Suzuki Sanae had not been a teacher for long. Finally shedding the newbie label, she was now able to become a homeroom teacher. With a passion for her job, especially since it was her first homeroom class, she thought she had to do her best.
“Suzuki-sensei, it must be tough for you in various ways…”
However, the most common remark she heard during the past year was just that. The job of a teacher is not an easy one.
Being a homeroom teacher with students to care for only made it harder. Some students were not particularly thrilled about having a homeroom teacher at all.
Still…
Seeing other teachers having fun chatting with students who visited years after graduation made Sanae want that too. What a wonderful sight! It meant that they had been such excellent mentors that they remained an important part of their students’ lives.
This was why the existence of a student named Kurosawa Koto Ne weighed on her mind in many ways. Not negatively—just in the literal sense. The situation was… way more special than that of other children.
“…”
There was no teacher around who would say ‘It must be tough’ to Sanae, who merely stared blankly at her desk.
Some teachers were just in it to make a living, while others had let their passion fade after teaching so many students over the years. Yet, among all the teachers, it’s rare to see one witness the death of their own student.
If there were, it was almost unheard of for it to happen in the first year. So, it was really hard for them to know how to approach it.
Most teachers acted socially appropriately when addressing Suzuki Sanae. They simply let the atmosphere die down.
Not that Sanae could do nothing all day.
“So… it’s that way, huh?”
Sanae said to the woman sitting in front of her.
The woman had barged into the teachers’ lounge and taken a seat at the vacant desk of a nearby teacher.
And she had said this to Sanae.
“There’s a possibility that Koto Ne is alive.”
What could she possibly say to someone like that? Sanae didn’t know.
The woman didn’t seem much older than Sanae. Of course, that was just the appearance, and in reality, there would probably be a considerable age difference. After all, Sanae was in her mid-twenties. Even then, she still looked young.
“…Ah.”
Only after replying did it strike Sanae that this person was the mother of the deceased child.
As she tried to leap from her seat, the woman, Kurosawa Kagami, caught her and made her sit back down.
“I’m not here to be comforted.”
“…Y-Yes…”
Sanae’s intention to say “I am sorry for your loss” was interrupted by Kagami’s mysterious charisma, causing her to nod unintentionally.
It was expected that this person would come. After all, Sanae had said she wanted to meet her.
She hadn’t been able to attend the funeral of her student, Kurosawa Koto Ne. Since she wanted to visit, this person had replied right away, “I’ll come tomorrow.”
Was that what she wanted to say?
For a brief moment, Kagami crossed her mind as someone who was denying reality out of grief.
But she soon changed her mind. This person wasn’t the kind of “mom” who would act so solemnly. Sanae remembered the scene when she had visited Koto Ne. It was right after there had been nothing in the house.
At least the child had made friends since then and had started showing a bit more varied expressions, but there was still that hint of precariousness in her demeanor. When analyzing it through child psychology, the reason for that would likely be the presence of the Kurosawa Kagami in front of her.
Sanae had tried various institutional methods to resolve the situation, but they all failed for some reason. The most shocking was what the principal said: to no longer approach the household. This led Sanae to believe that Kurosawa’s family was similar to Yamashita’s, as they seemed to be in a unique and strange family situation.
…Since then, Sanae had focused on managing and talking to Koto Ne as much as possible at school.
But now she thought that might not have been the right approach.
“There’s no need to apologize for not coming to the funeral. In fact, there wasn’t one.”
“…”
“The truth is, there’s no corpse. If we’re being technical, the current situation is closer to ‘disappearance’ than ‘death.’”
“B-But, I clearly….”
“Yes, you must have received some notification. Probably something about a ‘system error.’”
Sanae stared blankly at Kagami. If her expression were to be written in words, it would say “What do you mean?” Of course, she knew that was not something to say in front of a mother who lost a child. People generally only realize their mistakes after something has happened, and it matched with what she believed the woman in front of her was thinking.
“Ma’am, if that’s the case—”
“Yes, I have something to ask of you.”
“…Please speak.”
Sanae tried hard to maintain her composure.
Regardless of any mental issues the person might have, it was not something Sanae could solve. That was the job of a psychologist, and she had no right to impose herself on that.
“How many attendance marks does Koto Ne actually lack? Is she at risk of failing?”
Seeing Kurosawa Kagami casually ask something akin to inquiring about a troubled daughter’s school life made Sanae feel strange.
