Chapter of Midsummer, Episode 1: It’s Summer in Japan, Ms. Elf

The girl repeatedly rolled over from one side to the other.

The room was lit only with indirect lighting, and they had already finished reading their picture book. They would have been fast asleep by now, but Marie continued to toss and turn in her half-sleeve pajamas.

“Can’t sleep, Marie?”

“...”

I didn’t have to look to know she had a dissatisfied look on her face. This was Marie’s first time experiencing one of Japan’s hot nights, and it would take some time to get accustomed to it, no matter how comfortable the bed itself was. To be honest, I was so used to traveling around that I could sleep no matter which region I was in.

Marie let out a sigh before sitting up in the bed. Her hair was frayed even worse than her usual bed head from having turned over so many times.

“I feel drowsy, but I can’t fall asleep. Maybe the AC just isn’t for me.” Marie paused, then spoke weakly as she stared at the darkness in the room. An AC was on the wall, and the faint humming it emitted while expelling cold air seemed to have been disturbing her sleep.

She leaned her head on me, her eyelids heavy and her breathing slow and rhythmic as if she was already asleep. Considering she still couldn’t go to sleep, perhaps the abnormal temperature was the culprit.

“You can go ahead and sleep before me. I’m sure I’ll be able to once the wind quiets down a bit.” Marie rubbed her eyes, speaking with a voice so faint that she sounded ready to vanish into thin air. I felt sorry for her and rubbed her back, then noticed her body was a bit warm. It seemed it wasn’t regulating its temperature properly. It would have been even harder to sleep while clinging on to someone.

“No, don’t worry about me. You won’t be able to sleep with those thoughts in your mind. Why don’t you drink some cold barley tea and have a chat with me?”

Marie considered my offer for a moment, then nodded. I was deep in thought as I helped her get up. It was still the end of July, and the real heat was yet to come. I had been hearing a lot about global warming lately, and temperatures had the potential to get even higher than usual this year. Such worries occupied my mind as I opened the fridge, and the light hurt my eyes with its brightness.

As I poured the tea into a cup, I heard Marie’s voice from behind me.

“It’s okay, don’t worry about me. I might have mentioned this before, but I have a hard time falling asleep. It was especially bad back when I was in the Sorcerer’s Guild. It’s not your country’s fault.”

“Well, I don’t want you to fret either. I may not look like it, but I just love sleep. When I hear that there’s an elf who can’t sleep, it makes me want to help her from the bottom of my heart.”

I walked over to her barefoot, and she let out a light giggle. Marie sat on the bed and thanked me as she accepted the cup. She took big, thirsty gulps of the refreshing drink, then let out a satisfied sigh.

“Yes, I see what you’re trying to say. Why don’t we try to think of a way to fall asleep, rather than being overly considerate of each other? To be honest, I didn’t like the thought of you going off to the dream world without me.”

“Yeah, me too. I think it would’ve ended up just being a dream about me kicking rocks around the whole time.”

She giggled even more this time, which made me happy to see. Maybe it was because her voice was so pretty. Marie’s voice was so comforting to hear, and I just wanted to close my eyes and listen to her forever. The reason I wanted her to laugh was probably the same.

Then I noticed her purple eyes slowly narrowing... and she took me by surprise when she suddenly burst into laughter. She clutched at her sides as she laughed hysterically, and I was completely flabbergasted.

“Aha ha, I didn’t think your dream would be so boring that it would make me laugh like this. But I’m sorry to say, such a sight would actually suit you. Oh, come on now, don’t make that face. That was my way of saying I like you.” I was glad the room was dark. The darkness hid my blushing face well. It was times like these when I realized how unbecoming of my age I was. I got easily flustered when she suddenly confessed her feelings for me, and my heart jumped every time she poked my shoulder with her fingertip.

I still couldn’t believe it, but Mariabelle and I began dating recently.

It was like a dream come true, and it literally was in my dreams when I told her how I felt and she accepted me, so it would have probably been confusing if I tried explaining it to someone else.

And so, I was able to start dating an elf, despite being an ordinary salaryman. I met Mariabelle by chance thanks to my ability to go play in my dreams, and I happened to bring her along with me to my own country. Since then, we’ve been living here in the Koto Ward as our home base and visiting the dream world to go on adventures.

