Chapter 8

Yamagishi Haruka was a latchkey child.

At the time, it was somewhat rare to have both parents working, and he grew up without any particular hardships.

The housework was mostly done by a housekeeper, and he only saw his parents on days off.

His parents got along well and were proud of the fact that they would take time off for events. It was sad that he could only talk to them occasionally, but since he had been that way since he was little, he thought it was just how things were.

Yamagishi Haruka loved reading books.

He was captivated by the heroes in books, the flashy adventures, and the dream-filled magic.

He wanted to be like them someday.

He believed that doing the right thing and asserting it correctly was the right way. He thought that if he did so, everyone would understand each other. Villains would repent, and rivals would join hands.

When he finally had to live in a group, Haruka thought, "Hmm, something's not working right."

When he tried to assert his sense of justice a few times, it wasn't as fun as he thought it would be.

When he thought he had done the right thing, someone would look sad and fall silent.

There were people who used his sense of justice to belittle others.

Of course, not everyone in the world would support Haruka's sense of justice, and their values were different. People who sought laughter found Haruka boring for being too serious. To those who wanted to be the center of attention, Haruka, who often interrupted conversations, was a nuisance.

Haruka was troubled and puzzled but couldn't find an answer, so he decided to consult his respected parents.

After dinner, he sat in a chair in the living room, swinging his legs, waiting for his parents to come home. The chair, made for adults, was a bit too big for Haruka.

He was sure that his proud and respectable parents would give him a satisfactory answer. But when his mother came home, her first words were a scolding.

It was only natural, as he was supposed to be asleep by that time.

Just as he was about to insist, his father came home.

His father also didn't look pleased that Haruka was still awake.

But Haruka didn't give up; he really wanted to know what his parents, the absolute adults in his life, would say about this question.

The result was disastrous.

"Stop talking about such trivial things and go to bed," he was told with a deep sigh.

The balloon of Haruka's hopes and dreams deflated and shrank.

Of course, there are days when even the most hardworking people are extremely tired or have had a lot of bad things happen.

It just so happened that today was one of those days for his parents. They didn't always ignore his concerns; on days when they had the time, they would listen to Haruka.

It was just very bad timing for such a significant consultation. But this incident would greatly change Haruka's life.

Since he spent a lot of time alone, Haruka was never good at expressing his emotions. This tendency would only accelerate from this point on. Haruka no longer knew when it was appropriate to get angry or cry.

His parents, who only talked to him occasionally, thought he was a quiet child and never realized his deep, tragic thoughts.

Even during his rebellious years and into high school, Haruka remained a model student but had become a young man who couldn't assert himself strongly. He became skilled at reading people's moods and was liked to some extent, but he felt unfulfilled.

Then, his age-appropriate youth arrived.

A lively and popular girl in his class confessed to him.

Haruka wasn't particularly good-looking, but he was a good student and had a pleasant demeanor, which she seemed to like.

He didn't know what to do and wasn't sure if he liked her, but he didn't dislike her and didn't want to hurt her, so he agreed to date her.

She was bright and cheerful, and Haruka enjoyed spending time with her.

He smiled more often and thought, "This is a nice life."

Most of all, knowing that she liked him made him feel at ease.

However, after about six months, this happy life came to an end.

"You're boring," "I don't understand what you're thinking," "You never suggest anything," "You don't like me, do you?"

That's what she said.

It wasn't true; Haruka cared about her and enjoyed spending time with her.

He wanted to say something, but he couldn't.

Because she was crying, a little angry.

Seeing this, Haruka was at a loss. It was an unknown emotion. He thought, "I must have hurt her," but he didn't know what he had done wrong.

Without saying anything, his days with her came to an end.

Haruka stopped smiling as much.

He didn't tell jokes and avoided people who seemed to be having fun.

He didn't want to hurt someone who might like him again, just because of a misunderstanding.

If he had a normal sense of empathy, he might have realized it was just a misunderstanding when she was crying and angry, and he could have said, "That's not true," but Haruka was afraid to contradict her. He had made another big mistake.

In college, he became even more interested in games and stories.

They had a clear path, and he could enjoy them without hurting anyone.

Sometimes he felt lonely, but it wasn't painful.

Gradually, he began to believe that he was always a person who preferred solitude.

He slowly forgot what had hurt him and what he was afraid of. One could say that time had healed his heart, or that the wound had closed without removing the thorn.

When he got a job, his parents went on a trip for their wedding anniversary and never came back.

They were involved in a chain collision on the highway.

The bodies were in such a state that they couldn't be shown to the family.

Before he knew it, the funeral was over, and everyone had left. Alone in the room, Haruka shed his first tear.

Had he done anything to make his parents proud?

No one could answer that question.

For about 20 years after that, Haruka just worked, and at home, he consumed games, manga, and novels.

He wanted to do the right thing.

He didn't like bending himself.

He didn't like hurting people.

He didn't like making people sad.

But he didn't know how.

He just tried to be a good person.

Even if he was bad at expressing his emotions and had a stern face, he thought he could show it through his actions.

He thought that even if the world was wrong, he could support people so they wouldn't get hurt.

Even if he drew the short straw, it was fine as long as others weren't sad.

Eventually, he became someone who didn't see his own pain and only saw others' hearts.

That's who Yamagishi Haruka was.

But when he crossed into another world and his body changed, he felt strangely refreshed.

No one knew him, and he had no idea what anyone was thinking.

He didn't even know if he was really himself or where he was.

He no longer had the luxury of thinking about others.

When this thought came to the forefront, his vision suddenly cleared.

It felt like he was reborn.

Yamagishi Haruka was indeed stubborn, kind, stern-faced, and a good person, but he had become a slightly different person.

Here ends the prologue.

For the author's motivation, I would be very happy if you could bookmark and rate this highly!