inochinoyomikata

[inochinoyomikata]

NILFRUITS - Pomme Prisonnière - "Night Rule" Short Story English Translation

I’ve been bound to the night that never dawns

—

What is strong or weak?

There are times when I suddenly think about it.

What do I like, or dislike?

I often wonder about this.

Living, dying, what is that?

I stop thinking about that.

Because none of those things are relevant to this world.

But all the people who come here are unusually uniform in their thinking.

While I have already completely forgotten about it, there may have been a day when I thought that way too. When I touch the words and feelings that everyone has shared, I feel as if, from the edges of my heart, water is quietly dripping.

At these times, what are things that I can do?

I am always thinking about that.

In this world, that is the only thing I am allowed to do.

If I keep my eyes closed for too long, I feel like I’m being swallowed by an endless darkness.

Every joint in my body, within me, loses its warmth.

It feels as cold as ice.

It’s possible that this might be reality.

When I meditate, it becomes reality. Upon realizing that, I felt an unmistakable terror. Everyone else surely was the same. If so, I want to help them forget for even a little while.

Their sad memories, and their painful memories.

Like that tower. That tower of pretense.

Even if it’s only a little bit, I hope to be a presence that illuminates someone.

***

In the night, I was overwhelmed*.

 *Speaker is using 「僕」(“boku”), a masculine I pronoun.

—

A certain park. This place, with its large grounds and playground, is a place of relaxation, crowded with families and children — or it was. Like a lingering scent, the faint memory of it wafted in my brain, and it was like that.

I knew that I was a person who would never willingly go to such a peaceful place with family warmth, but now was different. I stood beside an enormous piece of playground equipment swallowed in shadows. I gaze at the footprints of the rain that has just passed.

Reflected in the puddle of water beneath my feet were empty streetlamps that lit up without power, and my tiny self, not even half as tall as they were.

I took a breath, and greeted my reflection in the water with “good morning.” In this action, there was unavoidable irony.

When I looked up, I saw a dark and gloomy night sky that seemed unaware of the term “starry sky.”

 Thick clouds were drifting in a gradation that melted seamlessly into the darkness. Below them, buildings competed with each other for height. Not to be defeated, the landmark of the city, the radio tower, shone in blue.

Observing the night carefully, it became clear that there were many different kinds of night. Night was something that changed its expression from day to day.

However, it may depend on the viewer's mood and state of mind. A night seen through the filter of a viewer’s gloomy mind is, therefore, considered a gloomy night. Conversely, however, is the cause of someone seeing a depressing night not mean that one’s mind is also depressed? That question remained.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? The time for thinking about questions and answers without hints of a solution flows aimlessly and meaninglessly.

—

In this world, Winter would soon arrive. The slightly cold, dry air ruffled my hair. However, I don’t have a single sensation of shivering from the cold.

As I walked out of the park that served as my hideout and headed toward the city, I suddenly considered. There is a phrase, “the curtains of the night are falling,” and I think it is a very beautiful and attractive metaphor.

I don’t know much about its origins or background, but the historical use of mosquito nets, an object that is also used as a seasonal term in haiku and other forms of poetry, is also very elegant.

It is a simple and emotional expression that people today, surrounded by functional and rational artifacts, would never come up with.

I say, but even after that scorn, I must not forget I am also a part of the crowd.

As an ordinary person, I cannot escape from the shortsighted and wicked scheme that retro = fashionable and trendy = snobbish.

I was so mentally exhausted that all I could do was distract myself with such trivial thoughts. I had begun to get used to the idea of being mentally disturbed. The fact that I was beginning to get used to it was completely overwhelming.

From here, let’s go back to the beginning.

What overwhelmed me was this “night that never ends.”

—

I could recognize that this world was not the one I had lived in before.

I had come to that answer more than once, and my immediate suspicion was that I had gone mad.

The first reason was that I had no desire to sleep, no matter how much time passed. Literally, it could be said there was none.

I feel as though, naturally, I had always been a person who could operate without sleep for long periods of time, but I don’t know if that’s exactly true, just a feeling. Whatever the case, I could sense that sleep was not something I needed. This was a big problem.

Next, my appetite. I had no appetite either. From the start, I don’t think I was a person who was concerned about food, but that was just a feeling, and in the end, I don’t know which is true.

In the midst of all these unknowns, what was certain was that I was originally a person who could sleep and eat as much as anyone else; a person capable of living a civilized, minimalist life.

Up until now, it is still possible to dismiss this as a problem that only affects me, but there was an anomaly that goes far beyond this and is still spreading even now.

It was that, no matter how much time passed, the scenery remained as “night” forever.

This is not a metaphor or a psychological state, but rather, how it sounds at face value: The scenery never changes from “night.”

To put it more concretely, the moment the hands of the clock move ahead of 24:00, they point to 18:00. To say simply, it’s looping. The world resets itself at six hours.

From the darkness of the world, I can see the slanting sun that illuminates the building at the moment. Whenever I saw that orange light, I was disappointed that it was not the light of the morning glow.

Just this was unusual enough, but it was not the only thing eating away at my spirit.

—

There were no people at all. They didn’t exist.

Outside of myself, there was no one.

—

There was not the slightest sign of life, to the extent that the word “deserted” seemed almost cute. Without exaggeration, I felt that I had become the only person in the world. So much that I had no choice but to believe so, there was no one.

It was a so-called ghost town.

It was as if only human beings had suddenly disappeared.

However, all of the traces of humans living, and of their daily lives, remained.

I could not hear people speaking, and no matter where I went, there was no activity. They had disappeared from this place.

Cars and trains were moving. However, there was no one in the seats. It was only for a moment that I felt as if I had tasted the world of the future, where autopilot was a reality, and all that remained was a feeling of strangeness and artificiality. I wondered if there were any passengers on a plane as it flew overhead with a sound cutting the air. It was the height of winter, and the city, with its illuminations, store lights, and streetlamps, was interestingly unchanged, eerie, and very desolate and bleak.

Eventually, I came up with a hypothesis.

Perhaps it was not that I had gone crazy.

The world itself, which encompasses my existence, must have gone crazy.

I have no choice but to believe that in order to consider myself normal when that was not the case. Outside of that, I didn’t want to deny nor affirm anything else.

—

At first, I was upset, but gradually I found myself becoming accustomed to this strange “world of night.” It became obvious that adaptability is the most essential skill in human history.

But the question naturally arose. How in the world did this happen, and what am I involved in? War, pestilence, or even a science fiction style alien invasion. Of course, there were no answers, and all of these questions seemed to me to be a string of words that could be dismissed as just reading too much manga.

I thought I might be able to figure out what was going on where I lived. However, this was an illusion as sweet and fragile as a sugar candy.

Relying on my memory, I went to my own house. It was a small apartment, 6 tatami 1K, with nothing but the necessities of life—so bad, in fact, that there were no necessities at all. To call it the nest of sad creatures who love solitude and poverty was a fitting description.

The stupidity of this action had exactly the opposite effect of what I had initially planned. There were no special clues in the empty room, that was as if they had gone to sort out their personal affairs, and the longer I stayed, the more I wondered who I was, what my purpose was, and what my dreams were. I sit in this place where there is no entertainment, no sound, no sense of life, no hope, and everything is foggy except for the fact that I lived here, and I become melancholy and depressed. 

I was not overreacting or anything, but more and more I was unsure of the meaning of my life. Eventually, I went outside.

After finding the giant playground that was my current hideout, I never thought of returning to that room again.

I don’t know the meaning of my life. Up until now, I do not know why I have been living, and the loss of identity is not something lukewarm. It is completely absent from one’s brain.

I wonder if I am a student or a working adult. As I was reflected in the show windows I saw when I walked around town, I had an appearance that could hardly be described as that of a working person. However, everything was beyond the realm of my imagination.

In addition to physical abnormalities, had I also suffered from amnesia? Naturally, I was further tormented by a sense of despair.

—

How many days have passed since I got lost in this world?

No, I wonder if the concept of passing days even existed to begin with.

How many laps, I wonder. It seemed like an eternity.

The clock on the radio tower went around from 18:00 to 24:00, repeating the night forever, and in this world where silence licked my skin, I simply continued to roam.

My body, which knows no fatigue, was too well suited for travel. With no accumulation of physical fatigue, little variation in temperature fluctuation, and unlimited time, I thought it would be a good idea to make an unplanned, aimless journey.

However, it turned out to be a foolish plan,  and I ended up returning to this city, my original starting position. Although it was only a feeling, one thing I have learned was that I was not an active person to begin with. It was an undeniable fact that I was acutely aware of the emptiness of traveling without a purpose.

Another thing I discovered about myself was that as soon as I set foot in an unfamiliar place, I began to feel a fierce nausea.

It was a discovery that did not bring me any joy and I once again had no idea where I wanted to go or where I should live. My body, my mind, were they both trapped in this narrow world? The lights of the city were shining brilliantly as usual, oblivious to the concerns of others.

Before long, I sat down on a bench on the sidewalk and observed the buildings lined up in a row, without any sense of purpose.

I didn’t like the commonly used expression “cogs in the wheel of society,” as it gave me a cluttered and greasy image. What about an alternative, the lights of society? Wouldn’t it give a somewhat delicate and fantastic impression?

The reason I suddenly had such a thought was that I was looking at the building I had been staring at earlier, I believe, a prominent and large trading company, and I saw countless windows still glowing brightly even at 22:00. 

When I observed closely, the light in another window came on and went off. I got the impression that it was a cheap lighter.

There was no warmth in the light, just a cold, sharp flash of “society” that scorched and killed bodies and minds. That is…if these people were real.

The place was so worthless that it carried meaningless thoughts on its tired, lukewarm sighs.

I can see traces of human existence and life, but the original human beings are invisible to me. In this world where nothing changes, only my spirit is clearly worn away.

I suddenly remembered a story about a famous anechoic chamber in the United States.

It is said that about 99.99 percent of the sound is absorbed by the walls and is called “the quietest place on earth.”

Strictly speaking, there is no perfect silence in this world, but in the absence of people other than myself, I suppose it can be considered so in a broad sense.

What I am trying to say is that when there is extremely little external stimulation, human beings are easily distracted. It is said that people who are placed in an anechoic chamber can become mentally deranged within an hour and even experience visual and auditory hallucinations. I have never heard of anyone who has experienced it, but it is said that the surroundings are so quiet that the sounds one naturally makes in life—such as the sound of a heartbeat—seem loud.

Another similar story, about a person who is put in an empty white room and goes insane, is analogous to what I am trying to say.

This world of night is unmistakably pushing the person I am to the edge.

What is completely different from the anechoic chamber experiment is that even the sounds that I make are becoming inaudible.

I have completely lost interest in myself and my own life.

I know. If I end it already, maybe that would be fine.

I have no intention of saying proudly that I have done my best and endured, but I think there is no meaning or significance to my life as it is now.

In this world, I think I should cast “change” through my own body. Running like ghosts were cars and trains. Even  the tall buildings. Just by training to look down on them in my imagination, I was filled with a strange sense of elation, even though there should have been no ups and downs in my mind. The reason for this is unclear, but my gaze is naturally and effortlessly focused on them.

I hope that the legacy of the high level of culture mankind has accumulated over the years will destroy this worthless life.

Thinking such, I stood up and turned around, and an unbelievable sight flashed into my eyes.

—

Standing there was a girl.

A girl, probably human. I put the word “probably” in my head because she was wearing clothes with an entirely out-of-this-world coloring and design, so much so that I had no idea where they were sold.

She looked like the protagonist of a story. Or perhaps someone from the future, or an alien. She had an unrealistic look and appearance.

The girl was probably in an old electronics store — she seemed to be looking at the TVs piled up through the window without a care.

I was stunned, but calmly analyzed what action I should take in the future.

I had spent so much time wandering around, but I couldn’t find what I was looking for, a person. Why this timing? I suppressed my palpitations and carefully confirmed that the scene before me was not a hallucination. After a while, I finally decided to call out to them.

As if to test my voice, I said, “Um,” without effort.

The girl slowly turned her head toward me. Her crystal-like eyes didn’t seem to reflect any words of caution.

I didn’t know how to explain in the shortest possible way that I was not a suspicious person.

As I choked on my next words in dismay, the girl smiled kindly at me. In an instant, my eyes were drawn to her. Up close, she looked more and more inhuman. Her appearance was like an exquisite and delicate doll from a fantasy world. And yet, she had a somewhat enchanting ambiance.

Eventually, the girl smiled and shook my hand vigorously.

I was stunned again, but it was short-lived, and before I could catch up with my understanding, she took me out of that place.

I tried repeatedly to say words to calm down the reckless girl, and I tried earnestly, too, but there was something wrong with her. The girl looked back at me every time I said something, but she smiled at me. She seemed to have no interest in explaining why, and even less interest in having a conversation.

It was unclear where she was going, but she had a face of enjoyment as she ran along.

In the world of night, under the dreary sky.

In the darkness where solitude and silence melted away.

She led the me, who decided a few hours ago to commit the eternal act of suicide, to somewhere.

—

I was taken by the hand and arrived at a small, old shopping mall. In all honesty, it might be better to say the place was run-down. 

I had a feeling that I had visited there before in the “original world,” but I was not sure of the details. However, it did not seem to me that the facility was functioning as soundly as it had in the past.

I had already explored most of the facilities in and around this town, but for some reason, I felt no need to visit this place, or at least I thought it was too creepy to visit, so I didn’t come here. The shutters were not closed, there were no guards, and the cozy space was open. I entered as my hand was pulled.

In what looked like an event space half as small as the park grounds, lights and string lights hung apologetically in a cluttered manner by the escalators adjacent to the plaza.

The girl took me out to the square and finally let go of my hand.

Warmly, she shows her smiling face.

She seemed a little proud, as if to say, “This is my hideout, my favorite place.”

The girl, as if to say, “Wait here for a moment,” showed me her palm, and then ran to the back of the pathway.

A few moments later, she came back holding something with both hands.

It was the same bundle of lights and string lights I had seen earlier. Judging from the size of the bundle, it did not seem to be that long. At best, it was long enough for a few people to jump rope.

She held her left hand up and down hard in small increments while holding that string of lights with her right hand. It appeared that she was telling me to sit down. For now, I sat down at a random spot.

Perhaps she was trying to put on some kind of show for me?

I looked around, with the girl hastily unraveling the mass of lights at my side.

There was nothing special or remarkable about this place. I didn’t think there were spotlights or anything like that.

I figured that there was no electricity at this time of day to begin with. In fact, all of the lights near the escalators were turned off. Moreover, from what I could see, the light that the girl was holding was not battery-powered, but an outlet-powered one.

Why, then, had she brought this futile item with her? In what ingenious way did she intend to use it?

A few moments later, the preparations seemed to be complete, and the girl stood still, holding the plug at the end of the light like a rhythmic gymnastics ribbon and slightly wrapping it around her body.

What in the world was about to begin?

Unable to read the girl’s thoughts, I simply stared in awe at her mysterious acts. At that moment, when my mind was dulled, unable to think of anything.

—

The illumination lights surrounding her instantly began to glow.

—

I didn’t understand what I was seeing.

Right before my eyes, something incredible was happening.

In a reserved manner, she was clad in many bright and colorful lights.

She let them swing.

My heart, which should have been so quiet, suddenly started beating.

In the silence and the darkness, it pulsed and surged through my whole body.

The girl started to dance.

—

It was beautiful.

It was beautiful, even too much.

“It’s beautiful,” I said.

So much so that no other words could describe it.

Such words could not be stopped from leaking from my own mouth.

Unable to contain my emotions, the words leaked out.

The hearts of ten people are ten different varieties, there are an infinite amount of them.

Therefore, the ways in which a heart can be saved are completely different from person to person.

Music that someone may find repulsive and criticize may be the very hope of life for a different person.

What may be a boring and untouching movie for someone may be a masterpiece for someone else who may be unaware of how many times they will encounter it in their short life.

To put it simply.

Her dancing unmistakably saved my life.

Not because of a technique.

It had nothing to do with high or low level of expressiveness, or the unconditional reflexes based on faint memories.

Purely, sincerely, plainly, serenely, innocently.

My heart was struck by that scene.

In a scene that was delicate, extraordinary, fantastic, and overflowing with emotion.

Within the darkness that dragged me into this pessimistic world that could be called eternal, a girl who wore a ray of light.

No matter how hard I tried, I was unable to move my eyes away.

—

For some reason, a tear spilled out.

What? I wondered, but from one after another the tears kept falling, and I couldn’t stop. I repeatedly wiped them away, but the scenery blurred, and the phenomenon knew no bounds.

Dripping down, to a comical extent, the droplet overflowed like something from a manga.

Swirling in the air was reassurance, emotion, confusion, and sorrow. Were they all jumbled together? I had been trying to calmly analyze all of my own mind and thoughts from an outside view. But I could not read them at all. I could not put them into words.

Why was this? Why was I moved to tears by this scene? I could not come up with any perfect answers.

—

If I could just stay with her.

If I could see her dancing happily like this from here on.

It doesn’t matter if there is no dawn.

Even morning. I don’t even need another day.

—

That’s what I really thought at the time.