This may be incomprehensible for some. Even so, we’d been having an absolute blast together... Oh, and it may have been hard to believe, but that black cat curled up asleep over there was an entity known as an Arkdragon, controlled by a black-haired beauty who was over level 1,000. And that girl holding back her laughter was actually an elf that was over a hundred years old, but none of this was strange if you considered our connection to the dream world. In short, we had been enjoying such chance meetings and the lifestyle we had now.

“Ahh, that was hilarious. You really are a strange person. Why would you be kicking rocks for that long?” I wanted to tell her it wasn’t meant to be taken literally, but it seemed she could clearly picture me kicking rocks in her mind. As I admired her imagination, I felt her poke me with her finger.

“I’m wide awake after all that laughing. Say, don’t you think now would be a good time to try that thing?”

“Hm? What thing?”

“Manipulating heat of vaporization. You told me about it several times in Arilai, remember? The theory that you can absorb heat from your skin with evaporation. Maybe we’ll be able to sleep through this awful heat with the help of spirits.” She pointed, and the sound of a fish splashing could be heard. In fact, something that looked very much like a fish appeared and began swimming around the room; it was the water spirit, Undine. Marie then picked up the remote with her other hand and turned off the AC for some reason.

“Regulate the humidity in this room for us for a while. This would be more like dehumidification than vaporization. But it should make it at least somewhat easier to sleep.”

I heard a splashing sound after Marie gave her order, and then I felt the sweat drying off of my skin. The heat was removed from my body along with the sweat, and I felt just a bit more comfortable than before. Then, I remembered. We were able to live through the excessively humid rainy season thanks to that water spirit working full-time.

“Next, we’ll have to take care of the room temperature. Let’s hold a strategy meeting. I have tomorrow off, so we can arm ourselves with knowledge on how to cool down. Why don’t we visit the electronics store or the library? I want to teach you the proper way to spend the summer.”

“Yes, good idea. I can’t become a proper sorceress if I just give up on things because I assume it’s impossible. We’ll use everything we can, including that water spirit, and spend our summer in comfort.”

It seemed there was a lot of humidity to take care of as the water spirit just got to work, and it busily flew around the room. It gathered moisture around its body and flew over to the sink to dispose of the water, which looked like a lot of work.

I watched the spirit for some time, then heard a yawn. My gaze returned to Marie to find her covering her mouth as if trying to hide her yawn. We decided to go to bed in preparation for tomorrow’s strategy meeting.

I moved closer to her, and she surrendered both hands to me. Her face told me she was just starting to have some fun, but I supported her back and thighs with my arms and gently lifted her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I smelled the faint scent of her sweat.

“When I first met you, I had absolutely no idea I would be dating you someday. Your face was just so forgettable. I hated humans to begin with, and you chased after me while naked.” Marie whispered in my ear quietly. There was a bit of sleepiness in her voice, and she sounded like she was enjoying the automatic lift to the bed. The gentle whispers from the girl that was as light as a feather were making my own eyelids feel heavy.

I moved the blanket aside and placed her on the bed. The bed creaked as I laid her down, and her purple eyes were directed at me the entire time. Just as I pulled up the blanket to tuck her in, Marie spoke to me.

“I didn’t think you would end up becoming unforgettable to me either. I mean, just listening to you talk makes me sleepy... Well, good night. Let’s go have fun at the electronics store tomorrow...”

I almost informed her that we weren’t going out to play, but instead to have a strategy meeting, but she was barely able to keep her eyes open. I whispered good night, then got into bed myself. Soon after flipping off the lights, I would be wrapped in comfortable blankets and heading into dreamland.

I snuggled up to the sleeping elf’s back, her faintly sweet scent enveloping me as I drifted off. The last thing I heard was a light splash.

§

Elementary schoolers who had just started their summer vacations passed by beside me. Their uniforms were dazzlingly bright in the sun, and their voices were cheerful as they talked to each other. It was the weekend, so they were likely on the way to their clubs.

I didn’t appreciate this until after I’d graduated, but their cheery expressions always made me envious. This was a time when they were given minimal homework, and they could spend the rest of their time doing whatever they wanted. They could play without worrying about the critical eyes of others. This was a privilege that only students like them had.

The sun burned the asphalt, a heat haze wavering on the other side of the street. Ultraviolet rays came down from the blue skies, and it felt like they were piercing my skin. Summer had officially come to the Kanto region.

I didn’t like summer very much. In fact, I didn’t like it at all. Not too long ago, I probably would have avoided this heat and snuck back into my room. Then, I would have spent my time in comfort thanks to the greatest invention in human history: air conditioning.

