kscans

Chapter 279 - Chapter 4: The Souvenir

A week after that dream, I returned to help at the futures exchange. Before me stood a high wall of documents. The stack I had worked so hard to clear was back to its original size.

According to Alfina, my senpai had been frequenting the university all week. He was probably busy dealing with Noel or Maytyl about the fish tank.

Today, however, his schedule was packed with visitors, so he was in the room next door.

I passed a cheerful Plural-senpai in the hallway just a moment ago. He said something wasteful about trying to char cacao beans to their absolute limit. The accountant at the Plural Company must have it rough.

Speaking of Plural-senpai's sweets, that dessert was delicious... I tried to recall the taste of the tiramisu from my dream. I realized the memory was fading, which made me a little sad.

It seemed the next guest had arrived. From the sound of the footsteps, it must be Noel.

"...you have no idea how much trouble this was. ...perception of arithmetic is so vague. And this shape is so complex. Do you know how many times I had to remake it, or how many Magic Crystals I used..."

I could hear Noel's complaints coming from the exchange manager's office next door. I thought she was talking about the mold for the fish tank, but it seemed I was wrong. It sounded like she was being roped into another unreasonable demand.

...She could have consulted me about the arithmetic. My senpai can be a bit lacking in precision... Look, there’s a missing value right here.

I shook my head and stood up, then opened the door to the adjacent room. Noel, who looked ready to slam her fist on the reception table, turned around.

"Well, considering the reason, I'll let you win this time. I imagine things are about to get tough for you anyway."

With that ominous remark, Noel exited the room as if swapping places with me. My senpai was acting suspiciously. On the reception table was a long, thin wooden box. About to get tough... I wonder if she meant his next job.

With the document in hand, I told him about the missing number. The correction was finished quickly.

"Um, Mia, do you have a moment?"

My senpai stopped me as I was about to stand up. His hand reached for the wooden box on the table.

"What is it, senpai? You're being so formal."

I asked as calmly as I could. From his expression, I could tell this would be a difficult topic. To be honest, I wish he had consulted me a little sooner.

"Well, you see... about the other day. You said you wanted a reward for helping with my work, right?"

For a moment I had no idea what he was talking about, but then it came back to me. We had that conversation before I had the dream.

"I'm impressed you remembered. But I don't believe I mentioned what I wanted."

"About that, well, it's more like I thought of something you'd like. Or rather, I saw it..."

My senpai started to ramble.

"You did, senpai?"

I was happy he had thought of it on his own. But how could he possibly know what I wanted? The person in front of me wasn't the senpai from my dream, after all. Besides, the thing I want from him exists only in that dream...

I subconsciously rubbed the fingers of my left hand.

"Just take a look, it's this..."

He placed the wooden box in front of me. I opened the long container. Inside, a silver chain rested on a red cloth lining. The end of the chain was hidden under a folded part of the fabric.

A necklace, perhaps? For him, jewelry was a surprisingly thoughtful gift. ...No, I shouldn't let my guard down yet. It could still be some kind of tool.

I slowly lifted the cloth. What appeared from beneath the silver chain was a shape gleaming in gold... My hand froze, captivated by its harmonious form reflecting the light.

"...!"

I instinctively covered my mouth with one hand. The necklace featured that shape. The ring I thought was the most beautiful in the world, no, in the entire universe, was shining with a golden light.

"Um, how should I put this. It's like I remembered a shape you'd like, or rather, I saw it in a dream. But all I really remembered was the mathematical formula you explained to me in that dream..."

My vision wavered at his next words. Bands of light streamed through my eyes, just like that hologram.

"H, hey, Mia, what's wrong?"

I realized tears were streaming down my face.

It was the ring I couldn't bring back from my dream. My senpai had brought it back as a mathematical formula. And more than anything, that meant we shared the memory of that time.

"Ricardo. What did you do to Mia... Do you understand the meaning of a Sorcerous Gold ring?"

Alfina, who had been at her desk, rushed over to us in a panic. She looked inside the box, then at my senpai.

"Ah, um, this is just a necklace... Meaning?"

"Yes. A Sorcerous Gold ring cannot be broken by any ordinary means. Therefore... The index finger of the left hand, especially, is connected to the heart..."

Alfina continued her explanation. It was essentially a custom among noble families... so that's what it meant.

"If that is what you want, Ricardo, then I will accept it. I did make a promise with Mia before... But I haven't even received one myself..."

Finally, Alfina's cheeks puffed out in a pout.

"No, it's not a ring, it's just a necklace, I mean, of course the ring is the main part, but. This is..."

My senpai was in a complete fluster. It was true that, strictly speaking, it was different from that. The pretense of it being part of a necklace was a rather self-protective move. I wiped my tears away with my hand.

However, Alfina was mistaken about one thing.

"It's all right, Alfina. This is for the 'ring finger' of the left hand. Isn't that right, senpai?"

I tried placing the ring under the chain on my finger. The chain prevented me from putting it on, but I could tell its circumference was exactly what I had wished for in the other world.

"How did you know that? And that's not all right at all!"

"Hmph. It seems you two have a secret between you."

Alfina looked at me, her cheeks puffed out even more than before.

"That is a secret. But, let's see. In short, all I need to do is make Ricardo say it's okay to remove this chain."

I said, glancing at my senpai. I could press the issue now, but he seemed to think it was just a dream, and this really was an excellent presentation. So, I'll back down just one step for now.

But...

I recalled the knowledge I had brought back from the other world. The theory that this world is a three-dimensional shadow, a hologram. The moment I saw this ring, my understanding from that time came flooding back.

Everything in the world exists on a single plane, and our reality is a projection of it, a hologram. A hologram's shape changes depending on the angle of the light shining on it.

This world, and that world. They could be thought of as projections of information on the same plane, illuminated from the front and the back. That was the theory.

And then there was the magic remaining in the crystal fragments.

According to my senpai's hypothesis, the magic in the crystal transmits information with impossible efficiency. This means it could even access the space between two worlds that should be impossible to cross...

We probably exchanged information across two holograms. I don't know what form it took, but I think that is the shared memory that was a dream, yet not a dream.

The shape of this ring. The mathematical formula that creates it. If I can interpret that... I looked at Ricardo, who was ignoring me to explain himself to Alfina. Then I whispered softly.

"If you make me wait too long, I'll just have to steal you away to the other world, senpai."