—

After that, we visited my base at the park.

It was relatively close to the shopping mall we had just visited, so it only took us a few minutes to get there.

When I looked at the girl, our eyes met, and she was still smiling at me. My heart that was pounding seemed a lot louder than it used to be.

I had so many questions for her.

Just as I was about to speak to her, she ran towards the playground.

She jumped on it, climbed on it, showing me that she was having fun playing on it.

For the time being I sighed, “Oh well.”

Unaware of my state of mind, the girl was enjoying the playground equipment, smiling at me, and occasionally waving her hand.

What that girl wanted to say, or what she wanted to do, I didn’t know. After seeing my depressed spirit, was she trying to express the importance of returning to childlike innocence?

However, seeing another human being moving around happily on this massive playground that I had come to think of as a symbol of my loneliness, after living up until now as if I were the only person in this lonely world, was a little moving to me.

Before I knew it, the girl was sitting perched on a covered guard tower at the top of the playground.

I also decided to head there before long.

The girl was dangling her legs and swaying a little. I climbed up and sat down with my back to her.

I had climbed up there once before when I was at the base, but the only view I could see from there was an inorganic scene of tall buildings lined up in the distance, and it was completely uninteresting and unappealing. After that, I never went up there again.

Now, the reality that there was another person nearby — that girl — had certainly changed something in me.

Once again, I turned to her and began to ask questions.

Who are you?

How did you get that light to shine?

What is happening in this world?

Are there other people?

For all of these questions, the girl did not seem to have any intention of playing catch-up with words.

She just tilted her head and smiled.

After the unbearable atmosphere spread, I came up with a hypothesis.

This girl might be the source of this world of night.

Her unrealistic appearance and special abilities reminded me of aliens or humanoid weapons. Did she change the whole world fundamentally with her super-scientific or surrealistic ideas and technologies that I could have never thought of? All of these ideas. Which could have been dismissed as a result of reading too many science fiction novels and manga, passed through my brain without me being able to say them out loud.

Contrary to my wild thoughts, I did not feel any type of dark emotion of attitude that could be called hostility from her.

No, I still don’t know. While my guard is low, she may take that opportunity to reveal sharpened claws and fangs that she had concealed.

She’d just say, “There were survivors.”

But, if that’s the case, that’s fine, I thought. I was already exhausted. Of this world that was being eaten away by the darkness. With no substance, no future, nothing, this meaningless world of night. If only she could put an end to this life, I thought, I would be fine with that. Because I was serious, I told her so, without trying to hide anything.

But the reaction was more obvious than I expected, and it backfired.

For the first time, the girl had a sad expression on her face.

Her pale eyebrows lowered, and glassy eyes looked at me with a clear sadness. The girl began to stare at my fake smile and the movement of my lips. Feeling awkward, I questioned her about the significance of her actions, but received no response.

 After a few moments, the girl’s sad expression changed, and she smiled cheerfully. Then, as if she had just thought of something, she jumped down from the playground with great vigor. It was quite high, but she landed without incident with a gentle look on her face.

I couldn’t hide my fear for the girl, so I hurriedly got off the playground safely and went to her.

I wondered if she didn’t understand my language. I could certainly sense a gentile atmosphere. Perhaps she is “unable to speak.” I don’t know if the cause would be mental or physical, but it’s a possibility.

After all, I still don’t know who she is. What does she think, what is her purpose, what kind of character does she have? I had too little information to seek a rich personality. Perhaps it was just a convenient delusion, but she was like an oasis in the desert. I decided to let it go, by thinking of her as a kind of remedy in this world.

—

And so, my new life began.

She was always by my side.

My loneliness and anxiety had long since disappeared into my unconscious.

Some nights passed. I realized that she, like me, was a person who could live without sleep, without food, and without fatigue.

Some more nights. As usual, there was no conversation. None, but she was expressive.

Basically, she was smiling. I, too, felt as if I had long forgotten what a smile was after coming to this world, but the word “mirror” reminded me of it. I suddenly remembered it. Little by little, I felt that I had begun to smile at her actions.

We began to count the cycles of the night together.

At first, we had decided to write the character for “correct*” in the sandbox, but in this world, it rains from time to time, making it pointless, so we decided to write it on a playground post by scratching it with a stone. Since the time display on the radio tower was just barely visible from this spot, one of us put it up as soon as 18:00 was reached, the first one to do so won.

 *「正」 is a character meaning “correct” that is also used for tally marks.

I was forgetful and often let her take the lead. I guess there is no such thing as a lead, and this game is never going to end. She often laughed when she won.

The 32nd lap of night.

I tried to climb the radio tower. I had never thought of visiting there before, but the girl insisted on going, so I had no choice but to accompany. But as it turned out, the elevator did not work, and she could not go up. I gently patted her rounded back to comfort her depressed state.

The 55th lap of the night.

The two of us often took walks together in the city, but that day we changed our minds and went a little farther out of town. But I still felt unwell. Why was I feeling so bad, even though I did not feel physically tired at all? The girl looked at me with concern. I assured her that I was fine, and showed that I was going to get through it.

The 86th lap of the night.

We decorated the shopping mall. She took care of the plaza, and I took care of the aisles. It still didn’t look as though the lights were working, but I finished decorating following her body language. Then the two of us walked side by side through the mall.

Then she used her mysterious power again.

The lights she had decorated the mall with began to glow when she touched them, one after another. I didn’t care about the logic behind it. The fact that she was doing this to make me happy, combined with her kind and joyful smile, was beyond doubt.

The 100th lap of the night.

As usual, nothing happened, but we celebrated.

In a proper manner, I told the strange girl that it was the 100th anniversary. It was very proper. “It’s a nice number,” I added to reinforce the adequacy of my words.

In response, she just laughed cutely. I laughed along with her. From there I tried to climb the radio tower again to commemorate the event, but the elevator was still stuck for some reason. It seemed that I was disliked by the tower. I encouraged her again with a little more enthusiasm this night.

The 127th lap of the night.

For the first time, without warning, I actively tried to hold her hand. She didn’t react in any particular way, but I could see in her eyes that she was expecting me to take her somewhere. Just as she had done when we first met, I should probably take her somewhere.

The usual park, which I had thought was not a suitable spot, had been slightly decorated around the 110th lap, so there was a bit of atmosphere. She didn’t seem to understand.

The 184th lap of the night.

As I walked around, I began to notice that the color of the night was getting darker and darker. At first, the sky was often a dark blue, but recently, it has been pitch-black. I didn’t see so many gradient clouds anymore. Come to think of it, we didn’t see sunsets anymore either. When I said this, she seemed to look sad for a moment, but she immediately turned a silly face and tilted her head in a deliberate manner. Such a gesture was unbearably endearing.

The 200th lap of the night.

We celebrated. “It’s the 200th anniversary,” I said. The girl clapped her hands in acknowledgement. I told her I had decided to climb the radio tower for a third time. The elevator was still not moving, but I told the girl her power might have something to do with it. For example, if we assume that her power is to manipulate electricity in various ways. Truthfully, I thought it was just stuck because she was afraid to get on the elevator. When I told her that, she seemed to get the idea and looked away with understanding eyes. We decided to use the emergency stairs to climb up. Why didn’t you think of this earlier? I chastised my former self, but that soon fizzled out as we finally arrived at the seats that were known as the main deck. The girl was quite excited to see the panoramic view of the city. However, she didn’t seem to like being so high up and didn’t get very close to the windows. At any rate, I was glad to finally have had this encounter with her.

The 226th lap of the night.

She was playing on the playground when she slipped and almost crashed while falling. Miraculously, I was just below her and was able to catch her. She weighed almost nothing and felt as if I was hugging a piece of styrofoam. If it had been me before, I would have been surprised at how unrealistic it felt. But it didn’t matter anymore, her surprised face and eyes met mine, and we stared at each other closely. I immediately set her down, and when I warned her to be careful, she looked apologetic. I soon realized that there was really nothing to be careful about, since we have no sense of pain. At the same time, for some reason, I have not been able to look her in the eye since then.

The 250th lap of the night.

Today was another walk. Yet again, after a little while, I held her hand. When I did, for the first time, she looked a little embarrassed. For some reason, I was embarrassed by this new reason, and we didn’t look at each other while holding hands. In the end, we still didn’t look at each other again after we let go of each other’s hands.

The 299th lap of the night.

I thought back on the nights until now.

Even without words, I knew that I had lived with her.

A strange sense of pride was born in my heart.

Tomorrow — and I’m not exactly sure if that is the right word — I will tell her exactly how I feel about her.

Because it’s the day of our anniversary.

However.

Before tomorrow arrives, there’s something that was bothering me.

As I thought, I was not mistaken.

The number of lights in the city was clearly decreasing.

After that 250th lap, the decrease became blatant.

There were no cars or trains running anywhere. I wondered how long this had been going on. Furthermore, the sky seemed to be getting darker.

I tried not to pay any particular attention to it, but I was a little uncomfortable walking in a place that was too dark when I walked with her.

Perhaps there was something wrong with the electricity supply in the city. What happens in this world is obviously not common sense. It wouldn’t be strange for anything to happen.

Because it’s self-contained, I’ll try to find the cause another night, I thought.

—

The 300th lap of the night.

Time passed quickly, and in no time at all it came.

I brought her to the shopping mall plaza.

And then.

“Let’s escape from this world.”

I said so.

We’re going to escape the world together.

Starting now, we’re going to search for a way out.

We must find it.

No matter where we end up, we’ll live together.

“Together, let’s live.”

She looked embarrassed, but happy.

As it is, I want to see that face.

As best as I could, I conveyed my feelings.

—

Then.

Suddenly. A black mass appeared behind her.

A black mass. That was the only way to describe it.

It was a sphere about five meters in diameter.

Behind her, with a presence like a total solar eclipse.

Over there, there’s something.

The moment I was about to speak, the view completely changed. She was not in front of me.

There were only powerless, drooping lights and inorganic shop windows.

Somehow, my body had been pushed out of the plaza and into the back of the passageway. From the impact of the black mass writhing in front of me, with its spines protruding in a creepy way.

My body flew to another place. I felt a strange, dull concussion, as I have no sense of pain, and my body that had been thrown rolls around. I was knocked away.

Over, and over, and over, and over I’m knocked away; over, and over, and over, and over I repeatedly struggle to stand, and it’s always the same thing before me. There was no will, no emotion, nothing of the sort, just a fundamental “rejection” that stands in the way.

—

There was still no sense of pain, but when I looked at my entire body, my clothes are frayed and torn, and my skin is cut and scraped. A feeling of unmistakable fear sets in, and I simply flee, uncontrollably, into the shadows of the building and the alleyways in the back.

Just when I thought it had dispersed for a moment, a strange sight met my eyes.

It was the middle of the city. Had I been transported from the shopping mall to the city?

I felt that neither the laws of physics nor the distance could explain it, but that was just the beginning. It was pointless to think too deeply about it.

With determination, I jumped out from where I was hiding and ran through.

I wondered if she was safe. I wondered if she was able to escape or hide.

What in the world was attacking us? No matter how hard I tried to think, I had no idea, and I couldn’t guess.

As I was running through the streets, I happened to be in front of the place where I first met her, an old electronics store.

For a moment. My eyes met with a stack of televisions through the window, and the next moment.

All the screens lit up at once.

In there was a human being.

Without a doubt, I couldn’t see the face — it was covered with something similar to the black mass that had attacked us, but human.

The sound was muffled by a storm of static and cracked, making it difficult to hear, but it seemed that a news program was being projected on the screen.

It was the first time in a while that I heard a human voice other than my own, and I couldn’t help but listen in.

“Earlier today…jumped down from…a mall in the city…the lights were on…he survived…unconscious and in critical…”

The audio was chopped in places, a familiar scenery was shown, and bloodstains jumped in for a moment. Before I could even give any thought to the meaning of that news report.

My body bounced on the ground with a tremendous impact and was sent flying forward.

It seemed that I had been attacked from behind with something’s entire might.

I could clearly feel some bone in my face shatter.

I immediately slammed my arm down and stood up, though.

—

There in front of me, just existing, as if to say “checkmate,” was the black mass.

It was moving several spines in and out, increasing its size as if it were expanding its own width.

It was like paint forcefully slammed against a wall.

Like a gaping hole in space.

Like a black hole that sucks in everything.

Like a monster with a gaping mouth, or rather, a monster made of a mouth itself.

As if it wanted to swallow me whole.

I hurriedly turned my back and tried to run away, but the black mass’s spines extended out, and clung to my body like a torimochi.

I resisted with all my heart, but the number of thorns that stuck to me increased as if it were taunting me.

My futile resistance and howls reflected off the skyscrapers and were swallowed by emptiness. What appeared in my blurred vision was a large display embedded in the building, showing the same news footage I saw earlier.

And then. The girl was in front of me.

—

Like the light that turns on when you flick a switch.

In front of me was just that girl.

How did she get here, why was she here, I could never know. Right now, I didn’t really care.

The origin of this black mass was right in front of me.

I understood it circumstantially, through intuition, and spontaneously.

Reflected in both of my own eyes was a sad expression I had only seen once before.

However, more than at that time, this expression was covered with an even deeper sorrow.

The reason, I don’t know.

I don’t want to see it.

I don’t understand, but I don’t want to see her look like that.

That kind of face, I don’t want to see it.

At this moment, I continued to chant from the depths of my heart.

—

I have crossed through many nights because I wanted to live with you. I was able to find the hope to live through the night.

I won’t ask you to save me anymore.

You have given me so much.

I have only gratitude.

But I don't want it to end like this.

So, say something.

Don’t make that face.

Tighter and tighter. The clinging darkness grips my whole body like an arm.

And it pulled me in.

Please. Say something to me.

Even just one word. I want to hear your voice.

—

Then. She pointed.

Beyond there, was this city’s landmark, the radio tower.

—

So, what was she trying to say?

You rejected me. And then you point up at that tower.

I don’t even want to look at it anymore. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen it.

The tower that marks the abominable hour. Repeating with the night, forcing us to face the reality that it is looped, a tower of that and nothing more.

It is an incompetent and worthless radio tower that just stands there and gives me nothing but despair.

What do you want to say about it?

Are you saying I am like that?

Am I like that, worthless, needed by no one, never wanting things to change?

Can I not be important to you?

Was I not important to you?

If that's the case, why do you look like you’re about to cry?

—

I want you to tell me.

Now is the time. Even if I were to disappear from this world from now on. The fact that I met you here, I will always remember it.

So that I will never forget.

I want to know your name.

I want you to tell me your name.

I screamed. The power of it made my throat tremble.

And the word that came back was.

—

“Sa, yo.”

—

Sayo. Sayo. Evening*.

 *The characters that make up “evening,” 「小夜」, can be read “sayo.”

 A string of characters that were almost unrecognizable to me flashed in and out of my mind. But I realize that such conversions are worthless. I know. I realize that it was not a word that indicates a name. It was in the next moment. Cruelly, I knew.

—

“Sayonara*.”

 *Farewell.

She laughed, then cried.

She said that.

—

My consciousness fell into the depths of darkness.

And then the night left.

***

My eyelids parted and a breath burst out.

I could feel my heart and emotions pulsating, but at the same time, I had the sensation that my body was sinking into something soft.

A drop of water rolled down my cheek.

I was on a bed. That was certain.

There was no night or city reflected in my sight.

Just a dim ceiling looking down at me with an inorganic face.

Before I could even think about the girl.

Immediately, all I could see were things that were different.

The huge cast that encased my limbs, and the IV drip.

A peculiar smell, like some kind of medical solution, assaulted my nostrils.

Then, a few people in what looked like medical protective gear surrounded me.

They were talking loudly about various things. I couldn’t hear what they were saying very well. Is there something wrong with me being here?

I could not see or hear well, but I had a sense of pain.

The pain felt as if my whole body was slowly being burned.

My head and legs in particular felt as if they were cracking open. Contrarily, I could not feel anything in my right hand.

It was clear to me that my body had faced an abnormal situation.

After that — though I don’t remember much because I was dazed by the pain — I was carried to another room.

My entire body was checked over by a group of people in hazmat suits flying around me, in a place where various machines were densely packed.

I think I vomited and fainted several times. An acidic feeling of disgust crawled up the back of my throat and down my navel.

I don’t know how much time has passed since then.

After a long period of fatigue, outbursts, and questioning, my body and spirit were finally free.

—This is a hospital.

I was sent back to the hospital room again, and the male doctor began to explain things softly to me as I settled in.

We were facing each other, not through protective clothing, but in the flesh. The act of making eye contact with someone other than that girl was a sensation I hadn’t felt in a very long time.

—Do you remember what happened?

I couldn’t say anything in response to his words.

I had some understanding of why I was in the hospital, of course.

If I had not gone to heaven or hell, if I had miraculously survived.

If I had survived and held on.

Of course, I would be in this place.

The doctor, concerned about my state of understanding and realizing what had happened to “myself in the real world,” prefaced his talk with the words, “You may find this hard to believe…” and began to talk.

—

The disease is called Night Rule Syndrome. Also known as “Night.”

My body and mind were affected by the disease.