“…No, it’s not that serious. If she has about one-third of the total school days absent, there would be an issue, but Kurosawa-san doesn’t have that much absence. However, Mom—”
“I see.”
Upon hearing Sanae’s words, Kagami responded with a voice that seemed relieved.
“So, that means when Koto Ne returns, she can continue her school life normally.”
“Yes, that’s definitely the case, but—”
“Right, I got that. That should be enough.”
Kagami stood up without waiting for a reply.
And with a slight bow towards Sanae, she said,
“Well then, please take good care of my daughter from now on…”
“Y-Yes, I will do my best—”
As Sanae awkwardly replied, Kagami nodded and simply left.
Sanae dazedly watched Kagami’s quickly disappearing silhouette.
When she turned her head back, the other teachers in the teachers’ lounge were looking over.
Some merely shook their heads and returned to their seats, while some shrugged their shoulders.
Most reactions seemed to suggest, ‘That woman has gone mad.’
Sanae thought, well, rather, it might be a more polite version of that, but still—
She couldn’t just ignore it and let it pass.
*
With that, Kagami wouldn’t be prevented from wandering around the school anymore.
Of course, it would be limited to where Koto Ne usually moved around. And Kagami wouldn’t have the slightest intention of changing that.
She didn’t think that there wouldn’t be anyone from the authorities within the school. However, to those watching, she probably just appeared to be a crazy woman.
And the actions she was about to take would add a bit of credibility to that notion while also reaping practical benefits.
Kagami headed towards the Literature Club Room, recalling the position from her last visit.
Though the remaining children at school threw glances at Kagami, it didn’t seem like those were the least bit concerned. To them, she was obviously thought of as an associated adult.
How lazy they were.
Of course, the laziest of them all was none other than Kagami herself.
Without knocking, she swung open the door to the Literature Club Room.
And then, she locked eyes with someone she did not particularly want to see.
“…Ugh.”
The child sitting on the left according to Kagami gasped. She remembered that child’s name—Kaneko Kaoru, Koto Ne’s club senior. The one on the opposite side was Ikeda Izumi.
And in the middle was the child who could barely get up in a snot-filled mess; no need to even recall the name.
“…Ah.”
It was unclear what had happened just moments ago, but it seemed this child had a very hard time.
Her gaze shifted to the paper and coins on the desk.
Kagami grimaced, but said nothing. They were probably just trying to do something—there’s no point in blaming that.
“…Yuuki Yuka.”
Kagami spoke in a calm manner to the child in the middle.
“I would like to make a request. Is now a good time for you?”
“…”
Yuuki, who was staring blankly at Kagami, slowly nodded.
“Okay. Since there’s no need to hide from the people here, I’ll just say it straightforwardly.”
With her hands stuffed in her coat pockets, Kagami continued slowly.
“You know I have ‘two daughters,’ right?”
She had no intention of saying the most important details.
At least, the keyword of resurrection could never be passed on to those watching her.
What a fascinating word. Even if it’s a word that couldn’t be applied to them, someone could apply it to herself.
She didn’t want to deal with troublesome matters.
“That daughter has been unreachable for a while. It seems she’s doing a good job of keeping Koto Ne hidden.”
As soon as Koto Ne’s name was mentioned, Yuka’s expression twisted in a horrible manner. Kagami shrugged and continued speaking.
“If it’s you, you’d be able to find her.”
“…”
“At the last moment, Koto Ne… you know that she changed in some way, right? That’s why she tried to run away with her.”
Kagami fixed her gaze on Yuka.
If there weren’t any feelings of hatred, it would be a lie. Even if it wasn’t this child’s fault, it wouldn’t change. Kagami wasn’t the kind of person who would be cordial to someone who had either intentionally or accidentally killed her daughter, whom she had only just begun to care about.
But she was merely delaying judgment for now.
If Kagami could bring Koto Ne back to life, then she’d just see it as if that incident had never happened.
If not, she could never forgive.
…Most of that inability to forgive stemmed from her self-revulsion, but Kagami decided to ignore that fact.
“So please use your abilities, or use Yuuki’s information network to find Koto Ne and Koko. And I hope you protect them with your power.”
“…”
Yuka gazed up at Kagami. Her face still looked as if the life had been drained from her.
“You’re not going to ask me why?”
Seeing the lack of response suggested that she had no mental capacity for that. Kagami frowned. Was it really okay to just ask like this?
…She decided not to judge. She was determined to do everything she could.
“…”
Ah.
