‹Rin›

I can vividly remember that in the time when Anna graduated from junior high, Gin, or rather, his persona as an Exile told in his speech something along the lines of having in a busy schedule as a student, yet finding yourself in some place taking a proper breather, surprisingly. I thought that something like that was just and only possible in Blue Ink, because of Tenth's well-thought system, but here I am, finally finding myself a time to breathe even in the midst of a dense schedule.

No, I am not procrastinating, surprisingly. It is almost my second nature at this point, but I somehow finished all my work and obliterated my stress, at least for the time being. But then of course I can't help but think that there is still a month remaining in this academic term, and in this season of anime.

…

Was I seriously a first year in college in just 14 or 15 chapters? It may feel absurdly fast to you, but I have been gritting my teeth for already nine months and another.

Enough of that, however. I would rather just melt to a blob than think more of my academic life that is slowly smoothing out my brain. It is not very common that I get this much time off. It felt like I finally got an SSR item after wasting my entire allowance for spinning in mobile gacha.

No, I don't play those games, my allowance is secured, my sanity is being taken away by something different, but you get the point.

In any case, this is a golden time so I kindly declined any kind of invitation that Gin threw at me to go out. At least he understood that my definition of rest changes from time to time. But my inspiration to this is Aka-san, who had a record of 140 days of literally not getting out of a hundred meter radius from his house, upon the initial writing of this chapter.

A/N: I am not considering this as a self-insert. Actually, I might be contradicting myself here. Call this her inspiration to be a slob.

But on that note, going to Potato's place basically doesn't count on the radius as I pretty much have a share in his kitchen. But I am going to say this now and for the last time (probably): In a few years, I do hope that I will have the entire share of this house along with him. And I can confidently say this since I am not saying it aloud.

But even before that "few years" come by, I for the time being will strive to be able to communicate with Haku whatever way it could be. Perhaps that's the second happiest thing that I will wish for, and I really don't have to spell out the first one, do I.

…

"Ah, yes. I would be glad to. It's been a while really, and I am also looking forward to the progress of your R&D. Is that so? I haven't really been keeping in touch with him these days, now that I have graduated. But I'm very glad to hear that."

It seems that Potato was suddenly invited for a lunch today and it also sounded like he is talking to some kind of a scientist. Really, it was something that is quite surprising since this is the first time I am hearing him being acquainted to one.

"Actually… your wife has some things in common with her. Is it fine if I bring her with me? Thank you, but I'll have to convince her first since she's resting right now. Yes, thank you very much. I will see you later."

*beep*

"Uh, did you hear it?"

"Not everything."

«Gin pondered. If he is to ask Rin vaguely, she would definitely decline. But he knew that something important shall not pass through from both sides of her ears, and that she would trade her time of rest. Needless to say, Gin felt really bad for her, regardless.»

"A former Medical Child invited me for lunch, you see."

"…! W-What do you mean…?"

"He was a survivor on Tenth's time. But as you've probably heard, it was only him that came out without the disability. He's not entirely blind, though. Or rather, it might be the case, but he is a very insightful person."

"…

I guess I'll come with you," I can't help but smile in relief. "I have a very long weekend ahead of me, so it's fine."

"Sorry about disturbing your long awaited holiday…"

"No, I got you. I guess I'll get changed."

Honestly, it still feels unreal.

I know that my life took a slight turn three years ago after I moved in to this sector and found out that the Earth is not flat, so to speak. But sometimes, I still can't believe how much the lesser normal things have sunk in to me like it is now a part of my life, or rather, it is indeed.

If I was hearing that something like two years ago, I may have cried out my heart and suffer a huge blow in my emotions. And yet, now, or maybe after Gin's grand ordeal, I think that I have finally settled to a relief. Still, so much has happened after that, but somehow I was able to deal with them with a ready heart if not headstrong. We have always said this, but there are unbelievable's that we believe, that is, not everything notwithstanding.

If anything my thoughts are trying to put myself on the shoe on the person we are visiting today. Sadly, that is the most that I can do as a human who has only heard, and has not yet seen nor felt. It is always the guilt that lurks within me every time the closest people to me are burdened by the weight of suffering.

"Good morning, Mr. Nishina. We might have been a little early."

"It is just fine," and then the person stopped in silence, then groaned, while locked on a stare.