Although patients have been discovered worldwide since 10 years ago, the number of cases is extremely small and the route of infection and whether it is a viral infection in the first place is completely unknown. In Japan, the disease was designated as an intractable disease a few years ago, but the public’s awareness of the disease is not that high. In fact, I was not aware of it. I was told that I was the third patient in Japan.

The symptoms of the disease are more specific and unscientific than those of other intractable diseases, and many parts of the disease are still unexplained.

In the first stage of the disease, the patient completely loses consciousness and falls into a deep sleep.

Vital activities are normal, and brain and heart activity are slow and unaffected. In extreme cases, the patient is close to what is considered the non-REM sleep state.

Afterward, however, black ink-like spots occur in the cells of the body and skin. The black ink spots spread over the entire skin without any particular effect on vital activities.

In the second stage, the blackening progresses inside the body, and in the final stage, the entire body, including blood vessels, organs, and the brain, turns black as if swallowed by darkness.

When the process after that is observed, it is said to crumble and disappear like charcoal after combustion.

The word “vanishing” was an appropriate descriptor, as it was said that there is no trace of those spots.

The ingredients of the black spots were analyzed, but even at this stage, it is an unknown substance, and since it literally disappears seconds after leaving the host’s body, it is impossible to collect or preserve. Many countries have invested their money in various tests and experiments, but all have ended in vain. It is impossible to treat or operate on the disease, and no progress has been made in developing special drugs or vaccines. The trigger and reason for the onset of the disease are unknown. The only option is to wait for natural recovery, and the disease has had the alarm raised by many medical societies.

However, some of those who have developed the disease have recovered completely, and it is said that the dark spots disappear from the body without leaving any trace. And although the reason is unknown, it seems that antibodies are formed, and every dark spot on the body disappears, and the disease has never recurred. I am one of those, I was told.

All of this was hard to believe, but the atmosphere was not one where jokes could be made or said.

And while it’s even more improbable and unrealistic — what has been said about it before shakes me  to my core.

When the limited number of post-recovery patients were interviewed, they all said they had lived in the same “world that repeats the night.”

When the overall responses were summarized, it seems that a part of the subject’s mental structure manifests itself in the world of night. The relationship between the psyche and memory has not yet been clarified, but it seems the psyche is simply taken over, and there are many ambiguous aspects of memory of real-life. In general, they also tended to be pessimistic and have a pessimistic view of life and death.

—

What was even more surprising was that although the locations were different, all of the people who developed the symptoms said that they had seen “a certain girl” in the world that repeats the night.

In some cases, they also found another person with the disease.

It was hypothesized that the “world of night” is a world shared in the brains of all patients.

—

The girl’s appearance fluctuates, and she looks alien or alien-like to some people. She understands the language and is very friendly. She was previously observed to be able to speak, but recently she is no longer able to speak freely.

Similarly, in a recent case, an abnormality in the world of night was observed. In the world described by the previous patients, there were many people, just like the real world, but recently they have disappeared without a trace. Instead, the light of things like buildings and vehicles remained on — in other words, it was as if all people except themselves had become invisible.

—

At that point, I cut off the doctor’s story.

I wanted to get an answer out of him regarding the girl.

And what the doctor told me was not what I expected, but was despairing.

The girl existed in the real world at this moment.

However, she is still under observation at a medical institution in Tokyo.

That’s right. The girl is also suffering from “Night.”

The only difference between me, along with the other patients, and her is that the progression of the blackening is very slow, and she does not require nutritional supplements or elimination, which is an extremely impractical and inhuman condition.

However, she has not woken up in the 10 years since the onset of disease was confirmed. In other cases, it takes about a week on average from the onset of the disease until the blackness spread over the entire body — for myself, it took three days from the time of the onset of the disease was confirmed until the time of recovery — though that timing is understood to be abnormal.

However. I was told that she doesn’t have much longer to live.

At last, everything had turned black except for a part of her brain and heart. 

Only those two parts remained. The chances of survival are said to be hopeless.

Based on the stories of those who have been affected and the collapse of the night world, it was believed that the girl and the world of night are strongly co-dependent. I told him about my own experiences in the world, and he said without a single expression on his face that this hypothesis was quite well reinforced.

It was cruel to say, but the doctor seemed to think that the girl herself was “Night.” If she were to disappear, the disease of “Night” would disappear as well.

Saying that, he lamented without expression that this situation, which could only be observed while hoping for the best, was disappointing to a physician.

After listening to the whole story, I didn’t really care about the doctor’s hardships.

I no longer cared what kind of person I was in this world, the memories of how I got to my current position, the possibility of what might come in the future, and all the thoughts that welled up in my head. I was no longer attached to the things I had once tried to discard.

—

In this world, there was no place for me. Only in the world of night could I be me.

This thought clung to my mind like a kind of curse.

I turned my eyes away from the doctor, who continued to chat on and on, and looked out a nearby window.

A white curtain was hanging, blending into the gloomy-colored sky. The sparks from the lights embedded in the inorganic concrete groupings were slowly gaining warmth.

I felt a terrible tightness in my chest from the scenery that we had both been waiting for a long time to see just a few minutes ago.

This pain and suffering, nobody could understand it.

It was certain no one would believe me.

Therefore, I don’t need anyone to understand.

The doctor proposed that I keep “Night” a secret. He said it was a measure to prevent unnecessary chaos. 

I immediately nodded. I just nodded, silently, obediently.

Holding on to everything, life went by.

A later tale with no accomplishments.

I was forced to spend many days with considerable inconvenience, I managed to recover to the point where I could lead a normal daily life. I am usually ungrateful to others, but in this case, I had no choice but to extend a small debt of gratitude to the rehabilitation staff.

It was six months after leaving the hospital. I was walking around the city at night for the first time in a long time.

The area around me was familiar, and I had explored it countless times. The only difference was that it was noisier, smellier, and brighter than I had thought it was in the world of night.

—

The place I aimed for was the radio tower. It was a place I would never have headed to before, a place I had no connection to.

At the ticket office, I received a pamphlet entitled “LUNA TOWER GUIDE BOOK.”

The pamphlet explained that the view from the main deck, which was 150 meters above the ground and offers a panoramic view of the city, as well as the corridor on the top deck, which was 250 meters above the ground, are illuminated with LED lights that resemble stars and the moon, creating a special nighttime experience — once again I realized that I was indifferent to this location.

I take the elevator up to the observation deck on the main deck. It is crowded with people, including many children and couples.

I weave my way through the crowd and approach the huge windows.

The lights of the city, which seem to spread out forever, dry my eyes. The glow, created by so many people, so much work, and so many connections, illuminates everything without any emotion. The many people present and the people viewing were all enthralled by the lights.

I myself was impressed, even if there was a slight memory correction.

It’s beautiful, I thought to myself.

—

At the end, in the world of night, the girl pointed to this radio tower.

But I couldn't help but wonder just what the reason for that was.

I looked at the cover of the pamphlet, and in combination with the questions I had about her just before I disappeared from the world of night, I arrived at one answer. I was tempted to deny all of the terrible words I thought just before I left that world. 

What she had wanted to say, it was surely not just that. I decided that.

I thought that I would end up with one answer, and be finished.

Instead of going to the top deck, which seemed to be the other main attraction, I immediately got on the elevator and headed downstairs.

After all, this was not the right place for me right now.

After leaving the tower, which was taller and more blazing blue than anyone else, I started walking again.

—

At the top of the huge playground. There, just enjoying the gentle breeze, I gazed into the distance at the which, which was still bustling even this late at night. For some reason, I felt strangely calm.

There was not a scratch on the pillar. I knew that. I knew that the world of night was not physically linked to this reality.

So, I knew, painfully, that there was nothing more I could do. I understood that.

But I didn’t want to understand.

—

The time that was nothing.

The time I tried to forget.

The time I couldn’t forget. After all, it was the time that I had decided I wanted to live. Waiting forever. What if there’s no meaning in waiting for you forever in this world?

If there were a day that I could try something, could we meet again?

If such a thing was even possible. Squeezing, I held my heart through my clothes.

No, I’m sure it’s possible.

But even the time I spend thinking about such things is time I need to spend living.

There is only one light within my own pessimism, which, even if I try and try to brush it away, does not fade.

What you reminded me of in that world.

Surely, no one but us will ever know it again.

It will never end.

—

In the night sky that seems to swallow everything, a white mist seeps in.

Coated with a sense of still silence and floating, I felt a certain comfort in my heart.

“Farewell.”

—

I said that with a laugh. Then I cried.

And, unlike how the saying goes, I opened my eyes. 

In this world, as was natural, the morning arrived.

***

In the night, I was overwhelmed*.

 *Speaker is using 「私」(“watashi”), a feminine I pronoun.

—

How many laps had it been since I felt that way?

I already stopped counting.

I knew even trying to do anything was useless.

It was too late, there was nothing around. No light, no sound, no nothing.

Just darkness.

When I know it’s all for nothing, why am I thinking like this?

That’s the extent of how boring, narrow, and far too weak this world that is soon to end is.

At first, this world was in my hands.

This world grabbed me, and wouldn’t let go.

Or rather, it could be said, I chose that.

I knew it was wrong for anyone other than myself to be trapped in this world.

Because for anyone other than me, it seemed too painful. I thought that was wrong. I assumed.

Everyone who was lost looked the same as the others.

What those people didn’t remember, what kind of life they had lived, why they wanted to escape from the world, I knew all of it.

And so, I could do anything.

I could do anything to make those people feel like they wanted to escape this world.

That was my only reason for living.

I had long since forgotten the pain — it was the meaning of life that I could not find in the world before. I had bound myself to it.

Even if people thought of it as nothing more than hypocrisy.

I hope that it has reached someone. Because soon, there will be no trace of such thoughts.

—

Yes. This world will end soon.

My body won’t be able to hold out much longer.

I know, because lately I’ve been unable to do anything.

I wonder, what will happen after it’s over?

Will there be a new world?

Like me, will someone who the world likes be born?

And will it bring yet another victim to keep me tethered to this world?

Whatever the case, I hope everyone is happy.

I’d be happy if they think, “I’ve decided to live happily.”

Even if you don’t think you’re a great person.

Even if you don’t think you can become a better person, I don’t care.

I hope you never stop. Living, that is.

I’ve thought countless times about closing my eyes.

I think, because it’s so dark, it’s almost the same as if I’ve already closed my eyes.

But I’m sure that’s not what I mean.

I’m going to have a good, long rest.

I’ve been tired from being awake all this time.

It’s about time, I truly think so.

At that time.

In the distance, I was certain I saw something.

In the darkness, something shining.

Slowly, I walked toward that light, moving like a rusty toy gun.

I felt as though more and more parts of my body were falling apart.

But I kept walking without giving up.

—

And then.

There, with a familiar face, was a boy.

I was astonished, and tried to speak with him.

But no matter how hard I strained my voice, it wouldn’t come out.

Since the time I had said a single word of goodbye to him, it could not come out.

Immediately, I gestured with stiff movements.

—

He looked at me with the kindest eyes.

Then he laughed. He placed his hand on his chest.

He looked elated.

“It really worked,” he said.

“You won the bet.”

I didn’t seem to understand the meaning of those words.

But what I understood was that he had come to see me.

He had come to see the me who was already finished.

He too, is going to end soon.

Together, we’re going to end.

It might have just been my imagination.

But it was like I felt his warmth inside my body.

—

For some reason, tears spilled from my eyes.

Nothing was supposed to come out anymore.

I was supposed to have lost my temperature and light, to have become a useless body.

Yet, how could something so warm still come out of me.

I opened my mouth.

I had no voice, but slowly. I opened my mouth as if to be certain.

—

I was lonely.

—

I said so. Without words.

I didn’t have to proclaim it.

He must have understood.

“It was the same for me.” He said that.

I laughed along with him.

For only a moment, it felt as if I was in the park where the two of us spent our days together.

And then, there was no one there anymore.

Not me, not him. No one was there.

Just a park with a big playground.

And then, the night.

The night left.

Anything and everything left.

“Good morning,” was said.

“Good night,” in response.

Once again, the two of us told each other.

This world opened its eyes.

Then, the morning arrived.

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 3 Translation (3/3)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 3 Translation (1/3)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 3 Translation (2/3)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 3 Translation (1/3)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 3 Translation (1/3)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 2 Translation (3/3)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 2 Translation (1/3)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 2 Translation (2/3)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 2 Translation (1/3)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 2 Translation (1/3)

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Note about InT manga translations:

I am not doing this long-term; I'm only doing this because the first two chapters were released for online free and because I was curious about what translating manga was like (the answer is it's more fun than translating the novel but alas).

Also sorry for weird formatting. I don’t know how to use photoshop so I used Ibis Paint. I realized like 2 pages in that manga text is supposed to be all caps but I did not care to fix all of the text I had already translated, so. Yeah.

(Also about the novels– I’m sorry, things happened. I’ll get to it when I can. Right now, classes. Other things. Etc.)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (4/4)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (1/?)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (3/?)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (1/?)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (2/?)

Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (1/?)

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Inochi no Tabekata Manga Chapter 1 Translation (1/?)

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Hello, a short update on InT translations-- I will be very busy the next month and a half or so and thus will not be able to work on translations, even though the third novel just came out. Once I become free again around mid-July, I’ll work on that novel as fast as possible and post once I have it completely translated. Until then, feel free to buy the novels to support the series (volume one, two, three) and also because they’re a fun read and nice decorations~

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Inochi no Tabekata 2 ch 3-3 Translation

3-3 Otogiri Tobi– I wanted to meet but couldn't meet you

—Tobi Otogiri remembered the apartment where he and his brother lived together. The color of the outer wall was whitish, and it was a two story building with an outside staircase and an outside corridor. There was a black fence outside their window. His brother would often open the window, rest his elbows on the fence, and smoke. 

Sometimes his brother would leave the room. Tobi was alone during that time. He was overjoyed when his brother returned.

They were occasionally visited by someone. That man wore a brimless hat and was larger than his tall brother. His hands were thick, frighteningly large, and he wore boots. The man did not enter the room. He went up to the door. The man was not empty-handed. He was holding something. He had it on his shoulders. Something like a bag.

Something like a backpack.

It seemed Tobi had never heard that man’s voice. He once asked his brother who he was. His brother pointed his finger up to his lips.

“Shhh.”

He had many conversations with his brother. The older brother told the younger brother various stories.

“Tobi— if you have a wish that you really want to fulfill, well–”

‘Don’t tell anyone about it’ his brother had said.

“Keep it a secret. It’s kind of like a prayer. Hide it, out of sight, and grow that wish on your own.”

“Should I not tell brother as well?”

“Oh. Don’t tell me either.”

“Does brother also have something to hide?”

“Do you think so?”

+++ + ++++

Halfway up the stairs, Shizukudani Rukana’s four-legged zingai, Cipher, was laying down and eating Hiiragi Itoha’s gigantic zingai butterfly. Greedily eating. It was trying to consume all of it. On the school announcements, a male teacher, not Monika, was repeating, “Please evacuate, please evacuate outside the school as soon as possible.” Haizaki was lying on the landing of the descending stairs. Hiiragi stood next to him. She managed to stand on her knees, bent at the waist, and was about to collapse.

Before Tobi knew it, Ryuuko was sitting on his left leg. Ryuuko was facing downwards. She didn’t want to see anything anymore, she didn’t want to hear anything, and so on. Tobi also had the urge to do so.

“Idiot bastard…!”

Even if Baku, who was next to him, yelled at him, Tobi still didn’t know what to do.

“Otogiri…!”

He was called, and when he looked in the direction of the voice, Asamiya came running from the third floor. He can’t. He needs to evacuate. He needs to go. Just thinking about that, Tobi couldn’t say anything. He was silent.

“It’s your fault, Itoha-!”

Shizukudani cried.

“Yours, your fault, all of it, yours! You left me alone! I thought you were my best friend! But, it’s fine, Itoha, there’s something more important to me, I met a wonderful person, like an angel, like God! Yes, God, to me that person is more than a god, I’ll be of help to that person, I’ll help fulfill that person’s wishes, I’ll do anything for that person, and that person will give me praise, that person will love me! I don’t care about Itoha….!”

“Forgive me!”

Hiiragi. It was Hiiragi’s voice. But it was not Hiiragi. Hiiragi was just barely on the verge of collapsing. She was not talking. Beside’s it was not Hiiragi, the voice came from closer, from Ryuuko. Of course, it was not Ryuuko. The voice was different.

Chinuraasha was poking out from the pochette that Ryuuko was hugging. Chinu also opened his mouth. He didn’t open his mouth like Tobi’s Baku or Shizukudani’s Cipher. Chinu’s mouth wasn't big. Chinu seemed to have grown somewhat. Even so, the size of his mouth was a few centimeters.

“Forgive me. Rukana, please. Forgive me.”

“Ehh..?”

Ryuuko nodded. She raised her head, turned her eyes to Chinu and, “Hu—” and held her breath. Tobi was also nervous.

His mouth was mostly hollow except for his teeth and tongue. That was not Chinu. Was it to start with? He didn’t know, but there was a foreign object in there anyway. A foreign substance was protruding from inside of Chinu and was about to spill out its mouth. It looked like that.

He could only say, a foreign object.

