Chapter 3

"..."

Second awakening.

This time, unlike before, there was a gentle sensation at the back of my head.

This is... a pillow?

"Hey, are you awake?"

A woman's voice.

It wasn't the voice of the person I met earlier.

I opened my eyes slightly.

"Where am I..."

Oh, right.

I fainted again—

"Let me see—"

Startled, I jumped up.

"That's right, I saw a tree of an unprecedented size—"

Thud.

My forehead hit something hard.

"Whoa!"

"Kyaa! ...Ouch! What are you doing, you?!"

Looking up, I saw a woman with wavy bob hair, tears in her eyes, holding her forehead.

She must have been trying to look at my face.

The momentum of my jump caused me to headbutt her near her ear.

"Sorry!"

"Really... On the day of the entrance ceremony, you faint before reaching the school, and then you headbutt me as soon as you wake up. What are you, anyway...?"

"...I'm very sorry."

Apologizing, I quickly looked around.

It seems I'm in some indoor space.

I was apparently lying on a bed.

The bed, though simple, was clean.

"..."

I am... fully conscious.

I don't feel the discomfort I felt before I fainted.

While rubbing my reddened ear, a woman in a white robe asked me.

"Well, do you have any idea why you fainted? If you have any chronic conditions, I can help. I'm the doctor in charge of the medical room at Saint Renousred Academy. I'd be happy to listen to any concerns from the students."

"Um, well... Can I ask one thing?"

"Hmm? My name? I'm Liza Logosta. I'm twenty-five. I'm currently looking for a boyfriend."

"..."

She seems to be from a foreign country.

Her Japanese is quite good.

I wonder why she added her age and the fact that she's looking for a boyfriend at the end.

"A, I'm... Sagara Kurohiko."

I ended up introducing myself, even though I was supposed to ask a question.

Liza put her hand to her mouth and let out a small groan.

"Hmm, Sagar Kurohiko... From your name, I guess you're from the Eastern Country?"

Eastern Country?

Ah, the Eastern Country... '東国' (Azumakoku).

So, she's asking if I'm from the Asian region?

However, I've heard that Japan is called 'Far East' in foreign countries, but I've never heard it called 'Eastern Country' before.

Anyway.

Where am I?

And... that huge tree.

I've never heard of such a tree in Japan.

Moreover, those buildings and streets.

They seem more like something you'd find in the Western world.

And the unusually large tree I saw at the end of those neat streets...

The overwhelming presence of that tree came back to me.

The tree that left a strong impression at first sight.

It was so majestic that I felt like bowing down.

But... was there such a tree in the world heritage sites?

When I had free time, I used to browse world heritage sites on the internet, but I don't remember seeing a tree of such extraordinary size in any country.

What is this?

One possibility has been competing in my mind since just now...

Yes.

This situation, I've read about it many times, and I've dreamed about it many times—

I raised my hand.

"Um, that..."

"Yes, what is it?"

"Where... is this place?"

Liza fell silent for a moment.

"This is the medical room of Saint Renousred Academy, but?"

"A, um, that's not what I meant, I mean—"

"I don't quite understand the intent of your question..."

"So, what is this—"

What kind of world is this?

The question almost slipped out, and I realized how strange it was.

What is this?

This question is just like...

A protagonist who has wandered into another world in a manga or anime—

Suddenly, my heart started beating faster.

No, but, could it be, such—

As I put my hand to my mouth and thought, Liza leaned in to look at me.

Her well-defined face was right in front of me, and I couldn't help but be startled.

Upon closer inspection, she was quite beautiful.

"Um, that..."

"Did you hit your head hard?"

"Huh?"

"You might have amnesia."

"Huh?"

"Students who come to the entrance ceremony of Saint Renousred Academy usually ask if the ceremony is over or where they should go next. But you, you're reacting as if you just found out about the existence of this country."

Liza moved away from the bed.

Then she returned from the corner of the room with something long and vertical.

She held out the flat, vertical object in front of me.

"Is this Sagar Kurohiko, correct?"

Liza held out a mirror.

I squinted to see my reflection in the mirror.

I realized I was instinctively touching my mouth and cheeks with my hands.

"Hmm?"

Ah, that?

My face... seems a bit different, somehow?

But this... is me, right?

The movements of my hand and the mirror match perfectly.

But there's a sense of something being off...

I looked at myself in the mirror again.

Hmm?

Could it be.

Is this—

I've... gotten younger?

The person in the mirror is undoubtedly me—Sagara Kurohiko.

But his appearance is that of a teenager.

My skin is smooth.

Well... in my late twenties, I felt I had aged more than my years due to stress.

So, in a way, it's a good thing that I can feel younger.

I looked up at the ceiling.

Then, in a cliché way, I pinched my cheek while staring at the ceiling.

It hurts.

But I don't wake up.

I don't return to my dim, familiar room.

"..."

Is this... possible?

Again.

One possibility comes to mind.

Another world.

I was enveloped in light... and transported to another world?

...

There's one thing that can't be explained otherwise.

That huge tree.

If such a tree existed in the previous world, I would have seen or heard about it through some media.

But I've never come across any information about that tree.

The existence of that tree gives me a sense that this is another world.

Or perhaps, I'm just using the tree as a reason to deny the previous world.

Anyway.

If this is a different world from the one I was in, many things can be explained.