"Hahh… I would have complimented you two if I was able to see her…"

"Ahaha… Her name is Ringo Akanami. She's the one that I was talking about. Rin, he's Hātori Nishina, an acquaintance of Doc from Maris."

"N-N-Nice to meet you…!" I said as I unconsciously lowered my head.

"Ah… please raise your head. I'm not really used to people greeting me like that."

(!)

"Do you need help stepping inside, Mr. Nishina?"

"Thank you," he placed his hand on Gin's shoulder and walked inside the house as I then followed.

But… was I imagining it…? How was he able to tell that I was bowing moments ago?

"You two can stay in the living room while waiting. My wife will be done soon."

The moment we sat on the couch, a dog raised its head from his bed and walked immediately to Gin's side with its tail wagging.

"Umm… do you know the name of that dog, Potato…?"

"He's Don, apparently… and it seems he thinks that I'm here to give him food because he watched me on the kitchen once."

"He certainly does like you. But you're scared of dogs, right?"

"Well, yeah… I don't like too energetic dogs, but he's not like that. Besides, I'm glad that I'm only able to talk to cats since they are mostly quiet when they're full."

"I see. Mind if I ask you something entirely different?"

"Okay?"

"Why did it feel like he was able to see me earlier…?"

"Oh, did that happen earlier?"

"Of all the times you were always paying attention, Potato…"

"But if that's the case, it's true."

"Huh?"

"Mr. Nishina saw you, but not in a conventional way. It's the same with bat's good senses."

"Uhh… what do you call that… echo… echolocal?"

"Close, but echolocation. But technically, the Children of that time weren't technically blind just like bats, bam, mythbusted."

"How was he able to segue that…"

"Since Mr. Nishina isn't really blind, his eyes still function, but in different ways as they are still devoid of capturing light. Even the sound of breathing is able to bring out the thinnest texture of an object and he sees a 1:1 representation of it, however it looks like."

"I guess I expect you to have that explanation since he's a doctor at Maris…?"

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"But I shall never address him as that. He is a human through and through."

In the midst of our conversation a young man suddenly stepped down from the second floor of the house and immediately saw us.

"Good afternoon," he said, as it is now 12, and bowed.

I shall once again realize that bowing one's head is not a gesture that originated in this country or was it from our culture.

Nevertheless, I shall address this person, presumably their son, as a man of culture… as well.

"Tatsu, is that you? Would you help your mom bring the plates to the table?"

"S-Sure…"

"I'll introduce them to you later. Mr. Sakato, Ms. Akanami, you can sit now on the table if you wish to. We're about done."

"Thank you."

After finally seeing the entirety of this family, and this house, more so, it felt like I need to make some things clear. White Street is indeed an absurdly silent road at any given time, but that does not mean that the houses around it are. It just happened that many places in the country have certain standards in terms of soundproofing residences, and our part of sector has it as a requirement that has to be passed. So really, it isn't as ideal a place it is.

But something is different in this part of Sector CX. It may not hold the quietness that we experience, but perhaps this is because this very home is just as serene. It definitely puts me at ease.

In the same sense, I suppose I can also put the Void as a comparison. I may not have spent so much time inside of that room, but I knew that it could be hard to stay in there as I am someone who hears subtle ringing in silence. But that is most likely the cause of Gin's heightened hearing at will.

That being said, we sat at the same time the food was placed down. I may be a culinary student that tinkers around certain methods to bring out the full potential of food or its ingredients. But in the end, food that is not necessarily gourmet, but is home cooking always has a very deep place in my heart.

"This… So pleasant…"

…

"So once again, Ms. Akanami, I am Hātori Nishina, this is my wife, Airi, and our son, Tatsu. We also have a daughter but she has things to do today.

Anyway, as you may have heard, I am a doctor in Maris and someone that is close to Dr. Rishou."

"A pleasure meeting you."

"It is nice to meet you," Tatsu politely greeted back.

Seeing him closely, it does look like he is still in his time of high school, and so I pulled out some questions that I practiced to at least lessen my introversion.

"Are you in senior high school, Tatsu?"

"Ah, y-yes. I was originally in the specialization of Humanities but I shifted to Arts and Design after a rather rigorous process. I am currently in my first year."

"It's nice that you didn't have to repeat," Gin interjected.