It was a few centimeters. Not big. But it was uneven, and it moved finely. 

It kind of looked like a human face.

A small, tiny human was inside Chinu and trying to come out of his mouth. It was calling out.

“Forgive me. Please, Rukana. Forgive me,” it said.

It was Hiiragi. Chinu voiced Hiiragi Itoha. Hiiragi was inside Chinu. A very small Itoha.

“—hhhhha….!”

It wasn’t the little Hiiragi that squeezed out some kind of sound from the back of her throat, rather than a voice, it was the real thing. Hiiragi was crying, as well as Shizukudani. But it was not tears that flowed from her holed eyes. It was like dozens, or more, of caterpillars. As they traveled down her cheeks, they became pupae, emerged, and flew away.

“Still….!?”

Shizukudani held her glasses down and cried. What was ‘still’? Was she saying they were emerging? The zingai, from Hiiragi.

Hiiragi was giving life to more and more zingai.

It was then.

“Get down, follow me…!”

Haizaki reached out and grabbed Haizaki’s ankle. Hiiragi looked down at Haizaki. Immediately, Hiiragi’s tears, something like caterpillars, stopped. They stopped coming out.

“You have– an ally, gah…!”

Hiiragi shook her head. The things like caterpillars overflowed from her eyes again. The emerging zingai butterflies remained small, two, or three, or more grew together. There were zingai butterflies that landed on Hiiragi’s hair and there were zingai butterflies that flew around Hiiragi. Several, dozens of zingai butterflies attacked Haizaki.

“—AAah…”

Some, but not a few, zingai butterflies flew over to them.

“Otogiri!”

Someone touched him back. It was Asamiya. He shouldn’t. Here. Tobi turned around and tried to tell Asamiya. Why did he come? Why had he come? Because Tobi didn’t stop him. Stop him before he comes. He had that opportunity.

“Oh…!”

Baku bit the zingai butterflies that flew in and grabbed several with his right hand. A relatively large zingai butterfly that he tried to catch with his left hand slipped by in an acrobatic flight.

The semi-transparent zingai slipped away from Asamiya’s neck and entwined with the butterfly zingai. Tobi witnessed that moment. Asamiya’s zingai tried to protect its master. Like a thin string, the snake-like semi-transparent zingai fell to the floor, tangled with the zingai butterfly.

Other zingai butterflies flocked there. In the blink of an eye, many small zingai butterflied had gathered, and the translucent zingai, which was already difficult to see, was completely invisible.

“Ah…—”

Asamiya’s eyes became hollow and his eyelids closed. Falling. He was falling. Tobi immediately supported Asamiya. Asamiya was very heavy. His whole body was relaxed. He didn’t put any strength into his body. That’s why it was so heavy.

“Kuh…!”

Baku tried to step on the zingai butterflies. The zingai butterflies that covered and may be eating Asamiya’s translucent zingai.

“Stop!”

Even if Tobi hadn’t given the order with a hoarse voice, Baku would have surely stopped. Perhaps it would have been a fatal act for Asamiya. Baku should know that much. If Asamiya’s zingai hadn’t been devoured by the zingai butterflies yet. If it wasn't already too late.

“This—”

Ryuuko tightly hugged her pochette with Chinu and screamed.

“You can’t do this…! Hiiragi-san, listen to my voice…!”

Hiiragi suddenly looked up and pronounced, “shhh….” Her eyes, which were like holes, were filled with tears. The things like caterpillars stopped appearing. “Shi-ra, Shiratama-san? Shiratama-san, Shiratama—” the small, tiny Hiiragi  repeated.

“Shiratama-san? Shiratama-san’s voice? Oh, forgive me, help me, forgive me, please, please, forgive—”

“I will forgive you! I will not blame anyone! I will not blame you! I want to help you, what should I do, aren’t we friends, Hiiragi-san!”

“Me, aa, me, me, aaa, how, what do I do, aah, what should I do, help me—”

It was no longer just the tiny Hiiragi. Hiiragi, or rather, the main body of Hiiragi, was also speaking. Hiiragi and Ryuuko were yelling at each other. What was going on? Was this Chinu’s power? Wasn’t Chinu just speaking for voices that couldn’t be heard?

The zingai butterflies that were flying around fell down. Like withered leaves. The zingai butterflies lost even the color of dead leaves. Rather than their color, their presence had faded.

“No more…!”

Shizukudani stomped the ground. Not once. Shizukudani kicked the stairs twice, three times in a row with all her strength.

“What are you doing, you bastards! Why are you getting in my way!? You’re an eyesore, you’re brainless, go away, get lost, all of you, fuck you, idiotsss…!”

“It was you.”

Tobi was holding Asamiya in his arms. He was alive. He was breathing. But he was exhausted. Whose fault is this? The zingai butterflies? Does that mean Hiiragi Itoha? Could tobi himself have prevented this from happening? Even so, even if Hiiragi and Tobi were also to blame, the number one was—

“It’s you.” 

Tobi gently, as quietly as possible, laid Asamiya down on the floor. During that time, he never took his eyes off Shizukudani Rukana. From Shizukudani, and that zingai.

Shizukudani’s zingai, that four legged Cipher, seemed to have already finished eating the giant butterfly zingai. Cipher was in front of Shizukudani, two steps down the stairs. It was bigger than before. Probably as big as Tobi. It was not just his size. Cipher was different. The four arm-like legs were muscled, the skin was blackened, and a faint whitish band pattern was floating. The head, which was like a mannequin with four eyes, now looked like a man-eating shark with four eyes.

Cipher may be threatening Tobi before his master. Cipher was also a zingai, so he must be trying to protect his master, Shizukudani.

“Baku.”

If you can do it, do it. If you can protect the master, do so. At most, struggle. Resist. But it was no use.

He was hungry. Baku and Tobi were also training. He couldn’t ignore that feeling of hunger, as if the cells in his body were drying up. He couldn’t stand it. No need to hold back. What he should do. It was obvious.

“Eat him.”

“Sure…!”

As Baku stepped forward, Shizukudani went up the stairs with her body facing toward them. She stepped back. Shizukudani twitched her face. The muscles all over her body were contracting. Her heart stretched violently like it was convulsing. For some reason, Tobi felt Shizukudani’s pulse. It was as if these hands were gripping Shizukudani’s heart. Even crushing her, he seemed to be able to do that if he felt like it.

“H…—”

Shizukudani turned around. She ran up the stairs. Cipher also followed Shizukudani. They ran away. Were they running away? Something of an escape? Baku started chasing them first. 

“Ryuuko!”

Tobi yelled as he also went up the stairs by skipping two steps.

“Asamiya and the others…!”

“Yes!”

Ryuuko and Chinu stopped Hiiragi. Otherwise, Hiiragi would have continued to produce more zingai butterflies, and the damage would have increased and spread. It was Shizukudani’s fault. What did she do? Tobi didn’t know. Shizukudani must have set it up. Shizukudani and that zingai. Eat those guys. I’m just hungry. That zingai named Cipher is disgusting. It’s creepy. I’m not scared. It’s not scary at all. Baku can easily eat a zingai like that. Tobi understood. I am sure. I know my opponent. That they can’t win against Baku. Baku is a lion, and Cipher is a hare. They are different ranks. If a lion chases, the poor hare can only run away.

Tobi and Baku went up to the third floor. Shizukudani was faster than they thought, and they still couldn’t catch up. That should be it. Shizukudani was not running on her own feet. It was Cipher. Shizukudani clung to Cipher. Cipher ran on four legs.

“Aren’t you running away fast…!”

Unlike Baku, Tobi didn’t waste his words. He moved his feet more than his mouth. He hadn’t caught up, but he hadn’t fallen behind either. Shizukudani glanced back. She worried a lot about Tobi and Baku. She was afraid. She wondered when she would be eaten.

With Shizukudani on board, Cipher dashed through an empty hallway and headed from the classroom building to the special classroom building. Tobi should follow Baku. Quickly. It won’t take long. I want to eat it. Haven’t I already eaten? Those zingai. They were not enough. If I don’t eat more, I won’t be satisfied. Anyway, I can’t help but be hungry, and I only have to eat him.

Someone was standing in front of Shizukudani, who was riding Cipher. Who? Why were they not evacuating? Shizukudani raised a high pitched voice.

“Janitor…!”

“Wh–”

Baku suddenly slowed down. Tobi was also stunned. Who are you? Who is that man? Why, here, now?

The man was large and wore a hat with no brim. He wore a blouson like a flight jacket, he wore boots, and he had big hands. His eyes were fake, and he wore a mask. A strange mask, with a picture of a mouth with bared teeth.

The masked man slowly turned on his heel. He kept walking. Where was he going? The stairs? He did not go down the stairs into the special classroom building. He went up. This was the first floor. Certainly, it was possible to go up to the roof from the third floor of the special classroom building. There were stairs. However, the rooftop was normally off limits. The door to the roof was locked.

With Shizukudani on board, Cipher followed the masked man. Tobi and Baku had no choice but to follow. What else were they supposed to do?

The door to the roof had no knob. It was locked. It seemed that someone turned the knob by force and pulled it out. The knob was lying in the middle of the stairs.

Tobi and Baku went to the roof. It was light outside. The concrete floor was wet. But it was not raining, Clouds still hung over most of the sky, but there were still gaps here and there. From those, thin pillars of light thrust diagonally towards the ground.

“T-that guy is…”

Baku groaned and grabbed his head. He got on his knees and crouched down.

“That guy is… um, the masked bastard is…”

The masked man was perched on the low raised wall of the roof trim. He was big, so it wasn’t much bigger than sitting directly on the floor. He looked a little cramped.

Shizukudani was no longer clinging onto Cipher. She was next to Cipher, with her back toward them.

Another person was there.

Besides the masked man, Shizukudani and Cipher, there was one more person on the rooftop.

Was he looking at the pillars of light tearing through the clouds? Like the masked man, he did not sit on the raised wall called a parapet. His right foot was hanging from the parapet and his hands were in his pockets.

He was tall and slender. He wore a white shirt.

“S-sama.”

Shizukudani called. It was a strange name, but Shizukudani wasn’t joking. He knew it by her voice. It was a sincere, yet overly sweet voice, like a lump of sugar.

He turned around. He didn’t look at Shizukudani. At Tobi. He was looking straight at Tobi.

Tobi knew that face. He knew it very well. He remembered very clearly. It wasn’t too different from his memories. He hadn’t seen it in a long time. It had been many years since they parted. He smiled softly. The way he smiled hadn’t changed.

“...Big brother?”

“Hey.”

Seki Otogiri narrowed his eyes.

“You’ve grown, Tobi.”

“You know—”

Shizukudani threw a sharp glance at Tobi. She immediately turned to Seki, to Tobi’s older brother.

“...You…know him? S-sama, knows about Tobi Otogiri…… Eh? Big brother… he said, Tobi Otogiri is S-sama’s younger brother?”

“Of course I know him.”

Even though Seki replied, he didn’t look at Shizukudani.

“For a long time. Tobi is special.”

“...Special—”

Shizukudani’s breathing became rough. She seemed to be very confused. Of course, Tobi was also not calm.

How upset he was, Tobi didn’t even know.

“Well, S-sama, I am…?”

“I’m sorry, Rukana.”

“I’m not special…?”

“Tobi is even more special.”

“More— That kind of thing…”

“But, Rukana, didn’t I tell you? You have potential. There’s so much potential.”

“Potential��”

“Rukana.”

“Y-yes, S-sama.”

“Do you want to become really, truly special?”

“I want to be.”

Shizukudani hugged herself with her arms. It was like she was trying to destroy herself for not being so special.

“I really want to be special! Truly, a special thing. Because, if I’m not special, I mean nothing…!

“I see.”

Seki pulled out his right hand from his pocket. His hand was outstretched towards Shizukudani. Shizukudani walked like she was drawn to it. Like a paper doll with no bones, no joints, no muscles, and almost no weight, it was an unsteady gait. Seki’s right hand was placed against Shizukudani’s left cheek.

“Then let him eat.”

“Eh…”

“Let Cipher eat you.”

“Let Cipher, eat me—”

“Do you really want to be special? You can be, Rukana. Be special. You have the potential. Look.”

Seki never pushed Shizukudani strongly with his hands. But he let her go. It seemed so to Tobi. She turned around. She was laughing. At least, she was trying to laugh. She spread her arms wide and said–

“Cipher, eat me.”

Her zingai opened his mouth. Unless he opened his mouth, he couldn’t eat her. She nodded. She then dove into Cipher’s mouth like she was tainted meat. As expected, she was not an easy meal. When Cipher closed his mouth, she protruded from the waist down. She shouted something. Her legs fluttered. Cipher held her down with his four arm-like legs. He was trying to force her into his mouth.

“Tobi, for me.”

Seki was not looking at her. Seki’s gaze was directed towards Tobi.

“I have a wish that I want to fulfill.”

“...Is that why brother kept secret without telling anyone?”

“Do you think so?”

I don’t know. I just don’t know. Tobi knew nothing. They finally met. He missed him. He was always searching aimlessly. Tobi only remembered his brother. Did he have parents? He was always without them. Where were his parents? The only clue he had was the name “Otogiri” and his older brother. If he is his brother, he would know something.

Before he knew it, Baku was lying at his feet. He was just like a backpack. Tobi was scared. What if Baku really was just a Backpack? What if Baku didn’t answer when Tobi called out? That wouldn’t happen. Something like that couldn’t happen. He would like to think so. But, what was real, what was an illusion, what was true, and what was a lie, Tobi didn’t know. He didn’t understand anymore.

“Zingai who eat their masters become something referred to as ‘charred’(1).”

He heard the voice of Seki. His only brother was right there. But was that even his brother? Was he real?

Shizukudani had been eaten by her zingai. She must be inside the swollen and bursting Cipher. Cipher had four eyes. That had increased by two, to six. From its four arm-like legs, it was trying to grow something. Raising up, it became new arms. Two arms that were thinner than the others. The epidermis had darkened, and now had a lead-like color. Cipher was originally a monster. He no longer looked like a complete monster. He looked like he was a nightmare. Was this a dream?

“Amazing, Rukana is. You had the qualities.”

Seki stroked the top of the nightmarish Cipher’s head. Cipher closed their six eyes and quivered their strangely glossy, oversized lips. “S-sama,” Cipher said. It was Shizukudani’s voice.

“Even though you became charred, you’re still conscious. It’s amazing.”

            To be continued.

---

(1) The term used is 「燼」 which seems to mean fire or ember, but those aren’t really a term to describe something, so I went with ‘charred.’

---

Afterword

In the case of poetry, it is written as lyrics, but this is a field that I am not good at. Actually, I have no experience. In the past, I used to sing on the street while playing the guitar, and I also wrote lyrics. I wrote more than a hundred songs, arranged them at home, and even created the sound source by myself. To be honest, at one point, I was trying to establish myself on that path. I gave up and started writing novels.

The reason I gave up was because I didn’t really like my singing voice. In retrospect, I started singing without a microphone on the street, so my priority was to sing loudly rather than be technical. I don’t think it was very good.

And the other thing was that I wasn’t sophisticated with my own composition. The song was bad and the lyrics were unsophisticated, so I thought to myself that it was impossible. No matter how hard you try, it will be in vain. I gave up because I had no talent.

So I wrote a novel, and it was somewhat better than lyrics. Besides, I had no idea what to do with the lyrics, but the novel was different. Looking back  on it, I had read quite a few books since I was a child, so there were many things I could refer to. I’d been listening to music for a long time, but mainly Western music because of my uncle’s influence. On the streets, I often sang standard numbers by The Beatles, Oasis, and Oldies, you might not know them because they’re a bit old, but passersby were suspicious of my when I sang intense songs by Nirvana, Aerosmith, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. I didn’t really understand the meanings of the English lyrics. I just kind of sang. Also, for some reason, I couldn’t memorize the lyrics of songs I’d sung hundreds of times. I wasn’t interested in poetry, but the poetry anthologies of famous poets. Haiku and waka(2) poems don’t fit perfectly. I guess I don’t have the so-called poetic spirit.

That’s why I have a very weak awareness of lyrics (poetry). However, it was absolutely necessary for the structure and development of the story, so I had no choice but to try to write the lyrics this time. I don’t know myself if they were good or bad. In any case, S (and I) take full responsibility for the quality of the lyrics in this work. Really, once again I was keenly aware of how amazing Eve-san is.

Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Eve-san and his staff, Mariyasu-san, Lack-san, who was in charge of the illustrations, Nakamichi-san, the editor in charge, and everyone who has read this novel. I hope to see you again in the next volume.

           Jyūmonji Ao

---

(2) This is a kind of classical Japanese poem.

[inochinoyomikata]

Inochi no Tabekata 2 ch 3-2 Translation

3-2 Otogiri Tobi– End * Attachment • Point

——Where was that? Was it at a family restaurant? He also remembered riding a bus or something. Tobi Otogiri’s brother may have taken him to some shopping center. Was there a restaurant inside? If he remembered correctly, Tobi’s older brother chose a children’s lunch for him. It came with fried shrimp, hamburger steak, and fried chicken as well. It also came with pudding. Orange juice too. A small flag stuck in red colored rice. It felt very luxurious. He thought he asked his brother if he could eat it. His brother was laughing. It was decided.

