Mingyou climbed onto Miraidon. Its engine roared as it soared from the summit of Oni Mountain, giving him an unobstructed view of snow-covered Kitakami, including all the tourists at Kitakami Center and Verdant Town.
Now this was what coming home felt like!
Miraidon circled once above Kitakami in glide mode before heading toward the Manor.
Only the portion of the Manor that included the Villa remained outside the Ecological Park now. All the other areas had their own distinct environments.
From above, the snow-covered Villa looked much the same as always, except that the snow at the entrance and along the road leading away from it had clearly been shoveled. It must have been done that very morning.
There was no need to guess...
As Miraidon descended, the scene outside the Villa came into view, and Mingyou's gaze was immediately drawn to the figure sitting by the door.
Wyrdeer was resting outside the entrance, enjoying an afternoon nap. A quiet, graceful girl sat on its back with her head slightly lowered, wearing a white knitted hat. Her slender fingers gently hooked a straight lock of dark gray hair, and her bright eyes shone behind her glasses as she gazed at the book on her lap. A slight smile curved her lips as she lost herself in its world.
Seemingly hearing the sound from above, the girl slipped in a bookmark and closed her book. Her smile grew a little brighter as she raised her eyes to the figure descending on Miraidon.
"You're a little late getting back~"
"Well, a lot happened."
Mingyou and the girl exchanged smiles. There was no need to put their reunion into words. Perhaps these two kindred spirits understood each other even better than they understood themselves.
Akari stood up, took off her glasses, and said