We made it to the festival!

Wow…! The lights look so magical!

I think some snow would really add to the atmosphere, but…

Gii is shaking like mad.

I do suppose this type of environment is extremely troublesome for homeotherms.

Toi, lemme know if y’feel cold.

I’ll be okay. Because I have you with me, Brother Dearest.

(I want to tell Nagi-kun that he can stay close to Brother Dearest to warm up too, but…)

(I want to be the only one in his arms.)

You can do a lot of stuff outside of the festival grounds too, like the Oirase Ice Falls tour or the Lake Towada canoe tour.

Yep, it was out in nature right at this lake too. Now that was the good shit.

The cold bath was at a temperature of -2°C, wasn’t it?

Hey, Hachinoya over here’s chattering his teeth just thinkin’ about it.

Ah, oh no…! Okay guys, there’s a place with a lot of food stalls called Yukiakari Yokocho, so let’s head there and get something warm to eat…!

Alright, then let’s split up here. Yodaka and I got somewhere we wanna go.

Oh, are you gonna go drinking again?

‘Course, who do you think we are?

Ah, the addicts’ eyes are unclammed by hate!¹

Unclouded by hate.²

Truthfully, I’m quite interested in a specific bar run from inside a snow hut here.

(Hmm, this kinda free-for-all feeling reminds me of our Hakodate trip…)

Then maybe we should all go to the bar to warm up ‘fore we go to the food stalls.

Wouldn’t that just make us colder…?

Mmm, nyope. The inside of a snow hut is actually much warmer than the outside. Heat gets trapped in between the walls of snow, which prevents cold air from coming in.

Alright, shall we get going then? Danny, please carry Nagi for us.

Alright, alright. Hup.

Netaro and I are gonna get some food, and we’ll meet up with you guys later. Maybe we should get some warm pork miso soup or some grilled squid…

Grilled squid! Yes, grilled squid. Pff, bsshhhh! Weheheh!

This guy’s off his goddamn rocker.

…Phew. I’m back to life.

Yeah, it’s so much warmer in here.

Daaaamn, alla the glasses are made outta ice. Fancy.

What should we order?

I’ll just get a soft drink. ‘Cuz I gotta make the rounds ‘n’ ask people about Morozumi-san after this.

Ryui-san, my man. Y’know, we’re planning on drinkin’ our little hearts out over here, so we’re counting on you to drive us home.

How’d you know I got a license?

You told the company, brother. Time to put it to use.

Buchi-san, you can’t expect a new driver to know how to handle snowy roads at night, even if the car has AI-assisted driving. I’ll do it.

Nah, I’m scared to be in the car with you drivin’.

Ryui is still a beginner, but sometimes it’s best to learn by doing. I’m sure he’ll be alright as long as he has someone in the passenger seat to help him.

Yeah, exactly. They always just throw you onto the highway when you gotta learn how to drive on those, right?

Hmm… Maybe you’re right. And parking in a garage is something you only learn how to do after you get your license. Our company van is pretty big too, there’s a certain trick to driving it.

(I didn’t know about that…)

Was the written test hard for you, Ryui?

It wasn’t hard, just a pain in the ass.

They asked shit like “True or false: It’s best to be careful when driving at night.”

(The answer would be true, right…?)

The answer is false. “You should be careful when driving at any time of the day.”

Ohh, yeah. They really try ’n’ getcha with those trick questions.

I almost thought that I’d never pass…

Oh, did you guys come here by car?

I can give you some recs for studless tires!

……

(I have no idea what they’re talking about, but…)

(Brother Dearest looks like he’s having so much fun…)

……

Netaro and the chief should be coming to meet us with the food they bought soon, my boy.

Ah… I’ll go and look for them.

I’ll join you.

No, it’s okay!

Hey, where’s Toi at? Ya didn’t kick ‘im out, didja, Natsume?

My apologies. I thought he needed some fresh air. He’s just outside the hut.

Oh, right, Toi’s the only one here who doesn’t have his license… Now I feel bad.

Does Toi want a license?

He ain’t need one if I got one.

I ain’t gonna stop him if he wants one, but I wanna do the driving for us for now.

Why?

Just think about me drivin’ ’im somewhere at night, and he’s in the passenger seat boutta drift off to sleep, but he tries to stay awake, like “Brother Dearest is driving me, so I can’t fall asleep…” He always knows how to hang in there.

Chewing some gum can help with that.

Then when we’re stopped at a red light, I look over at Toi’s sleepin’ face and think about how happy I am… That kinda thing.

You’ve really thought about this, huh?

I’m sure it’ll come true one day.

Oh, Toi-kuuuun!

Ah, Chief and Netaro-san. How were the food stalls?

It was so crowded over there! They had a stage set up for concerts nearby too.

We purchased some more garlic cloves. I am not stingy like Ryooey is, so I’ll share mine with you, Toy. Here!

(I don’t really want any, but since Netaro-san is being nice and offering me some…)

I’ll take one…

……

(Ugh… The smell is making me feel sick… I don’t know if I can do this…)

Did you change your mind?

Ah, no, I’m okay. Let me…try it.

……

(It’s so…gross…)

We wanted to go into the snow hut too, but it looks like it’s full.

We can enter. The people of JPN have long since had the ability to squeeze themselves into small and crowded spaces!

(I already put it in my mouth, so I need to try and swallow it down…)

Toi-kun, how was it inside⁠—

Ah, um… It’s…pretty packed…

Are you okay? You look sick…

Ah, haha, do I…?

Would you like some additional garlic? It can increase your stamina⁠—

Ah…!

I-I’m sorry… I need to…go to the bathroom…

Urgh… *pant, pant…*

(Oh no… I feel so sick. It’s not getting any better…)

(And… I’m being watched again.)

Who⁠—

Ugh…!

Gh… Ugh, ah…!

Ugh… *pant… pant…*

(I threw up… But I do feel better n⁠—)

!!

(It’s Brother Dearest…! What do I do…?)

Ah, I’ll bury it in the snow…!

(I’m sorry. I’ll make sure to clean it up later!)

(Are my clothes…? No, they’re clean. It’s okay… I have a terrible taste in my mouth, but I just need to pretend like nothing happened.)

Toi!

What’s wrong, Brother Dearest?

Chief told me you were takin’ a while to come back…

I’m sorry. I was just playing around in the snow⁠—

Hm? What…was that?

……

A l’il white stoat?

Wow, he’s snow-white. So cute…!

Not as cute as you though.

Eheheh.

They’re gonna start the fireworks show soon, so let’s head back.

Okaaay.

Bye-bye, little stoat.

……