What if she wasn’t asking because she already knew why Kagami would speak?
“I don’t want this to get passed onto others. And yes, just because she’s a child doesn’t mean she can just be treated poorly, right? At least, she should be made presentable.”
Shiny.
Slowly, it seemed like Yuka’s eyes were coming back to life.
“Whether you do it or not, it’s your choice. If you don’t, I will think of another way to find them.”
“…I’ll do it. I’ll do it.”
Finally, Yuka properly answered Kagami for the first time.
Kagami nodded at Yuka, who seemed to have somewhat regained herself.
“Alright. This time… I count on you to take care of my other daughter as well.”
She didn’t like it.
But aside from that, she could trust in the reaction of the child who had acted like that in that situation.
However.
“Please be sure to direct the knife properly this time.”
She couldn’t hold back from saying that.
She couldn’t fully trust her, but regardless, she didn’t like it.
“…”
Yuka’s face stiffened.
Yeah, she had to be tough-minded.
If things went well, both of them would be in great danger once they succeeded.
*
“See? Beautiful, right? What did I say?”
Kuro said on the ship floating in mid-air.
I was reluctant but couldn’t help but agree with her.
Not only was my heart disturbed seeing the living conditions of the children, but Kuro had circled around and avoided my question, which made my mood quite uncomfortable.
Yet, ironically enough, right now, my heart was racing to the point of embarrassment.
Was this what it’s like for astronauts heading out into space? Although this was a slightly different story.
The dream world was a place dreamed of by some earth-based conspiracy theorists. It wasn’t a round planet but a world spread over flat land.
I had no idea from where it was spewing forth, but at the edge of the world, the ocean was pouring over as a waterfall, endlessly plummeting downwards. The atmosphere felt like that of Niagara Falls, which I had only seen in videos, but it was even grander.
On the left and right, waterfalls cascaded down from the horizon that stretched endlessly.
And swirling mists lifted off the violent water movements, creating a wall of fog.
It was a fantastic sight but scary at the same time.
I had to push away the thought of, “What if I fall down if I go like this?” The boat riding the current without a single wave carried on smoothly ahead. Literally sailing through the air, even though there was no sea.
“Think about it. Without gravity, of course, we are moving straight forward, right?”
“But I’m breathing. If there’s air, wouldn’t friction slow us down?”
Moreover, isn’t the reason planets are round because of gravity? The world is not flat but three-dimensional, so naturally, gravity would also be three-dimensional, pulling towards the heaviest point.
“Don’t sweat the details. It’s a dream world, right?”
“Then don’t bring in half-baked common sense from the get-go…”
But, perhaps because it was the dream world, the feeling of sailing under a backdrop of stars was not unpleasant at all. The ship’s bow was directed accurately towards the moon, which felt nice.
Who wouldn’t want to look down on the world from a high place if they had ever looked up at the night sky?
Moreover, the dream world was the same.
Not a round earth but a bizarre structure you’d only find in fantasy.
From space, it looked like a giant mountain had been cut off from the ground and turned upside down. Could there possibly be another world beneath this dream?
Turning my head back to look at the moon.
There was an old movie from long ago about this.
They shot people to the moon in a huge cannon. It was in black and white, and I think it was the first SF movie to depict a moon trip.
Isn’t that what we’re doing?
Ignoring the laws of physics and, in a way, being shot towards the moon.
“…”
Wait?
“What happens to us, then?”
“What do you mean, what happens?”
“We’re sailing straight toward the moon. Is this safe? How do we land?”
“Oh, that.”
Meow.
Kuro let out a cat-like sound.
“Don’t worry too much. You won’t die.”
“No, but what happens then?”
“If you’re too worried, you could also go back.”
“How?”
“Um, just swim in the air like this?”
“…If I get off the ship, won’t I fall down?”
Meow.
“Hey.”
I knew it was a joke, but it still annoyed me.
“…I feel like we’re speeding up?”
Once I became aware of it, for some reason, it seemed like we were gradually accelerating as we got closer to the moon.
“I told you, didn’t I?”
As if to reassure my concerns, Kuro said.
“There’s gravity, you see. When such a large moon is nearby, what do you think happens?”
“No, you said it’s a dream world, right?”
“Have you ever flown around without gravity in a dream world?”
Could be possible!
I haven’t, though!
I was gripping the edge of the rapidly speeding boat as I yelled, but by that point, my hair was wildly blowing in the wind.
No, the very fact that there was wind on the moon was bizarre, to begin with.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.