“Tobi, you are special.”

For some reason, he remembered very clearly what his brother told him.

+++ + ++++

A car was flashing its hazard lights on a side road that the junior high students did not pass on their way home from school. It was a pretty big silver one-box car. It was not an unusual car. He often saw cars of the same shape in the morning. The car that Asahi Monika got into on the first day after transferring was a similar one-box car. Or rather, it was this car. 

After school on the day after Asamiya gave them his smartphone at the supermarket food court, Tobi and Ryuuko were taken by Monika to ride in the one-box car. She told them that they didn’t have to come if they didn’t want to, but there was no reason to refuse now.

The spacious rear seats of the car had facing seats. It was not even a train, so they could sit across from each other.

There was one person in the driver’s seat and one in the passenger’s seat, and only one in the back seat. A man in a suit was sitting in the farthest seat.

“Nice to meet you. Tobi Otogiri-kun and Ryuuko Shiratama-san?”

He wasn’t sure how old he was, but he didn’t think he was young. He had a long face and was really smiling. The slightly nasally voice was quite loud in volume.

“Come on, come in, sit down, here, here, if you could, if you could.”

The man crouched down and recommended the  seat across from him for Tobi and Ryuuko. Monika, who sat down next to the man, gave him a look that seemed to tell him to sit down quickly. When Tobi and Ryuuko silently took their seats, the sliding door in the backseat closed on its own.

“Well…”

The man unbuttoned and fastened his jacket as he sat back in his seat.

“Somehow, like this. I get nervous when I meet young people for the first time like this. Um, that’s right. Can we get the car going?”

The car immediately started running. Ryuuko had frozen completely. Anxiety was showing up on her face, and thanks to that, even Tobi became restless.

“It’s okay, Tobi. ‘Cause I’m here.”

Baku’s leisurely manner may be acting, but it was reassuring.

“Ah… That’s right.”

The man pulled out business cards from the chest pocket of his jacket. He pulled out two business cards from inside and handed them to Tobi and Ryuuko.

“I am called Kudou. Nice to meet you.”

“I-I’ll take it!”

Ryuuko accepted the business card as if she were worshiping it, but Tobi casually picked it up and read it. 

“Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office…? Administrative section, section chief… Kudou Keiki.”

“I’m an official. To put it plainly, I’m a national civil servant, a public servant.”

Kudou smiled and rubbed his hands together.

“I am working day and night for the sake of the people. Well actually, I was planning on having someone else take care of this, but the schedule didn’t work out. Or rather, it's because that person insisted, this unknown person who happened to be convenient passed through instead.”

“...Um, what kind of relationship do you have with Monika?”

When Ryuuko timidly asked, Kudou widened his eyes, “Oh!”

“That’s right. Yes. I’m Monika-kun’s boss, or rather I’m her friend and guardian, and that’s the kind of relationship we have. In the end, Monika-kun is helping my friend and subordinate boss’s work.”

“Well, the boss’s boss.”

Monika glanced at Kudou with eyes that made him think he was a useless person.

“I don’t have parents. I have a guardian instead of a protector. I feel like I’m lending a hand to that person. At work, that guardian becomes my direct boss.”

“Monika-kun’s boss, and that boss.”

Kudou smiled and lowered his head. This man was basically a smile, but he smiled in various ways, such as narrowing his eyes, raising the corners of his lips, and showing his teeth.

“Who’s the guardian?”

Ryuuko turned around and looked at the driver's seat. Monika shrugged her shoulders and said, “Didn’t come.”

“Captain, it’s troublesome. That’s it. Ah, captain is like a nickname.”

“Is that like Monika, or rather, is it a unique relationship…?

“That’s right, Hapieva!” 

Kudou clapped his hands together.

“I’ll analyze it here. Because it’s better to tell Otogiri-kun and Shiratama-san what’s going on. In conclusion, well, it’s not an SNS.”

“It just looks like an SNS.”

Monika followed in Kudou’s footsteps and explained.

There were many aspects that were difficult for Tobi to understand, but SNS was a tool for connecting and communicating with people who share the same hobbies and interests, as well as friends, using the internet. However, Hapieva was only connected to the user who uses it, that is, Asamiya, if it’s Asamiya. On the contrary, it was not connected to the network in the first place.

Hapieva was just a one-person app that looked like a social network. When Asamiya launches Hapieva and posts some kind of message, other users comment on it and ask questions. It just seemed that way. All other users were powered by artificial intelligence built into the app.

“...Wh-Why is that?”

Ryuuko’s eyes were about to start spinning. She looked confused. Tobi thought it was strange too.

“Like a game?”

“Maybe so, maybe not.”

Monika folded her arms and swayed her thick hair.

“But Asamiya had a recurrence after he started using this app. There’s no doubt about it. He didn’t remember installing it himself, and a virus called a backdoor was installed, and the smartphone containing Hapieva was invaded from the outside. It can be done. Since traces of the intrusion are erased, it is difficult to trace. It is crafted so that the exact date and time of installation cannot be determined.

“Ngaaaaaa….!”

Baku cried. Ryuuko held her head.

“...Hey something is about to explode…”

The same went for Tobi. His head hurt.

“It’s a very suspicious and dangerouuus app, isn’t it?”

Kudou said while smiling. Looking at the man's face, he can’t tell if the situation is serious or not.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything that looks like it on the internet, and there are suspicions that someone put it directly into the smartphone. If it’s done at school, it’s either a teacher or a student, right? I don’t have any connections with the teachers, so I’m thinking about doing something about that, but the problem is the students.”

Kudou suddenly covered his face with both hands and bent forward.

“...It’s troublesome. I’m in trouble. Isn’t junior high school a kindergarten for junior high students? It’s obvious. I’m a humble civil servant, but I’m not a police officer. The police are also quite difficult to get their hands on at school. They’re not even the police. I’m already in trouble…”

“Could you help me?”

Monika looked down on Kudou with a sideways glance that looked like contempt.

“It’s the same as before, same as before. I’m not doing this for fun. For the time being, you work. I’ll even pay you.”

“Fufufuu…”

Kudou leaned forward and only raised his head.

“Of course, we will also pay you a reward. To do that, you have to sign a contract with us. You’d be a public servant, so you can’t do it arbitrarily.”

“...Eh?”

Tobi turned his gaze to the car window. Were the windows of this car called smoke windows? From the inside, it was dark outside, and from the outside, it was impossible to see the inside. Where was this car going now? He got into this place, but was it good? The Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office. Civil servant. To begin with, was what Kudou said true?

“By any chance, are we—”

Ryuuko hugged the pochette, which must have held Chinuraasha, and leaned forward. 

“Are we being scouted by a secret organization…?”

+++ + ++++

Aside from cooperating with the investigation, they decided to put the contract on hold. He didn’t know how much the pay was, but the money was honestly attractive to Tobi. It seemed that Monika also didn’t have parents and had a guardian, so it wasn’t impossible to make a contract. However, it would be troublesome to explain to the staff of the facility. Was it really okay to trust an enigmatic adult like Kudou? He couldn’t help but feel like he had a lot to think about.

Ryuuko also seemed to have a high hurdle when it came to talking to her grandparents, but she still seemed enthusiastic about the investigation.

The weather was bad the next morning. By the time Tobi left the facility, it started to rain lightly, and Yagarashima-sensei in front of the school gate was wearing a kappa. The kappa had a flashy plaid pattern, and he was teased by the students, saying things like “Yagii, you’re so cool”, “You hurt my eyes, Yagii”, and “Isn’t that against the school rules, sensei?”

“This is my wife’s! It’s good! My wife and I are the same size!”

Yagarashima replied like that.

Ryuuko was waiting at the shoe box. When he and Ryuuko headed to the classroom together, they ran into Asamiya in front of the stairs. Asamiya had probably waited for Tobi as well.

“Somehow, I’m not feeling well without my smartphone…”

“You don’t know the time or date?”

“Surprisingly. Time, I’m in trouble because I can’t see it at a glance.”

“I see. I wear a watch.”

When Tobi showed him the wrist watch he was wearing on his left wrist, Asamiya had a face of, “huh?”

“How much did it cost?”

“It’s relatively cheap. If you go to a recycle shop, it won’t cost you 1,000 yen.”

“Really? Maybe I should buy one too. It looks pretty cool, I like it.”

He didn’t feel bad when he said that. Tobi bought it after examining it in his own way.

Ryuuko stared intently at Tobi’s watch. It was a little embarrassing to be watched so much, and he was a little worried that Ryuuko would fall over.

“People who wear watches are kind of grown up, aren’t they?”

“...Yeah?”

“Oh, I see.”

When Asamiya agreed, Ryuuko puffed out her chest with pride, “Isn’t that right!” 

“I admire it. I want to wear a watch when I grow up.”

“If it’s cheap, and I think I can buy it, can Shiratama also wear it?”

“No, no. It’s still too early for me. If I don’t grow up before that, I’m sure it won’t suit me.”

“...Does it not suit me?”

“It’s a perfect match for you, Tobi.”

“Otogiri, you’re a bit grown up.”

“A little bit!”

“I don’t think so…”

“Heh! Tobi’s still a scared little kid!”

Baku interjected, and Ryuuko softly laughed.

Asamiya can’t hear Baku’s voice. The semi-transparent zingai was tightly wrapped around Asamiya’s neck. Maybe that was how he protected his master’s vital points.

Although he couldn’t see them, Asamiya had a zingai recurrence. If he confided in Asamiya about the zingai, things could go smoothly. But would he believe him? No matter how much Tobu and Ryuuko spoke politely, Asamiya himself can see zingai. He couldn’t even hear the voices of zingai. He felt like it would be difficult.

Monika was in her seat lying face down on her desk.

“Good morning, Monika!”

When Ryuuko called out to her, she looked up, but she seemed sleepier than usual.

“...Ah— Good morning. You’re lively, huh? Even though it's raining…”

“Maybe the air pressure is too low?”

When Asamiya asked, Monika fell down on her desk again.

“...Well–yeah. I’m sleep deprived. Can’t we just say that?” 

She immediately raised her face again.

“Should we proceed from the place where the possibility is high?”

“D-don’t overdo it.”

In response to Ryuuko’s worried expression, Monika twitched her eyebrows and mouth. Did she mean to laugh at it?

“You should buy the hardships you had when you were young.”

“You’re saying old-fashioned things, aren’t you.”

Monika put her chin on her desk and snorted as Baku teased.

“The fruits of hard work must be sold at a high price.”

+++ + ++++

The cold rain fell on and off, with occasional glimpses of clear skies. Tobi quickly fished all of the non-staple school lunch, and he left the classroom with the butter roll and Baku in his hands. It was okay for him to eat it all in the classroom, but maybe it was a habit, and he couldn’t calm down. Since it was raining, Tobu crouched in front of the shoe boxes and ate the butter roll. After lunch time, Ryuuko and Monika arrived. Their investigation started.

“There are quite a few students who are almost guaranteed to recur, but Itoha Hiiragi is still a group.”

According to Monika’s opinion, Hiiragi’s butterfly zingai are highly dangerous, so they should be investigated as a priority.

“But Ryuuko is the only one who can talk normally with Hiiragi.”

“Leave it to me. I feel like I’m riding a big ship. For now, I’m going to start by asking if she knows of an app called Hapieva.”

“Is that fine? Ryuuko, we’re counting on you.”

“You’re counting on me… Is that true?”

“Yeah. I want you to become an external collaborator. You can earn more than a high school student at a part-time job.”

“Wh-what?”

“There’s a duty of confidentiality, but on the contrary, I don’t have to hide anything anymore. Putting aside the fact that I don’t care if it’s a complete stranger, it’s kind of annoying if you have that kind of thing between friends.”

“Between friends—”

Ryuuko kept nodding her head.

“I see. Seriously, I’ll think positively.”

“Tobi too.”

Monika glanced at him. Tobi didn’t say anything. He was thinking about it, but he was confused.

Kudou Keiki.

Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office.

Zingai.

Things most people can’t see. Sometimes they cause serious incidents. There’s an organization investigating them, and apparently the country is involved.

It was strange, or rather frustrating. Kudou gave him a business card. It was still a lie.

However, even if a zingai hurts someone and kills them, for most people it would be a suicide, or, at best, a suspicious death. Is that fine? It was not good, so adults like Kudou may be moving. Even though Monika was still a junior high student, she helped out with their work.

She also lent her powers to Tobi. Ryuuko too.

It was already pragmatically so. Once a contract was signed, the form would be in place and the reward would be paid. Tobi is currently living in a facility, but eventually he would have to leave. Money was probably better than nothing. He was sure it’d be useful in searching for his brother.

Maybe Tobi should accept Kudou’s offer after all. As he climbed the stairs and was about to enter the second-floor hallway lined with second year classrooms, he heard a familiar voice.

“Bye-bye~~ I-to-ha! Ruka-chin will come to play again~...!”

A girl wearing glasses was standing in the doorway of the second-year classroom. It was Shizukudani Rukana. Waving at someone in the classroom.

‘Itoha,’ Shizukudani had said.

Did she mean Hiiragi Itoha?

Shizukudani turned around and turned to face Tobi. Shizukudani was not alone.

She was accompanied by a smooth, four-legged zingai.

“Oh–!”

Shizukudani laughed. Or rather, it was originally a smile. With a big smile on her face, Shizukudani started skipping. The zingai followed Shizukudani by jumping on its four legs.

“Shiratama-dango~! Tobi-Tobi~! Moni-Moni is also here, right? Hahah—!”

“...Shi-Shizukudani-san.”

Ryuuko’s eyes widened in surprise. Or rather, she was trembling with fear. To be honest, Tobi was also a little scared. Occasionally, some students pulled eye-catching pranks at school. However, Shizukudani felt different now.

“Yay!”

As they passed each other, Shizukudani demanded a high-five from Ryuuko. When Ryuuko responded, “Ha, hah!” Shizukudani continued without slowing down her skips.

“...What was that?”

Even Baku seemed to think she was.

“That girl, she’s not a recurrence, is she?”

Monika was making a grim face. Ryuuko shook her head.

“Ah, yes, Shizukudani, since she was in first grade.

“Should I mark it after all? It’s pretty big.”

Big. What was Monika referring to when she said that? Tobi instantly realized. Shizukudani’s zingai. Of course, he’s never measured it accurately, but at first glance, it was about the size of a human’s upper body. When he first saw it, he was startled.

“That size for people who can’t see them. Is there such a thing?”

“There is.”

Monika answered without hesitation and started walking.

“Infinite variety. Same as humans.”

“That’s troublesome.”

Baku said it like it was someone else’s problem. He wanted it to be Tobi’s, who carried that troublesome backpack.

He was surprised by Shizukudani, and was curious, but for now, it was Hiiragi Itoha. Tobi looked around the second year classroom through the door Shizukudani had looked through earlier. Itoha sat in the front seat, and two female students were standing nearby. Including those girls, there were about ten students in the classroom. The air was heavy. For example, someone was arguing, and everyone other than the involved parties were watching the situation awkwardly. That was the atmosphere. Was it Shizukudani? Shizukudani did something. Was that how this happened? Tobi gasped.

Suddenly, Hiiragi’s long hair was pulled up. Was it her hair? No. That was not her hair. The black wings had blue stripes. A little butterfly. Not a real butterfly. Zingai butterfly. The zingai butterflies that had perched on Hiiragi’s hair flew off all at once. Hiiragi originally had two zingai butterflies. But there were definitely more than two. Four butterflies? More than that.

“That’s why—!”

Hiiragi shouted.

“Don’t be nice to me! Don’t mind me! I’m telling you to leave me alone…!”

Her voice turned inside out and broke down. The two girls who were by Hiiragi’s side retreated. Those two must have been surprised and overwhelmed by Hiiragi’s threatening attitude. They couldn’t see the butterfly zingai attacking them. If they had seen them, they should have run away. How many sets of wings did he count now? It’s increased. One set split into two, two split into four, and the zingai butterflies flocked to them

The two groaned, “Uh—” and collapsed. The small zingai butterflies stuck to their faces. Even on their necks and hands where skin was exposed. Tobi, Ryuuko, and Monika could see them. They were invisible to the students in the classroom. Two of their classmates had suddenly fainted, even though they couldn’t see the zingai butterflies. Some students shouted something, and some students left their seats. A male student tried to run up to the two who were lying down.

Hiiragi looked at the male student. Her eyes were bottomless pits. Immediately, several zingai butterflies left the female students and flew towards the male student. The butterflies fluttered and didn’t seem to be very fast. But it was almost instant. The zingai butterflies were obsessed with the male student while he was watching. The tiny zingai butterflies landed on his cheeks, the tip of his nose, and his chin one after another.

“Nghh…”

The male student collapsed and fell on his bottom. With that pace, he hit his head on the desk, “--Ow” and rolled the whites of his eyes and fell to the floor.

Monika muttered something. He couldn’t hear it clearly, but maybe it was ‘runway.’ ‘Run away.’ Run away?

“No way, Tobi-....!”

Baku howled. But, this, what should he do?

“Hiiragi-san!”

