Chapter 596: Long-Awaited Leisure

After grabbing a quick lunch at the base cafeteria, Emi returned to her office to process an urgently needed equipment transfer order.

By the time she returned to the temporary lounge, Satsuki was sitting on the sofa by the window, looking through the recent attendance and logistics records of Omiya Base.

“All done?” Satsuki closed the folder and looked up at her.

“Yeah. There was originally a materials team discussion scheduled for this afternoon, but I asked Mr. Lange to chair it on my behalf.”

Emi sat down on the neighboring sofa, took off her round-rimmed glasses, and rubbed the bridge of her nose, her tone still lively:

“How about I take you to see the newly modified stepper stage on the first floor later? Although it can’t be used directly for mass production yet, its positioning accuracy has improved by nearly thirty percent compared to last month…”

Before she could finish, Satsuki reached over and placed a hand on the back of hers resting on her knee.

Emi paused slightly and raised her eyes.

In the abundant afternoon sunlight streaming into the lounge, the faint dark circles beneath her eyes were clearly visible.

Although her spirits were still elevated from seeing Satsuki, her lips were chapped, and her voice carried a slight rasp from running on empty without a break.

The logistics log she had just examined stated it clearly—for nine of the past twelve days, this chief consultant had slept directly in the temporary duty room on the top floor of Building 2, not even returning to Tokyo over the weekend.

“We can look at the stepper stage next time.”

Satsuki stood up, took the clipboard from her hands without leaving room for argument, and set it down on the coffee table.

“Right now, go pack a change of clothes.”

“Eh?” Emi blinked, dumbfounded. “Where are we going? Back to Odaiba?”

“Not Odaiba, and we’re not talking about work either.”

Satsuki looked down at her, a gentle yet firm smile in her eyes.

“You have this afternoon off. I’m taking you to a hot spring.”

Emi parted her lips. “But Workshop 2 still has…”

“No buts.” Satsuki straightened the glasses Emi had put back on crookedly. “If you keep burning yourself out like this, my chief technical consultant will end up in the group hospital before Tsukuba Base is even built. Come on, the car is already waiting downstairs.”

…

Departing from Omiya in Saitama Prefecture and heading north along the Kan-Etsu Expressway into Gunma Prefecture, it was only about an hour and a half’s drive before the view outside shifted from dense factories and residential neighborhoods to undulating winter forests and mountains.

Just past four in the afternoon, the black sedan wound along the mountain roads and drove into the hot spring town of Ikaho Onsen.

Chizuru had arranged in advance for a traditional onsen ryokan situated above Ishidan-gai, boasting private courtyards and open-air baths.

Because they had booked out the entire annex beforehand, the inn was exceptionally peaceful, free from any outside disruption save for the okami greeting them and security personnel guarding the perimeter.

The moment they stepped into the spacious tatami-matted washitsu, any restraint kept up in front of outsiders completely melted away.

Slipping into yukata and stepping into the steam-filled, semi-open bath, the crisp early-spring mountain air mingled with the warm golden spring water, making every pore feel as though it opened up in an instant.

“Phew—”

Submerged in the warm spring water with only her head above the surface, Emi let out a long, contented sigh.

Once nerves strung taut for over half a month relaxed, accumulated fatigue and the clingy affection of a long-awaited reunion came rushing in all at once.

Yet having stayed still for less than two minutes, she used the cover of the rising steam to inch along the edge of the bath toward Satsuki, naturally reaching out her arm to hug Satsuki’s arm from the side and resting her cheek gently against her shoulder.

“Hm? What is it?”

Feeling the soft touch beside her, Satsuki turned her head to look at her.

“Nothing…”

With her eyes closed, Emi rubbed gently against her shoulder like a kitten that had finally found its nest, her voice so soft she seemed completely different from the person giving directives in the lab that morning:

“I just haven’t been this close to Satsuki-chan in so long. Let me recharge a bit.”

Thinking back, ever since the temporary integration center in Omiya started up, the two had indeed not spent proper time together for nearly three weeks.

Even when they spoke on the phone, conversations were mostly about the technical committee’s progress and the resettlement of the Soviet Union experts.

Looking at the girl who normally commanded absolute authority before dozens of foreign experts now clinging to her more affectionately than ever, Satsuki’s heart softened.

