Sharing that Lovey-dovey Soft-serve had taken quite a toll on my mental stamina. Even though the day had only just begun, I already felt exhausted.
"All right, let's head for a stall that isn't serving food or drinks next. We only just finished breakfast, after all."
"I see. In that case, since I chose the last one, I shall leave the next choice to you, Kaito-san. Please, escort me."
"Understood. Well, since it looks like there are a lot of food stalls around here, let's try heading over that way for now."
We’d had a hearty breakfast in the Sanctuary followed by that soft-serve, so my stomach was reaching its limit. I decided it was time to hunt for an attraction of some sort.
Target practice felt like a festival staple, but this was another world. Here, target practice was apparently some kind of super-dimensional mess, so I figured we should scout around and see what looked promising with our own eyes.
Still, given that these were supposed to be stalls, I’d assumed they would be limited in size...
"...That is an incredibly large tent. Is that some kind of shop, too?"
"Hmm. Kaito-san, there is a sign over there."
"Oh, you’re right. Let’s see..."
After walking for a bit, we reached a large plaza filled with a variety of unusual shops. One in particular stood out—a tent so massive I initially mistook it for a circus.
[Super-Spacetime Sniping Action: Target Practice]
...Oh boy. There it was—the nonsensical game I’d heard about during the Six Kings Festival. I never expected to run into it here. Was this really a sport that required a tent this big?
"I see. Target practice. That is a competition Kuro created."
"...Wait, Kuro came up with this?"
"Yes. Not just this one, either. She created and popularized WANAGE, Goldfish Scooping, and Katanuki as well."
"..."
I couldn't believe it. The one responsible for taking things from my world, keeping the names, and turning them into things like WANAGE—which were nothing like the originals—was Kuro. The culprit was much closer than I ever would have guessed.
Come to think of it, Kuro did have a habit of getting the finer details of my world's culture slightly wrong. It made perfect sense now that I thought about it.
"Wait... how did Kuro even get that information? If she heard it from a former Hero-role, it feels a bit too far removed from the source to end up like this..."
I’d heard that games like WANAGE were based on their namesakes from my world, so the original inspiration definitely came from Earth's festival stalls.
"I was the one who taught her," Shiro-san said.
"...I see."
"However, I do not know why she insisted on adding such bizarre arrangements to them."
The other culprit was also closer than I expected. I was starting to see the full picture. Shiro-san probably described things to her while they were having tea, but Shiro-san was notoriously bad at explaining things—or rather, she tended to focus on the broad strokes and omit everything else.
Kuro must have received the information in fragments. When she tried to arrange those pieces into functional competitions, the end result was something completely different from the source material.
"I heard this game was pretty dangerous. I wonder if it’s okay to have it at the Founding Anniversary Festival... wait, it says 'Adjusted Version' here."
"There is a guide here as well. It has been modified to be enjoyed as an attraction rather than a sport, so there is no need to worry about injuries. Though even if it were a real competition, you would have no need for concern with me by your side, Kaito-san. Don't you think you're lucky to have such a reliable lover? You do, don't you? You may say it aloud; it would make me happy."
"I-I'm so lucky to have such a reliable lover..."
I caved to her demand. It might have looked like a roundabout suggestion, but in reality, it was a point-blank frontal assault. To be fair, Shiro-san and my other lovers were incredibly reliable, and I was always grateful for their help, so I really did mean it.
At any rate, this version of target practice didn't involve magic bullets or aerial combat; it had been tuned specifically for casual enjoyment.
"In that case, I'm a little curious. Shall we head inside?"
"Let us. Shall we have a contest?"
"The odds are too stacked against me. Let's just have some normal fun."
I didn't care what the specifics of Super-Spacetime Sniping Action were—I knew I didn't stand a chance against Shiro-san in anything involving physical movement.
Sure, she’d go easy on me if I asked, but given the precedent of things like that beach volleyball match... it was better to play it safe and avoid a competition altogether.