Illustration Novel 7

**A Lovely Toy** is the seventh release of the Illustration Novel series and features the Musicart Die Fledermaus.
The Novel was published on March 25, 2022, featuring エシュアル (essu\_twit) as the Illustrator for this story.

Read here... (Official Website)

## Translation

Fledermaus “Ouch, ouch ouch…”

Rattling around, I finally succeeded in getting my face out of the piles of junk and scrap parts that were piling up in the room. My room is made up of two almost ceiling-high piles of junk, mainly picked up from the rubbish dumps on the above ground, which take up most of the volume. When one of them collapsed, the other pile started a chain reaction avalanche, creating a sea of oily junk.

Fledermaus “Oh dear me, a girl’s anger surely is frightening…”

This is all due to the fact that I have offended Avril. Avril is an apprentice Conductor girl with a wanting-to-win temper and pride. She is the person I have been asked to pair up with on this expedition to Austria. It all started when Avril, who wanted to become an official conductor as soon as possible, asked me to sign a “contract” with her. A “contract” is the act of entrusting a Conductor with a musical score, which is the lifeblood of a Musicart.

The cooperation between the Musicart and the Conductor will be deepened, and the Musicart’s fighting ability will be greatly improved. After all, the fact that there’s a contracted Musicart was the proof of a good Conductor, but usually, the “contract” is what the Musicart asked to the Conductor.

Furthermore, it is a thing that presupposes the existence of a deep bond between the two parties. But Avril was so proudful that she offered to do it, and she looked so desperate that I found it funny and ended up making fun of her.

Avril — *You stupid Fledermaus! You’re always making fun of people! Mind your own business, then!?*

As a result, she shouted mindlessly at me and stomped out of the room, her face so red that I wondered if she was an eggplant or an octopus in her previous life. The door was closed in anger, and the compiled pile of junk collapsed. What is this? Is this a lovers’ quarrel?

Fledermaus “You can’t be a great Conductor if you bend your protrusion just because a Musicart teases you a little~?”

I think to myself, pushing the junk that fills the room into a corner to make room enough for me to walk.

Fledermaus “It doesn’t seem like the kind of thing a young lady would do, to be "reverse-proposed” by a Conductor, does it?“

*Oopsie*. I was going to offend her by saying these things. But, that face…… *pukukukku*. She’s usually so victorious and relaxed, but when I see her coming at me with that look of having lost her composure, while healthily hiding that peachy reddish kind…. as expected… *Bukkukku*. Even when I think back on it, I can’t hold back my laughter.

Fledermaus ”Huh…. she really boosted my immune cells.“

After a quick laugh, I thank one apprentice Conductor girl for the amusement and good health she has brought to me. I continue to look around the messy room, and when I realize that this will not be cleared up by the end of the day, I sit down, cross-legged, on the floor.

Fledermaus ”Well, I could always tidy all of this up.“

By nature, I don’t mind being messy. I don’t care about the mess, I know exactly where everything is. Tidying up is, after all, a service to others. It’s about organizing, arranging and arranging things for someone else in a way that is clear, easy to navigate and pleasant. I don’t need it. What matters to me is whether it is pleasurable. It’s a very simple policy, and if I enjoyed it, I’d be willing to tidy it up.

Thinking back, how long has it been since I had my second life as a Musicart? Well, it can’t have been more than ten years, can it? To be honest, I’m bored. I keep doing the same thing over and over again. Of course I am interested in technological progress and tinkering with machines. But it doesn’t excite me as much as it used to. It’s understandable.

This is because there’s no spare capacity left in human society today to develop technology. In such a situation, the only thing that is amusing is to make fun of people. Human beings are a strange thing, no one is the same. There are certain tendencies, but they also vary in the way they get angry. The best way to distract yourself from boredom is to use people as toys. That’s what I have learnt in my long, short, but still long Musicart life.

But sadly, the longer I’ve known someone, the less likely they are to approach me. Well, no one would go out of their way to approach me knowing that they would be teased. However, that cutie Avril is different. She tries to get involved with me, even though she still doesn’t understand me.

