“Apakah ada barang yang kami sarankan bawa dari kapal selama menginap di sini?”
Karena Miro menawarkan bantuan, aku langsung mengajukan pertanyaan.
“Iya. Kami menyediakan berbagai macam barang dan fasilitas di pulau ini untuk memastikan tamu kami nyaman selama menginap. Namun, tamu bebas membawa barang pribadi mereka. Selain itu, untuk memanfaatkan layanan diskon pada barang yang dijual di sini, disarankan Anda membawa terminal data portabel pribadi untuk memudahkan transaksi.”
“Mengerti. Boleh kami bawa pakaian dalam dan pakaian sendiri?”
“Boleh. Namun, kami menyediakan pakaian dalam baru sebagai bagian dari layanan kami. Tetapi jika tamu lebih suka membawa yang miliknya sendiri, tidak ada masalah. Kami juga memiliki butik yang lengkap sebagai bagian dari fasilitas pulau ini, jadi silakan kunjungi jika Anda tertarik. Butik itu tidak hanya memiliki berbagai macam pakaian dalam dan pakaian, tetapi juga pilihan pakaian renang terbaru untuk kenyamanan Anda.”
“Mengerti. Saya mengerti. Itu semua pertanyaan yang saya miliki untuk saat ini.”
Aku menoleh ke Mimi dan yang lain untuk melihat apakah mereka punya pertanyaan sendiri. Mereka menggelengkan kepala sebagai jawaban. Kurasa itu saja. Mereka mungkin sudah mengenal tempat ini setelah membaca e-brosur. Aku sendiri tidak repot-repot membacanya secara detail.
“Baiklah. Saya akan sekarang memandu semua orang ke lodge. Silakan ikuti saya.”
Miro berputar di tengah udara dan mulai melayang pergi sambil goyah perlahan ke atas dan ke bawah. Kami mulai mengikuti dia.
“Wa waa…! Hiro-sama, Hiro-sama! Ada banyak jenis tumbuhan di sini!”
Mimi terus menunjuk ke rumput dan pohon yang berdampingan di jalur sambil menarik lengan saya dengan penuh kegembiraan. Matanya bercahaya karena kagum. Sekarang setelah saya berpikir, satu-satunya flora yang saya lihat di dalam koloni adalah tanaman hias dalam pot. Tampaknya ini pertama kalinya Mimi melihat begitu banyak kehidupan tumbuhan.
“Iya, memang luar biasa. Itu mengingatkan saya pada keajaiban alam. Tahukah kamu, Mimi? Kehidupan tumbuhan cukup gigih. Mereka bahkan mampu menembusi permukaan yang dilapisi aspal dan beton untuk berkembang biak.”
“Itu bahan yang digunakan untuk jalan dan konstruksi bangunan, kan? Itu luar biasa……”
Saya, Elma, dan Chris memandangi Mimi, yang sedang melihat sekeliling dengan penuh kegembiraan, dengan tatapan hangat. Namun Mimi, yang sudah tenggelam dalam dunia pribadinya, tidak menyadarinya. Sungguh. Mimi yang bersemangat memang menggemaskan.
“Kami sudah tiba. Silakan masuk, tamu-tamu yang terhormat.”
Sengan mekanis tipis membesar dari badan sferis Miro dan membuka kunci pintu. Jadi ada hal itu di dalam badannya… Saya yakin masih ada fungsi lain yang tersembunyi di dalamnya.
Lodge terlihat seperti rumah kayu standar, tetapi interiornya cukup menyambut dan luas. Hal pertama yang akan Anda perhatikan saat masuk adalah area tamu, area makan, dan dapur yang luas. Ada meja bundar kayu yang dikelilingi oleh sofa yang nyaman yang ditempatkan di dekat jendela yang menghadap beranda. Di dalam lodge, di sisi kiri, ada meja makan besar dan ruang dapur yang lengkap. Dapur tidak hanya memiliki auto-cooker yang terpasang, tetapi juga memiliki peralatan memasak typikal seperti kompor dan oven. Kami tentu bisa memasak makanan sendiri jika ingin.
Di luar beranda, ada rumput yang rapi. Dan lebih jauh lagi ada pantai pasir putih. Ada juga kursi pantai di depan jendela beranda. Anda mungkin bisa menjemur tubuh di sana.