Rather than pulling her arm back, she lifted her other hand and gently brushed aside the wisps of hair dampened by steam across Emi’s forehead:

“Staying over there for almost a month, did you eat your meals on time?”

“Of course. The cafeteria uncle saved food for me every day,” Emi answered softly, though her eyes drifted slightly to the side.

“I mean eating on time, not heating something up only when you happen to remember.” Satsuki saw right through her. “When Chizuru went to pack your bags just now, she saw an entire row of nutrition jelly pouches and instant soup packets stuffed into your desk drawer.”

“Th-That was just because I’d lose track of time while verifying data with Dr. Weber and the others…”

Emi ducked her head guiltily and buried her face even deeper, attempting to act cute and brush it off.

“And your sleep, too.” Satsuki let out a helpless sigh. “You clearly have a dedicated dormitory arranged right by the park, just a ten-minute walk away. Why were you too lazy to even head back there, insisting on curling up in the Building 2 duty room every night?”

“Because making the round trip to the dorm takes twenty minutes altogether.”

Emi looked up, her watery eyes gazing at her, sounding surprisingly righteous:

“When piecing the parameter sets together, once your train of thought breaks, it’s really hard to pick it back up! Wasting precious time on commuting is an utter disgrace!”

Seeing her defend herself so solemnly, Satsuki didn’t know whether to laugh or cry:

“Even a ten-minute walk back to the dorm counts as a waste? Then what about the apartment in Hongo? You made do in the duty room for nearly a month; didn’t you miss that place at all?”

“I mean, of course I did…”

Emi blinked, her previous righteous momentum deflating instantly as she mumbled under her breath:

“The cot in the duty room is narrow and hard; it’s nowhere near as comfortable as the big bed back home in Hongo. But traveling from Omiya back to Bunkyo Ward takes over two hours round trip.”

“Besides, right now is the most critical juncture for merging the technical standards of both sides. If I went back to the apartment and crawled into my own bed, I’d definitely succumb to laziness and sleep in…”

“It was better to just stay in the lab and power through this mess all in one breath.”

Hearing this, Satsuki paused slightly.

It was true.

Over the past few months, she had been occupied with the relocation to Saionji Tower, Fuji Bank, and the Special Security Bill, leaving the grueling burden of integrating the overseas experts almost entirely on Emi’s shoulders.

While her close friend grumbled about how difficult the old foreign men were to deal with, she had toughed it out alone in Omiya for nearly a month just so the group’s R&D wouldn’t fall behind. Satsuki hadn’t even found time to visit her once during that period.

“I’m sorry.”

Satsuki’s voice softened as she reached out to pat her head.

“You’ve worked so hard all on your own lately.”

“It wasn’t hard at all.”

Receiving the affectionate pat, Emi immediately beamed again, tightening her embrace around Satsuki’s arm, practically draping herself over her:

“As long as I can help Satsuki-chan, I’m happy. Besides… didn’t you come all this way to soak in the hot spring with me today?”

After finishing their bath, the ryokan had already delivered an exquisite kaiseki meal to their room.

Perfectly grilled char, local Gunma maitake mushroom dobin mushi, steaming beef sukiyaki, paired with a small flask of warm sweet rice wine.

Having completely cast aside photolithography machines, technical parameters, and administrative chores, the two sat cross-legged by the low table, taking their time over dinner while idly chatting about everyday things.

Emi animatedly described the Soviet Union experts’ shocked expressions when they first saw hot canned coffee in convenience stores, while Satsuki told her about the embarrassing moment during the headquarters relocation a few days ago when Kenjiro almost got lost inside the building.

Beneath the warm lights, crisp laughter rang out from time to time in the room.

…

As the night deepened, mountain winds rustled softly through the bamboo grove in the courtyard.

Having changed into fresh cotton yukata, they sat on cushions near the engawa, two freshly brewed cups of hot sencha resting on the low table before them.

Comforted by the hot spring and delicious food, the exhaustion on Emi’s face had largely faded. Cradling her teacup, she swung her legs contentedly.

“Speaking of which, the alignment of the foundational standards here in Omiya should be completely sorted out in about two or three weeks.”