“Sooo hot! I can’t believe this!” But seeing Marie raise both fists in protest, I thought that maybe walking around outside during the summer wasn’t so bad.

With giant columns of clouds as her background, she was wearing a ribboned dress with exposed shoulders and the woven sandals with thick soles that she had bought recently. With her hair tied to either side, her fantastical facial features and smooth skin, and her round eyes looking right at me, she was so cute that I could have stared at her forever.

Well, I admit I was buying too many clothes. But Marie looked good in any outfit, and she seemed so happy whenever I bought her new ones, so it was difficult for me to keep myself from opening up my wallet.

“This is unbelievable. Are Japan’s summers always like this? I can feel the clammy heat rising up from below. Look, I can’t stop sweating.” Mariabelle looked rather amused as she complained and grabbed the hem of her skirt, then flapped it around to fan herself.

Her skin was exposed under the harsh sunlight, naturally drawing stares from those around her. But it seemed Marie was already used to getting looks from strangers by now. She simply picked up her partner, the black cat, and they both turned their eyes toward me.

It seemed Marie really didn’t get tan, though I already knew this from our time in the desert. Maybe species that lived long lives, like elves, were fundamentally different from us humans. Such were my thoughts as I spoke to her.

“Are you surprised? You might end up hating Japan if I told you the temperatures haven’t even gotten bad yet.”

“I don’t know about that, but it really does feel strange. Maybe it’s the humidity, but it doesn’t feel like the usual Koto Ward. I feel like I’d turn into a steamed dish if you sprinkle some salt on me. Arilai might even be easier to live in, compared to how things are now.” It was much less humid over there, after all. Arilai’s heat was very dry, so one could get by as long as they avoided the sun. Meanwhile, here in Japan, the high humidity made it muggy like a sauna, and hiding under a shade didn’t provide much relief.

The black fur on the cat made the heat substantially more uncomfortable, and it leaped out of Marie’s arms to avoid her sweating body. But Wridra jumped up from the hot asphalt upon landing and let out a displeased yowl before hiding in our shadow. I noted that staying home was an option, but the cat only stuck out a pink tongue at me in response.

Now, there was a reason Marie wasn’t complaining much, despite her hatred of the heat. Oh, she had been complaining earlier, but that was nothing compared to when we went to the desert. I could clearly feel her loathing then, and Wridra had gone home right away.

One of the reasons Marie was able to cope was the open ice box on the roadside, which was packed with frozen treats. The elf and black cat narrowed their eyes in a smile as the cool air soothed them, and they looked kind of like sisters across different species in my eyes.

I purchased the items they each pointed at, and then we decided to sit on a shaded bench while I taught them how to enjoy the summer.

“Mmm, it’s so cold and sweet! I vowed that soft serve was the one and only kind of ice cream for me, but I’ll have to reconsider now. Very interesting.” Marie looked rather serious as she made her comment, then used her spoon to stab her ice cream, which included lemon slices. The black cat sitting next to her was munching away at its own icy treat, then suddenly shut its eyes, as if hit with a headache.

“Is this the correct way to spend the summer that you mentioned? To stay put and figure out how to cool off while having fun?”

“That’s right. You eat cold food or things that are in season and hang out in cool places like libraries or shops. As long as you’re looking for fun things to do, summer isn’t all that bad.” I didn’t think I would be the one saying this, considering I once hated the summer myself.

Marie had stopped sweating once she cooled down, and she sat there balancing her thick-soled sandals on her toes. Cicadas were crying all over the city, and the elf looked around to enjoy the foreign scenery. The shopping district was somewhat deserted, but there was a certain elegance to the sight of it. An expanse of vivid blue skies and mass of clouds could be seen overhead, and the wind chimes sounding off nearby added to the tasteful scene.

Marie’s airy, wide-sleeved dress complimented her fantastical charm exquisitely. The simple embroidery was a nice accent for her beautiful skin, and her eyes like precious stones made my heart jump as they met my gaze. I worried whether she realized I had been staring at her, but then she asked me something that was completely unrelated.

“Kazuhiro-san, is it true you received a bonus?”

“Hm? Yeah. Don’t tell anyone, but I’m a little rich right now, so I might be able to grant your wish as long as it isn’t too crazy.”

Maybe the way I said it like it was some big secret was comical, because she giggled in response. She definitely stood out, but it was because she was just so lovely. Strangers smiled as they passed by, enjoying a bit of her distinct charm for that moment. In that brief amount of time, perhaps they were able to forget about the awful heat.

