Returning to Sakuraso with Nana Higashiyama, who had already eaten oden, Yu Murakami found that Ai Nakano was also here.

Maybe it's to discuss something, maybe it's to watch the show together, or maybe she has something new to try and try it for the girls in Sakuraso.

Yu Murakami gathers them together to discuss the trip.

"Well, how about we go on a trip in mid-August?" He looked at the girls in front of him who were a little puzzled, and spoke directly.

"Murakami, why did you suddenly have this idea?" Miss Sakura looked at Yu Murakami, who behaved a little differently from usual, and was a little suspicious.

"Well, the first few months were hard, and after that, there were fewer things, so I thought I'd take you out with me."

"Murakami-san, have you figured out where to go?" Mizulai still has her own questions about Murakami's detailed explanation.

"Well, Rensang recommended a place to me before, I heard that it is privately owned, and he can help inform the owner." Yu Murakami nodded.

"Murakami-kun, why didn't I know about this?" Ai Nakano paused, a little dissatisfied with the fact that he was hiding from himself.

"Oh, this is what Ren-sang told me only two days ago, saying that he is going to arrange the venue for the next anniversary event of Sword Art Online." Yu Murakami took out his phone and flipped through the messages sent to him by Hitoshi Akitagawa.

Accurate, true.

"Murakami-kun, when are we leaving?" Nana Higashiyama looked at Yu Murakami, who had taken a lot of initiative, and asked with a smile.

"Well, in a week's time, the class should be almost over." Yu Murakami looked at Yu Mubi on the side and proposed.

"Ah, Brother You, you don't have to take care of me, I made an appointment with my classmates to hang out together in August, so I shouldn't be able to go with you!" You Mubi hurriedly waved her hand to dispel Yu Murakami's thoughts.

"It's not long, just two or three days." Yu Murakami explained again.

"It's really not good, you can't go back on what you've already agreed!" You Mubi kept shaking her head and resolutely rejected this proposal.

Understanding Yu Mubi's attitude, Murakami Yu didn't persuade her again, and decided to take five people on a trip a week later.

……

On August 12, according to the agreement, Yu Murakami and Ai Nakano came to Sakura Village in the morning.

The girls have already prepared their bags and are just waiting for him to arrive.

With five girls with him, Yu Murakami embarked on a trip.

Yu Mubi said goodbye to them one by one at the gate of Sakura Village, and asked Yu Murakami to remember to bring back some special products to Sakura Village.

Yu Murakami just nodded, indicating that he had heard.

The journey was not long, so they chose to travel by train and prepared a lot of things for entertainment during the journey.

Yu Murakami, who had no objections, just brought a few novels with him, and some little strange things.

Until now, the only one who has ever received a gift from him is Ai Nakano, and even if you can't give it to five people at the same time during the trip, there are some other small workarounds that can be taken.

For example, play a piece of music.

By the time we arrived at our destination, it was close to evening.

It includes the means of getting off the train and rushing to the destination by other means of transportation.

Akita Kawahito's recommended location is the privately owned mountain range, and I heard that there has been some early development in the mountain, and only those who have received an invitation can come to visit.

Yu Murakami, who wasn't very interested in this, just took advantage of the girls' inattention to complete the carving of the musical instrument during the trip.

Watching the scenery gradually get closer to them as the vehicle moved, Ai Nakano, who was sitting next to Murakami, couldn't help but joke with him.

"Murakami-kun, did Ren-san say anything else related to this place?"

"No, I just know it's private." Yu Murakami shook his head.

"Let's buy this place!"

"What?" Yu Murakami turned his head and looked at Ai Nakano, who was somewhat active.

"This lake, this riverside, and the mountain behind it. Buy them all, then build a wooden bridge by the lake and build a villa by the lake. We can also plant cherry blossoms in the mountains, and we can choose the seeds of each species carefully and let them grow freely. Even, let the miscanthus grow here. ”

The first half of Ai Nakano's joke may be a joke, but in the second half, it becomes her imagination of this place.