Emi blew on the steam rising from her tea, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Satsuki:

“Once the first phase of integration wraps up, the routine testing can just be left to Dr. Weber and Mr. Shimomura to oversee, and I can move back to Odaiba to continue my research on computational lithography and brain-computer interfaces! Satsuki-chan, you work in the tower too, right? Then I can come see you every day!”

Looking at her expectant expression, Satsuki lightly rubbed the warm rim of her teacup before speaking gently:

“Moving back to Odaiba is fine, of course. However… early next month, I might be away from Tokyo for a while.”

Emi’s swinging legs froze instantly.

“Eh? Is Satsuki-chan going to America again?”

“No.”

Satsuki lifted her cup and took a small sip.

“It’s China. The Shanghai city government officially invited me to attend the commissioning ceremony for Phase 1 of the industrial park, and discuss subsequent investments while I’m there.”

“China? Shanghai?”

Emi blinked, then realization dawned, and she quickly set down her teacup to lean closer:

“Is that the place you visited the autumn before last? Then I want to go too! I’ve never been to China—take me with you this time!”

“That won’t do.”

Between amusement and exasperation, Satsuki reached out to hold back her leaning forehead.

“Didn’t you just say that the first phase of integration here in Omiya still needs two to three weeks? Those experts from Germany and the Soviet Union have only just developed some rapport. If you, their lead director, suddenly run off, by the time I return from Shanghai, they might tear the roof off Building 2.”

“Ugh… technically, yes…”

Emi instantly deflated like a punctured balloon, slumping onto the low table with her chin resting on the back of her hands as she mumbled in complaint:

“I finally got to see you after so long, and now you’re leaving again… If I’d known, I would have pushed harder the last two weeks and pulled all-nighters to finish writing those conversion interfaces.”

“If you dared pull an all-nighter, I’d have Chizuru confiscate your computer’s power cord.”

Satsuki gave her head a light rap, her tone softening once more:

“This trip to Shanghai is mainly to check on the commissioning of the plants over in Waigaoqiao and discuss follow-up commercial projects with the local government. It won’t take very long.”

She paused and added:

“Besides, when I get back, I’ll bring you pastries and gifts from Shanghai, okay?”

Emi lay on the table looking at her for several seconds, her eyes blinking behind her round glasses.

She never went against Satsuki’s decisions. No matter how reluctant she felt inside, she merely cast her eyes down with a tinge of disappointment and nodded obediently:

“…Mm, got it. But promise me—you can’t stay for weeks like last time in New York, and you have to call me regularly.”

Seeing how she yielded obediently despite being full of reluctance, Satsuki couldn’t help but feel amused.

“Alright, alright. I’ll definitely call you on time.”

Setting down her teacup, she looked at the girl still moping across the low table. Her lips curved up into a faint smile as she coaxed gently:

“Since Emi has been so good… your reward tonight is that you can sleep with me.”

The moment the words left her mouth, Emi, who had been slumping dejectedly, snapped her head up. Her eyes behind the lenses lit up astonishingly, all trace of disappointment vanishing in a single second:

“Really?!”

“Why would I lie to you? Alright, it’s getting late. Don’t think about anything tonight; just go to sleep obediently.”

Satsuki chuckled as she stood up and walked over to the futon laid out on the tatami.

Yet before peeling back the edge of the duvet, she subtly turned around to study Emi’s expression carefully.

First, she confirmed that the girl had only drunk the inn’s non-alcoholic amazake brewed with rice koji and hot sencha tonight, without a drop of actual alcohol, so she wouldn’t do anything out of line under the influence.

At the same time, she reaffirmed to herself that she hadn’t touched a drop either—after all, she was acutely aware of her own pitiful alcohol tolerance. If she became tipsy and inadvertently made any gesture that seemed overly “provocative” to Emi, heaven only knew what outrageous things that girl might take advantage of the situation to do.

Having verified that both sides were sufficiently safe, Satsuki calmly pulled the collar of her yukata closer, tightened her clothing and obi sash a notch, and then slipped into the futon with peace of mind.

“Coming—!”

Unable to wait any longer, Emi scrambled up from the tatami, set her glasses aside, kicked off her slippers, and slid into Satsuki’s futon in a few quick steps, snuggling up beside her with practiced ease and closing her eyes in sheer contentment.

Outside the veranda, a stone lantern cast a gentle, soft glow.

Accompanied by the faint murmur of hot spring waters outside the window, the room soon fell quiet.