How did it end up like this...
Even after finally clearing up the misunderstanding with Manhattan Cafe, Admire Vega's heart felt anything but light.
It was as if she had forgotten something terribly important, yet whenever she tried to grasp it, the thought slipped away completely.
Was it about a race?
There were no upcoming races she needed to participate in recently. On top of that, with the joint event between academies happening, while the Student Council was swamped, ordinary students like her found themselves with unexpected free time.
It was precisely during this idle period that Admire Vega felt a sense of urgency sharper than ever before.
Every night, she would speak to the star in the sky that so deeply captivated her, feeling her little sister's wishes through it.
But lately, she couldn't hear the star's voice at all anymore.
Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that the feelings once entrusted to that star had shifted somewhere else.
Every time she went to the library to read, Admire Vega would unconsciously end up sitting next to the otherwise solitary Manhattan Cafe.
During training, her gaze would also involuntarily drift toward the other girl.
There was even one time, returning from the training grounds, she had followed Cafe all the way back to her dorm room. Only when Cafe turned around with a perplexed expression and called her name did Admire Vega snap back to reality.
Why was this happening? Admire Vega couldn't understand it at all.
She only remembered the joy of her first time standing on the racetrack, a feeling she transmitted through the star in the sky to the sister who was never born.
That intangible connection tightly bound their two souls together.
She could feel her sister's loneliness, her solitude. Every night, she would say to the star, "Big sister, I'm your big sister, you know?"
And that star seemed to have learned the phrase, twinkling faintly under the night sky, incessantly calling out to her.
From that day on, Admire Vega spoke endlessly to that star about all sorts of things, as if teaching her own little sister.
Her reason for entering Tracen Academy was simple.
It was to bring the glory of victory to her sister, a Uma Musume who could never set foot on the track.
Watching the star glimmer with light that seemed full of loneliness and solitude, her sister's emotions reached her through their soulful bond.
For her sister's sake, Admire Vega resolved to become the most dazzling presence on the racetrack.
The regrets that child could not fulfill, she, as the big sister, would make up for.
'I will keep winning. I'll bring the light of victory to you, to fill that lonely, hollow heart!'
That was Admire Vega's determination.
Even if no one understood, even if no one approved, she would carry out her conviction.
To satisfy the lingering attachments of the deceased for this world, this flesh and bone of Admire Vega, built upon the memory of her forgotten sister, was willing to be shattered to pieces, if necessary.
That was her original plan.
But lately, that feeling of lonely helplessness seemed to have been suddenly... satisfied.
It was a sense of security, like a child with no one to rely on finally finding her parents.
The star in the sky shone with a gentle halo, and even Admire Vega was affected by that sense of security, her own mood becoming less reclusive.
This change was also the source of her unease.
She felt strongly that somewhere she couldn't see, something had happened.
"Sigh..."
Letting out a long breath, Admire Vega flipped through a star chart in the library, her body leaning unconsciously to the side.
Thump. Her shoulder bumped against something.
"Admire Vega-san..."
Golden eyes turned to her. Manhattan Cafe had raised a book, placing a barrier between them.
Huh? Strange... How did I end up in this spot again?
Just a moment ago, Admire Vega, thinking to kill time by casually reading any book she found, had simply lost focus for a second and yet again sought out Manhattan Cafe, sitting down beside her.
Not only that, she had just tried to lean against her, like a child.
Why?
Why did this Uma Musume, with whom she had very little interaction, exert such a powerful pull on her one day?
Manhattan Cafe. Someone she might not even see once a week, might not exchange a single word with in a fortnight.
Why couldn't she tear her eyes away from her?
And this feeling didn't even feel entirely her own. It was as if the morning star in the sky, symbolizing her sister, was tightly linked to her, as if the source of this profound sense of security came from her very soul, connected to Cafe.
How could this be so strange?
Holding her forehead, Admire Vega felt deeply embarrassed. "S-sorry, Cafe-san, m-my apologies..."
With that, Admire Vega closed her book and fled the area as if escaping.
Yet, a few minutes later, the same brunette girl, now holding a different book, walked back and sat down again next to Manhattan Cafe. She opened her book, and her body started leaning over once more.
"Ahem..."
Just before she made contact, Manhattan Cafe cleared her throat a few times. Instantly, the girl snapped out of it, shaking her head and looking around in confusion.
"How did I get back here!?"
Watching the flustered girl, Manhattan Cafe couldn't help but shift her gaze to the spectral girl beside her—the one who was always clinging to her, leaning on the table, reading with her.
Right now, Admire Vega was mirroring the ghost girl's posture exactly.
Was this the so-called connection between souls?
'Manhattan Cafe' couldn't help but wonder.
It seemed the other girl couldn't see the child, so closely linked to her soul, right beside her. And that child couldn't touch anyone else either.
When she tried to reach out to Admire Vega, her hand passed right through the other's body. This happened several times in a row.
Finally, with a tearful face, the ghost girl ran back and clung to 'Manhattan Cafe's' hand, refusing to let go, like an abandoned child.
It couldn't be helped. Admire Vega didn't possess the spiritual sight to see ghosts. For her, that connection to her sister, mediated by the morning star, was already the limit of what a mortal could achieve.
How many people, facing their deceased loved ones, could do anything more than kneel before an empty altar where the soul had long departed?
How many in this world could forge such a strong emotional bond that it connected souls?
But it was fine for the ghost girl to hug her. Getting touched by Admire Vega, however, would be troublesome.
She really didn't want to get burned to cinders.
Her face flushed red, Admire Vega bowed her head, scooped up her book, and hurried away once more.
"What's going on..."
'Manhattan Cafe' murmured, watching the girl stumble off.
"Speaking of which, how long is this little one going to stick with me?"
The ghost who looked so much like Admire Vega seemed to have turned into an attachment spirit, stubbornly clinging to her.
"Hey, the big sister you're looking for is over there. Even if you can't make her see you, she's still the one you're searching for, you know?"
'Manhattan Cafe' couldn't resist saying. Having her cling like this was really quite bothersome.
"Big sister..."
The ghost girl blinked, her face filled with confusion, as if from beginning to end, those were the only words she knew how to say.
'What should we do? Drive her away by force?' a voice whispered in her ear.
"Still, she's connected to Cafe's classmate. There's no need to go that far, is there?"
"That's true."
The brown-haired girl who had left not long ago returned, holding a workbook, and sat down in the exact same spot as before.
Judging by her serious concentration on the problems inside, she seemed completely unaware of her own actions.
Sighing, 'Manhattan Cafe' once again raised her book and quietly placed it as a barrier between them.
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T/N: Type Moon x Multiverse Fic Up!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.