Yu Murakami looked at her excited expression and replied, "Well, wait until I go back and talk to Rensang." ”

"Wait a minute, Murakami-kun, you don't really want to buy it, do you!" Ai Nakano's expression was a little surprised.

"What's wrong? Isn't it possible? I'm already the president now, and besides, Nakano, don't you like it? Yu Murakami smiled and took her hand and replied.

Ai Nakano glanced at him and didn't say anything more.

By the time everyone put their luggage at their place of residence and went to eat, it was already six o'clock in the evening. It seems that because of the mountains, the darkness in the mountains comes faster than in Tokyo.

After dinner in the darkening sky, the girls decided to take a good stroll around the neighborhood. After all, it's late, and there aren't many places to play in the mountains. It just so happens that there is a forest nearby, and it is said that the road has been paved, so it is suitable for a pleasant evening walk.

Yu Murakami and the girls stepped into the woods and embarked on a path that probably wouldn't have been crossed for a long time.

The surface of the road made of stone seems to be polished, and although it is not smooth, it is not so bumpy that it feels like stepping on it. It has to be said that the people who built the stone path put a lot of effort into its design before the construction began.

There are black lights on both sides of the stone path, and they are placed on the stone path every six or seven meters, and the left and right sides are not completely symmetrical. A bright yellow light emanated from the lamp, illuminating the path as if it were doing its best.

The girls walked slowly ahead, making no noise, as if observing all sorts of things in the woods. Murakami followed in their footsteps behind, focusing most of his attention on them and less on the surrounding scenery.

The view of the forest is quite open, and although there are a combination of low and tall plants from time to time to block the view, Murakami can clearly see things in the distance in the forest.

As for the small animals, there is no shadow for the time being.

"Murakami, hurry up and keep up, don't be left behind!" Miss Sakura turned around and greeted Yu Murakami.

"Hmm." He nodded, signaling that he had heard.

The cicadas chirped incessantly, and the penetrating sound drowned out the sound of the wind and the sound of the woods.

A little light pierced through the canopy of the trees, softening the light on the road.

There are branches and leaves, or vines hanging from the trunk. Maybe it's not much, but it makes this forest more natural.

"Aiyi, there's a lake in front of you!" Taneda Risa looked ahead with a clear field of vision, pointing ahead with some strange light.

"Planting sauce, that doesn't look like a lake, it's not that big." Nana Higashiyama took a brief look at the size of the water surface and offered her own opinion.

The material of the road has also changed from stone to wooden planks, and even if you step on it gently, you can hear the sound of the planks responding.

As soon as you said a word, they came to the lake. A half-moon curve surrounds a small half of the water, and at the junction between the water and the road, there are lush aquatic plants.

The sides of the road were also secured with hemp rope for wooden stakes, but there were no lights. On the outer side of the road, there are occasionally larger trees hanging down their branches and approaching the water.

As if suddenly it had opened up, the sky was no longer covered by a canopy, and as long as you looked up, you could see the night sky as you wished.

The strange light was completely displayed in front of them, not a lamp, but a firefly in nature.

Yu Murakami was still a short distance away from them, so he could clearly see the girls being reflected in the fireflies.

"Murakami-san! Come on, there are so many fireflies here! Shui Laiqi beckoned to him and shouted loudly.

The girl's face is indescribably beautiful in the light of fireflies.

He quickened his pace and approached them, but still standing behind the girls.

This dreamlike scene made Yu Murakami a little intoxicated.

"It's so pretty......" Ai Nakano, who hadn't said much so far, sighed, and her tone contained the satisfaction of seeing the beautiful scenery.

"It's beautiful." Yu Murakami echoed.

"Murakami, take a picture of us here." Miss Sakura walked up to Yu Murakami and made a small request.

"Well, what kind of posture do you want?" Yu Murakami took out his mobile phone and asked casually.

Honestly, if you really want to document such a beautiful scene, drawing is probably better than taking pictures.

However, since Miss Sakura said that she wanted to take pictures, and the others did not object, Yu Murakami naturally had no opinion.

