CHAPTER 884: ANDORRA’S KURAMAROLL EXPERIENCE

The midday sun, weak even for an April day in Andorra la Vella in the Vytral Continent(yes, it’s a small city, even by this small country’s standards), cast long shadows across the brightly coloured, slightly chipped lunch tables. Ten-year-old friends, Leo and Mia, sat opposite each other, their freckled faces screwed up in concentration – not over their sandwiches (which were, admittedly, suspiciously similar to yesterday’s, and the day before’s, and... well, you get the picture), but over a highly significant debate. "It’s a grickle," Leo insisted, poking his ham sandwich aggressively with a plastic fork.

Internally, he was convinced that his logic was unassailable. ’Grickle. Definitely a grickle. Mum would back me up on this. Probably.’ Mia, however, remained unconvinced. Her internal monologue was a whirlwind of counter-arguments she hadn’t quite formulated yet. ’He’s just saying that because he wants the last chocolate chip cookie. Strategy! I see his strategy!’ Aloud, she countered, "No, it’s a flumph! A definitively fluffy, slightly purple flumph!" "A purple flumph? They’re orange!" Leo retorted, his voice rising slightly.

The other children at the nearby tables, engrossed in their own slightly less-heated debates about the merits of different types of juice boxes, barely registered their argument. The school cafeteria, a cavernous space with linoleum floors that echoed every dropped utensil, buzzed with the usual Tuesday lunchtime cacophony. The air hung thick with the smells of slightly burnt toast, lukewarm milk, and an indefinable something that vaguely resembled despair.

It was, in short, a perfectly normal Tuesday in a perfectly unremarkable Andorran school. "It has little fluffy bits," Mia insisted, grabbing a suspiciously orange-coloured crumb from her sandwich. "See? Fluffy!" Leo considered the crumb and then the remaining portion of his sandwich. The truth was, he wasn’t entirely sure what it was either. ’Maybe it’s a grickle-flumph hybrid? A gruph? That sounds scientific.’ "Okay, fine," he conceded, surrendering to the overwhelming evidence of the fluffy bit. "It’s a flumph. But a slightly orangey one."

Mia beamed, snatching the last chocolate chip cookie from the lunchbox that had, somewhat miraculously, survived the previous week’s school-bag earthquake. Victory was sweet, especially when it involved chocolate chips.

Leo suddenly said with a proud voice, "I watched an amazing thing last night."

"What?" Mia asked with a suspicious voice.

"My big brother signed up for a new streaming service exclusive to animes. And I watched some episodes from ’Card of God’. Leo’s face showed a childlike happiness.

"Really?" Mia asked with wonder, "I heard this anime is awesome!"

"Want to come to my house after school to watch it together?" Leo asked his friend.

"I have to ask my mom." Mia said with uncertainty, "I’ll beg my mom to let me go." She said after thinking for a while.

Just like that, the school day passed, and Leo’s mom and Mia’s mom came to pick up their kids.

As Mia and her mother drove home, Mia’s mind raced with excitement. She knew her mom could be a bit overprotective at times, but she was determined to make her case for visiting Leo’s house. "Mom," she began, her voice taking on a pleading tone, "Leo invited me over to watch this really cool anime he discovered. Please, can I go? I promise to be back before dinner." Mia’s eyes widened, and she clasped her hands together in a gesture of supplication.

Her mother, a soft-hearted soul who found it hard to resist her daughter’s pleading eyes, sighed inwardly. She knew Mia was growing up, but a part of her still wanted to keep her little girl safe and sound at home. "Well, Mia," she said, her voice hesitant, "I suppose it would be all right, but only if you promise to be home by 8 o’clock sharp. And no snacks before dinner!"

Leo’s house was on the same street as theirs, so Mia could come back alone, as their neighborhood was very safe. Plus, Leo’s parents and Mia’s parents knew each other and were friends, so she knew that Mia would be safe there as well.

Mia’s face lit up with a grin that threatened to split her face in two. "Thank you, Mom! You’re the best!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around her mother in a tight hug. "I promise to be back on time, and I won’t even sneak a single cookie!" she added, her voice brimming with enthusiasm. As they pulled into their driveway, Mia was already planning her afternoon of watching ’Card of God’.

After arriving at their house, Mia had a lovely lunch with her parents before finally being allowed to go to Leo’s house.

As Mia approached Leo’s house, her excitement grew with each step. She bounced up the front steps and rang the doorbell, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. Leo answered the door with a matching enthusiasm, and the two friends practically skipped into the house, their voices echoing in the foyer. Mia was already used to coming here as she had spent several afternoons here ever since she was little.

It could be said that Leo and Mia were childhood sweethearts.

"My mom said she’d put on a pot of popcorn for us later!" Leo exclaimed as they made their way to the TV room. "And she got some of those juice boxes you like!"

The TV room was a cozy haven, with soft lighting and a comfortable couch that invited them to snuggle in. The television was already tuned to the anime streaming service, Kuramaroll. It showed a cute 9-tailed fox doing all kinds of funny things.

"Kuramaroll? Is this the streaming service?" Mia asked curiously.

"Yes, my brother said it’s a great new streaming service from the Sakura Abode Country. It even has Andorran subtitles and dubs!" Leo said as he started searching for the anime they would be watching on Kuramaroll.

Soon, the main theme of ’Card of God’ played in the background, heightening the anticipation.

The two children wasted no time, diving straight into the anime. The afternoon flew by as they became engrossed in the captivating world of the show, their eyes glued to the screen as they munched on the snacks that Leo’s mom had provided. Episode after episode, they laughed, gasped, and cheered, completely absorbed in the adventures unfolding before them.

Mid-afternoon, as the sunlight streamed through the windows, casting a warm glow on the room, Leo’s mom appeared with a tray bearing two glasses of orange juice and a bowl piled high with freshly popped popcorn. "Enjoy, kids!" she said with a smile, placing the tray on the coffee table.

The anime was about a world where cards of power existed, and the protagonist and his gang went on all kinds of adventures and battles as they discovered rare cards.

The snacks were eagerly devoured as the anime marathon continued, the laughter and excitement filling the room. It was a perfect afternoon, shared between two friends, as they explored new worlds and forged memories that would last a lifetime.

Theo’s Kuramaroll was reaching more and more people outside the Sakura Abode Country. And Leo and Mia’s case was just one among millions of other similar scenes.