She was teased and taunted, but she is undaunted. Thinking back, it was also her who constantly said to me, "You should at least keep your room stark clean”. If I had done as she said, I might not have ended up under all that junk.

Fledermaus “After all, I can’t afford to lose someone as valuable as she is.”

It’s the stubborn Avril anyway. You didn’t complain enough and are still at the front of the room, aren’t you? *Fufufu*, That’s the kind of thing that never grows on you.

Fledermaus “Wait for a minute~. Conductor Avril~”

I deliberately make a weak voice and leave the room, my body bending.

Fledermaus “Oh my-my?”

She was already not there. I look down the corridor to the left, right and ahead, but there is no shadow of her.

Fledermaus “Good gracious. Has this grown on you unexpectedly?”

Has he finally grown tired of me and gone to another Musicart? Unlike Musicarts, who live forever, humans grow up quickly. And so did everyone else, who soon grew old and soon died. Lovely toys always break down so quickly.

……

I turned around in the scattered room, and amongst the countless pieces of junk lying around, one tin toy caught my eye. It was a clown-shaped, spring-loaded walking toy, about 20cm high. It was the oldest piece of junk in the room as far as I could remember. Fancy circus costume. Teardrop make-up. The clown was lying on the floor, staring at me with a sad face.

Fledermaus “Why don’t you look at me with such a face?”

A clown is a jester who always makes people laugh with their antics. It is precisely because they are such a clown that the tears they shows are so impressive. After all, it’s the same with Avril.

Avril — *Hey, hey, Fledermaus! Make a “contract” with me!*

So, the strong-willed Avril shamelessly pressed me to forge a “contract” with her. Full of courage despite the blush on her face. Twisting her steel-hard pride. It must have taken her days of struggle to say those words. Should I say it? Should I not say it? I can see her struggling in her bed, ruffling that long, beautiful hair. And then.

*Click*—.

At the end of a straight corridor. There, I heard a small sound and realized that a figure had moved. As I recall, Avril was wearing hard-heeled shoes today. Shoes that made just such a noise when she stepped on the floor.

Fledermaus “Hmph….. I should step up a bit too, shouldn’t I?”

I went back into the room, opened a drawer in the machine oil-stained work desk and took out what looked like a small bouquet of flowers. A mistletoe swag. Swags are wall decorations. Mistletoe is often used in Christmas swags, as mistletoe has magical powers and is often used as a talisman. This one was given to me by Jupiter for a reason, and I had left it in my desk drawer, thinking I would give it to someone in the right mood.

Next, I pick up the tin clown. Then I put mistletoe swag in his hands. This clown was broken and not moving when I picked it up, but after patient repair and modification, it started walking again. Bit-by-bit. Bit-by-bit. The spring was wound full, and the clown was made to stand in the corridor, and then he began to walk clumsily, step by step, towards the turn where the figure had just moved.

*Crick, crack. Crick, crack*, just like that.

Around the turn again, I saw a figure move slightly. Nothing, really. I don’t think of it as a sign of reconciliation with the girl who left with a red face, not at all, not even a little bit. I don’t think at all that I’m trying to make her smile a little before she goes off to the harsh battlefield. But just like that clown, I don’t want to lose nice things, that’s my selfishness.

*Crick, crack*.

*Crick, crack*.

*Crack*.

As the clown reached the turn, a white, luster hand hesitantly reached out from the shadows and picked up the mistletoe swag. I am relieved that it seems to have worked. This will put her in a better mood.

The fun is yet to come. The clown will be decapitated in three seconds and fireworks will spurt out at you.

**Unofficial Translation by Rara**

Source: Illust. Novel 7 Translation

## Characters in Order of Appearance

* Die Fledermaus
* Avril Bergmann

## Trivia

* Avril Bergmann is the first appearance of a more detailed Conductor with a name, besides from the known Conductors.from the anime.

## External Links

1. ↑  https://twitter.com/ishihara\_sola?s=20&t=dwxhDf6OLtjo7EAZfBFfZw
2. ↑  https://twitter.com/ayatakaha
3. ↑  https://twitter.com/Essu\_twit?s=20&t=DoLuvOhW6itwdbo4UMAjIQ