332 329. From that day on.txt (1/2)

--The same fate as me, 'he' will walk the same path.

To me, the ”Other World” was, as the name implies, an alien, strange and abnormal world.

The sky is still blue, the clouds are white and the sun is bright. However, the scene below is a completely different one.

A series of towers made of gray stones, and the ground between them was also painted with gray stones. It is a strange canyon that one would like to call a country of stones.

Probably, it is a cleared trade route that has been hardened. All the earth-colored stones have been painted over, and a shining box with wheels, like a carriage, comes and goes from earlier.

The costumes of the people walking along the road are strange, their numbers are numerous, busy and hushed.

They were walking in the middle of such an 'otherworldly' city.

Like me, they were alone with their parents.

I follow the touch between the father and son from the perspective of a short boy.

Undoubtedly, these are memories of Aikawa Kanami's childhood. The black-haired man, who seems to be his father, now speaks a word that proves this.

''Yeah. Yeah. Uzunami is going to be the best man in the world, of course. After all, he's my son.

I heard those words from next to me on the road.

I - no, the young Kanami nodded back and sincerely vowed to live up to her father's expectations. Like some little girl, she understands what it means, but she's probably making a smile because she doesn't want to be disliked.

Honestly, I don't need to see what's coming next, but I know.

He's just like me. So, from here on out, the development should be pretty much the same.

But the conversation comes to me like a slap in the face.

Forcibly, some boy forces me to watch the play.

'I heard, Uzumi. I heard you got an audition. ...... haha, keep it up. Win. Keep winning. Act like my son.

As we walked, the conversation between father and son unfolded.

Sometimes there are words that I don't understand, but thanks to the 'connection' I have with Kanami now, I can understand the meaning, if only faintly.

I remember my mom's face and continue to listen to the man as Kanami.

'Look. Don't let one victory slow you down. It's important to keep winning, no matter what you do, no matter what time it takes. Lose just once and you're not the best. ...... If you're not the best, you're not worth anything.

For a man, it may be a good intention. Maybe it's an act of parental affection.

But I thought that this was not a lesson to be heard from a child who was not old enough to listen to it. I was uncomfortable with the way he said it to me like a curse.

'Your father also climbed to this point by continuing to win ....... He went from nothing to this ....... Unlike me, you're off to a good start. Unlike me, you've got a good start, and you can be better than that. Higher and higher, to the top of this world, I'm sure. ......

The man seemed to be looking at Kanami and talking to her, looking somewhat far away.

The figure seemed to be using the child in accordance with his own burning ambition.

In contrast, Kanami frowned as she listened to it. Then she nods back, clearly not sympathetic, and carefully chooses her words as she responds.

'Yeah, I'll do my best ....... But, Dad. There was a boy crying today. A child who is crying because I was chosen to be .......

Apparently, there was a heartbreaking incident today with that ”audition” or something like that. Honestly, I can pretty much guess what happened. Probably, the man who is currently on a roll right now next to him has been trying to eliminate his rival behind the scenes.

...... vortex waves. It's a pity, but it's inevitable. The best people will remain and the less competent ones will be removed. This is the only thing we can't do about it ......, so to speak, it's the rule of the world.

It stinks. What are the rules of the world.

I couldn't come up with a good word for it, so I guess I'm just fooling around with a big, vague choice of words: .......

It's still a short conversation, but I had already come to hate Kanami's father with all my heart.

However, even though Kanami is very young, he's trying his best to chew and chew on those appropriate words and add them to his values.

Of course, the rules are not something that Kanami, a child in the process of growing up, can easily swallow. The stagnation of emotions swirling in her chest makes it difficult for her to nod back.

Seeing this, the man adds his words.

'You're a smart man, you understand.　Replace those feelings with pride. Don't turn your face down, but face forward resolutely. Never stand still. Be strong for the losers ......, so to speak, courtesy of the winners.

'For everyone else, I'm strong ......?　That's the least I can do: ......?

Caught up in the joking sweetness of his antics, Kanami began to swallow his values.

Watching his son grow up one more time, the man lifted the corners of his mouth in satisfaction. Then he squeezes Kanami's hand and moves forward.