“I like going shopping. But our objective here is to sleep comfortably at night in this heat, so this is a sort of reconnaissance mission at the electronics store. I will get to the bottom of how those air conditioners work today.” Marie really must have hated the discomfort while trying to sleep last night, because she made a fist with a determined expression on her face. She got really fired up when it came to resolving her own issues, and spirit users were incredibly reliable at times like these.

I was rather thankful for this proposition. Controlling spirits was a supernatural feat from the viewpoint of someone living in the present age, and I already knew her abilities were useful for living in comfort from the time I lived in the elven village during the rainy season. Fortunately, our stance was that it was fine to use as long as people didn’t find out.

She seemed satisfied by the ice cream, and she swung her feet back to gain momentum and hopped off of the bench. Marie then extended her hand toward me, and I took it naturally.

“Then it’s time to start our fun little electronics store date,” I said.

“Hee hee, just you wait. I’m going to steal their top-secret machinery.” She flashed an audacious smile, and I couldn’t help but burst out in laughter. I noted how cute Marie was, and she seemed rather satisfied as she said “Is that so?” Maybe I was imagining it, but Marie seemed to be in a good mood as we walked toward the station department store.

We passed through the shopping district and saw the giant department store in front of Kinshicho Station. My bonus pay was meager enough to be that of a rookie employee, but I decided to use it to grant Marie’s wish.

The department store in front of Kinshicho Station was quite spacious, and there were many shops lined up there. The electronics store was especially big, and it had three separate floors divided by purpose. It was full of customers, as expected on a weekend, and there was a wide range of people, from children and their parents to young people, shopping alone.

“Ah, ah, ah, ah, ahhh...” The cute girl vibrating in the massage chair drew stares from all around us. The black cat stared enviously out of the basket on my lap, and Marie used the chair to dig deeper into her hips, back, and even the ankles, as if to show off.

“Hmhm, it’s too bad, Wridra. If only you were in human form, you could have experienced this incredible massage chair... Ahh, no way... My shoulders, too?! Mm, mmph!” The elf girl squirmed around as she enjoyed the new model massage chair. I was watching and smiling from a chair next to her, but my eyes bulged when I looked at the price tag. It cost so much that I wished I hadn’t seen it.

This was bad. The price was so high that it would have obliterated my bonus pay. I did say I would grant her a small wish, but the joy I got from getting my bonus would have vanished on the first day if she wanted this massage chair. I gulped, then tentatively spoke to her.

“Wh-What do you think, Marie? It probably doesn’t feel that good if your shoulders aren’t that stiff.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say so. Just look at these specs. It calculates the skeletal structure of your body and massages it in the most optimal way possible. How terrifying. There are many other massage chairs, but I don’t think any of them can do your shoulders so thoroughly... Nnf, mmph, it’s tickling me!” Marie held in her laughter as she vibrated some more.

It seemed she had regained her energy from being indoors with the AC blasting, and she continued to enjoy the sensation of her hips being massaged. The price tag reflected its top-of-the-line specs, and it continued to make fine adjustments as it focused on her lower back. Marie seemed to enjoy this, and as the chair continued working her, a realization suddenly hit her.

“Oh, wow! Look, it says core stretches! I wonder what it’s going to do... Ah! Wha, hey! Wait, my body is stretching!” The elf squealed in joy as her body got stretched out. I was getting worried that she would be defeated by this piece of Japanese household electronics, but all I could do was watch nervously. The automatic massage course finally seemed to end, and it whirred back into its original position.

“I’m sorry, what were we talking about again?” Marie seemed rather out of it, and she had a blank look in her eyes as she spoke. Her cheeks were faintly pink, and her eyelids looked a bit heavy. I groaned internally, mentally noting that the latest model of massage chairs was expensive enough to wipe out my bonus for a reason, considering it had the ability to leave Marie in such a state.

In any case, I decided to help Marie in her totally relaxed condition. I reached out my hand, and she weakly squeezed it before pulling herself up. It seemed she really had nearly fallen asleep, and she struggled to get her sandals back on.

“I suppose I slightly underestimated it. I’m ashamed to admit, I thought it might be nice to have one at home.” Marie groaned as she rubbed her hip. She looked as if she couldn’t admit defeat, for the honor of all elves. The cowlick on her head matched her expression.

