Home sweet home

When I entered the residential area and walked a little, I saw my familiar house.

"I'm ho......."

"Get a grip already!! You stupid grandson!!!"

A thunder shook my eardrums as soon as I opened the door. My ears numbed and rang.

"So......... loooud........"

"Of course! I'm yelling so that I could be heard loudly!!"

The real nature of thunder....... grandma stood at the platform of the entrance, snorting and scowling at me.

I'm always thinking it but, just where is that loud voice coming from in grandma. It's so mysterious, I can't help it.

"What now, why are you angry?"

Grandma: "Of course it makes me angry! It's the key, the key!"

"Key?"

Grandma: "When you go to work, take the entrance key and close the door by kicking, do you know how many times I've said it!"

"Aa~ ....... I see. Sorry."

When I woke up today I had almost overslept from my part-time job, I panicked and flew out of the house.

Grandma: "It's not "sorry"! Really, why did I raise a child with such a bad memory."

"Gh, I couldn't help it. I forgot."

Grandma: "Of course you overslept and dashed out again. Really, even though you turned 23 you're such a helpless grandson. It's so sad I could cry." 

"But I said I'm sorry! Is there any human being around that hasn't been careless sometimes!"

Grandma: "What, are you aiming for the world championship of carelessness? How many times has this happened already!"

"................ six times?"

Grandma: "Reee------ally.......... a child like you~~~~~~~"

Grandma began trembling with anger. A blue vein was clearly visible on her forehead, it was dangerous.

Grandma has fainted for having too much blood in her head, so this isn't a joke....

"I get it, I get it! I'm careful from tomorrow. So don't shout anymore."

Grandma: "........ hmph. How many times have I heard those words too. When you're like that, I can't just fall and die."

Grandma let out a rough snort, and went back towards the kitchen making loud footsteps.

"Hey, come in already."

..... It seemed she had settled down for a while somehow.

Relieved, I took off my shoes and entered the hallway.

Although shouting happens everyday like this, the relationship between me and grandma isn't bad at all. It's rather good.

Grandma's shouting is a proof that she's fine. If that shouting voice disappears, I'd feel lonely.

I feel thankful to grandma for raising me by herself, I also respect her. It would be embarrassing, so I probably won't say it to her face to face.

In the kitchen, grandma was going to move something that was just stir-fried in the frying pan to the plate.

I also washed my hands by the sink, picked out chopsticks from a shelf, and arranged them to the table.

Although my parents were also living together with us, inside they were free spirits by nature and were never in the house.

When the year passes and I think they'll never return, they would suddenly unexpectedly return, and disappear again......

Because that was the case since I was small, living together with just grandma became everyday life for me.

Therefore I was unexpectedly calm even if my parents suddenly didn't come home. It's really thanks to grandma.

Even though I have caused many things to worry about, now I want to cherish the time living with grandma.

Even without any special luxuries, living like this is enough.

"Well then, let's eat."

Somen noodles, tuna, stir-fried shiitake mushrooms and boiled greens, deep fried fish and miso soup were all lined up on the table.

I took a seat with grandma and put both hands together.

"Thank you for the food."

"Thank you for the food."

"Grandma, this is good."

"Is that so."

Since the police chased me and it made me hungry, grandma's homemade cooking sinked into my stomach.

While I was eating like I would absorb the food, my head hurt with a sharp pain.

Aaa, it came..... the usual thing.....

"Ow ow ow....."

"The usual? Don't forget to take your medicine after the meal."

"Yeah."

A long time ago when I did stupid stuff and got hospitalized, for some reason the headaches became very frequent. This was the second time today.

Although I had many things inspected in the hospital, they said the cause was unknown.

From then on I have taken a medicine which grandma prescribes to me.

Grandma has a medical licence, and she examines old people from the neighborhood and prescribes medicine.

Being safer than an unskilled doctor who takes only lots of money, she has a little reputation in the neighborhood.

Surely, other medicines are useless, but when I take grandmas medicine, the headaches stop quickly.

With only that you could say she is skilled.

"Thanks for the meal."