Ryuuko tried to rush into the classroom. Hiiragi glared at Ryuuko before Tobi could stop her. Hiiragi’s face was distorted so badly that the outline changed. The two deep, gaping holes looked more like they were trying to suck Ryuuko in than they were glaring at her.

The zingai butterflies flew. At first it was one. It split into two sets of wings with a  pop. Two became four. It was trying to break up further. Eight sets. Double that. Monika grabbed Ryuuko’s arm and pulled her.

“Evacuate at once…!”

“Can you make it in time!”

Baku went on a rampage. That’s right. As Baku said, they won't make it in time. So Tobi didn’t pull Baku’s strap. He wouldn’t stop Baku. On the contrary.

“Go…!”

“OoshaAaa!”

Baku slipped off of Tobi’s back and jumped into the classroom in front of Ryuuko and Monika. Baku was now standing on two legs with his back to Tobi and the others. He also had two arms and large, four-fingered hands. For some reason, he had eyeballs on the back of his hands. His long head looked like a cylinder. He wore a long, cloak-like garment of a fabric similar to the backpack.

“Ha…” Ryuuko uttered a sound that was neither her breath nor her voice, and Monika whispered “transformation.”

“AAaaaa———N….!”

Baku puffed up his tube-like head, opened his mouth wide, and gulped down sixteen or so of the zingai butterflies that went by.

“Mmm—.....!”

Then, he slapped his abdomen with his big hand. 

“That kind of thing doesn’t even help my stomach!”

“...He, he ate them.”

Monika was clinging to Ryuuko, who she should have been trying to pull. Ryuuko moved her mouth quickly, perhaps wanting to say something, but her voice didn’t come out.

“—h-h-h…..!”

Hiiragi’s breathing became extremely rough. She covered her ears with both hands and bent over. Hiiragi couldn’t see her zingai. But did she feel something?

Those butterflies were also zingai, so they must be trying to protect their master, Hiiragi. Tobi didn’t know the circumstances, but they must have tried to eliminate Hiiragi’s friends and classmates who were a threat to her. The zingai butterflies were eaten. A further threat had emerged.

“H-H-H-H-H….!”

The zingai butterflies that had been attacking the two fallen girls and the boy who had hit his head exploded into the air, spread out, and flew around. The unharmed students were confused. They cause a commotion. They were attacked by the zingai butterflies one after another. They fell one after another.

He wondered if the butterfly zingai were sucking up not nectar, but something like the student’s spirits. They increased. They were still increasing. Repeatedly splitting, the zingai butterflies multiplied. From the black hair of Hiiragi, something like caterpillars crawled out one after another, changed their shape in the blink of an eye, shed their skin, and became a butterfly. How many zingai butterfly were there in total now? He couldn’t count them.

“In that case, I’ll eat them up. That’s fine, right Tobi…!?”

Baku turned his cylindrical head, which had only a mouth for eating, and groaned. Tobi grabbed Baku by the collar, forced him out of the classroom, and quickly closed the door.

“No, no not at all, you can’t eat them all…!”

“Aah!? Why!”

“---T-the back door!”

Ryuuko raised her voice and said. Sure enough, the front door was closed, but the back door was open.

“Otogiri-kun!? Shiratama-san…!?”

He heard a man’s voice. Looking up, a janitor in work clothes came running up the stairs. It was Haizaki. He had a weasel on his left shoulder. It looked like a weasel, but it wasn’t a weasel. That was Haizaki’s zingai. Was it Oruba? Monika started running.

“Oji-san, withdraw…!”

Was she going to close the door behind them? Ryuuko, who was behind them, shouted, “Monika!” From the open door behind them, zingai butterflies started flying out.

“Oruba…!”

Haizaki rushed forward. There was no weasel like Oruba. Where did he go? The right leg. Haizaki’s right leg was covered with something different from his work clothes, be it leather or fur. That was Oruba. Oruba was there.

Haizaki passed Tobi and the others at the speed of a small jet plane and held Monika.

“----Nn…!”

“Tobi Otogiri…!”

As soon as he shouted that, he kicked the floor with Oruba’s right leg while still holding Monika. He jumped backwards. Even athletes who set the world record for the high back jump can’t jump like that. That was incredible jumping power.

“Woaah…!”

Baku charged in to replace Haizaki, and he was attacked by the swarm of butterfly zingai that were trying to attack Monika. The zingai butterflies that couldn’t be eaten were caught with his large hands. Meanwhile, Tobi closed the back door.  From the other side of the door, he felt something like a vibration, though it was not a vibration. Butterfly zingai? Were they hitting against the door? Looking up, Ryuuko was holding the front door while trembling.

“B-but, there is a person inside…! Hiiragi-san too, we can’t just leave her like that…!”

“How will we…!”

Haizaki was on one knee, still holding Monika. It seemed like he was asking Monika.

“One person had reoccurred and gone out of control! There are victims too! Put me down…!”

Monika struggled. Haizaki let Monika stand up. Her thin eyes were wide open.

“Okay, you should report it upstairs and order an evacuation! Give a reason like a gas leak or something! I’ll be here!”

“Why, Oji-san?!”

“As of today, I’m undertaking my survey of the teachers, Ask the manager for details!”

“...The Otter is back!”

“I’m an outside collaborator. I’ll do my best not to hold you back. Now, go!”

What were those talking about? Tobi didn’t know anything about it. But Monika seemed to be leaving. Haizaki stayed. So what should Tobi and Ryuuko do?

“I’ll be fine! Okay?”

Haizaki ran up to Tobi, who was holding the door behind him.

“I’ll take the recurring person out of there. There are still students in the gym, so yeah, take them to the multi-purpose room. If zingai attack, feed them to your zingai. If you don’t eat them all, she won’t be in the worst condition. Once the recurring person and zingai are out, the students inside can be safely rescued. Okay? Got it?”

Tobi nodded. “Leave it to me,” Baku breathed. He wanted to eat and couldn’t help but want to eat. Besides, he was going to help people, so nobody would complain.

“I-I’ll…!”

Ryuuko’s voice sounded like a yell. Since it was lunch break, there were other students in the corridor. It was quite noisy, but it couldn’t be helped.

“Once I give the signal, get out of here! You can run away!” 

Haizaki said, “Three!” and raised his right index, middle, and ring fingers.”

“Two, one—”

He folded his ring finger first, then his middle finger, then said, “Let’s do it!” He plunged into the classroom.

“Get down, Tobi!”

Baku yelled. Tobi did as he was told. Ryuuko was running towards the stairs. Zingai butterflies overflowed from the back door, and the front door opened of its own accord. Each butterfly was so small that they were about the size of the end of his thumb. But the numbers were amazing.

“—UOooo…!?”

Baku flinched for a moment. One moment. He immediately lifted his tubular head, opened his mouth, and began to eat the zingai butterflies. While jumping and eating the zingai butterflies directly, the butterfly zingai he caught by swinging both hands around were also steadily brought to his mouth. Not all of them. After all, there were a lot of them, and the zingai butterflies flew around, so he couldn’t help but miss them.

Haizaki jumped out of the front door. He held Hiiragi firmly of his size. Haizaki kicked Oruba’s right leg against the wall instead of the floor. With one kick, he could go several meters, and this time he kicked the floor. Haizaki headed towards the stairs. A flock of black zingai butterflies chased Haizaki. They were not pitch black. A bright blue stripe pattern shimmered. It was like a starry sky. A beautiful yet terrifying starry sky drifted down the corridor, trying to swallow Haizaki.

“Baku…!”

Tobi also followed Haizaki. Behind him, a voice that sounded like Asamiya’s voice shouted, “Otogiri…!?” He couldn’t turn around. The multipurpose room was located on the first floor down the stairs. Haizaki was aiming for that. What should Tobi do? What could he do? What did Tobi want to do?

Haizaki was going down the stairs. Tobi saw something strange. He didn’t see it clearly. Haizaki must have kicked the floor with Oruba’s right leg and tried to jump all the way down to the landing. It was not Oruba’s right leg. Something grappled with Haizaki’s left leg. It looked like that. What was it? It was not human. Of course it was not human. It was not as big as a human. It was probably half a human.

“—Ah…”

Thanks to that, Haizaki lost his balance and was unable to jump to the landing or run down the stairs. He tumbled down.

Haizaki was holding Hiiragi. Tobi rushed to the bottom of the stairs. Were they okay? Haizaki. Hiiragi.

“Ha-Haizaki-san…!”

Ryuuko was not on the stairs going down, but on the stairs leading to the third floor, two or three steps up. From there, she leaned forward, overlooking the landing of the descending stairs. There was someone else on the stairs, not just Ryuuko. A bespectacled schoolgirl was sitting on the landing of the ascending staircase. Shizukudani. Why Shizukudani? No, right now, Haizaki and Hiiragi.

Haizaki was lying on the landing of the stairs going down. Perhaps he had tried to protect Hiiragi when he fell down, and he was holding Hiiragi tightly.

Tobi bent down involuntarily. The zingai butterflies. The zingai butterflies were flying overhead. Countless butterfly zingai flocked to Haizaki.

“Ugh…kuh…”

Haizaki hadn’t lost consciousness. Was he hurt somewhere? Or maybe it was because of the zingai butterflies. Unable to get up, Oruba’s right leg was trying to ward off the zingai butterflies that were approaching, but it was hot stones in water. Besides, quite a few zingai butterflies were already clinging to Haizaki. Like the students of second year class one, Haizaki was also having his energy sucked by the zingai butterflies.

 “Tobi...!”

Baku bit a zingai butterfly that was trying to stop Tobi. Students were trying to gather here and there. The school broadcast chime sounded.

“Eh, emergency broadcast, students evacuate immediately, uh, outside, outside, hurry up!”

It was Monika. Wasn’t that Monika’s voice?

In front of the bathroom near the stairs, two or three zingai butterflies landed on the forehead of a female student who was looking up at the ceiling with a “—Huh?” The female student collapsed, and another female student who tried to help her wake up said, “Huh, wait!?” and also fell prey to the zingai butterflies.

“—There’s a risk of gas generation in the school! This is not a drill, so all students, please go outside, quickly!”

Immediately, several students tried to run down the stairs where Haizaki had collapsed. Tobi exchanged glances with Ryuuko and stood in front of the students.

“Th-This way’s not good!” “Because it’s dangerous. Use the other stairs…!”

“MUAAaaAAaaa!”

Baku ate every zingai butterfly that came near Tobi and Ryuuko. Tobi suddenly thought. To someone who can’t see zingai, what does this look like?

“There’s no end, they’re small…!”

“Keep it up!”

Who was that? At a time like this. What did they mean? Tobi was really pissed off. He didn’t know what was going on anymore, but he was doing his best.

“Do your best~ Don’t lose~ Fufufufufuu…”

He didn’t recognize the laughter. Tobi turned and looked up at the landing of the stairs leading up. He heard voices coming from there. He knew who it was. Ryuuko turned around.

“...Shizukudani—san?”

“Good job~ Shiratama-dango. Tobi-Tobi~.

He knew that Shizukudani was sitting there. Because he had glanced at her. Why was she in such a place? What exactly was that skip? Shizukudani must have something to do with Hiiiragi. What did she do? Shizukudani was not alone. Her zingai. Her smooth, four-legged zingai jumped over the stair railing onto Shizukudani’s shoulders. Where had that zingai been until now?

When Haizaki fell down the stairs, Tobi had seen something. It was a momentary event, but something about half the side of a human grappled onto Haizaki’s left leg.

Haizaki hadn’t messed up.

Something, exactly the size of Shizukudani’s zingai, interfered with Haizaki.

Shizukudani’s zingai hid behind its master. However it was not completely hidden. Four arm-like legs protruded from its master’s body. Furthermore, the zingai poked its head out from above its master’s right shoulder. It was both like a baby and an old man without wrinkles. Of course, it was neither a baby or an old man. In fact, they didn’t even look alike. That zingai had four eyes.

“Cipher.”

Shizukudance said so and made his whole face melt. She lifted her right hand and stroked the zingai’s head. As if to say, ‘I love this child so much.’

“Thank you for your hard work. My Cipher.”

“...She can see—”

Ryuuko muttered dumbfoundedly.

“I’m him.”

Tobi said. That zingai. Chipha. Was that the name? Shizukudani’s zingai, Cipher. He had grabbed Haizaki’s left leg and made him fall. And Shizukudani could see zingai. From the looks of it, it was nothing new. She could see them the whole time. 

Shizukudani had pretended she couldn’t see.

Why?

Why would she do that?

“What…”

Ryuuko shook her head. It was a swing that seemed to make a rattling sound.

“—Wh-what… are you… doing, Shizukudani-san, what are you doing there…?”

“With you guys as well, what are you doing? It’s just getting interesting. Don’t get in the way, stupid~”

Even though Shizudani cursed, she was still smiling. Why was she laughing? Getting interesting? Don’t get in the way? Cipher. Did that zingai do it on their own? That wasn’t it.

I don’t think so.

Shizukudani got up and went down one step, two steps, and looked down towards the stairs. Haizaki was collapsed. He was probably lying there. Haizaki’s appearance could not be confirmed. A tremendous number of zingai butterflies were covering Haizaki. What happened to Oruba, who was integrategrated with Haizaki’s right leg? What happened? He didn’t know.

Before he knew it, the zingai butterflies weren’t flying. Not a single one flew.

Were all the zingai butterflies flying at Haizaki? He didn’t know the boundaries between the zingai butterflies and the zingai butterflies that huddled their wings together. Were there borders? Haizaki was hugging Hiiragi. Haizaki and Hiiragi should be among those countless butterfly zingai.

Suddenly, a group of butterfly zingai swelled. It stood up, clad in a multitude of zingai butterflies.

It was her. It was Hiiragi Itoha. Hiiragi peeked through gaps between the zingai butterflies and turned around. There was a smile that was completely out of place.

“How are youuu~? I-to-ha. It’s Ruka-chin, isn’t it~?”

“...Rukana.”

“They’re beautiful, Itoha. It’s so beautiful that it gives me goosebumps. You used to love them, Ruritateha. Ah. Can’t you see them, Itoha? Disssappointing~”

“...What are you saying…”

“I told you, it’s okay.”

For a moment, all emotion escaped from Shizukudani’s face and voice. But her facial muscles quickly collapsed, and she was either laughing, angry, or was she sad, it seemed to be any of them, but it was none of them, a disgusting face was exposed.

“We were best friends weren’t we? I want you to be happy. Don’t lie all the time, let’s show the real you. Hey? Itoha~?”

Hiiragi covered her left and right ears with both hands covered in butterfly zingai.

“AAa—”

“Itoha~, [Find yourself] right! [Let’s find ourselves] right!?”

“AAAaa! AaAAAaaa!”

“[You can do it, you can do it]! [It’s not impossible] eh! [You just have to let go] oh!”

“Stop it, Rukana, stop it already…!”

The zingai butterflies clinging to Hiiragi’s body swayed and flew. The zingai butterflies that divided and proliferated recombined and a large zingai butterfly. The wings easily spread over a meter wide. It was almost the width of the stairs. Big. It was a giant butterfly. The upper side of the wings were black with a  beautiful blue pattern. But behind that, it looked like a dead leaf.

The giant zingai butterfly flew. Instinctively, Tobi pulled Ryuuko up and crouched down. As expected of Baku, it seemed that he was only frightened by the fact that it was really big. The giant zingai butterfly passed over Tobi and Ryuuko’s heads, heading towards Shizukudani near the landing of  the stairs.

“That’s right! Well, you’re trying to hurt me…!”

Tears welled in Shizukudani’s eyes like a dam had burst. She was crying. Despite crying so much, Shizukudani was still laughing.

“Itoha~ that’s your true nature! Seriously, the worst~...!

Shizukudani wasn’t the only one laughing. Cipher. That four-legged zingai had his mouth open. But, was it laughing? If the jaw joining was normal structure, it was definitely out of place. Just like a crocodile. Or rather, it looked like a snake trying to swallow something bigger than itself.

Cipher rose from the back of Shizukudani. It pounced on the giant butterfly zingai and bit into one of its wings. Cipher fell down the stairs along with the gigantic zingai butterfly. Eat. It was eating on the giant butterfly zingai.

“Uuugh…”

Hiiragi stumbled and Rukana cried.

“Well~, you see~, it was~! Me, foreeeeever! Itoha! I wanted to eat you! You will be mine! You will be eaten by me! I wish you would become a part of meee~…!”

[inochinoyomikata]

Inochi no Tabekata 2 ch 3-1 Translation

Part #3 — Pupils, Flowing, Shooting Star | wish upon a comet

“Tonight let’s use the weasel as bait and kill the wolf

You just have to hide the prey so it can’t be found

Because the more treasure you can’t take back, the deeper the pain in your chest.”

 — “Work #10”  S

3-1 Otogiri Tobi– I Want to Hold Your Hand and Become Your Strength

“Oto…How many times is this? We’re going to hold a courtyard meeting.” 

With a gloomy voice that would be difficult to describe as loud, Asahi Monika declared, and Shiratama Ryuuko applauded.

“Waa-”

Where was the need to unreasonably get loud like that? Tobi was already exhausted. Just sitting on the bench sandwiched between Monika and Ryuuko made him kind of tired.