Miss Sakura looked around and took Risa Taneda's hand, "Sono-chan, how about we sit on the edge of this wooden path?" ”

"Well, it should work. But Suzune, this look should not be able to water skiing. Taneda Risa looked carefully at the aquatic plants on the side, nodded, and reminded by the way.

"I know, it's just a good pose." Miss Sakura hurriedly replied, and called the names of the remaining three girls, "Aiyi, Nana, Xiaoqi, what do you think?" ”

"I don't think it's a good position...... But that's it for now! Shui Laiqi thought about it for a while, and found that he couldn't think of any good posture for the time being, so he could only agree.

Nana Higashiyama and Aii Nakano also did not object.

The five sat side by side on the edge, a little closer to the fireflies.

The girls held hands and gently shook their calves, and the leaves of the plants beside the road were carried back and forth by them.

"Aiyi, the water is really clear, you can see our reflection." Nana Higashiyama, who had just sat down, looked at the water under her feet and poked her head out.

"Well, really, I'm lucky to see such a view at night." Ai Nakano also looked forward, and her reflection was also clearly visible.

Murakami listened to their words, and was in a trance for a while.

He moved a little further away from the girls, turned off the lights, and took a picture on the wooden path.

His photographic skills are good enough to capture this beautiful picture.

"Murakami, are you alright? Risa's voice came over, waking Yu Murakami from his state of looking at the photo.

"Well, I'll take it now, you can take a look." Yu Murakami put the phone in the hands of the girls, tilted his head slightly, and looked at the sky.

The sky is full of stars, and there is not the slightest cloud and mist to obscure it.

The water is fluorescent, the night sky is sprinkled with stars, and the girls lean together and watch the photos taken by Yu Murakami.

He suddenly smelled a faint aroma, which seemed to come from the side of the road.

Murakami turned his head and saw a few small white flowers hanging from the stems one by one under the trees, shaped like bells.

There seemed to be a lot of their own kind around them, and there were only a few of them left, still holding on to this summer night.

Yu Murakami approached the flower and crouched down.

"It's bellflowers...... "Yu Murakami whispered, trying to reach out and pick one, but he didn't make a move.

Bellflowers bloom from May to July in Hokkaido, and they rarely bloom in August.

It's just that Yu Murakami called it by another name, and people in Hokkaido used to call it lily of the valley.

The girls on the side of the wooden path finished looking at the photos and were about to get up.

Yu Murakami, who heard the voice, stood up and said in a calm tone, "Wait a minute, I have something to do." ”

The girls didn't try to get up again.

They turned their heads curiously, trying to see what Yu Murakami wanted to do.

The man in front of him took out a small musical instrument, which looked somewhat familiar, and the shape was somewhat similar to what he had put in his bag before.

Ai Nakano reacted that after they got off the train, Yu Murakami said that he bought it from a small vendor.

Yu Murakami gently held the shrunken bamboo fungus, closed his eyes, and played the melody.

Like the previous Tulip hairpins, they claimed to have bought them, but they actually made them themselves.

The evening breeze is blowing, and it is no longer stuffy under the filter of the woods, but there is a slight coolness.

The girls' movements gradually became smaller, and they were immersed in the melody played by Murakami.

The little lily of the valley moves with the evening breeze, like a real bell, bringing its own rhythm to the melody.

Time flies, and a piece ends quickly.

The girls came back to their senses from the fading music and looked at Yu Murakami.

"Well, on a whim, just blow it." Yu Murakami replied as he looked at them.

"Okay, we should go, we can't stay here forever, there's a return trip." He came to the girls, watched them stand up one by one, and set off again after patting the dust off their bodies.

Yu Murakami was still following them, playing his small instrument.

They left the lake together and walked along the wooden path, leaving only many of the lily of the valley that had withered, and a few of the lily of the valley that were still blooming.

At the end of the song, people will not disperse, and the flowers will not stop.

(End of book)

PS: There's a small single chapter at the end.