Ada tangga kayu di sisi kanan interior lodge yang naik ke lantai dua. Ada juga koridor di bawah tangga. Kemungkinan itu mengarah ke beberapa kamar lainnya.
Interiornya memiliki gaya desa tropis. Patung kayu yang aneh di halaman memang terlihat seperti berasal dari desa tropis. Bentuknya lonjong, mata setengah bulan, dan memiliki senyuman yang aneh. Ada juga busur kayu yang dipamerkan di atas dinding. Ini adalah planet yang terraformasi, jadi apakah benar-benar memiliki sejarah penggunaan busur? Seriuslah……
“Ini luas dan banyak menggunakan kayu. Sangat mewah.”
“K-Kayu……? Hieee!”
Mimi terlihat panik karena alasan yang tidak jelas.
“Kami tidak terbiasa dengan kondisi di planet hunian, tetapi di koloni, kayu dianggap bahan yang cukup kelas tinggi.”
“Mengerti……”
Memang, memindahkan kayu ke koloni angkasa tidak terlihat praktis dari segi biaya dan kinerja. Menambang logam di lapangan asteroid tentu jauh lebih murah. Namun, saya yakin mereka bisa dengan mudah membudidaya pohon secara buatan di koloni jika ingin. Teknologi mereka cukup canggih. Oh, tapi mungkin mereka pikir membudidaya hal lain jauh lebih berguna daripada membudidaya pohon hanya untuk kayu. Jika keuntungan mudah didapatkannya dihilangkan, penggunaan kayu memang terlihat tidak praktis. Membuat barang seperti plastik akan jauh lebih sederhana dan murah.
Saat saya tenggelam dalam pemikiran, gadis-gadis tampaknya selesai menjelajahi lodge. Ketiganya semua memiliki ekspresi puas di wajah mereka. Ya, fasilitasnya memang terlihat lebih mewah dan lebih luas dari Krishna. Dan ada pula bonus pantai pasir putih serta perasaan kebebasan dari melihat langit biru yang luas. Tempatnya bagus.
“Waktu saat ini di pulau adalah 11:14 pagi. Saya bisa menyiapkan makan siang untuk semua orang dan menyajikannya pada pukul dua belas siang jika Anda ingin. Saya lanjutkan?”
“Saya setuju. Bagaimana dengan kalian?”
“Baik, saya oke dengan itu.”
“Saya juga oke.”
“Ya, itu akan sempurna.”
“Baiklah. Kami akan makan siang pada pukul dua belas siang.”
“Diterima. Saya akan menyajikan makan siang pada pukul dua belas. Silakan bersantai sambil menunggu.”
Setelah mengatakan itu, terminal sferis Miro melayang menuju pematok yang terletak di sudut lodge dan parkir di sana, menjadi tidak aktif. Jadi kira-kira kita hanya perlu memanggilnya jika kita perlu berkonsultasi dengan itu lagi ya?
“Baiklah. Kalian bebas melakukan apa yang kalian inginkan sambil menunggu makan siang. Saya hanya akan mengambil minuman atau apa itu dan bersantai di salah satu sofa.”
“Saya pikir saya juga ingin itu.”
“Eh, boleh saya menjelajahi bagian lain dari tempat ini?”
“Boleh. Mungkin aman, tapi waspada tetaplah. Jangan melakukan hal seperti memetik buah yang tidak dikenal dari pohon dan mencobanya, ya. Kami tidak yakin apakah itu dapat dimakan atau tidak.”
“Saya tidak akan! Mou, Hiro-sama! Saya tidak serakus itu!”
Mimi mengongkarkan pipinya karena marah. Hahaha, dia menggemaskan bahkan ketika marah.
“Bagaimana dengan kamu, Chris?”
“Eh… saya akan ikut Mimi-san.”
“Yakin? Jangan paksa diri, ya.”
“Ya, saya tidak akan. Anda tidak perlu khawatir.”
Chris membuat senyuman yang anggun. Ya, dia memang terlihat seperti putri bangsawan yang sopan. Anda bisa menyimpalkan pendidikan yang baik dari gerak-gerik kecil seperti itu. Dan, dibandingkan, lihat saja Elf ini. Dia sudah bersantai longgar di salah satu sofa. Tidak ada jejak anggun sama sekali dalam geraknya.
Setelah Mimi dan Chris pergi, saya mencoba memanggil Miro.
“Miro.”