When I finished eating the meal, I took the medicine, and after I cleared off the tableware I went up to the second floor.

I entered my room, took Ren who was in sleep mode out of the bag and started it.

My head still hurts....

I thought I needed some fresh air and headed for the veranda.

I stepped out to the veranda and leaned on the handrail. The slightly cool wind was comfortable.

When I let out a small breath and looked up to the sky, only the shadows of the folded buildings were reflected in the field of view.

The scenery wasn't like this in the past.
It was more beautiful. This island......

This Midorijima floats in the remote sea from southwest of the Japanese Islands, Honshu.

The selling points of the island are the blue sea, white sands, and rich green...... or so it was. It's a story from the past.

Now at the east side, Platinum Jail occupies approximately a one-third of the island in a lordly manner.

Because Platinum Jail and the old resident district are cut off with a huge wall, we can't see it's appearance from this side.

I have seen the representative of Toue zaibatsu which made Platinum Jail in television and network several times.

Seemingly, when I was a kid, in developing of this island Toue zaibatsu required eviction of the inhabitants.

However, they promised a luxurious house and lots of money, so most of the inhabitants left the island depending on negotiations.

But still there were some stubborn inhabitants who wouldn't go away. We are like that, too.

No matter how good conditions they were offered, they couldn't abandon their hometown where they were born and raised, and they kept ignoring the eviction demand again and again.

After a while, the Toue side too said nothing at all.

Toue began to give up, and the reason was officially: "Because we don't want coercion."

But, in fact they abandoned the remaining inhabitants.

If you don't want to accept negotiations, so be it. Live or die, it's up to you.

And then, Toue ran for the next hand.

Saying that it was maintenance for the island, the supply lines of water service, gas and goods were narrowed rapidly, and the surviving inhabitants were driven away to the present old resident district as a result.

The once beautiful Midorijima was ruined...... No matter how anyone puts it, a country cannot allow such tyranny. 

The inhabitants who thought so appealed to the country wanting them to do something.

But, since these conditions are still going on, it means it was useless to hope for better.

About three years ago, when going from the old resident district to the main island, you had to obtain the permission of the Administration Bureau which Toue made.

In other words, the inhabitants of the old resident district can't step out of the island without the permission of Toue.

Such a permission is never granted. never.

It's Toue's way of saying that the people rejecting the eviction were wrong.

When I was looking out blankly, there was a sound at my feet.

"Aoba. About the data you downloaded from the e-mail today, what will you do with it?"

"......... downloaded?"




I who was leaning on the handrail, was startled by Ren's words and stood up.

........ that's right. I completely forgot. It was at the time when the brats came into the shop at daytime.

Before I knew a download completion screen came out, could it be..........

"Did the data contain a virus?"

"I did not detect a virus."

"Contents?"

"It is a type of game where a player performs movement and information gathering by manipulating a character, fights with an enemy character, acquires an experience value and raises a level."

"Aah, RPG, huh? You have to pay?"

"You don't have to pay for it."

"Hee..... so I didn't accidentally pay for it because of those brats. It might be some sort of trial application."

"That is unknown."

"Well, if it's not strange I could try it. To kill some time."

"Shall I start it?"

"Please do."

"Understood."

I took Ren in my arms, returned to the room and sat on my bed.

Screen:

* "Please help me......"

* "Somebody, please help me......"

* "Somebody, let me out of here......"

"That's a fairly retro screen."

The same generation as Kio, Nao and Mio has probably never seen something like this?

Even I haven't seen this type of an old game anywhere else but in video sites.

After the message from the princess was over, a title logo appeared.

....... it's too old so it's kind of refreshing.

While a strange feeling was rising, I pushed "START".

"Huh? This will continue? Like the parts are delivered periodically?"

"Looks like it."

"I see. It's exactly the shortness of a game you can play when you have time to kill."

I don't know if it was entertaining or not, but if a continuation is delivered I might play it again.

As soon as I closed the game screen, I yawned.

Because I played the game so intently, I became sleepy.

"I think it's time to prepare for sleep."




I closed the window and curtain of the veranda and left the room and went to the washroom.




NEXT: the next day