“Hm, I think massage chairs originated in Japan. I heard they’re especially nice after a hot bath. Come to think of it, they were at the hot springs in Aomori, too.” Marie’s purple eyes widened.

“What, really? I thought they were just big chairs! Ahh, darn it! I definitely want to try it next time!” Even the black cat turned this way with a shocked expression. They had to be colluding to make me laugh. I couldn’t contain it anymore and burst out laughing, and then they looked at me, looking confused.

Fortunately, Marie didn’t ask for the massage chair. This was a great relief, considering I was just a humble salaryman. She explained why on our way to the appliance section on the same floor.

“Of course I didn’t want it. It felt really nice, but we couldn’t possibly buy something so expensive. Don’t you agree, Wridra?” But the black cat inside the basket just blinked as if it didn’t understand why. That look meant “I want one!” It seemed I had developed the ability to read what cats were thinking through facial expressions alone.

Now, electronics stores were full of things that would be of interest for these two.

There were electric pots that dispensed hot water with a push of a button, a garbage treating machine that recycled garbage into compost, a toaster that could make toast, fried eggs, and coffee all at once, a vegetable chopper that cut vegetables up into tiny pieces in moments, and more. The elf and black cat were in awe as they busily went from one appliance to another.

“Wooow, this is amazing. You could cook things so quickly with these!”

“There are so many kinds of electronics these days. I was living alone before, so I didn’t really come look at the kitchen appliances. It just felt like food tasted better when using a kitchen knife. I don’t know why, but you tend to admire coffee brewers when you live alone. I still use the toaster to this day, but the coffee machine was a pain to maintain, so I even forgot where I put it sometimes.”

“Wouldn’t it be nice to have appliances like these at a new place?”

“It would! Seeing all these appliances here makes me want to get some. When we went to the Alexei Region, all I brought was some shoes and a brush. The food was made in batches in the kitchen, so staying in the upper floor was torture. It reeked of noinoi the whole time.” Her expression turned sour as she recalled the smell of noinoi, which was a food similar to onions. It was useful because they were easy to grow, but the taste and smell turned awful because of the lack of long-term storage technology. Even after my journeys over many years, I still couldn’t tell if they were rotten, or if they just smelled bad naturally.

Then, I noticed Marie looking confused as she observed a hot plate with several round grooves in it for cooking takoyaki.

“But noinoi are pretty tasty when they’re in season. I’d like you to experience how delicious in-season vegetables can be. Then I’m sure you wouldn’t be picky about food if you did.” I could almost hear Marie’s heart skip a beat. She said she didn’t know what I was talking about and tried to play it off, running her hand through her hair while averting her eyes. I smiled at her, undeterred by her brusque reply.

“Summer vegetables are really tasty. It’ll help you fight off fatigue from the summer heat, and they’re full of nutrients. Why don’t we have some summer vegetables for dinner tonight? There are eggplants, pumpkins, and many others.”

Marie hesitated. “I don’t like vegetables very much after spending time at the Sorcerer’s Guild. They just taste acrid and bitter, and it makes me feel like a bug eating them.” Her excitement from earlier had plummeted, and her voice was basically as quiet as a whisper.

“Hm,” I mused to myself.

I suspected something was up from the way she often left her vegetables uneaten, but it was still surprising. Elves mainly ate crops from nature, so it wouldn’t have surprised me if many of them were vegetarians. Not to mention, she loved eating fruits.

“Eating vegetables is part of the proper way of spending the summer. If you don’t like it, it can just be a one-time thing for tonight. So why don’t you give it a try? I’ll do my best to make it good.” Marie groaned. She made a sour face as she deliberated the idea, which made it very obvious just how much she didn’t care for vegetables. Eventually, she sighed in resignation.

“Okay, just this once. As long as I don’t have to eat them after it’s all over.” Hearing Marie’s curtness made me groan in response. I wanted to tell her that wasn’t okay, mainly because I wanted her to be healthy, at least while I was with her. I had a responsibility to take care of her while we were together, after all. But I didn’t want to force her to do anything she didn’t want to do, so I was in a difficult position.

“Okay, I won’t make any vegetable dishes unless you specifically ask for some.”

“Then it’s a deal. I’ll try to endure it for tonight.”

We both wore tense smiles as we shook on it. I wanted to make some delicious vegetable dishes for her and get her to see them in a different light. The thought occupied my mind as we walked around the air-conditioned floor.