“Ya, Kapten Hiro. Apakah Anda membutuhkan sesuatu?”
Terminal sferis melayang menjauhi pematok dan tiba di depan saya. Jadi itu memang bekerja ya?
“Saya ingin minuman. Apa saja yang tersedia? Saya ingin memesan beberapa.”
“Are there items that we are recommended to bring from our ship during our stay?”
Since Miro offered, I asked a question straight away.
“Yes. We provide a wide variety of goods and amenities here at the island in order to ensure a pleasant stay to our guests. However, the guests are free to bring their personal effects as well. Furthermore, in order to take advantage of the discount services for the items sold here, it is recommended that you bring your personal portable data terminals in order to facilitate transactions.”
“I see. Can we bring our own underwear and clothes?”
“Yes. However, we do provide brand new underclothes as part of our services. But if guests prefer to bring their own, then there is no problem. We do have a fully stocked boutique as part of the island’s facilities, so please do come for a visit if you’d like. It not only has a wide variety of underwear and clothes, but also an updated selection of the latest swimwear for your convenience.”
“I see. Understood. That’s all the questions I have for now.”
I turned toward Mimi and the others to see if they had their own questions. They shook their heads in response. I guess that’s all then. They may have already familiarized themselves with this place after reading the e-pamphlet. I didn’t bother to read it in detail after all.
“Very well. I shall now guide everyone to the lodge. Please follow me.”
Miro turned around in mid-air and started floating away while gently bobbing up and down. We started following after it.
“Wa waa…! Hiro-sama, Hiro-sama! There’s a lot of different plants here!”
Mimi kept pointing at the grasses and trees that lined up the path while excitedly pulling on my arm. Her eyes were sparkling in amazement. Come to think of it, the only flora I saw inside colonies were potted ornamental plants. It looks like this was Mimi’s first time to see this much plant life.
“Yeah, it sure is amazing. It kinda reminds me of the wonders of mother nature. Did you know, Mimi? The life force of plants is quite tenacious. They even manage to break through surfaces covered in asphalt and concrete in order to bloom.”
“Those are materials used for roads and building construction, right? That’s amazing……”
I, Elma, and Chris watched Mimi, who was looking around excitedly, with warm gazes. But Mimi, who was already lost in her own world, failed to notice. Man. An excited Mimi sure is cute.
“We have arrived. Please enter dear guests.”
A thin mechanical arm protruded from Miro’s spherical body and unlocked the door. So it even had that inside its body… I’m sure there are other functions hidden away as well.
The lodge looked like your standard log house, but the interior was quite welcoming and spacious. The first things you’ll notice upon entering were the spacious living area, dining area, and kitchen. There was a wooden round table surrounded by comfy-looking sofas placed near the window overlooking the porch. Inside the lodge, on the left side, were a large dining table and a well equipped kitchen space. The kitchen not only had an auto-cooker installed, but also had your typical cooking implements like a stove and an oven. We could definitely cook food ourselves if we wanted.
Beyond the porch, there was a well-trimmed grass lawn. And further beyond was a white sand beach. There were some beach chairs in front of the porch window as well. You can probably sunbathe on those.
There were wooden stairs on the right side of the lodge interior going up to a second floor. There was also a hallway below the stairs. It probably led to some more rooms as well.
The interior had a tropical country style to it. The weird-looking wooden sculpture on the lawn did certainly look like it was from a tropical country. It was oblong shaped, had crescent eyes, and had a funky-looking smile. There was also a wooden bow displayed on top of the wall. This was a terraformed planet, so did it really have a history of using bows? Come on……
“It’s spacious and uses a lot of wood. It’s very luxurious.”
“T-This is wood……? Hieee!”
Mimi looked panicky for some reason.
“We’re not familiar with how it is on residential planets, but in colonies, wood is considered a pretty high-class material.”
“I see……”
Well, it does seem like going to the trouble of bringing wood to space colonies didn’t seem practical, cost-performance wise. It would be much cheaper to mine metals on asteroid fields after all. But I bet they can easily culture trees artificially on colonies if they wanted. Their tech’s pretty advanced anyway. Oh, but maybe they think culturing other stuff would be much more useful than culturing trees solely for wood. If the merit of easy procurement was taken out of the picture, using wood did seem pretty impractical. Manufacturing stuff like plastic would be much simpler and cheaper.