“I mean, what kind of meaning…”

“I’m hungry…”

Tobi’s backpack groaned.

Monika whispered “I see.” She could hear the zingai voices. Like Tobi and Ryuuko could. Though Tobi had Baku, and Ryuuko had Chinuraasha, but Monika had no one.

“Baku has an appetite.”

“Ahh? Are you complaining?”

“I have no complaints. It’s just that it’s difficult. Ryuuko’s? What is it?”

“His name?”

Ryuuko opened her pochette. Immediately, a white fluffy zingai with horns sprouting out poked his face out from inside. But he often fits in that pochette. Was it just Tobi’s imagination? He was kind of big. Was he getting bigger?

“His name is Chinuraasha, and I call him Chinu.”

“How’s Chinu-chan?”

“Is Chinu-chan hungry?”

As Ryuuko touched Chinu’s horns with her fingertips, she thought, “mm–…”

“I don’t think it’s anything like that. Chinu doesn’t talk like Baku, and I don’t know if that’s true, but I think it’s possible.”

“Then that’s good. I’ll tell you—”

Monika patted Baku lightly, then stroked Chinu’s fur.

“Be careful with your meals.”

“I’m holding back! I’m holding back!”

Really, could she please stop talking to Baku so normally? Tobi swallowed the words that came up to his throat. It would be foolish to not be careful. There were quite a few other students in the courtyard, but no one seemed to care about Tobi. Haizaki, who was wandering around the parking lot saying, “well,” seemed fine to ignore.

“Baku is amazing.”

After being praised by Monika, Baku easily changed his mood.

“Heheh. Right.”

“It’s amazing that you have-self control.”

“That’s right. I’m amazing. I know that! If anything, you can worship me. Come one, Tobi. Praise me.”

“No way…”

“Ehehe.”

Ryuuko turned her face to Baku and put her hands together. Baku, who was proudly laughing, “Mafufu-” was a little irritating, and Tobi, who was carrying the backpack, can’t help but feel like he was being praised. He really wanted it to stop.

“However—”

Monika crossed her legs and slowly shook her head.

“The more you eat, the more you might lose control.”

“Huh! Don’t lump me in with those other guys. I’m the one who can endure the unbearable.”

“I hope so.”

“Since I’ve been patient for this long, let me eat a little bit as a reward!”

“You know what happens to the master when you eat zingai, right?”

Monika made a serious face and lowered her voice.

“Kon Chiami. Masaki Shuuji. It was Baku who at those two’s zingai, wasn’t it?”

“Wh-Why…”

Ryuuko tightly hugged the pochette that seemed like Chinu would pop out of at any moment.

“Th-That thing, how do you know about it?”

“Because that’s what I’m looking for.”

“Is that your answer?”

Monika didn’t flinch at all when Tobi asked the question.

“This school has too many recurrences.”

She didn’t answer the question. She diverted the conversation right away. But he couldn’t help but listen because she said things he couldn’t ignore.

“Puberty is rather dangerous. There are secondary sexual characteristics, and recurrences occur relatively easily during the period from childhood to adulthood. Even so, there are too many. If they recur, it wouldn’t be strange for some of them to cause trouble.”

In other words, what did Monika want to say?

“...Is there a cause? Something that could cause a recurrence?”

“I wonder, I’m glaring.”

“You want to find it, right?”

Ryuuko’s breathing became rushed. He wished she didn’t worry like that so much.

“Is there something? Something like a commonality for those who recurred?”

“I can see the data that the school has.”

Monika whispered something slightly dangerous.

“Data, like the IT systems’s…?

Maybe Ryuuko didn’t quite understand what she was saying.

“Well, when you say it ‘IT', you mean IT. Something like storing it on the school’s server.”

When Monika mentioned words like ‘server’ and ‘storage,’ Ryuuko finally turned her head away.

“H-how did you do that?”

“That? It's a connection.”

“M-maybe Monika is… an acquaintance of the school chairman?”

Perhaps because she was upset, Ryuuko said something strange. Tobi sighed.

“There’s no such thing as a chairman. It’s a public school.”

“Is that so…”

“If there’s as much information as the school has, it's probably possible to extract it.”

Monika said again. So, why? How? As for Tobi, that’s what he wanted to know. He felt like it was better to not know. Somehow it smelled criminal.

Or was it the other way around?

Police, for example, can see personal information as part of an investigation. Could Asahi Monika, a second-year junior high school student, be a police officer? There was no way.

“But what do you think?”

Monika folded her arms.

“Even if I try, I personally don’t have high hopes for it. Do you want to do the legwork and find out the classic way? People who have recurred can usually be understood by watching them, and personal interviews.”

“I’m not good at that.”

When Tobi reflexively said that, Monika laughed through her nose.

“Is that right? Same here.”

“I like talking to people, and I wonder if there’s anything I can’t do!”

Ryuuko puts too much effort into everything.

“Are you okay? O-Ryuu…”

It seemed that Baku was just as worried as Tobi.

“Of course I’m okay!”

Immediately after Ryuuko said it matter-of-factly, she suddenly became upset. She was a busy person.

“...Sometimes, how can I say it, I’m a little bit drawn to it? I know sometimes that happens. As a practical matter, it might be a little difficult if you’re dealing with someone you don’t know…”

“At least, should you narrow it down?”

Monika put her chin on her lap and groaned, “hnn.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Please do!”

What feeling is drawing Ryuuko in? Isn’t there something drawing her in? Tobi thought about that, but didn’t say it. He was not in the right place to say something grandiose.

Tobi seems to have been disliked by Asamiya for some reason. Did he do something to Asamiya to make him angry? No matter how much he thought about it, he didn’t know. Did he unconsciously say something offensive? Did he act selfishly and make him withdraw?

Ryuuko was fully aware that she sometimes made others comfortable with her. Much easier than Tobi.

“It would be much easier if I could just eat whatever I can find and solve this.”

When Baku grumbled, Monika made an X with both index fingers.

“That’s not a joke, it’s dangerous. There seem to have been cases where they got out of control after eating so much that they even ate their master.”

“Huh…? Eat the master? If it were me, would that be… Tobi?”

“It seems to be super rare, and I don’t know much about it.”

“Heh! This me is going to eat Tobi. Isn’t that unlikely?”

“...If I look so delicious, why don’t you eat me?”

“Idiot! No matter what, I wouldn’t eat my buddy.”

Tobi believed Baku without reason.

On the other hand, he also thought so.

Appetite would not be the reason.

+++ + ++++

The lunch break was about to end, so when they left the courtyard, Ryuuko started to lag behind, and the distance between her and Monika increased.

“Ah… well, I…”

Ryuuko seemed embarrassed to speak, but Monika was open minded.

“I’m going to pick some flowers.”

Tobi didn’t know how to respond, so for the time being, he nodded as if he understood. She left them behind and hurried on.

“By the way, picking flowers is just that, Tobi ah—”

Tobi tugged on Baku’s strap to shut him up. He knew that much.

When he was about to enter the class 2-3 classroom, Asamiya was squatting with his back against the wall in the corridor. He was fiddling with his smartphone. Should he not interfere? Maybe he hates him.

In the past, Tobi would never have thought of approaching Asamiya in the same situation as now. To begin with, if it was Tobi before, he wouldn’t have had a relationship where he would talk to Asamiya.

Tobi took a deep breath. It took a lot of courage.

“Asamiya.”

As he approached, Asamiya hurriedly put his smartphone in his pocket.

“...Ah, Otogiri.”

Asamiya stood up and made a smirk while touching his bangs. He had a rather awkward smile. He didn’t get the impression he was being rejected though. Tobi was surprisingly relieved. It even felt like his heart had been pounding.

Alright, Tobi thought.

Am I glad, me?

“What? What’s wrong?”

Asamiya was still pinching his bangs and running them through his fingers. He was a little red in his checks. What was wrong with him? Honestly, he couldn’t tell. He just wanted to chat. Probably not that. He just wanted to see if he was really hated by Asamiya.

“No, it’s not—”

But I can’t ask him if he doesn’t like me.

Somehow, I feel like he doesn’t hate me.

Tobi suddenly couldn’t look straight at Asamiya’s face. For some reason, he felt strangely embarrassed, and naturally lowered his gaze. He looked around at Asamiya’s neck and he noticed.

“It’s not…”

Tobi repeated. It’s not?

Where?

“Oi, no way…”

Baku was dismayed and trembled slightly.

“Hmm?”

Asamiya frowned slightly. He was suspicious. It would seem so. Tobi pretended to be calm. Was he able to pretend? He hadn’t been able to. He was clearly failing.

He wouldn’t know unless he looked closely. A thin, string-like, tape-like, or belt-like thing was wrapped around Asamiya’s neck.

It was transparent. The skin was transparent. There were a few bright colors.

It was not a type of accessory.

Because it was moving.

It was wriggling, just a little bit. 

Rather than string, tape, or a belt, it was a snake.

A translucent snake was entwined around Asamiya’s neck and was tightening around it. Or was it just looking for the right place to be?

“It’s not.”

Tobi made a clumsy smile.

“It’s nothing.”

“...Oh. That so?”

Asamiya made an unsatisfied face. But he said nothing more. Tobi entered the classroom with Asamiya, but he was barely able to speak. He was in no way able to speak. That semi-transparent string, tape, or belt-like, snake-like thing.

Apparently he didn’t notice.

It looked at Tobi.

A zingai.

Asamiya had recurred.

+++ + ++++

After school, Tobi exchanged glances with Ryuuko and Monika, and the three of them surrounded Asamiya at once. They had a secret meeting beforehand. It was good to just follow the steps.

“Ehh? Eh? What? Ehh..?”

Asamiya must have been very surprised. He looked at Tobi as he called for help. He felt sorry for him, but he had a reason.

“Asamiya, umm… Uhh, what is it… that…”

He should have decided what to say, but for some reason it wouldn’t come out.

“Tobi-...”

His backpack was dumbfounded.

“Asamiya-kun!”

Ryuuko grabbed Asamiya’s arm. Asamiya was quick. Without hesitation, he shook Ryuuko’s hand away.

“Wh-What are you doing, all of a sudden!”

“Asamiya, umm, co-cooperation—”

Tobi managed to coax the words out of his head.

“There’s something we want you to cooperate with. With you. Well… if not, even so…”

“...Me?”

“Yeah.”

“We mean.”

Monika looked up at Asamiya with her upturned eyes. She looked a little scary.

“Even if you don’t like it, please cooperate.”

“...That’s pushy.”

“Understood. I don’t know what I can do. I’m free anyway…”

+++ + ++++

Just in case, they would surround Asamiya, block his escape route, and ask for his cooperation. In fact, that was all they had discussed and decided. It wasn’t just Tobi, Ryuuko didn’t seem to think about after that. But it seemed Monika had a plan in advance.

Tobi and the others were led by Monika to walk ten minutes or so from school to the biggest supermarket around there. Monika ordered Ryuuko to reserve them some seats at the food court, so she took Tobi to a hamburger and ordered four sets with drinks and fries. Tobi had two trays with two sets each. When he went to their seats, Ryuuko and Asamiya were sitting there waiting.

“My treat.”

Monika nudged her chin, saying, “There.” However, it was Monika who paid for four people. Moreover, Monika chose the expensive ones from the menu. Tobi meekly placed the tray on the table.

“It’s a big cheese tomato burger set, and all the drinks are melon soda, but there’s no problem right?”

Monika sat her down on the chair next to Asamiya and crossed her legs. Tobi sat next to Ryuuko.

“H-h-h-how extravagant…”

Ryuuko’s eyes changed into big circles.

“...Is that okay?”

Was Asamiya embarrassed or was he apologizing? Was it both?

“I need your cooperation.”

Monika said calmly.

“Because I have economic power.”

It was a line that doesn’t easily come from the mouth of a second year junior high student. Asamiya looked at Tobi. With his eyes, he asked if it was really okay being treated like this. How should he answer? Tobi didn’t even know that.

“Let’s eat~”

Monika quickly unwrapped a big cheese tomato burger and suddenly opened her mouth wide and bit into it.

“---It’s delicious.”

“Kah…!”

Baku cried. Was he inspired by Monika’s eating habits? Baku’s appetite should be different from hers. Tobi was getting impatient too.

“This is my first time having a hamburger… Melon soda too…!”

Ryuuko was trembling.

“Really?”

Monika had already eaten half of her hamburger with her second bite. She grinned and gave a thumbs up.

“Try it. It’s the best.”

“Th-Then, excuse me…”

Ryuuko carefully unwrapped it, closed her eyes, and nibbled at the hamburger.

“Hnn…!”

She bit it.

“Mm! Mm! Mmmm…!”

Her eyelids quivered every time she made an inarticulate sound with his mouth closed. Funny.

“...Fine. I’ll take it. I can’t stand it.”

Asamiya also started eating. It looked very good.

“Tobi, you too, hey!”

He couldn’t stand it anymore, even if it was instigated by Baku. Why was he so patient to begin with? Unsure of himself, Tobi unwrapped the hamburger and grunted ceaselessly. Oh, he almost let out a voice. Tobi closed his mouth and eyes tightly and moved his jaw. The taste of bread, hamburger, lettuce, cheese, ketchup, pickles, peppers, and more all harmoniously combined made his brain numb.

“...What’s this?”

The taste was violent. It attacks and knocks down the people who eat it.

“What’s going on!?”

Baku asked. Only this one word came out.

“Delicious.”

After that, Tobi concentrated on eating. The big cheese tomato burgers and french fries quickly filled the junior high students’ stomachs. Tobi, Monika, and Asamiya drank up the melon soda. Only Ryuuko drank sips. She seemed to like soft drinks, but since they were too stimulating, she doesn’t seem to be good with them.

“---So, cooperation? What should I do?”

Asamiya said as he folded the crumpled wrapping paper. He seemed to be doing it unconsciously, He wondered if it was a habit.

“Has anything changed recently?” Monika asked, and Asamiya stopped. He hung his head and twisted his mouth.

“...Something strange, huh? There are so many.”

“That right…?”

Tobi was quietly staring at Asamiya’s neck. A thin cord, tape, belt, or translucent snake-like zingai was tightening around its master’s neck. It may just look like that. In the first place, would a zingai hurt or torment its master? Would Baku to Tobi? Would Chinuraasha to Ryuuko? He couldn’t imagine.

“That’s… well, there are things like Kon and Masaki, but Miyu’s the first.” Asamiya rephrased. “Takatomo’s.”

“...Those things, I guess. For me. We were childhood friends. In the end, I still don’t really understand the cause. I myself… feel like I’m different from before. Like this. If I say this, people might think I’m weird, but… I’ve heard strange voices in my head, though I don’t have them anymore. After all, I’m weird…” 

Tobi knew. That voice was from Masaki Shuuji’s outsider. Masaki’s zingai had an effect on the mental state of others by having them hear voices. So, at least in that regard, Asamiya wasn’t weird at all.

“What I want to ask is more recent.”

Monika’s tone was detached, and it somehow annoyed him. Just a little longer, Tobi thought. Like being kind. Didn’t she take care of you? She splurged, though. A set of big cheese tomato burgers. They were good.

“For example, not before I transferred, but after. What happened?”

“Something—”

Asamiya tightly grasped the wrapping paper that had been folded halfway and rolled it up.

“That’s right, ignoring the fact that you transferred from another school, right?”

“Of course.”

“...Come to think of it, it is weird.”

Asamiya put the scraps of paper on the tray and took his smartphone out of his pocket.”

“This app, on its own. It’s an SNS. I don’t remember installing it. But it downloaded on its own.”

“Are you using that app?”

Ryuuko raised her eyebrows and asked.

“I thought it was suspicious, but…”

Asamiya took out his smartphone, but he turned the display downwards. He seemed to be wondering whether to show it or not.

“You can delete it right away. If you don’t log in for a day, your account will be deleted. So, I tried using it somehow…”

“What app?”

When Monika rested her hand on her cheek and asked, Asamiya replied “Hapieva.”

“It’s called Happy Ever After. Even if I search for it, it doesn’t come up. I guess I installed it somewhere…”

Monika said “let me see,” but she quickly snatched the smartphone from Asamiya’s hand. She worked fast.

“---Ah!”

“Authenticate your fingerprint.”

Monika held Asamiya’s smartphone up to his nose.

“...There’s personal information.”

Asamiya reluctantly pressed his thumb against the smartphone. The lock was released and the screen was displayed.

“I don’t want you to read what I wrote, but…”

“It’s okay. I have no interest in your private life.”

Monika operated Asamiya’s smartphone.

“This? Hapieva.”

She tried to tap the icon with her index finger. She was on the verge of it. Suddenly, Asamiya tried to take back the smartphone from Monika.

“On second thoughts, stop it!”

“Hey, wai—”

Monika quickly twisted herself to dodge Asamiya’s hands. But Asamiya didn’t give up.

“They’re complaining about things, and all the Hapieva guys are anonymous, so that's okay, but if their classmates find out, they’ll be ashamed and can’t live! Give it back…!”

