"...So, what are you doing?"
"…I was just… feeling nostalgic about my hometown…"
"…Do you have pickles or something?"
"Heheh, well, yeah…"
What kind of conversation is this? Why did she just sound kind of proud for a second?
Why is she hanging upside down outside the window…? And why is it pickles of all things…?
No, calm down. If this keeps up, I'll end up helplessly dragged into the GolShi-chan World.
Gold Ship—aka GolShi-chan.
Standing at 170 cm, boasting an incredible figure of B88, W55, H88, with beautiful silver hair flowing down to her waist, she has the aura of a cool, elegant beauty.
…At least, in appearance.
The one in front of me is indeed the stunning horse girl I just described. Except she's hanging from a rope outside the window talking about pickles.
This horse girl, Gold Ship, acts so wildly that you'd think she was born in the wrong world. She constantly brings chaos to her surroundings. But during a race, she sits in the back of the pack, stirs up the turf, and in the final stretch uses her explosive leg power and stamina to overtake everyone and claim victory. A true powerhouse. As they say, "Silent she's a beauty, speaking she's a weirdo, running she's an unsinkable ship."
On top of that, she's good at reading the room, quick-witted, can lighten the mood with a single casual comment, or quietly support others in the background. And for some reason, in the anime she's even shown using welding tools and design software like it's nothing—an all-around high-spec beauty.
However! Right now, before my eyes, while talking about pickles, she is pulling out a plastic bag filled with paper plates and disposable chopsticks!!
It's a level of absurd behavior that completely nullifies her divine beauty and mysterious skill set. I don't get it at all! But there's one thing I have to confirm.
"…Do you live in this room?"
Yes. Even if she entered via the window like an insane person, she still grabbed that plastic bag once inside. Which must mean… somehow… she's my roommate. So, her answer is—
"Here ya go—grab on tight."
I see. So first, she grips my torso firmly and… huh?
"You're hungry, right…? Fine, fine—this great GolShi-sama will treat you to some delicious Gorgorusei-style pickles!"
"…Huh?"
Still holding me like a sack of potatoes, she begins climbing the rope toward the rooftop.
"—Ha, w-wait!? Ehhhhh!?"
"Hey, stop squirming! You that excited for pickles or what?"
Why pickles… no, I only asked if she was my roommate! How did it come to this? Why are we going to the roof? This is way too much information to process.
Before I know it, we arrive at the dorm rooftop.
Golshi gives a thumbs-up, gesturing with her chin to something nearby. I follow her gaze and—
"Freshly grilled! Here ya go!"
There, on top of a small charcoal grill, is sanma (Pacific saury) fermented in rice bran pickling (nukazuke).
She moves one onto a paper plate and hands it to me with chopsticks.
"Ah… thank you."
The fragrant aroma teases my nose.
The heat from the fish warms my fingertips through the paper plate.
Fresh off the grill, the golden-brown skin sizzles as the fat dances atop it.
My five senses are stimulated one by one, and to experience the fifth—taste—I open my mouth wide and chomp down.
"…So good!"
Delicious! First comes the golden, perfectly grilled skin with that unique charcoal-grilled smokiness. Then, with each bite, the rich umami packed in by the pickling process bursts forth. They mingle on my tongue to create a deeply layered flavor—
"…No, wait, this is all kinds of wrong!!"
"It's been wrong from the start, whatcha getting flustered for now?"
Says the number-one culprit of wrongness.
How did I end up eating nukazuke sanma on the dorm rooftop on my first night of school? Why this of all things? Still, at least she had the sense not to use a grill inside the room. But then… how the hell did she bring charcoal and a grill to the rooftop? Why did this even happen?
…Right. It's because I blurted out "I'll eat it."
"But it's good, right?"
Yes. It is good. Nukazuke sanma by itself is delicious, and this is charcoal-grilled. And having it under the moonlight only enhances the taste even more. I can't stop eating it. Before I know it, I've finished it a—
"Hey, don't go casually reading my mind."
"It was written all over your face. So really, it's just because you're too easy to read."
"…Was it that obvious…?"
"Yup. About as obvious as a hamster."