The inappropriate attire of the silver-haired beauty I met earlier,

The mysterious, huge tree,

All can be easily explained.

In other words,

The silver-haired beauty is not from the world I was in,

And the mysterious, huge tree does not exist in the world I was in.

They exist in a different world from the one I was in.

I looked at myself in the mirror again.

But... why?

Why am I younger?

"..."

Normally, I should be more confused here.

I should be overwhelmed with various questions.

But something else pushed through the confusion and questions.

It is—

A faint sense of something I lost long ago, lighting up in my chest.

Can I start over...?

Can I, start over...?

Can I start my life again from here?

Again.

In this unfamiliar world.

Is this... a chance given to me by God?

In the previous world.

I wanted to start over.

But I didn't know where to start over in the life I had in the previous world.

I felt I would fail no matter where I started over.

But... in a different world from the previous one—

No, that's not it.

That's not it.

The environment to start over might have been given to me.

But I need to change myself and make an effort.

Yes.

Just because I'm in another world, it doesn't mean I've changed.

Just because I've gotten younger, it doesn't mean the essence of Sagar Kurohiko has changed.

So,

I need to change.

And this time... I will find it.

What I want to do.

Because this is probably my last chance.

I clenched my fist tightly.

This is a rare opportunity.

I'll do everything I can.

"..."

It's strange.

Until just a moment ago, I wanted to disappear.

But it feels like something that was stagnant has started moving.

Maybe it's because I've gotten younger?

Or... because I'm free from obligations?

I smiled wryly and sighed.

"If that's the case, I'm quite mercenary, aren't I..."

"Well, did you enjoy your one-man show?"

"Eh?"

I saw Liza with her arms crossed, looking at me with a slightly odd expression.

...Oops.

I got so lost in thought that I forgot about Liza.

"The rapid changes in your expressions on the bed were quite entertaining to watch."

"...S, sorry."

I felt embarrassed and shrank back.

What am I doing, me...

"So, your emotions were changing rapidly, but can we get back to the question? Is the man in the mirror Sagar Kurohiko, correct?"

"A, yes, that's correct."

Even though I've gotten younger.

Then, there was a knock on the door.

Liza said, "Come in."

"Excuse me."

A man dressed like a guard entered the room.

He was carrying what looked like a roster.

The man asked,

"Has the new student who fainted near the gate and missed the entrance ceremony woken up?"

Liza turned around.

"Yes, he just woke up."

"That's good. Do you know his name?"

"Yes, his name is Sagar Kurohiko. He seems to have some memory confusion due to fainting, but he remembers his name. He seems to be from the Eastern Country."

"I see. Um... among the students who haven't completed the Holy Tree Candidate registration today, Sagar Kurohiko... Sagar... Sagar... Sagar...? Hmm? Sagar? Hmm?"

The guard (I'll call him that) frowned and leaned in to look at the roster.

"Hmm? Sagar, Kurohiko?"

"What's wrong?"

"Ah, no, I can't find his name in the new student registration list... That's strange?"

"Ask to see his candidate application."

"Ah, right. First, let's see his candidate application."

The guard and Liza turned to me.

"Eh?"

"Do you have the application? Come on, show it."

"Application?"

The guard and Liza looked at each other.

The guard said with a bewildered expression,

"Holy Tree Candidates must bring the application sent in advance and complete the registration to be officially admitted as a Holy Tree Candidate. It's only natural."

Silence.

Liza tilted her head.

"Could it be... you don't have the application?"

"Um... I've never heard of Holy Tree Candidates or the application..."

The atmosphere changed.

The guard's gaze became suspicious.

"Then why are you here? Liza-sensei, who is this...?"

"Well, I thought he was a new student... He was brought in by a silver-haired girl around the time the entrance ceremony started. She said he had fainted near the gate. But at that time, he would have been very late for the ceremony."

"Then he's an outsider!?"

"Hmm... I'm not sure. I thought he was a new student and took good care of him."

The situation was getting dicey.

The guard, with a stern expression, put his hand on the sword at his waist.

"I'll ask the questions. But if you resist, I'll cut you down here... What will you do?"

Hmm.

Just as I had resolved to try my best in this world, I found myself in a life-threatening situation.

Even if I wanted to resist, I'm just an ordinary person without any special skills.

I can't use martial arts, and certainly not magic.

This is bad.

If I can't prove my identity, I might end up in jail?

Or worse, I might be executed for being a suspicious person with no identity...

Wait.

I don't even know what kind of world this is.

I can't end up in jail without knowing anything.

The future I thought was open suddenly felt closed off.

What do I do?

What should I do?

Then, Liza put her hand on the guard's shoulder.

"Hey, he doesn't seem to have any weapons. There's no need to be so aggressive. As I said, he seems to have some memory confusion. It would be cruel to be rough with him."

But the guard's eyes didn't lose their hostility.

"He might use a spell. We can't be careless. He could be a spy from another country trying to infiltrate as a new student. Or perhaps he's an accomplice of the man who escaped from the detention room the other day..."

The guard pointed his sword at me.

"So—what will you do, Sagar?"

I slumped my shoulders and sighed deeply.

There's no choice.

He has a weapon, and I should calmly surrender for now.

If I provoke him, my life might be in danger.

To show that I have no intention of resisting, I raised my hands.

"..."

Despite the dire situation, the question that came to my mind at that moment was... surprisingly trivial.

...Does the term "hold up" make sense in this world?