Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

By the time we had finished our meal and were just about done with dessert, a man in black—wearing sunglasses despite it being night—entered the restaurant.

“Thank you for waiting, Lady Marianne.”

The man approached our table and, after speaking, opened the trunk-like case he was carrying.

“That was quick. Much appreciated, Joslan.”
“A butler should be capable of at least this much.”

What Joslan—who introduced himself as Marie’s butler—had brought out was a shell-shaped item small enough to fit in the palm of one’s hand. On its surface was a matching emblem depicting a mermaid, suggesting it was some kind of product.

“Whoa!! That’s the latest model of Mermaidia!”
“What’s that?”

As Melua immediately picked one up, I asked Marie. While handing one to each of us, she explained in a polite tone.

“It’s a portable audio magic device—the Mermaidia. I had the shop prepare it with the latest music cassette containing ‘Prayer of Gratitude’.”
“A music cassette?”

This time, Alfe asked in my place. Estea, Melua, and Farah seemed to already know about it, as they happily began operating theirs.

“Oh my, you really don’t know anything about it, do you? This Mermaidia allows you to insert a music cassette about the size of your thumbnail. Here—this is the cassette.”

Opening the shell, Marie showed us a thin, black plate set in the center. The so-called cassette had a simplified formula engraved into it, making it clear that it was a magical device.

There was a slot designed for insertion, so by swapping out the cassette, it seemed you could listen to various kinds of music.

At the bottom of the shell was a port, from which a cord extended, connected to a earphone meant to be inserted into the ear.

“If you leave the shell open and don’t use the cord, it can also play music directly.”

I see—I understood the basic principle. In that case, all that remained was to learn how to actually use it.

“And as for how to actually use it—you simply imagine the music recorded on the cassette in your mind. Since it’s a magical device, when you channel aether into it, just think ‘I want to hear this song,’ and that’s enough.”

As if anticipating our next question, Marie explained ahead of time.

“With the latest version, there are like 500 songs, so not having to fiddle with controls is really nice.”

Wearing the converter in her ear, Melua spoke in a dreamy, almost sing-song tone, clearly already listening to something.

“It seems the rock arrangement we heard today isn’t included, though.”
“If you’d like, I can obtain the audio and edit it myself.”

When Estea said that half-jokingly, Marie responded with complete seriousness, raising an eyebrow.

“If I’m going to go through that much trouble, I might as well arrange it and play it myself. Thanks, Marie.”

Apparently joking in her own way, Estea laughed lightly and raised one hand in a small gesture.

“Oh! Then I wanna hear that! Let’s make it an Estea recital!”
“Melua, honestly…”
“So when will that be held?”

Melua’s loud suggestion and Estea’s attempt to scold her overlapped almost perfectly with Hom seriously latching onto the idea.

“See? Now Hom’s taking it seriously.”
“…It was a joke?”

At Estea’s words directed toward Melua, Hom’s brows knit together slightly in disappointment.

“No, that’s not what I meant…”
“Then I would very much like to hear it.”

When Hom expressed her feelings so honestly, Estea gave a wry smile—but nodded nonetheless.

“Then let’s borrow the music room tomorrow and put on a performance. By the way, is it alright to consider everyone here as members of the band?”
“I can really join!?”

Still not quite believing her idea had been accepted, Alfe asked to confirm. Estea answered immediately, then exchanged glances with Melua and Marie before responding gently.

“Of course. With your beautiful voice, everyone will be captivated and stop to listen!”
“Let’s do our best, Leafa!”

…Good grief. Things had been decided so quickly over something so unexpected.

Still, since I’d said I’d help, I had no choice but to give it my all.