"How about Ms. Akanami?" asked Mrs. Nishina.

"I'm currently a first year college student in CCI."

"Oh, I see. That is good for you."

Then, it wrapped up the short conversation.

"I suppose… you are someone that is similar to my wife. It appears that you are also someone that greatly knows the circumstances of your partner."

"Y-Yes… if that is how you interpret it."

"Then I might as well bring about my background… Similar to your significant other, I am also a Medical Child of that program many years back. The result of the tests is our blindness, but apparently, Principal Juushiro is still well, and as I have heard, he is also an Exile."

"Yes. He publicly announced his existence as one."

Then Gin chimed in, "Or more appropriately, his 'nonexistence.'"

"I guess it could also be said like that, even though we barely really know them. It really is sad that they became like that due to the maltreatment of society to them. But in some ways, maybe we Children weren't very far off, especially when our backgrounds as the first ones were less rough than a decade ago."

"It may be the case… the parents may have fallen to their facade, but in the end, we are not really devoid of the same suffering."

"It is as you say…"

"Especially, since I was supposed to be Code 019, but was spared because of Gin."

"…! That happened…?"

"Well, it was one long painful story. But everything is fine now between me, Rin, and her family."

"This is indeed a cruel world…

But that is the more reason why humans shall also be the ones to finish their unfinished business instead of making the Exiles be our cleaners. And that is why I am taking one puny step to also fix a crack in this mess."

On that note, Gin nodded with his arms crossed.

"What I am trying to do is relieving us first generation of remaining Children from the suffering we did not deserve."

"Does that mean… Curing your blindness?"

"Through many years, I have discovered breakthroughs that I have not yet disclosed, yet they still do not suffice. They indeed support my research, but I am still in the middle of finding the pieces bit by bit.

And that is why I will not die, and I shall not even after I find the answer and the cure that I am looking for."

"Truly… you have a family."

"Yes, indeed. It's one of my wishes to see my family with my very own eyes."

Sniff

On that abrupt sound, I suddenly turned towards Gin who has brought out a handkerchief as he wipes his damped eyes.

"Ahaha, sorry. I was just in awe," he spoke without a shift in his tone. "That sounds… feels like the pinnacle of love that you have, Mr. Nishina. I'd say that your blindness is a blessing in disguise, although it still is truly something unfortunate. But in the midst of that, you have a special ability… and that is being able to love your family for who they are. It's something that only you, or your fellows, are able to do."

"…

You have a creative, no, a profound way of thinking. How young, yet wise."

"It's really nothing. I may have secrets and experiences myself, but I am indeed 'still' young. I'm still not someone who can understand other people even if I am in the process of finding my own being. I may know myself the most, but frankly, I still have a hard time understanding humans."

"Hahahaha… you really are an interesting one, Mr. Sakato."

Without realizing, our conversation has gone for some time. But eventually, Mrs. Nishina abruptly stood up.

"Do you two prefer coffee or tea?"

"We will have tea. Thank you very much."

At the same time, the mood of the conversation has lightened up enough for their son to start an exchange.

"Um, Ane Ringo, may I ask…?"

"Yes?"

"I know that we are under contrasting academic courses, but is there something I should take into account for next year?"

"O-Oh… You are studying in the Arts and Design track, right?"

As response, he nodded.

"We're not really that far off. We're graduates from Blue Ink and we're one of the few students who had two courses in our high school. We are an arts and culinary students."

"Ah, I've heard of that school's system.

…!" suddenly, his eyes rounded wide as he released a gasp.

"Are you by any chance from Wisteria…? I'm currently studying there."

"I was, yes."

"I think I've seen you in the past carry-"

"Yes… I was that one gorilla who was effortlessly carrying sacks of rice…"

Flying apples, this is absolutely embarrassing.

The tea is good, but back to the topic.

"Anyway… I guess my answer to your question is that your second year will gradually get harder if we have at least a coinciding arts curriculum. And then the work training will hit home.

But I would suggest doing ocular research on potential companies that can partner with your school and present it, if not proposing it. But really, your last year in high school will greatly depend in your abilities."

"There's something I want to ask, Tatsu," Gin added, upholding to avoiding the confusing logic of "may I ask?" when you are already asking.

This really is going to be a long-running meme.