As I was lost in thought, the girls seemed to have finished exploring the lodge. The three of them all have contented expressions on their faces. Well, the facilities certainly looked fancier and more spacious than Krishna’s after all. And there’s also the bonus of a white sand beach and the feeling of release from looking at the wide open, blue sky. It was a great place.
“The current time on the island is 11:14 A.M. I can prepare everyone’s lunch and serve it at twelve in the afternoon if you would like. Shall I proceed?”
“I’m down. How about you girls?”
“Sure, I’m fine with that.”
“I’m okay with it too.”
“Yes, that would be perfect.”
“There you have it. We’ll have lunch at twelve noon.”
“Understood. I shall serve lunch at twelve then. Please go ahead and relax in the meantime.”
After saying that, Miro’s spherical terminal floated toward a pedestal located in a corner of the lodge and parked itself there, becoming inert. So I guess we’ll just have to call out to it if we needed to consult with it again huh?
“Okay then. Feel free to do what you girls want while waiting for lunch. I’ll just get a drink or something and lounge around on one of the sofas.”
“I think I’d like that as well.”
“Um, can I explore the rest of the place?”
“Sure. It’s probably safe, but be careful anyway. Don’t do anything like picking unfamiliar fruits off of the trees and trying them out okay. We can’t be sure if they’re edible after all.”
“I won’t! Mou, Hiro-sama! I’m not that much of a glutton!”
Mimi puffed up her cheeks in anger. Hahaha, she’s cute even when she’s angry.
“What about you, Chris?”
“Um… I’ll go with Mimi-san then.”
“You sure? Don’t push yourself, okay.”
“Yes, I won’t. You don’t have to worry.”
Chris made an elegant smile. Un, she sure looks the part of a well-mannered noble’s daughter. You can definitely infer her great upbringing from little gestures like that. And, in comparison, just look at this Elf here. She’s already lazing around sloppily on one of the sofas. There’s no trace of elegance in her actions at all.
After seeing Mimi and Chris off, I tried calling out to Miro.
“Miro.”
“Yes, Captain Hiro. Are you in need of something?”
The spherical terminal floated away from the pedestal and arrived in front of me. So that does work, huh?
“I want a drink. What do you have available? I’d like to order some.”
“Of course. The cooler in the kitchen has all the standard drinks available. They’re all provided for free as part of the service, but if you want something else, then we’ll have to charge a separate fee.”
“I see… By the way, do you have some carbonated beverages available?”
“Yes. However, they are not part of the standard drink selection, so none are included in the cooler.”
My inner self was jumping around in joy after hearing the good news. They’re not part of the standard drink selection, but Miro confirmed that carbonated beverages did still exist. That’s great.
“Can I order them then?”
“Of course. I shall prepare some for you. What flavor do you wish to drink?”
“I want dark and sweet cola please. I want to drink those. I want to drink lots of it, in fact. If I can have my way, I’d like to replace all the drinks in the cooler with cola. That’s just how much I want to drink that stuff. Do you get it? I demand cola!”
“Yes. I have certainly received your request. I would like to process your order straight away, so please take your hands off Unit 006.”
I didn’t notice that I was grabbing Miro’s terminal tightly with both hands. Oh boy. I almost went crazy there. Guess I’m just that starved for cola.
“How many would you like to order? We have 1500 ml and 500 ml bottles available.”
“For the meantime, give me twenty 500 ml bottles.”
“Understood. Please wait for a moment while I procure your order. As for the payment-“
“Here.”
I placed my portable data terminal in front of Miro. After an exchange of flashing lights, a light ping rang out, signifying the end of the transaction. That sure was convenient.
“Kuku, fufufu…… I really can’t wait. My very soul is screaming in excitement.”
“That much…? I kinda doubted the existence of those so-called ‘carbonated’ drinks you always harp on about, but Miro did confirm they’re real.”
“Of course they exist! Cola is immortal! It will remain in existence even after the apocalypse I tell you!”
Well, the only downside was that your urine would turn pale if you drink too much though.
“That’s some confidence you have there…… Oh well. I’m kinda looking forward to it now too. I guess I’ll try some later.”
“Of course. I guarantee that you’ll also be a prisoner to the allure of cola once you do, Elma.”
“That’s kinda scary though……”
I ignored Elma, who was giving me a weirded out gaze, and cackled internally while waiting for my precious cola to arrive. C’mon, c’mon…… Come quickly and quench my thirst……!
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