Just then, I noticed Marie was curiously staring at a fan.

Her airy dress was lifted up by the air, revealing her thighs, so I stood behind her to prevent passersby from seeing anything. I had the thought that maybe she should have been a bit more aware of her surroundings.

“Are you interested in that fan?”

“My, this is an amazing invention. It continuously spins at a set pace... It’s like magic. Machines truly excel at making precise movements like this.”

I realized that she was more interested in relatively simple devices like these. Older fans used to be bulkier and heavier, but the modern ones mainly had cleaner designs. Marie narrowed her eyes happily as the wind blew against her.

“Oh, it’s so cheap compared to the other items.”

“That’s because it doesn’t make the air cooler, but just circulates it instead. It looks like those ones also have air cooling functions.” I pointed to a rather strange-looking product. It was a big panel that showed details for the electronics with diagrams and cute-looking illustrations.

“Wow, this is nice. It displays how the appliance works, like a research project. I wonder if they just put it out for summer vacation. Oh, and by research project, I mean homework that’s given to grade schoolers where they look into a topic they’re interested in and report on it when they get back from summer vacation.”

“Hm, they make children do strange things in this world. A vacation is for resting. If they’re still forced to study on vacation, just when are they supposed to get some rest?”

I nodded in agreement. It wasn’t just students that had homework. Some people brought work home with them if they couldn’t finish in time. Everyone should have at least gotten to rest while they were on break. I told Marie just that, but her eyes were darting around, and it seemed she wasn’t paying attention.

“Hm? What is it, Marie?”

“Oh, it’s just that I felt like I was forgetting something important. I thought we came to the electronics store for a specific purpose...” I cocked my head, trying to recall if she was right. We didn’t have any homework or work, so we should have been able to enjoy the weekend freely. I looked around as I thought about it.

The comforting cold air hit me in the large home appliances section, where ACs and dehumidifiers were on display. The prices ranged from cheap to expensive, the items in the higher range rivaling the price tag on the fancy massage chair from earlier.

After staring at them blankly for some time, we both spoke at once.

“Oh, the AC.”

“G-Goodness, we completely forgot about our original purpose,” Marie said.

“Even I forgot about it... Hmm, there are so many unusual things in an electronics store that you tend to forget what you came for while looking around.”

“Yes, I think that thing is especially to blame. The massage chair that nearly put me to sleep. I’m sure it was put there to serve the same purpose as traps in dungeons.” She spoke with a severe face, as if she was a detective revealing an elaborate trick, but... I’d forgotten about it, too. Still, I decided not to correct her. I acted impressed and left it at that.

In any case, it was convenient for us that the mechanisms of the air conditioner were on display.

I cleared my throat, and Marie looked at the big screen. Being the brilliant elf she was, Marie intended to learn how to read and write Japanese as well, so she often read books and wrote kanji in her spare time. I only had to support her here and there when she couldn’t read something, and she understood how air conditioners worked after reading through the explanation.

“Hmm, what an interesting concept. To think that warm air contains more humidity than cold air. Cooling the air makes it so it can’t contain the humidity anymore, so it turns into water droplets... I see, so it’s like the way liquid forms on a cup of cold water.” It seemed Marie was actually enjoying this.

But it wasn’t too surprising when I considered that she was trying to become a wizard. Wizards tended to be unusual individuals who established their own theories to reach their objective, even if others claimed it would be impossible. In this world, inventors were the closest thing to an equivalent.

“Huh, I thought the dehumidifiers in air conditioners were cold, but I guess it’s because it works by cooling air to gather moisture. Come to think of it, it wasn’t as cold when the water spirit dehumidified the air for us,” I noted.

“That reminds me of Arilai. The dry air isn’t as uncomfortable, but it doesn’t necessarily change the temperature. Hmm, I didn’t think I’d have so much fun coming here. I like this world because it’s not bound by outdated ways of thinking,” Marie said as she stood on her toes to get a look at something higher up. Her eyes were sparkling with fascination, and I was surprised by just how enthralled she was. Then, she pointed her finger.

“There it is! A method of cooling the room. This must be the principle of the great modern invention, the air conditioner.” Marie smiled like a cat that had captured its prey. The big panel displayed an illustration showing how to direct heat outside.

Lines began to fill her notebook for Japanese studies. Marie was using her favorite writing tool to create those lines, and they illustrated a duct connecting the room to the outside with air circulating between them.

