After we finished shopping for clothes, we visited a few stores and came back to the venue just as the event was about to start. Buying evening session tickets for the both of us, we entered the venue, which looked very different from the daytime session.
The overall atmosphere was dark and fantastical, and although there was a certain amount of brightness, I had the impression that many of the lights were darker.
[The atmosphere certainly feels like nighttime.]
[Among nocturnal monsters, there are many species that donāt like light, so theyāre being particularly careful about the lighting in the area.]
[ā¦ā¦At a glance, there seemed to be many bird-shaped monsters.]
[Unlike the daytime session, the evening session is divided not by size, but by species, so this area would be for the bird-type monsters.]
[Ahhh, I see, so thatās why theyāre all birds here.]
Now that she mentioned it, when I looked around, there were certainly only birds. There are monsters that look like huge owls, and there are many birds that look a little creepy.
Iām confident that I would scream if I unexpectedly encountered one of these on the street at night.
[ā¦ā¦Come to think of it, which monster do you want to see, Sieg-san? Considering the limited number of interaction tickets, itās better if we go check them early on, right?]
[Ahh, youāre right. Itās a very popular monster and there are only a few of them, so heading there first might be better.]
[What kind of monster is it?]
[Itās a monster called Blue Ear, known for its large ears, and itās called that because its ears glow blue when itās ready for battle. As for its appearanceā¦ā¦ It looks like a bear.]
[ā¦ā¦Fumu.]
When she says it looks like a bear, it doesnāt feel like sheās talking about the cute type of bearā¦ā¦ Well, there are also other kinds of bears like pandas, and since theyāre popular, they might be surprisingly cute.
With this in mind, I moved along with Sieg-san and arrived at the fence we were looking for. Perhaps because we came early, there werenāt many people yet, so it seemed like we could buy interaction tickets and directly interact with them right away.
[Ahh, look over there, Kaito-san! Over there. Itās so cute!]
[Eh? ā¦ā¦That isā¦ā¦ Ahh, I seeā¦ā¦]
After we bought the interaction ticket and got in line, Sieg-san excitedly pointed inside the fence, and when I turned to look, I saw the Blue Ear.
How should I say thisā¦ā¦ Unnn. Iāll just say this clearlyā¦ā¦ Itās a ābig koalaā. A koala the size of a bearā¦ā¦ This certainly would be popular.
It was soon our turn to directly interact with the koala, so Sieg-san and I approached the Blue Ear. The Blue Ear looked quite precious in its docile state, sitting on the ground in a teddy bear-like posture, staring at us as we approached.
[Haahhhā¦ā¦ Itās so cute. Theyāre rare monsters, so the chance to touch them directly is rare.]
[Itās very docile.]
[Blue Ears are herbivorous and mild-mannered. Even if they arenāt bound by magic, they donāt usually attack people. However, when their ears are shining blue, they are ready for battle, so you need to be careful at moments like thoseā¦ā¦ Haahhh, itās so softā¦ā¦]
[The feel of its ear is interesting. Itās squishy, and touching it feels like itās going to become a habit.]
Even when Sieg-san and I reached out to touch it, the Blue Ear was relaxed, and although it sometimes moved its body, seemingly feeling ticklish, it basically let us do as we wanted.
[Ahh, Kaito-san, please wait. We can feed the Blue Ears here, so Iāll go buy some food from the keeper.]
[Eh? Ah, yes.]
Sieg-san went to buy some food, so I had a one-on-one with the Blue Ear for a little while. However, as it has the size of a bear, itās quite big. I would normally have been scared of something like this, but itās currently really docile and isnāt showing any hostility toward me at all.
When I patted its head, the comfortable expression it makes looks so cute, and although itās quite docile, its reactions are friendly, so I feel like I understand why itās popular just by interacting with it for a little while.
While doing so, Sieg-san came back after buying food.
[Arehh? Are those ripples?]
[Yes. Blue Ears like fruits soā¦ā¦ Here you go.]
When Sieg-san held the ripple in her hand and held it out, the Blue Ear held it between its hands and began munching it.
[Itās so cute and comforting isnāt it?]
[Yes. It looks very cute. Ahh, Kaito-san, please try to feed it too. I heard each person can feed it once.]
[Then, when it finished eating the current oneā¦ā¦]
I received a ripple from Sieg-san, and seeing that the Blue Ear had finished eating the ripple in its hand, I held the ripple I had in my hand.
Thereupon, the Blue Ear grabbed the ripple with both hands, just like it did with Sieg-san. In doing so, I could feel its plump paw pads, which was quite pleasant.
[Even so, it sure like ripples just as much as I doā¦ā¦ Unnn?]
[Fufu, I think it heard what Kaito-san said just now.]
[Ahaha, thanks. However, Iām alright, so you can eat it all.]
The reason why the Blue Ear, hearing my murmurs, presented the half-eaten ripple to me was probably that it heard I also like ripples and tried to share it with me.
While being soothed by its charming behavior, Sieg-san and I enjoyed petting it for a while.