"I'm not trying to pressure you, but since you have shifted from Humanities to Arts, I'd greatly assume that you're set in this zone. Then… have you ever thought about what you are going to do in the future with arts in mind, may it be something general?"

"W-Well… it isn't really common in the country yet, but I want it to be a stable source of income."

"Umu. You have a long road in front of you, but I'll advise you to start as soon as possible."

Of course, he was shocked.

"Arts as a means of business isn't really the same as being a brand of smartphone that can blow up in popularity. It's hard to make a name in the industry if you're going to start late. If your name or brand is not known then you won't be able to pull clients.

But we'll be glad to give you some advice if you need them. Here is my contact," which Tatsu quickly took.

"…

T-This is… a card from Giotto's…?"

"Yup. But for you, I wrote another number on the back of the card."

I seriously didn't see him do that. All I saw was him handing out the card.

"Come two or so years, you'll definitely have to rely on yourself, or join a group of the same interest. If things don't work out on your own, you can always contact us. Maybe TAC is functioning stably by then."

"TheArtClub… Yes, I will do my best."

"In rare circumstances, inspiration may really be better than assistance per se."

"I shall go back to my room now. I still have homework to do."

"Alright. Enjoy your long weekend."

…

"And now that my son's left…" Mr. Nishina sighed. "There's something I would like to share. I don't know if there is any merit telling you this as Mr. Sakato seems to value humans more than the crooked state of this world… but I will still."

Once again, the tension in the air rose up.

"It was something that the government is hesitating to announce to the public because it may cause a commotion and mostly anxiety to the citizens. It is indeed hard for them to decide whether this should be disclosed or not.

It is very evident that the first snowfall of Orio came in 2017, and at a sudden pace, at that. The greatest theory to support the changes is the tectonic movements in our plates, and it indeed revealed that we inched closer to Taiwan and Japan after three years of research, and unprecedentedly was only felt with several magnitude 4 earthquakes starting from that year. And perhaps along that, there might also be changes in the Earth's tilt and axes. I want to say that, but that is not the concern.

The truth is… Orio was originally a tropical country until three years ago. That is the first variable, and the second is that poverty is never a closed scar but always an open wound. In the latest records of the annual statistics, about 0.9% of the population has been shaved in three years due to the sudden change in climate, and that has not yet been totaled from other causes."

"…!"

The current population of Orio is…

39 million.

"S-Such information hasn't leaked elsewhere at this point…? Just what means did they do for this to be undisclosed…?"

"That, they only know. But shortcomings have been admitted. This much people died because of lack of assistance. It was like how it was in the past where people struggled in the middle of such cold season. But they are not to be blamed entirely. This is a tropical country, and as such there was no need for measures like that. It wasn't really a fault for it to be overlooked.

But even with the help of private sectors such as Gola Labs in providing technology to help, it was still a problem that can't be solved unless a massive loan is to be set. And because of that, it became a very big problem… a survival for the financial constrained families that can't afford the technology. Hence, that percentage was recorded.

…

As I have said, I don't know if there is any benefit to telling you this. But you are someone who is also acquainted to Dr. Kagetora…"

"Along with this cruel word, too.

But… does Ten- Is Principal Juushiro aware of this too?"

"Yes, I personally oriented him too."

"…

I can't promise anything, but maybe there is something that we white masks can do."

Mrs. Nishina fell to shock, "You two are also Exiles…?"

"I am a human, but Gin is indeed one of them."

"There may be something, or maybe nothing that we can help with. We will still be independent, and I don't think a time where we freely shake hands with humans is near…

But those who were deprived are humans we can sympathize with."

"…

Once again, I am very sorry for bringing them to this mess that we made…"

"We may have thrown away our existence as humans, but that does not mean that we hate every single one. We are not perfect beings, as there is still evident hate and fear to this world from our hearts, but time and time, we managed to step up."

"I… I shall reserve my gratitude when the moment comes."

"It can be years of fruitfulness or nothingness, but we will keep ourselves busy."

…

«But in the middle of this tension, in the corner of Gin's eyes, he saw Rin resisting her yawn from coming out.»

"A-Ahh… I think it's time for us to take our leave, Mr. and Mrs. Nishina. I hope to talk with you more.

We had a good lunch."

"Thank you for accepting our invitation."

"Mhm. But it is because the time gave its way to this."