Episode 286: Happy Halloween
Volume 2 Release Celebration & Trick or Treat.
“Halloween, or Hallowe’en, is a festival held on the night of October 31st every year. Customs include decorating Jack-o’-Lanterns made by carving pumpkins or turnips, and children dressing up as witches and ghosts to go around to neighbors’ houses for candy.”
“…Hee. A festival, huh? Come to think of it, I think there were events like that in the game, or maybe not…?”
Unfortunately, the VRMMO ＜World of Space＞ she originally played had a hardcore specification, and in a world where she didn’t even know how long it had been since she left Earth, all history had been lost (or so the setting went). Therefore, there was no connection to Earth-derived festival events at all.
Of course, she knew the timing because she had participated in such events in the real world.
“By the way, is that October 31st thing important?”
However, considering the scale of the universe, events linked to calendar dates would not make much sense. After all, there is no guarantee that a year is 365 days.
In that sense, one year on this planet is 380 days and 7 hours and 12 minutes, and one day is 26 hours 3 minutes and 12 seconds when measured by Earth standards. How does the date of October 31st even apply?
“According to the literature, the origin is a festival that begins at sunset on the day before November 1st, which is considered the beginning of winter. In other words, since ＜The Tree＞ is located in the northern hemisphere, it is considered correct to start from sunset on October 32nd, the day before November 1st.”
“I see.”
Winter, winter, huh. Eve muttered, taking a sip of the cider in front of her.
The ice rattled, and the condensation on the glass dripped onto the table.
Today is October 32nd.
The weather is clear.
The outside temperature is 31°C. Humidity 72%.
The word “winter” does not suit the subtropical climate of ＜The Tree＞.
“It was believed that the boundary between worlds became ambiguous on this night. A gate appears between this world and the afterlife, allowing the spirits of loved ones, evil spirits, and fairies to come and go freely. Therefore, the living disguise themselves as demons, evil spirits, and fairies to hide from being taken away by bad things. On the other hand, the spirits of relatives and friends also return, so they are welcomed grandly in the house.”
“Hee~. I never bothered to look up the origin, so I didn’t know. Akane (she) really knows a lot.”
Akane (she), praised by Eve, puffed out her chest proudly.
Then, Eve had an idea.
Since Akane (she) had taken the trouble to look it up, why not do Halloween?
However, it was an event that Eve had never been involved in.
She didn’t know what to do.
Well, if she didn’t know, she could just look it up, or even just make something up.
After all, there is no such custom as Halloween in this world.
“Okay. ＜Ringo＞, let’s do Halloween.”
“…Yes, Ma’am.”
◇◇◇◇
Decorate with Jack-o’-Lanterns, and prepare some similar dolls and stuffed animals.
Using candles and lanterns for lighting seems to make it quite authentic.
In addition, ghosts, bats, spiders and spider webs. Skulls aren’t bad either.
However, things that are too grotesque are just plain scary, so comical ones are preferred.
The coloring should be around black, purple, and orange.
This is all up to ＜Ringo＞.
And the most important thing is the participants’ costumes.
Halloween is all about costumes.
“Ghost costumes are… boring. Anything but that.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Witch.
Zombie.
Devil.
Bat.
Skeleton.
Black cat.
These are probably the most common costumes.
“Hmm… I’d rather have something cute. There’s no fun in being scary like zombies or Frankenstein’s monster… Aren’t they just supporting characters? In this case.”
That’s debatable, so it’s hard to say for sure.
“Let’s make some rough designs and have everyone choose.”
So, Eve immediately gathered her sisters and announced the Halloween celebration.
“Akane (she) told me about this festival called Halloween, so let’s do it!”
“Oh, Halloween, is it?”
Asahi (she), who seemed to know a lot about these kinds of events, was the first to react.
“That’s right. We can’t collect candy like in the original festival, but I think it’s fine to just dress up and have a party!”
“Will Onee-sama (older sister) be dressing up too?”
“Of course!”
In that case, it was obvious that the sisters would participate.
It was clear that everyone except Asahi (she) would be matching with Onee-sama (older sister) if they were allowed to choose their favorite costumes, so it was decided that each of them would pick out the costumes they were interested in and then draw lots.
“Then! Number 1, Asahi (she), will draw!”
Asahi (she), who raised her hand first, happily reached into the lottery box held by ＜Ringo＞, rustled it around, and pulled out a lot.
＜Ringo＞, holding the box, was subtly manipulating both hands to force a random selection so as not to allow predictive selection. It was a true display of the ultra-performance AI.
“Oh… A Little Devil, is it?”
Asahi (she) is a Little Devil.
Akane (she) is a Witch.
Ichigo (she) is a Black Cat.
Utsugi (she) is a Devil.
Erika (she) is a Bat.
Olive (she) is a Little Devil Maid.
＜Ringo＞ is a Fallen Angel.
“Black Cat… Maid?”
And Eve ended up being a Nyan-Nyan Maid.
Since she had drawn it, there was no choice.
She needed to get into character (not really).
“A maid! Should I make tea or something!”
“…I will provide support.”
Of course, Eve, who had never done such housework, couldn’t possibly do anything.
The eight people, who changed into their respective costumes while chattering, ended up decorating the party venue together.
The decorations were output by a general-purpose machine tool (printer), and the food was also created by an automatic cooker.
While they were preparing, the sun went down, and it was just the right time.
““““““““Happy Halloween!!”””””””””
At the same time as everyone shouted in unison, the lights in the observation room slowly dimmed.
The sun, which had sunk below the horizon, dyed the world a dark orange color.
＜Ringo＞ lit the candle in her hand with a snap.
“Here you go.”
“Oh, this is the first time I’ve used a candle.”
Eve cautiously brought her own candle closer to the offered candle. The flame barely transferred to the trembling candle, and the light increased with a soft glow.
“…Hee~”
Eve, who had never seen a light using fire, seemed fascinated by the small flame. In the meantime, the other sisters also received fire from ＜Ringo＞. Asahi (she) happily received fire for her own candle and went straight to the Jack-o’-Lanterns piled up in the room. It seemed she wanted to light them herself.
By the time all the candles and lanterns placed throughout the room were lit, Eve finally came to her senses.
“Oh… Well, the atmosphere has changed quite a bit…”
“Onee-sama (older sister), it’s beautiful…”
““Ooh~~””
“…………”
The interior, illuminated by the orange light, showed a different scene from the artificial lighting. The sisters seemed to be getting more and more excited by the unusual scenery.
“Well… let’s get started.”
The projection display drew large letters in the air.
““““““““Trick or Treat!!”””””””””
In response to everyone’s voices, glittering effects danced in the air along with the sound of party crackers.
“Ah… Oh no, is this what a party is…”
““Kyaa!””
“Oh!”
In such a glittering space, Utsugi (she), Erika (she), and Asahi (she), who were completely hyped up, started running around, and Eve nodded with a somewhat emotional look. It seemed to have touched a chord in her heart.
In this way, the eight girls had a very enjoyable time, striking cute poses (becoming a black cat) and meowing.
I just thought of it, so I wrote it.
The home base is so peaceful, but on the front lines… No, let’s enjoy the fun times.
★Volume 2 is now on sale!
KADOKAWA product page https://www.kadokawa.co.jp/product/322306000173/
★I have posted articles for comments and discussions in the “Recent Status” notes. Please feel free to use the comment section.