Yep. I'll get exhausted if I comment on everything. When she's constantly throwing out jokes at every opportunity, ignoring them is probably the correct move.
"Ahh… it's so good that I don't even care anymore…"
"You're gettin' into it, huh. You've got potential. Oh yeah, what's your name?"
Come to think of it, we haven't introduced ourselves yet. Well, I already know her name, though.
"I'm Aurora Frigate… and you're, senpai?"
"Don't call me senpai like I'm some stiff piece of fried dough. Drop the formal talk too. I'm Gold Ship! Call me GolShi-chan—with love!"
So she's allowing me to drop honorifics and speak casually. Right, in the anime even Scarlet called her without honorifics. Not caring too much about seniority fits her personality perfectly.
…Though come to think of it, her actual school year is unknown. How old is she anyway? I mean, she must be older than me, but… nope, better not think about it or I'll lose my sanity.
"Okay then, GolShi-chan. …So, does that mean we're roommates after all?"
"That's right. …And as proof of being roommates, I'll tell you about my homeland. …See that star over there near Virgo? You see it?"
"…Is that the Gorgoru Star you're always talking about?"
"What the hell are you on about? Did the sanma taste blow your mind?"
"…Maybe… it did…"
I stop trying to reply to her jokes to conserve energy. Actually, I don't even have the energy to react anymore. After finishing the fish, sleepiness suddenly hits me…
"You get sleepy right after eating? You a baby or what. …Come on, hold on tight so you don't fall. We're goin' back to the room."
"...Roger…"
Well, I did wake up way earlier than usual today. It's not even lights-out yet, but I'm so… sleepy. …Ah, the bed…
"Right to bed the moment we get back, huh…"
Ah, GolShi-chan said something… but… I'm… drifting…
"…Can't let ya sleep in your uniform, though…"
◆
"Nn... ah…"
When I opened my eyes, it was an unfamiliar ceiling.
…This is the ceiling of my new home—something I didn't get to see properly yesterday.
I look at the other bed, and there sleeps a silver-haired beauty, breathing softly, peacefully. …When she's like this, she really does look elegant and beautiful. If only the inside matched… I'll just save this sleeping face to my soul memory.
…Yesterday was eventful from morning to night. I got into Tracen Academy, and to my surprise—Scarlet and Vodka are my classmates. Then I fainted from excitement after meeting my absolute favorite upon entering the dorm. I thought my room would be a safe haven, but nope—my roommate is her. No escape.
Come to think of it, I went straight to sleep last night and didn't do anything I was supposed to. I didn't unpack. Didn't take a bath…
That's when a question popped into my head. I definitely fell asleep in my uniform last night.
"…So why am I wearing pajamas…?"
…Well, there's only one possible answer. GolShi-chan must've done everything while I was asleep. She even changed my underwear.
Whether she's just that dexterous, or I just slept like a log… I feel like it's the former.
Also, my bag where my clothes were packed… I look closely, and see that not only my clothes but also my daily necessities are all sorted neatly in visible spots.
GolShi-chan… isn't she being kind of too nice? It's hard to believe given how chaotic she was.
Well, I guess all of that—including the chaos and kindness—is what makes her Gold Ship.
"…Mmm… yaaawn… morning…"
Speak of the devil.
"Good morning. And… uh, thank you. For changing my clothes and everything."
"No prob. …Man, you sure wear some bold underwear, don't cha—"
"STOP! Please! Don't say that out loud, that's embarrassing!"
Let my guard down for one second and this happens! This is peak GolShi-chan quality…!
"…Anyway, let me thank you somehow. I don't have anything on me right now, but I'll properly repay you later. …Do you want anything in particular?"
She's done too much for just a simple "thank you" to suffice. Changing my clothes, helping unpack… and come to think of it, she even treated me to sanma last night. GolShi-chan might be a saint. If you remove the insanity part.
I want to do anything I can to repay her. I'd pay six figures if I had to. So—request anything!
She opens her mouth immediately, without even pretending to think.
"Then, let's go take a morning bath."
"…Huh?"
Huh?
◆
"This is the dorm's large bathhouse. It's pretty big, huh? …Oh hey, nobody's here yet. Sweet, we got the whole place!"
Huh?
