(Maybe I’ll listen to Muneuji-kun’s weekly report while I take my walk.)

…If you remember, before we left for the study tour, I told you that I was reconsidering whether or not I should become an astronaut.

(Of course I remember. It really caught me off guard…)

(I wonder if he’s found his answer now.)

I believe I may have caused you concern over these words. At the time, you heard my worries out, empathized with me…

…And then reassured me that I would still have an amazing time at Tanegashima. That reassurance felt as if you were giving me a push on my back, and I am grateful for it.

I was also deeply moved by your words while we were in the Cave of Stars…

How “no matter what life you live nor what dreams you chase, in the end, you’ll always choose this path.”

The unwavering attitude you held towards your calling made me respect you from the bottom of my heart.

(It’s kind of embarrassing to hear someone say they respect me so sincerely…)

(But Muneuji-kun’s voice… He sounds so much more confident than before we left for the study tour.)

(It’s moments like these that makes me realize… These high schoolers are growing, becoming more capable with each step forward.)

(I want to keep growing too… so I can keep up with them, side by side.)

…My reflection dragged on for quite a bit. The preparations for the Noon Team’s second feature tour are proceeding smoothly.

After seeing the Space Art Light Festival, I thought that we could exhibit light installations that evoke the mysteries of the universe within our guests.

We have a general idea laid out. However, Uu-chan and I are currently refining the details.

We want to create a wonderful tour that will move the hearts of the guests who come to visit. …So I hope you will look forward to it.

That concludes my weekly report. Thank you for listening.

…Yeah, I can’t wait to see what you've got planned!

(I’m sure now. There’s no need for me to worry anymore. All that’s left for me is to believe in Muneuji-kun and Ushio-kun and watch over them.)

Phew…

(There is no point in me being the main host if I simply recreate the Cave of Stars exhibit from the Space Art Light Festival.)

(I wonder what sort of concept we should go with for the light installations?)

…It is a full moon tonight.

(Speaking of which… Isotake asked to borrow a walkie-talkie from me to use as a prop in his movie today.)

(I should write it down so that I do not forget.)

(I am looking forward to the finished results of his movie… I believe he said he would be using the black hole stunt in it as well…)

…And then, a mysterious message will suddenly play~ to foreshadow the upcoming scene~…

It’s like, this spine-chilling stunt where this astronaut flew the spaceship into a blackhole when he knew he couldn’t return back to Earth—

And then contacted himself from the past before he took off from the planet!

A mysterious message…

(My mind has been stuck on that message the transceiver picked up before we left for our trip.)

I believe it went… My homeland shines silver. Coming in from selee.

(‘My homeland shines silver’ is a sentence on its own, so I understand that part. However, what in the world does selee refer to?)

Shines silver, selee…

Muu-chan, you spent most of the time looking at the moon exhibits, right?

Yes. The way they explained the process of going to the moon was very intriguing, and the blueprint for the lunar orbiter spacecraft was also very eye-opening.

KAGUYA, right? That’s the name of the satellite they used to learn about the moon.

KAGUYA… The SELENE Project…?

My homeland shines silver. Coming in from Selene.

In other words, this was a message from the moon……!

*badump*!

Hmm, I guess this looks alright.

(He’s completely hooked on these…)

(Not gonna lie, it kinda beats the point of training, if you’re just gonna gain all the calories back from a chocolate cream malasada.)

(…Well, whatever. We’re working hard preparing for the tour, so I guess it’s fine.)

(I think Muu-chan is still on the terrace. Guess I’ll go call him over…)

Muu-chan, I brought some snacks—

…

…Muu-chan?

(…Something’s off.)

…

Muu-chan! Mu… Muneuji!!

!

Oh, Uu-chan, it’s just you…

What’s wrong? Are you okay…?

The moon looks strangely—

…

It looks normal to me.

…So it seems.

…Hey, are you really okay?

Yes, I am fine.

You don’t have a fever?

No.

Does it hurt anywhere? Do you have, like, a headache maybe? Or a stomachache?

Neither, my body is fine.

How much did you sleep last night!?

I am fine.

That’s not what I asked!

Apologies. I had a full eight hours of rest last night.

Okay…

Sorry. Did you need me for something?

…I came to get you since the food’s ready. Hurry up and eat and then brush your teeth and go to bed.

Alright, I got it…

*sigh*… You looked off, so I got scared… I mean, you even dropped your tablet.

The screen… looks fine. C’mon, let’s go.

…*looks up*

(It is just a regular full moon.)

…Hurry up already! You can stare at the moon another time!

Alright.

…