Ryuuko said something like, “A…” Did she try to call Asamiya’s name? Monika’s reflexes were amazing as she kept dodging Asamiya’s hands in rapid succession. Did hhe find it impressive?

“Give it back! Give it back! Seriously, give it back!”

Did he think that if things continued like this, she wouldn’t be able to figure it out, or did he finally lose his temper? Asamiya grabbed Monika’s hair and pulled.

“---Ow…”

“Asamiya!”

Unacceptable. Tobi got up from his chair and tried to break in between the two. He wanted to. But he could not. It was baffling.

“Ha…”

He suddenly couldn’t breathe. What? Why? My neck. Tobi felt his own neck with his right hand. Baku and Ryuuko shouted at the same time.

“Tobi-!” “Tobi….!?”

Something. There was something. It was wrapped around his neck. Actually, he could see it for a moment. What did Tobi see? Something thin. That’s it. Asamiya. It was not on Asamiya’s neck. He couldn’t find it. The translucent zingai like a snake or a string. It was there. On Tobi’s neck. The translucent zingai instantly left Asamiya. And it was strangling Tobi.

“N….h….”

It was pretty hard to breathe, but it wasn’t so much that he couldn’t breathe at all. Maybe he wouldn’t suffocate right away. Tobi tried to stop Asamiya. However, before that happened, Asamiya took back the smartphone from Monika.

“No. I need this. You can’t have it. It’s my support. You don’t know how I feel. Laugh. It’s funny. Just laugh. Laugh. I need it.”

It was not funny. Crazy. The state of Asamiya.

“....Kah….”

Tobi tried to shake off the translucent snake zingai. His fingers got caught. But he couldn’t pull it off. The translucent zingai’s force was strong. It’s a little bigger, or rather, it’s gotten fatter.

“T-T-T-Tobi…”

Ryuuko was still sitting on her chair, moving her left and right hands like she was doing a pantomime. Should he say that Monika is right? She was watching how Tobi and Asamiya were doing.

“Shit, Tobi…!”

Baku went on a rampage. He wanted to eat. He would eat it. Baku intended to eat Asamiya’s translucent zingai. To protect Tobi. Protect. I see. Tobi hugged Baku.

“Like I said, it’s fine—”

The same goes for this translucent zingai.

He tried to protect Asamiya.

“Calm down, Asamiya.”

Asamiya clutched his smartphone with both hands and trembled. This food court must have a strange atmosphere. But he couldn’t afford to worry about that. What Tobi could do right now was to do his best to talk to Asamiya as normally as possible and get him to understand.

“Well, I don’t know what that SNS is. I won’t do anything forcibly.”

“I-I don’t believe you!”

“...That’s okay, even if you don't believe me, that’s fine. But I won’t do that— I won’t let you do that again.”

His voice sounded fine. He couldn’t breathe. How was he talking? Tobi himself was strange.

“You can go home… Take your smartphone. I won’t take it. If you want to do that, t-that’s fine. It’s fine to go…”

Tobi didn’t really understand what kind of expression Asamiya was making. Asamiya had long bangs. They usually hid his face quite well. He didn’t want people to see his face, so maybe he was trying to hide it. He didn’t know what he was feeling, but Tobi felt like he understood.

“...Wrong.”

It was tears. Asamiya was about to cry.

Tobi was able to breathe. The strength of the transparent zingai that had been strangling Tobi’s neck loosened.

“It’s not like… I want to go home. I don’t want to go home like this…”

The semi-transparent zingai slipped away from Tobi’s neck, going down his chest, stomach, and right leg. Since it didn’t have anything that looked like a head, it looked like a translucent moving string. However, it slid across the floor and climbed up Asamiya’s body, fitting snugly around his neck. It stayed close to Asamiya and tried to protect him in case of emergency. It was the same as Baku was to Tobi.

“Actually, I was happy.”

Asamiya sat down in his chair.

“If I can be of help, I want to be. It’s rare that someone relies on me. Besides, I talk to Otogiri and things like that these days. So, how do I say…”

Monika held out her hand without looking at Asamiya.

“Let me look into it. If you give me permission, I’d like to ask a specialized organization to analyze that app called Hapieva. Also, this is a general theory, but you absolutely must not touch such a suspicious SNS. Any information will be taken out. Do you get that?”

“...That kind of attitude. I don’t know.”

While complaining about her, Asamiya placed his smartphone in Monika’s hand.

“Eh, a specialized organization? Does Asahi have an acquaintance on her hands?”

“Acquaintance?”

Monika changed the angle of her hand holding the smartphone and tilted her head.

“I wonder if it’s different from acquaintances. You’ll meet them later. Your parents will also be present.”

“My parents?”

“We’re junior high students. Legally, we’re incompetent. You can’t take legal responsibility on your own. That’s why we desperately need an adult. It can’t be helped.”

“Asahi, you know how difficult that is?”

“Anyway, I’ll explain everything properly later.”

Monika then looked at Tobi and Ryuuko in turn.

“It’s a good opportunity, and I’ll get you guys to meet soon. I’ll teach you what I can do. It’s different from that Oji-san.”

Tobi exchanged eye contact with Ryuuko. ‘From that Oji-san.’ Monika called Haizaki ‘Oji-san.’ It’s different from Haizaki. What does that mean?

[inochinoyomikata]

Inochi no Tabekata 2 ch 2-5 Translation

2-5 Shizukudani Rukana– Happy Ever After

Hotel Grand Cosmos was ostensibly closed, the entryways were locked, and the windows with broken grass were covered with wooden boards. However, it was a semi-open secret that you can enter through the back door that leads to the boiler room. It seemed that there were a lot of people who entered from there on weekend nights to test their courage.

Even at three o’clock in the afternoon on a weekday, the inside of the hotel was eerie. Graffiti and rough conditions were clearly visible, and the nature of various scattered garbage was obvious at first glance, which was also unpleasant. Rukana wasn’t a naïve girl, so she was able to make a general guess. It seems that there were some people who intruded for the purpose of doing shady acts, not just to test their courage.

Regardless, it was not the kind of place you’d sneak into on a bright midday afternoon. Rukana went through the boiler room and looked around the pantry and the kitchen. What was in the kitchen? Upon further inspection, there was a plump, fat mouse. The lobby was empty.

Rukana held Cipher up in front of the front desk and looked around the high-ceilinged lobby. They couldn’t keep S waiting. They arrived at the hotel before the appointed time. But it was almost three o’clock in the afternoon. 

Was S somewhere in this hotel? Was he not there yet? Would he show up in the future?

The masked man was not S himself. Rukana thought so. He was S’s messenger.

Really?

The masked man may have tricked Rukana.

In that case, why?

Rukana crouched down with Cipher in her arms. She can’t help but think of the worst, the worst. Hotel Central Cosmos was built on the edge of a hot spring area located on the outskirts of the city. Cars aside, it was not a place a lot of people passed. When she looked it up online, there were rumors that a corpse had been found there several times in the past. It was just a rumor. Not true. It was false information, but the atmosphere was such that it wouldn’t be strange for such a thing to happen.

The masked man might have lured Rukana here.

To kill her.

She thought stupid things. The man in the mask, that monster, came inside her apartment. If he wanted to, he could have killed Rukana in her room. What would he do with the corpse? Her parents were also there.

It would have been troublesome if they woke up.

If it was here?

A man and woman will come to test their courage over the weekend and find a dead body. A few days after her death, Shizukudani Rukana will be found.

Rukana stood up. When she turned around, the monster was standing upright. 

“H….”

Rukana let out a muffled scream. She wanted to run mountains and mountains away, but her legs didn’t move as she wanted.

The monster waved a large hand that could easily snap Rukana’s neck towards itself. ‘Here he is,’ he directs. The monster started walking. Did he mean for her to follow?

She shouldn’t go. She didn’t want to go. Despite this, Rukana obediently followed the monster. From the lobby to the second floor. From there, they took another flight of stairs to the third floor. They went up to the fourth floor.

The fourth floor was the top floor of Hotel Central Cosmos. Guest room entrances lined the right side of the graffiti-covered corridor. The monster went into the first room.

It was not just scary.

The feeling of fear was paralyzing.

Rukana chased after the monster.

The guest room was large. There were several rooms. A suite room, a special room, or something like that.

Behind a large window with yellowish curtains, he was standing.

The curtains did not block much light from the outside. But he was backlit, and she could not make out all his features. He was a man. That was unmistakable. He wore a white shirt and tight pants. His hair was not short. His bangs fell just below his eyes.

There was a table and sofa like a reception set by the window. The monster sat down on the sofa. The sofa creaked.

The man remained standing.

“Well.”

A soft and deep voice shook Rukana’s eardrums. The first time she heard it, she didn’t feel that way. Rukana instinctively put all her strength into her arm as she held Cipher. Could this be him?

S of X-fes., who posts sentences with enigmatic implications in Japanese and English as if asking questions. SULLIVAN in the X-lum. conference rooms without words. Expressed his rational opinion concisely. All she knew was that he was a very smart person.

However, if S were a real person, he would surely sound like this. Rukana let her imagination run wild. Not only that, S appeared in her dreams. She couldn’t see his appearance.

He spoke to her from somewhere.

“It’s Shizukudani Rukana-san, right?”

This voice.

There was no doubt.

“S-sama.”

Rukana accidentally mentioned her personal nickname.

S smiled slightly. He laughed.

“How much do you know about me? Did you hear about my ‘Work’?”

“Of course.”

“Of course!” Lukana feverishly repeated. 

“I heard them. I saw the music videos. Everything. A number of times. They’re prophecies, aren’t they? S-sama, you weave into the incidents that occur with connection to zingai.”

“Guided by my ‘Work’, you learned a piece of truth at X-fes. And you infiltrated X-lum even though you weren’t qualified.”

S’s tone was as gentle as ever, saying that she didn’t have qualifications. That’s right. Rukana had hacked to gain unauthorized access to X-lum. 

“.....I- I am S-So-S-So-sorry…”

“Shhh.”

S raised his right index finger to his lips.

“It’s okay. I’m not blaming you. I admire you. What you’re holding, that child—”

“That’s Ci-Cipher…”

Rukana gasped after revealing his infamous name.

“Y-you can see him? Cipher?”

“I can see him. Yes. He’s called Cipher. Strangely enough, we used to call you ‘cipher’.”

“I-I looked at that log. In the chat room. Until then, I hadn’t given a name to this child.”

“You were so united that there was no need to name them?”

“That’s right!”

Rukana burst into tears and sniffled. S understood Rukana’s feelings.

“He didn’t need a name. But the word Cipher made it feel something like destiny—”

“My zingai too.”

S turned his face to the masked man sitting on the sofa.

“He doesn’t have a name. I call him a janitor because sometimes I have to distinguish him from others. He’s a tidy guy. He cleans for me.”

“Cleans…”

“Ah, Rukana-san. You’re good at guessing. That’s right. There’s a lot to do with cleaning. He can do things I can’t. It looks like your Cipher is the same.”

Rukana was at a loss as to how to respond. She’d never said that to anyone. It was difficult for Rukana to admit it honestly.

But the opponent was S. Besides, S had found out anyway. The man in the mask. The janitor. He was hiding under Rukana’s bed. He must have been on the lookout. The janitor must have learned about Rukana and Cipher’s relationship and told S.

“...That’s right. I also have a minimum knowledge of hacking and programming, but. I can’t do something like Cipher even if he stood upside down. I wasn’t the one who invaded X-lum either. I couldn’t have done it without Cipher…”

“That is”

S gently clapped his hands together as if his palms were joined together.

“That’s wonderful, Rukana-san. You and Cipher are special.”

Rukana’s breathing became shallow and quick, like she had just sprinted. The inside of her body was extremely hot and everything was numb.

Wonderful. S was also a wonderful person. This person understood Rukana perfectly.

Special. Rukana wanted that word more than anything else. She wanted someone to say so.

It was S who said so.

“I-I-I, wh-what can, what do I do, is that good, what could I do for you, what do I…”

“Calm down, Rukana.”

S no longer called Rukana ‘Rukana-san’. He abandoned that term. Rukana immediately understood the meaning. Rukana was recognized by S.

“But you really are amazing. That’s exactly why I brought you here. There’s something I want you to do. I want you to join me.”

“I will.”

Rukana immediately nodded.

“As a companion, or whatever. If there’s even one thing I can do for you, I’ll do anything.”

“If I hadn’t the slightest idea that you would say that, would I have become a liar in the upside down rain?”

S must have deliberately made a roundabout way of saying that. It was a faint tone, but it sounded like a joke. And it was the way S chose his words when writing on X-fes. Rukana would kneel and pledge allegiance if S wishes. But what S wanted was a companion. Rukana would do her best for S as a companion. At that moment it became Rukana’s wish.

It’s all for S.

If it's for S, I can do anything.

+++ + ++++

S created an account for Rukana on the message app MeX, which would only be used by high ranking members who could connect to X-lum. Without breaking into X-lum, S would give her the information she needs via MeX. It wasn’t every day but sometimes S sent messages to Rukana asking, ‘Are you still awake?’ She could also learn about the organization that operated X-fes. And X-lum, about zingai, and about S’s own plans. Rukana could now come into contact with one-hundred percent truth.

Rukana had Cipher create an application.

For S, of course.

She sat down with S at MeX to come up with an idea, and had Cipher program it.

Rukana decided on the name of the app.

Happy ever after

ハッピーエバーアフター。(1)

It means something like in a fairy tale, to be happy forever and ever. She wanted people who wanted to be happy to use the app. Conversely, it was an app for people who felt unhappy right now.

However, does Hapieva, aka Happy ever after, really work well?

For Rukana, she wouldn’t know until they tried. Cipher created Hapieva. He could also check with Rukana if it worked as expected. However, the contents were not well understood.

It was just a matter of trying.

It was still in the testing stage, so she couldn’t spread it all over the internet. While confirming the effects and actions, if there were any problems, she’d correct them. She’d repeat the version update to complete it.

For this, the hacking tool that S entrusted to the janitor and delivered was useful. It looked like a USB memory, but if you connected it to your smartphone, you could break through the security and install the specified application.

At Rukana’s junior high school, using smartphones for purposes other than emergency contact was prohibited. There was no problem with bringing them in, many students carried their smartphones in their bags. During her mobile classes, there were many unprotected smartphones that could be hacked as much as you want.

Rukana hacked into the school’s server and obtained internal personal student information for things like changing classes. Based on that, she selected candidates, and if they had a smartphone, she hacked it and installed Hapieva.

[You were invited to Hapieva. Let’s use a new SNS!]

After a while, that notification would appear on their smartphones.

Hapieva is a completely anonymous SNS. Many celebrities who might be of interest to junior and senior high school students have also hidden their identities. As soon as you decide on a username and start, your friends in Hapieva will call out to you.

[Nice to meet you!]

[This is Taro who likes ice cream from xxx]

[Chaos!]

[Isn’t it cold this morning?]

While replying appropriately, the user will notice that some personal names, place names, etc. are automatically converted to “xxx”. Some of the hidden characters in the statements of other users and colleagues can be guessed, and some could not.

Hapieva also has an element of mystery solving.

Havieva has rules. You have to launch the app and login once every 24 hours. Otherwise, the Hapieva will disappear automatically. The app explains that all the user’s utterances will also be deleted from the server. It says that if you want to quit, just don’t log in.

Companions can chat freely. If you report that you have experienced some kind of unpleasant experience or that something unreasonable has happened, your companions will react immediately. They comfort you. You have companions to help you with your troubles. If you send out the phrase [it’s tough], companions will encourage you.

[Isn’t it okay to be a little more honest with yourself?]

[It’s okay if you are honest]

[Because what matters most is who you really are]

[It’s fine as long as you are yourself]

[You just haven’t realized what kind of person you are yet]

[But its always there]

[Even if you don’t know it now, you will surely find it sooner or later]

[Find yourself]

[Better not hold back]

[You don’t have to think too hard]

[You just have to find yourself]

[Find yourself!]

[Let’s find ourselves!]

Hapieva is an app for those who want to be happy. If you feel unhappy now, we want you to be happy in Hapieva. Please be happy forever.

It’s like a fairytale.

Needless to say, fairy tales are not real. In the real world, there are no companions who always comfort, support, and encourage. Hapieva is far from reality. Obviously.

There were no companions anywhere. Hapieva is not an SNS. ‘If you launch the app, you can connect with your friends.’ It’s just pretending. It was made by Cipher. It is a program that guides the user’s thoughts and feelings in a certain direction.

After becoming a second year, Rukana began the full-fledged operation of Hapieva. 

During third period that day, she knew the second-year classroom would be empty due to physical education class. Rukana took Cipher and approached the seat she was looking for. When she searched the bag on the desk, she found a smartphone in the pocket. It was an old model from about two years ago, but there was no issue. Rukana connected the hacking tool to the smartphone’s charging port. The job was completed in less than two minutes.

Rukana put the smartphone in the bag pocket. She managed to suppress the urge to laugh until she left the classroom. As soon as she closed the door, she became impatient. Rukana walked down the hallway, shaking her shoulders and laughing. It was so funny that tears came to her eyes.

“Be happy, right, Itoha~”

---

(1) Wanted to keep the language switch from the novel here so that its wasn’t the same phrase twice.