"The changing room's got stuff like scales and everything. You can use anything, of course! This is the city of freedom—New York!"
Huh?
…Enough running from reality. It's decided—I'm going to bathe with GolShi-chan now.
She said, "Let's go take a morning bath," and before I could answer, she dragged me here. She's already humming as she starts undressing.
Wait, wait, wait. Sure, my body is that of a horse girl, but mentally I'm still a guy. If this keeps going, something very bad for my mental health is going to happen.
"…Uh, this is… seriously embarrassing…"
I muttered unconsciously, of course she heard it.
"I already got a good eyeful of your bare body yesterday, so it's fine! Relax!"
She says outrageous things as usual. I don't really care that she saw me, but the problem is I might see her. It's not like I don't want to, but if I do, I'm pretty sure I'll die. Perfectly remembering every droplet of water on her skin… and then die repeatedly in my mind forever.
…Ah. I've got it. A solution.
◆
"You… can you even see like that?"
"Yep. I'm using my mind's eye."
Anyone can do it! The ultimate bath-time death-by-cuteness avoidance technique!
Get in the bath before GolShi-chan, memorize the layout perfectly, then close your eyes until it's over.
See? Simple!
"…Are you sure you're not the crazy one here?"
…The crazy person is calling me crazy. And I can't even deny it.
◆
"Haah! That was refreshing! Morning baths really are the best!"
"…Are you sure this is enough repayment?"
"Stop worrying about it. I said it's fine, so it's fine."
Speaking of post-bath routines, I'd love to chug a bottle of milk right now—but sadly, the dorm cafeteria only has carton milk.
After the bath, it was just about time for breakfast, so we headed straight to the cafeteria.
On the way, I asked again if this really counted as repayment. Her answer was as carefree as ever.
…I don't get what she's thinking. But if she's happy, I guess it's fine…
I asked something that came to mind.
"So, have you always had the room to yourself?"
"Nope. I used to have a roommate till a little while ago, but she went overseas. Dubai, I think? Not sure."
"Huh…"
That horse girl… could it be the one whose name starts with a J?
"I gotta say, it's way more fun with two people. Especially someone fun like you!"
…So GolShi-chan does get lonely too, huh. Maybe her overwhelming clinginess is partly from that loneliness.
…But then again, she's GolShi. She probably isn't thinking that deeply. Most likely just going with the flow.
◆
It's only 6:30 am, but there are already quite a few horse girls in the cafeteria.
I look around and—
"Ahh… all these horse girls eating happily… this is bliss…"
There she is. My number-one favorite. Sitting in a corner with the perfect view of the room, quietly enjoying her food (and the scenery).
"Digital-senpai!! May I sit with you!?"
"Whoa, seriously? You're just going straight at her?"
"Hyuh?! A-Aurora-chan and… G-GolShi-san!? Wh-why are you—Ah!! I-I mean, yes, sitting is fine! More than fine! Actually, I'd be really happy if you did!!"
"Thank you!!"
Seat across from Digi-tan secured. Victory.
I place my breakfast on the same table as her. Seven large bread rolls, two bacon-and-eggs, an entire pork chop, salad with extra carrots, and vegetable soup.
Horse girls require a ton of energy, so even breakfast has to be substantial.
…In the distance, I spot a gray horse girl with a mountain of plates, occupying an entire table by herself. Well, she's a special case.
Horse girls eat a lot, but their mouths are no bigger than humans', so they naturally take a long time. Probably why the cafeteria opens this early.
…Though that gray one's table is nothing but empty plates now. And I think she's gone for another round.
Her digestive tract must be from a different species altogether.
Still…
"U-Um… is there something on my face…?"
"No, nothing. …You're just cute, so I'm looking."
Ahh, my favorite is so precious. I can't take my eyes off her.
"…I think I might've become roommates with someone even crazier than Digital…"
GolShi mutters something, but Digital's angelic side outweighs her weird side. By far. She's not just an angel—she's a goddess.
"..."
"...U-Um, that thing yesterday… about fans and so on… was that… really true…? I-I mean, if you stare at me silently like that… uuu…"
Until breakfast ended, I fully immersed myself in the presence of Digital.
Ahhh. So delicious—in many ways.