'Let's go, Uzumi. We're going to turn the world around on our own.

Kanami's eyes widened and she stared at the hand in which it was held.

'...... unh!'

Just like with me, he responded with a big smile.

To keep up with her father, Kanami walked at a large pace and followed him soundly.

-- and this is how Kanami began to follow the same path as me.

Every day, without resting, Kanami continued to strive towards her goal of being the best. And, of course, her parents are not next to her.

Alone, Kanami was taken to various towers in the stone country to train in a way she had never seen before.

The first thing she saw was something that looked like a dance.

Surrounded by solemn and frightening adults, Kanami struggled to move her limbs as she was instructed.

Next, I think it was a prayer ....... Maybe.

The verses we were taught were recited over and over and over again. You never rest when you feel like you're going to collapse from acidity or leaking stomach juices.

Then came the songs. This is quintessential for me.

I was practicing various songs during the performance. In the same place, I was also taught to handle the instruments. The variety of these instruments lightly exceeded the number of hands on both of them.

In addition, they were also trained in physical swordsmanship and body arts, and of course, classroom training was done as much as time allowed.

He was used to seeing special training that continued until he fell over, but this was the first time he'd seen something so diverse.

I thought at first that Kanami was being raised as a priestess, since this stone country is much like the temple of the Hooziyars, but apparently not.

It wasn't until the phases of the moon in the sky had come full circle that I realized what that angry man wanted Kanami to do.

Yes, this father and daughter, like us mothers and daughters, met only once a month.

That day, Kanami was still being forced to train in the tower.

Then a man's angry voice rang out.

''-- Vortex Wave!　Why can't you do this much!　You're my son, how dare you!

-What?

Kanami took the time to recite the words on the paper handed to her.

However, there were more than a thousand words written on it. The man was forcing Kanami to memorize them perfectly in just a few minutes.

It was a good time for father and son, but there was no warm exchange of words there. On the contrary, Kanami had turned pale.

'You're not just me, you're also the blood of that woman!　He's going to be the best actor after me - or even beyond me!　Definitely ......!!!!

Actor.

Apparently, the man is someone who does theater for a living. In other words, Kanami is being raised as a performer, it seems.

I finally see where the training is going, and I'm watching the process of creating the best performers.

Frankly speaking, Kanami has good instincts.

I think she has as much or more talent as I do as a performer. But the bar is far too high for a man to demand.

If he starts teaching and can't master it in an hour, he throws a tantrum. Perhaps the man is even more talented than the reasonable Kanami.

I can't help but compare the two.

With the person I once was and the partner I once had. Most importantly, I'm with you now--

”-Okay, it's such a simple thing: ......!　Your sister's yang-taki is already made!　Faster than you, my brother!

In the middle of the training, the special training had moved on to the 'tear free training' that I had also been taught.

And the man pointed to a girl who was even younger than the young Uzumi.

He immediately recognized the girl as Aikawa Hitaki, since she had the face of ”The One Who Stole the Reason of Water”. The girl was being trained in the same way by a woman who looked like her mother.

Hitaki was in tears.

In just a few minutes, not an hour, she had mastered both letting out and stopping the tears.

Using the girl as an example, the man's teaching fever increased even more.

''Listen, Uzumi!　The beginning of acting is all about creating emotions!　If you stumble on this first step--

...... I'm sorry. ...... I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

But Kanami couldn't keep up with it.

This was a dire situation from the point where she was looking forward to the first time in a month that a father and son had touched each other. Her heart was completely broken and she began to spill unstoppable tears.

''--!

The man quickly realized that it was real, not an act, and he was speechless.

All the while, Kanami continued to shed tears. She repeats ”I'm sorry”, biting back the disappointment of being a son and repeating ”I'm sorry” with a single mindedness that she doesn't want him to hate her any more.

I know exactly how he feels.

Anyway, he doesn't want the parents who love him to be angry with him.

They want you to smile all the time. Somehow, I want them to pat me on the head. I want them to praise me gently.

But I don't know how to do that anymore, so I can't help but just keep apologizing.

In front of this Kanami, the man calls out her name in annoyance and tries to reach out to her trembling shoulders.