“So, that means heat is drawn to things that are cold. The ice cream we ate during the day was very tasty, and it also felt very cold. It felt that way because heat was being removed from my body.” Marie opened her mouth to demonstrate.

We were back in my room. After accomplishing our goal of figuring out how air conditioners worked, I was practically dragged out of the store to take us back. Marie’s face was slightly flushed, and her expression said that she wanted to test out her theory immediately. Meanwhile, I had great expectations for her discovery and listened like a diligent student. Maybe she could do something about this heat after all.

“Yes, I get that, but...” I stared at the box in front of me as I spoke. Despite its hefty size, it was actually on the cheaper end of electronic home appliances. I did promise to grant her a small wish after getting my bonus, but I was taken aback when she requested something so inexpensive.

Sweat poured down my face. It wasn’t that I was nervous, surprised, or afraid. It was just that... the room was abnormally hot.

“So, why aren’t we turning on the AC?”

“If it was cool in here to begin with, we wouldn’t be able to tell if it’s working or not. I’ll have you know I’m putting my honor as an elf on the line for this experiment,” Marie said with a dignified look on her face.

I had been reaching toward the AC’s remote, but I had no choice but to retract my hand.

My room in this mid-summer weather was one of the most unpleasant environments to be in. The air was muggy due to the windows being closed, which wasn’t surprising, considering it had been baking in the sun for so many hours. It even felt harder to breathe, but to my surprise, Marie took the remote from me, despite hating the heat more than I did.

Her bangs were stuck to her forehead with sweat, but she flipped them up with her finger and pointed to the sky. Moments later, something strange appeared. She had conjured a cloud of what looked like the vapor that came from dry ice, and it floated in the air. Marie had summoned a spirit, a being that could have basically been compared to a paranormal phenomenon.

“Whoa, it’s like a jellyfish. I sense cold air coming from it, too. Is this an ice spirit, by any chance?” I asked.

“Correct. I called Frau the ice spirit, so we have our base for our AC.”

Honestly, I was surprised. Electronics used technology that even I didn’t understand, and she had come from a civilization that was far less developed than ours. My eyes widened, and Marie grinned.

“Like I said, this is just the base. We’re not done yet. As I mentioned before, heat is drawn to cold, so when this ice spirit goes outside, the heat will follow. After that, we just need to dispense the heat outside and repeat the process. Then, the system will be complete.”

After a period of silence, I finally replied, “Huh.” Her explanation was too scientific for my imagination to keep up. And of course, the awful weather creating heat hazes was taking a toll on me, too. Marie stood, then smiled as she placed a hand on my chest.

“Now, it’s time for an experiment. Over in this world, I can only manage one spirit at most. Not to mention, they can’t just repeat one motion forever like a machine. But ultimately, if we can cool this room down, we win. This summer and those sweltering nights would become much more comfortable. Now, come here.” This was quite curious. I didn’t expect to be doing a science experiment with an elf girl. Marie took my hand in one of her own and called over the ice spirit with her free hand. She was humming as if she was thoroughly enjoying this, and she led us over to...

“The bathroom? Why’d you bring us here?”

“We’re going to supplement what’s lacking with something else. This is something I learned with you.” The time we had conquered the ancient labyrinth immediately came to mind. We were greatly outnumbered, but we used our wit and strategy to put up a fight. This was probably what she was talking about.

Marie gave a word of encouragement, and the jellyfish-like ice spirit gently drifted through the air. It responded to the elf girl’s request and touched the surface of the water pooled in the bathtub.

After some time, I looked over at Marie. No change had occurred, and I had no idea what exactly the ice spirit had done. Her pale purple eyes met mine, and she looked like she could barely contain the desire to spill a secret. Judging by her expression, it seemed the experiment hadn’t failed.

And so, I looked back over to the bathtub. There were many small, round, foot-like appendages coming out of the ice spirit, and each of them were continuously making fine movements. The spirit’s transparent appearance made me feel like the temperature was getting cooler just from looking at it. Just then, I felt cold air touch my skin.

“Now it’s your turn. It’s a bit heavy, but you can do it,” Marie said to me after glancing at the ice spirit that moved away from the water’s surface.

I wondered what she meant by that. She gestured for me to lift something, so maybe she wanted me to put the water in a bucket and carry it out? I considered this thought as I touched the water, then felt how cold it was.

Something else caught my attention. I heard a thunk from the bathtub. It sounded like something had hit it, but when I moved my hand around to check, I noticed something cold, hard, and invisible there. I was a bit taken aback, but when I got a hold of it and pulled it out of the water, a transparent block of ice broke the surface with a splash.

“It’s ice!”

“Yes, ice. It contains very little heat, so it draws a massive amount of heat from its surroundings. Now, please carry that over to the other room. And look how clean of a shape that ice is. You’re quite a wonderful spirit, aren’t you?” With that, she appreciatively booped the ice spirit with a fingertip. The spirit looked pleased as it floated around, then followed Marie as she walked out of the bathroom.

Now, our little experiment, which was akin to a summer vacation research project, was approaching its final stages.

The ice block I was carrying this way and that was about ten kilograms in weight. I had wrapped the rectangular block with a bath towel to make sure I didn’t drop it. I brought the about five water bottles’ worth of ice over to the room, and Marie prepared the next step. She was opening the box we had purchased from earlier, and there was a tray laid on the floor...

The fan whirred to life. The cold air blowing out of it was a blessing in this horrid heat, and I couldn’t help but let out a cry of relief.

“Ohh, that feels nice!” It was the natural reaction considering we were in here with closed windows and no air conditioning on a hot summer day.

The sweat that had been pouring out of us stopped right away, and we narrowed our eyes at the sensation of cold air against our skin. It seemed Marie wanted to feel more of it. She grabbed the hem of her dress and revealed her pale thighs. She let out a delighted squeal, but the light fabric floated up behind her, and I quickly looked away as her exposed butt nearly came into view.

Marie’s hair danced in the cool air, and she looked back at me with a smile on her face.

“My explanation was a bit long-winded, but this is what I wanted to say. Add wind to ice, and you get some refreshing, cold air. See how the surface of the ice is melting?” She beckoned me over, and I moved my face next to the smug looking elf’s. I could see the water droplets running down the ice’s surface. Marie poked it with her fingertip.

“Just like how we sweat, ice that gets hit with wind loses its chill through evaporation. That wind feels cold to us because invisible specks of water remove heat by touching our skin and evaporating.” She smiled happily as she explained while sitting on the floor. There was joy in her amethyst eyes, her long hair fluttering in front of her.

She then pointed into the air again. Her finger danced in circles, and the water spirit that had helped us the other night appeared again. A splash resounded in the room, and then the ice spirit faded away, as if it had tagged out with the other spirit.

“I’m still bad at controlling spirits in this world. My summons are limited to the ice spirit, which is easygoing and quick to fall asleep, and the water spirit, which loves to swim around. But there won’t be any issues as long as I assign roles to each of them and have them take turns working. And from this point on, I just need to apply my method of removing heat through evaporation. Look.”

I looked as instructed and saw that the water spirit was gently swimming around the room with its tailfin. It looked like a semi-transparent fish, and it gathered water onto its surface as it went around the four corners of the room. The spirit was tasked with gathering all of the excess moisture in the area.

“I’m having it collect all of the excess moisture that’s holding heat, then discard that moisture in the drain. Just like the drainage hose of an air conditioner. Hmhm, what do you think? You can feel free to praise me.” Her eyes were sparkling in anticipation as she ran her fingers through her long hair. I could feel the temperature dropping even as I sat there, mouth agape, so she was obviously right. All I could do, of course, was pat her on the head.

“Mmf, hmhm, that tickles! You’re going a bit overboard with the head pats here. It may be true that I’m an extremely rare Spirit Sorceress who can even replicate modern inventions, but is it really that big a deal?”

“Yeah, it is! I always knew you were smart, but I had no idea how smart. You’re incredibly cute, too, and you can take care of things around the house and create amazing inventions. Soon, I’ll have to start calling you Lady Mariabelle to give you the respect you deserve.” Marie’s long ears drooped slightly. I went all out when it came to giving compliments, and it was fun seeing her dreamy expression. Even more so when she blushed and looked at me with her brilliant eyes. Her head moved from side to side as she pleaded “Again, again!” and I appreciated how cute girls could be from the bottom of my heart.

It was officially mid-summer as the end of July arrived, and the temperatures had reached a sweltering 35 degrees Celsius.

Japan was a country with extremely high humidity, and days like these were unpleasant even for those who lived in the desert. But our room was so pleasant that it was hard to believe it was the middle of summer, and it was unlikely that we would have trouble sleeping like we had the previous night. Seeing Marie so excited gave me a feeling that this summer would be more fun than ever before.